Richmond Palladium (Daily), Volume 31, Number 308, 3 December 1906 — Page 7

i ue Kichmuna Palladium Monaay, Uecesvujer -3, loud.

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. By ANNA Author of "Tke Mystery of Copyright, 1MJ, L fc- . A A A A J, 1. A .I iti A it it if i if i itr iTj I flushed again, but tnis time irom xtreme satisfaction. "I am obliged for your confidence," ld I. Then, with a burst of courage brn of his good nature, I Inquired, ith due respect. If my little friend had fcswered his expectations. Vas sne C. ..1 ,. T l.l- T ...t Your little friend Is a trump," was Bs blunt reply. "With what we hare nrned through her, and now through lu, we can approach Mr. Jeffrey to pmc purpose. It appears that before The ribfee-n 1m tho b aving the bouse on that Tuesday orning he had an Interview with his ife which ought in some way to actunt for tbia tragedy. Terbaps he ill tell us about it, and perhaps he ill explain how he came to wander trough the Moore house while bis ife lay dying below. At all events, e will give him the opportunity to b go and If possible to clear up mysries which provoke the worst kind of bnjecture. It is time. The ideas adnced by the papers foster superstipn, and superstition is the devil. Go hd tell my man out there that I am Ling to K street. You may say we' you like," be added, with a humor ore welcome to me than any serious ncession. Did I feel set up by this? Rather. jMr. Jeffrey was expecting us. This las evident from his first look, though le attempt he made at surprise was stantaneoua and very well feigned. Weed, I think be was in a constant ate of apprehension during these kys and that no inroad of the police jould have astonished him. But exfcctation does not preclude dread inked, it tends to foster it and dread In bis heart. This he had no powto conceal. To what am I Indebted fer this secd Tiait from you?" he asked of Coror Z.. with an admirable presence of d. "Are you not yet satisfied with at we have been able to tell you of poor wife's unhappy end?" f'We are not," was the plain reanse. "There are some things you kve not attempted to explain, Mr. ffrey for instance, why you went the Moore house previous to your ing called there by the death of your ife." It was a shot that told, an arrow Men found its mark. Mr. Jeffrey hshed, then turned pale, rallied and aln lost himself in a maze of cou nting emotions, from which he only perged to say: How do you know that I was there? ave I said so, or do those old walls Ibble in their sleep?" "Old walls have been known to do Is." was the grave reply. "Whether ey bad anything to say in this case at present quite immaterial. That m were where I charge you with beX is evident from your own manner. say about this visit? When a pern has died under such peculiar cirimstances as Mrs. Jeffrey, everything taring upon the case is of interest to e coroner." 'Mrs. Jeffrey's death was a strange ke, her husband admitted, with tarseit control, "l nna myseir as mucn a. lose to understand it as you do pd am therefore quite ready to su rer the question you have so openl oached; not that my answer has ai taring upon the point you wish ake, but because it is your due ni y pleasure. I did visit the Moo:: puse, as I certainly uaa every rigr, do. The property was my wife: hd it was for my interest to learn If fuld the secret of ita many crimes." Ah!" Mr. Jeffrey looked quickly up. "Yo ink that an odd thing for me to do: "At night yes." "Night is the time for such work. I d not care to "be seen pottering round there in daylight." "No? Yet it would have been so nch easier. You would not have had buy caudles or carry a pistol or" "I did not carry a pistol. The only stol carried there was the one with hlch my demented wife chose to take r life.' I do not understand this alluton." "It grew out of a misunderstanding the situation, Mr. Jeffrey, Excuse e If I supposed you would be likely provide yourself with some means defense in venturing alone upon the ene of so many mysterious deaths." I took no precaution." And needed none, I suppose." And needed none." rWhen was this visit paid, Mr. Jefey before or after your wife pulled e trigger which ended her life? You bed not hesitate to answer." I do not." The elegant gentleman More us had acquired a certain fierce1 iitpi.- i m . . . co. uj buuuw i venainiy you bn't think that I was there at the me time she was. It was not on the me night even. So much the walls lould have told you and probably did. my wife's uncle, Mr. David Moore. fas be not your informant?" No. Mr. Moore has failed to call nr attention to this fact. Did you meet r. Moore during the course of your sit to a neighborhood over which b seems to hold absolute sway?" Not to my knowledge. But his puse U directly opposite, and as he lis little to do but amuse himself with hat be can see from his front win pw X concluded that he might have nserved me going in." "You entered by the f rout door, en?"

