Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1885-04-24


me next few days passed in comparative
| inaction. went to see Gabrielle Dun,a;ne.
found her very calm, like Raoul; but ono
could easily see how severely she had been
tried by that cruel ordeal of the inquiry. All
her vivacity was gone; her cheeks were pale,
her movements languid; her dark eyes had
ceased to shine 1t would have wrung the
heart of any man to see her with her mother.
Mime. Dumaine had evidently no hope of
Raours innocence ever being established;
believe that, in her heart, she even doubted
whether he were innocent. Yet, for Ga
brielle's sake, she had to feign the most per-
feet confidence that all would go well.
And you will save him, M. Marsal?n Ga
brielle said to me with trembling eagerness as
l took my leave Remember, trust in yo,, !
Leave me word Of cor1fort-tell me that
may hope!"
"Mademoiselle," I said, "assurelly you
may hope. honestly believe that the right
clew will yet be found-tha RaouTs limo
cence will be put beyond all Doubt And IN
this said no more than I really thought
A few days after my interview with Sapin-
aud, received from him copy of the evi-
dence taken at the inquiry. At once I shut
myself up in my room, and setmyself to study
it as had never studied anything before
reading weighing, comparingend theorizing;
for three days did not leave the room, and,
but for Pierre, would almost have forgotten
to take food. The knowledge that Raorii's
life might be hanging on the result of MY
efforts seemed to lend me new powers
Of mind-or, at any rate powers that
had never before suspected myself of pos
sessing. 1t was, as it were a continuation of
that duel between myself and the judge of
instruction, of which the first passes had been
exchanged at the inquiry. seemed to enter
into the personality of each witness; to seize
at glance the significant point of each state
ment. found a fact to explain every diff
Guilty, a theory for every contradiction; my
brain was for the time abnormally clear and
active; it was state of mental tension which,
had it lasted, might have landed me either in
Bicetre or the presidents chair Of the courtof
cessation.
My study of the evidence led me to this
conclusion: that the judge of instruction,
starting from the assumption of Girard's guilt,
had, in several instances, unconsciously
warped important facts to make them fit in
with his own theory; but that one starting
from the contrary assumption, that of Girard's
innocence might take the same facts and
base upon them theory of the crime reveps-
ing that of the judge. Such negative evil
dence, however, would not suffice to clear Cir
ard of completely in the crime. Here and there
aweak link might be found in the chain of the
testimony against him; but to point out these
was not enough. 1t was necessary that the
adverse circumstantial evidence against him
should be overborne by circumstantial evil
dence equally strong in his favor. In
word, since Girard was not the assassin of
Joseph Meissner, that assassin must be found
My first proceeding was to go to the house
No. Is Passage de Mazarin, and question the
child Sophie Mouton, daughter Of the janitor
From her found out even more than I had
expected. Then went to certain wine shop
in the Rue st. Andre, which, as Sophie in
formed me, the janitor Mouton frequented
more than was for his good. There found
him, drinking with several Of his friends, and
recounting, no doubt for the hundredth time,
his share in the events of Meissner's murder
I had no difficulty in beginning a converse
ton with the janitor, and soon found out
from him, over glass Of milk punch, all that
I wanted to know.
'But it IS singular" said Mouton, 'Sanese
questions that Monsieur has asked; they are
precisely the same questions asked by the
little man with the sharp nose and the gray
coat"
"What man do you rnean~
"By Jove! that I cannot tell you. But he
was here two nights ago, sitting in the very
same place where Monsieur is sitting now,
and he asked the very same questions as Mon
sieurl He also accompanied me home, and
took away the key of M. Meissner's door,
He produced ON me the effect of an agent cf
police. Is it not SO, M. Bastoulg'
NJ. Bastoul said that it was so. I left the
wine-shop. wondering who the little man
could be, and for what purpose he was ash.
ing questions exactly like my own
Next day, in consequence of the answers
had received from Mouton and his daughter.
went with Sapinaud to the prefecture Of
police. I saw the two daggers which were
being kept there as evidence in the case of the
Passage de Mazarin-the one, that with which
the murder had been committed; the other,
that from the collection of NJ de St Florent,
In its curious fan-shaped sheath 1t was al
most impossible to distinguish between the
two weapons, they were so exactly alike
Both had the same writing on one side of the
blade; the same flower, with a SINGLE word
beside it, on the other. I took careful tracings
OF the Inscriptions on both daggers
To be L0ntinaet5
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