The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1921-01-08
What do you make of that

ward his family shows that he is lacking in moral sense to a certain has me guessing odell replied ! frankly. Hes only 9 kid. yet he 1 talks ike an old man: and his brain two attempted crimes. like the two ! 3 already accom- plished, show remark i able ingenuity ceup1eo with a care l lessness in execution in each case i the conception of mind that was i cratic, to say the least: and the hacked picture-wires and sawed step Of the stairs would both have requir- cd strength of no. mean order. The ! hint that maid Gerda tried to give me. too. about insanity sticks in my i rnind Who could she have meant bu that boy?
 i There is t4,e' sawdust also. When ! 1 first examined the stairs I saw that 1t had all been carefully removed ex- i cept a few feclss and I started on a s-ii' hunt to find out what had been been done with it. I discovered the ashes as you know, in Gene Chal1n- ers' fireplace, but I wasn't satisfied. Wood ashes snudge, but paper ashes form just fluff; and the grate was too clean. That's why I set Taylor the task of examining the fireplaces in the other rooms, but he found no trace.''
 Its evident that whoever wanted l to get rid of them lad to do it in a hurry and for some reason couldn't or ! didn't dare use a grate. There is none in the hunchbackS room. but there was that metal tray in the bot tom of the p9rr0t's cage which coulF be and undou htedly was used to burr, the sawdust on.
 'The proceeding was so hurried entirely burned The tray wasn'r cleaned and it was returned to the cage so hot that it bistered the par rot's feet. Then the ashes of th'. grate.''
 Exactly. TO throw suspicion up on him." the captain commented "So that's the case against tb~ lunch i back as far as it gces?''
 ! I'm not so sure" Oden den1urred what these criminologist sharks on the o+her side call the elementary and secondary mind, haven't you. 1 captain?"
 1 His superior grunted.
 'You know what I think Of all that bunk" he said noncommitta1ly
 "Well, those are only terms used l to classify the different degrees of cleverness on the part of the crim- 1 inaI, anyway Odelps diplomacy 1 came to his aid. ''If some one else | had burned that sawdust and put the ashes in Genes grate to throw suspi-
 
 l much mental effort, would it? But 1 if Gene himself had burned it in I the tray from the bottom Of the cage | in RandaIls room, purposely put back ! the tray uncleaned to leave the ev1- dence, and then enptied the ashes 1 into his own grate to make it look as if his brother were guilty and try I ing to- >incriminate hrnl. that would show scheming of a rather higher or der, wouldn't it?"
 l. What are you trying to put over, 1 OdeIl?" demanded the captain. "Got anything on this Gene that you | haven't told me about? From what I gather he. is a kind of a weak-kneed but harmless young pup; and he cer- , tainly wouldn't have cut the wires- o1 that portrait almost through and
 then sat under it and waited for ii to fall oD, him.
 | t'Weakness directed by a stronger and more evil personality may very easily develop into viciousness, all the l more dangerous because in 2 moment of action it would be oacked by the desperation of panic" the sdetective remarked. "Im not trying to preach
 captain; you know yourself that the
 str -ng-minded crooks are the easiest to handle in the long run. We haven't any proof that Gene Chalm- CTS ever sat for an instant under that portrait at the desk last night. The ladies and Randall had retired anG the only persons near were Jorne and HIS attorney III Ilie neAI IoOIn N1lU . heavy door closed between.
 What was to prevent that young man from cutting the wires of the portrait with an electric file-I have
 it on the authority of an expert tha+ such an instrument makes only a low
 buzzing sound, and it is quite possi
 b1e that i, would not be heard
 through the massive walls of that old
 fashioned house-waitng until he ga N
 that 1t was about to come down anG
 fhan 0niryp in fir0Gv
 about one Of the letters to his step
 father and the attorney in order tt
 establish the fact of his narrow es
 cape?
 1T admit that do not believe hin capable Of conceiving such a plan
 but if the details were drilled into him by some one else and the incen tive strong enourh, I am convinced that he could carry it out. Do vol rem ember my telling you about some letters that I took from his desk af fer I had interrupted him in his tasl of burning then2 I have them her' whom we have been tying to get fo' long tirne." , Captain Lewis book the letters glanced over them. frowned att tn . raief1ty fist down resoundingly on thu desk.
 "FarIey Drewl So he had his hook
 into that lad. too. did he ? 'Nof only OShe. Dut the oIhe ! brother aiao understand; the on } who ia dead. There is fl certain not he"e tn particular that I want you t. read"
 Ode1I selected the one which h. had first hurrtediy scanned in Gene
 room that morning and laid 1t hefor ? his ehief.
 ! ''Where do you think you get off in too deep-meant you should be
 m eth er's went off without "a hitch got to bs done by the sixth-nea' [ businAss-IfaFley Drew" :" The captai 8 sist- d # hastily aloud and glanee ? up at his subordinate. ''It Is eoer . cion, of course. perhaps b1ac<mai t bet what has 1t to da-''
 "Gene's mother was eiready dea : when hat note was written, as yo can tell if you 'oo1- at the postna TX s and that reference to ths sixth da = may mean anythings 1t just happen: f h however. that that was the date O Y which Iniian Chalmers WAS killed. : "Grear Ieaesha phat!" Captain Lew z is aIsF-s e. sared iron, his elaair. 9Th
 Assiste,2t '. A. has t fed to get hir - in more tfan one V ee cleanup bu - yve never fhe0g we could hang >