Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1919-05-20

thing Of the man from his chiro-
graphy."
Does handwriting mean much to
you?"
"Yes. indeed. It is a wonderful ex.
preston of character. But don't
suppose 1t would declare his alteration
Of a lady, unless he put it in words
also.'
you don't connect Loria with the
crime in any way, do you?' .
II don't see how I can, unless IN
collision or through the assistance OF
Miss Stuart. And I'm not ready to do
that. I'm working now on that con-
~rersatioR overheard by Miss Frayne."
you accept that whole. them. ,
Eyes, for the simple reason that
she would not have invented all h a
talk. Even if she we're in the room
herself, and the remarks were ad-
dressed to her, she might be trying to
lay the blame elsewhere; to create
brain IS too preposterous. You see,
Hardy, these things must be weighed
in the balance of probability. If Miss
Frayne had set out to invent a lot OF
stuff which she merely pretended to
overhear, she would have had two
sides to the conversation. I. Is that
unusual effect of one voice only that
gives her story the stamp Of truth"
But there must have been another
voice, ever though inaudible to her.
That's just the point. There may
story was her own invention, she new
err would have thought of represent
ing that second voice as inaudible.
Now. either she did hear Miss Car
rington say those things, or she didn't.
/ believe she did, because if she
hadn't, she must have invented the
tale, and If she had invented it, 1t
would have been different. Likewise.
Miss Stuart's snake story. If it were
not true that her aunt asked her to
buy that snake, Miss Stuart must have
made up that yarn. And if she had
made it up, 1t would have been diff
ferent. That's always my test for the
truth of an amazing statement. II
the teller were classifying, would he
tell it that way? If 30, then it is
probably a lie: il not, then probably it
is a true bill. Now they say Miss Car
rington had a high. shrill voice. Did
you ever hear it, Hardy?"
mo. l never knew the lady. But
I've heard a record of it on the phono-
graph, and it is high, and rather
thin"
ION the monograph? How does
that happen?"
Gray Haviland is a dabster at that
sort Of thing. and he has people sing
for him and make records frequently.
And once I heard that they had a rec
ord of the dead woman's singing, and
I asked to hear it, merely out of curl
osity or a general interest. And 1t
contained some spoken words too, and
her speaking voice is high and shrill,
just such as would carry through a
closed door. You can, of course, hear
the record, il you care to-"
that. Now, here's another( thing. Miss
Stuart has declared that she obliter-
ated. q footprint which was noticeable
in that powder scattered by the dress
ing table"
Eyes, I know 1t. And Haviland
states that it was he who wiped out
that print! What do you make OF
"That Haviland did do it. and Miss
Stuart fibbed about it to shield Havi-
land"
"oh, so It's Haviland you think
Miss Pauline is shielding?"
'"I think it may be; at any rate, she
suspects some m dear to her
You're way off, Mr.. Stone: If
you'll excuse my saying so, Miss
Stuart has pulled the wool over your
eyes until you don't know where
you're at.
Fleming Stone gasped. Pulled wool
over his eyes! Over the eyes, the
gimlet eyes, the %all-seeing eyes of
Fleming Stone! What could the man
mean? And this so-called wool pulled
by a woman! What unheard-of alb
surdity!
Mr.. Hardy he began.
Eyes, yes. I know. Nothing of the
sort, and all that. But it's true, Mr..
Stone. Miss stuart is a siren from
Sirenville. She can make any man
think black is white if she chooses.
And she has been bullied and cowed
by that old aunt Of hers for years, and
for my part, I don't blame her for
getting to the end of her rope. If
She
stop! Mr.. Hardy, I know you think
you're right. but you are not! Do you
hear, you are not! And I'll prove 1t
to you. and that soon! I'll ferret out
this thing, and Ill do it on this new
theory of mine whether you believe It
or mott"
Hardy looked at the man in amaze
ment. He had expected a different
mode of procedure from this talent
ed sleuth. He had looked for a quiet,
even icy, demeanor, and magical and
instantaneous solution of all mystery.
And here vas the great man. clearly
baffled at the queerly tangled web of
evidence. and, moreover, caught in
the tolls Of a woman whom Hardy
fully believed to be the criminal her
self.