HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1927-4-27, Page 7THE BRUSSELS POST
Copyright .5913.
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f! ii11110,
----By MA ICY 110111111 IS RINEHART
"And—and
utfshedidnot,iflta
do you think elle ' •.' ", house -a,/
y 16 111 tl
--111'---tate collet'?"
"Not unless Ladley is (nor;, of
fool than I think ho is," he sal
erelling, "Personally 1 think ah: le
gone away, a., he says she did. Ilu
it' she hasn't-- Ile probably took th
body with hint when he said he we
getting 11k1116110 and dropped it i
the current - somewhere, But w
must go slow with all this. There'
110 USO shouting 'wolf." yet."
"1lut—the towel?"
"He may have cut himself shay
ing, It has been done."
"And the knife?„
He shrugged his shoulders goo
auto redly.
"I've seen a perfectly good kOlf
,'polled opening a bottle o1' piaklcs.'
"But the slipper? And the clo sk?'
My good woman, e.,ough sone
and slipper; 0111 forgotten In +.h
bottonns of cupboards year afte
roar !•a floor! time and are feint,
floating around the streets to mak,
all the old clothes men in town hap
sty. I have seen ahnost everythtn
floating about during one of thea
annual floods."
"I glare any you never 80W all 111
ret (leek floating around," I revile(
a lit'le sharply. I had no 80980 01'
humor that day, He sopped smiling
at once and stood tugging at hl.
mustache,
"No," he admitted. "An onyx
clock sinks, that's true. That', a
very nice little point, that onyx
clock. Ho may be try,•ig to sell it
or perhaps"--. Hc' did not finish.
I went back imnledbttely�, only
stepping ••t the market to get meat
for Me. I; 1'+)0!44' supper. Tt was
after half past 5, and duals was com-
Mg' on.. I got a boat and was rower!
directly home. Peter was not at the
toot Di ' the steps, I Pahl the boat-
man and het him go an turned to go
up the staire. Some 011e was speak•
inlg in the hall above.
I have read somewhere' that no
two voices arca exactly alike, joet as
no two violin.: ever produce, the -011„
sound. 11hi"k it ! whet they cell
the timbre that is diiT,'(' nt. I h'mo,
for instance., never h„'ill a vole,'!
MIr. Pitman's, although Mr. Har-
ry Lauder's in a phonograph re-
semhlec '
1
it,
And
< h . • ,
111
� always
done for ole what odors do for some
people, revived forgotten $rano) an4
old nllemol'ies. Bet the memory that
the voice at the Beed of the stairs
brought back was not very 011, al-
though I had forgotten it. f seemed
10 hear ugein all art once the lapping
of the water' Sunday eternity' a, it
began to conte_ in over the 40nr(1111;
the sound of Terry ripping up the
parlor carpet and Mrs. Ladies( call-
ing lite a she devil in the nest room,
311 reply to this very voice,
Batt tvltet T got to the ton oi' the
steins i( was only Mr. Howell, who
had brought his visitor to the hood
dlistrict, and on getting her ;plashed
wit'ie the muddy water had taken her
to any house for a towel end a cakee
of soap,
I lighted the lamp in the hall and
D'I1' Howell introduced the girl, She
WAS a pretty girl, sling lid yoang,
and 'he had taken her wetting good-
naturedly.
"I know 100 are intruders, ?Mrs.
Pitman," site saki, heading' out. her
haat(. "T7specially now, when you
are in trouble."
"I have told Miss Havey at little.,"
Mr, Howell said, "and I promised to
show her Peter, but he is not here,"
T think T had known it was my
sister's child from the nroneut I
lighted the lamp. There was some-
thing' of Alma lin het, not Alma's
hardness or haughtiness, hut Ahna's
dark blue eyes with black laches, and
Alma's nose, Alma was always the
'beauty of the family. What with the
day's excitement and seeing Alma's
child like this, in my house, I felt
'things going round and clutched at
>1'
FL
4,
to
"Nothing at all," 1 said. "huh -
o geetiel most likely. Too much tea
the Net slay or two .md eat enough
1, •.glifl rood. I've been too amanita to
e taut." -
Lida --foe 510• was that to mi itt
once', although I had neve„ seen her
be f or a—•Lido wart all 8ytnnslthy and
wee ane:.,. 511' act111.111 laked me to
00 with her to a re.teurant end have
a real dinner, I could imagine Al-
a m11, had she known But I excused
myself,
"I have to cook something for Mr.
