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The Atlanta Georgian
SUNDAY READING
With Saturday** Georgian of
June 1, 1907.
and News
SUNDAY READING
With Saturday** Georgian of
June 1, 1907.
\ OL. V. NO. 285. ATLANTA, GA., SATURDAY .JUNE 1 1907 ' PRICE- In All,nttt: two cents.
■ -*■> +WI. J. rUXib. 0u Trains: KIVU CENTS.
THE GHOST OF LOCHRAIN . CASTLE
A Thrilling Novel of Love, Intrigue, Tragedy and the Mystery of a Famous Diamond
By MRS. C. N. WILLIAMSON,
Author of “The Lightning Conductor,"
Etc., Etc.
Illustrated by
GEORGE KERR and F. NANKIVELL.
CHAPTER III.
A Mystery at Midnight.
Instantly the words of the house
keeper leaped Into the girl’s mind. The
bell! The bell by which she could
summon the night porter—where was
It? All, she remembered, and almost,
as quickly her finger was hovering over
the electric button.
A second more, and the summons
would have gone flashing over the wire,
but something seemed to restrain Els-
poth’s hand, as tf it had been seized and
forcibly held back. “No!” she said,
half aloud, ‘‘I won't do It.” And with
great force of self-control, she turned
her back on the bell, which meant help
and human companionship. If she chose
to have it.
"Very likely they have had the same
kind of trouble here before with their
secretaries,” the girl thought. “Mr.
McGowan told me the one from the
neighborhood whom they had had be
fore couldn't manage the work, but l'i
sure he looked odd when he said It, and
perhaps there was more behind. Prdba-
bly they’re expecting me to make a fuss
of some sort, though I don't come from
the neighborhood, and am not sup
posed to have heard the story of this
Tower, whatever If is. Maybe the
other girl knew It beforehand. But it
doesn't matter, I won't make a fuss! 1
boasted that I was brnve, and I’m go
ing to stand It somehow. If it kills me.
It can't be ghosts; ghosts don't have
blood. The chances are that some one
tonight has been playing a horrid trick
on me. Well, they shan't get any
satisfaction from It! I’m going to stop
on here, and in this room, if I have to
slay awake all night, and work all flay,
every day, till whoever It Is gets tired.'
This forceful determination poured
courage into Elspeth's chilled veins, as
If she had been drinking strong wine.
Instead or completing the havoc already
nmle in her spirit by terror, as for a
few seconds It had threatened to do,
the fall of ruddy drops from the ceiling
had undone tile work of the strange
funds behind the walls. The girl was
evm calm enough now to regret the
damage to the sketch she had found In
the old volume of Scott, and to attempt
repairing It by pouring a stream of
water over the paper while the red
spot was fresh and web In splto of her
efforts, however, a stain was left, but
the vlvhl red waa changed to a pale
pink, which gave nn efTcct os If the
smiling face of the boy had been
washed over with a faint flesh color.
The penciled lines, -faded before, were
still more faded by the application of
wuier; still, they were not obliterated,
and Klspeth was vaguely glad. She did
not know who the boy had been; If he
lived he must be' an elderly man now,
Judging by the fashion of his dress;
she would probably never learn any
thing more of his story, even If It had
been worth hearing. Nevertheless, she
was Interested, and said to herself that,
as she was apparently connected In
some distant way with the Lochrain
family, through her father’s people, the
Deans, the boy of the sketch was per
haps a cousin of hers, fur removed.
This house had always been the home
of the Lochralns until lately, when It
had been bought for a hotel, and as
everything In It, furniture, books and
pictures, had been the property of the
Lochralns, It was likely that the boy
"as a member of the family. *
"I'll be worthy of their blood, If It's
really in my veins.” Elspcth thought,
"and I won't be a coward in their
house."
As if for a reward of courage, no
further sounds came, and no more of
those ruby drops fell from the celling.
Had It not been for the pink stain on
the sketch the girl might have begun
to fancy by and by that It had all been
a hail dream; but the practical side of
her nature was In the ascendant now,
and she did not fancy that. She real
ised, and acknowledged to herself that
she had had good cause to be fright
ened, b ut her lighting blood waa roused,
and she meant sooner or later to hove
nn explanation of everything that had
happened.
"I will And out for myself If I can,
w ithout confiding In onybody,” silo de
cided.