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"How eiser "An on what alf btJ"

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KATHARINE GREEN, Agatha We," "Lost Mas' y the Bofcbf Mcrrlll Caapaay AitiatiAili AABti fcafc itiif i$i Aiti A4i Mr. Jeffrey maae an effort. These questions were visibly harassing him. "The night before the one the one which ended all my earthly happiness," he added in a low voice. Coroner Z. cast a glance at me. X remembered the lack of dust on the nest of little tables from which the upper one had been drawn forward to hold the candelabrum and gently shook my head. The coroner's eyebrows went up, but none of his disbelief crept into his voice as he made this additional statement: "The night on which you failed to return to your own house." Instantly Mr. Jeffrey betrayed by a nervous action, which was quite involuntary, that his outward calm was nlowly giving way under a fire of questions for which he had no ready reply. "It was odd your not going home that night," the coroner coldly pur sued. "The misunderstanding you had ) with your wife immediately after breakfast must have been a very serl ous one, more serious than you have hitherto acknowledged." "I had rather not discuss the sub ject,' protested Air. jerxrey. Alien as If he suddenly recognized the official character of his interlocutor he hastily added, "Unless you positively request me to do so, in which case I must." "I am afraid that I must insist upon it," returned the other. "You will find that It will be insisted upon at the in quest, and if you do not wish to sub ject yourself to much unnecessary un pleasantness you had better make clear to us today the cause of that special quarrel which to all intents and pur poses led to your wife's death." "I will try to do so," returned Mr. Jeffrey, rising and pacing the room in his Intense restlessness. "We did have some words. Her conduct the night before had not pleased me. I am nat urally Jealous, vilely jealous,, and 1 thought she was a little frivolous at the German ambassador's ball. But I had no idea she would take my sharp speeches so much to heart. I had no idea that she would care so much or that I should care so much. A little jealousy is certainly pardonable In a bridegroom, and if her mind had not already been upset she would have re membered bow I loved her and hope fully waited for a reconciliation." "You did love your wife, then? It was you and not she who had a right to be Jealous? I have heard the con trary stated. It Is a matter of public gossip that you loved another woman previous to your acquaintance with Mies Moore, a woman whom your wife regarded with sisterly affection and subsequently took into her new home. "Miss Tuttle?" Mr. Jeffrey stopped in his walk to fling out this ejacula tion. "I admire and respect Miss Tut tie," be went on to declare, "but I nev er loved her not as I did my wife, he finished, but with certain hard accent, apparent enough to a sensitive ear. 'Tardon me, it is as difficult for me to put these questions as it is for you to hear them were you and Miss Tut tle ever engaged?" , I started. This was a question which half of Washington had been asking itself for the last three months. Would Mr. Jeffrey answer It, or, remembering that these questions were rather friendly than, official, refuse to satisfy a curiosity which he might well consider intrusive? The set aspect of his features promised little in the way of Information, and we were both surprised when a moment later he responded with a grim emphasis hardly to be expected from one of bis .impul sive temperament: "Unhappily, no. My attentions nev r went so far." Instantly the coroner pounced on the ne weak word which Mr. Jeffrey had ot fall. "Unhappily?" he repeated. "Why lo you say 'unhappily?' " Mr. Jeffrey flushed and seemed to oonae out of some dream. "Did I say 'unhappily?' " be inquired. 'Well, I repeat it Miss Tuttle would never have given me any cause for jealousy." The coroner bowed and for the pres ent dropped her name out of the conversation. "You speak again of the Jealousy aroused In you by your wife's Impetuosities. Was this increased or diminished by the tone of the few lines she left behind her?" The response was long in coming. It was hard for this man to lie. The struggle he made at it was pitiful. As I noted what it cost him, I began to have new and ' curious thoughts concerning him and the whole matter "under discussion. "I shall never overcome the remorse roused In me by those few lines," he finally rejoined. "She showed a consideration for me" "What."' The coroner's exclamation showed all the surprise he felt. Mr. Jeffrey tottered under it. then grew slowly pale, as If only through our amazed looks he had come to realize the charge of inconsistency to whlca be had laid himself open. "I mean," he endeavored to explain, "that Mrs. Jeffrey showed an unexpected tenderness toward me by taking all the blame of our misunderstanding upon herself. It was generous of her and will do much toward making my memory of her a gentle one." He was forgetting himself again.'' Indeed his manner and attempted explanations were full of contradictions. T- emphasize this fact Coroner Z. exclaimed: "I should think so! She paid a heavy penalty for her professed lack of lore. You bellere that her mind traa unseated?" "Does not her action show It?" "Unseated by the mishap occurring at her marriage?" "Yes." f! "You really think that? "Vu.

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"By anything that passed between you?" "Yes." "May I ask you to tell us what passed between you on this point?" "Yes." He bad uttered the monosyllable so often it seemed to come unconsciously from his Hps. But he recognized almost as soon as we did that it was not

a natural reply to the last question,; and, making a gesture of apology, he ; added, with the same monotony of . tone which had characterized these replies: , " "She epoke of her strange gaest's unaccountable death more than once, and whenever she did so it was with an unnatural excitement and in an unbalanced way. This was so noticeable to us all that the subject presently was tabooed among us, but though she henceforth spared us all allusion to it she continued to talk about the house itself and of the previous deaths which had occurred there till we were forced to forbid that topic also. She was never really herself after crossing the threshold of this desolate bouse to be married. The shadow which lurks within its walls fell at that Instant upon her life. May God have mercy" The prayer remained unfinished. Hli head, which had fallen on his breast, sank lower. He presented the aspect of one who is quite done with life, even its sorrows. But men in the position of Coronet Z. cannot afford to be compassionate. Everything the bereaved man said deepened the Impression that he was acting a part. To make sure that thi was really so the coroner, with just the slightest touch of sarcasm, quietly observed: "And to ease your wife's mind the wife you were bo deeply angered with you visited this house and, at an .hour which you should have spent in reconciliation with her, went through its ancient rooms in the hopeof what?" Mr. Jeffrey could not answer. The words which came from his lips wore mere ejaculations. as restless, mad. I found this adventure diverting. I had no real purpose iu mind." "Not when you looked at the old picture?" "The old picture? What old picture?" p "The old picture In the southwest chamber. You took n look at that, didn't you got up on a chair on purpose to do so?" Mr. Jeffrey winced, but he made a direct reply. "Yes; I gave a look at that old picture; got up, as you say, on a chair to do so. Wasn't that the freak of an idle man, wandering, he hardly knows why, from room to room In nn old and deserted house?" His tormentor did not answer. Probably his mind was on his next line of inquiry. But Mr. Jeffrey did not take Why do you ask me these questions in tones of such suspicion? Is it not plain enough that my wife took her own life under a misapprehension of my state of. mind toward her? Why should you feel it necessary to rake up these personal matters, which, however interesting to the world at large, are of a painful nature to me?" "Mr. Jeffrey," retorted the other, with a sudden grave assumption of dignity not without its effect in a case of such serious import, "we do nothing without purpose. We ask these ques tions and show this interest because the charge of suicide which has hitherto been made against your wife is not entirely sustained by the facts. At least she was not alone when she took her life. Some one was in the house with her." i It was startling to observe the effect of this declaration upon him. Impossible!" he cried out in a pro test as forcible as it was agonized. "You are playing with my misery. She could have had no one there; she would not. There is not a man living before whom she wmild have fired that dead-1 ly shot unless it was myself unless it was my own wretched, miserable self." The remorseful whisper in which those final words were uttered carried them to my heart, which for some strange and unaccountable reason had been gradually turning toward this man. But my less easily anectea companion, seeing his opportunity and pos-' sibly considering that it was this gen-; tleman's right to know in what a doubtful light be stood before the law. remarked with as light a touch of irony as was possible: j "You should know better than we in whose presence she would choose to die if she did so choose; also who would be likely to tie the pistol to her wrist : and blow out the candle when the . ao snl o a ArAP Tbe laugh wlxich seemed to be the only means of violent expression re-j kept down by some amazing thought which seemed to paralyze him. With out making any attempt to refute a suggestion that fell Just short of a personal accusation, he sank down in the first chair he came to and became, as it were, lost in the vision of that ghastly ribbon tying and the solitary blowing out of the candle upon this scene of mournful death. Then, with a strug gling sense of having beard something which called for answer, he rose bllndy to his feet and managed to let fall these words: You are mistaken. No one was there. or, If any one was, it was not I. There is a man in this city who can prove it." But when Mr. Jeffrey was asked to give the name of this man he showed confusion and presently was obliged to admit that he could neither recall his name nor remember anything about "him, but that he was some one whom be knew well and who knew him well. He affirmed that the two had met and spoken near Soldiers' home shortly after the sun went down and that the man iTould be sure to remember this meeting if we could only find him. As Soldiers' home was several miles from the Moore house and quite out of the way of all bis accustomed haunts. Coroner Z. as&ed him how be came to be there. He replied that he had just come from th Reek Creek cemetery; that he bad been fa a wretched state t nd all JLa.T. and. tssiblr being in-

