6
THE CIRCULAR STAIRCASE
&Kmaby &
ROBERTS
❖ MNEHART
ILLUSTRATIONS 3Y
tAPY*UUIT nob sv <M>< fUMMJUf C+ '
SYNOPSIS.
Ml 9B Innps, spinster and guardian of
Gertrude and Halsey, established sum
mer headquarters at Sumiyslde. Arnold
Armstrong was found shot to death in
the hull. Gertrude and her fiance. Jack
Bailey, had conversed in the billiard
room shortly before the murder. Datec
tive Jainieson accused Miss Innes of hola
|n< back evidence. Cashier Bailey of Paul
Armstrong's bunk, defunct, was arrested
for embezzlement. Paul Armstrong
death was announced. Halsey s IJancee,
T.oulse Armstrong, told Ilalsey that while
she still loved him. she was to marry an
other. It developsd that. Dr. Walker was
the man. Louise was found unconscious
nt the bottom of the circular
Bhe said something had brushed by her
In the dark on the stairway and she
fainted. Bailey is suspected of Arm
strong's murder. Thomas, the
er. was found dead with a note in hie
nockrt bearing the name 'Lucien \\ai
face." A ladder found out of place deep
ens the mystery. The stables
burned, and in the dark Miss Inn's shot
an Intruder. Halsey mysteriously disap
peared. His auto was found wrecked by
a freight train. It developed Halsey had
an arKument In the library with a w-oman
before his disappearance. New cook dis
appears. Miss Innes learned llaleey was
alive.
CHAPTER XXVII.
Who Is Nina Carrlngton?
The four days, from Saturday to the
following Tuesday, we lived, or ex
isted, in a state of the most dreadful
suspense. We ate only when Ltddy
brought in a tray, and then very little.
The papers, of course, had got hold
of the story, and we were besieged by
newspaper men. From all over the
country false clews came pouring fn
and raised hopes that crumbled again
to nothing. Every morgue within 100
miles, every hospital, had been vis
ited. without result.
The inaction was deadly. Liddy
cried all day., and, because she ltnew
I objected to tears, sniffled audibly
around the corner.
"For heaven's sake, smile!" I
snapped at her. And her ghastly at
tempt at a grin, with her swollen nose
and red eyes, G>ade me hysterical. I
laughed and cried together, and pret
ty soon, like the two old fools we
were, we were Bitting together weep
ing into the same handkerchief.
On Tuesday, then, I sent for the car
«nd prepared togo out. As I waited
at the porte-cochere I saw the under
gardener, an inoffensive, grayish
haired man, trimming borders near
the house. The day detective was
watching him, sitting on the carriage
block. When he saw me, he got up.
"Miss Innes," he said, taking off his
hat, "do you know where Alex, the ;
gardener, is?"
"Why, no. Isn't he here?" I asked.
"He has been gone since yesterday
afternoon. Have you—employed him
long?"
"Only a couple of weeks."
"Is he efficient? A capable man?"
"I hardly know," I said vaguely.
"The place looks all right, and I know
very little about such things. I know
much more about boxes of roses than
hushes of them."
"This man." pointing to the assis
tant, "s: y. \lex isn't a gardener. That
he doesn't know anything about
plants."
"That's very strange," I said, think
ing hard. "Why, he came to me from
the Brays, who are in Europe."
"Exactly." The detective smiled.
"Every man who cuts grass isn't a
gard n< r. Miss Innes, and just now It
is our policy to believe every person
arot ni' here u rascal until he proves
to be the other thing."
Warner came up with the car then,
and tli'- conversation stopped. As he
helped me ir\ however, the detective
said something further.
"Not a word or sign to \lex, If he
comes back," he said cautiously.
I wi-nt first to Ilr. Walker's. I was
tired of 1' at!tig about the bush, and I
felt thnt the key to llalsey's disap
pearance was here at Casanova, In
spite of Mr latnleson a theories
The doctor was in. He came at
once to the door of his consulting
room, and there was no mask of cor
diality in his manner.
"Please come tn," he said curtly.
"1 shall stay here, I think, doctor."
I did not like his face or his manner;
there w a a subtle ehltngt In both lie
had thrown off the air of friendliness,
and I thought, too, that he looked anx
ious and hai-'ard
"l)r Walker," I said. "I have come
to you to ask some questions. I hope
you will answer 112 m \s you know,
toy nephew has not yet been found "
"So I understand," sillily.
"I IJ.*II u if you would, you could
help us, and tl t leads to one of my
questions Will you !e|| me what was
the n*t»ir> of the conversation yon
held Wl' l a In uiuht he was at
tacked and cair'. d off?"
