Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1916-10-06
Continued From Yesterday

There was no need to attack the po-
liceman. No, monsieur. There are
those whom the night makes mad. In
the city it is never night. There are
lights. lights everywhere. But now
comes the real night. the terrible
night. And with it the mania"
He made me shiver, but he did not
convince me. I've said before that L
don't think much of coincidence. Inc
robber meant to leave by the main
entrance and had done so. You re-
member about the pearl. Probably ne
had a machine waiting across In the
park. If there was an alarm, the
policeman at the awning would pc
in his way So he-or they-uld
away with the policeman.
|. 1t sounds like good sense, doesn'
Il? Well. it wasn't! The policeman
was attacked before the hold-up, ior
one thing. 1t would be more tnan
likely to put the management on the
watch for trouble.
Was the policeman injured by a
madman? Was it the same hand that
attacked him that immediately after
ward committed two murders? was
he wounded in order to facilitate the
escape of the jewel robberF was II
reasonable to suppose that such an
attack would lessen vigilance at the
entrance to Boisseau's? wouldn't II
be likely to increase it?
I put it down like this. I could
connect the robbery and the cutting
off of the light and telephone service.
I could connect the other crimes wltn
the darkness in the same way; the
policeman, for one. had been attack
ed the moment the lights went out,
as IL 1t had been a signal. But things
Connecting with the same thing are
not necessarily connected with each
other.
Did the robbery and the other
crimes connect? And how?
/ didn't get to that point without
and there were some moves in 1t that
1 could not figure out.
What had Miss Hazeltine to do with
it7 Why had she tainted when she
saw the morning paper? What did
the little spring belong to- What In
the name of all that flies had she
looked for in the trees? Why was her
father not to see the newspaper?
Was crazy to connect her, even for
a moment with the trouble? She'd
been worried the day before, you re-
member, when nothing had happened.
left Boisseau, who gave me an
abject note to the mater, and went
out. The awning lay folded on the
pavement with the right-angled tear
on top. The workman was survey
ing 1t with wrath.
you're wrong about the bottle, you
know" ] said. Something with a
sharp corner did that"
Maybe / don't know as much about
bottles as YOU do" he said, and turned
his back
1t was only noon and the fellows
don't go to the club for luncheon
until /. I had time to look up the
policeman, so hailed taxicab. While
the driver was cranking his engine
For a minute I thought I'd happened
on some of the loot, but when I walk
ed out, it proved to be the piece of
glass. picked it up and put 1T in my
pocket 1t wouldn't hurt to find out
what 1t came from. anyhow. Then I
went to the hospital.
The policeman, whose name was
Schmers. was sitting up in bed, and
an elderly nurse was steadying a tray
across his knees.
"I'm Oliver Gray. Mr.. Schmerz,"
said. IT called in to see how you're
getting along"
I'm doing fine. Mr. Gray. But
they pretty near got me, all right.
A bit higher up or lower down and
WneTe WOulQ L De I.
The nurse picked up the tray and
went out.
"Ain't 1t just my luck?" he said.
Twenty years on the force and never
in a hospital until now, and / get a
nurse that'll never see so againl"
He was clearly flattered by my vis-
it. AS I've said before, we're rather
well known, and the governor comes
lax al, ,lrr H.
I'm glad it's no worse"
HE tried for my stummick," aver
red Mr.. schmerE. "If I hadn't stoop-
ed I'd have got it, too. It's a jap
anese trick. I've heard of it.
Have you any idea who did it?"
His eyes twinkled.
There's a number that might
have tried"
Then you haven't any ono in
mind ?"
"Tll tell you how it was, Mr.. Gray.
was standing there. The lights were
going all right. All at once they
went out I struck a match to look
at the time. I'm supposed to report
those things. Then something jingled
to the ground at my feet. l thought
1T was my watch chain. It breaks
now and then. I've got habit of
catching 1t on things, and Ii weakens
1t. So I stopped over and picked it
up-only 1t wasn't the watch chain
and then he got me-"
Neither saw nor heard him. He'd
been skulking behind the awning i
didn't think much of it at first. ]
Strengthened up, still holding the BIT
of spring and cursing. Then I felt the
blood pouring down my arm"
The what? What did you pick
up?" ~
"A sort of steel spring"
he rambled on-what the Doctor
had said, how he had let his accident
policy lapse, the way his wife mad
taken the news of his injury. 1 hardly
listened.
''I'd like to see the spring. If NAV.
sure you may" he said affably
Look in the pocket of the coat in the
4 closet. And take a glance at the
shoulder. It's a neat cut"
With my fingers itching to get the
spring, I humored him by examinins :
the coat. There was a long gasf
across the left shoulder through mate.
rial and lining as If cut by yer,
sharp, thin-bladed knife. Around i
the cloth was stiff with blood. In the
drying the cut in the material hat
gaped. like wound. It male m,
sick.
Nice work." Schmerz grinned from
his bed. IT used to know a dago wh,
could have done 1t. But he's dead now
Got too proud of his work. and want
ed credit for it, The springs in tn,
right hand pocket"