Licking Valley courier., 1922-04-27
CHAPTER TX.
A Walk Beside the Lake.

"The name seems like Sheriff." the
inferno agreed. "He said 1t before
when we had him on the table up
stairs; and he has said It now twice
'llstinctly-Sherrill."
His name, do you thinkf"
II shouldn't say so; he seems trying
10 speak to some one named Sheriff..
There are only four Sherrllls In the
telephone book, two Of them In Evans
ton and one way out In Mlnoota."
"The other?"
"They're only about six blocks from
where he was picked up; but they're
on the Drlve-the Lawrence Sherrills."
The inferno whistled softly and
looked more lnterestedly at his pa
tents features. Hell be conscious
some time during the day, there's only
slight fracture, and-perhaps you'd
better call the Sheriff. house, any
way. II he's not known there, no harm
done; and II he's one Of their friends
and he should :"
The nurse nodded and moved of.
Thus 1t was that at quarter to
live Constance Sheriff. was awakened
by the knocking Of one Of the serv-
ants at her fathers door. Her father
went down stairs to the telephone In
strument where he might reply with
out disturbing Mrs. Sheriff.. Constance,
kimona over her shoulders, stood at
the top of the stairs and waited. It
became plain to her at once that what
ever had happened had been to Alan
Conrad.
"Yes. Yes. You are
giving him every possible carer Z.
At once"
She ran part way down the stairs
and met her father as he came up.
lie told her Of the situation briefly.
"He was attacked on the street late
ast night; he was unconscious when
they found him and took him to the
hospital. and has been unconscious
ever since. No one can say yet how
seriously ne ls lnJureu.
She waited In the hall while her
rather dressed, after calling the ga
rage on the house telephone for him
and ordering the motor. When he had
gone, she returned anxiously to her
rooms; he had promised to Gull her
after reaching the hospital and us soon
us he had learned the particulars OF
Alnn's condition. II was ridiculous,
Of course, 10 attach any responsibility
TO her father or herself for whit had
happened to Alun-a street attack sucl
us might have happened to any one
yet she felt that they were IN part
responsible. They had let him go to
live alone In the house In Astor street
with no better adviser than Wassa'
luam. Now and perhaps because
hey had not warned him, he had met
injury and, II might be, more than
mere Injury; he might be dying.
Something which had disturbed and
excited Alan had happened to him or
The first night he had passed In that
house; and now, II appeared, he hue
Ieen prevented from passing a seconC
nlght there What had prevented hin
mud been an attempted robbery upol
the street, her father had said. Bu
suppose It had been something els'
Ihan robbery.
She could not formulate more def
lnitcly this thought, but II persisted
she could not deny 1t entirely an,
shake II OIL.
10 Alan Conrad, In the lnte after
noon OF TINT day, this same though
wns coming fur more definitely und fa
more perslstently. He had been awnk
1 and sane since shortly after MONDAY
The pain OF head which ached throb
blngly and OF u body bruised and sOr
wus beginning to give place to q feel
ing merely OF lassltude-a languo
which revisited lncoherence upon hlr
when he tried to think, The man VIII
had assailed him hud meant to kill
he had not been any ordinary robbeI
That purpose, bllndly recognized an
fought against by Alan In their strul
gle, had been unmlstakable. Only tn
chance presence Of passersby, who ha
heard Alan's shouts and responded