Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1907-01-17

watched YOU an dav. smelling bottles
cxamiping scraichnq irving to read
faint ink marks on blottcr, puzzling
over n broken cane and doing various
other eccentric things from which You
seemed to draw conclusions utterly in
visible to me. I've heard you assure
both Drysdale and Miss Croydon that
the former will be cleared of suspicion
at tomorrovs INQUEST and that the real
rulurit will be pointpl out. You'll
nlrdon mo if | confess to some curl
osity as TO how all this is to be ac-
| complished."
Did you ser her face rs she came
through that door. Lcs'crT" he asked,
staring ahscntly at tbe seat in front
# Us. II tel ven. if warmed the heart
Of even an Old rcprobaie like me! And
70 think that we did it,, he added.
"To think that we did it,
You did it," corrected II was
! In the chorus tolav-vou bad the cen
ter of the stage"
But you don't mind. Lester? I
couldn't help it, you know
cor course you couldn't-thAts whore
! YOU belong. But now that tho cur
/ tqin's down aud were alone together
with plenty of tune to talk, I'd like to
understand
/ Ind YOU Shutdown to the minutest
detail Let's see this is the smoker,
/ isn't it? Well. suppose we light up
/ con- think more clearly when I'm
. smoking"
! "All right; fire away" ! said, as soon
! ~ the cigars We're gon-
well" began Godfrey. "as | pointed
! out to you this morning for good and
| sufficient reasons I stared ont in this
! investigation with the assumption Of
! Tremaine's guilt
"Of course" l observed, you know
| it is the duty of every jury to start
ont with exactly the contrary assump-
| ton"
certainly, l know that but de-
tective has to work with some definite
end in view or he neyer gets anywhere.
! In other words, a Ctat3ctiye, after care
! fully studying the details Of any crime.
must form a theory concerning it and
| must work along that theory. As soon
as he discovers any fact that fails to
fit with his theory he must modify it
Or form another auJ lie must. keep on
doing, this until re finds the theory
which agrees With all the facts-not
all but one or tH,c, ytlit with every one
\ good many dqteGtives fau into the
mistake of being satisfied with the
theoIt. which fits most OF The Glcts-a
serious error for the right theory must,
Of course, inevitably Nt them ALL
That's the scientific method and the
only safe one. When Il detective hits
up9A a theory which lits ALL the known
facts hes got rs mueA right 70 assume
it's true AZ in asyHVEor has ON a
! physicist, who builds UP the universe
in Just the same way"
"But that's difficult thing to do"
remarked ito find a theory that fits
I'll the facts"
"EXceedingly difficult sometimes"
asscntci my companion. because the
4d.ts often appear to be entirely CON
Trajectory. Really. facts are never con-
tradictory-truth is always truth-the
trouble Is we can't always tell what Is
fact and what is fiction The hardest
part Of Il detectives work is to sift
the wheat from the chah'-to get at
the meaty, essential facts
"Wcll, MS YOU snow. | started out
with the theory Of Trcmaine's guilt.
More than that. | WINS morally certain
that he was guilty, knowing what
knew Of the man. And first of all it
was evident to me that no criminal
as careful as he IS voul! ran the risk
of going through dat penthouse and
committing a murder on the pier out
side with young Graham -lceElng on a
cot few feet away. | therefore de-
duced this bottle Smell Of it,
lie uncorked it and hold It under my
nose.
"ChlorofOrmw | said.
"prcCiSely" AMI lie Corked il care
fully and returned II t. his pocket.
THE boys story lelpcd me to arrive
at It. He had been awakened by that
violent thunder clan. but for the first
moment he had found himself unable
to move dizzy. as he explained It,"
But how did Won know where to
look for it?" | asked.
"Well, ! knew that no experienced
criminal would keen about him any
such important evidence as bottle