death at the hands of an unknown party, and so the inquest ended. Murder
was fully established, but the murderer was not found.

In the mean time Detective Keene had made some discoveries that he kept
to himself for the time.

No one in or about Ridgewood knew Sile Keene, and so he did not at the
outset deem it necessary to assume a disguise.

The bereaved brother did not live at the cottage after the murder, but
found a room at the village tavern. Oft times, however, he wandered to
the lonely cottage, and in silence brooded over the scene of the murder.
He stood thus one day when the sound of a step startled him. He raised
his eyes to peer into the face of a ragged tramp.




CHAPTER IV.

WAS IT A CONFESSION?


The city of Grandon was only a few miles distant from Ridgewood and
connected by rail. It was a small city of mushroom growth, as is
characteristic of many Western towns.

It was here that the engineer August Bordine resided.

He was well to-do, supporting a widowed mother, giving her a comfortable