The Vancouver independent. (Vancouver, W.T. [Wash.]) 1875-1910, 1877-08-30
The Model Detective.
BY WILLIAM o. EATON.

"Murder will out, some time, sure -
exclaimed Daniel Wonder to a few hear
ers, as he laid down paper from which
he had just been reading aloud Case of
mysterious murder, the perpetrator of
which had been discovered after years of
ingenious and tortuous search. II have
many time noticed it. 1t is according
to the laws of nature, and must be so, if
not right off, then by and-by; if not to-
day, tomorrow, next day, then year, ten,
fifty, perhaps hundred years hence. The
murder and the murderer are sure to come
out. If was on Il plank alone with
man in the middle of the ocean, ard was
70 murder him and sink him, With no ship
~ sight, shouldn't feel safe Some
time or other something would bring me
out. If l didn't tell of myself, asleep or
awake, his bones would rise, orr
''Or his sperrit?" assisted somebody.
"No; don't believe in spirits but his
bones, clothes, .or the pIank-or il might
be somcbo iy might be looking at me
from ship oat of sight, through n pow
erful spy-g ass, or perhaps from another
plank, or perhaps happening + pass
by overhead in six balloon, and
see me do it-and so | should fee sure l
was not sair until at last | was led out to
be hung. You see there IS always a chain
of evidence between the murderer and
the murdered. 1t may DE short or long.
1t may be broken into many separate
links; but IN time one man picks up one
link here, another link there, another
another, and so on, until all the links are
found and put together, and they are
strong enough to hang the man"
at does seem So" said one of the lis
teners, in thoughtful awe.
Seems So. 1t is sol always know
that murder will out, and have seen many
singular Gases of it. But the most singu-
lar case ! ever heard of was of the
fate OF Pau Iicra, of Mosscreek, clerk
IN dry-g oGs store, and so covered up,
according - the report, that no evidence
was suppo, FL TO be left of it. He was
Unexpectedly missed one day, and his
body was not found till three years after
wards People gave up all hopes OF
hearing ab u the poor fellow, how he
came TO his death, or where, or what for
or who or where his murderer was, until a
traveller came to Mosscreek, and hearing
of the murder of poor Paul Picra, he un-
dertook to find the body, or, at least, the
real criminai, and bring him TO justice
This travellers name was solomon Fox
paw, and h. prded himself on his de
tective pow ers-his penetration and per
seyerance-and he had restless, rolling
staring, snappy kind of eye that seemed
10 take in every thing about him at a
Dao,>la
they didn't expect it. Yet he didn't care
for what they expected. He set to work
TO find some links for chain of evidence.
"But don't see"-
"You can't see anything, yet. You
must wait and see. Solomon Foxpaw
made inquiries, for a month, but ascer-
tanned just about nothing which would
Iead to the first link. He then sat down
and reflected alone for three days, aud
finally he said TO himself, Here is piece
Of woods out here, and Paul Picra was
said to be poorly. What more likely
than he should walk in the woods for his
health--and there be murderedT"
"To be sure. What, indeedlT
"With this idea, Sol, without saying a
word to anybody-because he hated in
corruption as bad as I do-walks on,
alone into the woods, and kicks abou,
among the dry leaves, and examines the
ground, aud the rocks, and the trees, with
strong suspicion"
ITO find a clewi"
"Why, of course, to find clewr'
"But | don't see"-
"You never piu see, if you don't wait
and follow his eyes and ideas. He pretty
soon found various letters, carved on va
nous trees-initisls of names, perhaps
and among them all at last he discovered
op tree by emselves, the letters p. p
"Perilous Place, suppose"
sPerilous Place, you suppose! No
Paul Picra he supposed, for ne knew -
to suppose. He certainly cut those let
tsrs,' Foxpaw felt convinced; and be pu
down p. p as his first link. Nov,
says he, I've got something to work on,
and be felt encouraged. Looking abou
him q little sharper, as if Providence has
directed him, he found rusty jack-knife