The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1913-02-03

p 4''pp.asSts sol q: Js.t44{l.l - 1919
his rcom in advance. He had not
locked his door,. and was found the
next morning lying fully dressed on
the bed. The most careful examina.
ton Of his papers failed to throw any
light on the affair, and at the official
Inquest a verdict Of suicide was re.
turned.
1t transpired that NJ. r had
Withdrawn large amounts from his
bank, no trace Of which could be
found. He neither speculated nor
gambled. and he always noted down
every cent he spent. Yet Of the hun
bred thousand francs that had dtsap'
peared no record could BIO found.
What had become Of the cash? His
heirs moved heaven and earth to find
1t, but in vain.
1 Although coHcurred In the verdict
OF suicide, was not satisfied, for
scented blackmailers. Those who, like
rue, have lived in an atmosphere Of
crime, will know the mischief wrought
by these scoundrels.
In The pantomime Of life, wherein
criminals play such an important role.
swindlers and sharpers often imper.
senate the funny man" But the
blackmailer Is the villain" the traitor
who slabs his victims in the back, and
rarely leaves trace of his deadly
york
When a few days after M. F-'s
funeral | called on his daughter and
expressed my view, she Indignantly
declared that there could be nothing
hidden In her fathers life-a man
whose reputation had been above sus'
9icion. Her husband was Of the same
opinion. knew they were speaking
the truth, and I also knew that I could
not hope for any help from them.
After an anxious search I at last
made an important discovery. NJ.
F. had engaged himself to a Bar
onne de " in Tours, and had con-
cealed this fact from his daughter and
I his friends. Deeply in love with Mad
anne de ", he had pressed her
hard to fix their wedding for an early
date, whereupon 1t was arranged that
| It was to have taken place toward the
end OF June In less than fortnight.
however, he had suddenly become
! Respondent, and, to the lady's surprise,
/ had informed her that the wedding
had to be postponed.
| All this was related to me by Mad
anne de v, who was, eager to as
sfst me In Sitting the matter. AS ]
rose to take my leave she said:
THE last time my poor friend was
here he left his ctgarette-case behind, 1
/ and inside found this scrap of pa
per. 1t Is in his handwriting, and the
notes in pencil refer to sale OF a
small estate he owned. I am afraid
you will not find It worry useful"
| examined the leafiet with care.
Madame" replied, this scrap dis
closes four distinct facts, which,
/ pieced together. may supply a valp
able clue"
What facts?"
THE address printed at the top oil
The page is that OF a shady cafe In
! the Boulevard Rochechouart. And
! did you notice the curious characters
! at the back?"
] Eyes, did. fancied they were
/ Hebrew letters"
mo, they are Arabic. From all this
deduce: First. that your friend, who
could have gone to such place only
under compulsion did not meet the
people he had come to see: second,
that, having had to wait for them, he
whlled away he time by scribbling
these notes on piece OF letter'paper
he found lying on the table; third. that
he grew impatient and restless, for
the characters at the back are 1otted
down nervously and lack the firmness
Of the other writing; fourth, that, as
Arabic is not a language usually taught
| ut college, 1t is more than probable
that NJ. F. spent some time In our
African colonies"
"Why, yes" Madame de v ex'
claimed. 81 remember he once de-
I scrlbed to mo scene he witnessed In
Gran"
THAT simplifles matters" reioined
land can now set to work"
1t Is not always easy to dive into
t dead mans past. The moment the
human machinery has been brought
to a standstill everything that once
gravltated around him seems to dis
appear. He is forgotten by friends,
and detracto:s who prosecuted him to
his last breath have potent reasons
never to mention his name.
But the threads supplied to me by
that note would, expected, put me
on the right course, and felt / could
not have any peace as long as the mis-
creants responsible for M F-s
death went about unchallenged;
The statement made to me by NJ
F-'s daughter that her fathers
regulation was above suspicion was
undoubtedly true as far as Paris was
concerned. II, therefore, there was a
blot In the mans life I had to look
.ifor 1t, elsewhere, aud Oran at once
presented itself to my mind.