Papurau Newydd Cymru

Chwiliwch 15 miliwn o erthyglau papurau newydd Cymru

Cuddio Rhestr Erthyglau

24 erthygl ar y dudalen hon

4||11&WHO Giveth jfW ! mmm…

Newyddion
Dyfynnu
Rhannu

4||11&WHO Giveth jfW mmm Woman? pP William JL e. Q v e ux I < ■ 11 — !■« IB ■ 1 CHAPTER I. Which is Purely Private. I The mystery was inexplicable. Indeed, I I think you will agree with me that the curious sircumstances combined to form the most bo- wildering and exciting enigma that has ever presented itself to the human intelligence for j solution. Although it all happened in broad daylight, in the actual throbbing heart of oar own roaring London, the public have through nearly fonr years remained in total ignorance of the startling occurrence. There are, however, two reasons for this, tha hrst being that Scotland Yard instantly teaoived upou the strictest wecreey, in order that csrtain persons of high social positiou who appeared to have some con- section with the amazing aEtair shonld not have their name^i dragged into it nnnecessarily and secondly, what was of tnoro importance to me personally, was the fact that from the very out- set, I knew myself to be a marked man. and therefore, dare not give publicity to the strange sequence of remarkable events and exciting ad- ventures. To-day, however, although after this lapse of time I am still a man marked down for secret assassination, and to avoid which I am corn- pelled to live undar an alias and to assume a sharaetar that is not my own, I have after due ■sonsideration of the great risks I run, resolved to give to the world a plaiJ1.¡ unvarnished narra- tive of what actually occurred to me as well as toothers. One pledge I have extracted from the writer who is taking down my strange chapter of per- sonal biography—for I am no literary man my- self—and it is that my assumed name and character shall be kept an absolute and in- violabie secret. The disclosures I am about. to rnaka will, I anow, cause my enemies to re- double their frantic efforts 10 close my mouth J hence I am compelled to live like the Wander- ing Jew, a life of constant change, of never- ending ttaval, of shams and ingenious subter- fages. The present writer who is taking down my confessions at my dictation, has for the past eighteen months, been actively endeavour- ing to induce me to relate my story, declaring that a full and complete version of the affair from my own lips, would come as a startling sur- prise upon many persons throughout the lengtii and breadth of the Kingdom. 1 have no doubt it will. Although my constant evasion of those who seek my life has recently taken me iuco a. nlltnber of obscure places in Ireland, Scotland, and in various towns in the South of Europe, my friend I has so constantly pressed me, that to-da*, in a room over-looking the vine-covered slopes of the purple Appenines, I have sat down to narrate to him what is peruap3 the strangest story man has ever lived to tell. For a moment I feel myself safe from those fearless enemies who have so doggedly followed poe with evil intent, for I have full confidence in tbe man whose name my strange adventures will bear upon their title-page, well knowing Lbat to neither my friends nor my enemies will he divulge the name or character which I have Wopted ID order to safeguard my life. I We have agreed that I am to tell him the plain and exact truth, while he on bis part is to write it, and publish it to the world so that Others mav read and gain both profit and warn- ing from my extraordinary experiences. And as the pen of the practised writer runs so rapidly and evenly over the paper, placing these forewords as preface to this record of mystery, I find myself gazing across to where the giant mountains loom boldly iorth against the deep '1 orange and pale rose of the autumn afterglow, recalling that weil-remombered day foar years ago-tile meat fateful in all my life—when the first ol the series ot curious adventures befel me. The afternoon in question was grey and cloudy in London, sunless as it so often is beneath the smoke-pail in the first chili days of November. Bat it was nevertheless dry, with a sharp, cut- ting east wind, rendering the cheerless side streets of the Metropolis greyer and duller than even they were wont to be. There is, perhaps, no scene more dismal than the minor thorough- fare" of smoke-gri med uniform booses, each with its few yards of blackened iron railings, ita area-gate and its six