The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1914-10-15
CHAPTER ".
THE THuNDERROLT

1t was about s o'clock that evening
that Godfrey tapped at my door, and
when l let him in. 1 could tell by the
way his eyes were shining that he
had some news.
Il can't stay long" he said. I've
got to get down to the office and put
the finishing touches on that story"
but nevertheless he 0 the cigar 1
proffered him and sank into the chair
opposite my own.
l knew Godfrey, so I waited patient
then N' ''sAf was gong nicely
"WeI?" I asked.
It's like old times, isn't 1t, Les
ter" and he smiled across at me.
How many conferences have we had
In this room? How many of your cigars
have l made away within"
Not half enough recently" I said.
You haven't been here for months"
Tn sure to drift back, sooner or
knack of getting in on the interesting
cases: And l want to say this, Les
ter, that Of all I ever had, not one has
promised better than this one does. If
1T only keeps up-but one mustn't ex-
pect too much"
You've been working on it. of
course?"
Il haven't been idle. and just now
I'm feeling rather pleased with my
self. The coroner's physician finished
his postmortem half an hour or SO
ago"
"Well?" I said again.
Inc stomach was absolutely nor
NAL. 1t showed no trace Of poison of
! any kind"
He stretched himself, lay back in his
chair, sent a smoke ring circling to-
ward the ceiling and watched it. smil-
ing absently.
Rather a facer for our friend,
Goldberger," he added after a minute.
What's the matter with Goldberger?
He seemed rather peeved with you this
afternoon"
NO wonder. He's Grady's man and
We're after Grady. Grady isn't fit to
head the detective bureau-he got the
job through his pull with Tammany-
he's stupid, n l suspect he's crooked.
The Record say he has to 60"
SO, of course, he will co." COM
mented, smiling.
H certainly WILL" assented God
frey seriously, and that before long.
But meanwhile it's a little difficult for
me, cause his people don't know which
way to jump. Once he's out, every
thing will be serene again"
l wasn't interested in Grady, so ]
came back to the case in hand.
Look here, Godfrey" I said, "if 1t
wasn't poison. what was it?"
But 1t was poison"
inserted at the hand?'
He nodded.
"Goldberger says there's no poison
known which could be used that way
and which would act so quickly"
"Goldberger is right in that" agreed
Godfrey; but there's a poison I'M
known that will-because it did"
TT wasn't a snake bite?"
"Oh, no.. snake poison wouldn't kill
a man that quickly-not even a fer-de-
lance. That fellow practically dropped
where he was struck"
Then what was it,"
Godfrey was sitting erect again. He
was not smiling now. His face was
very stern.
That is what I am going to find
out, Lester he said; that is the prob
lem I've set myself to solve-and it's
a pretty one. There is one thing GER
tain-that fellow was killed by SONS
agency outside himself In some way
a drop or two of poison was intro
duced into his blood by an instrument
something like a hypodermic needle
and that poison was SO powerful thai
almost instantly it caused paralysis OF
the heart. After all, that isn't so re-
markable as it might seem. The blood
in the veins of the hand would be car
RED back to the heart in four or five
seconds"
But you've already said there's nc
poison so powerful as that"
I said we didn't know of any.
wouldn't be so sure that Catherine de
A1CuiSl dldu T.. r
What his Catherine de Medici to dc
with it?"
"Nothing-except what has beer
done may always be done again. Those
old stories are, no doubt, exaggerated;
but it seems fairly certain tina thu
queen of Navarro was killed with 9
pair of poisoned gloves, the Due dan
jou with the scent of a poisoned rose
and the Prince de Porcian with the
smoke of a poisoned lamp. This cas-
isn't as extraordinary as those"
NO" ] agreed. and fell silent, shiv.
ering a little, for there is something
horrible and revolving about the poi
soner.
After ALL" went on Godfrey, at las
there is one thing that neither you mol
l nor any reasonable man can believe
and that is that this Frenchman cam
from heaven knows where-frorn Paris
perhaps-with Vantine's address in hi!
pocket, and hunted up the house AMI
made his way into it simply to xii
himself there. He had some other OBJ,
ject, and he met his death while trying
to accomplish it"
Have you found out who he is I"
mo: he's not registered at any o
the hotels: the French consul neve