The news=record. [volume] (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Oregon) 1907-1910, 1909-04-24


ergetic whispering of "Hushr showed
the curiosity that had been aroused.
"It seems to me-" said the president
''that the mystery of the yellow room.
M. Rouletabille. is wholly explained by
your. hypothesis. Frederic Larsan Is
the explanation. We have merely to
substitute him for NJ. Robert Darzac.
Evidently the door of the yellow room
was open at the time M. Stangerson
was alone and that he allowed the
man who was coming out of his daugh-
ter's chamber to pass without arrest
ing him-perhaps at her entreaty to
avoid all scandal"
"No, NJ. President" protested the
young man. "You forget that. stunned
by the attack made on her. Mile. Stan
gerson was not in condition to have
made such an appeal. Nor could she
have locked and bolted herself In her
room. You must also remember that
M. Stangerson has sworn that the door
was not Open"
"That. however. Is the only way In
which 1t can be explained. The yel-
low room was as closely shut as an
iron safe To use your own express
sion. 1t was impossible for the muir
derer to make his escape either natu-
rally or supernaturally. When the room
was broken into he was not there! He
must. therefore. have escaped"
THAT does not follow"
4tWhot do Won maan9"
'There was no need for him to es-
cape-if he was not there"
mot therev'
"Evidently not. He could not have
been there II he were not found there"
"But what about the evidences of his
presenceT asked the president.
THAT. NJ. President. is where we
have taken hold Of the wrong end.
From the time Mile. Standerson shut
herself In her room to the time her
door was burst open it was impossible
for the murderer to escape. He was
not found because he was not there
during that time"
But the evidences?
"They have led us astray. In Pea-
soning on this mystery we must not
take them to mean what they appar'
emily mean. Why do we conclude the
murderer was there? Because he left
his tracks In the room! Good! But
may he not have been there before
the room was locked? Nay; he musi
have been there before. Let us looh
into the matter Of these traces ant
see II they do not point to my con
clusion.
AFTER the publication of the article
in the Matin and my conversation will
the examining magistrate on the jour
ney from Paris to Epinay-sur-Orge
was certain that the yellow room haf
been hermetically sealed, so to speak
and that consequently the murdere
had escaped before Mile. Stangersoi
had gone into her chamber at mid
night.
"At the time l was much puzzled
Mile. Stangerson could not have bee
her own murderer. since the evidence
pointed to some other person. The as
sassin, then. had come before. If tha
were so, how was 1t that mademo
selle had been attacked after, or. ratf
er, that she appeared to have been al
tackled after? 1t was necessary fo
me to reconstruct the occurrence an
make Of II two phases. each separate
from the other In time by the spac
of several hours-one phase In whic
Mile. Stangerson had really been a
tackled. the other phase In which thos
who heard her cries thought she wa
being attacked. had not then exam
ined the yellow room. What were I'll
marks on Mile. Stangerson? Thei
were marks of strangulation and II
wound from a hard blow on the ter
pie. The marks of strangulation d.
not interest me much. They migl
have been made before. and NIL
stangerson could have concealed the
by a collaret or any similar artic
Of apparel. had to suppose this Il
moment ! was compelled to reco
struct the occurrence by two phase
Mile. Stangerson had. no doubt. b
own reasons for so doing. since 81
had told her father nothing of 1t al
had made 1t understood to the exami
ing magistrate that the attack b;
taken place In the night during 4
second phase. She was forced to 8
that: otherwise her father would ha
questioned her as to her reason
having said nothing about 1t.
"But could not explain the blow
the temple. understood 1t even le
when learned that the mutton bo
had been found In her room. She cot
not hide the fact that she had be
struck on the head. and yet IL
wound appeared evidently to ha
been inflicted during the first pha
since 1t required the presence of
murderer! I thought Mile. Strangers
had hidden the wound by arrangi
her hair in bands on her forehead
'.As to the mark Of the hand on
wall. that had evidently been ma
during the first phase-when the m
derer was really there. All the tra'
Of his presence had naturally been
during the first phase-the mutt
bone. the black footprints. the Base
cap, the handkerchief. the blood on
wall. on the door and on the door.
those traces were still all there Il
showed that Nile. Stangerson. who