The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1902-10-29
CHAPTER VI.


WtKED had vanished. He pulled his
hat over his eyes and hung his head,
as If looking for relief among the paw
Ing stones. He slowly assembled the
steps, pausing several times, at last
reaching the third floor, and Stood be-
fore a door decorated with the arms
of the famous detective-a cock, the
symbol Of yigilance-and his heart fail
ed him so that he had scarcely the
courage to ring the bell. Janouille, M.
Lecoq's old servant, opened the door.
"Ah," she said, "you come in time
for once in your life. Your patron
awaits you"
Upon this announcement Fanferlot
was seized with a violent desire to
beat n retreat. BY what chance could
Lecoq want anything OF him? While
he thus hesitated Janouille seized him
by the arm and pulled him In, saying:
do you want to take root there2
Come along. Your patron is waiting
for YOU"
In the middle of a largo room curl
ously furnished, half library md half
greenroom. was seated at n desk the
same person with gold spectacles who
had said to Prosper ut the police Of
fee, Courage" This was M. Lecoq
in his official character.
Upon Fanferlot's entrance as he adj
vanced respectfully, bowling, Nj. Lecog
Ibid down his pen and said, looking
sharply at him:
"Ah, here you are, my man. Well, 1t
seems you haven't made much prog
ress In the Bertomy case"
why" murmured FanferIot, "you
know
II know that you have mixed every
thing until you can't see your way out,
so that you are ready to give up"
"But 1t was not I"- -
nj. LecoQ arose and walked up and
ed Fanferlot.
What would you think, Master
Squirrel" he said ironically, "of n man
who abuses the confidence Of those
who employ him, who reveals just
enough to lead the prosecution on the
wrong scent, who sacrifices to his own
foolish vanity the cause Of justice and
the liberty of an unfortunate MANI"
Fanferlot recoiled'a step.
II should say" he stammered-"T
should say
"You think, Mr.. Squirrel, that this
man ought to be punished and dis
missed from his employment, and you
are right. The less n profession is
honored, the more honorable should
those be who belong to it. Neyerthe-
less you have been false to yours. All,
MIR. Squirrel, we are ambitious, and
vUn try RI ,,,oIa fho pn1too fo.o1 o,,
us. We let Justice go her way and
we go ours"
"But I swear''- y"
"silencel Do you pretend to say
that you did your duty in what you
told the Judge OF Instruction. While
others were informing against the
cashier you undertook to inform
against the banker. You spied upon
him. You became intimate with his
valet"
Was M. Lecoq really angry? Fan
ferlot, who knew him well, was in
doubt. He did not know what to think
of this devil Of a man.
"If you were only skillful," he con
hnued. "But, no; you wish to be n
master, and you are not fit to be q
j~ourneyman."
"You are right" said Fanferlot pite-
ously, seeing that 1t was useless to de-
ny anything. "But how get on with an
affair like this, where there was not
even a trace or sign to start fromT
M. Lecoq shrugged his shoulders.
Poor fellow! Why, don't you know
that on the very day you were sent for
with the commissary to verify the rob-
berry you heidi do not say certainly,
but very probably held-in your great
stupid hands the means Of knowing
whether the key of the cashier or the
banker had been used when the rob-
berry was committed2"
what do you meanY
"You want to know? I will tell you.
Do you remember the scratch you dis
covered on the safe door? You were
SO struck by it that you exclaimed at
seeing 1T. You carefully examined 1t
and were convinced that it was q
fresh scratch. You thought, and right
ly, too, that this scratch was made at
the time of the robbery. Now, with
what was 1t made? Evidently with a
key. That being the case, you should
have demanded the keys both Of the
banker and the cashier. One of them
would have had some particles of the
hard green paint sticking to it."
Fanferlot listened with open mouth
to this explanation. At the last words
he violently slapped his forehead with
his hand and cried out:
"Imbecile!"
"You have spoken correctly" said M.
Lecoq. "Imbecilel This proof is be-
fore your eyes, and you do not see It!
This scratch is the only clew. If I
find the guilty party, 1t will be by
means of this scratch, and I am deter
mined that I will find him."
At n distance Fanferlot was very
brave, but in NJ. Lecoq's presence he
yielded to the influence which this ex-
t%raordinary man exercised upon all
who approached him. This exact in
formation, these minute details Of all his
secret movements and even thoughts,
upset him. How had NJ. Lecoq obtain
ed them?
"Have you been long looking up this
casef" he asked.
probably. But I am not infallible
and may have overlooked some impor-
tant evidence. Take q seat and tell me
all you know"
One could not deceive NJ. Lecoq, SO
Eanferlot told the exact truth, n rare
thing for him TO do. However, ms he
reached the end OF his statement n feel,
Inc of n,orfiNod vanity nrayonfol bic