The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1912-05-23


a retired shopkeeper, dead in the
kitchen of his home at No. % Rue
Montmartre. Decasse had been kill
ed with a heavy butcher knife, al
most cleaver in size. A charwoman
was upstairs at the time, but she had
heard no one with Decasse, nor had
she knowledge of any one having
entered the house. She identified the
knife as one belonging to the mur-
dered man.
The police found nothing in their
first examination to point to the as
sassin. DR.. Lancassagne, the famous
criminologist, was sent for by NJ. Le-
pine, the Paris chief of police.
'sAll that we have as evidence is
this knife" said Lepine. "Unfortu-
nately, it is one of Decasse's, and so
gives no clue towards his murderer.
DR.. Lacassagne went through the
usual procedure of photography and
then began his examination of the
floor. A flower pot had been over
turned in the kitchen, and upon the
earth which had fallen from it was a
sharply defined footprint. Compari-
son showed that it was not that of
the victim.
Next the criminologist began mi
mute analysis of the cuts which had
caused death. From them he turned
to a microscopic examination of the
knife.
IN. Lepine," he said, ''let your
men seek for a butcher who wears a
pair of heavy shoes made by Ober-
heimer, of Berlin. A butcher COM
mitted this murder. His arm is ex-
actly 81 inches from shoulder to
palm, and he is five feet ten inches
in height!'
NJ. Lepine gave his orders and the
hunt for the butcher began.
Now" said DR.. Lacassagne, 'let
US begin with this knife. 1t is GER
tainly NJ. Decasse's. You will see
here where the man had it upon his
wall. The murderer reached for it,
and in doing so overturned this
flower pot. Here he left his first bit
of evidence in the footprint.
'Now you will see that the blade
of the knife was used not to stab or
to cut, but in the same way that a
cleaver is used-to chop. The blood
marks come within three inches of
the top. Now look at the upper part
of the blade where it joins the
handle. You will observe curious
parallel streaks there.
Looking at these streaks under
the microscope you will see that they
have been made by fingers being run
along the edge.
''This is butchers trick. Every
butcher invariably does this to test
the sharpness of his instrument be-
fore he begins to cut or chop meot.
''My first deduction points to a
butcher, then! begin to reconstruct.
I see the murderer reaching down
the knife He is bent upon killing
and every thought is directed toward
that end. The moment the knife is
in his hand it suggests to him his
occupation; in fact it is, as you see,
a butchers tool. Unconsciously he
performs the occupational habit ac-
ton. He runs thumb and forefnger
down the blade to see whether it is
sharp. He could no more stop this
habit action under the force of the
double suggestion of using the knife
and handling it than he could, when
talking about something else, tie up
packages in any other way than he
is used to tying them.
Every we'll. 1 conclude that there
is valid evidence that he is butcher.
go further. You will see that
there are blood stains on the handle
of the knife. Look at them again
under the microscope. You will see
plainly that this mark was made by
a right hand and this by left hand.
The knife could not be effectively
held in both hands at once. We must
admit, then, that some blows were
dealt when it was being held by a
right hand and some when it was
being held by left hand. This is
unusual. 1t either means that there
were two men who killed Decasse-
one a right-handed man, one left
handed-or else it means that the
murderer could change hands and
deal effective blows with either hand
indiscriminately.
Very we'll Let us look at the
wounds The first is across the
shoulder. 1t must have been dealt