AV \ Frederic i > Viller IS = i ADEING THE STRANGE T bl bl OIDIRICKS Tai Mid i) from ths moment until she was then to the police station. I let her mother accompany us in the carriage, to which she seemed to have no objection. Before ‘the examining magistrate the same scene was gone through. = The | young girl confessed she was guilty of | the robbery, but: refused to give any | further explanation. She only asked that there might be no delay in passing sen- tence upon her. The mother declared her daughter was mad, and denied all knowledge of the matter. At the domiciliary visit to Mrs. Reier- son’s, no trace could be found of the money. gummi I informed Mr. Frick, by letter, that the diamond was found, and of Eve- -lina’s arrest and confession; at the same time, I asked him for the present not to mention: the matter to Mr; Howell, who was expected back ahout this time. Mr. Jurgens was' declared by his rela- tions incapable of looking after his af- fairs, and the authorities decided to drop the proceedings against him for having bought stolen goods. It was discovered that the money for the diamond had been paid in thousand kroner notes. Next day a person had | changed five of these in one of the banks | in the town. But the cashier had not taken any particular notice of the ap- ! pearance of the person. He declared it might possibly be Frederiksen the actor, but he could not say anything definitely about it. No trace of the remaining notes could be discovered. Et ———— ee — By CHAPTER IX. THE PHOTOGRAPH, The next morning, as I was sitting ‘in my office, writing a note to Mr. How- ell—it was on the day he was expected back—to request the favor of an inter- view with him, the constable came in with a visiting card. A gentleman de- sired to speak to me. I read: — ° cesses esse tresses cee Villa Ballarat, Christiania, : Mr. ReciNato Hower. : The Traveller’s Club, London. © 0 oo so 00 so oe . . . . . . . . . « . . . . . . . . “Ask him to step in.” Mr. Howell entered and shook my hand in his free-and-easy English man- ner. “Glad to see you.” “Welcome back again.” He had quickly mastered Norwegian, and we always talked together in that language. “I was just writing a note to you, Mr. Howell, to request the favor of an in- terview with you; you have forestalled me, perhaps for the same purpose.” “I—suppose so,” answered the Eng- lishman, hesitating. “I should like to say a few words to you in confidence, | with regard to the robbery at Mr. | Frick’s.” He looked round as if to assure him- self that we were alone. “You can speak freely: we are alone; I was wishing to ask you a few ques- tions about this same matter. You were, of course, in the house on the day, right up to seven o'clock.” “Quite right; but tell me, Mr. Monk, shall I be called as a witness in this ease?” - “When the case comes before the court, there is every probability t that you will be called to give testimony.” “But am I bound to appear and an- swer?” “Yes, you are! objection?” £8 There was yortiing in the young man’s manner which caused me to pay the greatest attention to his words and behavior. “But can the matter come before the court before you have found the thief?” “As soon as we have got sufficient evidénce against some person, that per- son will be charged and brought before the court.” “But before this happens it is not necessary for me to reply to any ques- tions about the affair?” “When the police, who are conducting the inquiries into the matter, ask you, you should certainly answer. To refuse to answer would be considered some- what strange, and might even lead to unpleasantness for you.” “Many thanks for your information,” answered Mr. Howell; he had got up and was walking restlessly up and down the room. “It is not pleasant for a man to contribute to the ruin of some wretched ‘creature, but perhaps it is impossible to:avoid it.” From the words which had been ex- changed between “us,” 1 felt sure the young Englishman did not know of Eve- lina’s arrest. As you remember, I had I hope you have no | house that afternoon. requested old Frick and Sigrid not te speak to nim apout tne affair. 1 could also see that my answers to the ques- tions he put to me had not told him anything which he did not know before; he was not altogether so ignorant about the matter. He must have put these questions to me as a feint, for some | purpose or another. I was almost cer- tain that he knew something of import- ance to the discovery of the robbery. I deci led inform him of Egclina’s of her confes- sion. It would, be strange if he not betray far the knowledge he had of the matter did not point in the same direction. I continued, “you need not be afraid that your evidence will be of such fatal significance. We have al- recdy got the diamond back, and the guilty party arrested. It is Evelina, Miss Frick’s nmaid. Circumstantial evi- denceis so strong that a confession is unnecessary.” “Well,” .said Mr. Howell, quietly, can just as well tell you now what know, as later on. It was on the after- noon when the diamond disappeared, after the old crank, Jurgens, had dined at Villa Ballarat. Soon after we had had some coffee in the museum I went up to my room and loaded some cart- ridges, for I was going to Osterdal for some shooting, you know.” “Yes; I know what took place in the Please go