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| to a knowledge of the worl QA. HEH LEAR HEHEHE HX SHI SH EEE A Hous of Mystery OR, THE GIRL IN BLUE AHO CHA TARE DHHS OHA CHAPTER XVIL I approach this and the following chapters of my secret personal history with feelings of wmazement and than! fulnecs that 1 should still be al've and uble to write down the truth freely and without fear, for the events were certainly most remarkable and utterly mystifying. In no man's history has there ever been such a strange, bewildering page as the one I am about to reveal to you. Feader, as I have taken you into my cenfidence, so also 1 tell you confident ally that 1 myself, an ordinary man, w«uld never have relieved that in this l.fe of ours such things wero possible, had I not myself experienced them, and personally endured the frightful agony of mind which they entailed. But 1 am wr ling down in black and white, upon these pages the solid unvarnished fac's, fearkss of contradiction, so that the whole of the sirange truth shall be known, and that she who is dearest to me on earth may be adjudged by the world with fairness and with justice. For that sole reason I have resolved to re- late (his romance of real life, otherwise it would ever remain in that crabbed writing in that small portfolio, or secret dossier, as it is called, numbered, dock- eted, and reposing in the archives of the Ministry of the Interior of a q rain Eu- ropean Power. well, 1 have written the try th here, 80 that 411 who read may judge. Immediately after the slight abrasion of my tongue, caused by the scratch of the neede so cunningly concealed in the | hat cigar, I must have lost all consciousness, Of that I have no doubt. The recollec- tons 1 have are only the fa'vtest ones, blurred and indistinct, like shadows in a dream. | ramember shouting in alarm and fighting fiercely against the dr Ws ness and general debility which s.emed lc overcome me, but all was with litt'e or no effect. The last I remember was the ugly face of Hickman glaring evilly into mine. His h'deous grin secthad to render his dog's face the more repulsive, and his laugh of triumph sounded in my cals harsh and discordant, showing plainly that the spirit of murder was in his heurt. Al the same instant that 1 had made a novemnt towards him, I scemed lo Lave received a stunning blow upon the tcp of the skull, which so dulled my senses thal 1 was powerless to combab lhe curious godliness that seized me, and sank senseless upon the floor of that shably room, helpless as a log. The last thought that surged through my brain was the reflection that 1 was powerless in the hands of an enemy. My first estimate of this man Hickman ha been correct, and I regretted that I dn nct allow my instinctive caution to over- rule my desire to. become on friendly terms with him. He 'had enticed me to that place with an evil purpose---pos- sibly that I might share the same fate 0s did that young man on the fateful night at The Boltons. The prick of an ordinary needle upon the tongue would never have created such an electrical effect upon me, there- fcre it was certain that the point had teen smeared with some powerful drug <r poison. The ingenuity wilh which the cigar had been prepared was shown hy the fact that a needle placed within would, as the tobacco ame moistened br the saliva, gradually work down- ward towards the tongue, while the heat %' the further end of the needle wotild, of course, render liquid any coating placed upon it. Without doubt I had been the victim of a deeply laid plot, picpared with a cunning that seemed almost beyond comprehension, The blank in my mind, caused by my sudden unconsciousness, d'd not appear ty» me to be of very long duration. All I know is that 1 was utterly ignorant of every event that transpired about me, and knew nothing whatever of any of the ificidents which dfterwards took place in that dark, obscure house, or elsewhere. And yet they must have been of a character absolutely unheard © 1 have said that the period of my be- nighted senses did not appear to be pro- longed. Indeed, now on reflection in the calmness of the present, I am in- clined to put down the lapse of time during which, in my estimation, 1 was lost to all knowledge of things about re at two, or perhaps three hours. Of course, .it is difficult to fix time when we awaken after sleeping, except by the degree of Jight in the heavens. 1f it is still dark, it is always difficult to gauge the hour. So it was with me when, 'with a heavy, bruised feeling about the top of my skull; 1 slowly struggled back My first thought as I opened my. eyes was of 'Hickman. M, econd. Yn a feeling of surprise that 1 been un *-consc.ous so long, for while it was : about two in in 'the mornin ho :- my tongue 'had been ~ pricked by ord act. Sod OY retry ha when me, and I closed them. Perhaps 1 dozed. Of that I am not quite sure. All I know is that when 1 opened my eyes again {he pain in my head seemed better, and my senses seemed gradually to recog- nize, appreciate, and perceive. I was lying on my side upon the car- pel, and slowly, with a careful effort in- voluntarily made by the march of in- tellect, 1 gazed around me. The place was unfamiliar--utterly un- familar. 1 felt my head, and agamn glanced at my hand. No. There was sufficient proof that my skull had been injured, and that 1 was lying alone in that room with the bar of sunlight slant- ing straight before my eyes. Gradually, and not without consider- able difficulty--for I was still half-dazed --1 made out the objects about me, and Lezame aware of my surroundings. My eyes were amazed al every turn. Whereas Hickman's apartment was a d.rly, shabby lodging-house sitting-room of that stereotyped kind so well-known lo Londoners, the place wherein I found myself was a rather large, handsomely furnished drawing-room, the two long windows of which opened out upon a wide lawn, with a park and a belt of Ingh trees far beyond. From where I was 1 could sce a wealth of roses, and ucross the lawn I saw the figure of a woman in a white summer blouse. The carpet wehereon 1 was stretched was soft and rich, the furniture was of ebony, with gilt ornamentations--I th'nk French, of the Empire period--while close to me was a grand piano, and upon a chair beside it a woman's garden I looked at that hat critically. It be- longed to a young woman, no doubt, for it was big and floppy, of soft yellow straw, with cherries, and had strings to tic b_ncath the chin, 1 picturcd its own er as pretly and attractive. About that room there were screens from Cairo, little inlaid coffeo-tables from Algiers, quaint wood-carvings ot the Madonna beneath glas shades, fash- ioned by the peasunts of Central Russia, [talian statuary, and modern French paintings. The roum semed almost-a museum of souvenirs of cosmopolitan travel. Whaover was its owner, he evi- cently knew the value of bric-a-brac, and had picked up his collection in cities far afield. The dcor was closed, and over il hung a rich portiere of datrk-blue plush edged with gold. The sculptured over- mantel, in white marb:l, was, I quickly detected, a replica of one 1 had seen and admired in the Bargello, in' Florence. One object, however, aroused my won- der. Il was lying on the floor straight before me, an object in white marble, the sculptured arm of a woman with the index finger outstretched, The limb was of life-size proportions, and had apparently been broken off at the elbow. I staggered unevenly to my feet, in order to further pursue my investiga- tions, and then I saw, upon a pedestal close lo me, the marble figure of a Phryne with its arm broken. In (he cenire of that handsome apart- ment I stood and gazed wondringly around. My transition from that b'zarre sitting-room in Chelsea to this house, evidently {n the country, had been ef- fected in a manner beyond comprehen- s'on. My surprising surroundings caused my weakens brain to reel again. I was without hat or overcoat, and as 1 glanced at my-Wousers they somehow dia not seem ts be the same that I had kecn wearing on the previous night, Instinctively I felt that only by some exiraordinary and mysterious means cculd 1 have been conveyed from that close-smelling lodging in Chelsea to this ccuniry mansion. The problem upper- most in my mind was the identity of the place where I had thus found myself cn recovering my senses, and how I got there, My eyes fell upon the push of an elec- tric bell. My pasition, 'lying there in- jured upon the carpet, demanded ex- planation, and without {arther hesita- tion,I walked across . and pressed the ivory button, 1 heard no sound. The bell must have rung far away, and this gave me the idea that the hause was a large one. Intently I listened, and a few minutes later heard a footstep, The door opened, and an elderly man-servant, with grey Whiskers, appeared in the entry ask- fg "Did you ring, sir?" "Yes," 1 answered. "Will you kindly irform me where 1 am?" zled expression, and then, in'alarm, hi rushed forward to me, erying-- "~~ "Why, sirl" You've | a ur head Look! You're covered with blcad!" g His: gre : y instant he slood: He regarded me with a strange, puz-| face was pale, and for an| J regardin | ugly-faced scoundrel Hickman, 'Where is he?" ! ; "Hickman?" "Hickman? 