If" he ssld
with prut Hided sun rl e It. ally. Miss
I ! ' ! ' 1 • il • Hi t tints
a .It rul lff > and death. Will you
I id M> '• '1 him h> U> d I think
ing to strike me. He grew livid, and a
small crooked blood-vessel In his tem
ple swelled and throbbed curiously.
Then he forced a short laugh.
"Who is Nina Carrington?" he asked.
"I am about to discover that," I re
plied, and he was quiet at once. It
was not difficult to divine that he
feared Nina Carrington a good deal
more than he did the devil. Our leave
taking was brief; in fact, we merely
stared at each other over the waiting
room table, with its litter of year-old
magazines. Then I turned and went
out.
"To Richfield," I told Warner, and
on the way I thought, and thought
hard.
"Nina Carrington, Nina Carrington,"
the roar and rush of the wheels
seemed to sing the words. "Nina Car
rington, N. C." And I then knew,
knew as surely as if I had seen the
whole thing. There had been an N. C.
on the suit case belonging to the wom
an with the pitted face. How simple
it all seemed. Mattie Bliss had been
Nina Carrington. It was she Warner
had heard in the library. It was some
thing she had told Halsey that had
taken him frantically to Dr. Walker's
office, and from there perhaps to his
death. If we could find the woman, we
might find what had become of Hal
sey.
We were almost at Richfield now,
so I kept on. My mind was not on my
errand there now. It was back with
Halsey on that memorable night. What
was it he had said to Louise, that had
sent her up to Sunnyside, half wild
with fear for him? I made up my
mind, as the car drew up before the
Tate cottage, that I would see Louise
if I had to break into the house at
night.
Almost exactly the same scene as
before greeted my eyes at the cottage.
Mrs. Tate, the baby-carriage in the
path, the children at the swing—all
were the same.
She came forward to meet me, and
I noticed that some of the anxious
lines had gone out of her face. She
looked young, almost pretty.
"I am glad you have come back,"
she said. "I think I will have to be
honest and give you back your money."
"Why?" I asked. "Has the mother
come?"
"No, but some one came and paid
the boy's board for a month. She
talked to him for a long time, but
when I asked him afterward he didn't
know her name."
"A young woman?"
"Not very young. About 40, I sup
pose. She was small and fair-haired,
just a little bit gray, and very sad.
She was in deep mourning, and, I
think, when she came, she expected to
go at once. But the child, Lucien, in
terested her. She talked to him for a
long time, and, indeed, she looked
much happier when she left."
"You are sure this was not the real
mother?"
"O mercy, no! Why, she didn't know
which of the three was Lucien. I
thought perhaps she was a friend of
yours, but, of course, I didn't ask."
"She was not—pock-marked?" I
asked at a venture.
"No, indeed. A skin like a baby's,
j But perhaps you will know the in
j itials. She gave Lucien a handker
! chief and forgot It. It was very fine,
| black-bordered, and it had three hand
| worked letters In the corner—F. B. A."
"No," I said with truth enough, "she
| is not a friend of mine." F. B. A. was
Fanny Armstrong, without a chance of
j doubt.
With another warning to Mrs. Tate
as to silence, we started back to Sun
|—l fet
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CAMERON COUNTY PRESS, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 1910.
nyside. So Fanny Armstrong knew of
Lucien Wallace, and was sufficiently
interested to visit him and pay for his
support. Who was the child's mother
and where was she? Who was Nina
Carrington? Did either of them know
where Halsey was, or what had hap
pened to him?
CHAPTER XXVIII.
A Tramp and the Toothache.
The bitterness toward the dead
president of the Traders' bank seemed
to grow with time. Never popular, his
memory was execrated by people who
had lost nothing, but who were filled
with disgust by constantly hearing
new stories of the man's grasping
avarice.
But, like everything else those days,
the bank failure was almost forgotten
by Gertrude and myself. We did not
mention Jack Bailey; I had found
nothing to change my Impression of
his guilt, and Gertrude knew how I
felt. As for the murder of the bank
president's son, I was of two minds.
One day I thought Gertrude knew or at
least suspected that Jack had done it;
the next I feared that it had been Ger
trude herself, that night alone on the
circular staircase. And then the
mother of Lucien Wallace would ob
trude herself, and an almost equally
good case might be made against her.
There were times, of course, when I
was disposed to throw all those sus
picions aside, and fix definitely on the
unknown, whoever that might be.
I had my greatest disappointment
when it came to tracing Nina Carring
ton. The woman had gone without
leaving a trace. Marked as she was,
It should have been easy to follow her,
but she was not to be found. A de
scription to one of the detectives, on
my arrival at home, had started the
ball rolling. But by night she had not
been found. I told Gertrude, then,
about the telegram to Ixiuise when she
had been ill before; about my visit to
Dr. Walker, and my suspicions that
Mattie Bliss and Nina Carrington were
the same. She thought, as I did, that
there was little doubt of it.
I said nothing to her, however, of
the detective's suspicions about Alex.
Little things that I had not noticed at
the time now came back to me. I had
an uncomfortable feeling that perhaps
Alex was a spy, and that by taking
him Into the house I had played into
the enemy's hands. But at eight
o'clock that night Alex himself ap
peared, and with him a strange and re
pulsive individual. They made a queer
pair, for Alex was almost as disrepu
table as the tramp, and he had a badly
swollen eye.
Gertrude had been sitting listlessly
waiting for the evening message from
Mr. Jamleson, but when the singular
pair came in, as they did, without cere
mony, she jumped up and stood 'taring.
Winters, the detective who watched
the house at night, followed them, and
kept his eyes sharply on Alex's pris
oner. For that was the situation as it
developed.
He was a tall lanky individual,
ragged and dirty, and just now he
looked both terrified and embarrassed.
Alex was too much engrossed to be
either, and to this day I don't think I
ever asked him why he went off with
out permission the day before.
"Miss Innes," Alex began abruptly,
"this man can tell us something very
Important about the disappearance of
Mr. Innes. 1 found him trying to sell
this watch."
He took a watch from his pocket
and put it on the table. It was Halsey's
watch. I had given it to him on the
twenty-first birthday; I was dumb
with apprehension.
"He says he had a pair of cuff-links
also, but he sold them—"
"Fer a dollar'n half," putin the dis
reputable individual hoarsely, with
an eye on the detective.
"He is not —dead?" I implored. The
tramp cleared his throat.
"No'm," he said huskily. "He was
used up pretty bad, but he weren't
dead He was comin' to hisself when
I"—he stopped and looked at the de
tective. "I didn't steal It, Mr. Win
ters," he whined. "I found it In the
road, honest to God, I did."
Mr. Winters paid no attention to
him. He was watching Alex.
"I'd better tell what he told me,"
Alex broke in."lt will be quicker.
When Jamieson —when Mr. Jamieson
calls up we can start him right. Mr.
Winters, I found this man trying to I
sell that watch on Fifth street. He of
fered it to me for $3."
"How did you know the watch?"
Winters snapped at him.
"I ha seen it before, many times.
I used it at night when I was watch
ing at the foot of the staircase." The
detective was satisfied. "When he of
fered the watch to me, I knew it, and
I pretended I was going to buy it. We
weht into an alley and I got the
watch." The tramp shivered. It was
plain how Alex had secured the watch.
"Then —I got the story from this fel
low. He claims to have seen the
whole affair. He saya he was In an
empty car—in the car the automobile
struck."
The tramp broke in here and told
his story, with frequent interpreta
tions by Alex and Mr. Winters. He
used a strange medley, in which fa
miliar words took unfamiliar mean
ings, but it was gradually made clear
to us.
On the night in question the tramp
had been "pounding his ear"—this
struck me as being graphic—in an
empty box-car along the siding at
Casanova. The train was going west,
and due to leave at dawn. The tramp
and the "brakoy" were friendly, and
things going well. About ten o'clock,
perhaps earlier, a terrific crash
against the side of the car roused him.
He tried to open the door, but could
not move it. He got out of the other
side, and just as he did so, he heard
some one groan.
The habits of a lifetime made him
cautious. He slipped onto the bum
per of a car and peered through. An
automobile had struck the car and
stood there on two wheels. The tail
lights were burning, but the head
lights were out. Two men were stoop
ing over some one who lay on the
ground. Then the taller of two started
on a dog-trot along the train looking
for an empty. He found one four cars
away and ran back again. The two
lifted the unconscious man into the
empty box-car, and getting in them
selves, stayed for three or four min
utes. When they came out, after clos
ing the sliding door, they cut up over
the railroad embankment toward the
town. One, the short one, seemed to
linip.
The tramp was wary. He waited
for ten minutes or so. Some women
came down a path to the road and in
spected the automobile. When they \
had gone, he crawled Into the box-ear ;
and closed the door again. Then he
lighted a match. The figure of a man,
unconscious, gagged, and with his
hands tied, lay far at the end. The
tramp lost no time; he went through
his pockets, found a little money and !
the cuff links, and took them. Then '
ho loosened the Rag—lt had been
cruelly tight—and went his wny,
again closing the door of the box-car. !