on.” “Well, when I was ready with the cartridges, I went down into the garden to smoke a.cigar. The other people had gone to their rooms, (I suppose, for I did not see any of them. As I went by the museum it seemed to me that the door wasn’t shut, and shen I touched it it slid right up. You know it is a large iron door, but so well balanced and oiled that it moves quite noiselessly. Well, IT glanced into the museum, and there 1 saw a ‘lady standing before the cupboard on the opposite side of the room, with her back toward me. With one hand she: held up the ironelid, and in the other she had an artigle which she seemed to have just taken drom the case, and which she was examining, It did not occur to me to think it was any- body but Miss Frick; T thought I rec- ognized the light spring jacket with dark braid.” 1 looked up suddenly and met i. Howell's gaze; his eyes did not impress me pleasantly, and it -appeared to me that their expression was dark and cun- ning. “Continue,” I said hurriedly, and, 1 believe, rather roughly. “Well, you know, Mr. Monk, that I am very fond of photography, and that I always go about with a little snap-shot camera. You know it, of course,—we have often had fun at Villa Ballarat photographing people when they least expected it!” I nodded. “I had the apparatus with me, and so it struck me that I would photo- graph Miss Frick as she stood there, without her knowing it. I went hur- riedly and softly inside the door, took the photograph, and went out again without her seeing me. She stood quite still, as if she was wondering what she it once to 1 Trest, 2 not 1 leed, did how “Besides,” “1 TH a should do with what she had in her hand.” The Englishman paused, as if to give me an opportunity to speak. But as 1 did not even look up, but went on draw- ing figures on the paper before me, with as careless an expression as possible, he continued :— “Later in the afternoon I took a car- riage outside and drove to the station. On the way I took some negatives to the photographer, amongst them the pic- ture of which I have just spoken, as : there were some of them that I wanted to get developed by the time I got back. On my return from Osterdal I heard ; that the diamond had disappeared, and then I remembered the photograph. I naturally said nothing about it to Mr. Frick or his niece, but I called for the prints. Would you like to see the one from the museum?” This was the second time that Sigrid’s name had been mentioned in connection | with the disappearancé of the diamond. It awoke the most unpleasant feelings in me; but as I felt Mr. Howell's search- ing look resting upon me, I assumed perfect calmness, and took what he handed me. It was quite a small photograph on thin prepared paper, and placed be- tween two glass plates held together by an india-rubber band. I took it with me to the window to examine it closely. It was, as before said, a small picture, only two or three inches high and very narrow, but exceedingly clear. A young girl stood before the well- known cupboard in old Frick’s museum. Her position was exactly as Mr. Howell had described it. The one hand held the lid: open, the other held an article which was hidden ; by the shoulder; the head and neck were bent somewhat forward, examining the object. It was a tall, walking costume, braid. There was not much to be seen of the room. One saw part of the cupboard on both sides, a chair, the arm: of another chair, but nothing else. Over the cup- board, at about the same height as the young girl, was a shelf. Part of this shelf, on which could be seen several small curios, was included in the pic- ture. One glance was enough for me to be certain who the young girl was. I turned round to Mr. Howell is Evelina, as I suspected.” “Yes, of course; I. am only aston- ished that I could have taken her for Miss Frick when first I saw her. It must have been the costume which de- ceived me. Miss Frick has worn it all the spring i “Yes, I know,” I ans swered curtly. Tt i to have to return fine figure in a light “Ig ¢ occasion I alse trimmed with dark i - played the detective, Mr. MONK. 1 nave privately found out from the other ser- vants that Miss Frick had, that same afternoon, given the costume to Evelina. You see everything is quite clear in that respect.” “Will you allow the police to keep the photograph, Mr. Howell, and is there anything else you can tell us about the matter?’ My manner was, perhaps, somewhat abrupt. “Wait a little,” he answered; “I hope you understand now the reason for the question which I put to you at the be- ginning of our conversation?” “Yes; you would rather not appear as a witness, as far as I could understand.” “Exactly; and, as you yourself. say, the person in question is already ar- rested, and the circumstantial evidence is so strong that my evidence cannot be of much importance one way or other. This being the case, would it not be pos- sible for me to avoid appearing in court? and could you not consider what I have said as confidential, so that I might take the photograph and destroy it? Other- wise I shall appear very much in the light of a spy or a thief-catcher, Mr. Monk. Also, it would be most objec- tionable to me to have to testify against the unfortunate woman.” “Your sentiments do you all, honor, . Mr. Howell; but I cannot, all