Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1906-12-28
DAILY. STORY
THE MAN WHO MEDoLED.

tour OF Spain on foot.
! From a fellow student Fowler had
picked up pretty fair knowledge OF
Spanish, and when his pilgrimage had
begun he had no trouble in making
himself understood by the people he
encountered. For three weeks he had
no adventures worth recording. Then
they followed thick and fast. One
night at village inn he was awakened
from sleep by three men who entered
the room next to his and began talk
ing and drinking. The partition was
of boards and full of cracks, and the
student had no difficulty in hearing
every word that passed. When he
came to get sight of the men he saw
that they were hard cases. They had,
as was soon related, committed a rob-
berry and perhaps murder on the
J highway few miles distant. They
had shot a hOrseman out of his sad
die, plundered his person and left him
where he fell. The money taken from
him had been concealed in deserted
4 hut, and over and over again the trio
pledged themselves at their dagger
points to be faithful to each other in
the division of the spoils. No single
one of them was to visit the hut with
| out the consent of the other two. If
one proved q traitor the others were to
hunt him to his death. After the hue
| and cry was over they We're to divide.
The manner in which those fellows
| talked of the crime made the Ameri-
cans hair stand up, and he was only
too glad when they finally left the inn
without knowing that the next room
was occupied. When they had gone
Fowler lay awake for hours wonder
ing what he had best do in the matter.
He had heard the men call each other
by their first names. He could give
the police minute description of
them. He knew that they We're to sep
arate and where each one was to pass
the next month. They had even NAM
ed the man they had robbed and per-
haps murdered. The student had only
to go to the police and state his case,
and all the clews would be in their
hands. He had about decided to do
this when he went down to breakfast.
but little circumstance changed his
mind The landlord himself brought
his breakfast and after word or two
about the weather carelessly observed:
81 trust that the senior slept well last
night?
Every well, indeed" was the reply.
There were some late travellers. I
hope they did not disturb you?"
Not at ALL
The landlord looked at him sharply
and then seemed satisfied. After that |
there was no doubt in Fowler's mind |
that his host knew of the crime and |
was accessory before or after 1t was |
already known in the village that a |
prominent citizen of the province had |
been fatally shot and plundered on the |
highway the night before, but the land
lord said nothing about it. An hour
later Fowler got the information from
others. He now decided to say moth
ing to the authorities about the affair,
and in setting off on his daily tramp
he babe the landlord such q cheerful
adieu and spoke so many words in
praise of his house that the man could
have no suspicious of him. Neverthe-
less he had reasons to believe that he
was logged and kept track of for the
next three days.
The crime had excited widespread in
terest. The victim was prominent In
church and state, and the money he
was carrying belonged to the former
This made the crime a heinous one in
the eyes of the masses. large re-
ward was offered, the police melted to
do their best, and it was believed that
the criminals would soon be captured.
Fowler heard everybody talking about
the affair. but had little to say about
1t himself.
The crime of the highway was q
week old when a strange freak seized
the American. He decided TO go back
over his road and visit the hut in
which the plumber was concealed. The
men had located it so closely that he
Knew he could find it. He wanted to
zee If the plumber was really there. 1t
vas the most extraordinarily foolish ,
hing he could have thought Of, but he :
5ielded to the impulse. In returning /,
lie took the train instead of making l.
he journey on foot, and, leaving it
lbout six miles from the hut, he cut
lcross the country. He found the hut,
,ut when within ten feet of If was ar a
ested by a gendarme. Three hours r
alter he was in prison charged with q
he crime. Then several other things
him. When he attempted to
rove an alibi by the landlord at /.
whose inn he lay that night the man
licked it all over out of revenge. When
lie said the money was concealed in
he hut he was charged with an inten-
ion to secsre 1t for his own use. Hav
ng overheard the talk of the murder
rs, it was his duty to have informed the
olice at once. In not doing so he was
made accessory after the fact From
lis description the three men were
DON arrested. They combined to swear
he crime on Fowler.
The case dragged along for two
ears and was then set for trial. A
Witness died, and it was postponed.
gain a judge was taken i'll. Once