1
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WE OWN AND OFFERPel Railroad and Mock rar-- Co. Com. Stock.Indianapolis Wir lunrano Co. Block.Union 1 ractlon Co. of lad. Cora stoefctrnton Traction 5 per cent. Preferred Stock.becaritr Trust Co. Stock.'draf Union Surety Co. Stock.Colombia National Bank: Stock,Law HuUdin Stock.
IM.000 Indianapolis Water Co...,, M'tjDoO Cltiien-- t Street-Railwa- y 3
IfjfiCM Horn Ueitn l,thtlax Co 6lOQ Marlon lectrlo Liht A lla&tinjr Co 6
4T00 Nwr Telephon. 1st mortgage 3
.1.WOO Zlonille. Ind.. fundlnx110)00 French Lick sprtag--s ft
I'rlca and particulars upon application.
J. 1. WIXvlD s CO.05 Stevenson Building.
ISKFIL ARTICLES FOR INVALIDSReclining; and Rolling: Chairs for parlor and
atreet. Carrying- - Chairs. Wheeled Couches. FoodSterilizers and ielcca tors. Ff11nf and fcpltCups, Electric Belts, Insoles and Batteries.
Bath Cabinet.W3I. II. ARMSTRONG A CO.,
1 and S S. Meridian street, Indianapolis, Ind.
FRICK IS NOT AMBITIOUS
HE DOES NOT WANT THE STEELCORPORATION PRESIDENCY.
Says He Has Plenty to Do In Attend-ing to Ilia Own Affair Tribute
to J. P. Morgan.
'PITTSBURG. Dec. 25. "There Is no va-cancy in the presidency of the UnitedStates Steel Corporation or any other ex-
ecutive position that I know of, and evenIf thtre were and I should be offered one,my own affairs require so much of my timethat it would not be possible for me toconsider anything of the kind."
The above statement was made by Mr.II. C. Frlck to-nig-ht. "I am much averseto newspaper interviews," continued he,"but my name has been so persistentlyused in connection with positions in theUnited States Steel Corporation that Irainier welcome the opportunity of making, this statement. I have retired fromactive business and nothing would Induceme to take any position that could claimmy time from my own affairs. I am adirector In the United States Steel Corpora-tion besides being a large stockholder, andam very much Interested in its success, andwhile I am willing to give all the timeand attention required of me as a director,I could not accept any position that re-
quired my daily and exclusive attention.I am a thorough believer In the intrinsicvalue of the property. The various con-
stituent companies are well organized andhave very capable men In charge of them.I had an opportunity . during the recentInspection " of meeting a number of thepresidents and others of the constituentcompanies' management and was delight-ed at the enthusiasm and interest shownIn their various organizations, and, afterall, it la of greater importance to havethose various constituent companies wellmam.gtd than who may be president orchairman of the executive committee ofthe United States Steel Corporation. Theexecutive and finance committees of theUnited States Steel Corporation are com--
of very able men and they arefosed business of the corporation carefulattention.
"Mr. Morgan has accomplished . a greatv many big things in his time, but he never
put anything together, in my opinion, thathas the merit, nor that did more for thecapitalist, laborer and the consumer thanwhen he formed the United States SteelCorporation. Its position so far as oreand fuel are concerned. Is Impregnable,and, without ore and coal. It does not mat-ter how. much money it may have, noconcern can become an Important factor inthe steel business."
COMMERCE AT CANNON'S MOUTH.
German Society That'la Urging on theImperial Naval rians.
"Washington Post.It aprears that there Is In Emperor "Wi-
lliam's domain an organization called the"German Fleet Society." Recent disclo-sures Indicate that this society has for itsobject the exploitation of public sentimentin favor of a powerful German navy asan djunet of German commerce. Thelast monthly publication by the societydoes not, according to our Berlin report,"contain the least trace of Jingoism." Per-ish the thought! It simply says that Ger-mans must make up their minds whetherthe business already created shall be pro-tected and extended or permitted to lan-guish." That Is clear enough. Anyone hasa right to push hi trade or to abandon it,as he may prefer. There is a certainamount of liberty almost everywhere. Butwhat does th3 "German Fleet Society" goon to say? What Is meant by the remark-able declaration: "If the former alterna-tive Is accepted the navy must be Increasedby sufTclent cruisers to adequately protecttrade." What, Indeed? Does success Incommerce depend upon armaments anddeath-dealin- g fleets? And. if so, why?
Many years ago, down in the neighbor-hood of Napoleon, Ark., there was a hollow-
-cheeked little man who had an agencyfrom a Cincinnati firm that manufacturedplaying cards. Of coarse his business re-quired him to frequent saloons and gamb-ling houses which then abounded in Na-poleon while his pleasure led him to con- -sume Urge quantities of tangle-fo- ot whis-ky between trades. It Is of record thatonce this ardent salesman proposed to sella few gross of first-cla- ss squeezers to aiicw merchant who had Just moved In. Themerchant declined on the ground that hehad a lull supply, procured from a St.Louis firm. On this the hollow-cheeke- d
man shot the newcomer. There was someexcitement. A crowd gathered and theshooter detected a slight disposition onthe part of some of the bystanders to mur-mur. He promptly drew another gun fromhis left hip pocket-bei- ng ambidextrousand thus addressed the company: "Gentle-men I am a plain, mild-manner- ed trader.I never had a quarrel in my life. I am apeaceful man. I am. And If any citizendon't believe It. and will say so right here,I'll fill him full of holts. There's no foolishness about me, and don't anybody forget It."
There seems to be a sort of parallel Justhere. The hcllow-cheek- ej man didn't ex-actly promote his commerce through themedium of a navy. It wasn't practicableat Napoleon. But he set the example withsix-shoote- rs, and thereby or so it wouldappear rounded a new school of mercantileenterprle. For our part, we haven't theleast doubt of it. But it may interest the"German Flt Society" to know that thehollow-cheeke- d man got what he was look- -ICS for, and. In due time, died young.
Fair and Continned Cold
Santa Claus has departed and has left afev things with us to sell at any price in or-
der to wind up our account with him beforeths New Year comes in.Men's Fancy Ribbed Underwear,
$1.50 quality 93 centsMen's Fancy Stiff Bosom Shirts,
$1.00 quality 6? centsSome Teck, Four-in-Ha- nd and Band
Bows, 25 and 50-ce-nt quality 16 centsSome Men's Fancy Hose, 50-ce- nt
quality 25 cents
AT THE
LOOTING OF CATHEDRALS
STORY OF DESECRATION TOLD DY
WARREN J. RAKER.
Says His Father nnd a CompanionRobbed Mexican Churches of Great
Wealth During the War of IS IS.
TOLEDO, O.. Dec. 23. The Bee says:"Warren J: Baker, secretary of the North-western Ohio Masonic Relief Association,to-d- ay for the first time makes public thesecret history of the looting of Catholiccathedrals during the Mexican war, tellshow it was done and of the burial of thetreasure. Ills tongue was loosened by anewspaper dispatch from Mexico City tell-ing of the discovery of a chest of diamonds,sapphires, rubles, pearls and golden imagesbeneath the flagstone in the chapel of LasVozcalnas College, in Mexico City. Mr.Baker's story rivals the mythical tales ofCaptain KIdd, and moreover bears the un-
mistakable stamp of truth. He says hisfather marched from Vera Cruz to MexicoCity with General Scott's army during theMexican war. He and a tent mate, afterplotting for weeks, made their way intosome of the richest cathedrals and pillagedthem of their fabulous wealth of all sortsof valuable stones and huge golden images.For hours they looted, carrying their bur-dens of precious stones to a hiding placebeneath the flagstones in a cathedral yard.Shortly afterward Baker's companion died.Baker returned to his home In New Yorkand then went to Hillsdale, Mich. Fifteenyears after plundering the cathedrals heconfided his story to an Intimate friend.The friend wrote to the Mexican govern-ment, asking "if there would be any chanceof a division of the spoils," if he shouldtell the, government where it could findthe sacred and valuable altar decorationsthat had been stolen. In a letter bearingthe official seal the Hillsdale man receivedwarning that if he knew of any one whohad a hand in the notorious pillaging or ifhe himself participated in it, he would dowell to forget all he knew about it, andkeep quiet lest his life be sacrificed in re-venge for the desecration of the cathedrals.Baker took the advice, but still Intendedto secure the treasure he had buried."
CHRONIC INDIGESTION.
A Common Malady That May Be Caredwith Care..
Youth's Companion.The causes of chronic indigestion are
manifold, but usually and almost alwaysin the beginning, even when the stomachfinally becomes actually diseased, the con-dition is due to Improper eating. It maynot be that the sufferer eats too much, al-though very many people who are not glut-tons do that, but he eats Improperly. Onewho suffers from dyspepsia or who wishesto avoid such suffering should rememberthat the stomach cannot do all the workof digestion. Before it enters the stomachthe food must be finely divided and mixedwith the saliva, which is as certainly a di-
gestive fluid as Is the gastric Juice. Glad-stone, It Is said, used to chew every mouth-ful of food thirty-tw- o times, one for eachtooth, before he swallowed It.'
Long mastication of the food Is useful inmany ways. In the first place. It shouldappeal to all who deHght in the pleasuresof the table, for if the food is savory it Istasted longer and better when well chewed.Again, long mastication mixes- - the foodwell with the saliva and begins its dlges-tlo- n
and this sweetens the starchy foodand Improves Its taste. Finally if one eatsslowly he will have less time to eat much,and hunger is appeased .and a feeling ofsatiety Is attained before the stomach canbecome overloaded.
While one is chewing the food should bemoved from side to side of the mouth thatthe admixture with the saliva may be morethorough.
Too much fluid should not be taken withthe meal, but it Is not a wise plan to takenone, as it is sometimes recommended. Thegastric Juice should wot be too much diluted. but if the food Is well moistened theJuice acts better anus, more rapidly. Oneglass of water with a meal is about theright amount. Cool water, moreover. Inmoderate quality stimulates the secretionof gastric Juice, and a wineglassful of icewater taken before the meal glve3 a fillipto the appetite without any or the drawbacks of liquor.
If, In spite of all precautions, chronicIndigestion persists, one should try the experiment ot eating only one kind of foedat a meal meat, fish or eggs, withoutbread or potatoes, or bread and butterwithout animal food. The stomach whichrebels at a mixed meal will often do itswork satisfactorily If offered only one article of food at a time.
A MYSTERIOUS CASH.
That of Mr. Xewhoune, Who Inor-countah- ly
Disappeared from Home.Baltimore American.
