6
THE CIRCULAR STAIRCASE
BKmahV ❖
ROBERTS
❖ RINE
nmmvons BY K-yWrfr*^
CTRRA/CMR NOT FLY OMAS -IUMHL'CO. T
CHAPTER I.
I Take a Country House.
This Is the story of how a middle
aged spinster lost her mind, deserted
her domestic gods in the city, took
a furnished house for the summer out
of town, and found herself involved in
one of those mysterious crimes that
keep our newspapers and detective
agencies happy and prosperous. For
20 years I had been perfectly com
fortable; for 20 years I had had the
window-boxes filled in the spring, the
carpets lifted, the awnings put up and
the furniture covered with brown
linen; for as many summers I had said
good-by to my friends, and, after
watching their perspiring liegira, had
settled down to a delicious quiet in
town, where the mail comes three
times a day, and the water supply
does not depend on a tank on the
roof.
And then —the madness seized me.
When I look back over the months I
spent in Sunnyside, I wonder that I
survived at all. As it is, I show the
wear and tear of my harrowing ex
periences. I have turned very gray —
Liddy reminded me of it only yester
day by saying that a little bluing in
the rinse water would make my hair
silvery instead of a yellow white. I
hate to be reminded of unpleasant
things and I snapped her off.
"No," I said sharply, "I'm not going
to use bluing at my time of life, or
starch, either."
Liddy's nerves are gone, she says,
since that awful summer, but she has
enough left, goodness knows! And
when she begins togo around with a
lump in her throat, all I have to do
is to threaten to return to Sunnyside,
and she is frightened into a semblance
of cheerfulness —from which you may
judge that the summer there was any
thing but a success.
The newspaper accounts have been
so garbled and incomplete—one of
them mentioned me but once, and
then only as the tenant at the time
the thing happened—that I feel it my
due to tell what 1 know. Mr. Jamie
son, the detective, said himself he
could never have done without me,
although he gave me little enough j
credit, in print.
I shall have togo back several
years—l 3, to be exact —to start my
story. At that time my brother died,
leaving me his two children. Halsey
was 11 then and Gertrude was seven.
When Halsey had finished his elec
trical coursts and Gertrude her board
lig school both came home to stay.
The winter Gertrude came out was
nothing but a succession of sitting up
late at night to bring her home from
things, taking her to the dressmakers
b tween naps the next day, and dis
couraging ineligible youths with either
more money than brains or more
brains than money. Ry spring I was
euitc tractable. So when Halsey sug
gested camping in the Adirondacks
and Gertrude wanted Rar Harbor, wo
compromised on a good country house
with links near, within motor dis
tance of town and telephone distance
of the doctor. That was how we went
to Sunnyside.
We went out to inspect the property,
and it seemed to deserve its name.
Its cheerful appearance gave no indi
cation whatever of anything out of
the ordinary. Only one thing seemed
unusual to me: The housekeeper, who
had been left in charge, had moved
from the house to the gardener's lodge
a few days before. As the lodge was
far enough away from the house, it
seemed to me that either lire or
thieves could complete their work of
destruction undisturbed. The proper
ty was an extensive one; the house on
the top of a hill, which sloped away in
great stretches of green lawn and
clipped hedges, to the road, and across
the valley, perhaps a couple of miles
away, was the Greenwood Clubhouse
Gertrude nnd Halsey were infatuated.
The property was owned by Raul
Armstrong, the president of the
Traders' bank, who at the time we
took the house was In the west with
his wife and daughter, and a l)r.
Walker, the Armstrong family phy
sician. Halsey knew Louise Arm
strong—had been rather atti ntlvo to
her the winter before, but as Halsey
Mas always attentive to somebody, I
hail not thought of It seriously, a|.
though she was a charming girl. I
knew of Mr. Armstrong only through
his connection with the bank, wb»r«
the children money was tart ly In
vested, and through an ugly story
about the son. Arnold Armstrong, who
was reported to have forged his fa
ther's nnine for a eon-IderabK amount
to some bank paper. However, the
story had had no Interest for me.
I cleared llals y and Gertrude
away to a house party, and moved out
to gunnysldi the flit or .]»>•.
The llrst night parsed quietly
enough. I hnvi alwa) * been grateful
for ti it <>n night' < |• a> It [.how*
what the country iright !»• und< r fa
vorabh clretiiiistuno *. Nev< r alter
tl.at nigbt did I put my h< ,t : , 0
pillow with any ftssuranct how lorn;
It would be there; or on my shoulder*
for that matti i
On the following niornltiK IJddy and
.Mrs lUlaton. my < •. ti hi>>»,->« keep. i,
hud i' .lift I • nee of o| i II u,i Ah
Ralston left on the II train lust aft. r
lunctioon, lb ih it b..Uer, * i tale u
■ - . B°'
Dsivrvwr fcjtn Coc nuti Dm way
jj'f'" ' I." H j |
r£f i-• • •'r l—r
t - ® 3 »- —-p I j 112t 1 " : I A I t--,
O a DRAWING ROOM fiUxari | I
| L X J Rooh # jj R
CONttPVATGirv Tcrjlacl I ■—sH
, « IW
* B pi 1 '
J |j FIRST FLOOD. PLJU»
unexpectedly with a pain in his right
side, much worse when I was within
hearing distance, and by afternoon he
was started cityward. That night the
cook's sister had a baby—the cook,
seeing indecision in my face, made it
twins on second thought—and, to be
short, by noon the next day the house
hold staff was down to Llddy and
myself. And this in a house with 22
rooms and five baths!
Liddy wanted togo back to the city
at once, but the milkboy said that
Thomas Johnson, th' - Armstrongs'
colored butler, was wJrking as a
waiter at the Greenwood club and
might come back. I have the usual
scruples about coercing people's serv
ants away, but few of us have any
conscience regarding institutions or
corporations—witness the way we
beat railroads and street car compan
ies when we can—so I called up the
club, and about eight o'clock Thomas
Johnson came to see me. Poor
Thomas!
Well, it ended by my engaging
Thomas on the spot, at outrageous
wages, and with permission to sleep
in the gardener's lodge, empty since
the house was rented. The old man
—he was white-haired and a little
stooped, but with an immense idea of
his personal dignity—gave me his
reasons hesitatingly.
"I ain't sayin' nothing', Mis' Innes,"
he said, his hand on the door-knob, "but
there's been goin's-on here this las'
few months as ain't natchal. 'Tain't
one thing an' 'taint another—it's jest
a door squealin' here, an' a winder
That Completed Our Demoralization. fiu.
closing' there, but when doors nn'
windon gets to cuttln' up capers and
there's nobody nigh 'em, it's time
Thomas Johnson sleeps somewhat's
else."
I,lildy, who seemed to be never
more than ten feet away from me that
night, and wan afraid of her shadow
in that (treat barn of a place, screamed
a littlo, and turned a yellow green.
Hut I am not eusily alarmed.
Ii was entirely in vain I represented
lo Thomas that wo wore alone, and
that he would have to stay In the
hou <• that night. He was politely
Arm, but lie would come over early
the next morning, ami if I gav« him a
Ki y, he would tome in time to get
some sort of breakfast. I stood ou
the huge veranda and watched him
shuttle along down the shadowy drive
with mlngb d fi>«|la|i irritation at
hi t cowardice and thaiikfulm i at get
ting lit iu at all I ain not ashamed
to say thai 1 double-locked the ball
door when I went In
"You can lock up the r« st of the
hou ■ and goto bed, Kiddy," I said
severely, "You gi*«' nio tl»« rr«tpi
standing there. A woman of your an**
out lit to have In Iter aetise '* It ttsual
; ly braci s l.ldd. to mention h< r age;
be owiih to l» which Is absurd ller
mother cooked lor lay gatidfalher,
uiid Kiddy nn t be at least as old as
I, lltit that night she refu« d to
J brace
"You're not going t" ask uiv to luck
CAMERON COUNTY PRESS, THURSDAY, JULY 21, 1910.
up, Miss Rachel!" she quavered.
"Why, there's a dozen French win
dows in the drawing room and the bil
liard room wing, and every one opens
on a porch. And Mary Anne said that
last night there was a man standing
by the stable when she locked the
kitchen door."
"Mary Anne was a fool," I said
sternly. "If there had been a man
there she would have had him in the
kitchen and been feeding him what
was left from dinner, inside of an hour,
from force of habit. Now don't be
ridiculous. Lock up the house and go
to bed. lam going to read."
