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Show 1MJmMD I y ANNA KATHARINE GREEN I 3rff (Mi $X ( AlTTHOH OP "THE LEAVDNWOUTH CASE" . IJj a jX tMM x$M$M V A o IIE FILIGCTE JUUfrlE HOUSE. OFTlinviIlSPERINa PlNtf rSA Pifel WWSi ft 4 ILLUSTRATIONS DY jl' V nLZ-, J CflADLES.W. R05SEK , itifm 1 SYNOPSIS. flnoro Anilemnn n1 wtfa remarkable re-markable looking man rornn out nt tin Clermont hotel, look around furtively, waxh hla haiels In the anew unit paaa on. Commotion ilr. l them to Hi lierinnnt, wlivra It In found hit! Ihi Ix-autllul Mm KilMh Challoner Ima fallen dead. Amlrr-aon Amlrr-aon dew rides the man lis aw waah hla hand In dm allow. The hotel iiiana-r declares him In Im Orlando llrotlmrann. I'hvalilana Mn.l that Mlaa I 'liallonrr waa atalile-d anil out lint, which aema to rlear Hn.llif r.m of iiit Inn, llryee. an aa;l deiwtlve. anil Hweetwater. aa-aintant, aa-aintant, tuba up tin- i'muk. They belleva Mta i'hi'lli'iii'r tiil.l'tl h.raelf A tmper rutter I. .mi. I ni-ar the ai ! of tniae.ly la believed to lw thi- -iiMin inwd. Mr Challoner Chal-loner tella of a Imlrli nf U Hr f.iiiiiU In hla daughter a lk. aliened "' II " All are love Irtti-ra i-mrpi mm which ahnwa Dial the wrlt'T til f hI Thin teller tel-ler wa alined liv iirliimlo Itrotliwrnon. Amliriuiii (.. with Hweetwater to Iden- I f r Hrothimon, h In) la lo aildrea meeting meet-ing of biiu r. lilntK. CHAPTER VIII- Continued. Hut before an answer could be shouted back, thin iiih n was drawn fiercely liinide, and the scramble waa renewed, amid which George heard Sweetwater's whlnper at hla far: "It'a the police. 1 h chief haa got ahead of inn. Waa that the muu tern after the one who shouted down?' "No. Neither waa hn the apeaker. Th rolot a are very different." "We want the 'nker. If the boya Ret him, we're all right ; but If they don't wait, I niuat make the matter sure." And with a bound he vaulted through the window, whliitllnK in a peculiar way. Oeorge, tbua left quite alone, had the pteaaur of aeelng bla sole protector mix with the boya, aa be eallitd them, and ultimately crowd In with them through the door which bad finally been opened for their admittance. ad-mittance. Then came a wait, and then the quiet re appearance of the detective detect-ive alone and In no very amiable mood. "Well?" Inquired George, aomewhat breathlessly. -1m you want me? They don't aeem to be coming out." "No; they've gone the other way. It waa a red hot anarehlat meeting, and no tnlKtake. They have arrested one of the cpeaken, but the other ear a pod. How, we bava not yet found out; but I think there'a a way out acme here by which be got the atart of ua. He waa the man I wanted you to aee. Had luck. Mr. Anderson, but I'm not at the end of my resources. If you'll have patience pa-tience with me and accompany me a little further, I promise you that I'll only risk one more failure. Will you be ao good, air?" CHAPTER IX. Th Incident of the Partly Lifted , Shade. The two took a car which eventually eventual-ly brought them Into one of the oldest quarters of the llorough of Hrooklyn. The aleet which had stung their faces In the streets of New York bad been left behind them somewhere on the bridge, but the chill was not gone from the air, and George felt greatly relieved when Sweetwater paused In the middle of a long block before a lofty tenement house of mean appearance, appear-ance, and signified that here they were to stop, and that from now on, mum waa to be their watchword. What kind of baunta were these for the cultured gentleman who spent hla evenlnga at the Clermont? A tenementsuch tene-mentsuch a tenement aa this meant borne home for himself or for those he counted bis friends, and such a supposition seemed inconceivable to my poor husband, with the memory of the gorgeous parlors of the Clermont In his mind. "An adventure! certainly an adventure!" adven-ture!" Hashed through poor George's mind, aa he peered, in great curloelty down the long ball before him. Into a dlamal rear, opening Into a atlll more dismal court. Should he be expected ex-pected to penetrate into those dark, til smelling recesses, or would he be led ap the long flights of naked stairs, ao feehly Illuminated that they gave the Impression of extending Indefinitely Indefinite-ly into dimmer and dimmer belghta of decay and desolation? Sweetwater seemed to decide for the rear, for leaving George, he stepped down the ball Into the court beyond, where George could Bee him caatlag