Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1921-07-06

it would be welcomed" cried wether-
mill. And to me that would mean
so much. There would be no bung-
ing There would be no waste of
tlrf.s. OF that. IA would be sure"
Hanaud shook his head gently. His
eyes We're softened now by a look OF
pity. Suddenly he stretched out a
.forefnger.
You have, perhaps, a photograph
OF the young lady in that card-case in
your breast-pocket." 80
Wethermtll flushed red, and, draw-.
Ing u the card case handed the
portrait to- Hanaud. Hanaud looked
at 1t carefully for a few moments.
Intimate Questions.
1T "a taken lately, here?" he
Yes; for me-" replied wethermin
And it is a good likeness?"
+, Very
How long have you known this
Mile. Celie?" he asked.
Wethernaill looked at Hanaud with
a certain defiance.
For a fortnight
Hanaud raised his eyebrows.
you met her here ?"
eyes"
I'm the rooms, I suppose? Not at
the house Of one Of your frtends?"
That lie So" said WetherTnill
met her in Paris introduced me to
her at my request"
Hanaud handed. back the portrait
and drew forward his chair nearer to
Wetherrnill. His face had grown
friendly. He spoke with a tone OF
respect.
monster, I know something Of
you. Your friend Mr.. Ricardo told
me you history; I asked him for it
when I saw you at his dinner. You
are OF those. about whom one does
ask questions. and I know. that you
are not a ronantic boy, but who shall
say that he is safe from the appeal
of beauty?
IT have seen women, monsieur, for
whose purity of soul I would myself
have stood security condemned for
completely in brutal crimes on evil
dence that could not be gainsaid; and
I have known them turn foul-mouth..
ed and hideous to look upon the mo-
ment after their just sentence has
been pronounced"
mo doubt, monster" said Wefher-
mill, with perfect quietude. But
Celia Harland is not one of those
women"
Il do not now say that she is"
said Hanaud. But the Judge din
.struction here has already sent to me
to ask fon my assistance and I re-
fused. I replied that I was just a
good bourgeois enjoying his holiday.
Still it is difficult quite to forget ones
profession. 1t was the Commissaire
OF Police who came to mae, and
naturally I talked with him for a lit
tie while. The case is dark, mon
sieur, I warn YOU"
How dark? asked Harry Wether-
mill.
II will tell you" said Hanaud,
drawing his chair still closer to the
young a Understand this in the
first place. There was an accomplice
within the villa. Someone let the
murderers in. There is no sign OF
an entrance being forced; no lock
was picked, there is nc mark Of d
bolt being forced. There was an &C
complete within the house. We start
from that"
Wethermill nodded his head sui
lenly. Ricardo drew his chair up to-
ward the others. But Hanaud was
not at that rnonsert interested IN
Ricardo. a
"Well then, let US see who there
are in Nine. Dauvray's Household.
The list is not a long one. It was
Nine. Dauvray's habit to take her
luncheon and her dinner at. the res
taurants, and her maid was all that
she required to get ready her petit
dejeuner' in the morning and her
'sirop' at night.
Taken One by One.
"Let us take the members OF the
household one by one. There is first
the chauffeur, Henri servettaz. He
was not at the villa last night. He
came back to it early this morning"
"Ah!" said Ricardo, in q signih-
cant exclamation. Wetherrnill did not
stir. He sat still as a stone, with a
face deadly white and eyes burning
upon Hanaud's face.
but wait" said Hanaud. holding
up a warning hand to Ricardo.
tServettaz was in Chambery, where
his parents live. He travelled to
Cha1nbery by the two-o'clock train
yesterday. He was with them tn the
afternoon. He went with them to a
cafe in the evening. Moreover. early
this morning the maid, Helene Vau-
,quier, was able to speak anew words
in answer to a question. She a
gave his address,. A telephone mes
sage was sent to the police in that
town, and servetittaz al found in
bed. I do not ray that 1t is inypos-
sible Cervettaz was concerned. in the
crime. That we shall see. But it is
quite clear, I think, that it was not
he who opened the house4to the muir
derers, for he was at Chambery in
the evening, and the murder was al
ready discovered here by midnight.
A Small Point,
"Moreover-it is a small point-he
lives, not in the house, but over the
garage in a corner of the garden.
Then, besides the chauffeur. there
was a charwoman, a woman Of AK.
who came each morning at seven and
left in the evening at seven or eight.
Sometime s she would stay later Il
the maid was alone in the house. for
the maid is nervous. But she left
last night before nine-there rs evil
dence Of that-and the murder did
not take place until afterward. That
is also a fact, not a conjecture. We
can leave the c~harworaan, who Tor
the rest has the best of characters,
out Of our calculations. There re-
main then, the maid, Helene Vau-
auier, and1-he shrugged his should
ers--"Nlle. celie."
Hanaud reached out for the
matches and lit a cigarette.
LET us take first the maid, Helene
|vaunuter. Forty years Ole, a. Nor
mandy peasant wonaan-thAy r not
bad people, the Normandy peasants.
uonsieur-avaHcious, no doubt, but
on the whole honest and most re-
spectacle. We know something OF
Helene vauuu!er, monsieur. tsee!"
and he took up a sheet OF paper from