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 home from his earnings.
About a week after the tragedy at Ridgewood as Bordine was walking down the street his eyes was attracted by a poster on a dead wall near.
He paused and read: