!,V
A
Author of "A Chain of
11.
TILE IX(L)i:ivST.
We.xt morning the inquest* was
proceeding. The great living room
each class found ample to satisfy
its motive. The mere fact of be
ing within that exclusive home,
within those heretofore inaeessi
ble doors, was enough to thrill
and dalight many, and observa
tion and scrutiny were as well re
paid as was the listening to fhe
astounding revelations that were
poured into their ears.
Coroner Seofield's jury was
composed of intelligent men, wlio
were eagerly receptive to !r- ap-
the curiously bizarre bits of evi
dence that became known as the
witnesses were questioned.
Hr. Stanton told of his lining
called to the house, and his dis
coveries and conclusions. He ad
mitted that he assumed de:«ili was
caused by the blow 011 the head,
but claimed it was a pardonable
error in view of the fact that
such a blow had been given.
affirmed, and Dr. Moore corrob
orated it ,that the autopsy showed
that death was caused bv aconi-
Pauline was called next, and a
little flutter of exci.tement in the
audience greeted her appearance, i,n- the
Exceedingly dignified, but of a
sweet, gracious mien, she at once
received the silent approval of the
crowd. Her bla,ck gown, its collar
of sheer white organdy slightly
they almost disconcerted him and
then, hidden by veiling lids, whose
long lashes f^ll suddenly ais if to*
couceal further disclosures.
uP**t
188
£ot
8^J»tevI
Nt^riteiifrbu discovered herin the
7m
iiy
pip«r
h»W
i»6ld«fcbjr
-O.
CURVED-
CAROLYN WELLS
Eviv
a ii
I to 1 1 iv a
a I in ix
at. (Jarden Steps was crowded with i1'0""' near In*r il she were- alive—
iistvners drawn hither by syiripa-'ol" conscious—or sd pov.rr to
thy, interest or curiosity.* And
S(,,,'uni
1
1I1^I,u^l«,i
palliug facts narrated to them and ''round the neck of. the victim
T(e
t.
O" the. whole Pauline was not'the witness, it certainly succeed
a satisfactory witness. She told,! ed.* Pauline Stuart turned even
*n a most straightforward way, of whiter Mian she had been, and she
leaving »the breakfast table to go caught her br«ath quickly and,
to her aunt's room and of finding audibly as she\flashed a fright
there t%. dead bojty. She told ened gjance at Gray Haviland. It
clearly all the circumstances of was by no.v means*a% acsusing
ray, the skilled powder' glance, though many who saw it,
Jf1" ,*~® eccentric garb of Miss eager for a direction in which to
Harrington herself. But question^ cast their suspicions, took it for
as to her opinion of th«e facts1 such.
Drought little response. But Pauline controlled herself
asked Coroner SeofieidT
think,
J°tte
'i
And her jewels!
jk«r» st."
ti^Krnjs^ffl^a At**
3 *,
r" The (J old lint/,
W A
a be ii
I a it iv
it
1
it to
lor help. Any one know-
mg my aunt's fear and horn
anything reptilian will agree
this."
"It seems evident," said the
coroner thoughtfully, "that some
intruder entered Miss Carring
1011 room at or near 1 o'clock.
That this intruder in some man
ner induced Miss Carrington to
swallow the poison, whether con
scious of her act or not. That the
subsequently, am
ome reason, placed the snake
and, later still, brutally gave her
a stunning blow with'the black-
jack which was found, and there-
why. my aunt sbould be so elab-.-:
Stanto"
inB?"
of
to
jor
by fractured her skull. Granting •,natlc
these assumptions, can vou, Miss:t,lat *he
Stuart, give us any information
that would lead to discovery of
opinion or suggest a theory that
tine poison, administered either __
by the deceased or another at an|m,£'lt account for such strange
hour not earlier than 1 o'clock 1 happenings, at least, in part?" Pauline replied tranquilly. Evi
aiui probably soon thereafter. The "No," said Pauline slowly, "I dently she had fully recovered
terrible blow that had fractured
have 110
the skull had been given after life
had been for some time extinct.
Dr. Stanton asserted emphatic
ally his late patient's detestation
*f drugs br medicines of arty sbrt,
adducing thereby the extreme im
probability* of the poison having
been self administered. More
over, the temperament and dispo
sition of the late Miss Carrington
eutirelv evinced a love of life and
desire to prolong it by means of,
any device or assistance the doc- clothing makes
tor might give.
¥ea
n.or
whole condition of the body andl^or
"and, too, what. would
"We are establishing the facts
of the proceedings, not the sense
niuS
hair and eyes. Today her eyes! "At least," he went on, "we
seemed fathomless. At times, gaz- have the facts and the approxi
ing intently qt the coroner until mate time of the crime have you.
I.ll0v nlmna+ 1.1... -1 Di..—a. a
Carrington at immediately. "Certainly* not."
.he mid coldly. "That is, I can
have no suspicion of the murder
er's identity. It was, of course,
a midnight intruder of the crim-
returned
Pauhne? "probably at 15 or 20
tunutes put 12—I am not sure."
1-
'4- •'When I left my aunt she was
^rearing her pjearfa and the other
jewelry she had worn "with her
iveoing dress. Some brooches and
bracelet*"
««r °«T dressed?''} inal class. I have no individual
8°w» she had worn dttr-, acquaintances who use or possess
Jng the eyemng. ithe weapon'that was*emp)kyed in
'this-crime.1'
"Theblackjaclt is an auxilia#^
only. Th§ pdistn may have been
administered by one not vers&l in
a bracelet*. nals. You admit that,il suppose*!"
not so much as she had I "It ia no doubt true," said
•fAll ll .* »»_ .t
a^atDuit
for
me
wllo« suehLsde with
Pauline icily* "that poison maybe
given by a person not helokguig
to the orimibsl classes. I fail to
seeM however, hbw that fiiet if-
the
01*e
orately arrayed and seated in an f°r love it is improbable
easy chair in front 01 her mirror, that she 'has ever done any one
It is contrary to all her customs or
8UCh
habits.j
deed in revenge as to gain', if you
"Could she have been killed wean pecuniary gain, all the lega
first and could the jewels and tees mentioned in her will may
adornments have been added aft- said to have that motive."
erward?" as^ced the coroner of! Pauline's manner and tones
the doctors. I were so impersonal, so scathingly
"No," replied Dr. Moore "the ^ron'c
IcejiTing fTie poisoning and malting
jit appear that the blow caused the
death. There
den*al
of them," returned the coroner a made. Did you,
little testily, for he was at his after leaving your
open at the throat, well suited her wits' end even to make a begin- midnight see or hear anything
pale, beautiful face and her dark
*n this strange case
Miss Stuart, any suspicion of
who
the murderer'can be?"
*The question was shot out sud
denly. If its intent was to startle
the ways of professional erimi- she was fond. I offered to take
down her hair and put away her
jewels^ but she declined those
services, and bade mo leave her."
"She was^wearing, when yon
left her,Houly the jewels she had
worn during the eveningf" *•.
seems
to me 110
other way to account for the con
ditions that confront us."
A silence followed this. Its
truth was patent to everybody.
Cle irly, th'e poisoner had deliv
ered the blow, lor no one else
would attack a victim already
dead. And a phiusible reason
would be the hope that the poi
soning would
pa:
unnoticed in
thought should overcome
time elapsed for a successful get
away to be made. Nor would the
burglar have been at pains to
,.'ov^" UP
hls
,lavi"g
woulcl ,lave
bor*v»-
ls as
])e\ obscure
the hand that wrought this' "What could it have beent"
havoc?" asked Pauline, her composure re
"Not any," and Pauline raised 'gained, her voice low and even,
her great eyes a moment to Sco-! Seofield looked at her. "It is
field face and slowly dropped Miss Stuart, th&t the only
them again. motives for murder are love, re
"Then can you not express an
venge
ai,y
might account for such strancre your aunt?"
one
can I imagine
her
who could have killed my
wrong as to call for such a
88
a11
clothing makes such a theory I suggesting it made it seem so far
practically impossible." removed from possibility that it
"Quite impossible," added Dr. 'was# far more emphatic than any
view of the other apparent cause
of death.
"And it points to the work of
an amateur, went on ScoiiI.d rington often angry with you?"
"a professional criminal, would Indeed, y(.s as she was with
know that the autopsy would dis- everybody."
close the earlier crime.
1 auline lost her nerve. 1 don own experiences. You prepared
know anything about, it she a night luncheon for vour mis
cried. and sank bade into her seat, tress?"
her face buried in her hands. "Yes, sir," and
Coroner Seofield was a man of
tact. It. is entirely natural, AIiss apprehensively.
Stuart," he said, "that. this I "What
you.
But w0 must, realize the fact that
the theory of a professional bur
glar is practically untenable, be
en use nothing was stolen. A bur
glar's motive could be only rob
bery. and this did not take place.
Nor can we think that la burglar
was frightened away before he
could appropriate the jewels. For,
after giving the poison and before
the blow was given, sufficien
1
poisoning work for,
achieved his end, he
secured his booty and
eseaPe-
So, it is evident
motive
not being rob-
yet unknown, and may
and complicated."
or gain. Can you imagine
these directed toward
poise. "lT "c
,__o I can think of no
to amount to a disclaimer
the legatees. Her way'of
could
have been.
sense of such a proceed- as
But Coroner Seofield was
unmoved as his witness.
"Quite so," he said coolly
"and therefore inquiries must be
unusual or suspicious?"
"What do you mean'by un
usual or suspicious?"
"I mean did you see or hear
any*hing,
Before answering Pauline looked
in turn at all the members of the
household. Haviland slowly
turned his head as if (to look at
something across the room, "and
as slowly brought it back to its
previous position.
"I did not," said Pauline, look
ing, straight at the coroner.
That is all," said Seofield
briefly, and th'e^neet witness was
called.
This was the maid, Estelle. Her
eyes were red with weeping, but
she was not hysterical now, or in
coherent. She answered tersely
questions as to Miss Carrington's
habits and as to her words and
actions during the maid's last in
terview wjth her.
I lfft her at aboiU 12:45," the
witness deposed "I had given
her the Oriental negligee, of which
Ml
'W, boudoir robe die bade me replace
tauch jewels as! had alreaily takaa
^inteiition of 0o*]S«5lX, 2d
I*
1,1
Miss Stuart,1
aunt soon after
anything at all that
you could not explain to yourself
as being in any way connected
with the traredjr we are investi
gating?"
W
her eremng gown for the
pearls while I changed her cos
tume."
"And then sh* dismissed you
for the night?" 1
"Yes, sir."
"Where was she then? Sitting
before the mirror?"
"No, sir. She .stood in the mid
dle of the floor."
"'Was she in an amiable
lnood?" :^v-v
"She was not. Because I
offered to assist lie.r further she
al,5Ti
All, in anger. Was Miss Car-
--Confine
had asked of them.
"An overdose of bromide may
be fatal," parried the coroner, not
answering the question directly.
"Why did you do it?"
"I didn't do it," and the
French girl shrugged her shoul
ders. "Why should I poison my
mistress? She was quick tem
pered,, but I was. used to that."
"Don't be stupid," said the cor
oner "the bromide didn't poison
Mjss Carrintgon, for, in the first
place, she didn't take it. The
glass of milk was found next
morning untouched, though the
sandwiches were gone. Therefore,
the bromide in the milk was
found. Why did you put it in?"
"I didn't do it," reiterated the
maid. "Look higher up for that!"
What do you mean?"
I mention no names, but some
body must have done it if bromide
was found in the milk."
"But yoi#tried "to get the glass
away- next morning without being
seen."
"Who says I did?"
"Never mind that you were
seen. Why?"
