Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1913-02-13

ing him against the plot; but Boissier
| have also"
She stopped and an expression Of
intense pain came over her face.
saw she was really ILL., and as, for
several reasons did not want her to
go back to where she was staying,
sent for cab and asked the house.
keeper to take my card, and convey
the girl to home managed by ono
Of my friends, who would look after
her.
Boissier was sitting motionless in
the dining-room by the side of the
professor" who was reading a morn.
ing paper
take him to the prefecture, Le-
roy" I said. II will see him tonight
or tomorrow morning."
Eyes. sir. Come along, my boy, you
and | will look at few more ghosts"
And he led away BOLSTER, who shiv.
cred with fright and had not tho
strength to utter a syllable.
well, Xavier" exclaimed, when
we We're alone. what do you think
OF our seance? Rather stormy, was it
not?"
"Goron, am too much ashamed Of
myself to dare even to thank you. I
feel in dream. But how did you fer.
ret it all out? What clue did you
have?"
ooh, I had clue. But there is
your sister, worrying herself to
death. Go at once to her, and tell her
she need not trouble to order we'd
ding cake for you. One word more.
Ask your sister to tell her butler to
bring up bottle of Mouton Roths-
child. promised to dine with her
and you--if all went WELL"
1t was one of the pleasantest din
ners | can remember. The Mouton
Rothschild had been religiously emp
tied. We were smoking cigarettes.
when Xavier said:
"And now tell us what gave you the
clue to the affair"
my dear Xavier, you will see 1t Is
all very simple. If people would be-
lieve only half the things told them
in the course of their lives there
would be only half the number of
crimes committed. You need not look
uncomfortable; others have been ia
ken in like you.
Your case is divided into two parts.
The first, which concerns you special.
ly, Is Of childish simplicity. 1t was all
fake. The voices you heard, calling
upon you to marry that girl did not
emanate from spirits. Candidly,
am surprised man of your intellect
should have fallen into such vulgar
trap. AS to these wonderful sooth.
sayers in Paris, Brussels and Amster.
dam, they were all members of the
same gang. 1t was Boissier who gave
you the addresses of those sibyls, and
Clementine, warned by Bossier, sent
one of her staff to the place to receive
you.
"The second part of your case, re-
lating more particularly to the girl,
was more subtle, and, I own, gave me
some trouble. She felt, was the piv-
OF of the affair, and on her centered
my attention. Her hands were my
first clue. In suspicious case l sus-
pect everything.
Here was a girl, the daughter OF
French parents, with pair of Ameri-
can hands! have been to the United
States and have noticed the peculiari.
ties Of the hands in that country, as
elsewhere. Her hands haunted me-
began to fancy they did not belong to
her. And that was my starting point
ri went to Toulouse; saw M. E.
and Madame E, who had adopted
their niece, and had a profitable talk
with them. They showed me the por-
traits of Germaine's parents, true
types of the Latin race; and I learned
from them that the Bradley's, the
farmers who at one time took charge
of Germaine, also had a little daugh-
ter. On my return to Paris COM
municated by cable with the Ameri-
can authorities, and with admirable
courtesy they replied the second day
that Lily Bradley and her parents
We're dead.
1.-THE conviction then stole upon me
that your f1ancee was not Germaine,
but the farmers child my only way
to test the truth was to organize So
ance, and-without play upon words
turn the tables upon those who
used spiritualism to swindle you. You
saw what happened. Leroy Is one OF
my men. His father was low come
dian, who taught his son ventrilo-
quism.
"As to that terrible noise you heard,
1t is produced by smearing two little
planks with rosin, and rubbing them
violently against one another"
Xavier and I had violent dispute
about the wretched BOLSTER. Early
the next morning my friend called on
me, and told me that this matter could
not go further, on account Of the
scandal" How l hate that word!
How many crimes have, within my
knowledge, remained unpublished, be-
cause the victims, belonging to the
higher classes, dreaded what they
termed the scandal" Madame A,
too, came to the rescue, and, to my
sorrow, l had to let the fellow go.
For all that, vengeance overlook
BOLSTER. When he returned home, Nc
found the man Riviere had broken
open his trunk, stolen all his money,
and disappeared.
Two years later I recognized Bois-
sier among lot of vagabonds the po-
lice had found huddled together in