The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1908-09-19
On the Turn
of a Coin
BY Cleveland Moffen
Copyright. by shortstory pub. Co,

HOhulnB tne StfetCnef resting on TWO
large wheels, rolling noiselessly. The
operation was over. On the stretcher
lay young woman, unconscious. Her
face was beautiful but white as the
covering sheets, and her head was
wound with bandaces. She breathed
family through parted lips.
Out of the operatingroom came the
surgeon who had finished his work,
and with him his assistants, young
men in blouses and black caps, most of
them wearing pointed boards An odor
of carbolic acid followed them.
Poor girl" said one. as he watched
the stretcher turn into one Of the
wards. Il wonder II she'll speak be.
| fore she dies"
ut will be better for her assassin
if she doesn't" said another.
Then they went off to various du-
ties. Last Of all came Auguste Caseau,
hurrying and behindhand as usual. lie
had risen late had reached the hos.
nital late, and had had no breakfast
on all the medical students at the Laii.
bCisicre hospital there was none more
popular than Caseau, but the pleasures
of Paris at night often made him neg.
iaCt his duties Of the day. In the pres
cnt instance he did not know who the
young woman was whom he had just
seen under the knife, nor had he any
idea how her skull had been crushed
| with such frightful wounds. All he
knew was that she had remarkable
beauty and was doomed to die.
He was hurrying off to a neighbor.
ing cafe when a stranger waiting at
tile door touched his arm. The mans
eyes were eager, he spoke with Ill.
concealed excitement and seemed like
one who had gone many hours without
sleep.
Tell me" he said, "did she speak?"
Caseau shook his head, looking at
the man suspiciously.
Can she liye?"
God knows the doctor took 1G
pieces OF bone out of her head"
Holy Mother, 16 pieces Of bone!"
Caseau was walking meantime to-.
ward the cafe, and tho man followed
him. His eagerness for information
betrayed an interest in the case that
argued some special knowledge, and
| Caseau was curious. "Will you drink?'
be said, when they had taken seats at
a table.
The stranger called for absinthe and
drained his glass quickly,
| Pardon me; forgot that you do
not know ! have been through 50
much for the last ~ hours that | am
la2ed. DO you believe in occult things,
hallucnations and so on?"
Caseau was only in his second year,
and the lectures on hallucinations did
mot begin until the third, so he an.
gwered guardedly.
That depends he said, with an air
Of holding knowledge in reserve. lie
questioned with his eyes, and for the
first time appeared sympathetic. The
man ordered another absinthe.
81 will tell you about it," he said.
II shall go mad unless | tell some one.
In. the first place let me assure you
that usually | am the most matter-of.
fact man in Paris; ! never get angry,
| never get excited, but last night"
lie paused and little shiver ran over
aim.
but last night" repeated Caseau
Iencouragingly.
TT was about nine o'clock when |
reached the corner of the Rue Breda,
where | live. ] hurried upstairs. Our
| apartment Is on the fifth floor look.
| ing out on the Rue Fontaine, and a
balcony runs along the windows where
my wife keeps flowers growing. 1t is
/ a nice place TO sit summer evenings,
and | expected to find her there.
| Imagine my surprise, then, on open.
| ing the door, to find the apartment
quite dark, except for the glow of the
:ittle nightlamp from the bedroom at
| the end of the corridor. And instead
Of seeing my wife come running TO
meet me- all smiles, found her sitting
On the bed in fl of hysterical weep
ing. Hurrying to the bedside be.
sought my wife TO be calm, assuring
her that | was there to protect her.
"At last my wife recovered sufti.
clently to explain her fright as well as
she was able to do so. She had dined
alone about six o'clock and about
seven had given Amandine, our serv.
| ant, permission to go out for the even.
ing. Then she had spent little time
| Jidying up the apartment, and about
half-past seven had settled down to read
| In the room where we have our library.
rhls room faces on the Rue Breda.
In front Of this room there Is a short
stretch Of balcony, which ends in an
iron partition that separates 1t from
the balcony Of the house adjoining,
| which is No 4, II would be possible
"or man to climb on this partition
md step from one balcony to the
| other.
AS my wife read she must have
iozcd for presently, although her back
was turned TO the window, she seemed
see man of large stature standing
)n the balcony outside and peering in
TO the room. This man had bushy red
I hair and eyes of the palest blue-eyes
that frightened her. Presently he with
drew steathily, climbed over the par.