The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1907-12-19
The TIE MARATHON Ar Hon MYSTERY NJ YYS 7
A STC-Y OF
BY BURTON E. STEVENSON
Author Of "The Holiday Case" Cadets of Gasconv" Etc

, this evening YER p%roftably in weigh
5 ing and classifying my discoveries
IN getting a fresh start.
1 AS J. opened my door noticed tina
i, scraped on the carpet, and an ex
showed me that the carpe
l had come loose along the sill. / steppe,
[ 10 the speaking tube and blew dow
"Hello!" called up a voice in a mo
ment.
rs h a you, Higgins? ?"
Yes, sir"
This is Mr.. Lester. Come UP afte,
a while, will you? I've a little job VI
mere want you to do"
dor" i'0
oh. yes; any time this evening""
l. got out pipe, tobacco and matches
ana sat down In my most comfortable
chair. | was no longer SO discouraged
as l had been the evening before. On
the whole, 1 old myself, l had pro-
chain more tightly about Tremaine
IN strengthening 1t in many places. ]
could show certainly:
!. That he knew Thompson and lied
about it.
:. That he apparently hated him.
81. That he had come to New York
on the same boa with him, and prob
ably on the same errand.
4. That Thompson had Joined him
as soon as released from jail.
On paper. I had to admit, the chain
appeared a good deal weaker than
mad thought 1t. There We're many gaps
indeed, 10 that l looked at it. it
seemed to consist largely of gaps. OBJ
Jections to the theory Of Tremaine's
quit doomed larger and larger. One
Of the weightiest was Miss Croydon's
ett15ude toward him-that seemed UNI
eHpiainable. The man she described
as the murderer was quite unlike IRE
maine in appearance Was She. then,
shielding him? But why should she
90 that? Abov all, If he were guilty
OF such a crime. would she have con-
sented to his admission to the Del
roy family? And again, If she feared
him, why not %denounce him to the po-
nee or at least threaten to do SO?
That would remove him from her
path once and forever.
Inns last question seemed so UNI
ansWerable that / paused to look at
II again, for 1t was evident that one
ieaiy lnsuperable objection must in
MISSION OF a crime, especially Of a
crime SO serious as this one, would
ne not place himself as much in Miss
~ydo power as she could possibly
pc IN his? If she We're still in his
power. then, he had committed no
o''N A. iC lidu committed no
crime, n OF course, he a not
Kliied thompson. But in that case, who
had! Where had that diamond come
from?
knocked out my pipe and filed
u again. l felt a good deal as though
dizzy. 1917
IL T%rernaine had not killed Thomp-
son, asked myself again, who had?
Not Miss Croydon. To suppose that
a ~delicately reared girl would smash
q man over the head with a piece of
pipe wa to descend to the ridiculous.
get IT he had attacked her, she might
nerved herself to do it. But that
was absurd, too. since, admittedly. she
had a pistol In her pocket and was
not AFRAID to use it. Who else, then?
Siniiny the DUDE? But he hae already
proved an alibi; besides, a motive was
wanting.
Then | thought of Cecily. Could she
nave been the assassin? Certainly #
not tmpossibles that last saw
we act. that shooting OF an uncon-
sclous man., fitted in, somehow, with
my estimate of her character. She
night have done that. But why should
Miss Croydon seek to shield her? was
Cecily who possessed the secret?
there some connection between
mem! remembered the other famous
,n,,t "ntSi Aau peen engaged
must look for the same solution
aere? Was there a blood relationship
oetween Cecily and Miss CROYDON
-learly, such a thing was possible:
wen fancied hat one, knowing them
both, might be able t. detect a subtle
1eavored to recall the features Of Miss
portrait; her face had much
n common with Cecily's. Roth ware
lark. 0 We're
"A knock at the door brought me out
my thoughts. opened 1t and found
ne janitor standing there.
Ius nothing very much. Higgins"
sara, put thought you'd better
TX It before 1T got any worse. The
has ccme loose here along the
81
He stepped 81 the threshold and
at it.
All right, sir" he said. "Tll nx II
2 u, norninf. Them fellers what nut
n carpet down didn't half do their
YORK. | tackled a loose place down
sver there by TIL wall jest afore you
Where was Ito" ! asked as calmly
Right here by this angle" he said.
ndicating the place with his foot.
\ think maybe I'd better go all around
n wall t'morrer."
reIfaps " would be best" l said;
Inank you" and closed the door
The next instant I was down on my
and knees tearing way the car
oet, my blood singing In my ears.
found them-the clippings-tt was
iefe they U be hidden; but for
nose chance tacks driven by tho jan
Tremaine would have had pos
'ess:on OF them long ago. and per-
we should never have nauntrpfad I
,ne mystery OF Thompson's death.
Now, u would be laid bare before us
whole secret. What d little thing
7 was that had saved US.
had the carpet LOOSE turned it
,aSk. ana there they las. that Httle
Ct clippings, just as they had been
aken from Thompson's pocketbook.
Iney Were to tell US the whole story
could not again be led astray. +
vas quite calm again. / picked them
II carefully and laid them on my desk.
/, neh I washed my lands and flied my
3ipe, There was a certain exouisftej
pleasure ! = holding myself back from
.nem. IN tallializing myself. iii deer
ing Tor n T3nriouf ~ 4~,A %t~ .A.~7S.4LEl