Belt Valley times. [volume] (Armington, Mont.) 1894-1977, 1923-05-10

live. Harry. have you never seen Z
picture with the numbers printed in
below like that7 Can't you guess yet
where your father must have sent for
that plcture7 Don't you know what
those numbers mear~'
"What do they r&sanY'
"They are the figures of his num-
Der In what is called The Rogues'
Gallery And they mean he has com
mitted a crime and been tried and
convicted Of 1t; they mean in this case
that he has committed a murderl"
"A murderi"
For which he was convicted and
sentenced"
Sentenced
Yes and is alive now only because
before the sentence could be carried
out, he escaped. That man, Philip
Eaton, Is Hugh"
Hugh !"
Hugh Overton. Harry"
Hugh Overton"
YES; l found II out today. The
police have just learned II, too. / was
coming to tell your father. He's
Hugh Overton. the murderer of Mat
thew Latron !"
mo; mol"
"Yes, Harry; for this man is GER
talnly Hugh Overflow"
at isn't sol I know 1t isn't so !"
you mean he told you he as
some one else. Harry"
mo; / mean" She faced him de-
family. Father let me keep the pho
tograph. l asked him. and he said,
DO whatever you wish with it. He
knew / ear TO keep It'll He knows
who Hugh is. so he would not have
said that. if-if-"
She heard a sound behind her and
turned. Her father had come into
the room. And as she saw his man.
ner and his face she knew that what
Avery had just told her was the truth.
She shrank away from them. Her
hands went to her face and hid Ii.
She knew now why 1t was that her
father, on hearing Hugh's voice, had be.
come curious about him. had tried to
place the voice In his recollection
the voice of a prisoner on trial for his
life, heard only for an instant but
fixed upon his mind by the circum-
stdnces attending 1t, though those cir.
cumstances afterward had been for
She knew why she, when she
had gazed ar the picture a few minutes
before, had been disturbed and fright,
ened at feeling 1t to be a kind of pic.
ture unfamiliar to her and threatening
her with something unknown and ter
She knew the reason now for a
score of things Hugh had said to her,
the way he had looked many times
she had spoken to him. 1t ex-
all that 1t seemed to her, in
moment. TO explain everything
except one thing. II did not explain
Hugh himself; the kind Of man he
was, the kind OF man she knew him
be-the man she loved-he could
lot be a murderer
Her hands dropped from her face;
The threw her head back proudly and
riumphantly, as she faced now both
Avery and her father.
"He, the murderer of Mfr. Latron !"
The cried quietly. ut isn't sol"
The blInd man was very pale; he
vas fully dressed. A servant had sup
,orted him and helped him down the
tairs and still stood beside him sus-
aiming him. But the will which had
conquered his disability of blindness
vas holding him firmly now against
he disability Of his hurts he seemed
opposed and steady. She saw com
'assion for her In his look and com
asslon-under the present circum-
tances-terrihed her. Stronger. far
nore In control of him thar his COM !
assion for her, she saw purpose. She {
~ecognized that her father had come {
0 q decision upon which he now was !
Ding to act; she knew that nothing '
he or anyone else could say would s
liter that decision and hat he would {
his every power In acting I
pom 1t. !
The blind man seemed to check him |
elf an instant In the carrying out of I
is purpose; he turned his sIghtless =
yes toward her. There was emotion
!, his look; but, except that this emo !
on was in part pity for her, she !
ould not tell exactly what his look Q
expressed. :
"will you walt for me outside, Har- I
Iet?" Re said to her. II shall not be !
a
She hesitated; then she felt sud .
enly the futility of opposing him and .
ne passed him and went out into the !
all. The servant followed her. clos =
III the door behind him. She stood Y
,st outside the door listening. She .
card her father-she could catch the !
me: she could not make out the !
,ords-asking a question; she heard 0
,e sound OF Avery's response. She
-arted back nearer the door and put a
or hand on 1t to open IL; inside they s
ere stlll talking. She caught Avery's c
me more clearly now, and 1t sudden v
terrified her. She drew back from
,e door and shrank away. There had L
no opposition TO Avery In her o
theirs tone: she was certain now n
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