uds parted and the sun shone
out--a far off sun in a sky as blue as summer and cold as polar seas.
The air tingled and snapped with frost. In the azure cup of the sunlit
sky it sparkled like golden wine, and, like wine, it thrilled and
strengthened. People stamped their feet and beat their hands to keep
warm but smiled the while and murmured: "Glorious!"

So much for the weather--since it was the weather which became the main
factor in helping Coombe forget the tragedy at the Elms. Wonder is no
nine-day affair in Coombe. One sensation is carefully conserved until
the next one comes along, but in this case the early winter with its
complete change of interests, its sleighing, skating and snow-shoeing,
its reawakening of business and social bustle proved a distraction
almost as effective as battle, murder or sudden death. The talk died
down, the interest slackened, and the principal actors were once more
permitted to become normal persons living in a normal world.

For a time it had seemed that this desired condition would never be
obtained. Coombe had felt the breath of a mystery. It was supposed to
know everything and suspected that it knew nothing--a state of things
aggravating to any well regulated community.

There had been an inquest, of course, and at the inquest the whole sad
affair was supposed to have been made plain. It was simplicity itself.
Simplicity, in fact, was its most annoying characteristic. Mrs. Coombe,
it appeared, had been for a long time somewhat of a sufferer from an
obscure trouble, referred to generally as "nerves." For the relief of
this trouble, one of whose symptoms was insomnia, she had, from time to
time, had recourse to narcotics which, as everyone knows, are dangerous,
if not, as many thought, positively immoral. Undoubtedly the poor lady
had died from an overdose. It was easy, the coroner said, for a
sympathetic mind to reconstruct the details of the terrible occurrence.
It was the night before the wedding and the deceased had retired early.
Miss Milligan, who had run in for a last look at the wedding gown, and
who had been the very last person to see and speak with her, deposed
that she had appeared more than ordinarily tired and seemed anxious to
be alone. Asked if she detected any other signs of disordered nerves the
witness had said, no. The deceased had not appeared worried about
anything? No. The wedding gown had been quite satisfactory? Quite.

No more questions were asked and