Outside on the road he found the
watch. He got on the fast freight east,
some time after, and rode Into the
city He had sold the cuff-links, but
on offering the watch to Alex be had
been "copped."
The story, with its cold recital of
villainy, was done. I hardly knew If I
were more anxious, or less That It
was llalsey, there could be no doubt. ,
How budly he was hurt, how far he
had been carried, were the question* 1
that deiuaud<>d Immediate answer, ftuf
It was the first real Information we
had hud; my boy hud not been mur ,
dert-d outright. Hut Instead of vague >
terrors there was now the reul fear
that he might he lying In some Strang'
hospital lying the casuul atten
tion commonly given to the charity i
cases Km ii this, had we known It J
would have been paradise to the ter
rlbh iruth I wake yet uud feel my 1
silt cold iitid trembling with the hor
ror of Hal ;<y's situation for threi
days after Ills disappearance.
|Y<> UK I'IiSTIM'KP.)
Labor That Aids tho World.
It U Hue that all wealth coined
from labor, but not necessarily from
I labor by the bauds. The thinkers at
j 'hi world have added Inestimably to
| i development. |t was a portrait i
lutiiUr who Invent*.t lit t.Ugrauh. a
I college professor who pruducttd Mm
I i «-t aoii', and the list might be »i
I. lilt d kluiost Indefinitely. it |» wet
I I|I„ i today, with ail our luduig.nic I
• • U*e wtMia •
I the t.tillt. unlet
Z# |U TEN EN
LTART temper never mellows
with age, and a sharp tongue
Is the only tool that grows
keener with constant use.
—lrving.
Ways of Using Stale Cake.
When the cake Is in a loaf It Is
easy matter to steam It and make a
good pudding sauce of eggs and sugar
with a little milk and flavoring or a
cooked sauce of half a cup of sugar,
two tablespoonfuls of flour and the
same of butter, half a cup of boiling
water and two tablespoonfuls of vine
gar. Cook until smooth and flavor
with grated nutmeg.
All bits of cake may be worked over
Into the steamed brown bread, so that
nothing need be wasted.
Sweet Fritters.
Take one and a half cupfuls of stale
cake crumbs. Beat together one egg,
one tablespoonful of sugar, one cup of
flour sifted with a teaspoonful of
baking powder; add enough milk to
make a thin batter and stir in the
crumbs. Bake on a hot griddle as pan
cakes and serve with sirup.
Another nice dessert with cake
may be prepared by laying slices of
cake in a serving dish, pour over
fruit Juice of any desired flavor and
fill the dish with a custard. Serve
cold.
Economical Pudding.
Beat three eggs, add a cup of sugar
and three cups of milk and flavoring.
Add two cups of cake crumbs and
bake in a slow oven one hour. A little
breakfast cereal left over or a little
cooked rice may be added to this
pudding, and a few raisins, though
these are not necessary.
A Few Hints.
When buying a box of laundry soap,
■which is a good way to do, take it
from the box and pile it in a dry place
where the air can circulate through
it. Dry soap spends much better than
green.
Turn the scrub brush bristles down
when drying and the moisture will
drain out rather than soak into the
wood.
Velvet ribbons may be freshened by
Bteaming over a wet cloth placed over
a hot iron.
Hem the dishcloths to save the lint
which ragged edges make, and such
cloths will be respected and better
used.
A nice umbrella should be carefully
dried before putting away, and never
left rolled in its case for any length
of time, as it Is apt to crack in the
folds.
I * KT there be many windows In
That all the glory of the universe
May beautify It. Not the narrow pans
Of one poor creed can catch the radi
ant rays
That shine from countless sources. Tear
away
The blinds of superstition. I>et the light
Pour through fair windows, broad ua
truth Itself,
And high as heaven. . . . Tune your
ear
To all the wordless music of the stars.
And to the voice of nature; and your
heart
Shall turij to truth and goodness as the
plant
Turns to the sun. A thousand unseen
hands
Reach down to help you to their peace
crowned heights;
And all the forces of the Armament
Shall fortify your strength. He not
afraid
To thrust aside half truths and grasp the
whole.
The Chafing Dish.
To the woman with many servants
the chntlng dish Is a pleasant amuse
ment, to the woman who has non«
It Is a pleasant and practical change
from the every day serving of things
Sunday night suppers are a delight,
prepared from the chafing dish.
To make a success of the meal all
the preparations should be carefully
made before hand The butter meas
ured In a tablespoon and made Into
balls Is then ready to use without
measuring The stock or milk may be
measured and put Into little pitchers.
Have the salt, pepper and flour all In
a group easy to And. If meat or flsh
Is to he used let It be dlo'd as It Is to
be served.
