The Little River news., 1922-07-19
True Detective Stories MIDNIGHT MURDER


 recall having heard q cry a few nights ago, and the old man hasn't been seen slnce?"
 That's all chief. If 1t weren't for the scream In the night-and they all agree that 1t was a blood-curdling cry it would look like plain case of dis Appearance We've been all through | the house, but of course we couldn't search it thoroughly without a regular warrant, and there's no ground for is- | suing one. Epstein may have wan dered off somewhere to get away from his wife. She's a regular hellion, they | say-though she was nice as pie to us"
 John Kane, chief inspector of Scot ! land Yard. rubbed his chin thought fully.
 'Ill take a run down to Grafton street myself as soon as I have got ten these reports out of the way" stated Kane. ''In the meantime keep I, an eye on the house. and let me know if anything develops" " AiNll iNtllC tlpI'i 'dl' llttt tilC IlbtSt tIl Grafton street later in the evening, one of his men reported that there were indications of activity inside the place
 Looks like they were getting ready to go away or something" said the operative. "There's a dray coming up now. Wouldn't be surprised if the woman, alarmed at our snooping around, Is preparing for getaway"
 Kane said nothing, but edged closer to the house. From the meager infor- nation at his disposal, he was not at all inclined to credit the theory that q crime had been committed. But there would be no harm in looking things over, particularly if Mrs Ep- stein was intending to move.
 From the drlyer of the dray, Kane obtained the information that the lug gage was to be taken to Charing Cross thence to be shipped across the chan nel. The tags were on the various articles, and it was not until the last piece was brought" out of the house that Kane noted anything out of the ordinary. Then he motioned to his men to close in.
 "Take that chest back into the house" he ordered. Lets see what's in it."
 What right have you to give such orGers?" demanded voice from the doorway, and the Scotland Yard man, looking up, caught glimpse of tall. saunt woman glaring down at him from the threshold.
 "The right of an officer of the crown to investigate suspicious circum- stances,' retorted Kane. q happen to be the chief inspector of Scotland Yard, and, as your husband recently disappeared, 1 desire to know what Is in that box"
 It was in the dim. barelyfurnished parlor of the house that Kane directed the chest to be placed. The fiickering yellow light of single gas jet cast a ghostly illumination over the scene, and even Kane's iron nerves were shocked when the lid of the box was thrown back. and what appeared to be ghost sat up and leered out in- to the room. It was the body of the missing man, the upper portion of the trunk attached to the lid of the box In such manner that, when the top was thrown back, the body sprang in- to sitting posture, as If 1t were alive again.
 hOp6nnn6 O was, cried out at the apparitiOn and then fainted away.
 "Quick!" directed Kane. Find out how the man was killed!'
 "A thrust of some long, thin instru- ment through the heart" reported one of the detectives. "A drop of blood on his chest Is the only indication of foul play but that's what did it, all right. Not stiletto or dagger, though. The puncture isn't large enough for that"
 The chief inspector examined the wound for a moment carefully, and then, stepping across to where the fainting woman lay, began to tumble with something in her hair.
 'ThrOw some water in her face,' he ordered, "and then stand back. l want to find out something before she gets a chance to recover her nerve" AS the wOman's eyes opened, she be- came aware first, of the body of her dead husband staring at her with sight less, accusing eyes. Then she saw the chief inspector, standing in front of her, examining under a pocket magni- flying glass-sOmething that shOne and glittered in the light of the jet di- rectly above it.
 ,, An instant later Kane stood over ' her, his finger indicating the thing he l held in his hand.
 "Why did you kill your husband at | midnight, four days ago?' he demand | ed. "Yes, you did! There's no use denying it! We have witnesses who ! heard the scream. We have proof that 1 you were alone in the house with him. We know that he had considerable | crIu1 of poopay copcoaIpd on tho proTn-