Inquiring glances up at the walla above him. Another tenement, similar to the one whoae rear end he waa contemplating, towered behind, but be paid n atter.tion to that. He waa eatlsfled with the look he had given and rame quickly buck, joining Oorge at the foot of the stalrcsse, up . which be silently led the way. t was a rude, iione-tio-ell cared for building, but It aeemed respectable enough and very quiet, considering the mass of people It accommodated. One fiight-two Bights three and taew Oeorge'e guide atopped. and. looking look-ing back at him. made a gesture. It appeared to be one of caution, but wbea the two came together at the top of the ataJrcaae, Sweetwater poke quite naturally aa be pointed at a door in their rear: "Tbafa the room. WeH keep a harp watch and when any man, no natter what his dreas or appears new, awe i thaw stairs aid tansa tU way, give hi in a sharp look. You understand?" un-derstand?" "Yes; but" "Oh, he hasn't come In yet I took pains lo find that out You saw me go into the court and look up. That was to see if hla window waa lighted. Well, It wasn't." George felt non-plussed. "Hut surely," aald he, "the gentleman gentle-man named lirotherson doesn't live here." "The inventor does." "Oh!" "And but I will explain later." The suppressed excitement contained con-tained in these words made George stare. Indeed, he had been wondering wonder-ing for some time at the manner of the detective, which showed a curious mixture of severul opposing emotions. emo-tions. Now, the fellow was actually In a tremblu of hope or Impatience and, not content with listening, he peered every few minutes down the well of the staircase, and when he fas not doing that, tramped from end to end of the narrow pasaage-way aep-arutlng aep-arutlng the head of the stairs from the door he had lxilnted out, like one to whom minutes were hours. Hut when, after some half hour of this tedium and suspense, there rose from below the faint clatter of ascending footsteps, foot-steps, he remembered bla meek companion com-panion and beckoning him to one aide, began a studied conversation with him, show ing him a note-book In which he had written such phraaea aa these: Don't look up till be Is fairly In range with the light. There'a nothing to fear; he doesn't know either of us. If it Is a faco you have seen before If It Is the one we are expecting to see, pull your necktie atralght It'a a little on one side. The man they were waiting for waa no further up than the second floor, but insllnctlvely Goorge'e baud bad flown to hla necktie, and he was only stopped from its premature rearrangement rear-rangement by a warning look from Hweetwater. "Not unlesa you know him," whispered whis-pered tho detective. Suddenly the steps below paused, and George heard Sweetwater draw in hla breath In Irrepressible dismay. Hut they were Immediately resumed, and presently the head and shoulders of a worklngman of uncommon proportions pro-portions appeared In sight on the stairway. George cast him a keen look, and hla hand rose doubtfully to bla neck and then fell back again. The approaching ap-proaching man waa tall, very well proportioned pro-portioned and easy of carrlnge; but the face auch of it aa could be seen between hla cap and the high collar he had pulled up about hla ears, conveyed con-veyed no exact Impreealon to George's mind, and be did not dare to give the signal Sweetwater expected from him. "You're not sure?" he now heard, oddly Interpolated In the stream of half whispered talk with which the MM, I liter George Cast Him a Keen Lock. other endeavored to carry off the situation. sit-uation. George shook hla head He could not rid himself of the old Impression he had formed of the Dian In the snow. "Mr. Dunn, a word with you," suddenly sud-denly k t'P Sweetwater, to the man who had just passed them. "That's your name, lan't it?" "Yes. that Is my name," waa the quiet response. In a voire which waa at once rU h and resonant. "Who are you who wUb to speak to me at ao late an hour?" "Well, we are you know what," smiled the ready detective, advancing half way to greet him. "We're not members of the Associated Ilrother-hood, Ilrother-hood, but possibly have hopes of owing ow-ing ao. At all events, we should like to talk the matter over. If. aa you aay, It'a not loo late." "I have nothing to to with tbe clnb " "Hut yow spoke before 1L" "Tee." Tba Tou caw tire aa eoax son of an Idea bow we are to apply for membership." Mr. Dunu