Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1914-02-14

I " VI NJ DAA 4 LOdA4I 4 NOu4h hol NOAt1IA "a
certain deep seated nervousness, 50 at
last l locked my desk. told the boy
would. not be back and took a CAB for
long drive through the park. I was
able ito greet Godfrey with smile
when he called for me at O'Clock.
"Tve engaged a table at a little
place around the corner" he said. 1T
is managed by a friend of mine, and
think you'll like it"
l did. Indeed. the dinner was so
good that 1t demanded undivided at
tention.
Anything new?" I asked as we
pushed back our chairs.
NO, nothing of any Importance. The
man at the morgue has not been iden-
tiled. In the first place. the Paris po-
| lice have never taken his Bertillon
measurements He has never been ar
rested. More peculiar IS the fact that
he hasn't been recognized here. The
| police have no report of any such man
, missing"
''That is peculiar, isn't it?" COM
mented.
Its very peculiar. 1t means one OF
! two things-either the fellows friends
| are keeping d2rll purposely or he didn't
have any friends, here in New York
| at least"
Perhaps he had just reached New
York and went direct to Vantines."
Godfrey's face lighted up.
From the steamer, of Counsel I
ought to have guessed as much from
| the cut of his hair. He hasn't been
| out of France more than ten days or
| a
| He hurried away, and five minutes
| passed before he came back.
| II phoned the office to send some
| men around to the boats which came
in yesterday If he was a passenger
some one of the stewards viii reeog-
nize his photograph. There We're three
boats he might have come on-tfre-Ati-
ratio and Cecilie from Cherbourg and
La Touraine from Havre. There is
nothing else that know Of" he added
thoughtfully, except that Freyling
! huisen thinks he has discovered the
nature of the poison. He says 1t is
some very powerful variant of prussic
acid"
Yes" I said "I heard him say
something of the sort last night"
"Freylinghuisen says that whoever
concocted this particular poison has
| evidently discovered a new way of do
| ing it-or rediscovered an old way. In
| other words. N you can get a fraction
| of a drop of it in a mans blood you
kill him by paralysis quicker than if
! you put bullet through his heart"
Nothing can save man, then% I
questioned.
Nothing on earth. Freylinghufsen
! thinks it is new discovery. 1 don't.
think some one has dug up one of
| the old Medici formulas. Maybe it
| was placed in the secret drawer, so
that there would never be any lack of
| ammunition for the mechanism"
| Godfrey 1 said, ARE you still bent
on fooling with that thing?"
More than ever I'm going TO find
that secret drawer, and If the fangs
strike-well. I'm ready for them. See
here what had made today"
He drew from his pocket something
that looked like steel gauntlet such
as one sees on suits of old armor. He
slipped it over his right hand,
You see it covers the back Of the
hand completely" he said. halfway
down the first joint of the fingers &c
Is nistue W TIE ipuSuGSl
would turn bullet. And do you see
how it is depressed in the middle,
Lester?"
Yes" I said 81 was wondering
why you had it made in that shape"
ri want TO get sample of that pol
son. Think what 1t Is, Lester-the
poison of the MedicIr'
/ sat for moment looking at him
half in amusement. half in sorrow
! got out the cablegram and passed
II across 20 him. He read It with
brows contracted.
THAT seems to put a puncture In
our little romance. doesn't it?' l asked
at last 'Arnand's man hasn't called
yet? suppose he'll be around to-
morrow
You viii have to turn the cabinet
over to him. of course"
'sWhy. yes: It belongs TO him-at
least it doesn't belong TO yantine."
well. in spite of this he said. II
am still Interested in that cabinet.
Lester. and / wish you would keep
possession of ii as long as you can.
At least wouldn't give it up until he
delivered TO you the other cabinet
which Vantine really bought"
"Oh. I'll make him DO that agreed
quickly THAT win no doubt take
few days-ionger than that IL VantiDes
cabinet Is in Paris"
And now let us so down and have
a look at this one" he said. las we in
tended doing, You VIII think me fool
ish. Lester. but even that, cahlegram
HASN'T shaken my belief In the exist
ence of that secret drawer;
"And all the rests" ! asked
..yes.- he answered slowly, sand IN
the rest"