6 THE CIRCULAR STAIRCASE ❖ ROBERTS <♦ rtnthaut ILLUSTfiATIOm 3Y R*yWtf r *^ WYHICHT /tot a* itOOAf -HtK*u/c<X T SYNOPSIS. Miss Innes, spinster ami guardian of Gertrude anil Halsey, established summer headquarters at Sunnyside. Amidst nu merous difficulties the servants deserted. As Miss Innes locked up for the night, she was startled by a dark iigurc on the veranda. She passed a terrible night, which was tilled with unseemly noises. In tho morning Miss Innes found a strange link cuff button in a clothes hamper. Gertrude and Halsey arrived With Jack Bailey. The house was awak ■led bv a revolver shot. A strange man was found shot to death in tho hall. Jt proved to be tho body of Arnold Arm strong. whose banker father owned the country house. Miss Innes found Hal- Bey's revolver on the lawn. He and Jack Bailey had disappeared. The link cuff button mysteriously disappeared. De teetivv .Tamieson and the coroner arrived. Gertruae revealed that she was engaged to Jack Bailey, with whom she had talked in the billiard room a few mo ments before the murder. CHAPTER V.—Continued. "The quarrel, I believe," he per sisted, "was about Mr. Armstrong's conduct to you. Miss Gertrude. He had been paying you unwelcome at tentions." And I had never seen the man! When she nodded a "yes" I saw the tremendous possibilities involved. If this detective could prove that Ger trude feared and disliked the mur dered man, and that Mr. Armstrong had been annoying and possibly pur suing her with hateful attentions, all that, added to Gertrude's confession of her presence in the billiard room at the time of the crime, looked strange, to say the least. The promi nence of the family assured a strenu ous effort to find the murderer, and if we had nothing worse to look forward to, we were sure of a distasteful pub licity. Mr. Jamieson shut his note-book with a snap and thanked lis. "I have an idea," he said, apropos ■of nothing at all, "that at any rate the ghost is laid here. Whatever the rap plngs have been —and the colored man says they began when the family went west three months ago—they are like ly to stop now." Which shows how much he knew about it. The ghost was not laid; with the murder of Arnold Armstrong he, or it, only seemed to take on fresh vigor. Mr. Jamieson left then, and when Gertrude had gone upstairs, as she did at once. 1 sat and thought over what I had just heard. Her engagement, once s6 - Pngrossing a matter, paled now beside the significance of her story. If Halsey and Jack Bailey had left before the crime, how came Hal •ey'B revolver in the tulip bed? What was the mysterious cause of their sud den flight? What had Gertrude left In the billiard room? What was the significance of the cuff-link and where was It? CHAPTER VI. In the East Corridor. When the detective left he enjoined absolute secrecy on everybody in the household. The Greenwood club promised the sumo thing, and as there are no Sunday afternoon papers, the murder was not publicly known until Monday The coroner himself notified the Armstrong family lawyer, and early in the afternoon he came out. 1 had not seen Mr. Jamieson since morning, but 1 knew he had been in terrogating the servants. Gertrude was locked In her room with a head ache, and i had luncheon alone. Mr Ilarton, the lawyer, was a little, thin u»«n, and he looked an if he did not relish his busiue.- ; that day. "This Is very unfortunate, Mi. ; In ne»." he aid, alter wo had shaken hands Moat unfortunate and mys terious With the father and mother lu the w. ',l find • ver> thing devolves on me; and, us you can understand, it I-* an unpleasant duty." "No doubt," I said absently. "Mr. Han i>u. 1 aui going to ask you some qui iluui, and I hope >ou will answer them. I l> I that I aui entitled to »oni«i knowledge, because I and my family art- j.mt now in a iuost ai.tblgu ous position." I don i knuw blether he under stood ;«« or not; h. took olt his gla»»e>> and wiped them 'I itiall be v.ry happy." he said With old» t »hioii> .1 court- • • rhmk -• *u Mr Ilarton, did Mr Amtld Ann4trang know lut Sunny nlde hid t»< n rut..) ' "I think ye*, he did lu fact, I uty mM told hint about it" Mid b« kt>< v* who that tenants we» w ?" "M« had not b-«n living with the fsiotly lot «i uu > ii , |, w "N.» t ulurtnasiety, Hurt; bad U«»m trouble I tw ,ii \n Id atel hU fa th' 1 •' •* >k MI. I «>l Ilk I lu lu« H " * f'fceli || wo .ld lie mtllgcdy that k« rui.