The Chesterfield advertiser. [volume] (Chesterfield C.H., S.C.) 1884-1978, 1922-04-13
(Continued from last week.
CHAPTER w.
ARRIVED Safe; WelI.s

N'VNoo Sare; WELL"
AS the door closed behind Sheriff..
Alan went over to the dresser and
picked up the key which Sheriff. had
ieit. de put 1t, after moment. on
the ring with two or three other keys
ne mad, and dropped them into his
pocket; then he crossed to q chair and
sat down.
Sheriff. had spoken of the possibiI.
ny that something might have hap
pened" to COrvet; but 1t was plain he
oiu not believe he had met with actual
violence. He had left it to Alan to ex.
anime Corvets house; but he had not
urged Alan to examine 1t at once; he
nad left the time of the examination
70 be determined by Alan. This
showed clearly that Sheriff. believed
perhaps had sufficient reason for be-
heving-that Corvet had simply "gone
away Corvet, Sheriff. had said, had
married In 1880. But Sheriff. I'm long
knowledge Of his friend, had shown
hrm conviction that there had been
no mere vulgar liaison in Corvet's life.
D1d this mean that there might have
oeen some previous marriage of Alan's
tather-some marriage which had
strangely overlapped and nullitied his
public marriage2 In that case, Alan
could be, not only in fact but legally.
Corvet's son; and such things as this
Alan knew, had sometimes happened,
ana mad happened by u strange cOmbi-
nation Of events, innocently for all
parties. COrvet's public separation
from his wife, Sheriff. had said, had
taken place In 1897 but the actual
separation between them might. pos
sibly, have taken place long before
that.
The afternoon had changed swiftly
into night; dusk had been gathering
during his last talk with Sheriff.. ST.
that he hardly had been able to see
Sherrflrs face, and just after Sheriff.
had left him. full dark had come. Alan
did not know how long he had been
sitting in the darkness thinking out
these things; but now little clock
which had been ticking steadily in the
blackness tinkled six. Alan heard q
knock at his door, and when it was re-
peated, he called. Come in"
The light which came In from the
ha;i, AS the door was opened, showed
man servant. The man, after q re-
spectful inquiry, switched on the light,
He crossed into the adjoining room
q bedroom; the room where Alan was,
he thought, must be dressing room,
and there was q bath between. Pres
emily the man reappeared, and moved
softly about the room, unpacking
Alan's suitcase. He hung Alan's other
suit In the closet on hangers; he put
the linen, except for one shirt, In the
dresser drawers, and he put Alan's
few toilet things with the ivory
backed brushes and comb and other
articles on the dressing stand.
Alan wondered, with a sort of trepi-
dation, whether the man would expect
to stay and help him dress; but he
only put the buttons In the clean shirt
and reOpened the dresser drawers and
laid out change Of things.
II was to tell you, sir, Mr.. Sheriff.
is sorry he cannot be at home to din
nsr tonight. Mrs. Sheriff. and Miss
Sheriff. will be here. Dinner is at
seven. SIR"
Alan dressed slowly, after the man
had gone; and at one minute before
seven he went downstairs.
There was no one In the lower hall
aud, after an instant of irresOlutiOn
and glance into the empty drawing
room. he turned into the small room
at the opposite side of the hall. A
handsome, stately, rather large wOm-
IN, whom he fOnn1 there, introduced
herself to him formally as Mrs. Sher-
rill. Her reserved, yet almost too
casual acceptance Of Alan's presence,
told him that she knew all the par
ticulars about himself which Sheriff.
had been able to give; and as Con-
stance came down the stairs and
joined them half a minute later. Alan
was certain that she also knew.
Dinner was announced, and they
went into the great dining room,
where the table with it's linen, silver,
and china cleaned under shaded
lights. The oldest and most dignified
Of the three men servants who waited
upon them In the. dining room Alan
thought must be butler-a species of
creature of whom Alan had heard but
never had seen; tile other servants, at
least, received aud handed things
through him, ara took their orders
from hiJc.
What Sheriff. mad told Alan of his
father had been iterating Itself again
and aGein In Alan's thoughts; now he
recalled that Sheriff. had said that his
daughter believed that Corvet's dis
appearance had had something to do
with her. Alan had wondered at the
moment how that could be; and as he
watched her across the table and now
and then exchanged a comment with
her, II puzzled him still more. He
had opportunity to ask her when she
waited with aim in the library, after
dinner was finished and her mother
had gone upstairs; but he did not see
then how to 90 about 1t.
I'm sorry" she said to him. "that