Show 0 O O J 0 00 00 t r l fi r- r A Sen E y t SVAN DINE DIN H rl e CHAPTER LIV opened the book and began reading in a voice whose Very fervor held us all silent I 1 1 brought about my own down down- fall faIl No o one one be he high hish or low mv need be ruined by any other hand than his bis own Readily as I confess conless confess con con- fess less this there are many who will at this time at least r receive eive the tho confession And al although l- l though I thus mercilessly accuse myself bear in mind that I do so BO sow w without offering an any excuse Terrible as is the punishment Inflicted upon me by the world more terrible is the ruin I have brought upon myself In the dawn of ot manhood I 1 recognized my position I enjoyed an honored honored hon hen ored ored- name name an eminent s social cial post post- tion Then came the turning point I had become tired of or dw duelling on the heights heights and and descended by my own will into the depths I satisfied my desires wherever It suited me and passed on I forgot that tha t every act even the most Insignificant act of ot daily dally life in s some me degree makes or unmakes the character and d every occurrence e which transpires in the seclusion of ot the chamber will some day be proclaimed from oI l the thc housetops 4 I 1 lost Jost control of at myself I was no longer at the helm and knew it not I had become a stave slave to pleas pleas- ure One thing only I is left to tome me complete me-complete complete humility He tossed the book aside You understand now Mr Markham Markhan Mark Mark- han ham mr Markham l did not not speak for several several sev sev- eral m moments ments i Do you care care to tell me about Skeel ShIed he at length ask asked d. d That swine Spots Spots wood 2 sneered his disgust I could mur mur- murder murder der such creatures every day and regard m myself as as' as asa a a. benefactor benefactorS of ot society Yes I strangled him and I 1 would h have ve done it before only the opportunity did ld not ot offer It w was s Skeet Skeel who was hiding in ln the closet when I 1 r returned turned to the apartment aft after r tile thee theater and he must have seen me kill the wo wo- man Had I known he be was behind that locked closet door I would have broken It ft down and wiped him out th then n. n But how was wasl I 1 to know It seemed natural th that t the closet might have been kept locked locked locked-I I didn't give it a second thought And the tho ne next ct night he telephoned me to the club here He lie had first call called d my home on Lon Long Island and learned that I Iwas Iwas Iwas was staying Ii here re I had hail never seen him before before didn't didn't know of his ex- ex istance But is seems h he had equipped himself with a knowledge of ot my identity probably Identity probably some of or the money money I gave ave to the woman went to him What a a. muck heap I had fallen into When ho phoned he mentioned the phonograph and I 1 knew he had found ont oOt something I met Imet met him Inthe inthe in inthe the Waldorf lobby and h he ha t told ld methe methe me methe the truth there was no doubting his word When he lie saw I was convinced he demanded so enormous enormous enor enor- moU a a. sum that I 1 was staggered lit a a. ct-aret ct with steady fingers Mr Markham Markham- I am nm no longer arich a arich arich rich man The truth Is I 1 am on the verge of b bankruptcy The busness business bus busi ness my father left me has been Ina In Ina ina a receivers hands for tor nearly a a. year The Long Island est estt estate on which which- I Ilive live belongs to my wife Few Fe people know these things s but unfortunately th they y are true It would have been utterly Impossible for me me- meto to raise the amount SJ Shed Skeel demanded even had I been Inclined to play the coward I did however give him a a. small sum sum to keep keen him quiet for Jor a a. few days promising him all he ho asked as soon as I could convert convert con con- yen vert some of ot my holdings I hoped In the interim to get et possession of ot the tho record and thus spike his guns But in that I 1 failed and so when J ho o threatened to tell you everything I agreed to bring the money to his homo home late last Saturday night I i kept the tho appointment with the full intention of ot killing him I 1 was c about entering but he had helped me by explaining when and how I could get in without being seen Once there I wasted no time The first moment he was off ort his guard I seized him him and and gloried In the act Then locking the tho door and taking the key I 1 1 walked out of ot the house quite openly and returned returned re re- re- re turned here to the club That's club That's all I 1 think Vance was watching him hint m musing musing- ly So when you raised my 1 bet last i night ho he said the amount represented represented represented a highly important item in your exchequer Spotswood smiled faintly It represented practically every cent I had In the world And would you mind If I asked you why you selected the label abel of Beethoven's Andante for your record Another nother miscalculation theman theman the man said wearily It occurred to tome tome tome me that if It any anyone one should by any chance open the phonograph before I r could return and destroy the record record record rec rec- ord he wouldn't be as likely to want to hear the classics as he ho would a a. more popular selection I And one who detests detest popular f music had to to- find Indo it I fear Mr Sp ts ode that an unkind fate sat In at your game Yes If IC I were so I inclined I might talk taUe poppycock about retribution and divine nun nun- Id ike to ask you yu about tho the jewelry said faid l Markham lam Its not sportsmanlike to do it and I wouldn't suggest it ex except ept that youve you've already confessed volun- volun t to the main points at issue I shall shaU take no of offense at any any question you desire to ask sir answered After I had recovered recovered my letters from the box document I 1 turned the rooms upside down to give the impression of or ofa a burglary burglarY being being careful to use gloves of or course And Ani I took the womans woman's jewelry for tI the e sam same rea rca son I Parenthetically I had paid for formost most mOst of It it I offered it as a sop to Skeel but he was afraid to a accept it and aid tin finally ally I decided to rid myself myself my my- self of ot it I wrapped it in one ono of ot the club d b newspapers rs and threw w It in a waste-bin waste near the Flatiron Building You wrapped it In the mornIng Herald put lut i In ii Heath Did you you know that Pop Cleaver read reads noth poth- oth- oth ing but the the- Hearald Sergeant I V Vances Vance's nce's vol voice e was a a reprimand Certainly Mr de was was' not aware r that fact fact else else he w would not have select 1 4 ed the Herald I i smiled at Heath with I pitying contempt Then with an glance at Vance he turned back to Markham An hour or so after I had disposed disposed disposed dis dis- dis- dis posed of ot the jewels I was assailed by the fear that the package might be found and the pa paper r traced So I 1 bought another Herald and put it on the rack He paused Is that all aU Markham nodded you that's you that's all except that I must now ask you to go JO with these officers In that case said theres a small favor I have to ask ot of you Mr Markham Now that the blow bio has fallen I wish to write rite a a. certain note noto note to to my wife wite But I want to be alone alono when 1 write it Surely you understand that desire It will take but a a few fen moments Your men ma may stand at nt the tho door door l I cant can't very ery well vell e escape a e. e The victor can can afford to be s generous to that extent Before Markham had time to re reply repy re- re ply py Vance stepped d forward and touched his armI armI arm armI I trust he Interposed that you OU wont won't deem It to reuse re- re fuso Cuse use Mr request Markham looked at him hesi heal I guess Uess youve you've pretty well earned the right to dictate Vance ho he acquiesced Then he ordered Heath and Snit Salt kin to wait walt outside in the hall hali and he and Vance and I went Into the adjoining room Markham I stood as If It on guard near the door but Vance with an ironical smile sauntered to the window and gazed out JUt ut into Madison Square My ry word Markham he ho 10 de do- do dared Theres something rather colossal about that chap Y know one cant can't help admiring him Hes He's Hesso so eminently sane and logical Markham made no response The drone of tho the city's mid-afternoon mid noises muffled by the tho closed win- win dons G seemed ni ed d to Intensify the oral oral- J- J |