The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1906-08-16

them. he wore no ring-it is not the
custom of those who deal with germs to
so adorn themselves. What was he
looking for so anxiously in this room, if
it were not ring? Why did he leave us
in the hall that he might conduct this
search before our presence disturbed
him? p
cannot suggest an explanations: but
really, Cousin Graden, you seem to be
weaving a most unnecessary tangle. l
cannot imagine what result you expect
TO obtain"
A conviction for murder"
CHAPTER Nv.
stared at him in the most pro-
found amazement.
Yes, murder, Cousin Robert; as de-
liberate and cold-blooded a doing to
death of an innocent man as has ever
befouled a corner OF Gods fair world"
He rose from IS chair and plowed
veins started in his forehead; his huge
hands knotted themselves tensely.
Listen. This afternoon man lay
asleep on that couch in the corner. We
know the manner of mana keen in
vestigator, an indefatigable worker, an
honest fighter; but one who had never
done in all his life a mean or ignoble
action. There comes a creak upon the
stairs, the door is opened softly, a head
peers in. He-the murderer-enters the
room. He knew the custom of the house
in this warm September weather: the
doors open, the old servant asleep. the
master taking his regular siesta. How
far is he criminal how far a luna
tic? Is this act premeditated, or the
sudden tempting of opportunity? Who
can say? 1t is enough that in his dis
eased Imagination he has come to regard
the sleeper as an enemy who maliciously
set himself to destroy his theories and
to bring ridicuIe on the laborious work Of
years. His desire for revenge is con-
centrated on the man before him.
How the thing came into his pos
session l cannot guess, though that
should be a point easily discovered He
himself may have obtained it from AZ
RIGA, or it may have come into his hands
by chance. as the chief of the Entomo-
logical Museum. But he has it safe
enough shut up in the tin box which fell
from his pocket in your rooms The
spring of the lid was defective. you may
remember; it is that same defective
spring that viii hang him.
HE stands over there, listening and
watching. There is no sound; the sleeper
will not wake. He opens the case upon
the dressing-table and lifts tie thing
with tweezers--for every hair Of it has
its poison. With scissors he cuts off
some score of hairs, catching them in
the crease of folded sheet of note
closes the lid. Like an ugly shadow
he fits across to the couch, kneels by its
side, and one, two. three times blows
the hairs from the creased paper across
the intake of the sleeper's breath. He
turns, snatches up the case from the
table. and is gone. In five hours Profess
sor Won Stockmar is dead of infamma-
ton of the lungs. There is not a doc
tor in all Germany who would chal-
lenge that diagnosis. In nine hours Pro-
fessor Rudolf Marnac is accused by me,
Henry Graden, of murder"
But this deadly thing'r' / cried, with
sinking horror at my heart. "This
beast, reptile, insect-what is it? Where
is it nowY
For answer he thrust his triggers into
his pocket and drew out the same wooden
matchbox that had seen him with By
the bedside of the dead man. He slid
1t half open and tapped it sideways on
the table uader the lamp. A round,
fluffy ball rolled out and lay motionless.
Suddenly little black head protruded
score of tiny feet padded into motion,
and across the table there crept a hairy
caterpillar-a loathsome. disreputable
objact, for across its back lay a ragged
g,-l where the hairs had been shorn
away.
"no you recognize the speciesy'
In a faint-hearted way ! leaned across
to grasp it. but with sudden motion he
brushed my hand aside.
II see you do not" said he grimly.
1T is common enough in South Africa. -
With the end of match he carefully
pushed the insect back into the box.
and replaced it in his pocket.
"The luck was against Marnac," he
continued mot for one moment do /
suggest that otherwise l should have sus-
pected the truth. To begin with, the de-
fective spring of the case allowed the
caterpillar to escape while he was bend
ing over poor Hermann. After he had
done his awful work he slipped it back
hastily into his pocket. He never real
lied what had occurred until, upon acct
dentally pulling it out with his hand
kerchef in your lodgings. he found it
empty. 1t was for that reason he
searched so anxsously. What became of
it did not matter so long as it was not
found in this room; though. as a matter
Of fact, there was very small danger even
then of it affording a clue
and now we come to a stroke of
abominable luck, of which Marnac has
every right to complain found the
caterpillar on the sheet of the bed,
where it had crawled in its wanderings.
But that was not the worst of it. for
happened to be the one man in all
Heidelberg who knew of its peculiar
properties; who knew that its hairs are
slightly poisoned, sufficient indeed to
raise a nasty rash on the hand: who
knew that the old-time Hottentots en-
ployed it for removing their enemies by
blowing the hairs into their lungs. I
took out a matchbox, emptied it. and
collected the caterpillar. l was closing
the box when / looked up and saw Mar
nae watching me with a shocking ex-
preston, which could hardly have dis
torted the face Of perfectly sane man.
however provoked. Nearly every muir
derer has a screw loose somewhere; but,
in my opinion, Marnac is IL an unusually
bad way. 1t may turn out more of an
asylum than a gallows business. after
ALL"
But the details of the scene you pic
ture: how did you obtain them
II am a quick thinker, and the events
Of the evening began to arrange them
selves in a sort of sequence. crowned
by the discovery Of the caterpillar. The
Inference to be gathered from them was
obvious / examined the nostrils of the
dead nan, and found four of the cater
pillar hairs caught therein. On the dress
ing-tat lie lay an ordinary pair of nail
scissors. Two hairs were jammed where
the blldes met On the creased sheet of
paper. which 1 found behind the couch,
there was no sign; but the use TO which
it had been put was plain From Hans
knew the custom of the house: the
sleep after the midday meal, the open
doors, the opportunity. Is the matter
plain to your
"What are y0u going to d0Y II was