more or less hearth- stoned steps to the long row of front doors. If you know your London, you know hundreds <0f sach streets, tho one not differing one whit^rom the other, except, perhaps, in the nmr;ber of stories to the houses or the degree of di^oiQesa of the holland or Venetian blinds. Although a Londoner bred and born, the side street always depressed me-be it ra j^e West Knd or in the East—-aud the morej^Q qq giev, dry November day, or ou a Sup^jay afternoon when the only sign of movement, 115 the ateady gait and continuous beIl-iinvmR of that half- ^•^oue'u^ nuk^'wi^^A^'aays of our youth—the t ypemnSin rnan. On the afternoon in question I was not, how- ever, depressed. Far from it, for if my feelings may be judged by circumstances I suppose I really must have been highly elated. The fact waa that a great change had come to me—a change of fortune, which bad in one single hour raised me from my buwbjepoeltioD as assistant in the hoisery department of a wholesale drapery warehouse in Aldermanbury, to a man of inde- pendent means. It was half-past two o'clock. Only one hoar before .had I first learned the almost incredibly good news which meant the realisation of my dreams. I suppose I ought, in order that you shall pro- perly understand aiy position, to tell you thaS my father was noor, but of an ancient and dis- tinguished Norfolk family. In his youth he bad been in a crack regiment, but through foolishly assisting a brother officer pecuniarily he had been "tetin so badly that he had been compelled to resign his commission and torn insurance agent. This was about the time of my birth, hence being brought up in a cheap southern suburb I only received the advan- tages of a ninopence-a-week schooling, and at the age of seventeen an opening was found for me in the entering-rcom oi the wholesale house of Messrs. Uopesteak, Cook and Bradbury, in Alderm:1.nbury. Four long weary years I spent in that close gas-lit basement through which passed bales cf goods of every description to be entered, packed and despatched to drapers' shops in every corner of the world, until I became promoted to a post in the tios'ery department on the first floor, less dusty and open to the light of at least the cor- ragated glass reflectors, if not to the open day- 2 light itself. D. In common with the millions of othsraof my niellow-toilers in London, I longed foe the country, ever chafing against the gyves that held me in that driving, wearing life of the cay six days out of the seven, ever dreaming and wondering if such happiness would one day come to me. Most of the young men "iived in the house," that is to say they were herded in long catpet- less dormitories in certain sky-attics down .n alley off Queen Victoria-street,and the fare given them grudgingly, if wholesome, was the reverse of tempting or refined. By dint of great favoar with theprineipais, however, I was allowed to live out, and occupied cheap apart- ments in the Westmoreland-road, a lone, work- ing-class street built upon what once was known as Walworth Common. On the day in question, however, while I had been stacking a great pile of what we technically described as "stender women's black lisle," a well-dresael youns man uitered the daoartmant, addressed himself to the buyer, and was directed towards me. At first I took him for a customer, some retail draoer or other, but his greeting was a somewhat strange one. You are Mr liewerdine-George Hewerdine— I believe ?" he inquired. "lam," was my reply. I have called on bebaif of my firm, Messrs 'Stanley Brooks and Bateman, solicitors, of 18, Bedford How, to ask yon to accompany me to their office. Mr Brooks wishes to consult you at once. I hesitated I had no great love for solicitors, and my first impression was that perhaps a MtiaH debt of eight pounds which I owed had been put into their bands for collection. What does your principal want with me ?" I loquired. I can't leave business—yon know." Oh, but yon must," laughed the stranger. Mr Brooks has a piece of very good news lot you-il you are really the George Hewerdine we are searching for. The fact is, you i;e been left a very considerable sum of money." 1 stared at the man, wondering if he were try- ing to playa. practical joke. Come," he urged. Don't bother about yom business here any longer your business to-day ft at oar office." And so he took me off in a hansom to the din>t;j back room in Bedford-row, where, behind btsizt doors, the solicitor, a clean-shaven, smug ole gentleman of the old school, first questioned ou closely rergarding my dead parents and no place of birth, and then after a pause, said— If what you tell me is all true, Mr Hewer dine, I have to congratulate you very heartily Cur late client, your uncle, Colonel Joaepl llewerdine. of Twineham Hall, in Norfolk, ha: by his will bequeathed the whole of his estate t you, except a few small legacies to the servants "and an annuity of four hundred a year to hi confidentiaLsecretary, a Mr Thomas Norreys." Then do you mean that I shall be a ric man," I exclaimed, unable to utter any otbE words* 1 The estate brings ia, I believe, nearly te thousand annually," replied the lawyer in h hard matter-of-fact tone. And I daresay yon 1 heard that the historic old hall is a very bea; tifnl place, built by Sir Gregory Hawerdtne ) the days of Henry VIII and occupied for son time by Anne Boleyn. Have you ever VlSltj your uncle ?" he inquired, looking acrosa at me Never," was my aaawer. My late fath was not on good terms with him. He refose to give him assistance many years ago, at since that time they had never communicaK with each other." Then I suppose my late client regretted h treatment of his brother and therefore b queathed all to YOIl." Although 1 had never baen to Twineham, had nevertheless seen photographs of the 61 old Tudor mansion, which was one of the sho places of Norfolk and contained several ve notable and valuable pictures. One of the mag zines bad published an illustrated articls abo it a year before and I had cut it out and ke tt. It iP9i1i" Qf my wwta a* a geaecQus, mannered man, bat I had smiled when I recol lected that he had never .written me a line in his life, nor given me a single shilling. And now he had left me everything. I had suddenly become possessor of one of the 6 finest places in the Eastern counties. It really seemed too good to be true, and yet I sat there hearing from the dry-as-dust old lawyer's lipa the extent of my possessions, particulars of the two snug livings of which I was patron, and receiving from him some sound words of advice. If you so desire it, Mr Hewerdine." he said, we will act for yon as we have acted for the last forty years for your late uncle. I hope you will have sufficient confidence in us to entrust your interests in our hands. I see no necessity for you to return to the drapery business, for after what you have told me I feel perfectly satisfied that you are the George Hewerdine to whom the colonel, our late client, bequeathed j his estate, and the certificates are merely a matter of form. I .may, I think, now tell yon that your late nncle was well aware of your whereabouts, and had already told me where you were engaged in business. And," he added after a pause, I presume that a small advance, say a hundred pounds to meet your current i s necessities, will not be averse to you ?" E A hundred pounds. It was a greater sum I than I had hitherto possessed in all my life. I } gave him full authority to deal with my legal affairs and watched him sign the cheque which his clerk drew. Then I gave him a receipt, I 1 placed the cheque carefully in my pocket, and 1 left that dingy office a rich man. CHAPTER II. I t Describes What Occurred During a 1 v Shewer of Rain. E Along Bedford Row I walked like a. man in a 1 dream. I seemed to tread on air, for in my s pocket was a cheque for a. level hundred pounds v — more than my whole vear'b salary in the s drapery business—and I was, moreover, the J actual and undisputed possessor ol the comfort- ( able income of ten thousand a year. t Even then, ont in the grey cloudy afternoon j e it seemed unreal. I resolved to go down to t Twinekam, and see the place for myself,hear the t account of my uncle's death, and interview those v trusted servants of his to whom he had left x legacies. How I regretted that my poor father and my dear mother were not still alive to enjoy t with me the sweet fruits of affluence. And to i tell you the secret truth—for I have resolved t to make a clean breast of everything--1 bad at £ that moment on9 other and even gre&ter regret, r na,mely that a certain girl, whose cbarm and r beauty were, to me, alas, but a memory, had t been compelled by her parents to marry a young I stockbroker of Sydenham Hill in preference to < myself on account of my humble position and d consequent inability to support a wite. t Where was Lncie Cresswell, my own Lucie, E that pretty, dark-eyed, half-French girl, the j a daughter of a retired tradesman who had married 1 f a Parisian wife ? As I walked tbroagh those t grey, solemn streets of Bioomsbury, heedless at b the mJlDent of where my wandering footsteps c carried me, my thoughts were wholly of my v sweet lest love. I was recalling the past. b How well I recollected those long evening walks in Dulwich, Sydenham, and Hearne Hill—any- 1 j where, indeed, where there was left a scrap of | v rustic quiet in that great suburban Sahara of bricks and mortar. How distinctly I remembereju • 1 her fond love for me, her soft sweet kisses and > her words of tender love and affection. Some of those words had rung in my ears ever since- a through three long years of toil any regret. But she had married—against her ^til, I knew —and save for the fact that she lived with hei hnsband, j a conceited, over-dressed, you.ng cub, somewhere j in the riparian neighbourhood of Kingston-on- Thames, I knew no more of her. She had passed j q completely beyond my ken, and bad, in all pro- I bability, forgotten rre, i Ii She started back pala as death, open monthad, with a look of terror on her blanched countenance, The sweets of life always come to a man when it is too late for him to enjoy them. Success is ever mingled with regret,and fame with domestic misfortune. I found myself wealthy, and yet I the loss of my love prevented me from being wholly happy. My poverty had fallen as a bar between os, and yet the irony of fa.te had so I willed it that I should now be even richer than the overbearing, silk-hatted young cad to whom her parents had bartered her. Ah, I have heard it said that in these days romance is dead, yet I can aver that even in the bustling streets of the city hearts throb with jastas tender thoughts of the fair ones as in the good old days" of. wigs and natches. The city is to-day just as full of love, of fierce affections, and of keen dis- appointments as is the country," even though the former seeks a livelihood instead of foxes, and spends a fortnight at Margate instead of going north of Carlisle for the shooting. Yes, on that day when I received the unex- pected news of mv affluence I should have been perfectly happy bad it not been that I had lost for ever the pretty woman who had been so very dear to nae. When I remembered how often we had wandered through the grounds of the Crystal Palace and those artificially rural lanes around Sydenham and Dulwich hand in hand, child- ishly happy in each other's love, hot tears sprang to my eyes. I had lest her, therefore, after all, what mattered it to me if I were poor or wealthy. t Like, every other man in needy circumstances, I had longed for riches, but now that they had come to me I lound myself seized with a fresh ¡ desire, and therefore discontented. In this reflective mood I was wandering throngh I Bloomsbury on that grey November afternoon when, almost without warning, a sudden shower barst upon me. Having neither overcoat nor umbrella the downpoar recalled ma to a sensa of my surroundings, and I was compelled to rush for shelter into the nearest doorway. Where I was I did not exactly know. I had wandered on undecided how to act, whether to I return to Aidermanbury, inform my principles of my good fortune and take my honourable dis- charge, or whether, instead of appearing before ) them, I should simply refrain from returning, and thus be strcck off their roll of employes. .y ea. The bouse into the doorway of which I rushed was, I noticed, a good-sized, respectable-looking one, with a flight of well-cleaned steps leading to the front door, and a deep basement wherein sat a black cat in tranquil contemplation against the cellar door. The front was painted dark red,like many of the other houses in the vicinity, and almost opposite, a short distance to the left, I saw an angle of a high, black. gloomy-looking building behind iron rsilings. which I knew to be the British Museum. Than, aa I stood on the top of the steps, close to the door, I looked up and down, and presently realised that I must have unconsciously crossed r Red Lion Square, passed along Hart Street, and | was now in Montague-street, pro seeding towards Russell-square. 