See that the lamp Is filled and the
utensils at hand before Inviting out
the guests. There are any number of
dishes easy to serve from a chitting
dish sui h as creamed i ggs, poached,
scrambled and onieh is Creamed
sweetbreads, creamed mushrooms,
oysters In a variety of ways, small
birds, flsh and chicken
flood alcohol Is < xpen lvo, hut It
does not burn away us fast as th«
»oo ( | alcohol and does not Wave the
burner entered with the sticky depos
it that the wood alcohol d< >•*
A nice way Is to serve a cocktail
of fruit or a salad while the gue-'s
are waiting as yon prepare the mam
dlshc- (live each IIR» something to
Me on. klan |ke !.. t i ■
di he* In th< Witch- ii end 11 •.Iy k< et>
/ L£ i it.*— S
MADE HIS APOLOGY AMPLE
Irish Legislator Even Withdrew the
Words That He Was About
to Utter.
There la in congress a western rep
resentative of Celtic origin who has
more than once "stirred up the ani
mals" by his propensity to bait the
opposition.
On one occasion he rose to de
nounce the statements made in a
speech that had been delivered by a
member of the other party. His im
petuosity led him to phrase his re
marks rather strongly.
"Order, order!" exclaimed the
speaker, pounding with his gavel.
Again, in a minute or two, did the
son of Erin return to his charge of
wilful misstatement. Again was he
called to "order."
It was a critical moment. His col
leagues, for motives of policy, did not
wish him to be put out of the debate,
so they hinted so by tugging vigor
ously at his coat tails.
Now, it's a very dangerous matter
to trifle with the tails of an Irishman's
coat, save in the cause of friendship.
Nevertheless, the indignant yet good
natured member recognized the com
mand of his party and sat down aftet
delivering this Parthian dart:
"I obey the ruling of the House, and
I beg to retract what I was about to
observe!"
That one touch of Irish oratory took
the whole House by storm. —Lippin-
cott's.
BABY WASTED TO SKELETON
"My little son, when about a year
and a half old, began to have sores
come out on his face. I had a physi
cian treat him, but the sores grew
worse. Then they began to come out
on his arms, then on other parts of
his body, and then one came on his
chest, worse than the others. Then I
called another physician. Still he
grew worse. At the end of about a
year and a half of suffering he grew
so bad that I had to tie his hands in
cloths at night to keep him from
scratching the sores and tearing the
flesh. He got to be a mere skeleton,
and was hardly able to walk.
"My aunt advised me to try Cutl
cura Soap and Cuticura Ointment. I
sent to a drug store and got a cake of
Cuticura Soap and a box of the Oint
ment and followed directions. At the
end of two months the sores were all
well. He has never had any sores
of any kind since. I can sincerely say
that only for Cuticura tny child would
have died. I used only one cake of
Cuticura Soap and about three boxes
of Ointment.
"I am a nurse and my profession
brings me into many different fam
ilies and it is always a pleasure for
me to tell my story and recommend
Cuticura Remedies. Mrs. Egbert Shel
don, Litchfield, Conn., Oct. 23, 1909."
CHANGED HIS MIND.
Mrs. Ferndale —We haven't any
oggs. but I can get some if you want
them very bad!
Summerbord—Never mind, I don't
caro for that kind.
{ DRINK WATER TO CURE
? KIDNEYS AND RHEUMATISM t
) The People Do Not Drink Enough
I Water to Keep Healthy, ji
) Saya Well-Known
{ Authority.
"The numerous cases of kidney and
bladder dl*ea»e«i and rheumatism are
mainly due to the fact that the drink
ing of water, nature's grcateat medi
cine, has been neglected.
Stop loadltm your ayatem with med
icine* at>d eure-nlla; but get on the
water wagon. If you are really nick,
why, of coiirae, take the proper medi
cine.-. plain, common v< table treat*
11.> ut, which will not shatter the
n< rvea or ruin the atomaeh."
To cure Itheiiinatisin you must make
the kiiltuys do th«-lr wurk; tin
the filter*) of the blood They RIUHt
I) made to *truin out <>f the k>|i>>u| tt*
v .i.it«• matter and add* thai cauao
r? etimnii*m; (he urine must be n> u*
T rallied MI It will no longer be a
aouri eof Irritation to tlc> bl older,end,
r.'ost of all, you miwt keep th«-<« add*
from forming In the ATOMAEH, TI U
ii the « u .■ of etoniarh trot t>l.< ii d
I" or it Its* alien, For tlieae etndlilt ua
I |« '...ii. <nti> hell ouio e. > n« nd