Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1910-04-28
THE WALL
CHAPTER VII.
CONTINUED from page three.
THROUGH THE WALL.

T~w%lHE detective entered the room
of the tragedy and turned up
the lights, all of them, so that
- he might see whatever was to
be seen. He walked back and forth
examining the carpet, examining the
walls, examining the furniture, but
paying little heed to the body. He
went to the open window and looked
out; he went to the yellow sofa and
sat down; finally he shut Off the lights
and withdrew softly, closing the door
behind him. 1t was just as the COM
missary had said with the exception
of one thing.
Papa Tignol entered to say that he
had finished the footprint molds. M.
Paul motioned his associate to a chair.
"By the way" he asked. what do
you think of thatP' He pointed to a
japanese print in black frame that
hung near the massive sideboard.
"Why." stammered Tignol, IL don't
think anything of it."
Coquenil laughed. "All the same, it
has a bearing on your investigations"
"Diabler'
M. Paul reached for his glasses, rub
bed them deliberately and put them
on. Papa Tignol," he said seriously,
81 have come to a conclusion about this
crime, but l haven't verified it. lam
now going to give myself an intellec-
tual treat"
"Wha-at?"
81 am going to prove practically
whether my mind has grown rusty in
the last. two years. You understand
that we are in private room No. Z,
don't you? On the other side of that
wall is private room No. 6, where a
man has just been shot. We know
that don't we? But the man who shot
him was in this room; the little hair
brushing old maid saw the pistol
thrown from this window the dog
found footprints coming from this
room; the murderer went out through
that door into the alleyway and then
into the street. He couldn't have gone
into the corridor because the door was
locked on the outside"
"He might have gone into the corri-
dor and locked the door after him."
objected Tignol
= Coquenil shook his head. HE could
= have locked the door after him on the
|, outside, not on the inside, but when
, we came in here it was locked on the
inside"
"Then how. in heavens name
Exactly. How could a man in this
room kill a man in the next room?
And l believe have solved it. Listen.
? Between these rooms is a solid wood
? en- partition with no door in it-no
> passageway of any kind. Yet the man
in there-is dead; we're sure of that
, The pistol was here; the bullet went
there-sOmehow How did it go there?
Think"
The detective paused and looked fix
edly at the wall near the heavy side
board Tignol. half fascinated, stared
at the same spot. and then, as a new
idea took form in his brain, he blurt-
ed out, "You mean it went through
the wall?"
"Is there any other way?"
But there is no hole-through the
wall. he muttered at might be back
of that sideboard."
. But NJ. Paul disagreed "No man
I as clever as this fellow would have
moved a heavy piece covered with
, plates and glasses. Besides. if the
sideboard had been moved there
would be marks on the floor and there
are none. Now you understand why
, Pm interested in that Japanese print"
Tignol sprang to his feet.
You're mocking me; you've looked
behind the picture
t Coquenil shook his head solemnly
{ "On my honor. have not been near
- the picture. | know nothing about the
picture, but unless there is some flaw
in my reasoning
The old man stepped forward quick
ly and took down the picture.
"Tonnere de Dieu!" he cried. IT'S
S true. There are two holes"
3, Sure enough against the white wall
g stood out not one but two black holes
q about an inch in diameter and some
thing less than three inches apart
Around the left hole. which was close
to the sideboard. were black dots
sprinkled over the painted woodwork
= like grains of pepper
= Powder marks"' muttered Coque-
nil. examining the hole He fred at
close range as Martinez looked into