."Well, sir, if I thought anybody
was going to get into trouble be
cause of it, I was only too glad
to help, if I could, by removing it
before it was noticed." Estelle
spoke slowly, as if weighing her
words, and her furtive glances at
Pauline bore only one signifi
cance. It was palpably apparent
that shes suspected Miss Stuart of
the deed, and out of kindness had
tried to remove the incriminating*
evidence.
Pauline stared at her with a
glance that went through her or
over her or around her, but
oracrt'd 1 y( trom tin- room in remember that we relatives ami
sir," and now Estelle's
voice trembled and her eyes rolled
was
What was it?"
"Two small sandwiches and a
glass of milk."
"What sort of sandwiches?''
"Caviarre, sir."
"Ah, yes. And why did you
put a large done of bromide in the
glass of milk?"
"Did it kill her?" and Estelle
screamed out her query. Pauline
and Anita looked at one another.
It was the same question Estelle
e(j
your answers to your
gave
not the slightest attention to the
speaker.
"Did you put bromide-in your
aunt's glass of milk, Miss Stu
art?" asked the coroner^ and Paul
ine said, calmly: "Certainly not."
Mr. Seofield sighed. It was a
difficult matter to get at the truth
when the witnesses were clevei'
women in whose veracity he had
not complete confidence.
Hp gaye up Estelle. for. the mo
ment, and called Gray Haviland.
The young man's appearance
gave every promise of frankness
and sincerity. He detailed ttie
circumstances precisely Pauline
had told them. He denied having
heard or seen anything suspicious
during the night. He referred to
the' coroner's fist «f motives for
the crime, and added that he,
agreed with Miss Stuart that the
present case eoftld scarcely b(e
ascribed to love or revenge. If
the murder was committed for
gain, it was, of course, a formal
necessity to question all the bene
ficiaries of Miss Carrington's will,
bat he was sure that all such in
heritors were quite willing to Jbe
questioned. For his part he be
lieved that the criminal was some
enemy of Miss Camngton un
known to her immediate house
hold, and he suggested that* sneh
a one be searched for.
"You've got'that«love," here
minded," that wvs formd Clasped
in the hand of the murdered
woman. »Why not traee that or
endeavor to learn in some ^w'the
reaaon for the* many pecullff cirT
eumatances or discover, at least
a way to look for further evi
dence rather than to vaguely sus
pect those who lived under Miss
Carrington's roof?"
"I am not asking your assist
ance in conducting this inquiry,
Mr. Ilavilaud," and the coroner
spoke shortly "but pursuing my
own plan of obtaining evidence in
mv own way. Will you kindly
answer questions without com
ment on them?"
O a a a O
friends are just as much interest-
jn clearing up this mystery as
you are, and we want to help, if
Ave can be allowed to do so in
telligently."
Asked again if he saw or heard
anything unusual in the night,
Haviland replied: "You said 'sus-j
picious' the other time. I did see
something unusual. I saw Estelle
go stealthily downstairs at 3 a. m.
That's unusr.al, but I don't go so
far as to call if suspicious."
(Continued Next Week.) "gpj
Offered Peacc In 1917.
From German Democracy Bulletin.
The Berliner Tageblatt on November
22 reports the following from Munich:
"The pross is again spreading the idea
today that not one of Germany's enemies
during th'e world war had made a peace
offer. In opposition to this report the
Bavarian minister of finance. Professor
Dr. Jaffe, has asked the Beriiner Tage
blatt to give out the following remarkable
explanation of the preliminaries to peace:
"In order to avoid obscuring the facts.
I hereby declare through the Berliner
Tageblatt that in the late fall of 1917 I
personally transmitted a peace offer from
the government of the United States,
handed to me by the confidential repre
sentative of President Wilson into the
hands of Secretary of «tate vs. Busche.