The one thing tho girl could not do,
however, was to go back to bed. She
u .? . ,t: ,ler dressing gown until
moonlight faded Into dawn. Then,
Drawn by Frank A. Nanklvcll. „
THE GIRL TOTTERED SLIGHTLY, AS IF RECOILING FROM A BLOW ACROSS THE FACE.
when the Tower room was gray with
morning light, she lay down and actu
ally went to sleep.
It was after 7 o'clock when she
waked, and she had scarcely more than
three hours of rest. Nevertheless, she
felt well and strangely buoyant, helped
by excitement to go through whatever
new experiences might be In store for
her.
The first thing she did was to look
carefully at the celling for any trace of
red stain, but nothing was visible,
though the early sunahlne was pouring
In through an east window. There was,
however, a wide crack in one of the
dark oak beuma which crossed the cell
ing, at exactly tho spot, so far as she
could calculate, whcrce the ruby-llke
drops had fallen, sploshing down on
to the sketch. But many more red
rops might have come through such a
crack In the black wood without leav
ing a visible mark. If she were to And
out tho mystery It would not be in such
an obvious way os by a crimson stain
on the celling.
Klspeth bathed and dressed quickly,
and was almost ready to go down when
tho servant, who tad brought her din
ner In tho evening, knocked at the door,
with an attractive-looking breakfast
tray, A dollclous fragrance of tea,
crisply fried bacon and toast, greeted
her nostrils refreshingly, and she was
more than ever glad, at the pleasant
commonplace* o( everyday life seemed
to como In at the door like an atmos
phere, that eho bod not called any one
to her rescue In the night If she had,
by this tlmo the newa would have
spread over the hotel, and every serv
ant would know that “the new secreta
ry had bad a frlgnL"
:he beautiful young girl with w hom she
had traveled up from London yester
day. This morning sho wore a short,
white serge dress, with dainty white
shoes, and had on a hat, therefore sho
was presumably Just going out, or had
just mine- in, early as It was.
One of her companions on the stair
way was an elderly and rather peculiar
looking lady with cameo features,
faded light hair, arranged In a would-
lie artistic fashion, und an aesthetic
gown more suitable for a London
boudoir at tea time than a Scotch hy
dro In tho morning.
The third figure waa that of a very
striking woman ol perhups 32 or 33,
foreign certanly, Jewish perhaps, with
magnificent dark eyes like wells of
light, singularly pale yet dear com
plexion and black hair rippling away
I rent an unusually low, broad fore
head.
A glance waa enough to photograph
these new personalities on Elspeth’s
brain. She saw also that the trailing
dress of the eldest of tho trio waa
spread out over the stairs In such a
wqy that, broad as they were. It would
be Impossible for her to pass without
pushing, or requesting the wearer to
move. She was close upon tho group
now, but was on the point of turning
back after all, when something hap
pened.
Why, It was Captain Oxford!" ex
claimed ;lie lady with tho trailing
dress. “Didn’t you know that. Lady
Hilary?” ■
"No. I—I—" the girl stammered, ami
tottered slightly, as if recoiling from a
blow across the face.
_ Instantly Klspeth saw a way of sav-
saw that one of the three ladies wasting her from the shame of an Invol-
Even as It was, she thought the
waller looked at her with a furtive In
terest, different fr-.m the look of last
night. It was as If he were expecting
something. “I hupe you rested well,
miss,” he said civilly, and Klspeth,
thanking him, answrred with seren-
cheerfulness that she had never been
better In her life than she was this
morning. The best of It was that it
waa perfectly true. The girl felt read)
tor anything.
As soon as she had finished her
breakfast, she started to thread her
way to Mr. McGowan's room, but she
had not yet "got her bearings" In this
Immense and rambling old house, and
to reach the part she wished to And
was easier said than done. After some
wandering, she came out through a ear
thier Into a square hall of considerable
else, which she waa aure ahe had not
seen before. However, there was the
stairway, which descended In the mid
dle, and rather than retrace her steps,
perhaps to be lost again, she decided
that It would be better to go down. On
tho floor below the would probably
meet servants of the hotel, who would
put her in the right way.
There were, however, several ladles
standing In a group on the third or
fourth step. Klspeth waited for a mo
ment at a distance, thinking that they
would go up or down; then, seeing
that they did not move, and that the
stairway was very broad, she thought
that she might pass without disturbing
them. Sho moved forward rather tim
idly, conscious that she was a paid em
ployee, and that It would be a grave
offence for one in her position to dis
commode guests. Drawing nearer, she