But Liddy set her lips tight and
stood still.
"I'm not going to bed," she said. "I
am going to pack up, and to-morrow
I am going to leave."
"You'll do nothing of the sort," I
snapped. Llddy and I often desire to
part company, but never at the same
time. "If you are afraid, I will go
with you, but for goodness' sake don't
try to hide behind me."
The house was a typical summer
1 residence on an extensive scale.
Wherever possible, on the first floor,
the architect had done away with par
-1 titions, using arches and columns in
stead. The effect was cool and spaci
-1 ous, but scarcely cozy. As Liddy and
I went from one window to another,
our voices echoed back at us uncom
. fortably. There was plenty of light—
the electric plant down in the village
supplied us —but there were long vis
tas of polished floor, and mirrors
which reflected us from unexpected
| corners, until I felt some of Llddy's
foolishness communicate lUolf to me.
'l'he house was very long, a rectan
. g!e In general form, with the main en
trance in the center of the long side.
The brick-paved entry opened Into u
J short hall, to the right of which, sepa
rated only by a row of pillars, was a
huge living room. Ileyond that wan
| tin- drawing room, and in the end the
I billiard room. Off the billiard room,
l in the extreme right wing, was a di n,
nr cnrdrooiu, with a small hall open
ing on the east veranda, ami from
' there w< nt up a narrow circular xtuli
! ease.
Uddy and I got as far as the card
room and turned on all the lights. 1
tried the small entry door there,
which opened on the veranda, and e»-
ntulm d ih<- window s I w rything waa
s« ure, uitd l.lddy, a little hss ner
% ous nuw, had just isiluted out to mu
tin- disgraceful dusty condition of tin
! hardwood ttoor, when suddenly the
1 lights went out. \V>< walt< d a mo
ment; I think l.lddy was stunned with
friKht or he would hnvu screamed
And then I clulch> d her by the arm
and point) >1 to ou<> oi the window*
opening on the porch The sudden
change threw the window lutu relief,
an oblong of grayish light, and showed
us a figure standing close, peering In
As I looked It darted »< ru** tie vi i
anda and out of sight iu th« ilarkuv.»s.
CHAPTER 11.
A Link Cuff-Button.
Liddy's knees seemed to give away
under her. Without a sound she sank
down, leaving me staring at the win
dow in petrified amazement. Liddy
began to moan under her breath, and
in my excitement I reached down and
shook her.
"Stop it," I whispered. "It's only a
woman—maybe a maid of the Arm
strongs'. Get up and help me find the
door." She groaned again. "Very
well," I said, "then I'll have to leave
you here. I'm going."
She moved at that, and, holding to
my sleeve, we felt our way, with nu
merous collisions, to the billiard-room,
and from there to the drawing-rooin.
The lights came on then, and, with
the long French windows unshuttered,
I had a creepy feeling that each one
sheltered a peering face. In fact, in
the light of what happened afterward,
I am pretty certain we were under
surveillance during the entire ghostly
evening. We hurried over the rest of
the locking-up and got upstairs as
quickly as we could. I left the lights
all on, and our footsteps echoed ca
vernously. Liddy had a stiff neck the
next morning, from looking back over
her shoulder, and she refused togo
to bed.
"Let me stay in your dressing room.
Miss Rachel," she begged. "If you
don't I'll sit in the hall outside the
door. I'm not going to be murdered
with my eyes shut."
It was 11 o'clock when I finally pre
pared for bed. In spite of my assump
tion of indifference, I locked the door
into the hall, and finding the tran
som did not catch, I put a chair cau
tiously before the door —it was not
necessary to rouse Liddy—and climb
ing up put on the ledge of the tran
som a small dressing-mirror, so that
any movement of the frame would
send it crashing down. Then, secure
in my precautions I wont to bed.
I did not goto sleep at once. Liddy
disturbed me just as I was growing
drowsy, by coming in and peering un
der the bed. She was afraid to speak,
however, because of her previous
snubbing, and went back, stopping in
the doorway to sigh dismally.
Somewhere down-stairs a clock
with a chime sang away the hours —
eleven-thfrty, forty-five, twelve. And
then the lights went out to stay. Th<»
Casanova Electric Company shuts up
shop and goes home to bed at mid
night: when one has a party, I be
lieve it is customary to fee the com
pany, which will drink hot coffee and
keep awake a couple of hours longer.
I tut the lights were gone for good
that night. Liddy had gone to sleep,
as I knew she would. She was a very
unreliable person: always awake and
ready to talk when she wasn't wanted
and do/.ing off to sleep when she was
I called her once or twice, the only re
sult being an explosive snoro that
threatened her very windpipe—then 1
got up and lighted a bedroom candle.
My bedroom and dressing room
were above the big living room on
the first floor. On the second floor a
long corridor r?n the length of the
house, with rooms opening from both
sides. In the wings were small cor
ridors crossing the main one—the
plan was simplicity Itself. And just
as 1 got back into bed, 1 heard a
sound from the east wing, apparently,
that made me stop, frozen, with one
bedroom slipper half off, and listen. It
was a rattling metallic sound, and It
reverberated along the empty halls
like the crash of doom. It was for all
the world as If something heavy, per
haps a piece of steel, had rolled clat
tering and jangling down the hard
wood stairs leading to the card-room.
In the silence that followed Liddy
stirred and snored again. 1 was ex
asperated; tirst sue kept me awake
by silly alarms, then when she was
needed she slept like Joe Ji'ffersoli, or
Hip they are always tin- sumo to me.
! | went In and aroused her, und I give
I her credit for being wide uwake the
minute I spoke.
"Get up." I said, "If you don't want
to be murdered In your bed "
"Where? How?" she yelled voclfer
; oiiHly, and jumped up.
"There's somebody In the house," I
said. "(Set up. We'll have togo to
the telephone."
"Not out In the hall!" she gasped[
"Oh. Ml.-s Itachel, not out lu the
hall!" tryliiK to hold me back. Hut I
am a laiti" woman and l.lddy Is small
We K«u to the door, somehow, und
I.ldd) In Id a brass andiron, whleli It
was ull shi could do to lift, lot alone
brain anybody with I listened, and,
Item ing iiothliiK, opei»« il lh«« door a
little and peered Into the hull. Il was
a black void, rull of terrible nugges
lion, and my candle only enaphusUed
tie gloom, l.lddy tnpuftled and «lr« *
Hie bark an it In. »lnl a* the door
slammed, ihe mirror I had put 011 tli«
transom ctitue duwn and hit h< r ou
the head That completed »ur d»-
mornlUntlon It was some Him befor*
attack* d Irom lo hlnd by a burglar,
und * hen she lotilid the intrrei
smashed on the floor she wasn't iwnl
bolt. 1
fro in. I'UMtIMUIiUI
INCOMPETENT.
't. if ''
Mrs. Hare—Old Snail got his boy a
position last week and he only held
it one day.
Mr. Hare —What was it?
Mrs. Hare—A messenger boy.
A Hibernian Verdict.
A New Yorker is the happy employ
er of an aged Irishman, who grows
eloquent over the woes of the Em
erald isle. Said the boss: "Pat, the
king of England is dead."
The old man was silent for a mo
ment. Then he took off his hat.
"Well," he said slowly, "as a man
he was a fine bit of a boy. As Eng
lishmen go, he was as good as yez
can make them. As a king, there was
nobody on earth as could beat him.
But still, I'll keep me eye on George."
Your Wife's Picture.
A man ought to be ashamed to live
so that his wife is compelled to look as
she does at housecleaning time. He'll
allow her to buy cheap old yellow soap
right along and take twice as long for
her housework and washing, when
Easy Task soap will save time, health
and money for her. A man wouldn't tol
erate old-fashioned methods in his
place of business for a minute. If your
wife would use Easy Task soap all the
time there wouldn't be a tenth of the
dirt to get rid of at housecleaning time.
For tho Dog's Sake.
"Where are you going for your sum
mer vacation this year?" asked Mrs,
Gotrox.
"O, dear, I've not made up my mind
yet," sighed Mrs. Rich wearily. "I
want to find some quiet, restful spqt,
where my dear little French poodle
can get plenty of fresh air."
Decidedly So.
Hewitt—Are you sweet on that girl?
Jewett —Sweet on her? The sugar
trust isn't in it.
A rich man's children seem to think
it is up to them to make a noise in
the world.
Ennui is the price we pay for knowl
edge.
