The Argosy — page 110: what you’re looking at

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

In the Dead of Night. 95 down with acork. It sounded for all the world as if my poor master had come back from the grave, and had called to me just as he used to do.” “You are not one of those, Mr. Finch, who believed in the guilt of bir. Dering ?”’ _ “T never did believe init and I never will to the last day of my life,” said Finch sturdily. ‘‘ No one, who knew Mr. Lionel as I knew him, could harbour such a thought for a single moment.” “Uncle Pearce says exactly the same as you say. ‘No power on earth could make me believe it.’ Them’s his very words. But I say, Mr. Finch, isn’t the old General a darling ?” “Yes, Miss Piper, I approve of the General—I approve of him very much indeed. But Mr. Kester St. George is a sort of person whom I would never condescend to engage as my employer. I don’t like that gentleman. It seems a strange thing to say, but he has never looked his proper self since the night of the murder. His man tells me that he has to drench himself with brandy every morning before he can dress himself. Who knows? Perhaps it’s the ghosts. They’re enough to turn any man’s brain.” ‘“‘T know that I shouldn’t like to go after dark anywhere near where the murder was done,” said Miss Piper. “It’s a good job they have nailed the door up. There’s no getting either in or out of the room now.” | ‘““And yet they do say,” remarked Finch, ‘‘ that on the eighteenth of every month—you know the murder was done on the eighteenth of May—a little before midnight, footsteps can be heard—the noise of someone walking about in the nailed-up room. You, as the niece of Mr. Pearce, have not been told this, but it has been known to me all along.” ‘But you don’t believe it, Mr. Finch ?” “Well I don’t know so much about that,” answered Finch, dubiously. ‘‘ You see it was on account of them footsteps that Sims and Baker left last month. They had been told about the footsteps, and they made up their minds to go and hear them. They did hear them and they gave warning next day. They told Mr. Pearce that the place wasn’t lively enough for them. But it was the footsteps tha drove them away.” : ‘‘ After what you have told me I shall be frightened of moving out of my own room after dusk. Listen!” cried Miss Piper, jumping up inalarm. ‘ That’s uncle’s ring at the side bell. He must have go _ back before his time.” , It was as Finch had stated. Kester St. George was staying as his uncle’s guest, at Park Newton. ‘The General’s letter found him at Paris, where he had been living of late almost en permanence.’ It was couched in such a style that he saw clearly if he were to refuse the GOMNGOOO S (SO)