Evening star., 1923-12-17
CHAPTER v.
The Curiosity of Lefty.

For a brief space, save for the
stertorous breathing Of the old but
Ter as he strove to regain control of
his emotions. there was silence IL
the dining room The secretary
stared straight before him and Dr..
Hood glanced meaninSly toward
the pantry door behind which Geoff
stood listening with all his ears.
Then, as though to himself. William
Dunn spoke.
Barking does never bite. he
used TO say. I've seen them come to
him at the Office, cringing and bully
ing. begging and bargaining. the men
he'd beaten at their own game, and
l,e laughed at them all. but he didn't
laugh at this thing that hung over
him. ! might have known that some
thing terrible was happening last
night. for I seemed to have pre-
munition. a sense of impending horror
Tor which l could not account. Sleep
would not come 70 me and at last
dressed again and went out, to walk
the streets aimlessly till nearly morn
ing"
The doctor cleared his throat.
why did -ou say that perhaps Mr..
Bernhard didn't know who it was that
was threatening him, but that he
knew the cause? DO you mean that
some one had taken up anothers
quarrel with him.?
Perhaps Doctor. A man cannot
be as close to another day after day
as ! have been to Mr.. Bernhard all
these years without getting to know
him pretty thoroughly, and to GER
tain extent may say that ne conndeo
in me: I mean that he would let him
self go occasionally, show his
thoughts and feelings without the re-
straint he exhibited toward almost
every one else" Dunn paused and
th a n
hut after a .momcnt II fell to the
arm OF his chair, and he continued:
He never showed me one OF those
letters nor told me the contents. ex-
Cept that some lunatic was threaten
ing his life for an imaginary cause
that he couldn't fathom, but when ne
ragged against the sender OF them he
seemed sincere enough in his wonder
rs to the mans identity. 1t was
only when he spoke of the alleged
reason for the insane persecution tnat
his tone assumed the defensive.
always thought that perhaps the let
ters themselves or the dates on which
they came so regularly recalled some
incident in the past in which he had
gotten the best Of a deal and the
loser nurSed a grudge.
Or. Hood shook his head.
THAT wouldn't account for murder,
Mr.. Dunn. especially If il were some
one else who took up the gruuge ano
that person was actually insane. i
never heard of a maniac able to keep
track OF dates with such regularity
rs You say over ptrlon covering
several years. but perhaps he was
crazed only on the one subject. had
hrooded over it until IL had become
an obsession; and that would hardly
be the case IL it concerned mere
financial deal with a third party, at
that"
Dunn's faded eyes blinked rapidly.
1T might. If that deal involved ruin
for others, Doctor, and the writer OF
those letters were one of them and
believed Mr. Bernhard 10 be responsible.
You don't know what 1t is to have
everything swept away! / do. but
my failure was my own fault an
error in judgment or perhaps s lack OF
10 blame but myself. I was present
less than two years ago when man
who had been wiped out on the mar
itet the day before forced his way
into Mr.. Benkards private office and
leyeIed a revolver at him. Mr.. Ben
Ilard just laughed and took 1t away
from him: he had courage. as Carp
says. He wasn't afraid OF anything
on earth"
Did the man ever trouble him
AGAIN." the doctor asked
NO. sir Dunn's voice sank to
p husky whisper He blew his own
brains out that night. OF course, Mr..
Benkard had nothing to do with his
only mentioned IL to show you to
what lengths despair can drive man
sometimes"
"On the blind impulse OF the mo-
ment. maybe. but not in the calculated
persecution which your story of these
letters indicates" DR.. Hood re-
moved his spectacles and began to
polish them ,absentmindedly. "On
what dates did they come? Were
they sent to his home or to his
Officer"
ION the. tenth of October and the
first OF January. Sometimes they
came to the office. but more often
TO his home
But wasn't it your custom as his
secretary to go through the office
mail yourself@' demanded the doctor.
Not on those dates" Dunn shook
his head 1.-The first letters had gone
10 his home you see, Doctor, and I
had instructions aTter that not to
touch the mail in either October or
January until Mr.. Bernhard turned 1t
over to me again, but il was always
back in my hands on the eleventh of
october and-except this year-by the
second of January. The letters came
promptly"
Il cali to mind we'll when the first
one came to the house" 1t was
Henry who spoke. and although his
tones were feeble they We're fairly