Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1914-10-08
The Mystery Of
the Bou1e Cabinet
b BURTON E. STEPHENSON
Copyright 1918, by Burton E. Stevenson.
might we'll have been made by a sc,
pent'S fanpS
Copyright, 1913, by Burton 2. Stevenson.

might we'll have been made by a SER
pent's fangs.
The quick glance which an OF us
cast about the room was. OF course.
as involuntary as the chill which ran
up u spines; yet Godfrey and l.
yes, and Simmonds-had the excusc
that, once upon a time, we had had
an encounter with u deadly snake
which none Of US was likely ever 10
forget. We all smiled a little sheepish-
ly as we caught ach others eyes.
No, l don't think it was a snake"
said Godfrey. and again bent close
above the hand. Smell it, Mr.. Gold
berger" he added.
The coroner put his nose close 10 the
hand and shifted.
Bitter almonds!" he said.
Which means prussic acid" said
Godfrey. and not snake poison" He
swollen hand. The rest of us stared
at 1t, too; and 1 suppose all the others
were laboring as 1 was with the effort
to find some thread Of theory amid this
chaos. TT might, of course, have been
self-inficted." Godfrey added, quite to
himself.
Goldberger sneered a little. No
doubt he found the incomprehensibility
of the problem rather trying to his
temper.
"A mar doesn't usually commit sui
eide by sticking himself in the hand
with a fork" he said.
NO. agreed Godfrey blandiy;
don't know as yet that 1t is a
case Of suicide; mi I'm quite sure that,
whatever it may be, it isn't usual"
Goldberger's sheer deepened.
Did any reporter for the Record ever
find a case that was usual?' he queried.
1t was a shrewd thrust, and that
Godfrey might we'll nave WINGED under.
For the Record theory vas that MOTH
ing was news unless it was strange and
startling, n the inevitable result was
that the Record reporters endeavored
TO make everything strange n start
ling, to play up h outer details at the
expense of he rest of the story. and
even, l fear, to invent such details when
none existed.
Godfrey himself had been accused
more than once of a too luxuriant
imagination. 1t a perhaps, a realiza-
ton of this which had persuaded him,
years before, to out the detective force
and take service with the Record. What
might have been a weakness in the first
position, was a mighty asset in the lat
ter one, and he had won all immense
success.
Please understand that I set this
N0F r. W \ l1lDlj = a.
known Godfrey rather intimately since
the days when we We're thrown togeth-
er in solving the Holiday case, and
l admired sincerely his ready wit, his
quick insight, and his unshakable
aplomb. He USED his Imagination in a
way which often caused me to reflect
tnat the police would be far more ef-
ficient ii they possessed a dash Of the
same quality; and I had noticed that
they were usually glad of his assist
ance, while his former connection with
the force and his careful maintenance
OF the friendships formed at that time
gave him an entree to places denied to
less fortunate reporters. I had never
known him to do a dishonorable thing
to fight for a aus he thought unjust,
to print a fact given him in confidence,
or to max q statement which he knew
to be untrue. Moreover. a lively sense
Of humor made him an admirable COM
panion. and 1t was this quality, per-
haps, which enabled him to receive
Goldberger's thrust with a good ma
tured smile.
We've got our livings to make, you
KNOW" he said. we make it as hon
estly as we can. What do you think,
SimmondS?"
II think" said Simmonds, who, If he
possessed an imagination, never per-
mitted it to be suspected, that those
little cuts on the hand are merely an
accident. They might AVE been caused
In half a dozen ways. Maybe he hit
his hand on something when he fell;
maybe he jabbed it on a buckle; maybe
it with his knife"
What killed him, them" Godfrey
| demanded.
~"Poison-and it's in his stomach.
Well find it there
How about the odor?" Godfrey per-
sisted.
"He spilled some of the poison on
his hand as he lifted it to his mouth.
Maybe he had those cuts on his hand
and the poison inflamed them. Or may
be he's got some kind of blood disease
Goldberger nodded his approval, and
Godfrey smiled as he looked at him.
It's easy to find explanations, isn't
1t 2" he queried.
It's a blamed sight easier to find a
natural and simple explanation re-
torted Goldberger holly, than it is to
find an unnatural n far fetched one
such as how one man could kill another
by scratching him on the hand. / sup
pose you think this fellow was muir
dered? That's what you said a minute
ago."
Perhaps Z was a trifle hasty," God
frey admitted, and l suspected that,
whatever his thoughts, he had made
up his min to keep them to himself,
III IlOl SoinS 10 JleOrl2e until I've go
something to start with. The facts seem
to point to suicide; but If he swallowed
prussic acid, where's the bottle? He
didn't swallow that too, did hep
Maybe Veil find it in his Clothes
suggested Simmonds.
Thus reminded, Golberger fell to
work looking through the dead MANS
pockets. The clothes were of a chear
material n not very new, so that, in
life, he must have presented a appear
ance somewhat shabby. There was g
purse in the inside coat pocket contain
ing two bills, one for $40 and one fol
IS, and there we're 50 or So in silver and
four five-centime pieces in o small coin
purse which he carried in his trousers
pocket. The larger purse had four OF
five calling cards in one Of It's COM
partments. each bearing a differen1
name. none OF them his. On tina back
OF one Of them, Vantine's address was
written in pencil.
There We're no letters, no papers, ne
written documents OF any kind in the
pockets. the remainder Of whose con.
tents consisted OF such odds and ends
az any many might carry about witt
hin1--a cheap watch. q pen knife
q half empty packet Of French to.
l bAcCO.s q Sheaf OF cigarAt naner