'Whos he" % "0h, it's 'all very well for you tend to know nothing about it," 1 cried an "But 1 fell you that as soon as I'm able I'll apply for Be for his arrest on a charge of murder. Last night he tried to kill me." "1 don't Sudersjang you," the strane er responded. Rh . "I don't, of course, expect you to aumit any complicity in the affair," I snapped. "You'd be a fool if you did, ~All I tell you is that an attempt has been made upon my life by a man to. whom 1 wes introduced as Hickman," "Not in this room?" 1 hesitated. "Na, not in {his resm," I admitted, "1 was in a house at Chelsea." The young msn exchanged mrenfig glances with the manservant, "At Chelsea!" repeated ihe siranger. "In London?' "In London." "Well, that's very ourfous," he Ye- marked. Then, turning to the servant, said-- . . "Gill, go and fetch Dpctor Britten at once. Say nothing of this to any one in the house." "Yes, sir," answered the servant, who instantly withdrew. "I suppose you've sent for the doctor to bandage my head?" I remarked cyni- cally, "I'm perfectly competent to do that if you'll kindly oblige me with a lit {le warm water, a sponge, and some A clean linen." "No, no," he urged. "Wait in pati- erice until Britten comes. 'He'll be here in a moment. I saw him returning home only ten minutes ago." "But how camo I here?" I demanded. He hesitated, regarding me with evi- dent distrust, mingled with considerable alarm. "]--1I really don't know," he responded lamely. "Thal's all nonsense," I cried, with more force than politeness. * find my- sell here, in this room, wounded and weak through loss of blood, after hav- ing bcen hall murdered, and then you have the cool impudence to deny all knowledge of how I came here. Youre a liar--that's plain, I had grown angry at this lame at- tempt of his to feign ignorance. "You are extremely oomplimentary, le an w. red, coloring slightly. "Wel!, perhans you won't mind telling me the time. 1 [ind that that cunning scoundrel Hickman, not content with trying to poison me with a prepared cl- gar and strik ng me on {hz head in that cowardly way, has also robbed me of my walch and chain." He glanced at his watch. "It's half-past two," he answercd abruptly. "Half-past two! Then it happened more than (welve hours ago," I observ- ed. "I wish Britten would hurry," the ycung man remarked, "I don't like the lcok of that wound. Its such a very nasty place." "Only a scalp wound," I said lightly. "Properly bandaged, it will be all right m a few days. There's fortunately no fracture." "Well, you're a pretly mess, at any rate." "And so would you be," I said, "if you had been entrapped as 1ve been." H's face scemed blood'ess, as though the discovery of my presence there had caused him the ulmost alarm. 'He fidgelel and glanced eagerly now and then- towards the door. At last 1 distingu'shed advancing footsteps, and there entered an elderly, dapper, while-bearded little man, whose general demeanor-and buttoned frock- coat gave him the air of a medical prac- titioner. He held his silk hat in his hand and as he placed it down I noticed that N's stethoscope foposed cross-wise in the lining. ! h L selected meat; scientific- | ally prepared and even- § ly baked by damp in Libby's Great W echoed the Tew-comer | to pre-| | sled mimi, resent, none has exciled greater pub- 1c interest than that of the Chambers. Ferland: Mining Co. ? Surrounded as it identical formation with these proper- ites the future of the Chambers-Ferland Is assured. : hf The La Rose, as a glance at lhe ac- cumpanying map will disclose, does not surround _ the Chambers-Ferland, but is surrounded by the' Chambers-Fer- land. It 18 known that the La Rose has an enormous ore-body blocked out. The La Rose veins are in ihe heart of the Chambers-Ferland and have been Licked up in this companys workings. The Nipissing is one of the camps greatest producers and the' O'Brien shipped last year over one million dol- lars' worth of ore. The Province of On- tario received a quarter of a million dcllars of this by reason of its royalty. In expectatibri of. receiving similar re- turns and by reason of the known rich- ress of the 124 acres of the Chambers Ferland Co., the government of Ontario retains a 25 per cent. interest in the property, In considering the property under re- view in this article, it musi be remem- bered that this is the balance of the acreage that was stalked in the early Oapitalization of $2,600,00000-- is by or adjacent Or such famous. producers as the La Rase, | Nipissing and O'Brien, and having anf. Par Value of Shares 1-00 (he Of all fhe Cobalt flotations, past and. 