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fluencedT by what he haa neard or tne yearly vigils Mr. Moore was in the habit of keeping there, had taken a notion to stroll, among the graves lu search of the rest and peace of mind he had failed to find in bis aimless walks about the city. At least, that was the way he chose to account for the meeting he mentioned. Falling Into reverie again, he seemed to be trying to recall the name which at this moment was of such importance to him. But it was without avail, as he presently acknowledged. "I cannot remember who it was. My brain is whirling, and I can recollect nothing but that this man and myself left the cemetery together on the night mentioned, just as the gate was being closed. As it close's at sundown, the hour can be fixed to a minute. It was somewhere near 7, I believe; near enough, I am sure, for it to have been impossible for me to be at the Moore kouse at the time my unhappy wife is supposed to have taken her life. There is no doubt about your believing this?"' he demanded with sudden haughtiness, as, rising to his feet, be confronted us in all the pride of bis exceptionally handsome person. "We wish to believe it," assented the coroner, rising in his turn. "That our belief may become certainty will you let us know, the instant you recall it, the name of the man you talked with at the cemetery gate? His testimony, far

tor y more tDan ony WOrd of yours, will , settie thi3 question which otherwise . maj. prove a vexed one Mr. Jeffrey's hand went up to bis hea(L Was ne acting a part or did , he raIlv forget just wbat it waa for j hig owa best weifare to remember? If he had forgotten, it argued that he was in a state of greater disturbance on , that night than would naturally be occasioned by a mere lover's quarrel with his wife. Did the same thought strike my companion? I cannot say; I can only give you his nest words: "You have said that your wife would not be lil:ely to end her life in presence of any one but yourself. Yet you must see that some one was with her. How do you propose to reconcile your assertions witk a fact so undeniable?" "I cannot reconcile them. It would madden rae vo try. If I thought any one wa with her at that moment" "Well?" Mr. Jeffrey's eyes fell, ancpi startling change passed over him. But before either of us could make out just what this change betokened he recovered his and will not so picture her. You have been misled by appearances or what in police parlance is called a clew." Evidently he did not mean to admit the possibility of the pistol having been tired by any other band than her own. This the coroner noted. Rowing with tha respect he showed every man before a jury had decided upon bis guilt, he turned toward the door out of which I had already hurried. "We hope to hear from you in the morning," he called back significantly as he stepped down the stairs. Mr. Jeffrey did not answer; he was having his first struggle with the new and terrible prospect awaiting him st the approaching inquest. C1IAPTER XI. rIIE days of my obscurity were over. Henceforth I was regarded as a decided factor in this case a case which from this time on assumed another aspect both at headquarters and in the minds of people at large. The reporters, wl:om e .had hitherto managed to hold in check, now overflowed both the coroner's olilee and police headquarters, and articles appeared In all the daily papers with Just enough suggestion in them to fire the public mind and make me, for one, anticipate an immediate word from Mr. Jeffrey calculated to establish the alibi he had failed to make out on the day we talked with him. But no such word came. His memory still played him false, and no alternative was left but to pursue the official Inquiry In the line suggested by the interview just recounted. ' No proceeding in which I had ever been engaged Interested me as did this Inquest. In the first place, the spec- ! tators were of a very different charac- ; xer irom tne ordinary, as 1 wormea ; myself along to the seat accorded to M , r . J . . 4. , . . - more than once In response to the inquiring gaze of some fashionable lady who never before, I warrant, had found herself in such a scene. By the time I reached my place all the others were seated, and the coroner rapped for order. I was first to take the stand. Wbat I said has already been fully amplified in the foregoing pages. Of course, my evidence was confined to facts, but some of these facts were new to most of the persons there. It was evident that a considerable effect was produced by them, not only oa the spectators, but upon the witnesses themselves. For Instance, it was the first time that the marks on the mantelshelf had been beard of outside the major's office or the story so told as to make it evident that Mrs. Jeffrey could not have been alone in the bouse at the time of her death. A photograph had been taken of those marks, and my Identification of this photograph, closed my testimony. As I returned to my seat I stole a look toward a certain corner where, with face bent down upon bis band, Francis Jeffrey sat between Uncle David and the heavily relied figure of Miss Tuttle. I was followed by the otter detectives who had been present at the time and who corroborated my statement as to the appearance of this unhappy woman, and the. way the Tistol

