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-. 5w‘mn Luv. :- - . ...I._._ hospitable manner; " anything new verdict of “ Wilful murder against arsan‘t, though he had made a ton-tum ( }' 1 ,- about the affair ?" person unknown." The evidence Was [by shrewd speculation, also ave we 3' THE MYSTERIOUS CRIME "No,1 don't think so," replied Ron- taken down so as to behanded to the to the dread of death. He fonceived :‘1 ON THE 3.3. ald sadly, ‘fper ventinl To think m authorities in Gibraltar, entries were the idea that all movement and ef- was so jolly last night and now dead," made in the logâ€"book about the afâ€" fort wasted the tissues of the body, CHAPTER IV.___Comti‘mmd. another pain. of eyes which did not “no you think thipcmon who km- fair, and poor Lionel’s body was com- and this notion sunk so deeply into , . V t the idea and regard mm in such a friendly mam ed him 1,5 on bawdy asked Pat, eon- mutted to the decp. . . his mind that he went to bed in a The captain jumped 21 - . . new, and drew hhmu uphaughtuy as fldentmuy, There is something Inexpressubly quiet counflry house, and hardly mov- Was 80mg down to carry. 1t Into effwt he left Mm. Peuypop’ and went down “ No, I don’t," retorted 110mm, (1e- sorrowful and column in a burial at ed hand or foot for years, if he even when Ronald Stopped hlm- . 1‘ . to the salmon. ’ - cisively; “I belieVe she’s to be found sea. The body, wrapped in a sail, stirred a finger he 'did it with dread, “I say,” m-askgd eagelrly , who if “ What the deuce did that fumign at Malta, and I’ll hunt her down and with iron shot at its feet, Woe placed believing it used up his vitality and that Natty girl With the dark hfurg cad mean by staring at me like that,» punish her somehow." on the lower deck near the open buil- shortened his life by so much time, Z '3. " Oh: that," 331% Templewn w‘th‘ a he muttered, quite mtgettmg that the ‘t' Why 3” works, and was covered with the Unâ€" He spoke as little as possible. some- t laugh. I'm the OibJefit Of Your 5‘15910' cad in question had a title, and was “Because I liked Vellumâ€"he had 3 ion Jack. A number of the passen- times not opening his lips for days, ’ ionsâ€"Miss Cottonw- hf higher rank than himself; “I dorm: miserable life, and a miserable end, gors Were presont, loaning from the and was fed by“ attendants with V .‘\.,"..‘~.-“‘~, u-..â€"~«-,,~.‘.. ~ “Aimâ€"A...» -.,,~_.~-A.’~.,\,m .,- â€" W.M.N~w,n .4,- if, i € Captain Templeton turned away, and Ro‘hald discovered the young lady in question was the very one he had seen on the 'Barraca, and of whose face he had been dreaming ever since. She, guilty of a urine? The thought was madness; if anyone even hinted- at such a thing h-e’d throw him over the side, and he no longer was aston- ished at the captain’s indignation at his suggestion. The fact was, Master Ronald was in the first stage of that universal disease called love. He apâ€" - preached Mrs. Pellypcp as she sat knitting industriously, and took a Beat beside her; of ocurse she com- ‘menced on the great subject of the day, and expressed her opinion that it was a “ lascar." “ ,But what motive ?” asked Ronald, absently ; “ couldn‘t be robberyâ€"noth- ing was stolen.” “Then it must have been a stew- wrd," said Mrs. Pellypop, determined- ly. "Mr. Ventin looked like a man, with a temper, and very likely struck a steward, who retaliated by killing h1im,â€"â€"olh, it’s as clear as day to me." “ lB-u-t where did he got his weapon 3’ asked Ronald. "Stole it from the plate basket,” said Mrs. Pellypop, whose idea of stil- ettos was vague. “Cit was not a table knife 2” began Ronald, then broke off suddenly as he saw Miss Cotoner move away with a toll, slender, dark man. “ I say, Mrs. Pellypcp, who’s that 2” " Whom 2” asked Mrs. Pellypcp, put- ting up her glasses. “Oh, the girl from Malta 3” ' " No, not Miss Cotonerr, I know who she is; but the fellow?” “ Oh, her cousin, the Marchese Vasâ€" mlla," answered Mrs. Pellypop; “not that I care much for foreign titles myself, but he looks a gentleman.” And, as a matter of fact, he was by no means ill-looking, but when