Mm. Win slow*« Soothing Syrup.
For children teething. w»ft«*ns 1 M«* KUHI>. nunoosln
fLimuiaiiou.allay* p*in,euro® wind colic. &cu u>iu«.
It is a wise worm that turns no
oftener than he has to.
WESTE^^DA
What Prof. Shaw, tha Wall-Known Afrl<
cutUirlat, Saya About Its ———
rulno^cnt lli» V-V«iU>rn
|Dw?SaJ
jg A th« lut- rnikii >UM! U uu.t
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h«EQ**» to tuko Up till* Uflit" K»*rlf
70,000 Americans
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"dRS> V J I-*" Bu" Jinf Tall US, Ohio
SI 'I —II. ir«-l >..||| u
PROOF
i¥Se3ff>mntfF
\V«» tell you ahouttniw ynn'll
112 I nft r Lukiutf a i A '< aTU T
Uutl milium uf Uiv, U4O
und in aU 1! 11- li« t thm i
I iik— 'JfOll fct *.'/ U but i|j|
ill t inniiiiJig— A "\i » 112 u <vf
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patents: a
S The Place to Bay Cheap S
) J. F. PARSONS' ?
oSSS
RHEUMATISM
LUHBA6O, SCIATICA
NEURALGIA and
KIDNEY TROUBLE
"•-MOPS" taksa lateraaUy. rlda tk* Hood
at tk* palaaaaua ntltw and aoids wkioh
ar* tk* 4 treat otum of thee* dleeaoee.
Applied «xtera*lly It aferd* alseet In-
Mai r*IM (ram pais, wktl* a pemaaent
aura la Mac effected kr purify!** the
klao4, dluelrlni tka poleanoua aob
•taao* aod removln* It froai the syatem.
DR. 8. D. BLAND ,
Of Brawtaa, •*., wrttaai
«| kU tw • tnttnr (w •unbttol yean
wllik L»te|« M* Kkwaaatlna I* my «rra
u* Uaa,as* krla* >ll tk* r*aaa4l«a tk»«la*ald
m*w fna »*eio*l war ka, bad ala* ocamiud
wick a *Daa t*r •( tk* kaat fkiileliaa, but found
a*tkl*r that *ar* Ik* r*M*t abklnrt from
**-DRuPI." I akall arOMrlba It IB my pr»gCia*
Mr rhmnatlam aad kmdrad «Uaam''
FREE
If jm ara tutoring with Rbeumatlem,
Ifatiralgla, Kidney Troubl* or any kin
dred dlsaaae. writ* to ua for a trial boMla
of "•-DROPS,'* and teat it youreelf.
"••DROPS" eaa ba uaad any length of
tiaaa without acquiring a "drug habit,"
aa It la entirely free of opium, oocalne. H
alookol. laudanum, and other similar H
Ingredients. H
Wb* si** Bottl*. "l-DHPr no* taw) ■
01.*0. raalaiatrDnitkU. ■
BWANIOI INEHMATW SORE OOHPAIY.SI
Dept. (0. ieo Laka Strut, H
j«^Xrur4
in WB HIHUMIMUMiI
THIS ad. is directed at the
man who has all the
business in his line in
this community.
<3 Mr. Merchant —You say
i you've got it all. You're sell
ing them all they'll buy, any
how. But at the same time
you would like more business.
Make this community buy
more.
Advertise strongly, consist
ently, judiciously,
tj Suppose you can buy a lot
of washtubs cheap; advertise
! a big washtub sale in this pa
per. Putin an inviting pic
ture of a washtub where
j people can see it the minute
they look at your ad. Talk
strong on washtubs. And
you'll find every woman in
this vicinity who has been
getting along with a rickety
washtub for years and years
i will buy a new one from you.
€f That's creative business
power.
i =
OURj AD. KATES ARE RIGHT
—CALL ON US
ll'upjrrlflit. Mil. by \V N J,*.'
Wor d-of - Mouth
Advertising
Passing encomium#, only over
your store counter, about the
quality of what you've to
sell, results in about as much
j sail faction us your wife would
Utt if you gave her a box of
j citfura 'jr Christmas.
Advertising in This Paper
i.»lk-> (" aviTvl" «t\ it unt< u»«l makue
I
TTRUE\
is. » -asrarxx.--. •