The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1894-11-23
vent down on my hands and knees to

went down on my hands and knees to
examine.
was well satisfied. In five minutes
had made an important discovery.
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 a matter of some difficulty,
considering the number of people who
had been there since But finally |
traced them across a flower bed into
the shrubbery, 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 a lit
tie of the tar on his person. In fact,
the marks of his fingers were quite
distinct.
On getting back had p, easant half
hour in the billiard room with Mr.. Eng
strom.
Capt. Olyer returned just in time for
dinner, and l 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
its use.
we had nnisheG ---,n, when begged
| q thousand pardons for I~--ing the
| table for a few minutes. Nv hosl
| looked a little surprised at my want of
manners, and the captain surveyed me
| through his eyeglasses as though |
| were a new kind of animal. / was
only gone a few minutes, but it was
time well spent
When we reached dessert and Mrs.
Engstrom had left the table, led the
| conversation round to the burglary,
and induced the captain to give his YER
sion. l waited till he had finished
and then, looking at him steadily,
| said:
| Now, isn't it rather a 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
a glass of wine.
| What do you mean, sir?" he asked
| at last.
Il mean," I replied, still watching
him keeniv. was it not a curious thing
that you should be tripped by blades
| of grass? And is it not curious also"
| went on, mercilessly, that your
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 tremblcd.
and DIR. Engstrom gasped out: Mr..
DE Warre, whatever are you suggest
ing?"
| Il 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-
terousr
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 if seeking a way to
escape.
''Sit down." cried Engstrom, land if
you want to save yourself from Jail
make full confession. De Warre, ]
beg your pardon"
Don't trouble about that" l 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-
geant 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
had to relate how l had unearthed
the conspiracy.
| First of all, said, 1.-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
/ mad 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-I thought
| things were very suspicious against
him. Upstairs / found that it was
little trouble for him to slip into your
| wife's room and throw the casket
| down as soon as she left the room. /
| learned that he had been the last to
| appear at the dinner table, and the
case was strengthened. At the rail
way station l discovered that a man
answering to the description of his
| servant had arrived from London by
the $50 o'clock train, and not by the
| 9:15 o'clock, as it was made to appear.
What effect the telegram had you al
ready know. In tracing the footsteps
through the shrubbery l found that
whoever had passed over the palings
must have carried away some of the
tar on his clothing. At dinner last
night 1 seized my only opportunity and
examined the mans overcoat and a
pair of trousers The tar was there,
and he had evidently tried to remove
il. That is all, / think. k."-Tid-Bits