Northern Weekly Gazette. — 1903-11-21 (Stockton-on-Tees, Cleveland, England)

LPH MARKHAM." "Fool! Dolt! Idiot!" hissed the old man between his teeth. "To re• jcet a fortune of ninety thousanu pounds. But I vrill not lose it, I swear. What is the girl to me? A niece by marriage only. She haa none of my hlood,! Curse her, and the meddling fool who tied up the money!" _ _ .  He Unlookod a small door in his desk, and preNsing a secret spring concealed on the inner partition, disclosed a narrow shed containing several small bottles, from which he selected one, looking nervously around as he closed the spring and relocked the desk.  "Pshaw, I am womanish!" he muttered. "A few drops between her Lips and the money is mine. Could the be induced to drink it would save me trouble. Still, things are perhaps safer as they are." He lighted a smaXl, shaded lamp, and traversed the broad staircases and long corridors—where the silence and gloom struck awe into his guilty soul. All the houselvyld had long since retired. It was a warm September night, and showers of leaves were ever and anon hurled softly against the windows by the rising wind, rustling as might the footfalls of whispering phantoms assembling to hurl destruction on the man who was bent on tale murder of an inn.otent girl.  At Sadie's door he hesitated a moment, then unlocked it gently and went in, enassin,g the ante-room, whis.sll was in darkness, to where the faintest of lights was burning. He shaded the lamp he carried, and plae-ed it an the table, and them crept softly to th•-: bedside, where an outlined form could be dimly diseerned—lying, apparently, in peaceful, dreamless sleep. Be could not see her faoe, but that was not n.vessnay for his infamous purpose. With shaking hands he uncorked the bottle and dropped some white liquid on to a handkerchief. As he stretched out his hand to place it over the mouth of his victim, a sudden movement in the room startled him. He dropped the bottle and turned quickly, to see a figure coming out of the gloom. Noaa-ew and MOTOr it. came, softly, n.ois.elessly, the form of a woman, though her doilies gave no rustle, nor her feet the softest footfall. Markham's heart beat almost to suffocation, his tongue seemed paralysed, and great beads of perspiration stood out on his knotted forehead. Ha forgot Sadie and his insane passion to possess her fortune; his whole being vra.s centred in sensations of awe at this appariticrn in female form, which came steadily, silently on, nearer, nearer, nearer. Then a voice---a distant, far.-off voice—wailed out of the shadow:  "Richard, what aro you doing here? Would you commit another murder?"  With err almcut sta.rting from thoi r soclastAs ho staggarod back. The fiis-ure /row crtood bosiao the bed, and  pointed towards him with ghostly, outstretched fingers. It was the form of his dead wife! With an unearthly cry he threw his hands before his eyes, and then fell to the floor in an unconscious heap. The phantom drew a long breath, and, removing a lace head-dreas and wig, revealed the satisfied features of the little comedian, who proceeded to lift the insensible Markhain and lay him on the bed, where a. heap of odd curtains had been disposed so as to represent, in the dim light, the figure of Sadie, than riding through country roads, beside her lover, many miles away.  Sadie is now Mrs Jack Pend, the proudest and Imppiest of wives. She never knew what had influenced her unrAle—after a long illness, through which Torn Wyvern nursed him assiduously--to give his uncondtitienial consent to her marriage with Jack. But the two actor:4 often discuss the affair, and the low comedian is dispos.ed to consider his "make-up" and performance of the defunct Mrs Markham to be one of the most succek•sful impononations of his arastio career.