me right for killing that poor girl! Yes, I'm to blame that
Oswald Langdon and Alice Webster were drowned! But tell the jury, Mary
and the children were hungry! Tell them that. Tell the judge about Mary
and the children. Don't forget to tell the judge that! Tell everybody
about that!"

There was a long silence. With scared faces Sir Donald and Esther bent
over the motionless form. The attending physician felt the wrist,
listened for heart-throbs. A cordial was administered. That deathlike
swoon lasted for several minutes, followed by slow return to
consciousness. It was evident that further attempt of the sick man to
relate his experiences with these archconspirators then would be
unadvisable. The physician said there was some hope of the man's
recovery, but that quiet and rest were imperative. Sir Donald and Esther
were loth to go, but the hospital rules were strict. They left, much
interested in the fate of William Dodge.

The confession, though confirming Sir Donald's theory of this
conspiracy, was startling. That Paul Lanier had murdered both Oswald and
Alice was evident. But what had become of the bodies? Could it be that
the hat and handkerchief were placed where found to mislead as to manner
of deaths? Were the bodies still in the river, or buried elsewhere?
Perhaps the remains of Oswald and Alice had been reduced to ashes and
scattered to the winds. How could the necessary evidence be obtained?
How bring their murderers to justice without proof of the "corpus
delicti"? Could this dying man know other facts furnishing a clew to
establish their deaths? Would it be right to harass him with further
inquiry upon the verge of the tomb? Why employ his slender thread of
life in unraveling this intricate web. Better point him to that hope
which is the refuge of a sinful soul.

But is there any way of saving this guilty wretch, with his crimes
unconfessed? First confession, then shriving of the penitent.

Limit the mercy of Heaven? Is the Infinite compassion contingent upon
finite fellow tactics?

Sir Donald and Esther felt more solicitude for the sick man's recovery
than in further revelations.

Next day they are early callers at the hospital. William Dodge is still
alive, but delirious. He slept much of the night, but is flighty, making
many wild, incoherent speeches. Receiving permission to see him, Sir
Donald and Esther approach the cot.

"No, Mary, I will never let you or the children starve! I got the money