Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1921-07-11

again, to the eettee. He stood at the
side Of it, with his hands clutching
the lapels Of his coat and his face
gravely troubled. After a few mo-
ments Of silence for himself, Of U.s.
pense for all the others who watched
him. he stopped suddenly.
Slowly, and with extraordinary
care. he pushed his hands under tho
head-cushion and lifted 1t up gently
face might not be d~isarranged. He
carried it over to the light of the
open window. The cushion was COW,
cred with silk, and as he held it to
the sunlight all could see a small
brown stain. 'H.
. Hanaud took his magnifying-g glass
from his pocket and bent his head
over the cushion. But at that mo-
rcssnt, careful. though he had been
the down swelled up within the
cushion, the folds and indentations
disappeared, the silk covering vas
stretched smooth.
ooh" cried Besnard tragically.
What have you done :
Hanhud's face flushed. He had
been guilty Of q clumaness-ever he.
Nj. Ricardo took up the tale.
Yes" he exclaimed, what have
you done?"
A Look of Detection.
Hanaud looked at Ricardo in
amazeuent at his audacity.'
well, what have I done2" he
asked. Come, tell mel"
you have destroyed. a clue" re-
Piled Ricardo iunpressively.
The deepest detection at once over-
spread Haraud's face.
tsno~,t $ha$r"1 E Di~erSe o. r
beseech you" he irp,ored. "A
clue! and I have destroyed It! But
what kind Of a clue? And how
have I destroyed it? And to what
mystery would 1t be a clue II I
hadn't destroyed It?
"And what will become Of ne
when I 90 back to Paris, and say
in the Rue de Jerusalem, Let me
sweep the cellars, my good friends,
for NJ. Ricardo knows that I de-
stroyed a clue. Faithfully he prom
ised me that he would not open his
nxouth, but I destroyed a clue, and
his perspicactty forced him into
It wa. tn. turn Of NJ. Ricardo to
grow red.
Hanaud turned with a smile to
Besnard.
ut does not really matter whether
the in this cushion remain
he said, I'VE have seer them" And
he replaced the glass in his pocket.
Greatly Perplexed.
He carried that cushion hack and
replaced 1t. Then he took the other,
which lay on the, foot Of the settee,
and carried it in its turn to the
window. This was indented too, and
rtdged up, and just at the marks thu
nap Of the silk was worn, and there
was. q slit where 1t had been cut.
The perp1e1ity upon Hanaud's
face greatly increased.
He stood with the cushion in his
hands, no longer looking at 1t. blu,
looking out through the doors at the
footsteps SO clearly .defned-the foot
steps OF a girl who had run from.
this room and sprung into a motor
car and driven away.
He shook his head, and, carrying
back the cushion, laid 1t carefully
down.
Then he stood erect, gazed about
the room as though even yet he
might force It's secrets out from its
silence and cried with q sudden VIC
There, is something Aere, gentle
men, which I do not understand"
Mr.AR!cardo heard someone beside
him draw a deep breath. and turned.
Wetherrnill stood at his elbow. a
faint color had conae back to his
cheeks, his--eyes were fixed infently
upon Hanaud's face.
What do you Think he asked;
and Hanaud replied brusquely:
TITS not my business to hold
opinions, n%sonsteur; my business is to
make sure"
There was one point, ana only one.
o. which he had made every one in
that room sure. He had started
confident. Here was d sordid crime,
easily understood. But In that room
he had read something which had
troubled HIM, which had raised the
scrdid crime onto some higher and
perplexing level.
Something Else.
Then N. Fleuriot after Iall nlaght
be right" asked the conan,tssaire
ti,,aidly,
Hanaud stared at him for d Sec
ond, then smiled. Z.
.~rIy,arraire Dreyfus?" he cried. "oh
IA, "a, la! No. but there Is sorss-
thing else."