The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, April 2, 1905, Page 5

THE SAN FRANCISCO” SUNDAY CALL. 1§ call 2 dramatic Calvinism—pre- me lift him and fetch a doctor at ed damnation without a sinner's ‘With Fletcher’s aid the old man was placed upon a scfa, and Gordon loosed stiff neckerchief, put a cushion under the recumbent head and chafed the sick man’'s hands. The physicicn looked grave when he Her control was gone. rust herself to speak further and turn- He waited a moment in the but she did not move, and ven “good-night” he left her. foot of the stair, during Gor- s painful interview, a black-gowned 1an had noiselessly bent over t A letter, arrived been laid there by Fletcher She lifted it and ex- The address written in a peculiar, twirly handwrit- g, on blue-tinted paper that bore in She could not “A paralytic stroke. be taken home.” CHAPTER XV. The Pitfall. It was later evenin the library, the dlar¥ in which he had written those lines to Ada open before Gordon sat in he listened, then passed with it Since the scene with Annabel whose dark aftermath had been the {llness of his oid friend a deeper sense of pain had oppressed him. His marriage had sprung from an inarticulate divining of the infinite need of his nature for such a spiritual influence as he had imagined she pcssessed. The room was unlighted, but a spring fire flickered on the hearth. She caught up a paper-knife and crouching on the hearth held its thin blade in the flame. When the metal was warmed, she soft- ened the edges of the seal and with deftness that split it off w the note and read s breaking, opened Her basilisk eyes ction—the triumph It had ended A mood of hopeiessness was upon him now as he wrote: a_battle-ground between in, replaced it, and ke it across as if the had been opened in the ordinary Semiipluty. = roughness — sentiment, soaring and groveling, dirt and deity— all mixed in one compeund of inspired Marriage is the hostage he gives better nature. hostage conspire with his evil side to betray the citadel? “Nature made me passionate of tem- per but with an innate tendency to the love of good in my mainspring of mind. d am &n atom jarring between these mont rose to her feet, a e stood on the thres- She saw with rellef that it was Noel, and handed her the Jetter What if this r ladyship will know if divine lifter—the supreme harmonizer, Her Josk, wis iy evade me forever? he life of those around me? turn to the fairest of those blandish- ments, and, like the drunkard, forget my penury in the hiccough and happi- ness of intoxication?” The thought of the delicate coquetry of Jane Clermont beauty of Lady Caroline Lamb flashed across the page, an insistent vision. He saw the latter’s eyes, eager and invit- ing, as he had so often seen them at Melbourne House, when he had turned from them to a paler thought of a past season when the once to Melbourne Willlam Lamb's ha: e other replied, and Gordon came T have left your lordship this even- A said Lady Noel, forbid- he answered, an: y. On its exposed page marked an article of con- whose title was of a Peer of the wound their two names in gossip that had never tired. Love with her would have counted all sacrifice cheap, all obstacles gossamer. sion yield him what he craved? he bound to live pent within the pali- sade a priest’s ceremony had reared Of what virtue were honor and faith to a bond where love was Could such a pas- But this picture faded as he wrote across it the answer to its question: I will keep the Yet 1 and the mother of my child are far wpart as the two poles! I am a toy of inborn unbeliefs, linked to unemotional goodness, merciless vir- tue and ice-girdled piety. bow down to arcana which to me As well believe in Rob- or Breslau the con- jurer if he had lived in the reign of The everlasting why which stares me In the face is an unforgiv- Yet to yield—to go the broad, easy way of conventional belief and smug morality—to shackle To anchor myvself to the frozen molehills and write, other men, glozed comfortable lines on which friend and foe can batten alike, and with which reviewer and reviewee, rhinoceros and and megalonyx can lie quietly I am asked are bagatelles. erts the prophet, ng a wine glass d at the query. ¥ I was just doubts I feel! om to find Fletcher He threw down his pen and leaned his forehead in his hands. “Would to God I had nothing better The Adventure of the Priory School The Duke fell back in his chair. “And whom do you accuse Sherlock Holmes’ answer was an as- He stepped swiftly for- ward and touched the Duke upon the (Continued from Page 2.) es?” said he. s eyes were fixed upon , who stood by his mas- tounding one. “1 accuse you,” said he. that I could your Grace, I'll trouble you for that e freely in Mr. Wilder's ab- Never shail I forget the Duke's ap- pearance as he sprang up and clawed with his hands, like one who is sinking Then, with an extraor- dinary efiort of aristocratic self-com- mand, he sat down and sank his face It was some minutes be- The man turned a shade paler and malignant glance at Holmes. Grace wishes—" you had better go. , what have you to say?” My friend walted until the door had he retreating secretary. . your Grace,™ colieague, Dr. into en abyss. in his hands. fore he spoke. “How much do you know?” he asked at last. without raising his head. “I saw you together last night.” “Does any one friend know?" “I have spoken to no one.” The Duke took a pen in his quivering fingers and opened his check book. “I =hall be as good as my word, Mr. I am about to write your r unwelcome the infor- mation whick you have gained may be When the offer was first made I little thought the turn which events But you and your friend are men of discretion, Mr. Holmes?" “I hardly understand your Grace.” “I must put it plainly, Mr. Holmes. If only you two know of this incident no reason why it should go any . I think £12,000 is the sum that I owe you, is it not?” But Holmes smiled and Watson, and < assurance from Dr. table that a reward had been of- I ghould like besides your Mr. Holmes.” am correctly in- to any one who will rour son is?” ther thousard te might take. keep him in custody?” e latter heading is included, »nly those who may have y, but also those who p him in his present po- cried the Duke, your work well, <, you wiil have no of niggardly treat- “1 far, your Grace, that matters can hardly be arranged so easily. is the death of this schoolmaster to be accounted for.” “But James knew nothing of that. You cannot hold him responsible for It was the work of this brutal rufiian whom he had the misfortune to his thin hands to- arance of avidity y your Grace’s k upon the table,” aid be glad if “I must take the view, your Grace, that when a man embarks upon a crime he is morally guilty of any other crime which may spring from it.” “Morally, Mr. Holmes. No doubt you But surely not in the eyes A man cannot be condemn- ed for a murder at which he was not present, and which he loathes and ab- hors as much as you do. that ke heard it he made a complete confession to me, so filled was he with horror and remorse. hour in breaking entirely with the mur- Oh, Mr. Holmes, you must save him—you must save him! that you must save him had dropped the last attempt at self- command, and was pacing the room with a convulsed face and with his clenched hands raving in the air. last he mastered himself and sat down once more at his desk. your conduct in coming here before you spoke to any one else,” said he. X u would make It would be , for you to crass it Counties Bank, ford street branch, are my agents iis Grace sat very stern and upright his chair, and looked stonily at my The Capital an The instant He lost net an I know where yo some, at least, of those who ur son is, and 's beard had turned more - red than ever against his he?” he gasped. o R reci Inn, about two miles A\ ) W, IO in this soul of mine!” he exclaimed. ““The rest of the world can game and kiss and besot themselves. in peace. Only I—I—must writhe and struggle unsatisfied!” “There Is a carboy outside, lordship, who wishes to see you. “A carboy!” Gordon raised his head. hat does he want?” “‘He savs he has a message for your lordship’s own hands. He's a likely- lcoking lad.” : “Very well, show him in. Hasn't Rushton returned from Mr. Sheridan’s yet?” he added. “Yes, my lord. But Lady Noel sent him out again with a letter for Sir Ralph to his club.” Gordon heaved a sigh of relief. “Sherry must be better,” he thought. He waited on the threshold till Fletch- er ushered in a slim figure in the round coat and buttons of a carman. His chin was muffled In a coarse necker- chief, and a rumpled mass of brown hair showed beneath the edges of the cloth cap, whose visor was pulled over his eyes. “Well, my lad?” The boy stood still, twisting his fingers In his jacket till the valet had ‘retired. Then suddenly as the door closed, the cap was snatched off, a mass of brown hair dropped curling about the boyish shoulders —the silver-buttoned jacket fell