met the concentrated gaze of his two evidently unwelcome' visitors vis-itors with a frankness which dashed George's confidence In himself, but made little visible impression upon bis daring companion. "I ahould rather aee you at another time," aald he. "Hut" his hesitation was Inappreciable aave to the nicest ear "If you will allow me to be brief, I will tell you what I know which la very little. Hweetwater waa greatly taken aback. All he had looked for, aa he wus caref j to tell my husband later, was a sufficiently prolonged conversation conver-sation to enable George to mark and atudy the workings of the face he waa not yet sure of. Nor did the detective detect-ive feci quite easy at the readiness of hla recptlon; nor any too well pleased to accept the Invitation which hla man now gave them to enter bis room. The room, like many others In these old fashioned tenements, had a Jog Just where the door was. so that, on entering they had to take several steps before they could get a full glimpse of Its four walls. When tfcey did. both allowed eurprlae. The man who lived here was not only a student, as wa evinced by a long wall full of books, but he waa an art lover, a musician, an Inventor and an athlete. Bo much could be learned from the most cursory glance. A more careful one picked up other facta fully as startling and Impressive. The booka were choice; the Invention to all appearance a practical one; the art of a high order and the mualc, auch aa waa in view, of a character of which the nicest taste need not be ashamed. George began to feel quite conscioua of the Intrusion of which they had been guilty, and was amazed at the ease with which the detective carried himself In the presence of such manl-fcstatlona manl-fcstatlona of culture and good, hard work. He waa trying lo recall the exact ex-act appearance of the figure be had aeon atooplng In the snowy atreet two nlghta before, when he found himself him-self glaring at the occupant of the room, who had taken up hla stand before be-fore them and waa regarding them while thsy were regarding the room. He had thrown aside hla bat and rid himself of his overcoat, and the fear lesaness of his aspect seemed to daunt the hitherto dauntless Sweetwater, who, for the Drat time In bis life, per haps, hunted In vain for words with which to start conversation. "You aem to have forgotten your errand," came In quiet. If not good-natured, aarcasm from their patiently waiting hoxt. "It'a the room," muttered Sweetwater, Sweetwa-ter, with an attempt at hla old time ease which waa not aa fully auccessful as usual. "What an all fired genlua you must be. I never saw the like. And In a tenement house too! You ought to be In one of those big new studio buildings In New York where artists be and everything you see Is beautiful. You'd appreciate It, you would." The detective started, George started, start-ed, at the gleam which answered him from a very uncommon eye. It was a temporary flash, however, and quickly veiled, and the tone in which this Dunn now spoke was anything but an encouraging one. ' "I thought you w ere desirous of Joining Join-ing a socialistic fraternity." aald he; "a true aspirant for such honors don't 1 care for beautiful thlnga unless all can have them. I prefer my tenement. 1 How Is it with you. friends?" Sweetwater found some sort of a I reply, though the thing which this ' man now did must have startled him. 1 aa It certslnly did George. They were ' ao grouped that a table quite full of ' anomalous objects stood at the bark ' of their host, and consequently quite ' beyond their own reach. As Sweet- ' water began to speak, he whom he I had addressed by the name of Dunn, drew a pistol from his breast pocket and laid It down barrel towards them on this table top. Then be looked up courteously enough, and listened till Sweetwater was done. A very hand- 1 some man, but one not to be trifled ' with In the slightest degree. Hoth I recognized this fact, and George, for 1 one, began to edge towards the door. 1 "Now I feel easier," remarked the 1 giant, awelllug out bis chest. He wss 1 unusually tall, aa well aa unusually tnuacular. "I never like to carry arms; ' but sometimes It Is unavoidable. Damn ' It. what hands!" He waa looking at 1 his own, which certainly showed soil "Will yoa pardon me?" he pleasantly apologized, stepping towards a wssh- ! stand anl plunging his hand Into the basin. "I cannot tbtnk with dirt on me like that Humph, bey! did you speak?" He turned quickly on George who I bad certainly uttered an ejaculation. 