'most valuable, Lies _adfacen are probably the highest groducas © silver in the world. . oY The La Rose has undoubtedly the largest ore reserve in the camp. The O'Brien is extensively developed, so much so, that the awners of this mine have decided on the . immediate erec- tion of a large concenlarting niill on its property at a cost of $120,000, A rich véin was located on one end o! the property, near the main traveled road, leading down' into. Kerr Lake section, and rich ore was taken oul and sacked several months ago. The open cut can be seen from the road. Then followed differences - with the govern: ment, all of which have since been sel- tled. Last year. W. 'H. Linney, formerly. superintendent at the Nipissing, was se- eured, as his familiarity with the Nipis- 1sing veins would have been very valu- able. He staried to work, but the min- ers' strike of last summer caused a ces- sation of work. Superintendent W. H. Jeffrey, form- days, when the entire Cobalt district was N- id Sketch of Part of the Ri erly of the La Rose, has sirice been put ow: facent, le |age ; Nipissing and La Rose are Be er as and Te known engineer' who has €3 property is that there is ¥no developed ground in the Co Letter situated or has greater. McCuaig Bros & Co., memb Montreal Stock Exchange of are behind the proposition and krown that their clientele is Jered something good connection with {he flotation' antee of ils success, : A comparison of the capife Chambers-Ferlanid: with = oth propositions, including the vidend-payers, taking Into' tien the companys = superior and large acreage, cannot press the careful. investiga On the direclorate of this pany are Messrs." William" Ci Arthur Ferland, Willtam B. -K. Russell and R, A. Galbr! gnal owners of the pfoperly an Nipissing. Mr. Jeffreys is the tendent.~ B05 3h District, Showing the Ghambers.----Ferland Pr "My dear sir! My dear sir! What's ths " he began fussily. "Come, sil down;"" and he drew me towards a chair, and seated himself upon the edge of an- other close to 'ma ~ | _"My head has been injured. Examine for yourself," . "AhY" he exclaimed, first regarding me my head. "A nasty scalp-wound, I see,' He felt it carefully with his fingers, caus- ing me a sharp twinge of pain, "No very fortunate, .ILs not serious at all, I'm glad to tell you--nothing secious, How did it occur?" : "I was struck, that's al 1 remember,' 1 answered, turning to him and looking into his face. . "With something sharp-poinfed, 'evi- dently; ¢ "From what I can feel, I think you must have had a previous blow upon the same spot at some time or another, Do you remember it?" wigs gar 8 "Not at. all," I answered. fixedly, and then rising and examining' fracture, no fracture, That's fortunate--| and he looked extremely. puz-| 1 don't know what ib was." IN MERRY OLD ENGLAND NEWS BY MAIL ABOUT JOHN BULL AND HIS PEOPLE. Occurrences in the Land That Reigns: Supreme in the Commercial + World, Advertising lor a lad, a London firm received within. a very few .kours 600 applications. | 5 $s The "early polato crop in West Nor- folk has been attacked by slugs, which have done much damage, The extensive flour 'mills at New- castle-under: were recently burned, ihe damage being estimated. at '875,000. in 1885. of: 3.260 in "of 'tons, $250,000, has Guardians has dectded to pro for the 500.unemployed y Workington ab stonebneakin To Brierley Hill" (Staffs honor. of -being the firs kingdom to complete a n artillery under the: scheme, ho consumer, of probably will follow. og Despite his plea of guilty, Stratford. charged with he charged' because the Ben was not sufficient' ¢viden to convict him. ii Proof 'of ihe perfect d 'ranks of the Salvation iron: steamer built on "the Wear, | "pg 8, -eost of over} now: been Bel for about gir