7110 QUEER

when unsupported by anyv kimd ol cvidenee, o warrant a reasonable person in forming suspicions against the man.

My brother—-still arguing by cold. stony logic——had an interest in my uncle’s removal, masmuch as the wealth which the Professor felt so confident o attaining could not fail o place an impassable gull” between John and Pheebe t but to suspect my brother of murder on such wildly insufficient grounds as that !

The contents of the lz'l})()l';llul"\' revealed nothig, only a few letters of no importanee bemg found inan old desk which stood in the corner: and the room was locked up and left as 1t stood.

My brother and T had had some notion of arranging with the assistint on o plan for carrving out our uncle’s desizns in connec- ton with his invention, the Professor's family and the assistant to divide anv profics between them: but to our surprise the assistant denied all knowledue of the nature of the invention, stating that my uncle, although communicating to him manyv siallor

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scerets of Titde value, had alwavs kept hin montire agnorance ol this particular inven-

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OF TIINGS oy ton, and had never made anv experiment in connection with it in his presence.

This surprised us, and we decided to speak to him again on the subject: but the next weekowhen we called at his Jodgings, he had disappearcd,

The seareh for hime was as fruidess as that for niv uncle had been. He had cone ot alter breakfast - the landlady was certain of that, as she had noticed the peculiar texture of the overcoat he was wearing, made of v uncle’s pet health-material. ‘I'he assistant had never returned @ and his property was - his room as he had leftic. He had cone off, then T "This circumstance scemed to sIve - shadow of plausibility to the unsupported theory of his having made away with the Professors We made every offort to find him, m vain ;. and we camce to the conclusion that he had resolved to carry the invention to some Toreign Government, and sccure the cntire reward to himscll.

The mysterious disappearance of my uncle was aterrible shock to his familv. Phoehe - particular appearcd to be affected by 1t for she wrote to John a most unhappy letter, in which she said she felt so keenly her disobedicenee to her father in connection with her engagement that she could not hear to sec my brother for a while, if cver agam. We decided that 1t was hysteria caused by the shock @ hut, never- theless, John o could not qet toosee her, although he repeatedhy called and wrote. She would scu no one hut her mother and sister

JTohn grew gloomy and moped, which was not un- natural, perhaps. He took to- mooning about by hin sell —just wandering out for solitary walks -—until he was obviously losing flesh and colour @ but he ccowid do 1t

One morning he came honme with a wild, hageard look, and sank into a chair. I had never scen him Tike Ml before, and T asked him what had happencd. 1 have scen her—-Ther '

“Nes T Dsaid, T am glad of that, Lut

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