The Argosy, October 1906 — page 188: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

558 ey didn’t pay any attention to him. I thought he was merely looking out of. curiosity. I didn’t think that he_recog- nized me. -As a matter of fact; I don’t think. that he did know who T was— then. He simply fancied that there was something familiar about my face, but he couldn’t just place me. I have since learned that Dupree was an intimate friend of the governor of Devil’s Island, and probably during his visits. to the prison he had noticed me there. ~“ Phat was enough to make him sus- picious, but he wasn’t sure. When he had seen me at the pro my hair was- gray and clese-cropped.- Now I wore a heavy mass of long, flowing black hair. “One unlucky day, when I happened to be walking briskly along Broadway, a gust ef wind lifted my hat from my head. I tried to catch it, but I was too late. When I put my hand to my head I was horrified to find that my wig had disappeared along with the hat. ““T was hurrying away, trying to get to cover befere the change was noticed, when I turned and saw that I was being pursued by a young photographer. I tried to get away from him, but the fel- low followed me persistently and finally managed to get a snap-shot of me. ~ “Tf I had had that deadly syringe with me then, that photographer never would have developed those negatives ; but luckily for him I had left it in my room. “T knew then that somebody knew my secret; but I didn’t at the time sus- pect Dupree. Still, I was very careful, and when I went back to Picaut’s office I took care to let down the shades. ‘‘T didn’t know that Dupree had any- thing to do with that photographer un- til the next morning, when I heard voices in Dupree’ s office, and, looking through a hole in the shade, I saw to my horror that Dupree had a visitor, and that that visitor was the photographer. *T saw the photographer hand over the pictures to Dupree and I saw Du- pree give him some money. And then I knew the truth. Dupree had seen me on Broadway without my wig and had recognized me positively. He had hired this photographer to get a picture of me and was going to send it over to his friend, the governor of Devil’s Island. THE “"ARGOSY. c Instantly my mind was made. up. Dupree must be done away with before he could notify the authorities. pictures must be taken from him and destroyed.. So I awaited my chahce. “Tater that day I heard angry voices in Dupree’ s office, and looking through the hole in the shade again I saw Sut- ton, the postal-clerk, having an angry argument with Dupree, and I listened to every word. T thought then how easy it would be to. murder Dupree and throw suspicion: on this young postal- Clerk. “You shudder, father! It is-a re- volting story, I know; but I am_ de- termined to tell you the whole truth. T saw the pestal-clerk whisper to the «young woman. I had heard Dupree call oe EZ ee si gales see 2 by ne zing ath him. ~The court between the windows wasn’t a very wide one. — “JT waited until Dupree ‘was alone in- his office, then I crept out of ours, around the corridor,” opened ‘Dupree’ s door as noiselessly as possible and, be- fore the wine-agent could utter a sound, I had plunged the dagger-like end- of the syringe into his back. He died in- stantly. “Then I took Hie: wallet. from his pocket and hurried back to Picaut’s room. There I abstracted the ‘photo- graphs from the wallet and sent the leather case, with two hundred and twenty-five dollars, to Sutton at the post- office. HT didn’t. know Sutton’s ‘name, but £ told the messenger-boy to give the. -pack- age to the money-order clerk and to say that it came from Miss Morgan. — : “JT did not think that Sutton would hold his tongue about. that wallet. I thought he would try to save himself by informing on the girl. z “When I read in the newspaper. that Sutton. was arrested I congratulated my-— self that I was safe. At first } was sur- prised to see nothing in the papers about: the messenger-boy incident ; ‘but I soon guessed the truth. Sutton was keeping - silent out of Joyalt: zto the - girl. - He be- lieved the girl guilt ,, and therefore he would not say how he had obtained pos- session of that wallet. : “My plans were Sworkins even better than I expected. My only fear. then was im) “Fhose — - nm _comicbooks.co —~