The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-07-23

he said. Hunter himself, Lightfoot from Plattsburg and McFeely here in town. Well, MT. Knox, are you willing now to put your self on record that Fleming committed suicide?"
 ! ssNo," I said firmly. "It is my belief that he was murdered"
 "And that the secretary fellow, what's his name?-Wardrop? ?-that he killed himP
 Possibly"
 Tn reply Burton fumbled in his pock~ ct and brought up pasteboard box filled with jewellers cotton. Under meath was a small object, which he passed to me with care.
 sI got 1t from. the coroner's physi- elan, who performed the autopsy" he said casually. "You will notice that it is a thirty-two, and that the revolver thsy took from Wardrop was a thirty eight. Question, Where's the other gum
 gave him back the bullet, and he rolled it around on the palm of his hand.
 Little thing, isn't it?" he said. "We think we're lords of creation until we see q quarter inch -bichloride tablet or a bit of lead like this. Look here." He diTed into his pocket again and drew out a roll of ordinary brown paper. When he opened 1t bit of white chalk fell on the desk.
 Look at that" he said dramatical- ly. "KiIl an army with it, and they'd never know what struck them. Cya- hide of potassium-and the druggist that sold 1t ought to be choked."
 Where did 1t come fromr' I asked curiously. Burton smiled his cheerful smile.
 'Tt's a beautiful case all around" he said as he got his hat "I haven't had any Sunday dinner yet, and it's o'clock. Oh-the cyanide? Clarkson, the cashier of the bank Fleming ruin- ed. took bite off that corner right there this morning.
 "Clarkson!'' exclaimed. How is heY'
 -"God only knows," said Burton gravelys from which took it Clarkson was dead.
 Burton listened while he ate, and his cheerful comments were, welcome enough after the depression of the last few days. I told him. after some he's itation, the whole thing, beginning with the Maitland pearls and ending with my drop down the dumbwaiter. knew Twas absolutely safe in doing so. There is no person to whom I would rather tell secret than a news paper man He will go out of his way to keep it. He will lock it in the depths of his bosom and keep it until seventy times seven. Also, you may threaten the rack or offer a larger sal ary, the seal does not come off his lips until the word is given. If then he makes a scarehead of it, and gets in three columns of space and as many photographs, it is his just reward.
 Burton ate enough beefsteak for two men and missed not a word.
 @The money Wardrop had in the grip that's easy enough explained" he said Fleming used the Borough bank to deposit state funds in. He must have known it wa9 rotten; he
 
 According to a time honored custom in our land of the brave and home of the free state treasurer who is crook ed can, in such case, draw on such a bank without security on his personal note, which usually is worth its value by the pound as old paper"
 "And Fleming did that? ?'
 "He did. Then things got bad at the Borough bank. Fleming had had to divide with Schwartz and the Lord only knows who all, but 1t was Elem ing who had to put in the money to avert a crash. the word crash being synonymous with scandal in this case He scrapes together paltry hundred thousand. which Wardrop gets at the capital ands brings on. Wardrop is robbed, or says he is; the bank col iapses and Clarkso1, driven to the wall, kills himself just after Fleming is mur. dered. What does that sound hkeY'
 Hike Clarksony' exclaimed. "And Clarkson knew Fleming was hiding at the White Catr'
 'tNow, then, take the other theory he said. pushing aside his cup. "War-
 
 drop goes in to Fleming with a story - that he has been robbed; Fleming gets crazy and attacks him. All that is in the morning Friday. Nov, then, War. drop gets back there that night With In twenty minutes after he enters the club he rnshes out, and when Hunter follows him he says he is looking fo1 doctor ito get cocaine for a gentleman upstairs. He is white and trembling They go back together and find you there and Fleming dead. Wardrop tells two stories. First he says Fleming committed suicide just before he left Then he changes 1t and says he was dead when he arrived there. He pro. duces the weapon with which Fleming Is supposed to have killed himself and which, by the way, Miss Fleming identified yesterday as her fathers, But there are two discrepancies. War, drop practically admitted that he had taken that revolver from Fleming, not that night, but the morning before dur. Ing the quarrel"
 @And the other discrepancy"
 ''The bullet. Nobody ever fired a 32 bullet out of 38 caliber revolver un- less he was trying to shoot a double compound curve. Now. then, who does