Ronald saw him he instantly took a dislike to him. Why, he did not know, unless it was on the Dr. Fell principle; it might have been instinct, perhaps prejudice; but the fact remained nev- erthelessâ€"he did like Matteo Vassal- suppose he has anything to do with her; perhaps they are engagedâ€"hang it, it’s impossible, she’d never throw herelf away on a thing like that. I’ll ask old mother Pellypop toâ€"morrcw, she’ll be sure to know all about her in that time." " “ Having thus in his own mind, satis- factorily settled the affair, Ronald went down to his cabin to dress for dinner. Meanwhile Miss Cotoner and her cousin were having a few words on ,the subject of Mir. Monteith. " What a handsome man,’. said Miss Cotoner, following the tall figure of the Australian with her eyes. ‘ 'Bah! a beef-eating Englishman,” retorted Vassalla, with an angry light in his wicked black eyes, “ he has no brain.” “ You’ve to find that out yet,” ire- tcrted the young lady, who seemed to take delight in tormenting her com- panion. “I think he's charming. I’m sure he looks it; I saw him yesterday on the Barraca.” “Remember you are engaged to me,” replied the Marchese, angrily. “(By my parents, yes,” she replied, coldly; “but not with my own con- sent.” “ Consent, bahl let wiser heads guide yours, Carmela.” “Well, I certainly would not ask your head toita’ke the position,” re- plied Oarmela, contemptuously. “Why do you annoy me like this; do you think I left my sister only to be wor- ried by you? No, I ‘_ don’t think so. there is too much of the frying-pan into the fire theory is that for me.” “ I will get your sister to take you back,” he said vindictively. “Oh, no you won’t," she retorted, turning on him ; f' I’m of ageâ€"my own mistress, and I have elected to go and stop with my cousins in England. If I chooe to marry an Englishman I certainly will, in spite of your threats; so goodâ€"bye Matteo, I’m go- ing to dress for dinner,” and she walked gracefully away, leaving the Marchese in a delightful temper. and a wicked woman like that wife oil his is not fit to live.” “ Stop a bit, old boy,” observed Pat, coolly, " you haven’t brought the crime home to her yet.” “But I will,” reiterated Monteith, doggedly; “I’m sure it’s she, and if it isn’t I’ll make it my business in life to find out who is the criminal.” "I say, Monteith,” said Bentley, a vacuums-looking youth with no brains and lots of money, “Ventin’s place was nexzt to you at tableâ€".who are they going to put there i” “I don’t know and I don’t care,” growled Ronald, savagely turning away, cursing Mr. Bentley under his bar-oath for his callous way of speakâ€" ing. ' l " Seems cut up.” Iisped Bentley, put- ting up his eyeglass, in nowise dis- t'urbed. “ Well, it’s no joke having a fellow you like murdered,” said Pat, finish- ing his sherry; "and Ventin, was a good sort, anyhow.” Then they all commenced talking again about the mystery till Pat grew weary of the discussion, and went on deck, where he found Ronald leaning over the side looking moodily at the water. “ Well, old chop,” said Pat, slapping him on the shoulder, “don’t take it so much to heart.” “It wasn’t that,” replied Monteith; “II was thinking how we could find out his real name.” " Why, wasn’t it Ventin i” “ He said it wasn’t.” " Search his baggage." “ That’s been done, but without re- sultâ€"all his linen is marked L.V., all his letters directed to Lionel Ventin, in fact, it’s the only name that can be found." " Then it must. be his real name,” asserted Pat. “Not necessarily; be told me he changed his name, so he evidently did- it thoroughly.” " Any crest that might give a. clue l” “ No, nothing." ", h! it seems a deuce of a muddle. upper deck but; many of the ladies, among whom was Mrs. Pellypop, were reading the service for the dead to themselves in the saloon. The captain, surrounded by his officers, road the service over the deceased. and at a signal the body was pushed over the side, slipping from under the 'Union Jack, and fell with a'dull splash into the sea. . Then everyone dispersed, the engines, which had been slowed down