Waterbury evening Democrat., 1895-02-14

interest IO the sCleDIlHc UclSCllNel eSpeClht' ly in cases of unclaimed bodies or in dis covering the antecedents of criminals But l weary you with my hobby"
 Not nt all, answered earnestly. Ut is of the greatest interest to me, especially since have had the opportunity of ob- serving your practical application of it. But you spoke just now of observation and deduction. Surely the one to some extent implies tho other"
 Why, hardly" he answered. leaning back luxuriously in his armchair and sending up thick blue wrcaths from his pipe, ~'For example, observation shows me that you have been to the Wiglnore street postoffice this morning. but deduc- tion lets mo know that when there you dispatched telegram.
 Right" said I. Right on both points. But confess that 1 don't sec how you ar rived at it. It was a sudden impulse upon my part, and have mentioned 1t to no one"
 Ut Is simplicity itself," he remarked, chuckling at my surprise, ''so absurdly simple that an explanation Is superfluous, and yet 1t may serve to define tho limits | of observation and of deduction. Observa- tion tells me that you have Q little rcd. dish mold adhering to your instep. Just | opposite the Seymour street office they have taken up the pavement and thrown up some earth. which lies in such n way | that it is difficult to avoid treading in 1t | in entering. The earth is of that peculiar reddish tint which is found, as far as know, nowhere else in the neighborhood. | So much is observation The rest is de- l duction
 How then. did you de'iure the :cle gram!"
 "Why, of course kneN -iSat you had not written a letter, since 1 sat opposite | to you all morning. 1 see also in your | open desk there that you have a sheet of stamps and a thick bundle of postcards. l What could you go into the postofiice for l then but to send wire! Eliminate all other factors, and the one which remains must be the truth. ."
 'In this case 1t certainly Is so, re piled after little thought. "The thing, however, is. as you say, of the simplest. l Would you think me impertinent if were to put your theories to a more severe test?" | "On the contrary" he answered, it would prevent me from taking a second dose of cocaine. should be delighted to look into any problem which you might submit to me
 II have heard you say that it Is difficult | for a man to have any object in daily use without leaving the impress of his indi- | viduality upon it in such way that a | trained observer might read it. Now, l | have here watch which has recently come into my possession. Would you have the kindness to let me have an opinion upon the character or habits of the late | owner!'
 handed him over the watch, with some slight feeling of amusement in my heart, for the test was, as 1 thought, an | impossible one, md 1 intended 1t as q les son against the somewhat dogmatic tone l which he occasionally assumed. He bal anced the watch in his hand, Gazed hard at the dial, opened the back and examined tho works, first with his naked eyes and then with a powerful convex lens. I could hardly keep from smiling at his crestfallen face when he finally snapped the case to and handed it back
 "Thcre are hardly any data. ," he re- marked The watch has been recently cleaned. which robs me of my most sug. gestivc facts.
 You arc right, l answered It was cleaned before being sent to me- In my heart l accused my companion of putting forward a most lame and impOtent excuse to cover his failure. What data could he expect from an uncleaned watchs
 Though unsatisfactory, my search has not been entirely barren" he observed, staring up at the ceiling with dreamy, lack luster eyes Subject to your correc tion, should judge that the watch be lOnged to your elder brother, who inherit cd it from your father.
 That you gather no doubt from the H ". upon the baCk:
 Quite so The W suggests your owr name The date of the watch is nearly 5C years back. and the initials are as old q: the watch. so 1t was made for the last gen eratiou Jewelry usually desoends to thC eldest son, and he Is most lii ely to have the same name nS the father four father has if remember right, bceI dead many years It has therefore been in the hands of your eldest brother" ."
 Right so far said Anything eIse''
 He was a man of untidy habit: -ver1 untidy and careless He was lele -GltI good prospects, but he threw away hi chances, lived for some time in poverty with occasional short intervals of prospcri ty, and finally, taking to drink. ho died That Is all can gather"
 l sprang from my chair and limped i'm patiently about the room, with considera
 ble bitterness in my heart
 This Is unworthy of you. Holiness "
 said T could not have believed that vol would have descended to this. You hay
 made inquiries into tho history of my un
 happy brother and you now pretend t
 dc1uce this knowledge in some fancifu
 way. You cannot expect me to believ
 that you have read all this from his ol
 watch. It Is unkind, and, to speak plain
 ly, has a touch of charlatanism in it
 My dear doctor" said he kindly, "pra
 acccpt my apologies Viewing the matte as an abstract problem, had forgotten
 how personal and painful thing 1t migh be to you. l assure you, however, that never even knew that you had a brothe until you handed me the watch
 Then how in the name of all that ! wonderful did you get these factsf The
 are absolutely correct in every particular.
 "Ah, that is good luck. I could only sa what was the balance of probability
 did not expect to be so accurate" But it was not mere guesswork?"
 "No, no never guess. It is Q shock ing habit-destructive to tho logical faC ! Ulty. What seems strange to you Is onl 70 because you do not follow my train (
 thought or observe tho small facts upo which large inferences may depend. Fo , example. I began by stating that you ! brother was careless. When you observ the lower part of that watch case, you nc ; tice that 1t Is not only dented in tw places, but 1t is cut and marked all ovC from the habit of keeping other hard ot jects, such as coins or keys, in tho sam
 pocket. Surely 1t is no great feat to a 2 sumo that a man who treats 50 guinG watch so cavalierly must bo a carele. : man. Neither is 1t very far fetched il | ference that a man who inherits one art ? cle of such value Is pretty well provide
 for in other respects"
 nodded to show that l followed h , reasoning.
 Tt is very customary for pawnbrokel ,, in England when they take a watch
 scratch the number of the ticket with IS pinpoint upon the inside of the case. ss Is more handy than a label, as thero Is [ .S. xlsE of thn nnnh hnrs kninn lnst tran