The Scales of Justice

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXX, Issue 8538, 19 September 1907, Page 2

The Scales of Justice

CHAPTER XXXllL—Continued. "Now you are to collect yourself," he said." "If there is any danger that is ali the more reason why you are to try to restrain your feelings. What is it, little one?" "It's all right now, Gilbert," the girl said in quite another voice. "I got frightened and lost my head. A little thing seems to upset me still. I shall never be myself until all this trouble is chased away and I can have you by my side always. As soon as I see the man, everything becomes misty and confused. Directly I feel your arms about me I am different." The girl lay there quietly for a minute or f.vo, and Gilbert deemed it prudent to be silent. When, at length, Winifred looked up, her face was flushed again, and her eyes clear as the reflection of stars in a silent pool. Her lips had ceased to tremble. "A man came to the cottage," she said. "He had come on some errand. He made an excuse that struck me as suspicious. He looked so like a policeman in his best clothes that I divined by instinct that he had come after you. I said that I was a visitor, and knew nothing, and so he went away again. And he turned into the wood instead of keeping, to the* path. Do you suppose that Bernard Beard saw anything last night?" Gilbert declared stoutly that Beard could have done nothing of the kind He decided to say. nothing about the tweed cap and the open volume of Tennyson to which Marston had made allusion. All the same, he knew he bad been detected. "Your nerves are playing you sad tricks," Gilbert smiled. "But I will find a new hiding-place, if it makes you easier in your mind." "Oh, do, do!" Winifred cried eagerly. "I could not bear the idea of your being taken back to that horrid place, to be treated like a dog, and you innocent all the time. I should dream of you all night. I have a feeling that your freedom is at hand. Events have marched so fast since your were free—slowly so long as you* were in that place. Gilbert, for my sake, you will not stay at the cottage any longer." Gilbert kissed.the pretty, pleading lips; he would have promised anything to take the pitiful expression out of that dear face. "All right, darling," he said. "I'll go back to Marston and take his advice. You return to the cottage." CHAPTER XXXIV'.,*■ *'"' THE JEWEL CASE. Gilbert walked slowly back to Marston, hoping that Winifred was suffering from nothing worse than a bad attack of "nerves." At the same time, her description of the visitor savoured strongly of a warder in plain clothes. And why had they not taken the proper path back to the road again? The visit to the cottage might only have been a kind of routine inspection of the district, but, on the other hand, it was more than possible that Beard's suspicions had been aroused, and he had dropped a line to the authorities, suggesting a visit to Anna's cottage. When Gilbert reached Marston's cottage, he found the Virginians still there. If they had come on a hostile errand, there was no evidence to show it now, for the three men were smoking cigarettes amicably. tA litter of papers covered the table. "Not quite sure that you can trust me, eh?" David Delamere asked. "It is not so much that as to whether or not I can trust myself," Gilbert explained. "It appears that a suspicious visitor -has heen at the cottage in my absence. Winifred met me on the edge of the wood in a great state of mind. She declares that the man was a disguised policeman. So I came back here with the idea of changing my hiding-place." "I should not be in the least sur prised to find that the young lady's deductions were correct," said Marston, smoking thoughtfully. "Dcn't that Beard was at the cottage last night; don't forget that he must have seen the open volume of Tennyson and the tweed cap. Relatives anc friends of old Anna's do not reac Tennyson. And if Beard had seer anything his quick mind would have come to a logical conclusion. Or the whole, 1 should advise you to change your quarters." The two Virginians were of the same opinion. It was David whe spoke as usual. "You must not go back there," he said. "There may be other suspicious visitors in the course of the day, But there is one thing you have forgotten that may lead to trouble for the owner of the cottage." "What is that?" asked Gilbert. "I am sure that old Anna " "Will be prepared to do anything for you and perjure herself on youi behalf. And that is just the waj that the old lady will get herselj into trouble. If those people come with a search warrant, they will find your flothes and belongings there and w..! know you have beer, hiding in the district all the time. How can old Aiu.a account for those things being there?" "I had never thought of that," Gilbert said blankly. "Why that would be almost as base as if 1 had left a message at the cottage saying that I had been there. What is to be done?" "Quite simple," Delamere went on. "I'll go and collect everything and hide them." "And perhaps be watched by some warder hanging about the road," Marston exclaimed. "Your being a stranger will alone be suspicious. Whereas, if one of the ladies goes down, she will be merely regarded as a visitor anxious as to the welfare of Mka Cawdor. You may be sure the