during the burial, resumed their usual speed, and life on board went on as usual. There was a gloom, howâ€" ever, over all the ship, for it was not an ordinary death, and it was not un- til the “ Neptune ” reached Gibraltar, that the passengers began to recover their usual gaiety. Meanwhile Ronald Monteith had beâ€" come the slave of Carmela. Cotoncr. and, judging from her gracious man- ner towards him, she was in no wise displeased at having him at her feet. Ronald had hitherto laughed at the tender passion, but now he was being paid back for insulting the god of Love as he found out to his cost. He was always at Carmelo’s e1bow,â€"car- rind her rugs and pillows about for her, danced with her, read poetry to her, and, in fact, was so constant in his attentions, that it was soon pat- ent to the whole ship that Monteith was madly in love with the girl from Malta. And, indeed, she was called nothing else. Mrs. Pellypop, not knowing her name at first, had given her that ti~ tle, and everyone else followed suit. She was the bells of the ship, vice Kate Lester resigned, and was always followed by an adoring crowd of young men, of whom Ronald grew unspeak- ably jealous, and would get quite sulky if she smiled or spoke to any- one else. He carried this absurdobe- havior to such an extent that Pat Ryan took him to task one day for his sins. ’ To Be Continued. _¢â€"â€" DODGING DEATH spoons. -All his food consisted of "slope" to save him the fatal exer- tion of chewing, and his one amuse- ment was being read to by the hour together, for he would not hold a book or turn the pages. Even the reading he did away with toward the close of his life, believing that listening.- short- ened his existence. ONE OF THE QUEEREST CASES was that of a Mrs. Holmels, a very. wealthy widow, who had a terrible fear 0]): germs and bacilli of all kinds. She had studied the subject deeply, and it aflfected her reason, to all ap- pearance. The dread of death seized her, and she was convinced she would die by some ,wasting disease inspired by imicrobes; Knowing that cold is fatal to the average germ, she had ‘ two rooms adjoining each other, fit- ted as refrigerators, and kept. con- stantly at a temperature ofabout 30 degrees, or just below freezing point. One would suppose this to be more trying than any quantity of microbes; but the owner .was happy in her conâ€" sciousness of freedom from germ dis- eases. VV’inter and summer the rooms were kept at the same point, and the adjoining rooms and hell were also kept cool that no current of warm air might bring ibacilli in. , I This lady lived clad in furs through- out the hottest days that blazed out- side, and her attendants and. serv- ants were obliged to constantly dis-r infect themselves before entering hcr presenceThey lived ’in a perpetual at- mosphere of carbolic acid, and their mistress had to pay very high wages to induce any servants to stay With her. I ._+__. Glenn and Despair GIVE WAY To Visor, HEALTH AN! HAPPINESS. An Altack of La Grlppe Left the Surfers “’cak, Net-you, and Enfocbiedâ€"A Via rim or Ensomn‘a and Heart Trouble. Naturally every sick person to whom help is promised, will ask, ,' ,- 5 1.8.. A handsome face certainly, with .‘ ‘lBahl’; he muttered angrily to Hung, there’s the dinner bell_come Sonic Strange Freaksléif incline" to Es "has the remedy be“: .successful ,. g swarthy skin, brilliant, black eyes, and himself; she 18 only a. woman; pa- down, Odd boy, Pm Starving.” cape "1L caper. Whom ha5 It helped? W;e cannot i a (“0‘31 black beard caf'efuny trimmed. “81108, my 8’00141 Matteo, 37011 8113-11 Win , , _ A man who, while poor, is not more better answer these questions than by In his slender, sinewy figure there her yet, and thenâ€"â€"” He closed his 11111;), went balm“ and found net‘le afraid to die than most people, often publishing testimonials received from. i}: i was something of the lithe grace of mouth with an angry snap that did :wnt tzb::b:‘:dIgggalfiitatwsefgl tg hm develops a haunting terror of death grateful People who ar°_anXi°u5 that a a panther; and" what with the grace- not augur well for the happiness of by the skis of Ventin,a t y hm?