Reynolds T said. "11,11 3m better
, DOW, anyhow, -thank you. 911'. How-
ell may I spent to you foe as mom-
ent?"
d' He followed me along the back
r !tall, which was cloak,
1 "I have ' remembered something
' that I had forgotten, :,11'. rtnwell." I
- said. "On Sunday morning the Lad-
`^ ?eye had al visiSo1,"
c "Yes?„
"They had very fett, w1.,ltO('s,"
"I Seca"
i "I did not see hint, but 1 heard
his voice," Mr. Rowell did •lot move_
but Wended
Ile drew hit, breath to
quickly. '"It sounded—it was 11"1
by any chance you?"
"I? A newspaper Ulan who goes
to bed at 3 0,1111. on Sunda!' morning
up and about at 10!"
"I didn't say what time it was," I
said sharply.
l.lut at +hat moment T.i..la called
from the front hall.
"I think T hone Pete'," she s.tid.
1 1'1Te is :shut in somewhere, whining."
We went forward at once. She'
19.118 right. Peter was scratching, at
.. 1'r
th etau rail. ML, Howell eaupeh,
111e
"Why, } y, MCa,. Pitman:" he spli4
"What's the matter'?"
I got myself in hand in a moment
and smiled at the girl.
Letterheads
Envelopes
Billheads
And all kinds of Business
Stationery printed at The
Post Publishing House,
We will 'do a job that will
do credit to your business.
Look over your stock 6f
Office Stationery and if it
requires replenishing -call
us by telephone 31.
The Post Publishing Nouse
the door of Mr. Ladley's room, al-
though I had left the door closed
and Peter in the hall. I let him out
and he crawled to me on three legs,
whimpering. Mr. Howell bent over
him and felt the foulest.
1 "Poor littlo beast!" he said. ''1lis
log is broken,"
He made a splint for the dog, and
with Lida helping they put hint to
bed in a clothes basket in my up-
stairs kitchen. It was easy to see
how things ttsla'
111 with Mr. Howell.
b He
WO( all+
( yes for her. He uncle, ey-
cuses to t011dl her hand or her arm,
little caressing touches th'(t made.
, her color heighten. And with it
there was as sort of hopehrsnoss in
his limner, as if he knew !tow far
the g'il'l was out of Ms reach. 1in01v-
ing Alma and her pride, I knew bet-
ter than they how ]Hopeless it AVO,,,.
1 1008 not so sure about Lida, 1
wondered if she were in love with
the boy e1' only in love with love.
She was vcl;y young, as I had been.
God help her if, like me, she sa"'rt-
fived everything to discover too late
that she was only in love with love,
CHAPTER V.
Mr. Reynolds slid not come !bene
to dinner at all. The water had got
into the basement at the store, he
telephoned, e10 of the flood gates in
a sewer having leaked and they were
moving some of the departments to
an upper floor, I had expected to
have him 01 the house that evening,
and now I wars left alone again.
But, as it happened, I was not
alone. • Mr. Graves, one of the city
detectives, came at 1101E past six and
went carefully over the Ladleys'
room. I showed him the towel and
the slipper and the broken knife and
where we had found the knife bled°.
He was very non -committal and left
in a half hour, taking the articles
with him in 0 newspaper.
At
7 the doorbell rang. I wont
down as far as I could on the stair-
case, and I saw a boat outside the
door, with the boatman and a wom-
an in it, • I called to them to bring
the boat back along •the hall, and I
had a queer feeling that it 1111011 be
Mrs. Ladley and that I'd been mak-
ing a fool of myself all day for noth-
ing. But it was not Mrs, Ladley.