the same, prevent your being called as a witness. Neither can I, of course, keep your pho- tograph against your will; but I must mention it in my report,.and most earn- estly request you to preserve it. What you have said to me in my office, with respect to a matter concerning which inquiries are now being conducted, I cannot, in my capacity as a police offi- * cial, consider confidential.” “Well, Mr. Monk, I see it cannot be helped, (and. I. ought, ‘perhaps, to have denied: all knowledge ‘of, the matter. But you, ean, at any. rate, bear evidence that I appear most reluctantly; I would like both the unhappy. girl and the Frick family to understand this.” “I can only confirm what you ‘Yourself’ say, Mr. Howell,” I answer stiffly, for I began to be more and/more convinced that the man was playing apart. .:“You will leave the photograph ‘them: in the hands. of the police?” I continued... “Yes, I may just as well leave it; I cannot see that I can do any one any good by not doing so. You police deal with people in your own way,—we speak | and do just as you want us to do.” “Allow me one question, Mr. Howell,” ~—I had again taken the photograph in my hand,—‘“this small; it looks as though it had been clipped at the sides. . Was the photo- graph originally broader, and did it in- clude nothing more of the room?” ' “Yes, it was originally broader, but , only the middle part was clear and dis- tinct. Either side of it was, for some reason or another, very foggy, so I cut . it off to get the picture to fit between the two glass plates. I had, besides, no in- terest for anything but what you see there. The young girl is, of course, the principal object of interest,”—he sighed gently. “What time could it have been when you took the photograph?” “Well, that question I cannot answer very exactly. I thought, of course, at the time, that I should never be asked about it, but—let me see—it can’t have been far off six o'clock. for it was not long after that I left for the railway station, and that was somewhere about seven.” * * * *x * * - The next minute Mr. gone, and 1 sat beside my desk-in deep thought. The Englishman’s visit had made an unpleasant impression upon me, and I | could not make out what his purpose in . making it really was. The man wished to come forward as a witness—that I felt sure about. All the rest was mere dissimulation; but for what purpose? What could be his mo- tives? It puzzled me at the time. and it puz- | zles me still! * * * * * x * During the whole of this long story, Monk had remained calm. He had been speaking evenly and dispassionately, as if he had been reading a police report. i But now he changed in expression and manner. He began to pace up and down the floor with contracted eyebrows, and I saw that the perspiration stood on his brow. * * * * *® You look astonished at me (he con- tinued). : After .what yau have heard, does the whole affair seem clear to you? It will, perhaps, seem still clearer when > x= you have heard me for a few minutes longer: and you will not be able to un- |. derstand how it could become an enig- ma! Yes, an enigma which I would give half or the whole of my life to solve |—But - wait a bit! When you : have heard the rest of my story, you will join with me in asking, “Who stole old Frick’s diamond?” And you will likewise understand that upon-that ques- tion my fate has depended from that day ir to this. ‘But shan’t proceed any longer jin that strain; I will continue as im- vpartially, as I can. On that will, per- jars, depend how far you or anybody else ¢an help me,—alone I ean do noth- ‘ing. I, who was so proud of my own acuteness and ability to penetrate where others failed to see a way !-—No, don’t interrupt me. We shall discuss it after- ward, when I have finished my story. I had got as far as Evelina’s arrest and that Mr. Howell had called on me with the photograph. So far, every- thing was in order. The accused had confessed, and the stolen article had been: brought to light. But it had been smpossible to discover. where the five thousand kroners had disappeared. Evelina refused positively to say a word beyond the confession, and as we were not able to prove any complicity against the actor and Mrs. Reierson, they were discharged. The state. of saffairs in Mr. house was anything but ‘sati Sigrid had been suffering from neryvo Frick’s factory. us photograph is very Howell was | - a TD rr RE headaches ever since a tew days before ‘the robbery. Old Frick was in a rage, and spent the whole day in swearing at the duplicity and untrustworthiness of mankind. I believe, however, that sym- pathy for the wretched Evelina was the true cause of his anger. The young giri’s arrest had, in fact, brought gloom and sadness into the house. Einar Frick was still absent on ‘business. Mr. How- ell decided to go to Spitzbergen as soon as the case against Evelina was settled. It vexed me that I could not trace the money, or obtain any proof of the actor’s complicity; and I took it for granted that the sly fellow had succeed- ! ed in getting it safely put away in Goth- enburg, before he was arrested. But although we had a clever officer there, and got all possible assistance from the Swedish police, we did not succeed in obtaining any proofs, and as long as Evelina would not speak we could proceed no further