open, revealing a softly rounded throat and delicate slope of breast. Gordon uttered an astonished and be- wildered exclamation: “Caro! What mad masquerade is this?” She drew back under the pale in- tensity. the controlled agitation of his face. “Forgive me! forgive me!” Tu- mult was looking from her eves and her shoulders were heaving. “I could not help it! I have tried to forget you during all this past year. I can- not bear to see you only at Melbourne House and at parties and on the street. How pale you always are!” she went on. “Like a statue of marble, and your dark hair such a contrast! I never see you without wanting to cry. If any painter could paint me your face as it is 1 would give anything I pos- sess!™ She had touched his hand, but he drew it away sharply, feeling a black sense of entanglement: in the touch. “‘Lady Caroline! This is unthink- able! To come here in that dress— here, to this house, is sheer madness! 1 did not imagine you capable of such folly!” “You think I am weak and selfish,” she pleaded. “You have always thought I did not struggle to with- stand my feelings. But indeed, indeed, it is more than human nature can bear! 1 loved you before you married Bella—loved you better than name, than religion, than any prospects on earth! You must have loved me more if you had never seen her! She has never cared for you as I do.” He darted a glance at the door. His wife! A rebellious anger,rose in him at being thrust into such a predica- ment. “You have taken a strange way to show that love.” “Oh, I could show it other ways!™ She was looking at him with tremu- lous daring. “They used to say that unce in the East, to prove to a Greek girl that you loved her you wounded yourself in the breast. Would such a thing make you believe how I love you?” your amusement, out in a torrent: sharp egge “Quick! quick!” she urged. “Not that way. Here, to the garden cntrance.” He caught her hand, drew her sharply toward the rear door and opened it. The retreat was closed. Lady Noel, With sparkling eyes and spare figure, leaning on her cane, faced'them at the threshold, her gaze leaping with flick- €ring triumph. At the same instant Arnnabel entered by the other door. The trap had sprung, the joints were working with precision. Gordon's first glance at his wife's face told him there had been betrayal, for the look he saw Wwas not of surprise or wonder, though its indignant lines set themselves deep- €r in presence of the visible fact. The jaws of this trap had been set by accident. How had Lady Noel and Annabel guessed? The latter's eyes were on the carboy’'s costume, as it she would convinee herself doubly by every evidence of her senses. The grim figure on the threshold pcinted one thin forefinger at the shrinking form in the boy’s dress. “Take off that cap!™ Annabe] took a quick step forward, as Lady Caroline snatched off the cov- ering to show a face flaming with de- fiance. “Caro!” “Caro!” she exclaimed— As she looked from one to the other contempt rose in a frigid wave over her features and she drew herself up to h:r full height and stood - stonily erec; Lady Noel laughed with an echoing as Lady Caroline burst *“You can hate and despise me if you want to, Bella. It can make no dif- ference to me. Why did you céme be- tween us in the first place? You never loved him, at least. .You had nothing to give him but that horrible virtuous ?ndsflerence of yours—nothing! noth- ngl now. You have nothing to give him You have made his life wretch- ed with your perfectness and yo! conventions! Everybody knows that! Annabel's look swept her with its of scorn; then flashed on Gordon, who stood composed, motion- less, in a grip of repression. > “Is it not enough for you to have made me the butt of your daily caprice, your shameless atheism?”—she drove the words at her husband—"for all London to gossip of your social ‘con- quests’ and your dissolute affairs? Is this not enough—that you offer me the final dishonor of such planned meet- ings, under this roof?” “It was not his fault!” cried Lady Caroline. “Bella! I will tell you the truth!” 3 Gordon put out his hand with a ges- ture of protest as Noel laughed again, muslcally, maliclously. A ‘knock at the door silenced all voices. It “heralded Fletcher, whose eyes, habitually discreet, seemed to.see no farther than his master. ““Mr. Somers is outside, sir, with the Melbourne coach, to ‘wait for Lady Caroline Lamb.” Lady Caroline'® blank, terror-struck eyes turned to Gordon, and she began to tremble. She ran and pulled aside the portiere from the window. She shrank back with a gasping cry, for she recognized the coach drawn up at the curb, whose lighted lanterns, re- flected from fawn-covered panels em- blazoned with the Melbourne arms, lit plainly the figure of Willlam Lamb's confidential factotum waiting by its step. Her husband had known she was coming there! He had sent Somers in- _ stead of the coachman—he even knew At that moment both heard a voice /of the carboy’s dress! in tl;e‘ hallway. % “Bella!”. he said in’a whisper. - = ““Oh, T thought she had gone to Sea- ham,” she breathed. “You must be- lieve I did not know she was here!” She buttoned the coat over her breast with'nervous fingers and put, on the cloth cap. The sound had thrown her into a paroxysm of dread. least, we may take counsel how far we can minimize this hideous scandal.” “Exactly,” said Holmes. “I think, your Grace, that this can only be done by absolute frankness between us, I am disposed to help vour Grace to the best of my ability, but, in order to do so, I must understand to the last de- tail how the matter stands. I realize that your words applied to Mr. James Zb'ilder, and that he is not the mur- erer.” \ “No. the murderer has escaped.” Sherlock Holmes smiled demurely. “Your Grace can hardly have heard of any small reputation which I pos- sess, or you would not imagine that it is s0 easy to escape me. Mr. Reuben Hayes was arrested at Chesterfield on my information, at 11 o'clock last night, I had a telegram from the head of the local police before I left the school this morning.™ The Duke leaned back in his chair and stared with amazement at my friend. “You seem to have powers that are bardly human,” said he. “So Reuben Hayes is taken? I am right glad to hear it, if it will not react upon the of James, our secretary?” 0, sir, my son.” It was Holmes' turn to look aston- ished. “I confess that this is entirely new to me, your Grace. I must beg you to be more explicit.” “1 will cony nothing from you. I agree with You that complete frank- ness, however painful it may be to me, is the best policy in this desperate sit- uation to which James' folly and jeal- ousy have reduced us. When I was a Very young man, Mr. Holmes, I lovt with such a love as come‘e?nly on: in a lifetime. I offered the lady mar- riage, but she refused it on the grounds that such a match might mar my ca- reer. Had she lived, I would certainly never have married any one else. She died and left this one child, whom for her sake I have cherished and cared for. I could not acknowledge the pa- ternity to the world, but I gave him the best of educations, and since he came to manhood I have kept him near my person. He surprised my secret, and has presumed ever since upon the claim which he has upon me, and upon his power of provoking a scandal which would be abhorrent to me. His presence had something to do with the unhappy issue of my marriage. Above all, he hated my young legiti- mate heir from the first with a persist- ent hatred. You may well ask me why, under these circumstances, I still kept James under my roof. I answer that it was because I could see his moth- er's face in and that for her dear sake there was no end to my long- suffering. All her pretty ways too— there was not one of them which he could not suggest and bring back to my memory. I could not send him away. But I feared so much lest he should do Arthur—that is, Lord Saltire—a mis- aT, 'w change passed over her face. dread had shown there an instant pcllidly—dread of the malig- ‘pant fury she knew lay couched b-e neath the cold exterior of her husband; now were swallowed up in a look more burning, more intense, more ter- rible—a look of sudden, savage certain- ty. She turned this new countenance chief. that I dispatched him for safety to Dr. Huxtable's school. “James came into contact with this fellow Hayes, because the man was a tenant of mine, and James acted as agent. The fellow was a rascal from the beginning but, in some extraordi- nary way, James became intimate with him. He had always a taste for low company. When James determined to kidnap Lord Saltire, it was of this man's service that he availed himself. You remember that I wrote to Arthur upcn that last day. Well, James open- ed the letter and inserted a note ask- ing Arthur to meet him In a little wood called the Ragged Shaw, which is near to the school. He used the Duchess’ name, and in that way got the boy to come. That evening James bicyeled over—I am telling you what he has himsel. confessed to me—and he told Arthur, whom he met in the woods, that his mother longed to see him, that she was awaiting him on the moor, and that if he would come back into the wood @t midnight he would find a man with a horse, who would take him to-her. Poor Arthur fell into the trap. He._came to the ap- pointment, and found this fellow Hayes with a led peny. Arthur mounted, and they set off together. It appears— though this James only heard yester~— day—that they were pursued, that Hayes struck the pursuer with his stick, and that the man died of his injuries. Hayes brought Arthur tv his public-house, . the Fighting Cock, where he was conflned in an upper room, under the care of Mrs. Hayes. who is a kindly woman, but entirely :::er the control of her brutal hus- “Well, Mr. Holmes, that was the state of affairs when I first saw you two days ago. I had no more idea of the truth than you. You will ask me what was James’ motive in doing such a deed. I answer that there was a great deal which was unreasoning and fanatical in the hatred which he bore my-heir. In his view he should him- self have been heir of all my estates, and he deeply resented those social laws which made it Impossible. At the same time, he had a definite motive also. He was eager that I should break the entail, for he was of opinion that it lay in my power to do so. He intended to make a bargain with me— to restore Arthur if I would break the entail, and so make it possible for the estate to be left to him by will. He knew well that I should never willingly invoke -the aid of the police against him. I say that he would have pro- posed such a bargain to me: but he did not actually do so, for events moved too quickly for him, and he had not time to put his plans into practice. ““What brought all his wicked scheme to wreck was your discovery of this man Heidegger's dead body. James was seized with horror at the news. It came to us yesterday, as we sat to- gether in this study. Dr. Huxtable had sent a telegram. James was so NS ® CF RN upon Gordon. sent my letter to my husband! did not count on a scene with Bella— but for me who have bored you, you teok this cruel way to end it all! Well, you have succeeded. Now I know Madame de Stael was right when she called you ‘demon.” You are without a heart. How I have now I hate you. I hate you!” wife's flinty gaze, peared. dan’'s Gordon. mered. him to the others, his jaw dropped. mind: had seen only the uncertain walk, the trembling hand, the dying down of the brilllance and fire into ctumbling ashes. Not the past, the career in Parliament, the masterly craft of the playwright, the years of loyalty to his friends. fi. VRPN 0.0 VeV I WOV AT R g “So!” she said in a stifled voice. “You You loved you—and He made no reply. Her letter? As she spoke he had had a vision of Mrs. Clermont's thin secret mouth, and suspicion clog- ged his tongue. neiseless movements and Lady Caroline looked at himr an in- stant with a shudder as she passed out. said with vengeful emphasis. heard the outer door close heavily be- hind her and the dulled sound of wheels. “I shall always hate you,” she They As Gordon turned again to meet his the footman ap- “Sir Ralph wished me to say he would answer at once, your ladyship,” he said to Lady Noel. “There was no change in Mr. Sheri- condition, Rushton?” asked “Change, my lord?” the boy stam- “Why, I—"_ He looked from Lady Noel shifted her cane. “I re- ceived Rushton’s report. I thought it a pity anything should interfere with your lordship’s evening engagement.” “Mr. Sheridan was thought to be dy- ing, my lord,” said the boy, “and had asked for yo! As his hackney-coach sped through the night Gordon's anger at the 'in- humanity that had kept from him the sick man’s message faded gradually int¢ a duller resentment that held most of grief. ‘The words of his wife recurred to his “A deddering old man!” She Social morality had been ¥ lifelong jest to Sheridan—a veritable “School for Scandal” from which he drew his choicest bon-mots, yet his whole char- acter had been sweetened with the milk of human kindness. Annabel walked a moral princess of parallelograms, vi- ciously virtuous, mercilessly inflexible. “And the greatest of these is char- ity”—whose was it? Annabel's or Sheridan’'s? ~ On the steps of St. Dunstan’s-in-the- ‘West stood Dr. Cassidy with his friend, the under-curate, and he caught a glimpse of the coach that whirled by. “Yonder,” said Cassidy, ‘rides Lon- don’s