The Washington times., 1910-12-22
CHAPTER ".
dereT
First Night of Victor Barton, Muir

M threshold Of the Trocadero
Cafe he found himself in
the midst Of the reporters
who had wearied Of waiting, and con
gregatel there TO quench their thirst-
one of the men Immediately called out,
ANY news2-r
I've got some hot stuff said Bar
ton, dropping into q seat Take your
pads and pencils and listen to what
I'm going to tell yoU-the whole crowd
Of YOU I've pumped the chief dry
He's told me everything except the
name OF the dead man
That doesn't matter His name :
Forget, a retired business man, who
mas lived N the house Tor the last three
years Wen get more details about
nm later from the chief
very well; now take this down
He proceeded 10 dictate his CONVERSE
ton with the chief, emphasizing the
slightest details, initiating the chiefs
Infection OF voice and clearly setting
forth the chief'S absurd theories He
carefully re1rained, however, from men
tiOniEs his own visit 20 the room, the
footprint which melted away before the
CHIEFS eyes IN tie sun, and the true
clues which the chief had neglected TO
appralSe al their real value That WAs
his mental property and he determined
10 keen II iuTiOlare.
While he dictated he gazed distract
him thai he was actually sitting in the
very ca e from which he had telephyned
the night before BY 2 curious COinci-
dence he was seated in the very chair
winch lie had occupied then At first
he thought he would turn his head
aside, fearing that he might be recog-
nlzed by the cashier and the waters.
He realized very quickly that such a
proceeding would be most extra0rdi-
nary and that moreover, there was
nothing very strange, after all. in his
return No one paid the slightest at
He finished his story, patiently an
EWered the questions that were hurled
at him from all sides. conscious that he
had done all a good turn by helping
Inem out, anC tnat he had kept for
himself the stirring incidents upon
which he intended TO dEate IN his own
article
An the reporters al last left the cafe
Barton. pretending that ne had business
in the quarter, left them all, so that
ne might thlnk alone IL was a strain
upon him 70 play the dlIncuiL part OF q
pseudo murderer He ate his luncheon
IN a cheap restaurant fTeQUeEted py
cab-drivers. scanned the papers hastily,
returned 10 the Boulevard Launes.
reached the f0rtiticarionS-aH for no
very definite reason driven on by some
vague pTemUnirion OF impending dlSas-
ter II eZaSDerated MIN 10 thlnE mat
the real TnIrderers. with whom the pO-
lice were not apparently the least con
CeTued. were probably Calmer at this
moment than he was
After all was he not guilty, as 2
matter OF faCt2 Except himself. who
knew the truJh2 II he had spoken ~
time, the police would nave ben or
the trail Of the murders at this very
In the dead mans room he had been
on the point Of telling everything 10 the
chief Of police Then rejecting that
he would thus lose all that he had
Staked. he had kept silent Now ne
felt himself oppressed as II by ter
rible burden Was ne not after All Al
accomnlICe bE his own acts some
Gav perhaps tomorrow. he would he
called 10 account fOT all this IN court
But then, what an oveTvy heiTnlnE Jour-
uaIisric success ne would have acnleEeU.
What a triumph NnaL an inquiry
What scintUIatz1s and startling articles
ne would write
Sentenced to prison for a few days
for contempt OF court, he would soon
rezain his liberty. and write what ne
had seen and lived from the moment
when Re first entered the dead man
room TO the time when he had pIaECd
his last card PeThans he would be able
-o fe7Che the world a lesson IN cT1Tnlnot-
oc-- verhaps the narrative or MS ad-
ventures might lead 10 the enactment
If better laws wiser laws 2n0 perhaps
10 r-f-77- f7Fivcc-Iv bring about q more
intelligent administration OF justice
A. ziEhtfcH he decided 70 60 nome
The concierge a soon = itt "a" L---l-' @
Informed him that the Planet had sent
for him twice. ard that a gentleman
who would not leave his name naQ
called &c see him He asked for more
details OF the strange visitor On any
O. upr occasion he would have dismissed
4h.s matter and said 10 hlUSelI- ON
he Wi, return But now he tried hard
70 ide-tifv him It was o clock he
Sfd not take the trouble TO climb the
stairs 10 his rOOmr but haStehed away
immediately 70 the Offices Of the Planet
Tho CITY editor had long been waiting
for him As soon as he saw him ne
-ez-H Hr.~-e IN -
DrcaChes. For the last JWenJy-Lour
hours, he stormed, BartOn's conduct had
been extra ordinary Messengers had
been sent 70 the four corners OF RarlS-
hi no Barton could be found On the
previous night when the news OF tne
crime had been received bV telephone
he could not be located IocaSr a. tile
,-erv- time when he was most needed,
he had disappeared completely No one
NaF seen him since S O'Clock IN the
morning As a result the Planet had
lost q Sensational story or at least
had been derived Of the advantage or
in paris vas now rs vel II not better
informed than the Planet The evening
Tar,ars were on the streets All of them
had published column after column on
the murder-SO0d, strong newspaper
reading Waving q copy Or the Evening
Trumppt before Earton'S eyes the city
editor exclaimed.
..FTere's an interview with the chief OF
poIicel Don't tell me you Couldt get
TTfst This thing was written at the
very latest at II O'Clock this morning
Al II O'Clock, mind youi And you did
nothingt I wish we had put another
man on this"
Barton at first listened carelessly-
F-iDalfv he decided that something Ike
an exclamation seemed necessary
Nav put IN a word2 You say that
this article was written at II this morn
ing2"
yes and mean it Eleven or half
CT n7cFrnn Gr The latest
.s-This article was not written before
a half hour sooner or later what
does II n1atter2'
1T matters good deal. because
dictated in inst as I dictated three other
articles which viii appear tomorrow
morning
.-'This is toc much So you Interviewed
the chief OF police. and 10 DO another
man a good turn you passed along a
story that belonged TO usi Every paper
viii be printing our news.
UNFORTUNATELY every paper won