in the affair. Thus matters stood, and I think that all the actors in this drama were only wishing that it would come to an end as soon as possible. Suddenly one day I received the most astonishing news—Evelina had demand- ed to be brought before the examining magistrate, and had retracted before him her confession in full. She had de- clared that when she confessed she had not been herself, and that she was really innocent and knew nothing of the rob- bery. She would not say anything fur- ther, and refused to answer any ques- tions. Of course, those who knew the ins and the outs of the case only shook their - heads at this unexpected development, and began to doubt her reason. The doctors, however, who examined her, could not discover any signs of a de- ranged mind. The proofs were ' otherwise very strong against her; and as there was no prospect of any new evidence in the mat- ter, the hearing of the case was fixed for the first sitting of the court. I visited the young girl in prison and ‘found her taciturn, depressed, and pale; i but she gave me the impression of being . entirely, normal. I tried earnestly, and in a friendly way, to prevail upon her to y adhere to her confession and to give a full explanation; but she only smiled sadly, and begged to be left alone. What could have caused her to retract her confession? The more I pondered over this, the more sure I became that this step must be due to some outside influ- ence; that she must have received some message or communication from with- out. She did not wish to receive any visitors in her cell. Only the mother had obtained permission to visit her once, and then the conversation had been quite short, and had taken place im the presence of a constable. The mother had, on that occasion, un- continue her reproaches against her daughter, because she had confessed something which she had not done. But her daughter had contemptuously Breed away from her, and soon after the mother was taken away without the robbery having been further discussed between them. I felt sure that these reproaches from the mother, which the daughter seemed to treat with disgust and contempt, had had no effect, and that the explanation must be sought for elsewhere. By closely examining the jailer, he at last told me that he one day surprised the young girl while she had a small piece of paper in her hand, but that she immediately turned away and had prob- ' ably put the paper in her mouth and swallowed it. The man declared, how- ever, that it all happened so quickly that he could hardly be quite certain about the matter, and Evelina, as usual when I i spoke to her about it, took refuge in an obstinate silence. My suspicion that Evelina acted on | other people’s advice was now strength- ened. How far this ¢ircumstance can have any influence upon your opinion, when you have heard me out, I don’t know. To me, all is dark; but 1 shall try to tell my story in such a way that nothing of what I know shall be hidden from you. Fortunately, I have got on so far with it that I can now let others speak for me—at least for a while. The next great event in my story is the trial of Evelina, which took place about three weeks after her arrest. reported in all the papers at that time, and you will get a more complete idea of the case by reading one of these reports, than if I give you a verbal ac- count, (To be Continued.) CROUP AND WHOOPINGCOUGH. Mrs. T. 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Representative McGinnis of Greeley plexion bill” prohibiting the use of cosmetics of nearly every kind, besides | face powder, rouge, perfume, false | Bair: hai : a | whair dyes or “hieaching materials | @rery member of the national guard to for the purpose of deceiving, advertis- fing or creating a false impression.” It also prohibits piercing ears for rings ids ear i and forbids the wearing of earrings. | frairms onto to Ave id a 1d ish. (Worship if a bill which Representative forty-five years and provides & punish. Poy, Ny, Fy rroduced In the logisin- | ture becomes a law. The act applies only to women under ment of $25 fine for each offense. The queerest of all the odd bills in- troduced in the present Colorado leg-! fslature comes fram Sgnator William Adams, Democratic leader. This pro- vides that chickens shall go to roost between the hours of 6 and T o’clock p. m. and provides pemaities for viola- tion of the curfew... Another senate measure declares jackrabbits eligible to election as state senators and cot- tontails as representatives. A third measure provides that bulls in the road must wear high power headlights. “Freak” bills in Massachusetts in- clude one to have all weeds that cause hay fever and summer asthma, remov- ed from all roadsides; a bill that all bachelors over thirty-five years pay an annual tax of $5 and one that doctors and dentists who perform operations | of any kind upon the human body county. Kan, introduced a “pure com- | shall not wear any hair on thelr faces. Senator Robertson ,of Holt county. Neb., who ten years ago tried unsue- cessfully to have the national guard abolished. has a bill which “sentences” ninety days’ service for the state In | road and bridge work. Churchgoers in Texas must leave Commercial job work is all right.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers