one,
probably belonging to Mrs. Belden. Then this chest,"--opening
it,--"containing a few underclothes marked,--let us see, ah, with the name
of the lady of the house, but smaller than any she ever wore; made for
Hannah, you observe, and marked with her own name to prevent suspicion.
And then these other clothes lying on the floor, all new, all marked in
the same way. Then this--Halloo! look here!" he suddenly cried.

Going over to where he stood I stooped down, when a wash-bowl half full
of burned paper met my eye.

"I saw her bending over something in this corner, and could not think
what it was. Can it be she is a suicide after all? She has evidently
destroyed something here which she didn't wish any one to see."

"I do not know," I said. "I could almost hope so."

"Not a scrap, not a morsel left to show what it was; how unfortunate!"

"Mrs. Belden must solve this riddle," I cried.

"Mrs. Belden must solve the whole riddle," he replied; "the secret
of the Leavenworth murder hangs upon it." Then, with a lingering
look towards the mass of burned paper, "Who knows but what that was a
confession?"

The conjecture seemed only too probable.

"Whatever it was," said I, "it is now ashes, and we have got to accept
the fact and make the best of it."

"Yes," said he with a deep sigh; "that's so; but Mr. Gryce will never
forgive me for it, never. He will say I ought to have known it was a
suspicious circumstance for her to take a dose of medicine at the very
moment detection stood at her back."

"But she did not know that; she did not see you."

"We don't know what she saw, nor what Mrs. Belden saw. Women are a
mystery; and though I flatter myself that ordinarily I am a match for
the keenest bit of female flesh that ever walked, I must say that in
this case I feel myself thoroughly and shamefully worsted."

"Well, well," I said, "the end has not come yet; who knows what a talk
with Mrs. Belden will bring out? And, by the way, she will be coming
back soon, and I must be ready to meet her. Everything depends upon
finding out, if I can, whether she is aware of this tragedy or not. It
is just possible she knows nothing about it."

And, hurrying him from the room, I pulled the door to behind me, and led
the way down-stairs.

"Now," said I, "there is one thing you must attend to at once. A
telegram must be sent Mr. Gryce acquainting him with this unlooked-for
occurrence."

"All right, sir," and Q started for the doo