"Is this No. 42?" asked the wom-
an, as the boat came back.
"Yes,"
"Does Mr. Ladley live lure?"
"Yes, But he is not hero. BOW,"
"Are you Mis, Pittock?"
"Pitman, yes."
The boat bumped against the
stairs, and the woman got out. She
was as tall as Mrs. I.a tey, and when
I saw her in tato light from the up -
pe' hall I knelt/ her instalntly. It
was Temple Hope, the leading lady
from the Liberty theatre,
"I would like to talk to you, 1Mrs.
Pitman," she said, "Where can tee
go?"
T led 110 way back to 11137 room,
and when she had followed one in
She turned' and shut the door,
„Now, then " lie s 1:41 without au"'
preliminary, "where 131 J+•nnJ•
Brice?"
"I don't know,:, l
: oi
I,"
I
uanswered,
We leokr d a11; each 03 fin• a
010o(te and tach of u' ,.R1 trlcr' the
11}1(1'• adapt •!ed,
"Het It 1.. 1 all, d iii 1'1" h c.xelw,,-
'•d, "She wee afraid he would Ir.,
If
and.111
I hr h,+:.,,
Bled "1101 elee,e ,
1 .11i 1 111111911 her intr.:
the river," 1 rdlid. "That ., What 1
'pink, and he'll -go free at (hitt, 11.
t=eem; thele ient any murder when
there isn't any rolpse."
"Nonsense! 1f he has done that
the river will give her up e.venu7Uy,''
"Tgi
he river doesn't always ve
them up," 1 retorted, "Not in flood
time anyhow. Or when they are
found it le moltth$ later, and you
can't prove anything."
She had only a little time, being
due at the theatre soon, but she sat
down and told me the story she toll
afterward on the stand.
She had known Jennie Brice for
year.;, they 11000.110 been together in
the chorus as long before as Nadjy.
"She was married then to at fel-
low (01 the vaudeville circuit," Miss
,lope said. "Ha left -ice' about that
time, and she took tap with ..+0,11 y.
t don't think they we(e 1.1'01' mer-
t'ic•d,"
"What!" I said, jumping to my
feet, "and they came to a respect-
able house liko this! There's never
been a breath of scandal about this
mouse, Miss Hope, and if t conies
out I'm ruined,"
"Well perhaps they 100(1' niers
r a id," she ':aid, "Anyhow, they were
always quarreling. And when he
wasn't playing it was worse. She
use oto conte to my hotel and cry
her eyes out,"
"I knew you were friends," I acid.
"Almost the last thine she said to
me was about the black and white
dress of hers ,you were to borrow
for the piece thi Welk."
"Black and white dress! I bor-
row one of Jennie Brice's dresses!"
exclaimed .hiss Hope. "I should
think not, I have plenty of my
own."
That puzzled me, for she had said
it, that was sure. And then I re-
membered that I hat not seen the
dress in the room that clay, and I
wont to look for it, It was gen:'. 1
came back and told Miss Hope.
"A black and white dress! Did it
have a red collar?" she asked.
"Yes,"
"Then T remember it• She wore
at small black hat with a red quill
with that dress. You might look for
the hat."
She follolcecl me backI1C t n t room
and stood in the doorway while T
watched. The hat 10148 gone, too.
"Perhaps after all, he's tolling the
truth," she said thoughtfully. "Eke
fur coat isn't in the closet, Is it?"
. It was ,gone. Tt is strange that all
clay I had never thought of looking
over her clothes ata eimmg what
was missing. I hadn't known all she
had, of course, but I had seen her all
winter in her fur coat and admired
it. It w118 a striped :Fut', brown and
gray, and very unusual. Birt with
the coat ini -!ng and a dress anti
hilt gone. it began to look as if I had
been making a fool of myself andl
stirring up a tempest in a teacup.,
1Mi(s I-Iope was as P11851(14 ata I were.
"Anyhow if he didn't kill her,"
she said, "it isn't because he did not
want to. Only last week she had hy-
sterics in my dressing room and said
-
he had threatened to poison her. It
was all Mr. Bron8011, the business
manager, and I could do to quiet
her."
