The Havre herald. [volume] (Havre, Mont.) 1904-1908, 1908-05-06
CHAPTER vIII.-(Continued. J

"I'm afraid, doctor, you would not
make very good detective. Recollect
that in nine cases out of ten. the obvious
reason Is always the wrong one. 4 smart
villain, who knows enough to carry glass
gtilettos, and how to use them skhlfully,
would not have unnecessarily alarmed
the household by firing pistol in the
dead Of night. Oh, no! he would simply
sible and unresisting, with q pillow, or
choked her to DEATH"
Il see, I see" acquiesced the physi-
clan. Go on" -"
Let us assume, now, that this I'M
known person entered the house through
the window in Monsieur Van Lith's cham
ber While creeping through the room
he espies a case of pistols. He has come
unarned, save with the Venetian stiletto
But once in the house, his courage fails
him. He picks up pistol from the case,
saying, This will protect me ii | have
to proceed to extremities.' He passes on
to Madame Roupell's chamber, and falls
to searching among her papers. She is
a woman Of large property. and must
have valuabes. He is not after money,
for the diamonds which she wore to the
opera have not been taken. While thus
engaged, he is interrupted by Madame
Roupell, who rushed forward to save her
papers. He jumps from his chair, over
turning 1t, and raises the stiletto; she
turns and fees he pursued and stabs her
Do you understand, monsieur!'
Eyes, I understand everything, except
his firing tho pistol into the head of
woman whom he had apparently already
put out Of the way of harming him. L
am assuming, Of course, that his object
was not murder. Of course, Madame
Roupell may have recognized him, and he
may have wanted to be sure she was
dead"
"Eyen that would not have warranted
his risking firing the pistol. Recollect,
as I have already said, he could easily
have smothered her without making any
noise" replied Cassagne. ..
True! Then why did he fire the pis-
tol?"
1T is easy to conjecture" returned the
Frenchman. "He did it to direct suspi-
cion from himself to the owner OF the
weapon"
1.-THE diabolical villain I" exclaimed the
doctor, and apparently so impressed was
he with M. Cassagne's theory that he kept
repeating the phrase over and over again,
1.-THE diabolical villain!'
But M. Cassagne paid no heed to the
calculations of the physician. He was
down upon his knees, running about ON
all tours on the carpet, totally regardless
of the injury to his pantaloons. His nose
was within an inch of the floor. At last
he stopped in the middle of the apart
ment, and exclaimed:
give me the knife"
The doctor handed 1t to him. He at
once proceeded to cut away the carpet,
and then to dig furiously into the wooden
flooring.
"What on earth are you looking for p
inquired Mason.
"Never mind" replied Cassagne. "Wait
a moment, and you'll see."
He kept ON digging away with the
knife as furiously as ever At last he
stopped, and, still on his knees held
triumphantly aloft small, oblong, black
object. Then he exclaimed breathlessly
"All right; have got the bullet
IF we only had Van Lith's pistol
here" said Mason 'the evidence would
be complete, but 1t Is in Paris"
The detective arose and smoothed out
the knees Of his pantaloons, which he had
sadly crumpled.
1--WE have got what Is quite as good. -
he said. "Go into the next room and
bring me the other pistol. Ten to one
they were mates"
Taking the pistol from the doctors
hands, he pushed the bullet into the mug
zls. It fitted to nicely.
I'VE have thus far" said M. Cassagne,
"estab1ished our theory successfully in
regard to one very important point
Neither your friend Van Lith nor Mon
sieur Chabot had hand In this murder
It was committed by third party
someone who entered the house unknown
to anyone, and who left it in an equally
secret manner. Let us see, now, how he
got away, and what means of escape pre-
scented themselves He could not have
made his exit by any of the doors, be
cause one Of them led to the room IL
which Van Lith was hiding, and another
opened directly into the chamber occupied
b by Monsieur Chabot. There is still, o.
course, bare chance that he retired By
is altogether improbable that he wouls
take such a risk, as that corridor wa
thronged with people hurrying to Mad
anne Roupells chamber at the sound Q
the shot"
s"That IL So" acquiesced Mason. "Ha,
he attempted to escape into the corrido
he would undoubtedly have been seel
and captured"
'He must, therefore," continued Gas
eagne, "haye gotten out of the windows
The man I have In my minds eye at tn
present moment would have been smar
enough to raise the window before h
fred the shot He would be particular
careful not to leave any clew that h
had been In the chamber, for that weul
exonerate the owner Of the pistol. Fl
would certainly not have leaped from tn
window, because that would have lei
footprints on the ground; you will loo
In vain for such. Yet he did get out {