Plentywood herald. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1908-current, 1928-07-26
By EDISON
WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE

III. Long, out fishing with Alex
ander Pierce, a detective, tells of his
projected trip to Southley Downs.
Pierce advises him to keep his eyes
wide open while there. On the way
in IA train DR.. Long is attracted by a
girl, who later faints. DR.. Long
treats her, and looking into her bag
is astounded to find a loaded revol-
yer.
DR. Long meets Ahmad Das, an
Oriental, who conducts him to Sou
thley Downs, where he meets Mr..
Southley and his son Ernest South
ley, Mr.. Haywood and his son Villas,
and then Josephine Southley, who is
the girl he had met on the train. Jo-
sephine tells him the story of South
ley Downs and its ghost, which is not
the ghost of a human being but of a
tiger.
DR.. Long has a quarrel with Villas
Hayward over Josephine, and finds
that the Haywards have a strange
authority over the Southleys. He is
ordered to leave Southley Downs.
The rain prevents him leaving at
once. DR.. Long and Ernest go out on
the road in the rain looking for the
tracks of a tiger that Ernest says
are there.
They find the tracks. Later Err
nest and DR.. Long see a prowling
creature in the hall of Southley
Downs. This ~frightens the elder
Hayward, who also sees it. Ernest
begins to feel that Ahmad Das is
perpetrating some deyiltry.
The elder Hayward is later found
dead, his neck broken as if by a
giants blow. Now read on
at is even an intruder's business
to be watchful at a time like this.
| believe you'd better try to get
some sleep"
"Still the doctor-but there are no
personal wishes involved this time"
She even had the spirit to smile al
me.
But | couldn't answer that smile.
The scene in the den had struck
home too hard.
professional interest alone" !
told her.
Maybe it was just the effect of the
dawn that her eyes seemed to lose
their luster before my gaze. She
hurried on up the hall, turning at the
door of her own room.
"Thank you for your watchful-
ness" she called to me. "And I'm
sorry | spoke so rudely, when you
first spoke to me-and don't expect
any other-but professional interest
now. If there was anything /
could ~say-about last night-Fd say
it, too. But / know it wouldn't help
any"
81 can't imagine hat it would"
"But at least-you are not going
home today"
1.-THE storm decided that matter
for me, I'm afraid. But there may
be a chance yet"
The door shut behind her. The ear
ly morning hours drew on, and the
mist that was the twilight of the
dawn faded like the rain.
One of the negroes had built a lit
tie fire in the library, and South
ley Joined me here. And in a moment
Ahmad Das opened the door from the
dining room.
He stood straight and calm and
unruffled, not an expression that the
eyes of man could read on his i'm
passive face as he called us in to
breakfast.
After breakfast Ernest and | went
down to the scene of the murder. 1t
would be several hours before the
coroner came; and | thought that
anv obvious clews should be collected
and preserved at once. Such things
have mysterious ways of disappear
ing.
We had no difficulty in locating
the exact spot where the body had
been. Even the rain had not washed
away all the evidence. My first work
was to look about for footprints.
There were none to be seen. The
place was covered with a rich growth
of grass, and root-filled turf as a rule
does not receive very clear imprint.
Besides, the rains would have wash
ed away any imprint that had been
made.
We were no more successful IN
finding a weapon with which the
crime could have been committed.
We searched the hillside with the
greatest possible care; and even wad-
ed a short distance into the swamp.
Of course it seemed likely that any
blunt instrument that could have in
flicted the wound could have been
easily tossed into the swamp water,
from which it could not be recovered
until the waters receded again.
Although it was inundated to a
depth of six feet now, it was perfect
w clear that the isthmus was still
above the surface of the water at the
moment of the murder. 1t was not