The latter
promised
me at that time to
hand It to Secretary of State von Kuehl
mann. A few weeks later a correspond
ing peace offer, from the United States
to AustriaJHungar.v was given to Count
Czernin. lri spite of many inquiries on
the part of the people entrusted wirti the
mission, neither Germany nor Austria
Hungary feplied to the offer.
How Bocwell Old It.
From the Detroit News.
How pleasant it is to know that Bos
well. who we have always thought was
meivly a kind of animated notebook, was
a droll, vain, bibulous, Warmhearted
creature, a good deal of a Pepys. Here is
one of his own blurbs, which we quota
from Mr. Newton's book:
Boswell, the author, is a most ex
cellent man he is of an ancient farfl
ily in the west of Scotland, upon
which he values himself not a little.
At his nativity there appeared omens
of his future greatness. His parts
are bright, and his education has been
good. He has traveled in post chaises
miles without number. He ls fond of
seeing much of the world. He eats
every good dlBh, especially apple pie.
He drihks "Old'Hock."* He ha£a very
fine temper. He is somewhat of a
humorist and a little tinctured with
pride. He has a good manly counte
nance, and he owns himself to be
amorous. He has infinite vivacity,
yet* Is. observed at times to have a
melancholy cast. He is rather fat
than lean, rather short than tall, rath
er yourig .than oldr His shoes are
neatly made, and he never wears
spectacles.
Thisv brings the excellent Boswell very
close to us' indeed he might almost be
a member of the Authors' League. Es
pecially apple pie, bless his heart!
Only Strong Survive.
From the Marshal Ito wn (la.) Times
Republican.
The newspaper directory for the United
States shows 42 less dallies and 864 less
weeklies for the year 1918 than existed
before. A total of 1,954 publications gave
up" the ghost during the year, while 776
new enterprises were Started.
Almost prohibitive cost of paper and
war wages coming upon an Industry
wtlich
could not
®ti.. prices,
readjust its selling
except gradually, swamped those
who^dtd not have a strong cash reserve
to withstand the period of convulsion.
Demobilization is sending many printers
home from the army to lind their former
places of employment abandoned. One
dally where there were two or three
reduces the number of jobs. People here
after are going to read fewer newspapers,
but many more people will read the sarfie
newspaper. One setting of type, one'
editing and one gathering of news muet
serve nore people. The presses
win
Iongermtylt printers will not be so much
is demand.
The Senate amendment to the war rev
enue.bill, levying a tax of 10 per cent
upoa products of child labor entering In
terstate commeice and designed to have
'the same effect a» the chiltf labor act
recently, declared unconstitutionally the
•uvnikie «court, was adapted by Senate
Howe 'conferee*.
The wife and youngest son of Dr. Lieb
JfDMht, head of the Spartacans, who were
vrresfcd when»Liebkpecht's house was
surrounded by soldier* and marched, have
been Mbesated. Many Incriminating bol
skevist documents were seised. Lleb
kneekt's eldest son Is still Iik the
of the police.
Secretary Glass wrote Chairman
Kltchin, of the House ways and means
committee recently that he win shortly
recommend extension of(the privilege or
cenverting Liberty bonds of the first and
second issue te bonds bearing Interest at
the higher rate of 4^ per cent.
Trimi^e Tjas paid the memory of Col
Tlieodeve Roosevelt by members of the
National Boft & Shoe Manufacturers' As
sociation at tne banquet in New York*
/They rose and stood In silence for
30
seconds out of respect to "our great de
parted American of Americans."
Resolutions ^rotestfng^ against the an
nexation of Korea by Apan and °-nnr
President WUson an&the .Ajiiertcan peace
delegates to apply, the principle self
detersninatlon tA that country hava
sent by'the New Korea Association
UMMint and members oBthe
relattensa committee of ooUcress.
State foresters'atf reporting many an.
plications from returning soldiers for out.
door work.
Flint, Mich., and Sheboygan. Wis.. hav»
oadh and severally entered upon a oTm.
jMOsn^make themselves MO per cent
run
s,rf
•f'ff
Sh-
sen
ve beoo
to
fttetjft
1
7.