The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1906-03-02

not left it."
l watched him as he went through
the familiar motion of lighting a sec
ond cigarette from the first one. In tn
half light of the cabin had not at frs
perceived how i'll he looked.
But you, Mistair Lester" he was
saying. "How does it occur that yol
also are going to France? 1 did no
know you contemplated
NO" 1 answered calmly. for hat
seen that the question was inevitable
and l even welcomed 1t. since it gave
me opportunity to get my guns going
mo; the last time saw you l didn't
contemplate it, but a good deal has
| happened since then Would you care
to hear!'
/ Oh, how / relished tantalizing him!
Il should like very exceedingly to
hear" he assured me and shifted his
position a little so that his face was in
the shadow. 1.-The beams of light
through the shutter makes my eyes to
hurt" he added.
So he mistrusted himself; so he was
not finding the part an easy one either!
The thought gave me new courage.
You may remember" began, that
told you once that If ever went to
work ON the Holiday case I'd try first
to find the murderess. l succeeded in
doing it the very first day"
"Ah!' he breathed. "And after the
police had failed! That was, indeed,
remarkable. How did you accomplish
itY
"By the merest chance; by great good
fortune. l was making a search of the
French quarter, house by house, when.
on Houston street, came to a restau-
rant, the Cafe Jourdain. A bottle Of
superieur set Jourdain's tongue to wag-
ging. 1 pretended l wanted a room.
He dropped word, the merest hint,
and in the end 1 got the whole story
1t seems there was not only one wom-
an-there were two"
"Yes?"
Eyes, and a man whose name was
Betuny, or Bethune, or something like
that. But didn't pay much attention
to him. He doesn't figure in the case.
He didn't even go away with the wom-
en-. The very day l set out on my
search he was picked up on the streets
somewhere suffering with apoplexy
and taken to hospital, SO nearly dead
that it was question whether he
would recover. So he's out of it. The
Jourdains told me that the women had
sailed for France"
you will pardon me-" said my hear
er, but in what way did you make
sure that they were the women you de-
siredT"
"By the younger ones resemblance to
Miss Holiday" answered, lying with
a glibness which surprised myself
1.-THE Jourdains maintained that pho
tograph of Miss Holiday was really
one Of their bvAger."
'Ah, yes" he said That was ex-
ceedingly clever. I should never have
thought OF that That is worthy of NJ.
Lecoq. And 30 you follow them TO
France; but surely you have some more
definite address than tbati"
mo" said. ut seems rather a wild
goose chase, doesn't IL? But you could
advise me. Mr.. ,MaFtigny. Where would
II be best for me to search for them?"
He did not answer for moment, and
1 took advantage Of the opportunity to
select a second cigarette and hight it.
dared not remain unoccupied.
THAT" he began slowly at last,
'seems to me most-ahl deeficuit
affair, Mistair Lester-to search for
three people through all France. There
seems little hope of success. Yet
should think it most likely that they
have gone to Paris"
1 nodded. THAT was my own the
ory," l agreed, but to find them in
Paris seems also impossible"
Not If one uses the police" he said.
But, my dear sir,' l protested, 81
can't use the police. Miss Holiday at |
least has committed no crime. She I
has simply chosen to go away without |
u.s."
you will permit me to say then,
Mistair Lester" he observed, with just
touch or irony, 'tnat fail to COM
1rehend your anxiety concerning her"
l felt that l had made a misstep;
that 1 had need to go carefully.
ut is not quite so simple as that" l
explained. THE last time we saw Miss
Holiday she told us that she was i'll
Ind intended to go to her country
home for a rest Instead of going
here she sailed for France without
any one indeed, doing
she could to escape detec-
ion. That conduct seems so eccen-
ric that we feel in duty bound to in
vestigate it; besides, two days before
he left she received from us a hun
lred thousand dollars in cash."
saw him move uneasily on his bed
after all this advantage of mine was
70 small one.
"Ah," he said softly, and again,
ah! Yes, that seems peculiar, yet per-
laps If you had waited for letter.
Suppose we had waited and there
ad been no letter-suppose, in conse-
uence Of waiting, we should be too