1 but receiving no reply, went on with 1 bia Usk. completing It with a csre and a disregard of their presence which 1 showed him ap In still another light ' Hut even bia hardihood showed 1 hock. when, npoa uralttg round with 1 a brisk. "Now I'm rwady to talk,- r encountered again tbe clear eye of Sweetwater. For, In tbe person of a this none too welcome Intruder, he i- saw a very different man from tha one i upon whim he had Just turned his t back with ao little ceremony; and a there appeared to be no good reason for the change. He had not noted In r his preoccupation, how George, at a sight of bis stooping figure, had made t a sudden significant movement, and ', If he hud, the pulling of a necktie straight, would have meant nothing to him. Hut to Sweetwater It meant i everything, and It waa In the tone of b one fully at ease with himself that be , now dryly remarked: "Mr. lirotherson, if you feel quite I clean, and If you have BuflklenUy i warmed yourself, I would suggest that we start out at once, unlesa you i prefer to have me sliuro this room I with you till the morning." i There was silence. Mr. Dunn thus i addressed attempted no answer; not for a full minute. The two men were s measuring euch other George felt E that he did not count at all and they i were quite too much occupied with I this task to heed the passage of time. I "lirotherson?" repeated their boat ' after the alienee bad lasted to th breaking point. "Why do you call me t that?" i "Pecause it la your name." i "You called me Dunn a minute I ago." I "That Is true." i "Why Dunn If Brotherson la my i name?" 1 "Hecause you spoke under the name 1 of Dunn at the meeting tonight, and : if I don't mistake, that la the name ' by which you are known here." 1 "And you? lly what name are you known?" 1 "It is late to ask, Isn't It? Hut I'm willing to speak It now, and I might not have been so a little earlier in our converaatlon. I am Detective Sweetwater Sweet-water of the New York Department of Police, and my errand here is a very almplo one. Some letters signed by you have been found among the papers of the lady whoae mysterious death at the hotel Clermont la Just now occupying the attention of tho New York authoritiea. If you have any Information to give which wilj In any way explain that death, your presence will be welcomo at Coroner Heath's office In New York. If you have not, your presence will still be welcome. At all events, I was told to bring you. You will be on hand to accompany me In the morning, I am quite aure, pardoning the unconventional unconven-tional meana I have taken to make sure of my man?" Tbe humor with which thla waa said seemed to rob It of anything like attack, and Mr. lirotherson, aa we shall hereafter call him, smiled with an odd acceptance of the same, aa be responded: "I will go before the police certainly. certain-ly. I haven't much to tell, but what I have Is at their service. It will not help you, but I have no secrets. What are you doing?" He bounded towards Sweetwater, who had almply stepped to the window, win-dow, lifted the shade and looked across at the opposing tenement "I wanted to aee If It waa still snowing," snow-ing," exclaimed the detective, with a smile, which seemed to strike the other like a blow. "If it waa a liberty, pleaae pardon it" Mr. lirotherson drew back. The cold air of self possession w hich he now assumed, presented such a contrast con-trast to the unwarranted heat of the moment before that George wondered greatly over It, and later, when be recapitulated to me the whole atory of this night. It was this Incident of the lifted shade, together with the emotion It had caused, which he acknowledged ac-knowledged aa being for him the most inexplicable event of the evening and one be waa most anxious to hear explained. ex-plained. CHAPTER X. A Difference of Opinion. At an early hour the next morning. Sweetwater atood before the coroner's desk, urging a plea he feared to hear rr fused. He wished to be present at the Interview soon to be held with Mr. lirotherson, and be had to good reason rea-son to advance why such a privilege should be allotted him. The coroner, who had had some little experience with thla man. sur- ' veyed him with a smile leas forbidding forbid-ding than the poor fellow expected. "You seem to lay great atore by It." ' said he; "If you want to sort those papers over there, you may " "Thank you. t don't understand the job, but I promise you not to Increase the confusion. If ! do; if I rattle the leaves too loudly. It will mean, 'Press ' him further on this exact point but i I doubt If I rattle them. air. No auch luck." i Tbe last three words were uttered I sotto vre, but the coroner heard him. i and followed his ungainly figure with 1 a glance of some curiosity, as be set- 1 tied klmaelf at the desk on tbe otber I side bt tbe room. "Is tbe man" be began, but at this moment the man entered, and Dr. Heath forgot tbe young detective, In his interest In the new arrival. "Mr. Drotherson, I believe," said be, aa he motioned hla visitor to ait "That Is my name, Blr." "Orlando Hrotheraon?" "The aame, air." "I'm glad we have made no mistake," mis-take," smiled the doctor. "Mr. lirotherson, liroth-erson, I have sent for you under the supposition that you were a friend of the unhappy lady lately dead at the Hotel Clermont." "Miss Challoner?" "Certainly; Miss Challoner." "I knew the lady. Hut" here the speaker's eye took on a look aa questioning ques-tioning us that of his Interlocutor "but In a way ao devoid of all publicity public-ity that I cannot but feel surprised that tho fact should be known." At this, the listening Sweetwater hoped that Dr. Heath would ignore the suggestion thua conveyed and decline de-cline the explanation it apparently demanded. de-manded. Hut the Impression made by the gentleman's good looks had been too strong for thla coroner's proverbial caution, and, handing over the slip of a note -which had been found among Miss Challoner'B effects by her father, he quietly asked: "Do you recognize the signature?" "Yea, It is mine." "Do you remember the words of this note, Mr. Hrotheraon?" "Hardly. I recollect its tenor, but not the exact words." "Kead them," "Excuso me, I bad rather not. I am aware that they were bitter and should be the cause of great regret I waa angry when I wrote them." "That la evident Hut the cause of your anger is not so clear, Mr. lirotherson. liroth-erson. Miss Challoner was a woman of lofty character, or such waa the universal opinion of her friends. What could she have done to a gentleman gen-tleman like yourself to draw forth such a tirade?" "You ask that?" "I am obliged to. There is mystery surrounding her death the kind of mystery which demands perfect frankness frank-ness on the part of all w ho were near her on that evening, or whose relations rela-tions to her were In any way peculiar. You acknowledge that your friendship was of such a guarded nature that It surprised you greatly to hear It recog- ' nlzed. , Yet you could write her a letter let-ter of thla nature. Why?" "Hecause" the word came glibly; but the next one was long in following. follow-ing. "Hecause," he repeated, letting the fire of some strong feeling disturb for a moment hla dignified reserve, "I offered myself to Miss Challoner, and she dismissed me with great disdain." dis-dain." "Ah! and so you thought a threat was due her?" "A threat?" "These words contain a threat, do 1 they not?" "They may. I waa hardly master of myself at the time. I may have ex- Kav W 1. N J "What Are You Dolear t pressed myself In an unfortunate manner." man-ner." . "Head the words. Mr. lirotherson. I , really must Insist that you do ao." There was no hesitancy now. KIs- j Ing. he leaned over the table and read the few words the other had spread , out for his perusal. Then he slowly ( rope to his full height, aa he an- . i wired, with some slight display of compunction: "I remember It perfectly now. Tt Is not a letter to be proud of. I hope" "Pray finish. Mr. Hrotheraon "That you are not aeeking to establish es-tablish a connection between this Ut- , ter and her violent death?" . "letters of this sort are often very mischievous, Mr. Hrotheraon. The barohness with which thla Is written might easily rouse emotions of a most unhappy nature In the breast of a soman aa sensitive as Misa Cbal loner " f "Pardon me. Dr. Heath; I eaanot r I flatter myself bo far. You overrate my Influence with the lady you name." "You believe, then, that she was sincere sin-cere In her rejection of your addresses?" ad-dresses?" "I have never allowed myself to think otherwise. I have seen no reason rea-son why I should. The suggestion you would convey by such a question Is hardly welcome, now. I pray you to be careful In your Judgment of such a woman'a Impulses. They oi'ten spring from sources not to