The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1906-07-27

and then We'll go together to the chief
of your department and I'll lay my
facts before him. Have you called at
this house? It's the only one haven t
visited"
"Yes," said Detective Sergeant Holt;
II drew blank there. There's an old
foreign woman there. Speaks no Eng
lish. l couldn't make head or tail OF
her"
Perhaps / can." suggested Billery.
The house door was open and an old
crone sat knitting in the sunshine at
the doorway. He stepped forward,
raised his hat, and accosted her in
Italian. Her dress and complexion
seemed to lead that way. She looked
up with bleared eyes and answered
his salutation civilly enough. "Have
you lived long in the neighborhood, -
he asked.
Long enough, she told him, to have
lost everybody belong to her, except
one. Her son was out with his music.
He would be back at 9 o'clock If the
senior wished to speak with him.
She knew the house where the body
found? asked Billery.
Oh, yes; she knew the house.
Had she known the man who sold
the house four or five years ago?
Yes, she had known him; he was a
bad man. He had robbed her poor old
husband.
She told a long-wlnded tale of this,
and Billery listened with great pa
tience; but the story bidding fair to
go on for an hour or two, he cut ii
short by the production OF a half
| crown.
"I want to know that mans name
said Billery II will give you this
| for it,"
His name was Observation-Disclosures
she was growing old, and did not re
| member things-Eduardo-a yes
| that was it--Eduardo MiSsalli. He
was of France. OF the Indies. Where?
| Oh, she knew not where. He had said
that he was going home. Did he
| speak English? He talked with his
English neighbors. What manner OF
| man? An ugly man. A little man
| He had been In an accident. He went
! lame and had scar upon his cheek
He was about fifty years Of age.
Billery surrendered the half-crown
and she bit 1t with the two teeth left
to her.
I'VE haven't wasted our day. ser
geant," said Billery. "The man who
| sold the house was a Frenchman, by
name Eduardo Missalli: more proba
| bly, Edouard Missall. His home was
in the South of France, neighborhood
unknown. He had been injured in an
accident, went lame, and had a scar
upon his cheek" The sergeant booked
all this.
| Great advantage that" he said; "a
knowledge of foreign languages.
| know enough to get along with a
| Frenchman or a Deutscher, but there
| / STOP"
| "If it's of any use to you to have
/ this little bit of information as your
| own," said Billery, you're welcome
to it. I hadn't thought at first of ask
ing for your help at all, but you can
be of enormous use. suppose the
French police will assist you in look
ing this man up?"
IF he's alive. and anywhere IN
France, they'll have him In a week.
| SIR"
Good" said Billery. "And now, II
/, you'll come with me to the Yard III
tell you something that will interest
you. I'm about at the end Of my teth
er. can't go travelling all over
l,France looking for man with game
| leg and a scar. And It's of no use for
one man to scour over London to find
when, on an uncertain date, some per
son unknown carted lot of second
hand furniture to house in Agar
/ row."
II can see," said the sergeant, that
you've been measuring ways and
means, sir. But one-man hunt Is
very little good when you've got 9
wide ground to cover. That's where
the organization comes in. wore
to the police sets hundred thousand
pairs Of eyes on the watch. It's &
most uncommon thing nowadays fol
! man to hide himself for any length
of time. II that chap Missall or Mis-
salli is alive and In France we shall
have him in, week, as I've said al
ready. don't say the systems
reached perfection, because it's hui
man Institution, and human insti
tuition Is pretty sure to break down II
places. but It's q beautiful piece o.
machinery, sir, Is the police forces
beautiful piece of machinery"
''The French or the English?" asked
Billery.
Both Of 'em," said the sergeant
II speak as find. don't know abou
them Russians, but as far as can SCI
they're rather measly lot, or else
they've got too much on their hands
perhaps that's It. But the English
American, French and German police
is each OF 'em bit Of all right, anl
80 tell you. rye worked with all b
'em. They're organized. That's wher.
: