The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-01-25
Continued From Our Last Issue,

- " - A~~-Ss AOoaC~f
Professor Semyonov replied
blandly: The policeman on guard
outside Miss Shaw's door happened
to be an old acquaintance. He
helped me to open the small sky
light in the main hall which led
TO the roof From there descend
ed the fire escape to the window
of Miss Shaw's studio and found
her huddled up in a bare, hard
chair in a siumber that l fear was
not a normal one, for a small car
ton of tablets was beside her.
went through the entire attic, ex-
amined the pitffully few garments
and other things and found no
paint or other stains, nor any Grad
lcator save soap.
Climbing farther down the fire
escape past the windows of my
own apartment, / came to those
of my neighbor, Henry Griswold.
His dreams must have been deep.
He smiled as I looked at him and
made sounds in his throat like
those of an exultant dog over a
bone. And mentioning dogs, that
stuffed monstrosity which holds the
place of honor in his sitting room
was the only object in the whole
apartment that gave any evidence
of having been cleaned in the last
decade, and 1 found it redolent of
various chemicals, among them also
a strong odor of turpentine."
The dog!" muttered Barry. THE
old stuffed dog!"
When had completed my
ca oh Lea
That portion of the fire escape ends
on the floor below as you know,
on the skylight of Mrs. Vane's stu
die, but a walk-way runs around
the edge to the outside row of
windows of the extension, where
the second section of the fire es-
cape begins and continues to the
street"
WAS Gordon Ladd out or
asleep?" demanded Barry, half in
credulously.
Professor Semyonov smiled mean
ingly.
Neither, at first. When 1 ap-
peared at the window of his studio
1 could see through the door that
led into his living room. He was
tramping up and down, and though
l do not pretend to be a psychology
list, l would be willing to swear that
sorrow alone, grief that tore at his
heart-strings, was reelected upon
his face. He was in solitude, aware
of no eavesdropper, and yet 1 saw
no signs of either grief or fear"
"You returned then, Professor,
the way you had conner"
Yes; for soporiflc made from
a formula of my own which is less
harmful and more effective than
that in which Miss Shaw had in
dulged. With it l returned by way
of the fire escape to Mr.. Ladd's
window and raped on the case
ment. He was astonished and re-
sentful. naturally, but when / made
myself known to him not only as
his neighbor but as the person you
know at headquarters, he admitted
me. 1 think the poor young man
was glad of someone TO talk to, for
after your departure the full i'm
port of what had occurred must
have descended upon him. We had
a sympathetic little hour, in which
l learned much that had no bear
ing upon the crime but which 1
will tell you of later, and at it's
end he was quite willing to take
the opiate and get little rest and
surcease from his grief. He fell
into a deep sleep almost at once,
but it was then morning and 1
could make only a superficial
search. There was turpentine no.
where but in his studio"
so we drew a blank, eh, Profess
,sor Semyonov?" Barry shrugged.
Sorry to have kept you up all
night and made that request of you
for nothing, but 1 had bunch that
someone touched that portrait of
Mrs. Vansittart last night while the
paint was wet and brought away
traces that they would try to get
rid of at all costs"
1t was the professors turn to
shrug.
81 know nothing of that, for 1
have not yet heard what you may
have to tell me, my friend, but the