The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1909-01-07

Quet
That's a very important point" sal
Rouletabille. Her hair was done NJ
In bands, wasn't It? l feel sure tina
on that evening, the evening Of TIL
crime, she had her hair arranged II
bands"
"Then you are mistaken, NJ. Roule
tabille," replied the magistrate. Mile
Stangerson that evening had her hal
drawn up In a knot on the top )f be-
head, her usual way OF arrang ng II
her forehead completely uncovered.
can assure you, for we have carefully
examined the wound. There was no
blood on the hair, and the arrangement
of It has not been disturbed since the
crime was committed
You are sure? You are sure that
on the night of the crime she had not
her hair in bandsI'
quite sure" the magistrate contin.
ued. smiling, because | remember the
doctor saying to me while he was ex-
Aiming the wound: 1t is a great pity
Mile. S%tangerson was in the habit OF
drawing her hair back from her fore
head. If she had worn it in bands
the blow she received on the temple
would have been weakened 1t seems
strange TO me that you should attach
so much Importance TO this point"
ooh, If she had Mt her hair in bands
I give 1t up" srlI Rouletabllle, with a
despairing gesture.
And was the wound on her temple
q bad onef" he asked presently.
Terrible"
with what weapon was 1t made"
"That Is a secret of the investiga-
tion."
Have you found the weapon-what-
ever 1t was?"
The magistrate did not answer
"And the wound in the throat?"
Here the examining magistrate read
ily confirmed the decision of the doe
tor that. If the murderer had pressed
her throat Il few seconds longer, Mile.
Stangerson would have died Of stran-
gulation,
1.-THE affair as reported In the Matin,'
said Rouletabille eagerly, seems to me
more and more inexplicahle. Can you
tell me, monsieur, how many openings
there are in the pavilion? l mean
doors and windows"
"There are FIVE" replied Monsieur
de Marquet, after having coughed once
or twice, out no longer resisting the
desire he felt to talk of the whole Of
the incredible mystery of the affair he
was investigating. There are five, Of
which the door of the vestibule is the
only entrance to the p%avilion-a door
always automatically closed, which
cannot be opened, either from the out
er or inside, except with the two spe-
cial keys which are never out Of the
possession Of either Daddy Jacques or
NJ. Stangerson. Mile. Stangerson had
no need for me, since Daddy Jacques
lodged in the pavilion and be-
cause, during the daytime. she never
left her father. When they, all four,
rushed into the yellow room, after
breaking open the door Of the labora-
tory, the door in the vestibule re-
mained closed as usual and Of the two
keys for opening 1t Daddy jacques had
one In his pocket and NJ. Stangerson
the other. AS to the windows Of the
pavilion, there are four, the n win
dow of the yellow DON and those Of
the laboratory looking out on to the
country, the window In the vestibule
looking into the park"
at Is by that window hat he escap-
ed from the pavilion!" cried Rouleta-
bile.
"How do you know that?"
"How? Oh, the thing is simple
enough! AS soon as he found he could
not escape by the door of the pavilion
his only way out was by the window
in the vestlbule. unless he could pass
through a grated window. The win
dow of the yellow room Is secured by
iron bars, because 1t looks out upon
the open country: the two windows Of
the laboratory have to be protected In
like manner for the same reason. AS
he found a window that was not bar
red-that of the vestibule, which opens
on to the %park-that Is to say, into the
interior of the estate. There's not
much magic In all that"
"Yes." said NJ. de Marquet, but what
you have not guessed is that this single
window in the vestibule, though 1t has
no iron bars. has solid iron blinds
Now, these iron blinds have remained
fastened by their iron latch, and ye'
we have proof that the murderer made
his escape from the pavilion by tina
window! Traces of blood on the inside
wall and on the blinds as well as OF
the floor, and footmarks, OF which
have taken the measurements, attes
the fact that the murderer made hi
escape that way. But, then, how dix
he do 1t, seeing that the blinds remain
ed fastened on the inside? lie passet
through them like a shadow. Blu
what Is more bewildering than oil,
that It Is impossible to form any ide'
as to how the murderer got out of tn,
yellow room or how he got across tn
laboratory to reach the vestibulew
: "Could that window have bee
closed and refastened after the figh
or the assassin ~ asked Rouletahille