The Red Cloud chief., 1913-01-02

] nave 'ouhu "oiNs
This cafe, to which she conducted
me, was filled with smoke, and the
audience roared the refrain of song
delivered by an elderly man with a
long red nose and laughing eyes. Aft
er a quick glance through the room,
my companion walked up to table
occupied by five art students and
four girls comfortably squeezed to-
gether.
"Have any Of you seen Auguste to-
night?" asked Claire.
No: nobody had seen him. The
girl after a moments silence turned
to me.
81 will make another try-will you
Gomez"
The next place-with which I was
very familiar-was o third.rate night
restaurant Somebody was presiding
over an old piano in the corner. but
tho clatter Of plates and the noisy
laughter drowned every other sound.
II wonder what has become OF
him." said Claire. "He is not here:
nor did I see him last night. shall
wait here a little while"
As I was ordering refreshments, q
youth passed.
"seen Auguste tonight?" Claire
called to him.
mo, nor last night. But caught
sight of him yesterday at Nogent.sur-
Marne. He was walking down pri-
vate road with young chap who
looked like a jockey"
"What on earth was he doing at
Nogent-sur.Marne?" remarked Claire.
And I asked myself the same question.
remembering that Nine. Servois had
not been heard Of since she went to
that place the day before.
Four days elapsed. and every morn.
ing and afternoon Josephine came to
me, to know whether had any It'd
ings Of her mistress. Nine. Mesier
and Edouard likewise called: but none
of them could supply any clue. As to
Auguste. who. as I discovered. lived
in a small bedroom on the sixth floor
in the Rue Houdon, he had not been
home for several days. nor had Claire
seen him.
, This is how matters stood when on
the fifth day Paris was startled by the
news of n horrible discovery in the
Fontainebleau Forest. A party Of hol
, iday-makers had been picnicking IN
| the neighborhood OF Barbizon and had
/ gone for a ramble, when, passing
, through some bushes, two OF them
| stumbled over a sack. They cut the
| rope with which 1t was tied. and be
: held the headless body Of woman.
I Immediately went to Barbizon tC
I. inspect the CHASTITY find. The head
was absent. the arms and legs were
mangled beyond recognition. and &C
, cording to the medical evidence the
crime must have been committed 9
! couple of days before. The skirt still
clung to the body. It was of a silky
material called. think. foulard. Of q
, dark blue color with little white doti
printed all over It.
My first thought. OF course. was oi
, Nine Servois; and begged Mime
, Meiser and Josephine to assist me
!, in my Investigations. The condition
Of the body rendered identification
almost impossible. but Nine. Mesiel
!. at once recognized the dress as hav
!, ing belonged to her friend: whereupor
Josephine shook her head and de
. clared the white spots on her mis-
. tress' gown were bigger.
II swear It is Nine. Servois' Dress
!. said Nine Mesier.
II swear It is mott" exclaime,
, Josephine.
. "Where did she buy the material, O
who made the dress?" asked.
4 Unfortunately neither of then
knew. Nine. Servois had the yea
!: b fore made tour through German.
4 and had bought the costume there.
4 The body was transferred to Pari
and exposed in the morgue, where
1. upon matters became still more com
d plicated, for farmer from Lisieu
recognized the dress as that Of his sis
n ter who had run away from her hom
!. month ago; and a corn merchant Il
/. the Rue vieille-du.Temple was equall
positive that It had belonged to hi
D. divorced wife. How. in view Of thes
a conflicting statements. could ! hop
to trace the murderer? instructe
O my chief assistant to follow up tn
J. vague clues supplied by the farme
and the corn merchant, and impose
h. upon myself the task Of discoverin
r. whether there was q connecting lin
r. betweeA Nine. Servois' disappearanc
d and the finding of the body.
I, The coincidence Of Auguste havin
I. been seen at Nogentsur.Marne, tn
,s day Nine. Servois called there ON he
Is friend. had caused me to have hi
" lodgings watched night and day. Bu
g thus far. he had not turned up ther
9. nor at his favorite haunt. where Clair
O. was still waiting for him every nigh
l. next saw Nine. Servois' lawyer. VIII
d, was very anxious about his client.
"Young Edouard." he said. "has a
70 ready been to see me several timei
,e He knows that in the event of hi
le aunt's death he will inherit a larg