Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1896-01-16
came In, and, I think, took the upper
berth hf No. lO.n

came IN, and, thlnk, TOOK the upper
berth bf No. 10. "
Mr.. Barnes began to think that he
would have exceedingly difficult work
to detect this man in crime were he
really to commit one i'll spite of the fact
that he knew so much in advance. The
conversation continued:
"Thus, you see, there are two ways
by which my object may become known,
a serious matter if unguarded against.
As, however, recognize the possibilities
in advance, there will be "a difficulty
whatever, and the knowledge will be of
no value to any detective, even though
he be your Mr.. Barnes"
"How will you avoid that dangerf"
"My dear boy, do you suppose for an
instant that would reply to shat after
pointing out that detective may be lis
tening? However, will give you an
idea. will show you what l meant
when said that Pettingill had blum
dered. You said that he had lost only a
button and thought it clever in Barnes
to trace him from the button. But a
button may be a most important thing.
If 1 should lose one of the buttons of my
vest while committing a crime, Mr..
Barnes would trace me out in much less
than ten days, and for this reason they
are the only ones of the kind in the
world
"How does that happen? 1 supposed
that buttons were made by the thou
sand. "
"Not all buttons. For reasons which
need not tell the possibly listening de-
tective, friend travelling abroad had q
set made specially and brought them
back to me as a present. They are hand
somely cut canoes, half the set having
the profile head Of Juliet and the others
a similar face of Romeo.
"A romance?"
'That is immaterial. Suppose that /
should plan robbery in order to decide
this wager. As necessity would not urge
me either as to time or place, l should
choose my opportunity, let us say, when
but one person guarded the treasure.
That one l should chloroform and also
tie Next, should help myself to the
designated pluuder. Suppose that as L
were about to depart a sleeping, uncal-
culated for pet dog should jump out and
bark furiously? l reach for it, and 1t
snaps at me, biting my hand. l grapple
it by the throat and strangle it, but in
its death throes it bites my vest, and a
button falls to the ground and rolls
away. The dog is at last silenced. Your
ordinary burglar by this time would be
so unnerved that he would hasten off,
not even realizing that he had been bit
ten, that blood had flowed, or that the
button was lost Mr.. Barnes is sent to
the house the next day. The lady sus-
poets her coachman, and Mr.. Barnes
consents TO his arrest, not because he
thinks him guilty, but because, as the
mistress thinks so, he may be, and then
more especially, his arrest will hull the
fear Of the real culprit. Mr.. Barnes
would observe blood on the ground, ON
the dogs mouth, and he would fiTd the
button. From the button he would find
Mr.. Thief, with his hand bitten, and
there you are.
but how should you avoid all thatF
"In tho first place, were really wise,
l should not have telltale buttons about
me at such a time. But let us suppose
that the time had not been Of my own
choosing; then the buttons might have
been with me. Assured as | should have
been that the only person in the house
lay chloroformed and tied | should not
have lost my nerve, as did the other in
dividual. Neither should 1 have allowed
myself to be bitten, though if the acCi-
dent had occurred l should have stopped
to wash up the stain from the carpet
while fresh, and also from the dog s
mouth. | should have discovered the
loss Of the button, searched for and re-
covered it, united the victim and opened
the windows, that the odor of chloroform
could pass off during the night In fact,
in the morning the only evidence of
crime would have been the strangled
dog and the absence Of the pef "
"It is easy enough TO explain your ac-
tions under supposititious circumstances.
But 1 doubt if in Pettingills shoes you
would have been able to retain your
presence Of mind and recover the lost
button which led to his final arrest "
"It is possible that you are right, for
had 1 been Pettingrl ] should have been
coerced by necessities as he was, Yet
think SHOULD not have plapped supAA
robbery chQosilg my oTp time Aa-ba