Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1924-08-01

We dSSuHlcu lHS SPA li6 lONh was ga
right. then all the murderer had 10
do when he left the room was 10
close the door. The key would
naturally be inside. But with the
Jock broken. the door. to be locked.
had Il be locked from the outside"
The chief nodded his head to this
and BARLEY went on: Though the
windows were open, yet it was i'm
possible for one to have walked the
ledge and slid down the copper pipe.
The storm prevented that. Then the
thought struck me that they said
Hall had broken through the door
and put his hand in the hole, I'M
locking the door from the inside"
But, MIR. BARLEY" came the
chiefs voice. they all said the door
Vas locked
sure they did. 1t was. But not
one OF themeever thought TO look
through the keyholc. All assumed
the key was inside. The door was
locked, but the KEY was not inside.
Hall unlocked the door, all testi-
fed TO that. But If he did, he must
have had the key. All he did was
10 put his hand through the hole,
place the key in the lock and open
the door. He had the key all the
time"
Good lord" came the voice OF
Dunn. Why did l not think of
that?"
Well" laughed BARLEY, "all of
us slipped up. We all assumed the
spring lock was all right. The
butler knew it was not, but finding
the door locked, he naturally as
sumed it had been locked on the in
side. When Hall unlocked that door
ha nrnCHI h. I,
had to have the key to do 1t. The
door had been locked on the out
side"
But" came the puzzled voice OF
the chief, Il don't just see whei. he
killed him"
You remember that he went down
to lunch around twenty minutes t.
y. Instead OF going down to the
kitchen he went UP to the library.
You could not tell II he was going
up or down. because the elevator
| made scarcely any noise. Why he
went up | don't know. But he cid.
AS he glanced in the room he did
not notice Rice, who must have
been at one OF the windows. So he
enters, peers into the little room
| which may have had the light on,
secs the Aretino and then makes up
| his mind to tana it"
How did he know Z was?" came
! the question from Kent.
That's easily explained, Kent.
| He heard you men talking OF it
when you CANA in the house. Both
Wells and Hail went 10 the library
! with the butte, while you were
! there. All you men were talking
about the book and were looking at
! 1t. Billings tells nle some one said
while they wCr, IN, Think of tbs
darned thing being worth $4,000.
iiall heard that and saw the book"
! He paused for a second, and swept
| on, Il presume the temptation came
to take it. lie thought that no one
| knew he was in the library. So he
/ took it, maybe placed it in his
! pocket, and Rice. who had seen it
| all, came in. ] believe that just
| about the time Rice spoke to him
! the lights went out and the strug-
| gle started. Hall had no idea of
| killing Rice when he entered, but in
a sudden rage and to shut his
mouth, struck him down. 1t only
| took moment or so. He then took
the box of gold pieces and went
down to the kitchen. No one had
seen him. Then he went into the
| cellar and hid the box under the
ashes of the furnace. He could get
the money at any time. In fact. the
night we saw the light in the house
he had taken some of the gold
pieces. AS for the book, he decided
| IT was bit more than he could
get rid of and placed it behind the
books in the case. But when, I dc
not know. lie could get 1t some
other time If he wished"
Ht,n II; ..A-
mir of a man that wished to believe
| the story. yet was not sure. AS
| BARLEY paused he said, But will
! that story OF yours convict him !
! The strongest thing is the spring
being broken. But YOU need more
than that for Il jury"
Barley smiled, True. but you
! forget the plate that was in .he
camera. 1t seems incredible, but on
| that plate was the likeness of the
! murderer. Not plain, like a picture
but good enough"
He placed the picture on the table
| and we crowded to see it. Our
| heads touched as we bent to look
| BARLEY had told the truth. when he
! said the figures were not plain. In
| fact, the picture was more like one
! OF those oldfashioned silhouettes
one sees once in a while. There was
! the faint outline of the window
from which the curtain had been
! pulled down. But there was also
the dalsier shadow of two men. a
little apart. The dark outline and
| that was all. one of the figures was
| slight. The other heavy and thick
| set. And the outline of the heavy.
| thick set figure. a mass of blackness
| upon the picture, was for all that,
| the figure of n man. 4 man that
/ had one shoulder standing high
above the other. There was no
| doubt the figure was that of Hall.
| For a while we stood silently
! looking at the picture No one
| spoke. All realized that before us
was the thing which would convict
! low us. 1t was Bartley's voice that
| broke the silence.
There was one thing more p
| slight thing, but a link in the chain
| of evidence. Pelt found the missing
! book and in the pages | found a lit
| tie slip from 4 cheap brand of chew
! ing tobacco. | find Hall chews that
| brand"
| He paused again and as he started
/ to wrap up the pictures said;
! There is no doubt about convict
| Hall. His trying to escape is
| enough in itself. In fact. no one
! else but he could have killed my
! friend"
! We stayed around a while later