The Washington herald., 1912-02-04

at very close quarters. There was only
the one pistol found in the room, two
barrels of which had been emptied.
Mr.. Hilton Cubitt had been shot
through the heart. II was equally con-
ceivable that he had shot her and then
himself, or that she had been the crini-
inal for the revolver lay upon the floor
midway between them.
Has he been moved?" asked Holmes.
I'VE have moved nothing except the
lady We could not leave her lying
wounded upon the floor"
How long have you been here, doc
torP
"Snce four o'clock"
ANY one else"
"Yes, the constable here"
And you. have touched nothing"
Nothing"
"Yog have acted with great discre-
ton. Who sent for youY
"The housemsid, Saunders"
"Was il she who gave the alarm"
"She and Mrs. King, the cook"
Where are they nowT
In the kitchen, | believe"
Then | think we had better hear
their story at once"
The old hall, oak-paneled and high
windowed, had been turned into a court
of investigation. Holmes sat in great
old-fashioned chair, his inexoTable eyes
cleaning out Of his haggard face. l
could read in them a set purpose to
devote his life to the quest until the
client whom he had failed to save
should at last be avenged. The trim
Inspector Martin, the old, gray-headed
country doctor, myself, and stolid viii
lage policeman made up the rest Of that
strange company.
The two women told their story
clearly enough. They had been aroused
from their sleep by the sound of an ex-
plosion, which had been followed a
minute later by a second one. They
slept in adjoining rooms, and Mrs. King
had rushed into Saunders. Together
they had descended the stairs. The
door of the study was open, and a
Their master lay upon his face in the
center of the room. He was quite dead.
Near the window his wife was crouch
ing, her head leaning against the wall.
She was horrily wounded, and the side
of her face was red with blood. She
breathed heavily, but was incapable of
saying anything. The passage, as we'll
as the room, was full of smoke and
the smell of powder. The window was
certainly shut and fastened upon the
inside. Both women were positive upon
the point. They had at once sent for
the doctor and for the constable. Then,
with the aid Of the groom and the
stable boy, they had conveyed their in
jured mistress to her room. Both she
and her husband had occupied the bed.
She was clad in her dress-he in his
dressing gown, over his night-clothes.
Nothing had been moved in the study.
So far as they knew, there had never
been any quarrel between husband and
wife. They had always looked upon
them as a very united couple.
These were the main points of the
servants evidence. In answer to In
spector Martin. they we're clear that
every door was fastened upon the in
side, and that no one could have eS-
capped from the house. In answer to
Holmes, they both remembered that
they were conscious of the smell of
powder from the moment that they ran
out OF their rooms upon the top floor.
Il commend that fact very carefully to
your attention." said Holmes to his
professional colleague. "And now |
think that We are in a position to I'M
dertake a thorough examination of the
ROOM
The study proved to be a small
chamber, lined on three sides with
books, and with a writing table facing
an ordinary window, which looked out
upon the garden. Our first attention
was given to the body of the unfortu-
nate squire. whose huge frame lay
stretched across the room. His dis
ordered dress showed that he had been
hastily aroused from sleep. The bullet
had been fired at him from the 'front.'
SeSeang oeS naG tSe heart i H DGay SSb aeT bs5
certainly been instantaneous and pain
less. There was no powder marking
either upon his dressing-gown or on
his hands. According to the country
surgeon. the lady had stains upon her
face, but none upon her hand.
The absence of the latter means
nothing, though its presence may mean