Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-10-20

well aware of; though the other. woman,
who was taking in this scene with unre-
strained establishment, probably attributed
her furtive eyes and parted lips to nervous
ness induced by the little mans eccentric
behavior.
"A curio? Isn't it an inspiration too?'
cried Clancy. "Don't you understand that
this bird shared the secrets and the vigilS of
the dead man? 1t watched his comings and
goings; for he too was a night prowler and,
it may be- met his fate at the claws of some
human vampire. This very owl must have
seen him starting on that last fatal voyage;
or, if one might hazard far-fetched guess,
was present when his dead body was placed
in the cutter by the hands of those who killed
him. Can't you catch some hint of the trag-
edv from the creatures baleful eye? 1t is
only glass, we know; but it has been chosen
by an artist and is wicked as a snake s. | am
going to make only one small alteration in
the setting. | brought back from the Palm
Beach road a piece of the rock on which
Claude Waverton's body was flung, and it
ought to 60 into this glass case with the owl
that hooted Mrs. Kyrle with its dying breath.
Don't you agree?"
Its queer notion, but the two may have
a good deal in common, said Steingall, mop
ping his forehead vigorously, because the
weather was warm, and the atmosphere of
the car had become sultry.
Suddenly the train plunged into the Hud
son tunnel, and the change from daylight to
electric lamps brought respite.
Clancy repacked the case in the brown
paper, tied the string carefully, and replaced
it on the rack. Then, seemingly for the first
time, he glanced at the two women, and for
a fraction of second his eyes encountered
those of Mrs. Delamar. She was deathly
pale; but so composed in manner that he
fapcIe6 she was about to speak
81 suppose you are pining for smoke, he
said to Steingall "Shall we go forward"
THEY went out. and the golfng woman
caught Mrs Delamar's contemplative
gaze.
what a peculiar man the little one Isl"
she exclaimed "And do you think they
really are detectives? should not have ex-
pected to find such persons travelling in
parlor car"
Zone never knows whom one may be trav-
cling with nowadays" said Mrs. Delamar,
glancing up at the square package.
THAT was really very fine owl. | Won
der if it did attack the Mrs. Kyrle he spoke
of? | remember reading something about
the death of man named Kyrle. Oh, |
know now-the body was found in boat
But why should the detective drag in the
WavertOn caSe!"
WHY, ul(lccu- SiSuCu 4IlS. l|Cieiiildi,
opening her writing case, and beginning a
letter forthwith. If the conversation did not
stop, she was sure she would scream; so she
scrubbed memorandum of Clancy's words
in the form of letter to Tearle: but only to
force the other woman into silence. Once
again she looked at the parcel. Would her
Wis avis go to the dining car? she wondered
If so, and the men had not returned, she
would certainly pitch that horrible bird
through the window, and take the conse-
quences if it's loss was attributed to her.
Oddly enough, Clancy read her thought
He claimed that he had the faculty of pro-
jecting himself into the mind of criminal
and the destruction of the owl was just the
uselessly vindictive sort of act he would ex-
pect from Mrs. Delamar.
"If you must smoke. smoke alone he
said, hating in the corridor near the smoking
room al shouldn't be surprised if our agi-
tated lady friend chucked her stuffed enemy
out the window
81 don't see any valid reason why should
not chuck you after it, growled Steingall.
"There you go again, o man of method"
cackled Clancy. at gives you a pain to
bump up against the least deviation from
the judge-and- jury way of conducting a case
L. 81 -