be sounded sound-ed even by her dearest friends." Meantime, the coroner hnd collected his thoughts. With an apology for the extremely personal nature of hU Inquiry, In-quiry, he asked Mr. lirotherson If he would object to giving hlin some further fur-ther details of his ac'iuatntaiiceshlp with MIxb Challoner; where be first met her and under w hat clrcumstancea their frletidHhlp had developed. "Not at all," was the ready reply. "I have nothing to conceal in the matter. mat-ter. I only wish that her father were present Jhat he might listen to the recital of my acquaintanceship with his daughter. He might possibly understand un-derstand her better and regard with more leniency the presumption into w hich I waa led by my Ignorance of the pride Inherent In great families." "Your wiBh can very easily be gratified," grat-ified," returned the official, pressing an electric button on his desk; "Mr. Challoner la In the adjoining room." Then, as the door communicating with the room be had mentioned awung ajar and stood so. Dr. Heath added, without apparent consciousness conscious-ness of the dramatic character of this episode, "You will not need to raise your voice beyond Its natural pitch He can hear perfectly from where he sits." "I first met Miss Challoner in the Herks'alres," he began, after a moment mo-ment of quiet listening for any possible pos-sible sound from the other room. "I bad been on the tramp, and had stopped at one of the great hotels for a seven days' rest. The panorama of beauty spread out before me on every side waa sufficient In Itself for my enjoyment, en-joyment, and might have continued so to the end if my attention had not been very forcibly drawn on one memorable morning to a young lady-Miss lady-Miss Challoner by the very earnest look she gave me as I was crossing the office from one verandah to another. an-other. It waa an overwhelming blush which could not have sprung from any slight embarrassment and, though I hate the pretensions of those egotists who Bee In a woman's smile more than It by right conveys, I could not help being moved by this display of feeling In one so gifted with every grace and attribute of the perfect woman. With less caution than I usually usu-ally display, I approached the desk where she bad been standing and, meeting the eyes of the clerk, asked the young lady's name. He gave it and waited for me to express the surprise sur-prise he expected tt to evoke. Hut I felt none and showed none. Other feelings had seized me. I had beard of thla gracious woman from many sources, in my life among the Buffering Buffer-ing masses of New York, and now that I had seen her and found her to be not only my Ideal of personal loveliness loveli-ness but seemingly approachable and not uninterested in myself, I allowed my fancy to soar and my heart to become be-come touched. A fact which the clerk now confided to me naturally deepened deep-ened the Impression. Miss Challoner had seen my name In the guest-book nd asked to have me pointed out to her. Perhspa she had heard my name poken In the same quarter where I had heard hers. We have never exchanged ex-changed confidences on the subject, ind I cannot say. I can only give you my reason for the Interest 1 felt In Miss Challoner and why I forgot. In the glamour of this episode, the alms ind purposes of a not unambitious life and the distance which the world ind the so-called aristocratic class put between a woman of her wealth ind standing and a simple worker like jiyself. "I must be pardoned. She had smiled ipon me once, and she smiled again. Days before we were formally p relented. re-lented. I caught her softened look urned my way, aa we passed each 5ther In ball or corridor. We were 'rlends. or so It appeared to me, be. 'ore ever a word passed between us, ind when fortune favored us and we ' ere duly Introduced, our minds met n a strange sympathy which made hla one Interview a memorable one o me. Vnbappily. aa I then ronaid-red ronaid-red It, this was my last day at the oiel, and our conversation. Inter upted frequently by passing acquaint-inces, acquaint-inces, was never resumed. I exchanged ex-changed a few worda with her by way if goodby but nothing more. I enme o New York, and she remained In nox. A month after and she too ame to New York." "This goodby do you remember t? The exact language, mean?" to rtK cov"rnrEr Dcn't worry about what the other etlow Is going lo do. tear u(-icr u(-icr artuiiies worry nirn |
