Weekly commercial herald. (Vicksburg, Miss.) 1884-18??, 1886-01-01

at home; or on the rack in the j~anitor's room,
when lie was abroad. Wesuppooeo our assassin
TO have yasched Meissneris movements care
fully; to 30 thoroughly acquainted with his
habits. HoEnows that every evening with
out fail the old moneylender goes out at SIX
o'clock, and returns at nine. Good; he win
seek to gam possession of the key between
these hours. Now, Monsieur, you have talked
with Mcutcn the %janitor, and with hisdaugh-
ter Sophie. You nave made notes Of your
conversation with these persons; 1 have made
none-I never do. Icarry them all herer-
NJ. Blery tapped his brow-'but | should DO
glad to listen to yours. You found the child
Sophie Mouton intelligent, did you notF
"Certainly. She appcarsto have been some
what agitated during her examination by the
Judge, but she answered my questions most
clearly"
Gas she did mine. And now, Monsieur,
for the notes Of your conversation"
every good; hero. they are: Sophie Mou-
ton states that about two months agc-th
exact date she cannot rcmember-a man
came to No. 10 Passage de Mazarin desiring
to see Joseph Meissner. It was after six
o'clock; Meissner had gone out as usual. So
phie Mouton, who CHANGED to be alone in the
j~anitor's room, said 50 to Meissner's visitor.
"'The stranger, Sophie Mouton says, was
evidently a foreigner, both from his appear
ance and accent. He was Of medium height
and slim fgure'-"
"Of medium height and slim fgure-that
is it" said N. Blery.
"FHad @ dark complexion, straight black
hair, and very dark, sunken eyes. She could
IAA -, L. u. ,.Es--. L. 1.aI~-.oI. l. JsI
not look like either an italian or q Spaniard
seemed more foreign than that-such was the
phrase. He must have come from a warm
climate"
ga warm climatey' murmured NJ. Blery.
'Proceed, Monsieur, proceed!'
Because he shivered constantly, and
complained bitterly in his broken French of
the cold. He was in evening dress, and wore
a fur cloak hung loosely over his shoulders.
"'When informed that Meissner had gone
out he seemed annoyed, and asked at what
hour he might be expected to return. The
girl told him at nine o'clock; then the stran-
ger, looking out at the weather, which was
wet, and down at his dress boots, which were
thin, asked Sophie to oblige him by fetching
a cab, as he had dismissed ais on arriving.
Leaving him alone in the room, Sophie ran to
the stand at the corner of the R;ia s.. E.sire
and brought a cab; the stranger thanked her,
gave her o five-franc piece, and then drove
off, after saying that he would return that
night, as he wished to see Meissner par
ticularly.'"
LEFT alone in the j~anitor's room" said M.
Blery, che takes down Meissner's key from
the rack. Proceed, Monsieur, proceedp
"'About eight O'Clock he came back; no K
planned that he had not understood what the
girl had said; thought she had mentioned
eight, not nine, as the hour Of Meissner's re-
turn; he found French SO difficult to under
stand! It mattered little, however; he would
wait, If they would allow him. Mouton the
janitor had by this time come beck from the
wine shop; with him tho stranger sat, talk
ing very afably in his broken French.
Mouton reconects having told the stranger,
in tho course of conversation, that he re-
minded him in speech and appearance Of an
other foreigner, q client of Meissner's, who
had been accustomed to visit the usurer fire.
quently, up to about a year before. The
stranger remarked that that might possibly
DO n of his compatriots, but did not men
ton to what country he belonged.
ALbSI luIhlL8 III hDDub lluLI I'LL lOuTs blID
stranger suP0ested that the girl should be sent
for a bottle OF wine. Moufon agreed with
alacrity; tho stranger gave Sophie money to
pay for it. During her absence it seems that
he asked Mouton to look out and tell him
whether it still rai1ed; the %ianitor complied,
going to the outer door, and SO leaving the
stranger alone in the room for, perhaps, a
minute.'n
During which minute" observed N.
Blery, ''our man replaces Meissner's key on
the rack
"No doubt. Well: Presently Sophie
Mouton returns with the wine; the stranger
sits down, fills glasses for Mouton and him
self, and chats with the janitor for a few
minutes longer. Suddenly he rises, saying
that he wishes to see whether the rain has
stopped. He goes to the outer door-and
never returns )"
"Preciacly," said NJ. Blery; 'never re-
turns. No; he has got what he came for.
And nov, Monsieur, let me ask you if you
put any question to the janitor Mouton re-
garding that other foreigner of whom he was
reminded by his ccEpla:sant v~1sitorg'
eyes; it occurred to me that this was sig.
nilcant.'
AullltciDlJl IlhlllulCIl IL OlCl I'LL
ablel He neglcct5 nothing-misses not O
single pointl Aborn deteotive!-WeL, Mon.
sieurF'
"This other foreigner, Mouton informed
me, had been for q long Tina more than q
year, most ncziduccs il his visits to the old
u5urer. He was one of those unfortunatos,
the ~janitor said, whom Meissner had 'layed.i
At first he u3o1 to drive up to their door in a
caSriolet, or riIo with agroomfo following him.
but toward tho end of his acquaintance with
tho old jew his clothes had become shabby;
and finally Meissner had given The order that
no Yves to be admitted no more. 1t was more
than a year, Mouton told me, since he hadlasi
seen thisman."
"Monsiegr attaches a evident Importance
to this other foreigner. Ho thinks that there
may DO some connection between him and
Mou1on's mysterious visitor OF two months
backGn
eyes. They were very like each other, the
janitor says-the same build, the same cast
Of features, the same accent in their speech.
1 connect them with sech other; I connect
them also with the wei! ton used in the com.
mission Of the crime. The dagger is Of
Japanese workmanship the two foreigners
may belt is a mere su1.nise, but there is al
least something in its favor-the two for.
eigners may BIO Japanese"
''That is moro than q surmise, Monsieur-it
is an idea; an idea which has also occurred tc
myself. And now as to the daggers-I take
it we gained precisely the same information
from NJ. BeauvaisP'
"No doubt, but I shall ask your attention