3 The rain came pelting down so fa?t that I had not time to seek aiiy other shelter save the shallow doorway of the house in question, and all I stood drawn back out of the wet I noticed that from the two dining-room windows pro- 1 jected old-fashioned glass-cases in which ferns 3 had once been grown, but which were no devoid 0 of greenery. There were no passers by, for all 1, I had, like myself, sought shelter where they 3 could. Yet passing and re-p&ssing was an in- cessant procession of cabs, for if you know h Bloomsburv you know that the thoroughfare in -r t question is part of the main artery of traffic from the Euston-road to Oxford-street, and n from the northern termini of London to the is stations of the southern railway. 'o I was standing patiently watching the torrent- n- ial downpour, which drqve in even to where I in stood when of a sadden there came lull in the 10 procession of cabs, and during that moment's 3d quiet a very strange thing happened. My eat a caught the sonna of quick hurried er footsteps approaching down the tiled hall to- ja wards the door outside which I was standing, id and then, ;u3t as I expected the person to open 3d it and come forth, 1 heard a sharp scuffle and the sound of a mpn's heavy breathing. Next iia instant a woman's shrill terrified cry broke the e- silence within. Ah no. No. spare him. Sapre him, for my I sake," I heard a female voice implore. But ue next fnatant it was followed by a blow, and a w- loud despairing cry rent the air-the cry of a ry woman horrified. I held my breath, wondering ;a- what was taking place. ut You—you infernal scroundiel—you shall p»3 ft for this," gasped a man in a hoarse, weak voice. I v. I tEWtea lhw; friend. She- that accursed woman—she has be- trayed me." ■ An instant later I heard the sound of heavy blows repeatej. The man who had spoken cried iloud for mercy, but his voice was broken, and af a sudden dead silence fell. Neither the man j aor the woman spoke again.. £ 11 was still. J My curiosity was now thoroughly arroused. It J bad all happened with startling suddeness. Something tragic had evidently occurred, but what it was I had no means of ascertaining. The ioor was a heavy double one. painted red, with [ orasa handles. 1 found the keyhole, but it was 1 patent latch, and the bole did not pierce the woodwork. Above the door was a fanlight :overed with old-fashioned scroll ironwork filled i with stained glass, and bearing ir white glass i etters the number 60a. I listened, my eager ears open tto catch every sound, bnt I could detect nothing, In expecta. .ion I stood waiting for somebody to emerge md make aocretenit, for if some drama of love )r hatred had really been enacted here, its principals would surely leave the house as soon is Dossible The unknown woman's agonised cry rang in my ears. Somehow, try how I would, I could not shut it out. The voice was that of a person, 1 poiing and educated, and I fancied that there I < iad been a slight foreign accent in it, but of < ;hat I could not be absolutely certain. I bad I seen too excited to take much notice of the in- j lexion of the voice. Hers was an exclamation )f pain and terror mingled. That she had tried 0 save the man was evident, and I entertained t deep conviction that she. too, had been dealt < 1 heavy blow which had silenced her. < The man who bad cried for mercy had been, mdeavouring to escape from the bouse without I t doubt. The hurried footsteps- had advanced I ;oward3 me—the quick, light tread of a man itriving to make good his exit in sccret wheD 1 t pursurer bad overtaken hi us. 1 L pnrgurer bad overtaken hiUJ. I A. woman bad betrayed him. He had rigorously denounced her—whoever she might 3e? I held my breath, waiting and wondering 1 shat might be the next development of the I nysterions afiair. For fully five minutes I re- named motionless, my ear pressed against the leavy door Should I touch the electric bell, or t ihould I call the first constable I met and ex- I plain what I bad overheard. So rapidly had it < ill happened, and so silent was the house of i nystery, that I found myself doubting whether, tfter all, it was net a mere chimera of my magination that some unusual sound within f lad become magnified into the evidence of a lavage assault. But no. Those wlid, terrified I words of the woman had been too clear and E ihrill. I heard them with my own ears, and 1 lad listened also to the man's denunciation of a < )ase betrayal. Something had happened, some- E ibing that was a mystery. The beavy door that i itood between myself and the truth was so s antalising that for some moments I stood itterly dumbfounded. I thought I caught E vords like the prattling of a child, but of that I J J vas not quite certain. t About the exterior of the house there was no- hing unusual as far as I could discern, save that t seemed, I thought, just a trifle more dingy j ) han the othres. The neighboniing houses had. >een freshly painted and the fronts re-pointeri iresumably to attract those in search of anp'Tt- I nents—for Montague-street is essentially a i horoughfare of lodging-honsee and private lotels. The glass window-boxes, I noticed, con- fined old fronds of ferns, brown and withered- E lead from neglect and want of water-while in be area below, where the cat had looked up at E as, were pieces of waste paper, wisps of straw < .nd an old shoe which gave mute evidence that or ooma weeks it had not been swept. The door, i 00, tore < mark near the letter-box of where a i irass plate had recently been removed. Very E autiously I opened the letter slit and peeied I ritbin. But aias, it was one of those with a tin E tox behind, therefore 1 conld see nothing. 1 ] Juat, however, as I held the brass flap open I 1 bought I beard a noise, and, being compelled to I I '?ait until a rumbling four-wheeler had paseed, ny ears distinguished most distinctly a move- nent within, the slight rustling of silk, aa though 1 6 woman were moving steathiiy. Next instant I heard a low groan, followed by 1, long deep-drawn sigh, but whether of a man or b woman I knew not. Only the tin box within leparated my eye and ear trom the liail wherin here had been such a curious happening, and ta I listened 1 heard some earnest whispering is well as a low tinkling, of what I know not. j Che tinkling as of a tiny bell was continuous I ] md even musical, but the words uttered were I 10 low that at first I could catch none of them. 1 It seemed as though two persons were discuss- ing something in secret, tud the only sentences I managed to catch were, Ah no. That would be unsafe—very unsafe. We must look to ourselves. His lips are closed, therefore the rest rewains entirely with us." v -1 And of bet ? She may tell the irutb. What do you intend doing ?" enquired the other in a. hushed voice. The reply was given in a tone so low that I Ic ould not hear it. I gathered, however, by the other'3 exclamation of wingled surprise and horror that the intention was a profoundly evil one. I now realised that my duty was to inform someone of the mysterious occurence within that house, for I had heard quite sufficient to convince me that something was very palpably wrong. And yet after all mysteries do not usually take place in London in broad daylight. The dramas of the Metropolis are mostly enacted in the night-time, when the perpetrators can slink away and escape under cover of darkness. On the face of it it seemed ridiculous to sup- pose that in tha.t highly-respectable loooking house in that respectable open thoroughfare and in the broad light of afternnon, anything very extraordinary could have happened. Yet 1 was fully convinced that I was on the verge of some rem.wkable and startling discovery, so carefully allowing the lettei-slit to close upon its spring I turned with the object of descending the steps and seeking the aid of the first constable I met. I I dashed across to the police man, wqo eyej me suspiciously. I As I turned, I became at that instant conscious I of two thing s first that the rain bad ceased as I suddenly as it had falJen, and, secondly, that .p atanding on the kerb at the opposite side of the way, a short distance up tho street, was a D wizened, decrepit, white-haired old man some- what shabbily dressed, wearing a silk bat that was faded and brown and a. short grey overcoat. I1 He held in his hand an old black kid glove, and my attention would not, I think, have been at- tracted by him were it not that iust as I turned and my eyes fell upon him I dected him in the act of making some frantic signs behind my back, apparently fn order to attract the atten- tion of someone in the house in question. ( This arroused my suspicion inatatnly. The in- > significant, hook-nosed, little old fellow was; in b some way or other, in association with the pei- eons within, and was evidently try ing to give warning to them of my presence. He was acting 7 sentinel outside the house. Wheu, however, he j saw me tarn to wards him, he dropped his hand Plko".iy g J ..r, cerned, and believing no doubt that I bad not I' discovered him. But at the same moment a still further mys- terious circumstance occurred, for there sud- denly appeared in the window of the dining-room the figure of a tall young woman, elegantly dresaed in an evening-gown of pale turquoise blue crepe de chine trimmed with lace and shim- mering silver sequins. The bodice was cut low, dsplaying chest and arms white as alabaster" while around her throat was a curious, heavy, antique ornament-a. collar of old sapphires ajid diatuonds-an unusual costume surely for half-■( past two in thm afternoon. I Her head was turned from me, for she seemed to be regarding the old man intently and yet surreptitiously. Her hand rested upon the win- dow sill, while her head and shoulders were lean- ing forward into the glass case of withered ferns, in order, it appeared, to obtain an uninterrupted j view up and down the street. Her soft, well-'j dressed hair was dark chestnut, I noticed, while the poise of her head was that of youth and j grace. She seemed to be eagerly watching the old man j in'the faded silk hat, while he, on his part, wa? J unable to make further sign to-her on account of my gaze being fixed upon him. His assumed in- ? difference evidently aroused her surprise, for in order to ascertain itsTreason she turned her bead, and then her eyes met mine not two yards a way from her. She started back pale as death, open-mouthed, with an indescribable look of terror upon her i blanched countenance-a countenance that I If cogniaed was one of the most regular and beauty fal that I had ever in my life gazed upon. She was not more than twenty-two. but that startled look of surprise and apprehension at that moment made her look at least forty. She was white to the very lips, for she instantly realised that I bad been 'standing there, and that J bad been listening ta everything. # My eyes were riveted upon the window, for I i hoped to obtain a second glance at her. But she 1 had apparently taken in the peril of her situa. tion at a glance, and had rushed from the room. Her great beauty held me rigid in wonder. ) Who was she ? Why did she wear a handsome [ evening gown in broad daylight ? Was it she who j bad sought mercy for the man who had tried to j bad sought mercy for the man who had tried to escape his enemies—or was she tha actual woman 1 who had been denounced by him a3 his betrayer? | Never in all my life had I seen such a wild, | ghastly look of terror and despair in anyone's j eyes as in hers when she had suddenly realised my presence never had I seen a woman whose face was so perfect in sweetness and in form, nor so inexpressibly beautiful as hers. For a. moment, although I was not impressionable where women were concerned, sight of it held me utterly stupefied. Those wonderfnl dark eyes fascinated me. In that instant I ¡:ell beneath their mystic spell. But assuredly that stealthy glance into the street, that expression of terror at discovery was plain evidence of a guilty conscience. That silent house wIn its red door held a grim secret—ona wbich I now determined to fathom. "Ind I but known the strange things bidden babind that closed door, and the fateful future which my curiosity was destined to bring upon me, perhaps I would have sought to curb my natural inquisitiveness, and have left the house with the secret in my heart. Bnt in ignorance of the magnitude of tha action I was taking, I sprang quickly down the steps and dashed along to Russell-square, where a constable stood by the red-painted pillar-box at the corner, eyeing me suspiciously as I rushed towards him. And the unconsidered step I took at that moment,-tha duty that I surely owed to my fellow-men-rwas responsible for all the strange- series of circumstances which afterwards hap- pened to me--a, mystery that win, I too) assured, surprise, anMLM and bewilder you, just as it did myself. Bear with me, and I will relate to you every- thing. (To be Continued.)

WALES AND REDISTRIBUTION,

GIRLS LEAP FROM A TRAIN.

"'EAVE 'ARF A BRICK AT'IM."*'

IFORGING POSTAL ORDERS.

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d OCTOGENARIAN'S FATAL FALL,…

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HUNAN.

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ANNGHYMEDROLDEB.

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CARDIFF RAILWAYMEN.

WALKED OFF THE WAVERLEY. '

BELATED CARDIFF CYCLISTS.

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COLLIERY ACCIDENTS.,

PATHETIC SURGERY SCENE AT.…

FRENCHMAN'S FATAL S