Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1897-06-04


Hold on! not so fast! All, see you
are not following me; but you'll catch
Oh in moment, so let's continue. She
| next showed us her tracks. Did you
notice how deepan distinct they were?
| 1t was the first thing that struck me.
Her mother is twice as heavy as she is,
and stood in the same sort of soil, but
her feet made hardly any. impressions.
Don't forget that marked the spot
where Mrs. Walters stood with my
umbrella; after that, you know, we
went over to the fence. There is
minor point here in Mrs. Walters
being the first to see the footprints be-
You'd the fence, but we will pass that,
and come to the footprints themselves.
Did you notice nothing remarkable
about them, captain? No? Well. in
all my experience never saw such COM
ical footprints. was tempted to laugh
outright, but it would have spoiled
everything, so | sn.othered my amuse
1nent."
II saw nothing remarkable about
them" said Capt. Welsh, impatiently.
"They were made, captain, by mems
slippers. number ten, with very thin
soles. The heels had been well pressed
down into the soft clay, and so were the
middle parts of the soles, but the thin
edges all round had turned up so easily
that only a faint impression of the bot
tom was left"
what did you deduce from that?"
asked Welsh, still perplexed.
THAT they were worn by feet not
they had doubtless been drawn on over
j pair of boots. saw by the shape Of
the track that the right one had come
off once as the wcarer drew it from the
mud"
"Ah! curious!" exclaimed the cap
tain; but l don't yet see what you are
driving at, though think you suspect
but how could you? Why"
But that is not ALL" the detective
went on, smiling. You remember, per-
haps, that l asked if it had rained out
there recently. Well, | was trying to
account, since there has not been any
rain lately, for that naturally dry spot
of clay being soft enough to have re-
ceived such distinct footprints. On
close examination. detected the faint
semicircular mark of vessel in the
edge of the grass, and, at exactly the
right distance from it, spot where a
little water had tricliled down from the
: spout on the clay"
} "Ah, the watering pot!" cried Welsh.
) "Wonderful! wonderful! Now | know
: what all that rigmarole to the garden
J er meant"
'Yes. and found a little water in it
too, and learned that it had last night
been left on the floor when Robert de.
clared that he usually hung it up,.and on
. the bottom of it the stupid rainmakel
had left trace of the very clay in
: which we found the footprints. But
am too fast; foryou rcmember,as stood
at the big tracks, | sighted along over
the fence at my umbrella on the lawn
81 remember" said Welsh, with (;
; laugh And / own | thought you
| were making blooming ass of your
self, and simply pretending to make
, Investigations when you knew yor
) We're wholly at sea. But what were you
doing it for?"
: "When | got my bearings in thai
: way, I calculated that the handle o.
} my umbrella was just about where hel
sleeve must have been when she wa!
bending over. AS | sighted along a
it, | saw that if bullet were fired from
t where l stood and passed through hel
5 sleeve it must--as it would naturally
| go in straight line-strike a certain
portion of the wall of the conservator.
; beyond her. l found, on examining thu
wall, that it had not"
t $50 you knew no shot had been fired p
/ calculated the captain.
: "No, not that" returned Hendricks
$ 'for there were the specls on the gown
| you know. | was, you see, convinced
Y that the speclls We're made by u revolve
at short range. and woman of nerv
: made them, captain, for the ball passet
very near the arm
J. II begin to see what you suspect,
2 said Welsh, but l am so much aston
3 ished that l am unable to grasp it all
: Surely she could not be-"
"Wait till have finished" the detect
3 i've interrupted. Don't jump to con
illusions. l don't think you were watch
e ing my work in the mayors study. 70
S you seemed on pins and needles to ge
: away"
r You don't mean that you did no
), really want to write that note?"
e "No; for ] wanted her to do it, sal
! the detective, with a smile, taking fror
e his pocket the threatening letter ad
: dressed to the mayor, and the not
/ Lillian Walters had written at his die
: tation. He opened them side by sid
on table, and continues: "Notic
| this, captain; in the letter to the mayo
= the writer has misspelled the word nc
S ceived. 1t struck me. you see, that j
nine cases out of ten a person that mis-
!" spells word once will do it again; S
e in my make-believe note l purposel
d made use Of that word. You see til
r, mistake occurs on both these sheets.
t And you infer that"
d THAT the two communications wer
o written by the same person"
It "But evidently not on the same m;
e chine" said Welsh. This is purpl
o and the other black"
It True; but don't you remember
I surprised them all by telling Roun'
1 tree he had discarded an old machine
i, Eyes. All, that's fact"
1 well, while you and the others wei
II Mt the telephone, the mayor Shove
n me upstairs to look at the grount
from the lumber-room. There saw Il