© Ben Ames Williams.
CHAPTER IX
a
A strange thing, long in prepara-
tion, happened next day to Mrs. Sen-
try. She might, she thought after-
ward, have guessed what was to
come; might have foreseen it. But
she did not. Obedient to her prom-
ise to Falkran, she went to the pris-
on to see her husband. She had
been awake most of the night, yet
she rose in the morning in an al-
most peaceful mind, and when she
met Mr. Sentry it was composedly.
They spoke commonplaces for a
while, till she said at last, her tone
curiously gentle:
“My testimony will follow yours,
Arthur.”
His eyes suddenly widened, as
though under the shock of an actual
blow. ‘You! You're going to testi-
fy?”
“I must tell them you had no
cause to fear me.”
He cried passionately: ‘“Oh, don’t,
Ellen! It’s bad enough for me. Falk-
ran can’t ask you to do that.”
She reminded him gravely: “It
is true, you know! When you came
to me, long ago—'"' And she said, al-
most contritely: ‘I might have been
more generous than I was; but—I
was young then, not so wise as I
am now. I gave you what I could—
and I’ve never been sorry. Only, I
am sorry now it was not more.”
He said hopelessly: ‘‘Falkran in-
sisted that I must—say those things,
Ellen. But not you! Please don’t!
T—can’t command; but I beg you—"
And he said in a low tone: ‘I was
crazy last summer, Ellen! I must
have been. But there had never
been any other—if you can believe
me.”
She started to say steadily that of
course she believed him; and she
was astonished to find that she could
not speak. Her throat was full. She
rose in a sort of panic, fighting for
words. And suddenly pain seized
her every part, every fiber, bone
and blood, muscle and sinew, nerve
and brain. She was a burning torch
of pain!
For something in him, in his word,
in his tone, had, incredibly, waked
something long asleep in her. She
stood above him, leaning down,
racked and shaken not for herself
but for him, yearning over him,
yearning to protect him, yearning
to hold him close and hard. She
fought to speak; she muttered, ‘‘Ar-
thur—""
Then the guard touched her arm
warningly. She realized that the
man had spoken, even though she
had not heard. And she felt her
cheek burn bright; and she thought,
bewildered, still unbelieving:
“I love him! Why—I love him!
Obeying the officer she went to-
ward the door; yet from the door
looked back. Arthur was on his feet,
pale, wondering.
She smiled at him richly. She
went out and away, and felt her-
self torn in two parts by this sepa-
ration from him.
The thought that Arthur had been
loyal to her through twenty barren
years filled her with a clamorous
grief, a hopeless despair. She might
have given so much, and had so
much bliss in that surrender; might
have forgotten the pride she had
nursed with such blind tenacity, and
been herself the richer for forget-
ting.
In court Monday morning she
found that now she could be hurt and
feel the pain. When the Assistant
District Attorney, Mr. Weldon, be-
gan the questioning, she understood
that Bob Flood had delegated this
duty because Arthur had been his
friend. Mr. Weldon was a swart
young man with thin lips and a lean
pointed jaw that thrust forward like
a challenging finger. He began so
quietly.
“Now Mr. Sentry, you told the
Court on Saturday that you killed
Miss Wines?”
“By accident, yes, sir.”
“But the gun was in your hand?”
“Yes.”
“You had cocked it?”
“Yes.
“You pulled the trigger?”
“It jarred off.”
“Oh, it jarred off? I see.
the gun?”
“Yes.
“Cock it, please. Now, without
putting your finger on the trigger,
pound it on the railing of the witness
box till it jars off. It is not load-
ed.”
Mrs. Sentry would always remem-
ber Arthur, pounding the gun butt on
the rail of the witness stand for a
long time, harder and harder, bruis-
ing his hand, perspiring. An inter-
minable time, with Mr. Weldon ask-
ing: “Has it gone off yet? Try
again.”
