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Show 'THE HOUSE OF A THOUSAND CANDLES t ' ' JJj BY, MEREDITH NICHOLSON Copyright by Xne B o t b -Mer r il 1 Company .5 I 1 arm to earn mv inheritance. My residence resi-dence here must look pretty sordid from the outside." . "Mr. Glenarm's will is a matter of record in the eounty, of eourse. But yon are too hard on yourself. It'a nobody's no-body's business if your, grandfather wished to visit his whims on you. I should aar, in my own case, that I don't consider it any of my business what you are here for. I didn't come over to annoy you or to pry into your affairs. 1 get lonely now and then, and thought I 'd like to establish neighborly relations." "Thank you; I appreciate your coming very much," and my heart warmed under tho manifest kindness of the man. "And I hope" he spoke for the first time with restraint "I hope nothing may prevent your knowing Sister Theresa Ther-esa and Miss Devereaux. They are interesting in-teresting and charming the only women about here of your ownsocial status." My liking for him abated slightly. He might be a detective, representing the alternative heir, for all I knew, and possibly Sister Theresa was a party to the conspiracy. " "In time, no doubt, in time, I shall know them," I answered evasively.. "Oh, quite as you like!" and he changed the subject. We talked of many things, of outdoor sports. with which he showed great familiarity, of universities, of travel and adventure. He was a Columbia man and had spent two vears at Oxford. if... V Chapter XL Continued. i - ' "Mr. Glenarm, I. fear very much that they have been destroyed. I tried to find them before you -came, to tell you the whole truth; sir; but they must have been made 'way with." ; "That's very interesting. Bates. Will you kindly tell me whom you suspect of destroying them?' The toast again, please.". His hand shook as he passed the plate. ! "I hardly like td say, sir, when it's only a suspicion." , - "Of course I shouldn't ask you to in-i in-i criminate yourself, but I'll have to Insist .on my question. It may have occurred i to, you. Bates, that I'm in a sense in i a serine, mind you the master here." I "Well. I should say. If you press me, s that I fear Mr. Glenarm, your grandfa-! grandfa-! ther, burned the plana when he left here the last time. I hope you will pardon ; me, air, for seeming to reflect upon i him." i "Reflect upon the devil! What was his Idea, do you suppose?" "I think, sir. If you will pardon " i . "Don't be so fussy!" I snapped. "Damn 'your pardon, and go on!" ''He-wanted-you to study out the place ' tor yourself, sir. It was dear to bis . heart, this bouse.' He set his heart upon, "having you enjoy It " . y -1 like the word go ahead." i "And I suppose there are things about It that he wished you to learn for your-v 1 aeirvV ; "You know r them, of course, and are watching me to see when I'm hot or cold, like kids, playing hide the handkerchief-" '" - The fellow turned, and faced me across the table. -Mr. Glenarm, as'I hope God may be ,A"frciful to me In the last Judgment. I ' V", tknow nT nors than you do." f "You were here with Mr. Glenarm all ; the time he was building the house, but you never-saw wall 8 built that .weren't what they appeared to be. or doors made that didn't lead anywhere." I summoned all my irony and contempt tor this arraignment. He lifted his hand aa though making oath. "Aa God sees me. that Is all true. I was here 'o eare for the dead master's comfort and not to spy on htm." "And Morgan, your friend, what about him?" "Well," he exclaimed, "this has been very pleasant, but I must run. I have just been over to see Morgan, the caretaker at the resort village. The poor fellow accidentally shot, himself yesterday, cleaning his gun or something some-thing of that sort, and he haa an ugly hole in his arm that will shut him in for a month or more, lie gave me an errand to do for him. He a a conscientious consci-entious fellow and wished me to wire for him to Mr. Pickering that he'd been hurt, but was attending to hia duties. Pickering owns a cottage over there, and Morgan has charge of it. You know Pickering, of course!" I looked my clerical neighbor straight in the eye, a trifle coldly perhaps. I was wondering why Morgan, with whom I had enjoyea a duel in my own cellar only a few hours before, should be reporting re-porting bis injury to Arthur Pickering. "I think I have seen Morgan about here," I said. "Oh, yes! He's a woodsman and a hunter our Nimrod of the lake." ' "A good sort, very likely" "I dare say. He has sometimes brought me ducks during the season." "To be sure! They shoot duck at night these Hoosler hunters so I hear!" 'He laughed aa he shook himself into his greatcoat. "That's possible, though unsportsmanlike. unsportsman-like. . But we don't have to look a gift mallard in. the eye." We laughed together. I found that It was easy to laugh with him. "By the way, I forgot to get Pickering's Picker-ing's address from Morgan. It you happen hap-pen to have It " "With pleasure." I said. "Alexis building, build-ing, Broadway, New York." "Good! That'a easy to remember," he said, smiling and turning up his coat collar. "Don't forget me; I'm quartered In a hermit's cell back of the chapel, and I believe we can find many matters of interest to talk about." "I'm confident of It." I said, glad of the sympathy and. cheer that seemed to emanate from his stalwart figure. I threw on my overcoat and walked to the gate with him, and saw him hurry toward the village with long strides. i (To Be Continued.) "I wish I knew, sir." " "I wish 'to the devil you did." I said, and 'flung out of the room and Into the library. ... At 11 o'eloek I heard a pounding at ' the- great front door and Bates came to announce a caller, who was now audibly knocking the enow from his shoes in the outer ball. . . ,, "The Beverend Paul Stoddard, sir. The chaplain -of Ft. Agatha's was. big' fellow, as' I had remarked on the 'occasion of hia interview with Olivia Gladys Armstrong by the wall. His light brown hair was close-cut; his amooth-shaven face was bright with the freshness of youth. Here was a sturdy young apostle without frills, but with a vigorous grip that left my hand ting: ling. His voice was deep and musical a voice that suggested sincerity and inspired in-spired confidence. "I'm afraid I haven't been neighborly, neigh-borly, Mr. Glenarrd. I waa called awav from home a few days after I heard of your arrival, and I have just got back. I blew" in yesterday with the snow- atorm." ., , . , . He folded his arms easily and looked at me with cheerful directness, as - though politely interested in what manner man-ner of man I might be. "It was a fine storm; I got a great day out f it," I aaid. . ,rAa Indiana snowstorm is something I have never experienced before." "Thia is my aecond winter. I came out here because I wished to do some reading, and thought I'd rather do-it alone than in a university." - 4 ' Studious habits are rather forced on -on out h.ere, I should sav. In my own ease mj course of reading is. all cnt out for me." He ran his eves over the room. -"The Glenarm collection is famous the best in the country, easily. Mr. Glenarm, your grandfather, was cer- tainly an enthusiast. I met him sev-ral sev-ral times; he was a trifle hard to imeet" and the clergyman smiled, y I felt rather uncomfortable, assum-i assum-i ing that he probably knew I was undergoing un-dergoing discipline, and why mv grandfather grand-father 'bad so ordained it. The Reverend Rev-erend Paul Stoddard was o simple, unaffected un-affected and manlv a fellow that I shrank from the thought that I must appear to him an ungrateful blackguard' black-guard' whom ray grandfather had marked .with obloquy. A "My grandfather had his whims; but he was a fine, generous-hearted old gentleman," gen-tleman," I said. '-'.Tjea, In my few Interviews with him he Surprised me by the range of his . knowledge. He was quite able to in- struct me in certain eurious branches of church history -that had appealed to him." . "You were here when he built the house, I suppose t" My visitor laughed cheerfully. i waa on my aide of the barricade for a part of the time. You know there was a great deal of mystery about the building of this house. The country coun-try folk hereabouts can't quite get over it. They have a superstition that there's treasure buried somewhere on the place. Ton , Mr. Glenarm wouldn't employ any local labor.. The work was done ' by meff he brought from afar none ,' of thani, the villagers sav, could ST-eak .' English.. They were all Greeks or Italians." Ital-ians." "I 'have heard something of the kind,J-I remarked, feeling that here was a man Who with a little cultivating might help me to aolve some of mv riddle-." ; V. "You haven t been on our side -it y the wall vett Well, I promise not to It molest" vour hidden treasure if you '11 be neighborly." "I fear there s a big joke in the hidden hid-den treasure," I replied, "I'm so busT-etaying busT-etaying at home to guard it that I have . bo time for social recreation." He looked at me euickly to see wheth. er I was joking. Iiis eyes were steady . and earnest. The Reverend Paul Stoddard Stod-dard impressed me more and more agreeably. There was- a suggestion of a quiet strength about him that drew me to him. '"I euppose every one around here thinX of nothing but that I'n at Glen- v . |