The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1916-01-28

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was galvanic in its quick. nervous in.
tensity. In few seconds he drew
back with a sigh, then moved quickly
back to the reception hall as the soupI
of step on the stair struck his hear.
ing.
1t proved to be only the maid, how
ever, who came to inform him that the
captain would see him If he insisted.
but ii the reason was not imperative.
he was so utterly broken and I'M
strung that he hoped he might be ex-
cused
"All right-very WE'LL" returned
Hazard. doubtfully. Perhaps later
will do. I'll wait for Miss Bertel."
He remarked change in he maids
manner and surmised that she had
been instructed not to lose sight of
him as long as he remained in the
house
And why should this order have
been given-to a coroner's deputy?
Had she mentioned his interest in the
arrow collection?
At this juncture Helen came down
the long, wide hall.
She cast doubtful side-glance at
the girl as she drew near; but the lat
ter merely regarded her with curios-
ity with which was mingled an express
sion of frank admiration
Turning her head so that the maid
could not see her face, she formed
with her lips the word, Nothing"
For moment Hazard stood bowed
in thought, then. rousing himself, from
pocket he produced wooden tooth
pick. and with his penknife fashioned
small, smooth splinter. Disregard
ing the maid, he handed this to Helen
without word. Then, apparently dis
missing the matter from his mind, he
fell to inspecting his nails as if any
way they were the only things in the
world worth while.
Helen hestitated moment, as if
waiting for him to speak; but he
merely smiled and remarked: when
ever you're ready, we'll CO." They ex-
changed a long look, then Helen
turned and went back the way she
had come.
Slowly the minutes dragged. And
thus possibly five minutes passed.
OF sudden Hazards attention was
caught by two distinctly different
sounds. Somewhere in the house
door had opened and shut-softly, one
might say stealthily. This he recog-
nized as the door to the mortuary
room, and knew that Helen was com
ing back again.
But the other sound he located as
emanating from the small weapon
room. where he had been so inter
ested in the arrows from Somaliland.
1t, too, was stealthy-in point of fact,
so slight sound that when it was not
repeated Hazard directed his whole at
tention to Helen, who once more ap-
peared, her bright countenance over
spread with an unusually serious ex-
preston. The maid was watching him
curiously, and so did not see Helen
hold up the middle finger Of her right
hand. But she did observe Hazards
short nod of recognition, and wheeled
sharply, to bestow upon Helen a look
that bristled with suspicion.
This silent little play, however, was
rudely and startlingly interrupted.
There was the crash of a pistol shot
and the fall of heavy body to the
floor
With muttered imprecation, Haz-
ard dashed through the larger room
and into the lounge where the So.
maitland arrows we're.
Clasping a revolver in his right
hand, Capt. Francis Forsythe lay upon
the floor, dead.
But what l can't see," Doctor Hen
dirk was saying-they were all gath
cred in Felix Hazards private Office
the doctor, Helen, Hazard and the
last-named's chief-"what l can't see
is how you arrived at your conclusions
so quickly. 1t is neutrality-suspicious.
ingt"
Really, 1t was all very simple, in
deed one of the simplest problems /,
ever was called upon to solve" Haz-
ard returned modestly. "As a matter
of fact, knew the answer within five
minutes after you left me this morn
ing. All that Miss Bertel and | did
this afternoon was to confirm-or.
rather, find a means of establishing
the conclusions
There were three factors, which,
taken together, made the conclusions
inevitable. These were the fact that
you had administered strophanthus to
Mrs. Forsythe the night before she
died, that her husband had a collec-
ton of African weapons and that there
were three insurance policies
though he never suspected that the
largest, upon which she had been pay
ing premiums, was doubly beyond his
reach. His thoughts and sensations
must have been horrible when he re-
allied that the murder of his wife
had produced so paltry an amount.
But before moving in the case,
satisfied myself upon two aspects of
the affair that strengthened my posi-
ton: l obtained the mans record, and
obtained a full statement of his
bankrupt condition. The rest was
merely matter of happening to be
possessed of a scrap of uncommon
knowledge"
Hazard fell silent, and sat musing
moment before taking up the thread
of his recital.
Its trite to repeat that whenever a
crime is committed, no matter how
shrewd or intelligent the criminal, or
how carefully every factor that might
leave clue pointing toward detection
is provided against, some detail. is in