“ after he has made a big fartune and other sufferers may profit by their ex. 5" 2 ' ful movements of his hands, and the Miss Cotoner’s future life. He was not there V r lump 3’; 5‘? spends an unhappy life and huge sums perience. One of these grateful ones» II: deferential manner with which he “ What a flirt that girl is,” thought heard a rustle ande ytm‘lg, w en 3 of money in trying to avoid the com-_ IB Mrs. Douglas Kilt-B, of Perry. Staâ€" (_ bent toward Miss Cotoner, he decid- Mrs. Pellypop, as she looked after the saw that Miss ’Cotono‘: "uni? rotmd ing fate, frequently hurry-mg himself tion, Ont., Mrs. Kilts says: Three; ,fl edly did not impress Monteith favor- young lady; “ I’m sure I don’t know side him. Yea Sittingwf: 81th2niezeé inth premature grave through sheer yea” 33° “13d 3 very severe attack «9x as; .m 057%, s . .2‘ /-â€".‘~«-e 'v‘x :ably. But the ladyâ€"well, she has been de- scribed before, and as Ronald looked at her he only found new perfections. She had rather a. sad expression on her face, and her head was a little bent down, but for the rest, she was as straight and graceful as Artemis. Ronald, who had stoutly resisted all the blan-dishments of the pretty girls on board, caught one glance of those brilliantly black eyes and surrendered what the world is coming to; I never flirted,” and to Mrs. Pellypop’s credit, it must be said, she never had, but then, as Rochefoncauld remarks, some women are safe because nobody seeks after them. When Ronald emerged from his cab- in in evening dress he was caught at the foot of the stairs by Pat, who in company with a few convivial spirits, was having a sherry and hitters. “ Come and have something to drink worry and fear. This passion has turn- ed the brains of a good many wealthy people, and madel monomaniacs of them. They resort to the most child- ish expedients to keep death from- their doors. You remember Kipling’s character who had his chair slung on ropes from a beam that the world might spin un- der him, instead of carryinghim along to grow older. There was an actual man’s chair; so, with a. sudden im- pulse, Ronald arose. “ I beg yor pardon,” he said, bowing; ‘ “ but would you mind taking my chair instead of that one ’3” “ Why i” asked the young lady, cold- ly. , “Becauseâ€"because,” he stammered, confusedly, " it was Minâ€"Mr. Ventin’s the gentleman who died.” “Oh!” she said and turned rather after it has stood for twenty-four hours ?” at once. He also caught the glance of after all your labors,” he Said in a m us? we us,- And if they are diseased use the World’s Greatest Kidney Cure, as. assess KEBNEvnlWER Pills. It’s a simple matter to test the kidneys. You need not consult a doctor. By asking yourself three questions, you can determine whether or not your kidneys are deranged. Firstâ€"“Have you backache or weak, lame back ?” Secondâ€"“Do you have difficulty in urinating or too fre- quent desire to urinate ’4” Thirdâ€"“Arc there deposits like brickdust in the urine In its early stages kidney disease is readily cured by a. Few boxes of Dr. Chase’s Kidney-Liver Pills, a preparation which has made Dr. Chase famous throughout the world for his wonderful cure of diseases of the kidneys. If youhave kidney disease you can take Dr. Chase’s Kid- ney-Liver Pills with perfect confidence that what has proved in absolute cure in so many thousands of cases will'not fail cu. So long as the cells of the kidneys are not completely {vested away, as in the last stages of Bright’s Disease, Dr. Chase 3 Kidney Liver Pills Will give them new vigor and strength and absolutely cure kidney disedsd One pill a dose, 25 cents a box, at all dealers, or EDMANSON, BATES 85 Co, Toronto, Ont. pale, “ thank you,” [risingâ€"" I will ac- cept your offer,” and she sat in Mont- eith’s chai'r while he took poor Ven- tin’s. ' Of course this little incident was ob- served by all, and by none more so than Matteo Vassalla, who sat; at a distant table and looked remarkably savage. "' Wait a i, little,” he muttered; “when you are mine, I’ll tame