The approach of the Christmas holidaysrecalls the mysterious disappearance of Mr.Charles H. Newhouse, the young cattlebroker, of Culpeper, Va who was last seenIn this city on Dec. 24 of last year, andwhose disappearance has been Just a? com-plete as though the earth had opei.ed upand swallowed him. Despite the fact thata year hs elapsed, practically speaking,nothing definite has ever been learned ofthe young man's movements since that fa-tal night when he alighted from a car atBaltimore and Howard streets, presumablyto go to the Howard House, where heftasregistered. V
At first the general impression was thatthe young man had left this city to folic vr aburlesque show which had been playinghere, but which left on the same night hedisappeared. It was even reported that hehad been seen In Washington, where thetroupe played the following week. However,this report failed to throw any light on thecase. and. despite the fact that both theWashington and Baltimore police searchedevery nook and corner In both cities, and.In fact, in the surrounding country, notrace was found of anyone answering thedescription of the missing cattle dealer.To encourage the efforts of the police alodge of which Newhou&e was a memberoffered a large reward to anyone who couldfurnish the slightest clew to the youngman's whereabouts. This, like all otherefforts, was to no avail, and after, severalmonths even the most sanguine began toaccept the opinion that Newhouse wasdead.
Then came a welcome surprise to theyoung man's family, for on Juy 17 Mrs.Newhouse. mother of the missing man, re-ceived a letter from her son, postmarkedCape Town, South Africa, In which he as-sured her of his safety. The letter wasdated June 15, and though the parents bothbelieved it to have been written by theirson, they say the tone of the letter is mostmysterious. After that several other letters
re alleged to have followed, but they werenot made public. The father, Mr. S. M.Newhouse, then appealed to the State De-partment, In Washington, and UnitedStates Consul Bingham was cabled at Cape
9
THE INDIANAPOLIS JOURNAL. FRIDAY; DECEMBER 26, 1902. n
Town and requested to search that cityfor Newhouse. He did bo and cabled backseveral days later that he had made athorough search throughout the city, butwas unable to find any such person or anyInformation regarding the missing man.
Several months later the parents receiveda letter supposedly from their son, whichwas dated from Johannesburg'. In this let-ter the writer reveals the fact that hisonce glossy black hair has turned white,and dwells In a general way upon the hard-ships, experiences and even distress thathe has encountered since his mt-s- t marve-lous disappearance from this city. Noneof the letters explained what the writer'semployment was, or, in fat t, anything con-cerning his queer leavetaklng of all thatshould have been most dear to him.
Since the letter from Johannesburg noth-ing further has been heard and the where-abouts of the young cattle dealer Is stillwrapped In the dark cloak of mystery. Theonly fit ending for such a remarkable casewould be for the young man to return tohis home on Christmas day. There is nodoubt but that the .parents are lookingforward to that day. trusting, hoping andhalf believing that they will receive somedeSnlte information about the lost son.
STATEMENT FROM LORENZ.
Instead of Receiving $100,000 lie HasIleen Paid Only $30,000.
NEW YORK, Dec. 23.-- Dr. Adolf Lorenz,who returned to this city from Boston to-
day, while discussing his visit to thiscountry, said in an interview to-nig- ht:
"There is one thing I want to say, andthat Is in regard to finance. I see It re-
puted that I have made in this country$ieoHX). Now, as a matter of fact, I gotone fee of $30,000 in Chicago, and in thefour months I have been here I haveearned Just tCO.000. My practice at home infour months is worth that. True, I haveseen a number of private patients in eachof the cities I visited, but, as you Americans say, In no instance have they morethan 'paid the freight. As a matter offact, it has been the physicians of thevarious cities who have profited by myvisits. They are my collogues, and I amglad they did, but you see I remained onlytwo, three, rour, or perhaps rive days.During that time I was working in thehospitals. In the clinics. The private pa-tients began to come In and they wereoperated upon by the local surgeons whohad witnessed my clinics. But I am glad1 came. The trip has been the crowningsuccess of my life. My trip here has beensuccessful ethically but not materially."
Dr. Lorenz spoke gratefully of the hos-pitality he had received at the hands ofthe Americans.
A Trust In "Tips."New York Herald. .
One clever waitress In a restaurant downtown can beat anybody I ever saw gettingtips." said a salesman. "It was only byaccident that I found out her little game,but I was curious and went there often, sonow I know how she manages it.
"The tables she served were patronizedmostly by men. As it was more of a'quick lunch place, the patrons were notvery liberal with tips. This girl was a nice,genteel sort of a person, with curly hairand baby eyes. She and another girl, astenographer, formed a little partnershipand started out with a capital of 25 cents.
"The stenographer was pretty and possessed a superior stylo and manner. Everyday she would enter the restaurant during rush hours, select a chair at one of herpartner's tables, and always endeavor tofind a place near the most prosperous look-ing man in sight. Of course, each day therewould be strange faces and another audience to play to.
"After she had finished her luncheon shewould calmly hand the waitress a quarterand the waitress would look exceedinglygrateful and happy. Nobody would veversurmise by the innocent faces of those girlsthat they were putting up a bunco game.
"Of course, it was the most natural thingIn the world for the men around to notice.and noticing, conclude not to be outdone bya woman. Consequently, the gentleman sit- -
ting next would leave a quarter at his place.and the others would all sit around feelinglike 30 cents. Some of them would partwith a dime. Just to keep up appearances.and some of them woundn't give a cent; butas a rule the little game worked.
"All the money received from this sourcewould go Into a convenient pocket and theproceeds were divided equally at the end ofthe week. Of course, the 'decoy quarterscame out of the capital and went back intothe business. It is an actual fact thatthose girls are putting money in thebank."
She Captured the Coal.New York Evening Tost.
Once in a while a great while, perhapsthe youthful housekeeper executes a coupin a domestic crisis, which puts olderand more experienced matrons to theblush. So it was with the Bronx bride oneday this week. There was mud and slush
along the block of alleged QueenAnne cottages,, but within their .cellarsthere was no coal. A mass meeting ofwives and mothers revealed sorrow and Indlgnation, but no plan for relief, no schemeby which the unfeeling coal agent could beinduced to relent In his prediction that hewould be unable to get any more coal forten days. Reports from contiguous nurseryprecincts indicated that the barometer wasfalling rapidly to croup and sore throat."
The next evening at dusk eight wearyhorses dragged four heavy loads of anthracite through the street. The bride stood onthe stoop with tear-dlmm- ed eyes andwatched them pass. The driver espied her,
"Can you tell me, mum, where it is thatthe Blanks live hereabouts? I've hauledthis coal all the way from Pier A, and thehorses are beat out. If I can't find 'embefore it sets in clean dark, I'll dump the--
sturr in the street.The bride was down the steps and at the
heads of the leading team In a second. SheInspected the eight horses gravely and mi-nutely.
"We all belong to the S. P. C. A. In thisstreet, she announced to the driver, "andIf you make these horses haul that loadany farther I'll have to have you arrested."
It Is not hard to Intimidate n tired driver,nine miles from his stable at 5:30 on a winter evening. There were no stranded coalwagons upon the street when the returningcolony of husbands arrived for dinner. Butthe cheerful warmth that greeted them wasa surprise. It was the bride who was theguest of honor at the evening theater party.
History of Playing? Cards.London Telegraph.
At the commemoration banquet of theWorshipful Company of Makers of PlayingCards the master of the company. Dr.Theophilus Hoskins, J. 1., presided. Afterthe loyal toasts had been proposed LordHalsbury gave the toast of "The Com-pany. ' The master, in responding, saidthe origin and the history of playing cardswere decidedly fascinating to the studentof the past. The date of their charter was1628, though some of the far-reachi- ng priv-ileges then conferred had been lost by thesuplneness of their ancestors. As theywere hearing a lot about education Justnow, he would recall the fact that an Eng-lishman named Jackson, in 1656, publisheda book entitled "Scholars' Scicntal Cards."by which he professed to teach not onlyreading, writing and arithmetic, but evtireligion. That cards were employed asthe handmaid of education was againshown by the publication in the same cen-tury of a work called "The Genteel House-keepers' Pastime." by which instructionwas given in the art of carving. An Amer-ican skipper, meeting with adverse galesand finding himself short-hande- d, pressedsome Irish emigrants Into his service andby labeling the ropes with the names ofplaying card the newly-mad- e sailors wereable to do the work with a facility thatwould have gladdened the heart even ofCapt. Percy Scott.
A Child's Alarming Thought.Edward Everett Hale.
"Why do they not give such presentsevery day?" asked Clar.
"Oh. child." I said, "it is only for thirty-si- xhours of the 33 days that all people re-
member that they are all brothers and sis-ters, and those are the hours that we call,therefore, Christmas eve and Christmascay."
"And when they always remember it."said Bertha, "it will be Christmas all thetime."
Mra. Wlnalnir'a Soothing Syrup.Has been used for over fifty years bv millions ofmothers for their chlMren while teething- - withperfect uccea. It roothes the chll.t, suftena the(tum. allays pain, cures wind colU. regulates
whether arlssnir from teeth ln or other causes.
Ii sure and Afk for Mr. Window's toothlnbyrup. 2i cents a bottle.
Terrible to weak luncs la th!s inclement ea- -
aon. Are you H't iwmrmw wun a coldconvuld w-lt-h a hard couk -- nnoy, with anore throat troubled with difficulty in breathing? It . "wur 111 procuncg Hate'sHoney of HorehounJ Tar. the ol and sovereignremeuy w ..-- . ovm uy n arug- -1
Pike's Tthache Drops curt In 1 miauta.
The House OppositeA MYSTE,RY
CHAPTER I.THROUGH MY NEIGHBOR'S WINDOWS.
What I am about to relate occurred buta few years ago In the summer of '99, infact." You may remember that the heatthat year was something fearful. Even oldNew Yorkers, inured to the suffering ofmany summers, were overcome by it, andeveryone who could fled from the city. Onthe particular August day when this storybegins the temperature had been even moreunbearable than usual, and approachingnight brought no perceptible relief. Afterdining with Burton (a young doctor likemyself), we spent the evening wanderingabout town trying to discover a cool spot.
At last, thoroughly exhausted by our vainsearch, I decided to turn in, hoping tosleep from sheer fatigue, but one glance atmy stuffy little bedroom discouraged me.Dragging a divan before the window of thefront room, I composed myself for thenight with what resignation I could muster.
I found, however, that the light and noisefrom the street kept me awake; so, givingup sleep as a bad Job, I decided totry my luck on the roof. Arming myselfwith a rug and a pipe, I stole softly up-
stairs. It was a beautiful starlight night.and after spreading my rug against a chimney and lighting my pipe I concluded thatthings really might be worse.
Across the street loomed the great Rose- -
mere apartment house, and I noted withsurprise that, notwithstanding the latenessOf the hour and of the season, severallights were still burning there. From twowindows directly opposite, and pn a levelwith me. lieht filtered dimly through low
ered shades, and I wondered what possible
motive people could have for shutting outthe little air there was on such a night.My neighbors must be uncommonly sus-
picious, I thought, to fear observation fromso unlikely a place as my roof; and yetthat was the only spot from which theycould by any chance be overlooked. ,
The only other light in the building shoneclear and unobstructed through the open
windows of the corresponding room twofloors higher up. I was too far below to beable to look into this room, but I caughta suggestion of sumptuous satin hangingsand could distinguish the tops of heavy giltframes and of some flowering plants andpalms.
As I sat idly looking upward at theselatter windows, my attention was suddenlyarrested by the violent movement of one ofthe lace curtains. It was rolled into a cordby some unseen person who was presuma-bly on the floor, and then dragged acrossthe window. A dark object, which I tookto be a human head, moved up and downamong the palms, one of which fell with anaudible crash. At the same moment Iheard a woman's voice raised in a cry ofterror. I leaped to my feet in great ex-
citement, but nothing further occurred.After a minute or so the curtain fell back
Into its accustomed folds, and I distinctlysaw a man moving swiftly away from thewindow, supporting on his shoulder a falr-hair- ed
woman. Soon afterward the lightsIn this room were extinguished, to be fol-
lowed almost Immediately by the Illumina-
tion of the floor above.What I had just seen and heard would
not have surprised me in a tenement, butthat such scenes could take place in a re-
spectable house like the Rosemere, In-
habited largely by fashionable people, wasIndeed startling. Who could the couplebe? And what could have happened? Hadthe man, coming home drunk, proceeded tobeat the woman, and been partially soberedby her cry; or was the woman subject tohysteria, or even insane? I rememberedthat the apartments were what are com-
monly known as double-decker- s. That isto say, each one contained two floors, con-
nected by a private staircase the livingrooms below, the bedrooms above. So Iconcluded, from seeing a light in whatwas in all probability a bedroom, that thestruggle, or whatever the commotion hadbeen, was over, and that the victim and herassailant, or perhaps the patient and hernurse, had gone quietly, and I trusted am-
icably to bed.Still ruminating over these different con-
jectures, I heard a neighboring clock strike2. I now noticed for the firet time signs oflife In the lower apartment which I firstmentioned: shadows, reflected on the blinds.moved swiftly to and fro, and, growinggigantic, vanished.
But not for long. Soon they reappeared,and the shades were at last drawn up. Ihad now an unobstructed view of the room,which proved to be a drawing room, as Ihad already surmised. It was dismantledfor the summer, and the pictures and furniture were hidden under brown holland.A man leant against the window with hUhead bowed down, in an attitude expressiveof complete exhaustion or of great grief.It was too dark for me to distinguish hisfeatures, but I noticed that he was tall anddark, with a youthful, athletic figure.
After standing there a few minutes, hoturned away. His actions now struck meas most singular. He crawled on the floor,disappeared under sofas, and finally movedeven the heavy pieces of furniture fromtheir places. However valuable the thingwhich he had evidently lost might be, yet2 a. m. teemed hardly the hour in which toundertake a search for It.
Meanwhile, my attention had been agood deal distracted from the man by observing a woman in one of the bedrooms ofthe floor immediately above, and conse- -oucntly belonging to the same suite. WhenI first caught sight of her the room wasalready ablaze with light and she wasstanding by the window gazing out intothe darkness. At last, as If overcome byher emotions, she threw up her hands Ina gesture of despair, and, kneeling downwith her elbows on the window sill, buriedher head in htr arms. Her hair was sodark that, as she knelt there against thelight, it was undistinguishable from herblack dress.
I don't know how long she stayed in thisposition, but the man below had given uphis starch and turned out the lights longbefore she moved. Finally, she rose slowlyup, a tall, black-robe- d figure, and disappcared into the back of the room. I waitedfor some time hoping to see her again, butas she remained Invisible and nothing further happened,, and the approaching dawnheld out hopes of a more bearable temptrature below. I decided to return to my divan:but the last thing I saw before descendingwas that solitary light, keeping its silentvigil in the great black building.
CHAPTER II.I AM INVOLVED IN THE CASE.
It seemed to me that I had only just gotto sleep on my divan when I was awakenedby a heavy truck lumbering by. The sunwas already nign in tne heavens, but onconsulting my watch I found that it wasonly ten minutes past 6. Annoyed at havIns: waked up so early I was just dozin:off again when my sleepy eyes saw theside door leading to the back stairs of theRosemere slowly open and a young mancome out.
Now I do not doubt that, except for whatI had seen and heard the night before, Ishould not have given the fellow a thought.
BY
ELIZABETH KENT
Copyright, 1902,by G. P. Put-
nam's Sonn
but the house opposite had now become forme a very rfotbed of mystery, and every-thing connected with it aroused my curios-ity. So I watched the young man keenly,although he appeared to be nothing but agrocer's or baker's boy going on his morn-ing rounds. But looking at him again Ithought him rather old for an errand boy,for they are seldom over eighteen, whilethe young fellow was twenty-fiv- e at thevery least. He was tall, dark and cleanshaven, although not very recently so. Hewore no collar, and had on a short blackcoat, over which was tied a not immacu- -ate white apron. On his arm hung a cov
ered basket, which, from the way he car-ried it, I Judged to be empty, or nearly so.
It may have been my' imagination infact, I am inclined to think, It was but Itcertainly seemed to me that he stole fur-tively from the house and glanced appre-hensively up and down the street, casting aook in my direction. I thought that he
started on encountering my eyes. Be thatas it may, he certainly drew his batteredhat further over his face, and, with bothhands In his pockets, and cnewlng a strawwith real or assumed carelessness, walkedrapidly up town.
I now found my position by the windowoo noisy, so sought the quiet and darkness
of my bedroom, where I fell Immediatelynto such a heavy sleep that it was some
time before I realized that the alarm bellthat had been clanging intermittentlythrough my dreams was in reality my officebell. Hurriedly throwing on a few clothesI hastened to open the door.
A negro lad stood there, literally graywith terror. His great eyes rolled alarm- -ngly in their sockets, and it was several
minutes before I could make out that some-body had been killed, and that my serviceswere required immediately.
Hastily completing my dressing, andsnatching up my instrument case I wasready to follow him in a few moments.What was my astonishment and horrorwhen he led me to the Rosemere!
For a moment my heart stood still. Mythoughts flew back to last night. So thiswas the explanation of that scream, and Ihad remained silent! Dolt, imbecile thatI was! I felt positively guilty.
The large entrance hall . through whichI hurried was crowded with excited people,and, as I flew up in the elevator, I tried toprepare myself for the sight of a fair--haired girl weltering in her blood. On thelanding at which we stopped were severalworkmen, huddled together in a small knot,with white, scared faces. One of the twodoors which now confronted me stood openand I was surprised to notice that It led,not to either of the apartments I hadwatched the night before, but to one ofthose on the farther side of the building.Yet here, evidently, was the corpse.
Passing through the small hall, filledwith rolls of paper and pots of paints, Ientered a room immediately on my right.Here several men stood together, gazingdown at some object on the floor; but at myapproach they moved aside and disclosednot a golden-haire- d woman, as I had feared,but the body of a large man stretched outIn a corner.
I was so astonished that I could not helpgiving vent to an exclamation of surprise.
"Do you know the gentleman?" inquireda man, whom I afterward discovered tobe the foreman of the workmen, with quicksuspicion.
"No, indeed," I answered, as I knelt downbeside the body.
A policeman stepped forward,"riease, sir, don't disturb the corpse; the
coroner and the gen'l'man from headquarters must see him just as he Is."
I nodded assent. One glance was suffi-
cient to show me that life had been ex-
tinct for some time. The eyes were Halfopen, staring stupidly before them. Themouth had fallen apart, disclosing even,white teeth. As he lay there on his back,with arms spread out, and his hands unclenched, his whole attitude suggested nothing so much as a drunken stupor. He ap-
peared to be twenty-fiv- e or thirty years old.No wound or mark of violence was visible.He wore a short, pointed beard, and wasdressed in a white linen shirt, a pair ofevening trousers, a black satin tie, silksocks and patent leather pumps. By hisside lay a Tuxedo coat and a low waistcoatAll his clothes were of fine texture, butsomewhat the worse for wear. On theother hand, the pearl studs in his shirtbosom were very handsome and on his goldsleeve links a crest was engraved.
As I said before, a glance had beenenough to tell me that the man was dead;but I was astonished to discover, on exam-ining him more closely, that he had beendead at least twenty-fou- r hours; mortifica-tion had already set In.
As I arose to my feet, I noticed a small,red-hair- ed man, in the most comical des-habille, regarding me with breathless anxi-ety.
"Well, Doc, what is it?""Of course, I can give no definite opinion
without making a further examination," Isaid, "but I am Inclined to believe that ourfriend succumbed to alcohol. ,m or apo-plexy; he has been dead twenty-fou- r hours,and probably somewhat longer."
"There, now," exclaimed the foreman; "Iknew he hadn't, died last night; no, norylstldy, neither."
"But it can't be, I tell you!" almostshrieked the little Irishman. "Where couldhe have come from? Oh, Lord," he walled,"to think that sich a thing should havehappened In this building! We only takethe most iligant people; yes, sir, and nowthey'll lave shure, see if they don't. It'llgive the house a bad name; and me asworked so hard to keep it genteel."
A commotion on the landing announcedthe arrival of a stout, florid Individual, whoturned out to be the coroner, and a quiet,middle-agt- d man In plain clothes, whom Iinferred, from the respect with which hewas treated, to be no other than the "gen'l'-man" from headquarters. After looking atthe corpse for some moments, the coronerturned to us and demanded:
"Who Is this man?"The little Irishman stepped forward. "We
don't none of us know, sor.""How came he here then?""The Lord only know3!""What do you mean?""Well, sor, It's this way: This apartment
Is being refixed, and five men were workinghere till 6 o'clock ylstldy evening, andwhen they left they locks the door, andit has a Yale lock; and they brought methe key and I locks it away at once; andthis morning at 7 they come while I wasstill half asleep, having slept bad on ac-
count of the heat, and I gets up and opensthe safe myself and takes out the key andgives it to this gintleman," pointing to theforeman; "and he come up here, and afew minutes afterwards I hear a great hueand cry and the workmen and elevator boycome that a body's murtheredupstairs. How the fellow got In hereSun-1es- a
the divll brought him, I can't think;and now here's the doctor that says he'sbeen dead twenty-fou- r hours!"
At my mention the coroner turned to-
ward me with a slight bow. "You are adoctor?"
"Yes, I am Dr. Charles Fortetcue, of
Madison avenue. My office Is directly op-
posite; I was summoned this morning tosee the corpse; I find that the man has beendead at least twenty-fou- r hours. I have notyet made an examination of the body, as Idid not wish to disturb It till you" with abow which included his companion "hadseen it; but I am inclined to think he diedof alcoholism or apoplexy."
"Let me make you acquainted with Mr.Merritt, Dr. Fortescue." said the coroner,waving his hand in the direction of thegentleman referred to. I was surprised tolearn that this Insignificant looking per-son was really the famous detective.
"Now, gentlemen," said Mr. Merritt, "Imust request you all to leave the roomwhile Dr. Fortescue and I take a lookaround."
As soon as we were alone, the detectiveknelt down and proceeded to examine thebody with astonishing quickness and dex-terity. Nothing escaped him; even thedarns in the socks appeared worthy of hisinterest. When he had finished he beck-
oned me to approach, and together weturned the body over. As I had discovered no sign of violence, I was about totell him that, unless the autopsy disclosedpoison, the man had certainly died fromnatural causes, when Mr. Merritt pointedto a small drop of blood at the side of hisshirt front immediately above the heart.which had escaped my observation. In themiddle of this tiny spot a puncture wasvisible.
We now partially disrobed the corpse, andI was stupefied to find that the deceasedhad indeed been assassinated, and by aninstrument no larger than a knitting needle.In the meantime the detective had beencarefully inspecting the clothing. Therewere no marks on anything except thosewith which laundries Insist on disfiguringour linen. In the waistcost pocket he found$6 in bills and 75 cents in change; also aknife, but no watch, card or letter.
Mr. Merritt now whipped out a magnify-ing glass, and searched everything anew.but if he discovered any clew he kept theknowledge to himself. After going overevery Inch of the floor and examining thewindow he peered out.
"So you live there, doctor," he remarked,with a glance opposite.
"No," I replied, "my house is furthernorth; my office faces the other set ofapartments."
Being curious to see If we were anywherenear either of the apartments I had watch-ed during the night, I, too, leaned out andlooked hastily in the direction of my roof.We were exactly on a level with it, andconsequently the adjoining suite must bethe one in which I had noticed the, dark-haire- d
woman and the man whose ill-tim- ed
hunt has puzzled me so much. Their be-
havior had certainly been very peculiar.Had they anything to do with this murder,I wondered. 1 was startled by a soft voiceat my elbow, remarking quietly: "Youseem struck by something." As I was notanxious, at least not yet, to tell him of myexperiences of the night before, I tried tosay in the most natural tone in the world:"Oh, I was only noticing that we are exact-ly on a level with my roof." "I had al-
ready observed that," he said. After aslight pause, he continued: "We must nowfind out who saw the deceased enter thebuilding, for In a place so guarded by bellboys, elevator boys and night watchmenas this Is; is seems hardly possible that hecould have come In unpercelved."
. On entering the next room wo found thecoroner deep in conversation with the fore-man. He turned abruptly to me:
"This man tells me that you uttered anexclamation of surprise on seeing thecorpse. What made you do so?"
That unlucky ejaculation! I hesitated amoment, rather at a loss to know what toreply. Every one turned toward me, andI felt myself actually blushing. "I was atfirst struck by a fancied resemblance," Iat last managed to stammer, "but on looking closer I saw I had been completelymistaken."
"Humph," grunted the coroner, and I wasaware that every one In the room eyed mewith suspicion. . "Well, he continued, stilllooking at me severely, "can you tell uswhat the man died of?" "Yes," I an-swered; "he met his death by being stabbedto the heart by a very small weapon, pos-sibly a stiletto, but a sharp knitting needle.or even a hatpin, could have caused thewound. The crime was committed whilehe was unconscious, or at lease semi-co- n
scious, . either from some drug or alcohol;or Jie may have been asleep. He ihade noresistance, and in all probability neverknew he had been hurt."
There was profound silence."It is, then, impossible that this wound
wap. self-inflicte- d," inquired the coroner."Quite impossible," I rejoined."So that he was presumably murdered
the night before last and smuggled intothis apartment some time between 6 o'clocklast evening and 7 o'clock this morning?"continued the coroner. Then, turning to thelittle red-head- ed manager, he asked:
"Now, Mr. McGorry, how is it possiblefor this corpse to have been brought here?The foreman testified that he himself lockedthe door in the presence of several workmen; you tell me that the key remained inyour safe all night. Now, please explainhow this body got here?"
"Lord-a-merc- y, sor, you don't think as Idid it!" shrieked McGorry. "Why, sor, Inever saw the man before In my life; be-sides, I have got a alibi, sor; yes, sor, a.alibi."
"Stop, Mr. McGorry; don't get excited;nobody is accusing you of anything. ButIf this place was locked up last night, howcame the body here this morning? Thelock has not been tampered with. Wasthere a duplicate key?"
"Yis, sor; but the other key was also inmy safe," replied McGorry.
"Have either of these keys ever beenmissing?"
"Shure and they haven't been out of mykeeping since the apartment was vacatedlast May, until three days ago when thepainters begun work htre. Since thenthey have had one of the keys during theday, but have always returned e
leaving.""Now, tell me," continued the coroner,
turning to the foreman, "has the key beenmissing since you had It?"
"Not that I know of; we leave It stickingin the door all day, and only take it outwhen we leave."
"So that it is possible that a person mighthave come to the door, taken the key, andkept it fcr some hours withoutyour no-ticing it?"
"it es. sir, it's possible, but it ain't likely;I haven't seen anyone pass since I've beenworking here."
"Could the corpse have been brought inhere any other way than through the frontdoor?"
"No, Mr. Coroner," a quiet voice at myside replied; "I have Just examined the fireescape and all the windows. The fastenings-hav-
not been tampered with, and the duston the fire escape shows no signs of recentdisturbance." Mr. Merritt had gone onhis search so unobtrusively that I Iad notnoticed his absence till he reappe ed, agood deal less immaculate than before.
"Is it possible to enter this building un-percelved?" the coroner resumed.
"I should have said not," replied Mc-Gorry; "but now"everything seems possi-ble." Even the coroner had to smile athis despondent tone.
"The front door is opened at 7 o'clock andclosed at 11. unless there's something spe-cial going on," McGorry continued, "and
during those hours there are always one or?two boys In the hall, and often three. After
1 the watchman opens the front door andtakes the people up in the elevaytor. Noone but meself has the key to this outsldadoor."
"Does the watchman never leave thefront hall except to take people up In thselevator?"
"Well, I don't say niver, sor, but he'snlver far off."
'Then I gather that it would be Justpossible for a person to get out of thlhouse unpercelved between 7 p. m. and 7 a.m., but Impossible, or nearly so, for him toenter?"
"Yes. that's so; that's what I think, sor."Well, what about the. back door?" I
asked."Well, the back door is opened at 6 and
closed at 10," replied McGorry."The back door is not guarded during
the day, is It?" I went1 on, forgetting thacoroner in my eagerness.
"Doctor," broke in the latter, "allow mato conduct this inquiry. Yes, McGorry,who watches over that?"
"Well, sor, at present no one; there'sa back elevaytor, but it don't run in summer, as the house is almost empty.
"Then, as I understand it, any one carenter or leave the building by the backstairs, at any time during the day, unseen,or at any rate unnoticed; but after 11o'clock they would require the assistance ofsomeone in the house to let them in?"
"That's so. sor.""Now, you are sure that tne deceased
was not a temporary lnmat? of this building; that he wasn't staying with any of thaparties who are still here?"
"Certain, sor.""And no one has the slightest clew to his
identity?""No one has seen him except thess genT--
men and Jim. He's the elevaytor boy whowent for you, Doc, and he didn't say nothing about knowing him."
The coroner paused a moment."What families have you at present In tha
building?""Well, sor, most of our people are out
of town, having houses at Newport, orLenox and thereabouts," McGorry an-swered, with a vague sweep of his hand,which seemed to include all those favored,regions which He so close together In fashionable geography. "Just now there araonly two parties in the house."
"Yes, and who are they?""Well. sor. there's Mr. C II. Stuart, who
occupies the ground floor right; and Mr.and Mrs. Atkins, who have the apartments)above this, only at the other end of thebullding." I pricked up my ears. Atkins,then, must be the name of the golden-haire- d
lady and her assailant."Have these people been here long?"
"Mr. Stuart has been with us years.He is a bachelor. Mr. and Mrs. Atkins)have only been here since May; they arc anewly married couple, I ara told." Andnot a word of the mysterious pair I hadseen In the adjoining apartment! WasMcGorry holding something back, or washe really ignorant of their presence In thabuilding?
"Are you sure, Mr. McGorry, that thcraIs no one else in the house 7" I interruptedagain.
"Yes," sor." Then a light broke over his)
face; "No. sor; you are quite right" (thadn't said anything.) "Miss Derwent hasbeen two nights here, but she's .off agalathis morning." Mr Merritt here whisperedsomething to the coroner, whereupon thalatter turned to McGorry and said: "Pleasasee that no one leaves this building till Ihave seen them. I don't .wish them to batold that a murder has been committed.unless they have heard it already, which Iwmost probable. Just Inform them thatthere has been an accident, do you hear?
"Oh, Mr. Coroner," exclaimed McGorry, ,
turning almost as red as his hair In hisexcitement; "shure and you wouldn't mixMiss Derwent up In this! Lord, she ain'tused to such scenes; she'd faint, and then,her mother would never forgive me!" ,
"Every one, Miss Derwent included, roustview the corpse," he replied, sternly.
Oh, sor, but""Silence!" thundered the coroner, "the
law must be obeyed."So the manager went reluctantly out to
give the desired order. On his return thacoroner resumed.
"Who Is Miss Derwent?""WThy, Miss May Derwent," exclaimed
McGorry; "she's Just Miss May Derwent."So it was the fashionable beauty I had beenwatching so far into the night. Strange,and stranger!
"Miss May Derwent," McGorry contin-- x
ued, taking pity on our Ignorance, "is thaonly daughter of Mrs. Mortimer Derwent,She arrived here unexpectedly on Tuesday.She had missed her train, she said, andcame here to pass the night."
"Did she come alone?""Yls, sor.""Without even a maid?""Yls, sor.""Surely, that Is an unusual thing for a
rich young lady to do?""Yls, sor." replied McGorry, apologetical-
ly; "she has never done It before Maybethe maid was taken on by the train."
"Did Miss Derwent bring any luggage?""Nothing but a hand-ba- g, sor.""And yet she stayed two nights! Do you
know any reason for her staying here solong?"
"No. sor, unless It was she had somashopping to do. A good many parcels comafor her ylstldy afternoon." t
"Have you a key to her apartment?"- - .
"Yis, sor; when families goes away forthe summer they leaves one key with moand takes the other with them."
"Did you let Miss Derwent Into her apart-ment, or did she have the key?"
"I let her in.""Did anyone wait on the young lady whilo
she was here?"What do you mean by that?" Inquired
McGorry, cautiously."Why, did anyone go Into her place to get
ber meals and tidy up, etc.?""No, sor, not that I know of.""Doesn't It strike you as peculiar that
a young lady, reared In the lap of luxuryand unaccustomed to doing the least thingfor herself should go to an apartment Inwhich dust and dirt had been accumulatingfor several months and voluntarily spendtwo nights there, without even a servant, toporforra the necessary chores for her, mindyou?"
"She went out for her meals," McGorryput in, anxiously, "and young ladies, espe-cially the rich ones, think roughing It alark."
There was a slight pause."What servants are there in the building
besides your employes, Mr. McGorry V"Mr. Stuart, he keeps a man and his wifeFrench peopJe, they are; and Mrs. At-
kins, she keeps two girls."The coroner now rose, and, followed by
Mr. Merritt, proceeded toward the roomwhere the dead man lay.
"Send up your employes, one by one,McGorry."
"Yis. sor." ,
On the threshold the detective paused amoment, and to my astonishment and de-
light requested me to accompany them.The coroner frowned, evidently consideringme a very unnecessary addition to ths .
party, but his displeasure made nodlfferencsto me; I was only too happy to be giventhis opportunity of watching the dramaunfold itself.
To Be Continued To-morro-
