The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1915-01-28
CHAPTER xxIL.-(Continued)

= SO nearly correct regarding it. l mus
: thank you, also, for your kindness il
4 Keeping me informed of the measure:
which have been taken to guard thu
cabinet. and which seem to me very
,, complete and well thought out l have
myself visited the station and inspected
the cell. and 1 find that in every detail
you We're correct.
1t is because I so esteem you as
an adversary that l tell you. in con-
ndence that it is my intention to re-
gam possession Of my property or
Wednesday next, and that. having done
SO. shall beg you to accept q small
ouNenf of the occasion.
Il am, my lear sir,
Most cordially yours,
Jacques Crochard.
"L'Invincible!"
looked W to find Godfrey regard
ing me with a quizzical smile.
or course it's a joke" 1 said. Then
looked at him again. Surely, God
trey, you don't believe this is gen
Perhaps we can prove it," he said
quietly. That is one reason l came
up Didn't Armand leave a note for
o the day he failed to see you?"
Yes; on this card; I have it here
n with trembling fingers, I got out
my pocketbook and drew the card from
the compartment in which 1 had care
fully preserved it.
one glance at it was enough. The
penclled line IN the back was unques-
nab written by the same hand
which wrote the letter.
And now you know his name" God
frey added, tapping the signature with
ms ringer. L have been certain from
the first that it was he!"
L gazed at h signature without an
sWerlng. 1 had, of course, read in the
papers many times Of the G~argantuan
Mo nI TNrAal- "a sTr1 II e, a.
as ne loved to call himself, and with
good reason. But his achievements, at
least as the papers described them,
seemed too fantastic to be true. I had
suspected more than once that he was
merely a Pigment of the Partisan space
writers. a sort of reserve for the duh
season; or else hat he was a kind OF
scapegoat, saddled by the French police
with every crime which proved too
much Tor them. Now. however. it
seemed that Crochard really existed; 1
held his letter in my hand; I had even
talked with him-and as I remembered
the fascination, the finish, the distin-
guished culture of NJ. Felix Armand
understood something of the reason for
ms extraordinary reputation.
mere can be no two pinions about
nm, said Godfrey, reaching out his
mana for the letter and sinking back
IN ms chair to contemplate it. Gro
SiS o1 Liz SISdlSSI cGl0-
mas who ever lived. full of magma
uon n resource. n with a sense Of
htlEnor most acute. l have ollowed his
TOR years-it was this fact that
gave me- my first clue. He killed a
man once before. just as he killed this
again"
What a fiend he must bel" 7 said.
with q shudder.
But Godfrey shook his head quickly.
Don't get that idea of him." he pro-
sssted earnestly. Up to the time OF
MS arrival in New York he had never
Killed n mar except that traitor. Him
he had a certain right to kill-accord-
Ing to thieves ethics, anyway His
own life has been In peril scores of
tunes. put he has never killed a man
credit"
But Drouet and Vantine," I objected.
An accident for which he was in no
responsible" said Godfrey prompt
";
You mean he didn't kill them?"
MOST certainly not. This last man
ne did kill was a traitor like the first
Crochard. I think. reasons like this: to
KAN an adversary Is too easy; it is 100
bfutal;. 1t lacks ffnesse. Besides. ii re-
moves the adversary. And without adj
~versarfes, Orchards life would be of
interest to him. After he had killed
his last adversary, he would have to
kill himself"
Il can't understand a man like that"
I said.
We'll, look at this" said Godfrey.
and tapped the letter again. "He hon,
ors me by considering me an adver-
Does he seek to remove ne2 On
the contrary. he gives me a handicap.
takes off his queen In order thai
1T may be a little more difficult to mate
But. surely, Godfrey" I protested.
you don't take that letter seriously!
II he wrote it at all, he wrote Ii merely
to throw you off the track. If he saws
Wednesday. he really intends to try for
the cabinet tomorrow
l don't think SO. I old you he
think me only a tyro. And. be-
side him, that is all I am. Do you know
he wrote that letter LESTER
in the Record office. That is a
sheet OF our copy paper. He sat down
there. right under my nose, wrote that
letter, dropped 1t into my box. and
walked out. And all that sometime this
evening when the office was crowded."
But It's absurd for him to write a
You nave only to warn the police
fidence."
And you're going to keep it SOP"
certainly i am; / consider that he
has paid me a high compliment. / have
shown It to no n but you-also in
IT is not the sort OF confidence the
recognizes" I pointed out. aTo
keep a confidence like that is practi-
cally to abet a felony"
And yet Q will keep IT." said Cod
frey cheerfully. you see, I am going
to do everything I can to prevent that
felony. And we will see II Orchard is
really invincible!"
I'll keep it," I agreed, because
think the letter is just q blind And
the way" I added. Il have a letter
from Armand & Son confirming the
q that their books show thar the
Bottle cabinet was bought by Philip
yanfine. Under the circumstances. I
have to claim It and hand II over
to he Metropolitan"
hope you won't disturb it until at
Ter wednesday" said Godfrey, quickly.
II won't have any Interest in it after
for it Wednesday,"
Il really do
ii II Shr1,orad 49,. -rt - l