The Washington herald., 1913-08-10

room at the Barrys. Mr.. Shepard dirlo-
matically made the arrangement with
George Barry and that afternoon Chris.
TOPPER Poe quietly moved into the little
hillside house and was established in the
very room in which Bill Barry had died:
the room having been made clean and
tidy by Jenny.
The grewsomeness Of his situation did
rot occur to the hnancier because OF his
great interest in the crime. He lay for
hours in the bed and re-established In
his mind the room as It had been on the
night OF the murder. During the h.st
night he rose several times to rearrange
chairs in an effort to figure out some
plausible theory. He also carefully ex-
amined the Swiss clock and made q
mental note OF the fact that he could
plainly hear the breathing d the tw o
brothers who occupied separate rooms,
both opening onto the middle chamber
| in which Poe lay.
Jenny had a small room below. Just
beneath the old staircase, and though he
felt that some one was moving about be-
low stairs several times during the night
he could hear no sound.
Next day at breakfast. Jack announced
in a business-like tone that he and
Jenny were TO be married that night
Christopher Poe Immediately became
anxious. A vague theory had been form
ing in his mind and he felt that he must
act at once.
So Immediately after breakfast he
asked the two Barrys and Jenny upstairs
to his room. The old sheep medal with
its blood stains upon 1t lay on the
dresser, the sheep shears beside II.
in seeing that these two articles were
not disposed of. The grewsome relics
seemed to hold a morbid interest for all
the Barry household.
When they were all gathered In the
room Christopher Poe stepped softly to
the door and locked IT. then he went
over to the clock on the mantle piece
and turned the hands until they were
pointing to half-past two.
NOW" he said, taking up the sheep
shears and placing them on the chair near
the stairway where they had been the
night of the tragedy. and putting the sill
yer sheep medal on the bed, II want you
all to imagine that this is the night that
Mr.. Barry was killed. The shears lay
where they did last night, the sheep
medal will represent the place your father
occupied. and the clock is set at half
past two. i have found in examining this
clock that 1t is Of very excellent Swiss
workmanship. The bell sounds the hours
in regular rotation. I have tempered with
II now so that 1t will strike 3 o'clock
when these hands are turned to three.
Now you two boys are supposed to be
lying awake in these two outer rooms and
Jenny is either awake or asleep down
stairs in her ROOM" Christopher Poe
slowly and deliberately moved the hands
Of the clock until they reached the hour
OF 3. The silver tinkle sounded clearly
and distinctly three times.
Now" continued the banker-detective.
you heard it strike three. and II left
the clock alone II would strike four after
an hour Is passed, but instead OF that
turn the hands around the entire face OF
the clock back to about 2:3o. SO that the
next time the clock strikes, while IL
would really be o'clock the bell would
only sound three times"
He turned and looked at Jenny, who
was trying to hide her flushed face be-
hind Jack.
Wen suppose that some person has
slipped silently up the stairs after the
clock had struck three and has turned
the hands in just the manner I did, SO
instead OF the bell sounding four times at
o'clock there will be but three strikes.
Jenny was edging toward the door and
Christopher Joe cleverly cut of her re-
treat by stepping to the chair and picking
up the sheep shears. The boys stood fas-
cinated. watching his every movement.
Jenny. her hands trembling. finding the
door locked. returned and stood behind
Jack as though seeking protection.
Christopher Poe again deliberately
turned the hands of the clock until they
reached the hour of 4. Then as the time
piece began striking clearly he rushed
toward the bed with the sheep shears
tightly clutched in his hand and stood
in a dramatic pose waiting as the clock
81 Wi Thav
hand descended swiftly and the sheep
shears changed on the rim Of the thin
silver medal, making a note similar to
the fourth stroke Of the clock.
You see," he cried. looking up with his
face eagerly flushed, "the clock did not
strike four times. made the fourth
stroke by hitting the sheep shears against
the medal. You spoke of a strange feel
ing that you had on the night of the muir
the clock. Did you recognize the sound
when I struck the medal Just now
"Yes,' cried both brothers together.
And Jenny made bolt for the door. tug
ging frantically at the knob.
You recognized it, too" Poe said.
catching the girl firmly by her arms.
"You recognized II because 1t was you
who first figured out how to set the
clock back and how to initiate the fourth
stroke at Tour o CLOCK IN Such manner
that these two boys. whom you know
were listening intently in their rooms,
would hear and suspect nothing"
Still holding the girl. whose guilt was
written in her wildly defiant eyes. Chris
TOPPER Poe turned to the Barrys and said
softly: This girl is not a murderer. 1t
was quite natural. living the life Of a
slave. that she has for so many years.
and loving Jack as much as she hated
his father. that she would wish to kill
the tyrant. say It is quite natural that
this girl should. because. as you might
have seen IL you had not been so init
mately connected with her, she is in
sane"
The boys stood dumbly looking at the
girl who had been their companion for
years, and in whose diseased mind this
weird tragedy had taken growth and ma
tured as a noxious weed.
To prevent a scene. Christopher Poe
had already requested the Sheriff to be
in waiting near the house that morning
He gave a shrill whistle out of the win
dow to summon him, and Jenny, taking
advantage of his move. jerked away from
him and tried to grasp the sheep shears
from Georges hand. but together they
overpowered her. and in half an hour the
| unfortunate girl was on her way to the
insane asylum.
Christopher Poe packed up without loss
of time and returned to the city. firmly
convinced that more peace and rest could
| be found in the turmoil of the metropolis
| than in an apparently quiet. rural retreat
(THE END)