By PREB I. WHITE,

[Published By Special Arrangement.] [All Eights Reserved.]

authorities know all about the missing young lady, and that she is located at old Anna's cottage. Now suppose I get my little Jessie to run up" to the Moat House and ask Miss Cameron to come here at once? She would do it." The suggestion was far better than the crude idea mooted by David Delamere. Jessie came in prestntly in response to her father's call. Her eyes sparkled with delight when she heard where she was to go. "And you are to see Miss Cameron yourself," Marston said. "If you don't find her in, find out where she has gone. You are not to give the message to anybody else. And see how quickly you will be back again." ~ "Am I to say that it is very important"? Jessie asked. "Well, you can say that if you like. But get along, now, and be back as soon as possible." In a little over half-an-hour Flora reached the cottage. She was heated and flushed, but her face became a deeper pink as she saw the Virgin- ■ ians seated there. She wa? not quite sure whether these were friends or foes. In his quick, yet grave, way, David Delamere seemed to read the thought on Flora's face. "You can speak quite plainly before us," he said. "In this business we are emphatically on the side of the angels. We came this long journey with other ideas and intentions, but we have decided to do nothing so far as our interests are concerned, until a cruel injustice is righted, After that, we shall have our method of dealing with Bernard Beard. For the present, we are far more concerned with the safety of Mr Gilbert Doyle." "So you know all about him?" Flora exclaimed, her face lighting up. "Is that so, Mr Marston?" "That is so," Marston said grimly. "In fact, these gentlemen know everything." "Then I gather that Mr Doyle is in some danger?" Flora asked. "He is. The suspicions of the authorities have been aroused. Somebody has dropped a hint. Anyway a disguised warder called there just now, arid Miss Cardow came down to the door to meet Mr Doyle. Fortunately, he had come here to show these gentlemen the way. I expect that Bernard Beard is at the bottom of it." ' "But that is impossible!" Flora cried. "Not that'he didn't know. I am sure he suspected. But he was called away last night by pressing business to London. I had an uneasy idea that he knew something and looked on his writing-table where he leaves his letters for the servants to post. Sure enough, there was one letter addressed to the governor of Greystone Prison. I did nDt think it right to open the letter, but have concealed it in the blotting-pad, so that it would look as if it had been pushed aside carelessly. I hate this sort of thing, but it seemed necessary." I "We are often led to choose strange weapons," Delamere remarked. "But there is no time for discussion. I suggested going down to the cottage, and making away with all Mr Doyle's belongings, so that old Anna would not get into any trouble. But Marston says my presence, being a stranger, would be still more suspicious. He thinks that if you were to go—quite naturally—that you " "That I could do the thing much better," Flora exclaimed. "So I could. We must move carefully now or all our delicately-laid plans may fail. We will hide nothing. I will go to the cottage at once and burn everything." The happy idea was applauded. Flora stayed for one more moment, and then hurried off to Anna's cottag". She found Winifred thereonce more a prey to the deepest agi' tation and distress. Nobody else had visited the cottage, and old Anna had not yet come back from the village, but all that mattered nothing. Was Gilbert safe? Were those people likely to take him again? "They are not in the least likely to do anything of the kind, you poor, dear girl'" Flora said, kissing her tenderly. "Gilbert is quite safe, and sends you his love. And now let us make a collection of his things and destroy them. You understand why?" "Of course 1 do," Winifred said, smiling again. Directly she had something to occupy her mind she grew better. "It is that those people shall find nothing. We will make up a fire in that big open grate, and destroy all there is." The collection was soon made. It looked very insignificant to the huge wood fire. There were no clothes to destroy, as Gilbert only had the suit that George Drummond had lent him. In a few minutes everything was reduced to ashes. (To be continued.) Don't Wait Till To-morrow It's the little colds that grow into big coklr; the big colds that end in consumpand death. Don't wait till to-moirow co cure the little colds, for oue duse cf Dr. i Shehtoa's New Disoovery for Gouu'hs, Colds and Consumption will break up a cold if tiken at the beginning. Dr. Sheldon's New Discovery is a safe and neverfailing remedy. Price lis 6d and 3s. Obtainable at H. E. Eton's Chemist.