gone."

"Could you describe the man, Uncle Mose?" the coroner asked.

"No, sah, I don' know as I could 'scribe 'im perzacly; but I'd know
'im, no matter where I sot eyes on 'im, and I know'd 'im the nex'
time I see 'im. Well, sah, dat aft'noon, mars'r Mainwaring an' de
folks had gone out ridin', an' I was roun' kind o' permiscuous like,
an' I see anoder kerridge way down de av'nue by de front gate, an'
I waited, 'spectin' maybe I'd see dat man again. While I was waitin'
by de front dooh, all oh a sudden a man come roun' from de side, as
ef he come from mars'r Mainwaring's liberry, but he was anoder man."

"Didn't he look at all like the first man?" inquired the coroner.

"No, sah; he looked altogedder diff'rent; but I don' know as I could
state whar'in de differensiashun consisted, sah. Dis man was berry
good lookin' 'ceptin' his eyes, an' dem yoh cudn' see, 'case he had
on cull'ed glasses. Mebbe his eyes was pow'ful weak, er mebbe he
didn't want nobody to see 'em; but I 'spicioned dem glasses d'rectly,
sah, an' I watched 'im. He goes down to de kerridge an' takes out
a coat an' says sump' in to de driver, an' de kerridge goes away
tow'ds de town, an' he walks off de oder way. Bime'by I see 'im
gwine back again on de oder side ob de street-"

"Was he alone?" interrupted the coroner.

"Yes, sah; an' I done kep' my eye on 'im, an' he didn' go on to de
town, but tuhned down de fust side street. Well, sah, I didn' see
no moah ob 'im den; but dat ebenin' I'd ben a-workin' roun' de
house, sprinklin' de grass and gettin' ready foh de nex' day, when
I happens to pass by de side dooh, an' I sees dem two men comm'
out togedder."

"What time was this, Uncle Mose?" the coroner asked, quickly.

"Well, sah," said the old man, reflectively, "my mem'ry is a little
derelictious on dat p'int, but I knows 'twas gettin' putty late."

"Are you sure these were the same two men you had seen earlier in
the day?"

"Yes, sah; 'case I stepped in de bushes to watch 'em. Dey talked
togedder berry low, an' den one man goes back into de house, an' I
seen 'im plain in de hall light, an' he was de fust man; an' while
I was a-watchin' 'im, de oder man he disappeahed an' I cudn' see
'im nowhar, but I know'd he was de man dat came in de aft'noon,
'case he look jes' like 'im, an' toted a coat on his arm. Well,
sah, I t'inks it a berry cur'is sarcumstance, an' I was jes' comm'
to de preclushun dat I'd mention it to some ob de fambly, wh