g earnestness. The woman gave an inarticulate
growl. "But," interposed Brencherly, "I found his wallet in your
package." He took from his pocket a worn and battered leather pocketbook
and held it toward her.

"Oh," she answered indifferently, "I just took it for a souvenir. In
fact, I came back for it--last thing."

Brencherly shrugged his shoulders expressively. Gard sat far back in his
chair, his face in shadow.

"How long has it been, Mrs. Welles, since you--accomplished your
purpose?" he asked slowly.

"You know as well as I do," she cried angrily.

"You were there. It was yesterday--no, the day before."

"It was just a week ago we found her," Brencherly said in a low voice.
"I had to look up everything and verify everything."

"You don't think I did it?" she burst out angrily. "Well, I'll prove it.
I tell you I did, and I thought it all out carefully, although the
doctor says I can't think connectedly. I'll show him." She fumbled in
the breast of her dress for a moment, and brought out her cherished
handful of newspaper clippings, which she cast triumphantly upon the
table. "There's all about him from the papers, and a picture of the
house. Why, I'd 'a' been a fool not to find him, and I had to. Oh, yes,
I suppose, as the doctor says, I'm queer; but I wasn't when he first
began sending me away--no, indeed. I wasn't good enough for him, that
was all; and I was far from home, and hadn't a friend, and he had money.
Oh, he was clever--but he's the devil. He used to file his horns off so
people wouldn't see, but I know. So, I'll tell you everything, except
how I got away. There's somebody else I may want to find." She glanced
with infinite cunning at Brencherly, and began her finger signals as if
practicing a dumb alphabet of which he alone knew the key.

"Where did you receive her from, Doctor?" Field asked.

"From Ogdensburg, sir. Before that they told me she was found wandering,
and put under observation in Troy. All I knew was that somebody wanted
her kept in a private institution. She'd always been in one, I fancy."

There was a pause as Field seemed lost in thought. Then he turned to
Gard.

"May I ask you to clear one point?" he asked "You gave evidence that he
was alive when you entered the room. According to her story--"

"I lied," said Gard, his pale face suffused with color. "I had to--I was
most urgently needed in Washington. I would have been detained, perhaps
prevented altogether from leaving.