The Soul Stealer

tly afterwards the whole of England, realized

the popular mind than the sudden disappearan

ng even more sensational than that had taken place, the Press began to be on the alert. In ten days' time such as were known of the facts of Mr. Guy Rathbone's apparent departure from ordinary life had become the topic of the hour. The newspapers were filled with columns of surmises. Hour by hour, as the evening papers of London and the provinces appeared, new theories, clues, explanations filled the leader pages and the contents'

in and again in the Press and in general conver

n, was slowly but steadily climbing the laborious ladder of the Bar, was popular in

larly open one. His movements had never suggested anything secret or disreputable. His friends were all people in good circumstances, and no one had ever alleged any shady acquaintances against him. He was in perfect health, was constantly in the habit of taking exercise at the German Gymnasium, st

ieve even that he had made away with himself in a sudden fit of morbidity or madness. It was shown that there had been no taint of insanity in his family for several generations. The theory of suicide was clearly untenable. This was the conclusion to which journalists, police, and

d of. Such things have happened, such things do, though very rarely, happen in the London of to-day. But the class of criminal who makes a practice and livelihood of robbery with violence, of attempted or actual murder, is a small class. Every member of it is intimately known to the police, and Scotland Yard was able to discover no singl

engaged in trying to solve this mystery h

e? Was he alive? was he dead

ll invitations. Many people who had invited him to this or that function now came forward and announced that their invitations had been declined, as Mr. Rathbone had said he was going out of town for a short time. Inquiries in the Temple showed th

erally arrived at seven and left about twelve, returning again for an hour about six in the evening, to make up the fires and do anything else that might be required. Rathbone eit

te as regular as usual in the fortnight or so before his disappearance,

n law books. On several occasions when she had arrived at six in the evening, she had found that he did not require his dress clothes put ou

, significant of something. But what that something was nobody knew, and

, the bed-maker, had cooked the breakfast as usual, and had asked her master if he would excuse her attendance in the evening, as she had a couple

o Mr. Rathbone's bedroom. There was no answer to my knock, and when I opened the door and went in, thinking he was over-sleeping himself, I found the bed had not been slept in. This was very unusual in a gentleman of Mr. Rathbone's regular habits. It would not have attracted my notice in the case of some gentlemen I have been in the habit of doing for, who were accustomed to stay out without any intimation of the fact. But I did think it strange in the case of Mr. Guy, always a very steady gentleman.

inner on the night of his disappearance. His evening clothes were not in the wardrobe, and the morning suit he ha

at the barrister had no thought of

had few relations, though many friends. His only surviving relative appeared to be his uncle, a brother of his mother, who was the Dean of Bexeter. The clergyman was interviewed, and stated that he

ety, while the comment and amazement was no less in inten

illiam Gouldesbrough, F.R.S. How far matters had gone between the young couple was only conjectured, but at the moment of Rathbone's disappearance it was generally beli

countess and the coster-monger alike. The countess may, perhaps, preserve a secret a little

te life of anybody can be called in good taste, the article was certainly written with a due regard to proprieties, and with an obvious attempt to avoid hurting the feelings of any one. But, as it was pointed out in a prefatory note, the

ated a tremendous sensation,

of the most distinguished Englishmen of the day, had lately been much seen with the vanished man. The gossip of society had hinted that this

bear upon t

ncipal characters in the supposed little drama of love really were. Everybody spoke freely of old Sir Fr

ht upon the mystery, and only provided a possible motive for Mr. Guy Rathbone's suicide. And then once more people were compelled to ask themselves if Mr. Rathbone really was in love with Miss Po

ion there was abs