Okolona messenger. (Okolona, Miss.) 1900-current, 1920-12-23

l
the old Dobson estate as his. All of II
Is his. His brother was legally and is
now actually dead"
you are a worse man than was,
said Jed. II never interfered with Mr..
S dney's scheme Of punishment. You
are trying to. His scheme was just. "
What's the use Of this debateT'
exclaimed. "You are morally incapa-
BILE Of right doing"
sand you are foolish collection of
pious axiomS," said Jed.
When we came to the penltentiary
! entrance, we encountered Morgan of
the Metropolitan agency. He stopped
me-
"You had me fooled" he said. 81
really thought you didn't know"
81 did not know" l said.
Didn't you!" he exclaimed. "YOu
are here to see Richard Dobson. fol-
lowed my bunch. have the answer
to the thing. l know why this man
Sidney never was younger than twenty
years. You are here to see Richard
DobsOn because you are representing
Arthur DobsOn."
arthur Dobson Is dead"
81 know he is-as a name but he
is alive as Sidney."l
"Nlr. Sidney is dead" I said. "We
have come here to tell Richard Dob
son that he can go free, did not
know who Arthur Dobson was until
last night"
AS Morgan stood before us on the
penitentiary steps. thought how true
had been my conception of him as
the inevitable. Mr.. Sidney had out
played fate, but it was by using the
trump card death.
Morgan's face showed some unpIeas-
ant lines.
"What do you mean, that Sidney is
dead?' he asked.
"He died Christmas night read
his diary last night. Jed gave it TO
me. 1t is the one Dravada tried to
steal. We came here at once to tell
Richard DObson."
LET his brother Arthur tell him.
Richard is dead" said Morgan, going
on down the steps. ''But l am not
through with you people. Publicity is
just as good now as 1t was before"
He got into an automobile, and was
driven away.
Something always happens to these
moral conSciences," said Jed savage
ly. you'll learn life some day, young
fellow. Now keep your mouth shut
inside here"
The warden told us that Richard
DobsOn had died the night before. He
had sustained a great shock the night
he walked out of the penitentiary anti
was found on Mr.. SidneyS grounds.
The adventure not only Overtaxed him
physically, but 1t had affected his i'm
agination. When the guards found
him, after the message from Hartley
house, he was incoherent and in fe
YER,
He never regained strength or ra-
tiOnality. He had been quiet at times,
but at other times was in delirium.
When delirious, he suffered chiefly
from the delusion that he had seen
his brothers ghost.
He died slowly and in great misery,
the warden said.
"NOw keep your mouth shut, you
fool" Jed ordered-by merely prod
ding me in the ribs.
The warden was affected by the
news of Mr.. Sidney's death. He re-
membered him as the pleasant man
who had called one day. 1t seemed to
me that our visit, so shortly after Mr..
Sdney's death. must appear as thing
strangely without purpose to the war
den, but Jed was SO apparently right
in asking for silence at this time that
l yielded to his prudential course.
The right and wrong of the Dobson
affair was in the grave. Our depar-
ture from the penitentiary was awk
ward. thought. The warden did not
seem to find II so.
On the way back Jed presented, vi
ciously, the sharp edges of our trouble.
"YOu have that fellow Morgan to
deal WITH" he said. "lf you are going
to be moralistic, you will ruin the lives
of two ladies who have trusted you.
Morgan has to be bought. You are moi
doing anyone any hurt now. You are
not keeping an innocent man in the
penitentary. You are not disturbing
justice or defeating punishment. You
are taking the surest means to the
protection of the innocent by briblng
this man to silence"
OF all the obvious things / might
have said to this man who for long
time had terrorized the Sidney house
hold, none seemed pertinent. They
would have been imprecatiOns and re-
proaches. They would have dealt
with the past. He. as If he had q
clean slate, was dealing with the fu-
ture. 1t did Mrs. Sidney and IsobeI
no good to tell Jed that he had been
a rascal. and was unfit to advise.
eff you go to Mrs. Sidney" said
Jed, "she viii sacrifice herself and
everybody else. Go to Miss Sidney
and tell her that the family must pay
Mr. Et-rgan $4,000. He'll want $50.
COO. He'll take twenty. Give Il to