poet-apostate, known by his limp and his profligacy. The devotees are tiring. How long can the idol stand?” The other turned to gaze. “Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you!"” he quoted, “for so did their fa- thers to the false prophets!” He also was a sanctimonious young man. The house that sheltered the old wit was dark as Gordon ascended the steps, and the hollow echoes from the knocker, reverberating through the hall, chilled him with dread. “He died an hour ago, your lordship,” the servant said. An hour! And but for the delay, he would have been in tlme! As Gordon entered, a prey to this reflection, a thick-set man dressed shabbily, as- cended the steps. He had once been. the dead man’s groom, he explained, and begged awkwardly to be allowed to look upon his face. The servant hesitated, but at the grief in the overwhelmed with grief and agitation that my suspicions, which had never « been entirely absent, rose instantly to a certainty, and I taxed him with the deed. He made a completé voluntary confession. Then he implored me to keep his secret for three days longer. S0 as to give his wretched accomplice a chance of saving his guilty life. I yielded—as I have always yielded—to his prayers, and instantly James hur- ried off to the Fighting Cock to warn Hayes and give him the means of flight. I could not go there by day- light without provoking comment, but as soon as night fell T hurried off to see my dear Arthur. I found him safe and well, but horrified beyond expres- sion by the dreadful deed he had wit- nessed. In deference to my promise, and much against my will, I consented to leave him there for three days, un- der the charge of Mrs. Hayes, since it was evident that it was impossible to inform the police where he was without telling them also who was the murder- er, and I could not see how that mur- derer could be punished without ruin to my unfortunate James. You asked for frankness, Mr. Holmes, and I"have “taken you at your word, for I have now told you everything without an at- tempt at circumlocution or conceal- ment. Deo you in your turn be as frank with me?” “I will,” said Holmes." “In the first place, your Grace, I am bound to tell you that you have placed yourself in a most serious position in the eyes of the law. You have condoned a felony. and you have aided the escape of a murderer, for I cannot doubt that any money which was taken by James Wil- der to aid his accomplice in his flight came from your Grace's purse.” The Duke bowed his assent. “This j§, indeed, a most serious mat- ter. Even more culpable in my opin- ion, your Grace, I your attitude toward your younger s01. You leave him in this den for three days.” “Under soleinin promises—" “What are promises to such people as these? You have no guarantee that he will not be spirited away again. To humor your guilty elder son you have exposed your innocent yourger son to imminent and unnecessary danger. It was a most unjustifiable action.” The proud lord of Hoidernesse was not accustomed to be so rated in his own ducal hall. The blood fiushed into his high forehead, but his conscience held him dumb. “I will help you, but on one condition only. 1t is that you ring for the foot- :nknn. and let me give such orders as I ike." ‘Without a word, the Duke pressed the electric bell. A servant entered. “You' will be glad to hear,” said Holmes, “that your young master is found. [t is the Duke’s desire that the earriage shall go at once to the Fight- ing Cock Inn to bring Lord Saitire home. “Now,” said Holmes, when the re- Joicing lackey had disappeared. “hav- WKL) the King’s name, for £500.” touch of fingers gripping his wrist Something in Gordoen's face, ¥ou ain’t the gent that took the young Murray, his publisher, for 430 guin- eas. ‘What has eternity to do with the con D 0000000000000 000000055008 = stranger’s voice, he let him in, and the new-comer pushed quickly past Gor- don and entered the darkened bed- room before him. There his profound emotion van- ished. He drew a bailiff’s wand from beneath his coat and touched the rigid figure that lay there, proclaimed with gruff triumph: “I arrest this bedy in The exultant bailiff started at the though now distorted with feeling, was fa- miliar. “Why,” he said, “I'm a turnkey, if ladies into the Fleet!