The Weiser signal. [volume] (Weiser, Idaho) 1890-1904, 1902-12-13
prospect for him at the gambling

Away we went through the streets,
the subprefect cross examining and !
congratulating me in the same breath
as we marched at the head of our :
formidable posse comitatus. Sentinels :
were placed at the back and front of \
the house the moment we got to it. A 4
tremendous bat cry of knocks was di-
rected against the door. A light ap- =
peared at a window. l was told &c ! I
conceal myself behind the police. Then =
came more knocks and a cry Of "Open Z
in the name Of the laww At the ter :
rible summons bolts and locks gave
way before an invisible hand, and the
moment after the subprefect was in
the passage, confronting waiter half
dressed and CHASTITY pale. This was
the short dialogue which Immediately
took place:
1--WE want to see the Englishman
who is sleeping in this house."
"He went away hours ago."
"He did no such thing. His friend
went away. He remained. Show US
his BEDROOM
81 swear to you, M. lie Sous project,
he Is not here. He
81 swear to you, NJ. lie Garcon, he Is.
He slept here. He didn't find your
bed comfortable. He came to US to |
complain of it. Here he is among my |
men, and here am l ready to look for i
flea or two in his bedstead. Renau-
din calling to one of the subordinates
, and pointing to the waiter), collar that |
, | nlc hoh i'm,
Now. then. gentlemen, let us walk up
stairs"
Every man and woman in the house
!, was secured, the "old soldier the first.
l Then | identified the bed in which /
q had slept, and then we went into the
room above.
: No object that was at all extraor-
r binary appeared in any part of it. The
/ subprefect looked round the place,
q commanded everybody to be silent,
q stamped twice on the floor, called for
candle, looked attentively at the
% spot he had stamped on and ordered
II the flooring there to be carefully taken
IL up. This was done in no time Lights
l. were produced, and we saw deep
D raftered cavity between the floor OF
Ip this room and the ceiling Of the room
~ beneath Through this cavity there
v. ran perpendicularly sort Of case OF
iron thickly creased, and inside the
II, case appeared the screw which COM
ne municated with the bed top below
Extra lengths of screw, freshly oiled
to levers covered with felt, all the com
| ~ nrlSS
ir- constructed with Internal ingenuity 81
ey as to Join the fixtures below and whel
IT. taken to pieces again to go into IN
I'd, smallest possible compass, were mex
IN. discovered and pulled out on the hoo
We After some little difficulty the sui
rs, prefect succeeded in putting the mi
lat chinery together and, leaving MS me
ST. to work it, descended with me 10 II
err bedroom. The smothering canopy WI
ied then lowered, but not so noiselessly
lis I had seen it lowered. When l me
lost toned this to the subprefect, his 9
ked swer, simple as it was, had terri
,wn significance. "My men," said he, "a
)ipe working down the bed top for the III
sed time: the men whose money you W
vim were in better practice"
e We left the house in the sole p(
me session Of two police agents, every
nee of the inmates being removed to prls
lov- on the spot. The subprefect, after ia
ing down my ''proces verbal IN
ape office returned with me to my ho
ave to get my passport do you th'hi
IGN. | asked as 1 gave it to him, "that a
'wn men have really been smothered
sest that bed as they tried to smother me
avs T have seen dozens Of drowned m
OF laid out at the morgue," answered I
boy subprcfect, Gin whose pocketpoo
Der, were found letters stating that tn
and had committed suicide in the Seine
any cause they had lost everything at t
had gaming table. DO know how ma
low of those men entered the same ga
ker- bling house that you entered, won
Pill YOU won, took that bed as you took
TO slept in it, were smothered In 1t q
nge- were privately thrown into the rl'
ants with letter of explanation written
MISS the murderers and placed in their Pc
tim. etbooks? No man can say how ms
the or how few have suffered the I
my from which you have escaped.
people of the gambling house k
liked their bedstead machinery secret Fl
Int US, even from the police! The q
: the kept the rest Of the secret for tn
ran Good night, or, rather, good norm
No; M. Faulkner. Be at my office ag
;. at 0 o'clock. In the meantime au
wing voir."
mo- The rest Of my story is soon told
the was examined and re-examined.
Vater gambling house was strictly scare
all through from top to bottom.
and prisoners were separately interroga
I'M and two of the less guilty among u
my made q confession. l discovered
4 po- the "old soldier" was the master
n the the gambling house. Justice discov
Ippre- that he had been drummed out OIL
mong army as vagabond years ago; ina
e up had been guilty of all sorts OF
e FOR lainies since; that he was IN posses
mys- of stolen property, which the ow
was identified, and that he, the crou
began another accomplice, and the wo