Till finally, relenting, taking the
gun from Arthur's hand, he said,
still gently: “Now Mr. Sentry, your
hand is bruised, your knuckles
bleeding, you have pounded it as
hard as you can, but it has not
gone off?”
“No.”
“Then perhaps you did pull the
trigger that night?”
“l must have! Accidentally!”
“So you loaded the gun and cocked
it and pulled the trigger and killed
Miss Wines?”
Is this
Arthur said: ‘I suppose so.” He
was wiping his knuckles with his
handkerchief. Mrs. Sentry could see
small red spots upon the linen,
thought he should use iodine lest
the wounds become infected.
She heard Weldon say: ‘‘So Miss
Wines came to you for help or mon-
ey or advice, three weeks before you
shot her, and you sent her away?"
“Yes. "
“Mrs. Sentry sometimes, in her
young girls, did she not?”
“Yes,
“Why didn’t you send Miss Wines
to Mrs. Sentry before you shot her?”
“It did not occur to me to do so.”
“Did it occur to you that if you did
so, Mrs. Sentry might misinterpret
your interest in Miss Wines?"
“No. Mrs. Sentry would have
known that if there had been any-
thing between Miss Wines and me,
I would have told her.”
Mrs. Sentry looked straight ahead,
proudly, her head high. She felt
all the staring eyes that turned to-
3
"Ls
“Now Mr.
i
“lI didn’t see her till after the
shot.”
“Now Mr. Sentry, you saw Miss
Wines three weeks before you shot
her—"'
Mrs. Sentry could no longer hear
all that they said. She heard only
“ . ..Yyou shot hep?” » , . you
shot her?" * . . you shot her?”
as a tag to every question. She
heard: * . three weeks later, you
And then: ** . . . three
weeks before you shot her?”
She saw, at a final question, Ar-
thur's lips move, but no sound
emerged; she could see that he
was trembling, felt her own limbs
tremble as though in sympathy. It
seemed to her that she suffered in
her own flesh the torment Arthur
here endured. The protective numb-
ness which had prevented her from
feeling her own suffering could not
now save her from feeling his.
Mr. Weldon suggested, ‘‘1 did not
hear what you said.”
Arthur cried wretchedly, furious-
|r
ll !
ward her like the points of lances,
from every side.
“So you refused to help
Wines before you shot her?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“l was afraid-—""
“Oh, yes.
us. You're a very fearful man,
are you not? Just as Uriah Heep was
a very 'umble man? Are you also a
humble man, Mr. Sentry?”
“Not particularly.”
“On the contrary, you're rather
proud, aren't you?”
“No.”
“Aren't you proud of your hon-
orable ancestry?”
“Well, yes.”
“Of your old established busi-
ness?"
"Yes."
“Of your personal success, your
social standing?”
“Yes.”
“Of your family?"
Yes.”
“And yet you say you're not
proud?”
“In that sense I suppose I am.”
“In what sense are you not, Mr.
Sentry?”
“Well—haughty."”
“Oh, you're not haughty?”
“*No.”’
Mr. Weldon nodded.
afraid; and that because you were
afraid, you did not help Miss Wines
before you shot her.”
“Yes.
“Were you responsible for the fact
that she so desperately needed help
from someone?”
“No.”
“But even though you were inno-
cent, you were afraid?”
“Yes.”
“I want to be sure we understand
you, Mr. Sentry. I asked you a mo-
ment since whether it occurred
to you that if you sent Miss Wines
to Mrs. Sentry, Mrs. Sentry might
misinterpret your interest in the
girl. And you said, no. You said
that Mrs. Sentry would have known
that if there were anything between
you and Miss Wines you would have
told her. Is that correct?”
“Well-"'
“Shall I ask the stenographer to
read your testimony?’
“I said that, yes.”
“So if you had been guilty with
Miss Wines you would not have been
afraid; but being innocent, you were
afraid? Is that it?"
“Yes.
“Thank you.
perplexity?”
“Innocent
afraid!’
“So you want to leave it that Miss
Wines came to appeal to you for
money, or for help, and she wept,
and you gave her nothing, and the
next time you saw her you shot her?
Is that correct?”
You will pardon my
people are often
ly, “Will you stop saying over and
over that I shot her?”
“You did, didn't you?”
“Yes. By accident. I've told you
so. But you don't have to keep
repeating it like a parrot.”
“Do my questions disturb you,
Mr. Sentry?"
“You keep saying I shot her!”
“Very well, suppose I try to avoid
using the phrase which disturbs you.
Mr. Sentry, are you a hot-tempered
man?”
“No. But you-"' |
“Never mind me. Would it make |
you angry now if I suggested that
Miss Wines angered you just be-
fore—this fatal accident happened
to her?”
“No, it wouldn't.”
“Weren't you angry at her just
before—she died?”
“No.”
“But someone had just bumped
you heavily into the wall. Didn't
that make you angry?”
“1 suppose so.”
“Were you angry when you pulled
the trigger?”
“1 suppose so. Any man—"
“We're not asking any man but
you, Mr. Sentry. You were angry,
and you pulled the trigger, and—
accidentally, of course—pointed the
gun at Miss Wines as you did so.”
“l] didn't even know she was
there.”
“But
there?"
you knew someone was
“Of course.”
“When you pulled the trigger, did
you mean to shoot whoever was
there?"
“No."
“But you fired in anger?”
“No.”
“Put it this way.
gry when you fired?”
“Yes.”
“At what mark did you aim?”
“No mark. 1 couldn't see anw
thing.”
“This man who bumped you.
bumped you into the wall?”
“Yeo 3."
“Which wall?” |
“The right-hand wall, as you coms |
up the back stairs, opposite my of- |
fice door.”
““Then he was on your left?"
"Yes."
“You knew where he
“Yez."
“Did you shoot at him?"
"No."
“You shot straight ahead along
the corridor, didn’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Did you hear the testimony in
this court that when you—pardon
me; that at the moment of Miss
Wines’ death, the pistol was touch-
ing her coat?’ ’
“I tell you it was an accident.”
“Did you hear that testimony?”
“yes
“Pressing against her coat?”
“Yes
“When, by accident, in the dark,
the bullet emerged from the muz.
zle of the gun you were holding and
smashed through Miss Wines’
heart, did you feel the muzzle of
your pistol touch anything?”
“No. "
“Press
“No.”
“After
hear?"
“A man
“Didn't
or fall?”
“No.*
“And ye
“No
“How far had you come from the
head of the stairs before you shot
Miss Wines?
“By accident.”
“So you say."
“l was about opposite my office
door.”
“And yet the muzzle of
was touching her?”
Mr. Sentry retorted, “So you
say!” Mrs. Sentry winced for him.
That effort to be nonchalant, deri-
sive; that echoing of Mr. Weldon's
own words had about it something
pitiful, like the trembling lower lip
of a hurt child trying to be brave.
Even Mr. Weldon seemed to feel
this; he spoke almost gently.
“Pardon me, Mr. Sentry. Not so
I say! So the expert evidence says!
Yet her body lay beyond your office
door?"
Mrs. Sentry’'s senses blurred
again; the world was dizzy chaos.
Question and answer ran together
conjuring up tragic details which
blended into a sinister whole. The
huddled “body. Arthur, turning it
over, picking up the dead girl's hat,
putting it over her face. Taking off
his glove to feel for her pulse; put.
ting it on again for fear of finger- |
prints . . Mrs. Sentry seemed to |
herself for a while to be in that |
bare, dingy corridor outside her hus- |
band's office; that naked, window- |
less place like a tomb. To be there
with him, and the dead girl on the |
floor; and he was crouching, looking |
fearfully over his shoulder, peering, |
darting in stooped posture cravenly.
Mercilessly Mr. Weldon made him |
go over and over every detail of the
scene; till she saw Arthur's face |
streaming, heard Mr. Weldon say:
“I see you are flushed, perspiring, |
Do you find it warm, Mr. Sentry? |
Would you like "a window opened?” |
(TO BE CONTINUED) J
You were an
He
was?”
against anything?"
the shot, what did you
hear
Miss wi ines cry out,
ou say you didn’t see her?”
the pistol
The pestilence which broke out
among the American troops sta-
tioned at Detroit in the War of 1812
was recalled recently by the un-
earthing of part of the skeleton of
a man at Fort street and Cass ave-
nue.
The bones were discovered just
three feet beneath the sidewalk at
the northeast corner of the inter-
section by a police signal crew
which was digging a hole for a traf-
fic light standard, says the Detroit
News.
The sit was just west of old Fort
Shelby and was the scene of a tem-
porary cantonment for the troops of
Gen. William Henry Harrison. Lack
of sanitation was the principal cause
for the epidemic which brought
death to nearly 700 of Harrison's
small army, according to “The Sto-
ry of Detroit,” written by the late
George B. Catlin, librarian of the
Detroit News,
Lack of burying space in the city's
cemeteries and fear of the spread
of the disease caused the burial of
many of the dead within the con-
fines of the cantonment.
The epidemic, which closely re-
sembled Asiatic cholera, broke out
largely because the ground sur
rounding the encampment was
marshy. Poor drainage conditions
made proper sanitation difficult,
thus exposing the troops to the rapid
spread of the disease.
The situation was further compli-
cated by a shortage of food. With
hardly enough provisions available
for the townsfolk, the quartering of
General Harrison's troops soon pro-
duced famine conditions which
threatened to defeat the American
campaign in this district.
Revere Silver
Revere was the greatest early
American silversmith. At nineteen
he took over his father's business.
Most of the Revere silver in exist.
ence was either of his manufacture
or made under his personal super-
vision. The design was based on
English Georgian style of the Eight-
eenth century, characterized by
greater simplicity of decoration and
beauty of proportion than is usually
found in English work. Revere sil
ver is equal to the best plate of
any country of that period. The tea
and coffee sets are among the finest
examples of any period of the suver-
smith’'s art,
Humoro
3,
CAUSE ENOUGH
“Archimedes,”
boy, aloud,
shouting, ‘Eureka! Eureka!’ ”
“ ‘Eureka’ means ‘I have found
“Very well. What had Archime-
The boy hesitated, then ventured
ta Constitution.
JUST A SUGGESTION
Percy—I've quite a—aw-—desire
to write poetry, Miss Keen; but I
can't decide on th—aw-—form,
doncher know.
Miss Keen—Hasn't blank verse
suggested itself as the most suit
able, Mr. Sapp?
Providing for Emergency
“Now,” said the fussy woman, en-
tering the taxi, “1 wish you to be
extremely careful. When you come
to a crossing wait until the police
tell you to go on; and if the streets
are slippery drive very slowly.”
“All right, ma'am,” replied the
Qerver. ““and in case of an accident,
which hospit al would you like to be
4 wi 1 to?" —Stray Stories Magazine.
We Cateh On
Friends at the club were compli-
menting the judge on his having
been in a stooping posture at the
time a missil whizzed over his head
during an el lect) on riot.
“You see,” remarked the judge,
dryly, “had I been an upright judge,
it might have been serious.”
Not Guilty
The inspector was examining the
class.
“Who drove the Israelites out of
Egypt? You,” he said, pointing to
a boy in the corner.
“ "Twasn't me, sir,” replied the
boy. “l only came back from the
country last week."
In Danger
“You admit, then,” said the mag-
istrate, ‘that you stole the pig?”
“Yes, your worship,’ replied the
defendant.
“Well, there has been a lot of pig-
stealing lately, and I am going to
make an example of you, or none of
us will be safe ”
Keeping Busy
Mistress (to butler)—Why is it,
John, every time I come home 1
find you sleeping?
Butler—Well, ma'am, it's this
way, I don't like to be doing nothing
You May Believe It
Joke Editor—Gimme a sentence
using the word “eclipse.”
Office Boy—Every time the joke
editor sees a joke, “eclipse
his column.—Washington Post.
Easily Satisfied
Policeman—You can't
through here, lady. This is a one-
way street.
Indignant
go only one way.
Never Slips
Mrs. Green—Does your husband
Mrs. Black—Yes indeed, and in
his sleep, and often during the day.
Serious Question
down the bannister like that!
Oliver—Wouldn't you, Miss Prim?
Then show me how you'd do itl
NO POTATO BUG
Near Sighted Bug (looking at red
and yellow striped mandolin)
Great scott, that's the granddaddy
of all bugs.
So It Is
Betty—~Have you heard that Bob-
by isn't going to print The Whizzer
any longer?
Jane—Dear me, that's dreadful?
Betty—They've decided it's just
long enough as it is.
The Hard Way
Oliver—It only took me eight sit
tings.
Betty—What?! Having your por
trait painted?
Oliver—No. Learning how to
skate.
Sun Down, Accidents Up
When the sun goes down, traffic
accidents go up. More than 60
per cent of all fatal traffic acci-
dents occur at night, the National
Safety Council reports. Since
about a third of the driving is done
at night, it estimates, the number
of traffic deaths per mile is about
three times as great at night as
during the daytime,
In the past seven years, night
accidents have increased 60 per
cent in rural districts, the report
says, and only 17 per cent in cities,
Adequate lighting and divided
highways tend to reduce headlight
glare and accidents, the council
said. Some states are experiment-
ing with new reflector buttons
placed along the side of the road
to show the ali gn ment of the high-
way on curve hills and other
hazardous places.
ACTS FAST
TO BRING RELIEF
FROM COLDS
Ths Simple Way Eases
duce fever take 2
Bayer Tablets —
drink a glass of water,
Use Genuine BAYER Aspi
the Moment Your Cold
The simple way pictured above
often brings amazingly fast relief
from discomfort and sore throat
accompanying colds.
Try it. Then — see pour doclor.
He probably will tell you to con-
tinue with Bayer Asp irin because it
acts so fast to relieve discomforts
of : a cold. And to reduce fever.
his simple way, backed by
scientific au thority, h as largely sup-
lanted the use of strong medicines
in easing cold symptoms. Perhaps
the easiest, most effective way yet
discovered. But make sure you get
genuine BAYER
TS
15% 0m 12 TasLeTs —
2 FULL DOZEN 25¢
Work Is Never Vain
No work truly done,
earnestly spoken, no sac
ly made, was ever
W. Robertson.
word
rifice free-
in vain.—F,
no
How Women
in Their 40’s
Can Attract Men
Here's good advice for a woman duitng he
change (usually from 38 to 52), who fears
she'll lose her appeal to men, who worries
about bot flashes, loss of pep. dizzy spells,
upset nerves and moody spells.
Get more fresh air, 8 i sleep and if you
need a good eral system tonic take Lydia
E. Pinkham's Vegetable Com nd, made
erpect Jor women. It helps ture build
up ph cal resistance, thus oy give more
vivacity to enjoy life and assist calming
jittery nerves and disturbing symptoms that
often sccompany change of life. WELL
WORTH TRYING!
What to Remember
Friendship consists in forgetting
what one gives, and remembering
what one receives.—Dumas.
HEADACHE ?
Conditions Due to S wagleh §
a a a Have you any-
thing around the
house you would like
to trade or sell? Try
a classified ad. The
cost is only a few
cents and there are
probably a lot of
folks looking for just
whatever it is you no
longer have use for.