Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1907-09-12
CHAPTER v.

CHAPTER v.
"OM ERICHSEN held out a
steady hand for the Globe.
His blood ran too cold for
present tremors. The hackney
coachman had drawn a chair to the
table, planted his elbows in the middle
Of the printed cotton cloth and his hot,
flushed face between his coarse, strong
hands. Tom sat down at the other
end. He found the paragraph, ran his
eye from headline to finish and then
read it slowly aloud:
SHOCKING MURDER AT HAMP-
STEAD.
An atrocious murder was committed
late last night or early this morning In
the neighborhood of Hampstead Heath.
A mechanic on his way to work at an
early hour this morning having oc-
casion to traverse the right Of way con-
meeting the Finchley road with the upper
portion of Haverstock hill noticed a
stout staff upon the grass near the Sec
ond stile from the former t~horoughfare.
On picking it up the staff. or, rather,
cudgel, was found to be crusted with
blood and near 1t was discovered a drawn
sword stick, broken near the hilt. Con-
tinuing his alarming Investigations, the
meCnanlC mace MS CTOWIl1S dIlQ UlOSC
horrible discovery in q hollow tree close
beside the stile, in which lay the body Of
a gentleman In full evening dress. He
was quite dead; indeed, life had probably
been extinct some hours. The corpse was
covered with blood and the head terribly
disigured, as If by repeated blows from
some blunt instrument. There can be no
doubt that the crime was committed with
the cudgel above mentioned Cat present
the only clew to the assassin) or that
the sword stick was vainly used in self
defense by the unfortunate gentleman.
The police were summoned with COM
mendable dispatch and the body removed
to the Marylebone mortuary to await in
quest.
Meanwhile in the course Of the morn
ing much information has been forth
coming, and we are sorry to state that
the victim has been identified as Captain
j. Montgomery Blaydes. late Of his
some years past on the half pay list. No
letters or papers Of any sort were dis
covered upon his person
Here Tom stopped reading.
go on, sir"
II will. But that's extraordinaryw
"Not it. He's been robbed as we'll.
That's what 1 want to get at. That
there sticks no clew. We want the
things he took"
Tom moistened his lips and harked
back:
No letters or papers of any sort were
discovered upon his person, and 1t Is
only through the marking of his linen
hat the identity of the deceased has
been so promptly established. 1t now
transpires that the hapless captain had
been lately residing in the village of
West Enc mot a mile from the scene Of
the murder) and that he left his lodgings
shortly after 10 o'clock last night. in or
der to attend an evening party, in a
hackney coach. The police hope that the
coachman will come forward
"He has," said Jim. "You may leave
out that bit"
"And you couldn't describe the man?"
"Not too we'll. 1 could only swear he
was neither short nor tall and looked
to be wearing a pair of nankeen trou-
sers." (Tom's legs were underneath
the table.) NO." continued Jim. "I'm
afraid they won't lay hands on him
through me. But they may through the
things he took. Go on to that"
"There was a diamond pin"
81 seen it. What else"
Call his money"
"Ah, he paid like a gentleman. Any
thing else"
"A-gold-watch" 80
The words would hardly come. Jim
thumped the table with his heavy fist.
"Thatll do!' he cried. 'Thatll hang
him, you mark my words! What sort
Of a watch"
But this time the words would not
come at all, for Jim's wife stood in
the doorway behind Jim's chair, and
her eyes and Tom's-the terrified and
the guilty-were locked together in u
long, dread stare.
whats that about a watch? she
said in a sort Of whisper, advancing
unsteadily and leaning a hand upon
her husbands shoulder. "Whose
watch?"
Zone belonging to a murdered man."
replied Jim. "I'm asking what kind
of a one. 1 say it ought to hang the
chap what did it."
cit WILL" said she hoarsely in his ear.
+It's a repeater, and him that has it
sits in front of you in that chair"
There followed a silence so profound
that Tom could hear the watch itself
ticking in his pocket. The coachman
then rose and slowly leaned across
the table, resting n hand upon it.
The other was half way to TOMS
throat when he sprang to his feet and
in so doing pressed his thigh against
the tables edge. Instantly there rang
from his pocket a sweet and tiny ting,
ting, ting, ting. ting!
1t was the saving Of him from Jim
the coachman and his wife.
Both shrank back as Tom darted to
an inner door and so up the stairs
which he had descended half asleep.
Ere he reached the top there vas q
crash below. For an instant he thought
the man had fallen in q fit, but a vol,
ley Of oaths proved it only a slip as
Tom slammed and locked the door OF
the Don in which he had slept away
the day If not his life. His shoes were
still where he had kicked them off
he slipped into them and, ~exerting all
his strength. pnlled the large iron he'd.