She looked at her watch and ex-
claimed that she 1vas late and would
have to hurry. I saw her down to
ler boat. The river hate teen falling
rapidly for the last hone or two, and
I heard the boat scrape as it event
over it 11
oe •the o door sill. I did not know
whether to be glad that the water
was going down, and I could live_ like
a Christian again or to be sorry for
fear of what we »light find in the
mud that was always left,
Peter was lying where I had put
him, on a folded blanket laid in a
clothes basket. T wont back to him
and sat down beside the basket.
"Poterl" I said. "Poor old Pet-
er! Who did this to you? Who hurt
you?" He looked at me and whined
as if he wanted to tell me if only
he could,
"Was it Mr. Ladley?" 1 naked.
Anel the poor thing cowered close to
his bed and shivered. I wondered if
it had been he and if it had why 11e
had come back, Perhaps 110 had re-
membered the towel. Perhaps ho
would eome again and spend the
night there. T was like Peter, I
cowered and shivered at the very
thought,
At 0 o'clock I heard a boat at the
door. It had stuck there, and its
oeeupant was 8(0111ing :furiously at
the boatman, Soon after I heard
splashing, and I knew that whoever
it 1005, was wadding back to the stairs
thratlgh the foot and 0 half or sty of
water still in the hall, I ran back
to my room lied locked myself fll
and then stood armed with the Stove
c lifter e 1
til (lute I ( t 111 . 1. 11 s' !r t
,1 cul a• (1,.
i It v
mel ht. should break the door 11'
The steps; T}I 1 s <. u• t o ..
m t t ,.
h , t,1ir and
1 1 ,
Peter ae l bar ecfuriously.
t lc t It ,seemed
to me that this was to be my : n,i,
killed like a rat in a trap and thrown
cut th,, window, to float,11k •try' 141-
11 11 chair, into Mollie 1I t. uire', kdt-
ellen, or to be fount! lying. in the
Of,•1' 1 19f ih21„ yard aft e t0' 1'10"1 111111
1'1 "OIs
The steps hesitated at 11e top of
the stats, and turned back atom the
hall. I'e tet' redoubled his not -c• 11
never barked for 51' I ;toll_, of
rite i.ad,va. I .good Ana emelly A-
I, to breathe. The door NV03 thin
1114 the lock loo::,,, Ono good blow,
and—
The doorknob turn(')!, ams I
reamed. I recall that the light
tuned black and that is all I do re-
member until I reams, to a half hoer
later and saw Dir, Holcomb, ;'cop-
ing over Sae. The door with the' leek
broken, 11,18 standing open. i triad
to 11101'0 1)114 then I 41(11' that my feet
11,01'0 propped up on the edge of Pe-
ter's basket.
"Better leave them up,” Mr. Hol-
eembe said. "It (ends the blood
beck to the head. Half the — fool
people in the world stick a pillow un-
der a fainting woman's shoulders.
How are you n•;1,•??"
"A11 right," T said feebly. "I
thought you were Mr. Ladley."
He helped me up and I sat in a
chair and tried' to keep my tips from
shaking. And then i saw that Mr.
Holcombe had brought a suit case
with him and had set it inside the
door.
"Ladley is safe until he gets bail,
anyhow," he said, "They picked
him up as 110 was boarding a Penn-
sylvania train 100114 east.
"For murder?" I asked.
"As a suspicious character," 11',
replied grimly, "Thant docs ars well
as anything for a tame." He sat
down opposite me and looker(', eee,e
intently.
"Mrs. Pitman," he said, "did you
ever hear the story of the horse that
wandered out of a village and could
not be found?"
I shook my heat,
"Well, the best wit of the village
failed to locate the horse. But one
day the village idiot walked into the
village leading the missing animal by
the bridle. When they asked him
how Ile had clone it, are said: "Well, i
I just thought what I'd do if I 10114
a horse and then I went and slid it." i
"T : ee," I said, humoring him,
"You don't see. Now, what are
we trying to do?"
"We're trying to find a body. Do
et
you intend to become a torts..
e
t
Ho leaned over and capped on the
table between us. "We are trying
tq prove a crime. I intend for the
time to be a criminal."
He looked so curious, bent for-
ward and glaring at me from under
his bushy eyebrows, with ins 4:00011
on his knee—for he bad taken therm
off to wade to the etafrs—and his
trousers rolled to his knees, that I
wondered if he was entirely sane,
But DIr•. Holcombe, eccentric as 110
alight be, was same enough.
"Not really a criminal!"
As really as lies in me. Listen,
Mrs, Pitman. I want to put myself
in Ladley's place fore day or two,
live as 110 lived, if T can, I ant going
to sleep in his room to -night, with
your permission."
I could not see any reason for ob•
jetting, although I thought it silly
and useless. I lid the way to the
front door, Mr. Holcombe following
with his shoes and suitcase. I light-
ed a lamp and he stood looking
around him,
I ece you have been hero since
we left this afternoun, , he said.
"Twice," I replied. "First with
11Tr. Graves and later"—
Tlto words died on my tongue.
Some one had been in the room
since my last visit there,
"He has been here," T gasped. "T
left the room in tolerable order.
Look at rti"
"When were you stere last?"
"At 7.30 or thereabouts,"
"Where were you between 7.30
and 8.30?"
"In the kitchen with Peter." I
told him then about the dog and
about finding hint shut 101 the room,
The washstand evue pulled out.
The sheets of Mr. La0ley's manu-
script, usually an orderly pilo, were
half on the floor. The bed coverings
had been jerked off and flung over
the back of a chair,
Peter imprisoned might have mov-
ed the washstand ani upset the
manuscript. Peter had never put tho
bed clothing over the chair or brok-
en his own log,
"Humph!" he said. And, getting
out his notebook, he made an exact
memorandum of what T had told
!nim and of the condition of the
room, That done, he turned to me,
"Mrs, Pitman," ne said, "V11
111011k you to dill me Mr, Ladley the
the next day or two, 1 am an eater
out of employment, forty-one years
of age, short, stout and bald, me-
lded to a wooed I would like f n bo -
quit of, and I ung writing myself as
play in Whirl! re ,
''1,
t111 h th_ Shuh .� 1110 to
Aar ate." -
"Very tt i1Ladley."
D1 r. i 1
I esid,
trying t0 cgiter into 1 )'r - O
1 the 11 It 1 Hl'
thing and God know:, , '.e 1ng /10 ien111-
or ;11 it. 111,1, you'll 1i11,e teat: so.
11/1 frmn 111. 0(1(1(.;"••
"0(414? For 1V11'it?"
"For your whiskey and soda be-
fo1e. you „o to heed, .,i]•,"
"Oh, certainly, v<+,n. Bring the
soda, And •1111 ,1 rnonilt•"t,
Pitman. A1('. Holcombe is a total
xihstniner and 1144 alar.;.; been
i4 Ladley, not Holcombe, who Like./
this abominable .;tu1)'."
I 4dd I quit,• understood, but tied;
Mr. Ladbiy could skip 11 night i^ 11''
so wiehed. 114 the little gentlemen
would not. hear to it, and w'la+,1 1
brought the 80(111 poured hmi_elt' :1
double i,ortion. He stood 100111H ;
it, with hi", face screwed tip,
the very 0d0r 1',v011(.4 11101,
"The (•)lance, are," he said, "nett
Ladley—that I—havine' a natty
piece of work to do during the nigh!
would—will take n levee,- ."rink ala"
usual." H„ raised the glass only to
put it down. "Don'ttarget," he
said, "to put 0 large knife where .a•cu
left the one last night. I'm sorry
the wetter has gone Clown, but I shall
imagine it still at the seventh strep.
Good night, Mrs, Pitman."
"Good night, DIr. Ladley," I •said,
ensiling,. "and remember, you cite
three weeks in arrears with your
board."
Ills eves twinkled through hi:;
spectacles, "I shall intaglio. it paid,"
he. ;