Waterbury Democrat., 1900-11-22
4A4A1A0A4;A } THE STURGIS WAGER { A DETECTIVE STORY. <
By EDGAR NOR ETTE. Copyright. Is9o by Frederick Stokes Co.

S Copyright. Is9o by Frederick Stokes Co. J S@@Wew4wS@ S@e@0wHw3@1
 ='Point fve," resumed sturgis, "the right arm was broken just above the wrist"
 "Yes," said the physician, "I thought at first that the arm might have been broken in the collision with the cable car; but the Giscoloration of the flesh proves conclusively that the fracture occurred before death" 'Precisely. Now, it is possible that the man broke his arm when he fell, after being shot; but the confused wound looks to me as if it had been made by a severe blow with some blunt instrument"
 Possibly" admitted Thurston. This broken arm, if we can place it in it's proper chronological position, | may prove to be of some importance in the chain of evidence" unused Stur- gis. 'If the fracture occurred before the man was shot, that, of course, ex- cludes the possibility of suicide; but, on the other hand, it also brings in an obstacle to the hypothesis of mur- der.'
 How so?'
 "Because we have settled, you will remember, that the shot was fired from the right of the victim, and close to him. Now, if he did not fire the shot himself the person who did must have reached over his right arm to do so. In that case, unless the victim was asleep or stupeieG. would he not instinctively have raised his arm in self-defense, and thus defected the weapon upward ?"
 ''Evidcntly."
 ''Wel!, it is idle to speculate on this line for the present. Let us come to point six. You remember I called your particular attention to the cab man. Dc you still think he was only drunk?"
 'No," replied Thurston; while he had unquestionably been drinking heavily, he also showed symptoms of narcotic poisoning.'
 'Then the presumption is that he had been drugged by those who wished to place the wounded man in his cab. l observed him closely and I am satis- |. fled that he knows as little about his dead passenger as we do. He prob ably knows less about him, at all events, than the young I4,>.4l i'll the sealskin cap who gave the police the slip during the excitement which fol lowed the overturning of the cab."
 Sturgis paused a moment.
 "This, 1 thinli,' he continued, "cov- CTS all the evidence we have thus far collected in the Cab Mystery. It is quite satisfactory, as far as it goes, for it is circumstantial evidence, and, therefore absolutely truthful. In the Knckerbocller bank mystery we have as yet no satisfactory data whatever; for everything we have heard concern ing it has it's origin in the fallible evil dence of witne sses, and has, more over, reached us third or fourth hand. There is, however, one fact that may, or may rot, prove to beimportant. Have you noticed that these two mysteries are contemporaneous, and, therefore, that they may be related?'
 Do you think there is any connec- tion between the two? ?" inquired Thurs ton. interested.
 II do rot allow myself to think about it at all as yet" replied Sturgis; II simply note the fact, that, so far as time is concerned, the Cab Mystery could be the sequel to the Knickerbocker Bank Mystery-that is all. Facts, my dear
 
 an assemblage of meaningless letters until it becomes pregnant with sense by context. So, fact, which, stand ing by itself, has no meaning, may, when correlated with other facts, be- come fraught with deep significance.
 And now," he continued, after a pause, ''I think our work is concluded for the present. I shall be able to lay it aside for the night. Let mo offer you glass of sherry. Pleasant evening we spent at.Sprague's tonight. have great admiration for him as an artist, and great fondness for him as a man. Most of his friends are strangers to me, though. You know l have very little time to indulge in social dissipa- tion. By the way, who is that Dr. Murdock with whom I have made this bet?''
 "Oh! he is physicion, though now retired from practice. He devotes him self entirely to scientific research, es- pecially in the domain of chemistry. He has made some important discov- cries in organic chemistry, and they say he has succeeded in proving some of the supposed elementary metals to be compounds. He has quite an envi- able reputation in the sclcntific world. 1 understand he is a remarka ble man."
 That is evident at glance. He showed himself this evening to be a clear thinker and a brilliant speaker should say he was something of genius, and I should judge, moreover, that he was q man of magnificent nerve, capable Of the most heroic actions, or-'
 Sturgis hesitated.
 "Or-?' asked Thurston.
 "Or of the most infamous cruelty and crime. It all depends upon wheth- CT or net his great mental attributes are under the control of q heart; point upon which I am somewhat in doubt"
 CHAPTER VI. THE ARTIST. t Sprague was 8 dilettaEte in art as he was in life. If he had not been