you." Pat, indicating Ronald and Miss Cotomer to Kate Lester, hummed the first line of his. favorite song, “I love. a. lubly gal, I do.” " \Vhfat do you think i” he added. Miss Lester laughed and nodded. “ I think the- some as you,” she an- swered. ' CHAPTER v. The inquest on the body of Lionel Ventin was resumed next day, but nothing new was discovered, and tak- ing into' consideration the strange story told by the deceased to Monteith the time of the committal of the crime, which, according to the Doc- tor’s showing must have taken place when the ship was leaving Valetta, there appeared no doubt but that the Imurder had been committed before the steamer left Malta. As the de- ceased’s real name was not Ventin, and all the evidence was purely cir- cumstantial, the jury brought in a case very like this a few years ago, when John Islin, an Englishman, who made a huge fortune out of silver in Mexico, drove himself mad through worrying about his death. After exhausting all the safeguards of la grippe, and the disease left me in an extremely worn out, nervous, and enfeebled condition. The ner. vousness was so sev "e as to have 9.1- mcst resulted in St. Vitus dance. Sleep forsook me. I had bad attacks of heart trouble, and the headaches I endured were something terrible. I had no appetite, and was literally fading away; Iwas not able to work about the house and was so weak that I could scarcely lift a. cup of tea. I was treated by a good doctor, but with no benefit. Almost in despair, I resorted to patent medicines, and tried several, one after another, only to be disappointed by each. I ling- ered in this condition until the win- London could offer, he bought a. small ter of 1899, when a, friend prevailed. rocky island called Brychil, on the upon me to try Dr. Williams’ Pink \Vest Irish coast, taking with him one Pills, and Ibegan taking them: From faithul sorvitor. Here, in feverish the first the pills helped me and: I h'aste'he had four stone pillars raised, could feel my strength gradually ro- an-d asmall ONE-STORYED CABIN, with three rooms, rather like a house boat, slung on chairs from iron gird- ems that crossed the pillars, and swung clear of the ground. Once inside this, be shut himSelf up, with some books and a pet jackdaw for company, and never left his swinging house until his death. The attendant, who lived in a small house close by, used to row to the mainlandâ€"a. mile and a. half,â€"â€"-when the weather permitted, for provisions. The master spent his time reading and looking out over the Atlantic from the cabin windoWs. His brain had given way, of course, and be im- agined his life stood still, while the earth revolved under him. He had no relatives to insist on his entering a private asylum, and he died three years later in the cabin, worried out of life by the fear of death. His hair was snow white, though he was only forty-three. Another wealthy man, Jean Ingle- ’ ’ . “. HTéJ-‘Jfr‘fimiflr‘ m;...¢(;a reg, turning. I continued the use of the pills according to directions untilI had taken eight boxes when I was again enjoying perfect health. My strength had entirely returned, my appetite was splendid, the heart trouble and nervousness had éeaned, while the 'blessmg of sleep. once de-- nbed, had again returned. I had gain- ed over thirty pounds to weight, and was able to do all my housework with case. In fact I had received a new lease of life. I believe my cure- is permanent, as more than a year has since passed and I feel so strong and well that Iventure to say there is not a. healthier woman In this sec- tion; indeed I am enjoying better health than I have, for twenty years, and this has been brought about by: the use of Dr. lVilh‘a'ms’ Pink Pills. I feel that I cannot say enough in their praise for I believe they saved my life. My son has also received the greatest benefit from the use of these pills in a case of lprmg fever," ire-:3: 71.17’5'7‘uinalfiogfifififlggglfiim‘ )_ “a M 59”, “Q, 3.2". .. v _ , N...” Am“... ,a.‘~ -msfvg A; A’ ,r 4‘6" ' V v’ m. ' K . 4.; y 2 .l .y .l i ,z? 3, 9‘3. up, 3,“, . i5 . Mangers; av“! I. ‘ A“