-e U" ilast nitht to «««i p«,> i.iit at a»4 .iUtin t,. lot.-lug lu hlut? I tj<ti »hl Mi 114 It || Uat " &lm imt », i i ( || HMt Diluli u| iu*> !'•»* h> If i n n#4>:' iii'-mmit I ®r^ ■■ "The Quarrel, I Believe." and I felt that this dried-up little man was the repository of much that he had not told me. I gave up trying to elicit any information from him, and we went together to view the body before it was taken to tho city. It had been lifted onto the billiard ta ble and a sheet thrown over it; oth erwise nothing had been touched. A soft hat lay beside it, and the collar of the dinner-coat was still turned up. The handsome, dissipated face of Ar nold Armstrong, purged of its ugly lines, was now only pathetic. As we went in Mrs. Watson appeared at the card-room door. "Come in, Mrs. Watson," the lawyer said. Hut she shook her head and withdrew; she was the only one in the house who seemed to regret the dead man, and even she seemed rath er shocked than sorry. Before Mr. Ilarton left, he told me something of the Armstrong family. Paul Armstrong, the father, had been married twice. Arnold was a son by the first marriage. The second Mrs. Armstrong had been a widow, with a child, a little girl. This child, now perhaps 20, was Louise Armstrong, having taken her stepfather's name, and was at present in California with the family. "They will probably return at once," he concluded, "and part of my errand h«»re to-day is to see If you will relin quish your lease hero In their favor." "We would better wait and see If they wish to come," I said. "It seems unlikely, und my town house is being remodeled." At that he let the mat ter drop, but It came up unpleasantly enough, later. At six o'clock the body was taken away, and ut seven thirty, after an early dinner, Mr. Ilarton went. Ger trude had not come down, and there was no news of Halsey. Mr. Jamie son had taken a lodging in the vll la ice. and I had not seen him »lncu mid-afternoon It was about nine o'clock. I think, wh.-n the bell rang and he was ushered iuto the living room. "Sit down," I said grimly. "Have you tound a clew that will luciimluate me, Mr. J unlet, on *" lb- had til.- grace to look uncomfort able "No," be said. "If you hud killed Mr Armstrong, you would have bit no dews You would have had too much Intelligence." After that We got (-.long belter lb was tilling In his |mii ket, uud ufter a minute he brought out (wo senilis of paper "1 have been to tho club hoi. . he..lid, and among Mr Arm Strong's . ffei 1 - 1 (omul tie . Due In curious; tit- other Is pm/liug" Th first wit a h< - t of club uote paper on whi-ii wa» writteu, over uud over, then.tine liaise) 11. Inn. s " It was llaUey* Hosing signature to a dot, but it lu< k< d Hal .. s |u».-. The ones tow.nd the hot out of the i heel wvre muck better thau tb« top oues Mr laiui- on suill-d at ii.» (ac< "Ills old tritks," hi suit. "That '* • CAMERON COUNTY PRESS, THURSDAY, AUGUST n, 1910. ought to be able to change the plan of his house without becoming an ob pect of suspicion." "There is little in the paper itself," he admitted; "but why should Arnold Armstrong carry that around, unless it meant something? He never built a house, you may be sure of that. If it is this house, it may mean anything from a secret room—" "To an extra bathroom," I said scornfully. "Haven't you a thumb print, too?" "I have,"he said with a smile, "and the print of a foot in a tulip bed, and a number of other things. The odd est part Is, Miss Innes, that the thumb-mark is probably yours and the footprint certainly." His audacity was the only thing that saved me; his amused smile put me on my mettle, and I ripped out a perfectly good scallop before I an swered. "Why did I step into the tulip bed?" I asked with interest. "You picked up something," he said good-hutnoredly, "which you are go ing to tell me about later." "Am I, indeed?" I was politely cu rious. "With this remarkable insight of yours, I wish you would tell me where 1 shall find my four thousand dollar motorcar." "I was Just coming to that," he said. "You will find it about 30 miles away, at Andrews Station, in a black smith shop, where it is being im paired." 1 laid down my knitting then and looked at him. "And Halsey?" 