The Cotton Factory Times. — 1905-11-10 (Manchester, Greater Manchester, England)

WHITE.  CHAPTERS I. AND H. THE FIRST PERILS OF NETTA.  In Netts Sherlock—formerly Nellie Landon—made up her mind to aucreed, she would succi,ed, so said Amy Burke, her maid. But it was a hard taak that Netta had set herself.  She had done much already. Daughter of an officer and a rentleman who had come to ruin and died in poverty, she had struggled to live by fiddling in the streete.  Then Reggie Masters had found her out. Reggie was a friend of her family in the better days that were gone. They had learnt to love—and then the bolt had fallen. A cloud of disgrace had burst over Reggie's head, expceure, humiliation, and flight had followed, and Netts wa.s alone again. Reggie had sent her papers to read, and she knew that he was innocent—but how to prove it? Now the recognition of her genius had come. Society could give her nothing too good. She was worshipped for her music's sake. 'And she had made up her mind to clear her lover, at all hazards.  So she had schemed and plotted and intrigued until she had been invited to Loudwater Priory, for she knew that somehow Lady Langworthy, Sir John's young and beautiful wife, was bound up in the secret cf her lover's disgrace. At Loudwater, somewhere, were the proofs of Reggie's innocence, and ,he had come to ferret them out,  Here, then, was danger; but there was more to come. Two people were in the house who must know her errand if they recognised in Netta Sherlock the Nellie Landon who had played in the streets. They were Lucille Canton and Niel Jackman, both at one time servants in Captain Landon's household. Lucille had been tried (and acquitted) on a charge of murdering her husband; and Jackman was recognised as her partner in the unproved crime. Jackman had fastened himself upon Reggie Masters as a confidential servant shortly before Reggie's troubles began; and now Netta had to fight with the rest. Had they recognised her? Netts feared they had. Lucille had, in fact; and hurrying off to Jackman, who was servant to Gordon Falmer, a guest in the house, arranged that when Netta rode off on a motor-car at night to oatch the last train to town, he should be outside the door to identify her. The first thing that Netts noticed was that certainly Sir John had no part in the secret that centred round his lady. The second, that when Gordon lealmer entered the room Lady Langworthy grew silent and almost rigid. Her face grew wax-like and set as she felt the force of the strange man by Netta's side.  It was at Gordon Falmer's invitation that Netts passed from a musical selection that was merely brilliant to something more melodious—something that began with a queer little quivering note that had a touch of fear in it. At the first chords Gordon Falmer started. He grasped a chair rigidly; his face grew whiter and still more set; great beads glistened on his forehead.  "Where did you get that from?" he asked Netts. "That I cannot tell you," she said firmly; and Falmer said something that sounded like a curse. In a thunderstorm Netta wished to start for the station, but before she left the house the motor-car standing at the door was wrecked by lightning; and Jackman, standing by to watch Netts leave and identify her with the little girl who played the violin in the streets, was blinded.  In a few momenta Lady Langworthy, with an agonising look on her face, staggered into the room. She told Netta that no one could help her; she had forged her fetters herself and must wear them. Netta felt no desire to return to her room, for she knew ahe had already touched the fringe of the mystery, and wished to probe deeper. So she walked boldly along the corridor, and as she glanced towards a big window she saw it gradually open, and the figure of a man enter. Then, to her amazement. be whistled the original air she herself had played during the evening, and in a few moments Gordon Falmer appeared. Creeping behind an old cabinet she heard them discussing anxiously the disappearance of Reggie Masters, and then they went off into Falmer's room. Netta waited until five o'clock. Then she saw, not the stranger, but Gordon Palmer himself, with a white face and eyes full of a strange fear, disappear through the window. In the morning she was amazed to hear that Dr. Rayford, Falmer's private medical attendant, had found Gordon Fainter dead in his room at four o'clock—yet she hask,seen him leave the house at five o'clock.