™ A “Come with me,” ra Gordon between his teeth, and the bailiff fol- lowed. In the next room he drew from his pocket a draft from John Without a word he indorsed this and handed it to the bailiff, who scru- tinized it and counted out the £4 change. “Now go!" said Gordon. The clock of St. Paul's was pealing the hour of 11 as the hackney coach drove back to the house on Piccadilly terrace, A light, low-lying mist soft- ened the outlines of the alley ways and purified the filth of the street. Overhead it frayed into a night of wonderful starshine, where, beyond the- soiled sordidness of the clamorous city, .the sky spread a web of dia- monds and sifted gold dust. ‘While the wheels rattled onward Gordon’'s white, whimsical, face, lifted to those presences above the smoky roofs, gradually lost its bitter glaze and expressed a curious wistfulness— a vague, appealing weariness and speculation. “Matter is eternal,” he reflected, “always changing but reproduced and eternal. May not mind be also? Is its inner spark celestial? Or, like the cells that produce it, is it a creature of the mold, doomed to extinction with the brain, sinking as the candle flame perishes when the wick falls? I remember when I viewed the plan- ets through Herschel's telescope and saw all at once that they were worlds. gregated cosmic dust we call man kind? What are our little passions and resentments before the least of those stars?” His gaze and his thought fell from the sky. Had he any right to the stubbomn pride which would not bemean itseif by self-defense? Would his own si- lence not abet the calculating hatred of Lady Noel and add to that mon- strous estrangement that was steadily carrying his soul further and further from the soul of Annabel? The question of whether his wife believed or disbelieved aside, was he justified in such a course now? A softer feel- ing took possession of him. Appear- ances had been against him. To speak could make the matter no worse for Lady Caroline. He would go to Annabel and assure her of the truth. Perhaps even out of such a catastrophe as to-night’s might arise a truer and a nearer confidence. He threw off his great-coat in the empty hall and ascended the stair. The door of the chamber where sat the little white bed was open. He went in. The lamp still shed its radi- ance on the pillow, but the tiny frag- rant mold where a baby head had lain, now held only a note, bearing Gordon’s name. ‘With a puzzled look he tore it open. A white anguish spread over his features. A cry broke from his lips. He flung wide the door of his wife’s room—it was empty. He ran down the stalr, where the footman met him, turning a wondering face to his ques- tion. (Continued Next Sunday.) OOOS00000000000) ing secured the future, we can afford to be more lenjent with the past. I am not in an official position, and there is no reason, so long as the ends of Justice are served, why I should dis- close all that I know. As to.Hayes, I say nothing. The gallows awaits him, and I would do nothing to save him from it. What he will divulge I can- not tell, but I have no doubt that your Grace could make him understand that it is to his interest to be silent. From the police point of view he will have kidnaped the boy for the purpose of ransom. If they do not themselves find it out, I see no reason why I should prompt them to take a Ddroader point of view. I would warn your Grace, however, that the coftinued presence of Mr. James Wilder in your household can only lead to misfortune.” “I understand that, Mr. Holmes, and it is already settled that he shall leave me forever, and go to seek his fortune in Australia.” - “In that case, your Grace, since you have yourself stated that any unhap- piness in your married life wag caused by his presence. I would suggest that you make such ameunds as you can to the Duchess, and that you try to re- sume those relations which have been so unhappily interrupted.” “That also I have arranged, Mr. Holmes. I wrote to the Duchess this morning.” “In that case,” sald Holmes, “I think that my friend and I can - gratulate ourselves upon several most happy results from our little visit to the north. There is one other small point upon which I desire some light. This fellow Hayes had shod his horses with shoes which counterfeited the tracks of cows. Was it from Mr. Wil- der that he learned so extraordinary a device™" The Duke stood in thought for a mo- ment, with a look of intense surprise on his face. Then he opened a door and showed us into a large room fur- nished as a museum. He led the way to a glass case in a corner, and pointed to the inscription: longed to some of the marauding Ba- rons of Holdernesse in the middle g . inner (The End.)