Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-03-21


Eyes.
sorrow. wholly selfish, absolutely unmfxed
with any human sympathy Tor the man
whose awful end We had both witnessed.
A boy in the janitors employ look
ed into the room. and at the sight
of the corpse fled in terror. I cried
out after him that the police must be sum-
moned: that Mr.. Davis had been muir
dered. and that the assassin had escaped
by the window
Within few minutes a policeman arrived
and took my place at the door, repeating
the order l had given to keep every one out
OF the room, and backing 1T UP by the dis
play of mis- authority.
There was only one person in the crowd
that made any trouble. He was a tall,
dark-visased fellow, whose appearance, as
we'll as his voice. suggested Italy as his
native land. 1 could not fully understand
what ne was saving, but it seemed to con-
tain an intimation that the fate which had
overtaken my uncle was just. I thought
the man crank with anarchist:c tenden-
cies, and paid no further attention to him.
Nobody was admitted but the ambulance
surgeon. who had been summoned. and Vice
President Rodney of the Union lines, who
YVES too important person to be excluded.
Stalbridge. meanwhile, had remained
standing like = statue beside my uncles
dead body, gazing down at it. He did not
move when the ambulance surgeon knait
to make his examination. 1t was quickly
done. ard lie disturbed as little ss possible
the position of the corpse
There are two wounds here he said, in
response to my questions. "One is upon
the right side of the head. 1t Was made by
glancing blow from some heavy instru-
ment having an edge, but not sharp like
Knife. The blow may have stunned him.
but II would not have killed him. The sec
ond wound was stab with small. round
and sharp-ponted instrument. like stilet-
to. 1t entered the right breast between the
seventh and eighth ribs. and seems to have
penetrated the heart. 1t must have caused
almost instant DEATH
Yet he was alive when we entered
cried in horror, glancing at Stalbritlge
we had the murderer under our very
hands and we let him escape"
Stalbridse answered with a sroan 7
looked at him, but he did not meet my
eyes; he was still staring at the corpse
The thought came to me that if this man
had not stopped me in the hall. I should
saved him. Unreasonable as it was, re-
preached him for w1at he had done.
Fate fate'' he mu.tere,l. still without
of this?"
My uncle's family. 1 thought should
be Informed at once, and the pain
fui task was surely mine. I spoke Of this
10 Rodney, and he said that l should 20 at
once. shuddered when 1 pictured the
grief of my aunt and my cousin Emily,
who has been already mentioned as the
betrothed OF Walter Norman. There was q
son, too, who must be summoned from col
lege by this terrible news
AS l was about to leave the room the
detective from police headquarters arrived
Inc detectlVe was in appearance the most
absolutely commonplace man that 1 had
ever seen. Perhaps 1 was expecting the de-
tectiVe OF romance, and thus derived an
ADDED impression of the ordinary from this
n an. johnson. ' He was about the medium
height and his face was of so conventional
a type that l began to wonder vaguely
whether L had seen him before His express
sion was somewhat vacant, but not with the
nf
hstlessness of man who has nothing to do
and very little to think about He was
dressed in the sort of clothes that one will
see The mcst of, If ne walks about the city
all day.
Excuse me- he-said. politely. eff you're
rot really in hurry. I'd like to ask a few
questions before you CO."
He asked but very few, and seemed almost
indifferent to my answers. Inde ed his indif-
ference piqued me. and was the more care
ful to tell my story accurately and to bring
cut ali the points. 1 succeeded in arousing
a certain amount of interest when told him
murderer; but he ceased to pay attention to
me when I said that 1 had failed to get
glimpse Of the escaping criminal.
Whose are these?' he asked, languidly,
displaying large number of keys on ring.
My uncle's." 1 exclaimed. Where did
you get them?"
Il picked them up he said, pointing to the
nc or near the door which led to the hall
THE murderer must have taken them
from my uncle's pocket and locked the door
immediateiy after the commission of the
crime said. I'VE found it locked
That was the way of 1t, of course" said
Johnson. There are bloodstains on the
door and the casing, as you have doubtless
observed"
I had not seen them, but when johnson
pointed ONT them out they were obvious:
He washed his hands afterWard" john
son continued. ",rhere is the towel on
which he wiped them
He pointed a: the towel In question,
which was thrown over the corner Of
looking glass that hung upon the wall.
Why did he throw it up there?" I NUT
tered, half to myself
ut was not thrown said Johnson "You
can see that. 1t was bung up there"
The top of the looking glass, which
v as very large one. was nearly eight feet
from tie floor.
He must have been a giant" I ex-
claimed. Ito reach so high"
"a tall man. probably" said johnson.
Has anybody meddcd with the towel, the
hereabouts"
Nothing has been disturbed" said Stall
bridge.
mo blood here" he said; this water is
perfectly Clean
He pointed into the bowl, where there
was little water. On looking more
closely than Johnson had done, / was able
to discover few spots of blood at the up-
uer edge of the bowl where the horizontal
slab was set over it, When Johnson's at.
tention was called to them he scanned
them closely.
1 had begun to feel considerable respect
for the detectives ability. The quiet way in
which he had possessed himself OF the lsevs
without attracting anybody's attention had
excited my curiosity, and had led me to be-
Eeve that there was more in him than ap.
peared upon the surface. But when had
demonstrated the superiority of my own