The Van Buren press., 1894-11-17

up, brought them again. II was flrs
but strong wire, fastened TO the ground
by small iron pegs
Are the wires In the exact placey'
u put the pegs in the very holes" F"
replied the gardener. "You can sea
the holes yourself, sir.s
| "And now should like 70 be ieft
alone a little" | said. ~ want 70
make some minute investigations"
My wish was complied with, and I
went down on my hands and knees to
examine
was well satisfied In five minutes
had made an important discovery.
l next examined the window where
the burglars had entered from the out.
side, and then entering the house /
went upstairs and with the help OF the
maid examined the bedroom. The
window had been left half open, the
maid said, as master was so particular
about fresh air." Next inspected the
footsteps, matter of some difficulty,
considering the number Of people who
had been there since. But finally I
traced them across flower bed into
the shrnbbery, where they were quite
distinct. Only one person had passed
there, and ! came to the conclusion
the sapient police had evolved two
robbers from their inner conscious
ness But what interested me more
was that the palings which separated
the shrubbery from public by-way
had lately been tarred and were not
yet dry. The robber had climbed over
the palings, and whoever he was
he must have carried away . lit
tie of the tar on his person. In fact,
the marks of his fingers were quite
distinct.
On getting back had . Pleasant half
hour in the billiard room with Mr.. Eng
strom.
Capt Olyer returned Just in time for
dinner, and was only introduced to
him as we entered the dining-room.
He was faultlessly got up, of well-made
figure and handsome features, bearing
large traces Of dissipation. As for his
speech, he had an invincible objection
to the letter IT." and carefully avoided
its use
We had finished soup, when begged
Thousand pardons for leaving the
table for a few minutes. My host
looked little surprised at my want Of
manners, and the captain surveyed me
through his eyeglasses as though !
were q new kind OF animal. was
only gone few minutes, but 1t was
time we'll spent.
When we reached dessert and Mira
Engstrom had left the table, l led the
conversation round to the burglary,
and induced the captain to give his YER
sion. waited till he had finished,
and then, looking at him steadily.
said:
Now, isn't it rather q curious thing,
Capt Olyer. that you should fall over
the wires when they were quite three
feet away?"
Engstrom stared at me. and the cap
tain did not answer till he had drank
q glass of wine.
what do you mean. sir?' he asked
at last.
Il mean" I replied, still Watching
him keenly, twas it not curious thing
that you should be tripped by blades
of grass? And is it not curious ALSO"
l went on. mercilcssly, that your
servant, or rather your accomplice.
should be standing under the bedroom
window here at the same time he was
in London?"
The captain sat dazed and pale and
motionless, though his hands trembled.
and DR.. Engstrom gasped out: ''Mr.
De Warre, whatever are you suggest
ing?"
II suggested" l answered, as stead.
lily as before, ''that the burglar Is sit
ting before you"
"Sir!" thundered Mr.. Engstrom.
pale with emotion; you are forget
ting yourself. To accuse my old
friends son Of being thief Prepos-
terousv'
This is not your old friends son,
Mr.. Engstrom. Capt. Olyer, OF the
Thirty-eighth hussars, is at present
with his regiment at Woolwich. and
replied to me to-day. Here is the tele-
gram:
"'Capt. Olyer to De Ware: Am here.
What is the meaning of this inquiry !"
The pseudo captain had risen and
looked around as il seeking . way to
escape.
"Sit down." cried Engstrom, ''and II
you want to save yourself from Jail
make full confession. Dc Ware, !
beg your pardon"
Don't trouble about that" I said;
"of course it was hard to credit it."
The poor wretch sat down again aud
stammered out his story. His name
turned out to be Odgers, an ex-ser-
eeant in the hussars, expelled from
the army in disgrace. His accomplice.
who acted as his servant, had hidden
the Jewels in the wood near the house,
till they could safely be removed.
At breakfast time the next morning
I had to relate how I had unearthed
the conspiracy.
"First Of ALL" said, "the fact that
the burglary occurred shortly after
YOU had brought the jewelry from
London convinced me that the thief
was some one in the house. And when
I had the wires relaid and found that
the captain had fallen three feet away
from them-a fact which discovered
from the impression made by his knees
and the toes of his boots-l thought
things were very suspicious against
him. Upstairs | found that 1t was
little trouble for him to slip into your
wife's room and throw the casket
down as soon as she left the room. l
learned that he had been the last to