Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1920-07-02
CHAPTER XIII.

CHAP ER XIII.
Coming as it did as a dire climax to |
ali my other troubles, the shock of old |
Rufus Gaston's murder sent me into |
an apathetic state from which it
seemed impossible for me to arouse
myself. Without hope and even with
out interest 1 DULY awaited the ap-
proach of my trial for murder.
While there never had been an op-
portunity for any bond of affection to
become established between my aged
relative and myself-in fact, I had
seen him only three or four times in
my whole life, and then only for brief
periods-still his unexpected and
dreadful end had bereft me of practi-
cally every hope of being acquitted of
the absurd charge against me. Wick,
it was plain, intended to disclaim all
knowledge of my relationship to Mr..
CASTOR, and now there was no one
else to explain how happened to be
living in the building at the time of
Miss Lutan's murder. Unfortunately
I had destroyed both Mr.. Gaston's let
ter to me and the note from my
mother which had first told me of the
old mans intention. My great-aunt,
I learned from the newspapers, had
been completely Frustrated by the
tragedy and had been unable to come
to the funeral. The shock of the news
of her husbands violent end had left
her in a very critical condition. 1t
seemed to have wholly deranged her
aged brain, and the physicians sum-
moned to the Maine camp where she
was refused to permit her to be re-
, moved from there or to let anyone
, talk with her, declaring that the least
excitement of any/sort would be apt
7 to have fatal results.
To be sure there was my mother,
who could prove my relationship, but
I felt there was little use of dragging
: her into it. On reading of her uncle's
4 death she had fastened on from the
+ West to attend his funeral and had
:, been puzzled and alarmed by not find.
: ing me there. All the time had beer
n in prison had been writing her my
: usual weekly letter, affecting a cheer
r fulness I was far from feeling and tell
= ing her nothing of what had happened
n Her letters to me, addressed to thu
h Granddeck, had been forwarded by tht
post office, so that until after she ar
e rived in the city she knew nothing O.
D. my plight. 1t had been my hope tina
9 I would be able to conceal everything
le from her until after I had been trium
j. phantly acquitted. If were not sh
o. would know the worst soon enough.
a When she first learned, or fror
le what source, of my predicament I wa
unaware. did not even know of he
presence in the city until the day afte
h my great-uncle's funeral, when-jus
twenty-four hours before my trial wa
D to begin-a keeper brought me wor
4. that she was waiting downstairs t
u see me.
" l steeled myself for the intervie'
N with her. Naturally I expected tbs
VI she would be terribly horror stricke
y and shocked at my plight, but whs
N her attitude toward me would be
N could not conjecture. fully expecte
W nothing but reproaches from her. SI
W had been so opposed to my coming |
n New York that felt certain that st
IN would insist that my conduct must /
" responsible for my being where 1 no
= was. For years, it seemed to me, til
n relations between my mother and M
M self had been nothing but continuoI
q misunderstanding To my gre,
2 amazement and bewilderment not 9
unkind word nor the suggestion of
b reproachful thought came from h'
lips.
- "Oh, my boy, my boy" she had erie
as she saw me, Il know you didn't {
it. know my boy is innocent! VIII
3n can / do to help your"
1r- In that glorious, wonderful nome
De- of reaction all resentment l had fe
1r- toward her forever vanished. 1 hs
ell one sacred, unforgettable glimpse
er' the eternal greatness of the Mothe
get heart, ever ready to forgive, ever quiz
ro- to comprehend, ever prompt to al
[or For one sweet hour we talked
re- gether, more understandingly tn;
Ice ever before in our lives. Freely al
on fully told her everything, even to 4
TO wonderful but hopeless love- for Be
bara Bradford. She was willing, an
ew ious, eager to aid me-but what W
as there that she could do?-what W
there that anyone could do?
ON 1t was hopeless for lone woman
on limited means, unacquainted with t
his big city and unused to its ways, to
avs tempt to battle against such powert
me- and desperate criminals as were &C
ow cerned in the far-reaching plot
as make me the scapegoat of their he
IA GUS misdeeds. I could only adv
ing her that she see McGregor and G,
d man and be guided by what they 81
anu gested.
When the morning Of my trial ac
try 80 80 AN 80 rho ,,;oh+
fore had not slept at all. had spe
~. all the black hours reviewing my Ii
oua especially the last year, thinking W
- what high hopes and great expec
tions had come to the metropolis a
how miserably everything had turr
iieo out for me. Step by step I had
VINO viewed the events that had brouI
any me, discredited, all but friendless,
siln but penniless, into this dismal cot
tne room accused of a horrible, cowar
il q deed, seeking to see wherein I mi
heu have altered my recent actions
ac changed the course of my life to av
Yet having arrived at this shameful g
was vo+ S+,onro 70 COW found mvs
NE after mature reflection convinced t
sur had this last year to live over ag
reai not in one iota would have done
ferently-no, not even if l could h;
was foretold what the future had in st
Who for me.
my CTo BE CoNTINUED.)
ture -
cory Gum resins form the chief mgr
,ical ents Of incense.