1 managed to say. "Wo are going to exchange infor mation," he said. "I am going to tell you that, when you tell me what you picked up In the tulip bed." Wo looked steadily ut each other; It was not an unfriendly stare; we were only measuring weapons. Then he smiled a little and got up. "With your permission," he suld, "I aui going to examine the curd room and the itilrcu<e again. You might think ovtr my offer In the meantime." He went on through the drawing room, and I listened to his footsteps growing gradually fainter. 1 dropped my pretence ut knitting and, leaning back, I thought over the last l* hours. Here was I, Itachel Innes, spinster, a granddaughter of old John lunes of revolutionary days, a t> A It , a Co hiatal Uaiue, mixed up with a vulgar und revolting crime, and even at tempting to lii.oUwlnk the law! Cer tainly I had leit the stiulght and nar row aay. 1 was routed by hearing Mr. Jamle kuii coming rapidly bat k through the draw lug luoiu He stopped ut the door. "Ml » luii* ~" he said uukkly, Mill you coiue with utu and light the e.ist corridor? I bavtt fa tleaed souu*l»ody lu the small room at tin h< .id of the I jump, d up si once You m« in i.e. murderer?" | "HusatUy,** lie said quietly, as «• «to i| I ». tit If.li lt I •iH.ifetf 11. it.id Trembling as I was, I was deter mined to see that door opened. I hardly knew what I feared, but so many terrible and inexplicable things had happened that suspense was worse than certainty. "I am perfectly cool," I said, "and I am going to remain here." The lights flashed up along that end of the corridor, throwing the doors into relief. At the intersection of the small hallway with the larger, the cir cular staircase wound its way up, as if it had been an afterthought of the architect. And just around the cor ner, in the small corridor, was the door Mr. Jamieson had indicated. I was still unfamiliar with the house, and I did not remember the door. My heart was thumping wildly in my ears, but I nodded to him togo ahead. I was perhaps eight or ten feet away— and then he threw the bolt back. "Come out," he said quietly. There was no response. "Come—out," he repeated. Then —I think he had a re volver, but I am not sure —he stepped aside and threw the door open. From where I stood I could not see beyond the door, but I saw Mr. Jamie son's face change and heard him mut ter something, then he bolted down the stairs, three at a time. When my knees had stopped shaking, I moved forward, slowly, nervously, until I had a partial view of what was beyond the door. It seemed at first to be a clos et, empty. Then I went close and ex amined it, to stop with a shudder. Where the floor should have been was black void and darkness, from which came the indescribable damp smell of the cellars. Mr. Jamieson had locked somebody in the clothes chute. As I leaned over I fancied I heard a groan—or waa it the wind? CHAPTER VII. A Sprained Ankle. I was panic-stricken. As Iran along the corridor I was confident that the mysterious intruder and probable mur derer had been found, and that he lay dead or dying at the foot of the chute. I got down the staircase some how, and through the kitchen to the basement stairs. Mr. Jamieson had been before me, and the door stood open. Liddy was standing in the mid dle of the kitchen holding a frying pan by the handle as a weapon. "Don't go down there," she yelled, when she saw me moving toward the basement sairs. "Don't you do it, Miss Rachel. That Jamieson's down there now. There's only trouble comes of hunting ghosts; they lead you into bottomless pits and things like that. Oh, Miss Rachel, don't —" as I tried to get past her. She was interrupted by Mr. Jamie son's reappearance. He ran up the stairs two at a time, and his face was flushed and furious. "The whole place is locked," he said angrily, "Where's the laundry key kept?" "It's kept in the door," Liddy snapped. "That whole end of the cel lar is kept locked, so nobody can get at the clothes, and then the key's left in the door, so that unless a thief : --Ma I Bolted Down Stairs, Three at a Time. was as blind as us some detectives, he could walk right la." "Liddy," I said sharply, ' come down with us and turn ou all ill- lights." Hhu offered her residual ion, as us ual, on the spot, but I look her by the arm, and she caute ulous tin.illy Sim ■wlti'heii ou all tlu lights and pointed to a door just ahead. I hat's the door," #Ue said sulkily '"the ki jr's in It." Hut the ke> was not in It Mr J.imleauii sfeuuk It, hut it u heavy door, well lock, d Aud thett he sloop d and Ihhuii |iun. hilt* around Ihe key hole tbtth the •nd of a had |H licit. Win# he «iood u|i his face was wsul- It 4 luck. d »u the iiMtd"," he said Wkiii It tivM. LEADING MISTAKES IN LIFE Writer Has Recorded Ten, of Which Most of U8 Assuredly Have Our Share. Some of us may be glad to bo told that there are only ten life mistakes, for 'there seem to be so many more, but a recent writer has catalogued then. Perhaps these are only the ten ieading ones from which the smaller errors arise. Let's look over the list and see how many of them are ours: First, to set up our own standard of right and wrong and Judge people ac cordingly; second, to measure the en joyment of others by our own; third, to expect uniformity of opinion in this world; fourth, to look for judgment and experience in youth; fifth, to en deavor to mold all dispositions alike; sixth, to look for perfection in our own actions; seventh, to worry our selves and others with what cannot be remedied; eighth, to refuse to yield in immaterial matters; ninth, to re fuse to alleviate, so far as it lies in our power, all which needs allevia tion; tenth, to refuse to make allow ance for the infirmities of others. SKIN TROUBLES A Healing Ointment With a Wid« Range of Usefulness A letter from Mrs. I. E. Cameron, Graduate Nurse, Augusta, Me., says: "I must write and tell you the good Reslnol Ointment has done. I applied it to an ulcerated leg of six months' standing. Almost everything had been tried to heal It. Hesiuol was applied twice a day for four weeks, and the ul cers are entirely healed. It Is now six months since the treatment and nc indication of a return of the trouble I have used Reslnol for eruptions on children's faces, and for everything that seemed to need an ointment, wltfc satisfactory results In every case." Mrs. F. Cox, Chicago, 111., says in another letter: "I cannot speak too highly of Resinol Ointment and Soap. They cured my baby boy of Eczema. He had a very severe case. Numerous other remedies had been tried and failed to do any good. I would not bo without them in the house. " The llrat application will relieve the Itching; and Irrllnllun In akin dlacaaea, nnd atop the pnln In burna or aealda. Chaflnjc, Sunburn, I'olaon Ivy eruptions are often cured by an overnight ap plication. IteMlnol Ointment, Realnol ffoap and Realnol Medicated Shavlnir Sdclt are nold ut nil Drug 1 Store*. Aak for booklet on care of the Skla and Complexion, or aend atanip to ua for aample and booklet. ttealnol Chemical Co., Baltimore, Md. A WARNING. T~" Man at Telephone—Let me have tha gas office, please. Operator—Certainly. Hut you know we don't allow any sweuring over our lines. EPIDEMIC OF ITCH IN WELSH VILLAGE "In Dowlals, South Wales, about fif teen years ago, futilities were strick en wholesale by a disease known as the Itch. Relieve me, It Is the most terrible disease of Its kind that I know of. as it Itches all through your body and makes your life an Inferno. Sleep Is out of the question and you feel as If it million mosquitoes were attacking you at the came time. I knew a <lo/.eti families that wero so affected. "The doctors did their bast, but their remedies wero of no avail what av«*r. Then th« families tried adnig glst who was noted far and wide for lilt remarkable cures. People came to tilm from all parts of the country for treatment, but his medicine niada matters i»tIII worsa, as a last resort they were advised by u friend to usa the t'utlcura Remedies. lam fflad to tell you that after a few days' treat- Blent with t'utlcura Snap, Olnimiit and Resolvent, the effect was wonder, ful and the result was a perfect cura In all eases, "I utity mid that my three brothera, three sisters, myself and all our fam ilies hate been us*rs of the Cutleun liciuttdloH tor ItHeuii years Thoiuaa II igh NSfto Want Huron St, Chicago^ 111 . June s». 1X1)9 " The Modern Ides. AMI yuu don't love Mm?" 'Then wh) uiarry hliu?" "Oh, I might as Well K«< iff (111 h»i to lot a "uil»h itt«<: > igu or two Imoortatit to Mother* ■ 1,. . tit lu of ftH I I ill A, it KUtu Mlid »k||t> 111 Ij lor ti. i >ui I.lt u, it, and »•> iU*l it In r t Ut i ;fti v <l4 \U' INM/ lit:. *l# UiH till wit, M Hw. 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Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers