The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1909-09-07
|, A WOMAN'S ]
 ] ENCHANTMENT} } i, By William Le Queux { Copyright, 1909, by (
 William Le Queux
(ContInued.) CHAPTER XIX.
The Analyst to the Home Office

Next days evening papers contained full accounts of the adjourned inquest, which, disregarding the fact that l was again under the surveillance or the police, I attended with Cunliffe.
 I sat in the small crowded coroner court listening. like a man in a dream. to the dry. businesslike tones of three doctors who gave evidence.
 Presently a short, rather stout. bald headed. man in frock coat and black was the analyst of the home office and that he had been engaged in try ing to discover the cause of the un- fortunate woman's death.
 "It was poison undoubtedly" he said After a great number of experime nts I have come to the conclusion that the poison used must be one unknown to modern toxicologists. The deceased was apparently inoculated with 1t, and it's action was. very rapid The poison was in all probability. one of those known in the middle ages. and of the prepa- ration of which the secret has. perhaps spects however. the symptoms were very similar to the poison used by the Cherokee Indians"
 That was snake poison, was ii not?' asked the coroner, himself doc tor. interrupting, while in court there fell a dead silence as all listened breathlessly"
 .Yes. snake poison, with a veEe- table poison added" the analyst re- piled. "The Indians took a fresh deer liver. fastened it to a long pole. and went to certain place where they knew they would find rattlesnakes in turbed. would strike. repeatedly at the liver, and the Indians would keep up the work until the liver was well soaked, with snake poison. Then the pole was carried home and fastened in ar upright position until the liver became sun-dried and hard. It was then ground to fine powder. and a vegetable poison added. and placed in a buckskin bag to be used as needed for arrows"
 And it's effect. you say. was very similar to the symptoms of the pres .ent case?" remarked the coroner. look ing up from the dispositions he was en- gagged in taking.
 Similar. But in the present ease there are certain features which are extremely puzzling. That the deceas- ed was poisoned have established be- yond all doubt. but with exactly what substance and those assisting me are unable to declare"
 ''Then. speaking plainly. the poison is an unknown one?''
 Exactly
 Have you ever met with this parti- cular poison previously in your expert ence?" asked the coroner.
 Never It is to me entirely new"
 And I believe you are 8 well known toxicologist ?.,'
 '.I am author of four books upon Treatment which is. believe. text book we'll known to the medical pro- fession."
 E "And can you give us no theory as to how the deceased came to her death?"
 ''None-except that the poison could rot have been self-administered: and, further. that whoever inocu1ated her was practiced in the poisdner's art.''
 A shudder ran through the public at the back of the court. as it was rea- lized that there were men actually walking about and going free who could thus poison their fellow men in secret and in perfect security.
 The analyst went on to describe with much technical detail the various tests he had applied and the experiments he had made. a full report of which it is unnecessary to give in these pages. To it all the public listened open-mouth- ed, while reporters scrubbed incessant- ly.
 Cunliffe sat at my side. but wrote nothing. He was not an ordinary re- porter. That was left to the younger and less experienced members of the staff.
 Was Granny Cough the expert pois- oner? That was the question upper night and day.
 Cunliffe had declared to me that there was actually a witness-E1frida Maynard. the pretty dark-eyed girl by whose beauty had become entranced Yet not a word was mentioned regard ing her. She was not in attendance, though all the time my eager eyes were on the alert to catch sight of her.
 Why was she not called?
 A dozen times was on the point ot putting that question to my friend al my side, but I saw that to be unduly anxious might be to betray myself.
 What possible connection could FL frida have with that unknown foreign woman-or with Granny Cough? She was a friend of Myra and therefore probably had known Granny through her.
 No mention was made of Granny's arrest. The police were. no doubt. keeping that fact a sacret until the coroner's jury had given its verdict. Thus it was recorded. at last. after a two hours sitting, that the deceased came to her death by poison wifi ully administered by some person or per- sons unknown"
 Thus closed the medical inquiry