Evening star., 1912-02-25

| though 1t looked clearer on kniShtsbridge
away. And e got out left side. of course
| | was up on my box, right and side-a
| long way from i'm. / could see a man
standin' there, but not is face Is at
| was pulled down right over is eyes, and
is coat collar up to is ears
Had he his stick-or umbrella-with
him then?"
''Yes. With is 'ands in is pockets and
| the tip pointing upward like soldier
bayOnet.''
You saw that and not his face?" once
more insisted the coroner, making final
| effort to draw some more definite state
| ment out of the man. 1t would help JUS
! tice SO mlch if only this witness were
| less obstinate. No one would believe that
| he really saw nothing of the face of the
man who had twice spoken to him. He
| may not have seen it clearly, not the up
=. per part of the face. perhaps, but surely
he saw the mouth that had actually
framed the words,
But the chauffeur was obstinate. He
was not going to swear away the life of
man whom he had not rightly seen,
only through fog thick as pea soup:
| this was the fortress behind which after
awhile he intrenched himself.
In vain did the coroner, pleased at hav-
ing gained this slight advantage, try to
draw him further explaining to him with
the quiet patience of a man moved by
official ambition that. far from jeopardiz-
ing the life of any man. he might be saw
ing that of an innocent one, falsely ac-
cused through circumstantial evidence. In
vain did he press and argue. the man was
obstinate. After a very long while only,
and when the coroner had almost given
up arguing and cross-eXamining. he ad-
mitted that he did think that the gentle
man who directed him to No 1 Crom-
well road had mustache.
But, mind,'' he added, hurriedly, Il
won't swear to it, for / didn't rightly see
the fog was that dense in the park. And
e wasn't the same as the one 90 told
me to go along Piccadilly until e stopped
me- The dead man done that"
How do you know" came as quick
retort from the coroner, "since you de-
clare you could not see the faces?'
THE first gent 90 spoke to me- re-
piled the chauffeur. somewhat sullenly
now, "'ad no air on is face: the sec
Ond one l think ad-but l can't rightly
say l wouldn't swear to neither. And
| won't swear he reiterated, with gruff
emphasis.
! A sigh went round the room. tremor
of excitement. the palpitation Of many
| hearts and in-drawing of many breaths
No one spoke No one framed the
| thought that was uppermost in the mind
| of every one of the interested spectators
| of this strange and un-understandable
| drama. The dead man vino lay in the
mortuary chamber was clean-Shaved, but
Luke de MOuntfcrd wore a mustache.
Lady Ducies feathers nodded in the di-
rection of the literary countess who went
| by the name of Maria AnnunZiata. and
| the latter made hasty notes in her dimin-
| utive book.
But Louisa leaned slightly forward so
as TO catch fuller sight of Luke and she
| encountered his eyes fixed steadily upon
her
| After that the driver of the cab con-
Guided his evidence more rapidly. There
was little more there than what every one
| had already learned from the newspapers
! The second pulling up in Cromwell road
| this time-the silent fare. the descent
| from the box, the discovery of the hud-
| died figure in the far corner of the cab
J the call for the police.
! People listened with less attention;
I thoughts were busy with the contempla-
! ton of q picture: two men, one clean
| ShaVed-the dead man, of course-and the
other wearing mustache. The first link
| in the chain of evidence against the as
| sassin had been forged and was ready to
!; be riveted to the next.
| The crowd in the body of the court
| Luke de Mountford's head. 1t was smooth
| which is golden when the light catches
| it. And the group of elegantly dressed
women who came here today in order to
experience an altogether novel sensation
shuddered with delightful excitement as
| they thought of Black Maria, and hand
cuffs and crowds of police officers in blue.
A Jumble of Impressions ran riot in frivo-
/ lous and irresponsible minds, foremost
among which was one that the public was
| not longer allowed to witness a final
scene on the ssallOws.