The Argosy — page 362: what you’re looking at

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

Mrs. Raven’s Temptation. 339 that the doctors can suggest for Louisa. Now this horrible story is opened up, I think I had better tell my wife to start off at once, and take our little girls also with her. We had intended to leave them at home in the charge of the governess, Miss Cleare.” “Miss Cleare? ‘That’s the young lady who first saw the ghost. I have heard all about that. Shall you take her to the Continent with your family P” “No,” said Mr. Connell promptly, the old instincts of poverty making him remember the expense. Yet he reflected. ‘‘ Indeed, I can hardly say. You see, all our plans will have to be re-arranged. Mrs. Connell must decide these things.” “Could not you get Miss Cleare to come here?” suggested Mr. Toynbee. ‘At these times it is always better to have those about us who are in some way associated with our general interests. Besides, Mr. Connell, Miss Cleare mzgi¢ be a witness.” «Sir, how much do you know P” | “Nothing but what Frank told me,” answered Mr. Toynbee; “it was chiefly about this young lady seeing the figure they call the ghost. He said there was more to be'told, and that you knew all. “There is a great deal more to be told indeed,” said Mr. Connell. *‘ We had a fortune-teller down at Coltburn, and the beginning of the trouble was that some of the young people foolishly went to visit her. Then mysterious advertisements appeared in the paper. ‘Then my wife and Miss Cleare saw in our garden a figure exactly resembling @hat which Miss Cleare had seen in the fields here ; and, what has always struck me as oddest and most weird of all, at that very moment a fearful shriek rang through our house, which nobody owned to, and we never could account for. ‘Then Frank, acting on the fortune-teller’s instructions, sought in a vase in our drawing- room, and found a sum of fifty pounds in gold, and also a written paper.” “Could that have been put there by this mysterious figure? Could the figure have gained access to your house ?” ‘No, not then.” ‘* And what was on the written paper ?” “IT expect that will have to come out now,” said Mr. Connell. “But Frank charged me to keep the secret so sacredly, that I would rather not mention it till I have spoken again with him on the matter.” “Quite so, quite so,” assented Mr. Toynbee, eager, as usual, to disclaim all wish to intrude on anybody’s confidence. “But this fortune- teller must be found,” he went on, as emphatically as Mrs. Raven her- self had done. “My dear sir,” said Mr. Connell, ‘‘to find this woman has been the main object of the detectives from the outset. She has baffled them hitherto. Did Frank tell you anything about the mysterious delivery to him in her presence of the ring his father used to wear.” “No,” said Mr. Toynbee, quickly ; “ but he mentioned that ring ECORnNICOOOKS (C©)