Jeffrey tall his

naa ceen tiea to ner arm. Then the doctor who haC acted under the coroner was calld. After a long and no doubt learned description of the bullet wound which had ended the life of this unhappy lady a wound which b insisted, with x marked display of learning, must have made that end instantaneous or at lenst too immediate for her to move foot or band after it he was askd if the body fiiowed any other mark of violence. To this he replied: "There was a minute wound at the base of one of her fingers the one

whhrh Is popularly called the wedding finger." This statement made all the o:r.en present stare with renewed interest; nor was it altogether without point for the men, especially when the doctor went on to say: "The hands were entirely without rings. As Mrs. Jeffrey had been married with a ring. I noticed their absence." "Was this wound which you characterize as minute a recent one?" "It had bled a little. It was an abrasion such as would be made if the ring she usually wore there had been drawn off with a jerk. That was the impression I received from its appearance. I do not state that it was so made." A little thrill which went over the audience at the picture this evoke! communicated itself to Miss Tuttle, who trembled violei'tly. It even produced a Blight display of emotion in Mr. Jeffrey, whose hand ?hcok where he pressed it against his forehead. But neither u:iered a sound nor looked up when the next witness was summoned. This witness proved to be I.oretVi, who, on bearing her name called, evinced great reluctance to -ome forward. After the coroner had elicited her name and the position she held in Mr. Jeffrey's household he asked whether her duties took her into Mrs. Jeffrey's room. Upon her replying that they did, be further Inquired if she knew Mrs. Jeffrey's rings, and could say whether they were all to be found on that lady's toilet table after the police came in with. news of her death. The answer was decisive. They were all there; her rings and all the other ornaments sTie was rn tne anvj nnoit of wearing, with the exception of her watch. That was not there. "Did you take up those rings?" "No, sir." "Did you see any one eise take them up?" "No, sir; not till the oCieer did so." "Very well, Loretta. Sit down again j till we hear what Durbin has to say j about those rings." -4 And then the man I bated came forward. and. though I shrank from ac- j knowledging it even to myself, I could but observe how strong and quiet and ; self possessed Le seemed and how dej cisive was his testimony, j But it was equally brief. He had taken up the rings and he had looked at them; and on one, the wedding ring, he had detected a slight stain of blood. changed, and only from the quick j stretching out and withdrawal of Miss j Tuttle's band could it be seen that j anything had been said calculated to j touch or arouse this man. The coroner I cast an uneasy glance in bis direction: j j then he motioned Durbin aside and ieI called Loretta. And now 1 began to be sorry for tho girl. It is hard to have one's weak- '. nesses exposed, especially if one is more foolish than wicked. But there was no way of letting this girl off withThe photograph finder marks of tha vkii, ncili 111VIU& Valium iltrv-ai?ttl J jviiii:. nd the coroner went relentlessly to j work. j VHow long have you been in this ; house?" j "Three weeks ever since Mrs. Jef- I frey's wedding day, sir." ' "Were you there when she first came as a bride from the Moore house?" "I was, sir." "And saw her then for the first lime?" "Yes, sir." "How did she look and act that first day?" "I thought her the gayest bride I bad ever seen, then I thought her the saddest, and then I did not know what to think. She was so merry one minute and so frightened the next, so full of taIk wLen 8he came running uo the gtep8 and so struc!i siience the minute she got into the parlor, that I set her down as a queer one till some one whispered in my ear that she was suffering from a dreadful shock that ill luck had attended her marriage end much more about what had happened from time to time at the Moore house." "And yon believed what was told you?" "Believed?" "Believed it well enough to keep a watch on your young mistress to see if she were happy or not?" "Ob, sir!" "It was but natural," the coroner suavely observed. "Every one felt interested in this marriage. You watched her, of course. Now, what was the result? Did you consider her well and happy?" The girl's voice sank, and she cast a glance at her master which he did not lift bis head to meet. "I did not think her bappy. She laughed and sang and was always in and out of the rooms like a butterfly, but she did not wear a happy look except now and then when she waa seated with Mr. Jeffrey alone. Then I have seen her flush In a way to make the heart ache. It was such ft contrast, sir, to other times when she was by herself or"-'-"Or what?' "Or just with her slater, sir." Tha defiance with which this waa said added pint to wbat therwiso might have been an unimportant admission. "You refer to Miss Tuttle?" observed the coroner.

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The Kind Ton Have Always in use for orer SO years, and sonal CvX- A17nr

All Counterfeits, Imitations and lust-as-sood' are but Experiments that trltle tvith, and endanger the health ot Infants and Children Experience against Experiments What is CASTORIA Castoria is a harmless substitute for Castor Oil, Paregorie, Drops and Soothinjr Syrups. It ts Pleasant. It contains neither Opium, Morphine nor other Xarcotio substance. Its a?e is its guarantee. It destroys Worm and allays Fevcrishness. It cures Diarrhoea and IVind Colic. It relieves Teethingr Troubles, cures Constipatlou and Flatulency. It assimilates the Food, regulates the Stomach and Bowels, giving: healthy and natural sleep Tho Childrens Panacea -Tho Mother's Friend.

WUINE CA3TORIA ALWAYS

Bears the

The Kind You Have Always Bought In Use For Over 30 Years.

VMS CMTAU eOMMMT. T B;T--I--TT.ff3?yTAE. .- "Mrs. Jeffrey's sister? Yes, sir." The menace was gone from the voice now, but co one could forget that it had been there. "Miss Tuttle lived in the bouse with her sister, did she not?" "Yes, sir. till that sister diet! and was buried; then she went away." The coroner did not pursue this topic, preferring to return to the former one. "So you say that MrsJeffrey showed uneasiness ever since her wedding day. Can you give uie any instance of this mention. Tmean, any conversatloa overheard by you which would ehow hh just what you mean?" "1 don't like to repeat things I bear, but if you say that I must I can remember once passing Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey in the hall just as he was saying: 'You take it too much to heart! I expected a happy honeymoon. Somehow we have failed" That was all made me reshe was reception d sc and happier this? now long before her death "Ob. a week or so. It was very soon after the wedding day." "And did matters seem to improve after that? Did she appear any better Satisfied or more composed?" "I think she endeavored to, but there was something on her mind, sometliing which bhe tried to laugh off. something that annoyed Mr. Jeffrey and worried Miss Tuttle, something which caused a cloud in th tour ror aTI the dances and" dinners and goings and comings. I am sorry to speak of It, but it was so." "Something that showed an unsettled mind?" "Almost. The glitter iu her eye was not natural; neither was the way she looked lit her sister and sometimes at her huband." "Did she talk much about the catastrophe which attended her wedding? Did her mind seem to run on that?" "Incessantly at first; but afterward noS so much. I think Mr. Jeffrey frowned on that subject." "Did he ever frown on her?" "No, sir not not when they were alone or with no one by but me. He seemed to love her then very much." "What do you mean by that, Loretta; that he lost patience with her when other people were present Miss Tuttle, for instance?" "Yes, sir. He used to change very much when when when Miss Tuttle came into the room." "Change toward his wife?" "Yes, sir." "How?" "He grew more distant, much more distant; got up quite fretfully from his scat, if be were sitting beside her, and took up some book or paper." "And Mis3 Tuttle?" "Si;e never Kef-rued to notice, but" "But?" "She did not come in very often after this had happened once of twice I mean into the room upstairs where they used to sit." "Loretta. I regret to put this question, but after your replies I owe it to tte Jury, if not to the parties themselves, to make Miss Tuttle's position In this household thoroughly understood. Do you think she was a welcome visitor in this house?" "I can only repeat what I once beard said about this by Mr. Jeffrey himself. Miss Tuttle had Jnst left the dining room and Mrs. Jeffrey was standing in one of her black moods, with her hand on the top of her chair, ready to go, but forgetting to do so. I was there, but neither of them noticed me; be was staring at her, and she was looking down- NeitLer seemed at ease. Suddenly he spoke and asked, 'Why must Cora remain with us? She started and her look grew strange and frightened. 'Because I want ' her to,' she cried- "I cannot live without Cora. " ' These wards, so different from what we were expecting, caused a sensation in the room and consequently a stir. As the noise of shifting feet and moving heads began to be beard In all directions. Miss Tuttle's bead drooped a little, but Francis Jeffrey did not betray any sign of feeling or eren of attention. The coroner, embarrassed, perhaps, by this exhibition of silent misery so near aim, hesitated a little before he put bis next question. Loretta. on the r-ontrsrr, bad gathered courage witfi -rT word the spot nd b-w l?9kd .ready. jr any thing.

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Bought, and which has been, has horno tho signature ot" lias been made under his persupervision since its Infancy. rt n in todeoeivo toh In this. Signature of MUKNAV STRICT. MtW CTTV. "it w::h Mrs. Jcnrey, then. wn clung Kiont determinedly to her slsteri" the coroner thially suggested. t "I have told you what she said." "Yet these ulsters tspeut but little time together?" "Very little; as little as two persons could who lived together in one house." This statement, which seemed such a contradiction to her former one, increased the interest, and much disappointment was covertly shown when the coroner veered off from this topic fcnd brusqutlv inquired: "Did you ever know Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey to have any open rupture?" The answer was a decided one. "Yes. , On Tuesday morning preceding bei death they bad a long : and angry talk in their own room, after which Mrs. Jeffrey made no further effort to conceal her wretchedness. .Indeed, one may say she began to di from tht hour." Mrs. Jeffrey's death bad occurred on Wednesday evening. "Let us hear what you have to ay about this quarrel and what happened after it." The girl, with a renewed flush, csst a deprecatory look at the mass of faces before her, and, meeting on all sides but one look of x Intense and growing interest, drew up her neat figure with, a relieved air and began a story which I will proofed to transcribe for you in the fewest possible words. Tuesday morning's breakfast had been a silent one. There bad been a ball the night before at some great place on Massachusetts avenue; but no one spoke of it. Miss Tuttle made some remark about a friend she had met there, but as no one listened to her she soon stopped and In a little while left the table. Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey sat on, hot neither said anything. Finally Mr. .Jeffrey rose and. speaking in a voice hardly recognizable, remarked that he bad something to say to her, and led the wsy to their room. Mrs. Jeffrey looked frlghtcnl as she followed him: so frightened that It was evident tbst something' very serious had occurred or was about to occur between tbera. As nothing of this kind had ever happened before. Loretta could not help waiting about till Mr. Jeffrey reappeared, and wbn be did so. and she saw no signs of relief in bis face or manner, ehe watched, with the silly Interest of a girl who had nothing else to ocenpy her mind, to see if be would leave the house In such a mood and without making 'peace with bis young bride. To her surprise, be did not go out at the usual time, but went to Miss Tattle's room, where for a full half hour he remsined closeted with his sister-in-law, talking In excited and unnatural tones. Then he went back for a few minutes to where be had left his wife in her own bbndoir. But he could not have had much lo say to her thi time, fer be presently came out again and ran hastily downstairs . and out, almost without stopping to catch up his hat as It was Mary's business; abJ not th witness, to ; make Mrs. Jeffrey's bed in the morning, Loretta could think of no excuse for approaching her mistress" room at this moment; but later, when letters came, followed by various messages and ho me visitors, she went more than a dozen times to Mrs. Jeffrey's door. She was not admitted, nor were her appeals answered, except by a sharp -Go away!" Nor was Miss Tuttle received any better, though she tried more thsu once to see her sister, especially as night came on and the hour approached for Mr. Jeffrey's return. Mrs. Jeffrey was simply determined to remain alone, and when dinner time arrived, and no Mr. Jeffrey, she could be induced to open ber door only wide enough to take In the cup of tea which Miss Tuttle insisted upon sending ber. The witness here confessed that she bad been very much excited by these unusual proceedings and by the effect which they seemed to have en the lady just mentioned, so she was ready to notice that Mrs. Jeffrey's band shook like that of an old and palsied woman when gbe reached out for the tr (To Be Continued.) itching, torturing akin eruptions, disfigure, annoy, drive one wild. Doan's Ointment brings guick relief and lasting cures. Fifty cents at any drug store.

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