r attention, and sent both your thoughts and hers
in a different direction. Not till conscience had fully awakened and the
horror of your act had had time to tell upon your sensitive nature, did
you breathe forth those vague confessions, which, not being supported by
the only explanations which would have made them credible, led her, as
well as the police, to consider you affected in your mind. Your pride as
a man, and your consideration for her as a woman, kept you silent, but
did not keep the worm from preying upon your heart.

"Am I not correct in my surmises, Dr. Zabriskie, and is not this the
true explanation of your crime?"

With a strange look, he lifted up his face.

"Hush!" said he; "you will awaken her. See how peacefully she sleeps! I
should not like to have her awakened now, she is so tired, and I--I have
not watched over her as I should."

Appalled at his gesture, his look, his tone, I drew back, and for a few
minutes no sound was to be heard but the steady dip-dip of the oars and
the lap-lap of the waters against the boat. Then there came a quick
uprising, the swaying before me of something dark and tall and
threatening, and before I could speak or move, or even stretch forth my
hands to stay him, the seat before me was empty and darkness had filled
the place where but an instant previous he had sat, a fearsome figure,
erect and rigid as a sphinx.

What little moonlight there was only served to show us a few rising
bubbles, marking the spot where the unfortunate man had sunk with his
much-loved burden. We could not save him. As the widening circles fled
farther and farther out, the tide drifted us away, and we lost the spot
which had seen the termination of one of earth's saddest tragedies.

* * * * *

The bodies were never recovered. The police reserved to themselves the
right of withholding from the public the real facts which made this
catastrophe an awful remembrance to those who witnessed it. A verdict of
accidental death by drowning answered all purposes, and saved the memory
of the unfortunate pair from such calumny as might have otherwise
assailed it. It was the least we could do for two beings whom
circumstances had so greatly afflicted.

THE END.

THE INCOGNITO LIBRARY.

A series of small books by representative writers, whose names will for
the present not be given.

In this series will be included the authorized American editions of the
futur