Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1906-10-04
BY A. CONAN DOYLE
Xjll.-THE ADVENTURE OF TIE
&ECQND -CcnALnunA !.
Copyright. 1905.
by Mcclure. Phillips q Co.

: iiolmcs. for having refused to speal,
more freely. and vou on youi side will
=, not. | ann sure. think thu worse of me
because / desire, even against lis viii.
10 share my husbands Agviefiss. Hn-e
more / bog that soli VIII s-y nothing
OF my Nisit.'
She loohci back lit US from TIA door,
and | mad u lasi Impression Of that
beautiful haunted face. the startled
eyes, and the drawn mouth. Then She
Was gone.
Now. Watson. The fair COX IS your
iae paltincnt. said Holmes, with smile.
when the duialiing frou-frou of skirts
had ended in tie Slam of the front
loor. What vas tho fair LADY,. game?
~ hat did sh" really want2r
'Sur"lY her " statement - clear
and her anxiety very natural"
IiGm. Vhiuk of her appearance.
Natson-her manner, her suppressed
excitement, her r"stlossness. her ten-
aciiy in asking questions. Remember
that she comes Of a caste who do l.ot
lightly how emotion"
she was certainly much moved"
"itemonbcr also the curious earuest
ness with which she assured us that
it was best for her husband that She
should know all. What did she mean
by that? And you must have obscrv-
ed. Watson. how she i~nancuvered to
have the light at her back. She did
not wish us To read her oxuressicn."
Yes. She chose the one chair in the
room"
And yet the motives Of women are
so ilscrutable. You remember the
woman at Margate whom | snspected
for the same reason. 40 powder on
her nose-that proved to be the cor
rect solution. How can You build on
such 4 quicksand? Their most trivial
action may mean volumes. or their
most extraordinary conduct may de-
pend upon Il hairpin or a curling tongs.
Good morning. Watson
You are off?
Yes. ! will while away the morning
at Godolphin street with our friends
OF the regular establishment. With
Eduardo Lucas lies the solution of
u problem. though | must admit that
I have not an inkling as to what form
1t may take. 1t is a capital mistake
to theori2e In advance OF the facts.
DO you stay on guard. my good Wat
son. and receive any fresh visitors. III
join you at lunch if l am able"
All that day and the next and the
next Holmes was in a mood which
his friends would call taciturn, and
others morose. He ran u and ran in,
smoked necessarily. played snatches on
MS violin. sank into reveries, devour-
ed sandwiches at Irregular hours. and
hardly answered the casual questions
~ 1 pun w I'M. IL was evident
to me that things We're not going well
with him or his quest. He would say
nothing of the case. and it was from
the papers that | learned the particu-
lars of the inquest. and the arrest with
the subsequent release of John Milton.
the valet Of the deceased: The cor
oner's jury brought in the obvious
"Wiiful Murder" but the parties re-
NAMED as unknown as ever. No mo-
tive was suggested. The room was full
of articles of value, but none had been
taken. The dead mans papers had not
neen tempered with. They were care
fully examined. and showed that he
was a keen student of international
politics. an interchangeable gossip. n re-
markahle %iinguist. and an untiring let
ter writer. He had been on intimate
terms with he leading politicians of
several countries. But nothing sensa-
tionaI was discovered among the docu-
mem which filed his drawers. AS to
his relations with women. they appear
cd to nave been promiScuouS but sup
CRITICAL. He had many acquaintance
among them. but few friends. and no
one whom he loved. His habits were
regular. his conduct inoffensive. His
death was an absolute mystery. and
likely to remain so.
AS to the arrest of John Milton. the
valet. 1T was a council of despair as
an alternative to absolute inaction. But
io 'aSe CouIu ne sustained against nm.
He had visited friends in Hammer
smith that night. The alibi was com
plete. 1t is true hat he started home
at an our which should nave
brought him to Westminster before
the time when the crime was dis
covered. but his own explanation that
he had walked part OF the way
seemed probable enough in view of the
flneness of the night. He had actually
arrived at IL o'clock. and appeared to
be overwhelmed by the unexpected
tragedy. He had always been on good
terms with his master. Several of the
dead mans possessions-notably a
small case OF razors--had been found
IN the Wallets boxes, but he explained
that they had been presents from the
deceased. and the housekeepe- was able
to corroborate the story. Milton had
been in Lucas employment for three
years. 1t was noticeable that Lucas
did not take Milton on the continent
with him Sometimes he visited Paris
for three months on end. but Milton
was left in charge of the Godolphin
street house. AS to the h~ousekeeper.
she had heard nothing on the night of
the crime. II her master had a WISH
tor he had himself admitted him.
SO for three mornings the mystery
remained. so far as l could follow it
in he papers. If Holmes knew more.
he kept his own counsel, but. as he told
me that Inspector LeStrade had taken
him into his confidence in the case. I
knew that he was in close touch with
every development. Upon the fourth
day there appeared Il long telegram
from Paris which seemed to solve the
whole question.
"A discovery has just been made by
the Partisan police" said the Daily
Telegraph. (which raises the veil which
hung una he tragic fate of MIR. Edu-
ardo Lucas. who met his Iea;h ~ ..u-
lence last Monday night at Godolphin
!, street, Westminster Our readers will
remember that the deceased gentleman
was found stabbed in his room. and
that some suspicion attached to his
valet. but that the case broke down on
an alibi. Yesterday a lady. who has
been now as Nine. Henri Fournaye,
l occupying a small villa in the Rue Aus
r terlitz, was reported to the authorities
. by her servants as being insane. An
examination showed that she mad in
> deed developed mania of u dangerous
n permanent form. On inquiry. the
r police have discovered that Mme. Henri
. Fournaye only returned from a journey
to London OF Tuesday last, and there
: Is evidence to connect her with the
crime at Westminster A comparison
: Of photographs has proved conclusive
~ that NJ. Henri FOurnaye and Fcdu.