Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1917-07-19
The
DESTROYER
8Bv BURTON E. STEVENSON
thcr to communicate, you will hear

from me-"
And if we wish to find you?"
For the present, / am staying
with my friend on the Quai de
Cronstadt.o
Very good" said Lepine.
Good night" and in a moment
he and Pigot were lost in the dark
ness.
The rain had ceased and a chill
wind had arisen, but Crochard did
not seem to feel it, as he walked
slowly toward the quays, his head
bent in thought. An ironical smile
curved his lips, as he picture LIE
pine off upon the scent first to the
prefecture, then to the post office.
He would follow it well, of course;
he would run it to the end. He
would discover, no doubt, the iden-
tlty of the two travellers; that
would not be difficult. Crochard
himself had pointed out the way.
But what thenY Even if they
We're found to be men high in the
German service, that was of small
Importance. 1t proved nothing.
They were at liberty to visit Tou-
lon, If they wished to do so and,
after all, their arrival at the quay
tive minutes before dawn might
have been an accident; they might
have fingered for a last look at La
l4lberte without any suspicion of
what was about to occur. Such a
coincidence, if not probable, was,
at least, conceivable and such, Of
course, would be their explana-
ton, if an explanation was ever
asked for. There was no way to
disprove it.
As to the yacht on which they
had embarked-well, that, too.
may have been an accident a
boat belonging to a friend whom
they had come upon unexpectedly
and upon which they had been per-
suaded to take a cruise. Suspicious
circumstances - yes, many Of
them but no proof, no absolute
proof. And nothing, absolutely
nothing, to show that the explo-
sion had been caused by any out
side agency.
Arrived at the water front, Gro
chard walked on until he was op-
posite the wreck. There he sat
down, with his legs overhanging
the quay. Two or three search
Lights We're still focused on the
ruin, but the rescue parties had
been withdrawn, and only a few
sentrles remained. He could see
how that formidable monster of a
ship had been torn and twisted in
to an inextricable and hideous
mass of iron and steel. One tnr-
ret remained above the water.
blown over on its side, it's great
guns pointing straight at the
zenith; but the rest was a mere
tangle of metal.
Such destruction could have
been wrought only by the explo-
sion OF the magazines; no mine or
torpedo could have done it. And as
he gazed at the mass of wreckage
visible above the water, he per-
ceived Q certain resemblance to
photographs he had seen Of the
wreck Of the Maine. The Names
forward magazine had exploded;
but Crochard knew, as well al M.
Dclcasse himself, what had caused
that explosion.
Perhaps history was repeating
Itself, as, proverbially, it is sup
posed to have q way of doing. But
Crochard shook his head. IL the
catastrophe was not an accident.
then It was the result Of some
agency far more subtle than mine
or torpedo. And, also, il it was not
an accident, those two men who
had waited in the shadow Of the
doorway back Of him for the deed
Ito be accomplished, must have had
Ian accomplice. They could not de-
!Estroy the ship merely by staring al
Iherl Somewhere, somewhere, con
cealed but notfar distant, that ac-
complice must have awaited the
first beam Of the rising sun al. the
lsignal to hur his thunderbolt. Ia
sllo0se his mysterious poWerl