Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-02-27

cite, propelled by young fellow. went
| through that street. The policeman,
under general instructions, stopped
him and made him identify himself.
The youth produced Identification
papers in good order and proved that
| he was a grOcer's clerk. He also told
| the policeman that a cousin of his had
| a christening that night: and the
grocer's clerk had arranged with his
employer to be allowed to use the tri-
cycle wagonette wherein to deliver the
| extra table linens, dishes and cutlery
that had been hired for the occasion.
The youth had stayed till the party
| broke up, he said. and was now taking
these things back to his home to save
! himself an extra trip next day. From
| his home he would return the things
In the morning to the place whence
| they had been rented.
/ The policeman threw open the lid
of the wagonette and found a lot of
tumbled table linen on top. He did
| not dig deeper into the contents, but
from a police box telephoned the
grocer for whom the youth worked.
From him he got confirmation of the
boys story. So the policeman let
him go with his wagonette.
The detective machine did not quiz
the youth. The possibilities were
that he would betray more if he did
not know he was being watched. He
was diScharging his duties as errand
boy to the grocer apparently in good
faith. But he was living with a de-
gree of comfort. rather beyond an err
rand boys wages. Every step the
boy made was followed
1t was thus found that he fire.
Quented a small vein stube or a kind
of saloon near the police headquarters
In AlexanderplatZ. 1t had small win.
dowS giving on the street and looked
not in the least attractive, though
neither did it look forbidding.
It's frequenters were studied and
it was found that several pickpockets
and strong-arm hold-up men came
there occasionally. The youth would
come there. drink glass of Rhine
wine, chat with one or two men
quietly, go into back room for what
looked like a conference with some
body. then come out and go home.
When this had been going on for
some time, the detectives sent stool
pigeon, a trusted sneak of the under
world, to pretend drunkenness and
blunder into that back room a few
moments Immediately after the youth
had entered II one evening. AS the
supposed drunk put his hand on the
knob, the owner of the wine house
called out: 4
where in hell are you going?"
But the man had already opened |
the door. To his astonishment, he |
found the room empty. And there |
was no other door or window there |
to tell whittier the youth had van.
ished. BY then the proprietor had |
seized the man by the collar and |
hurled him back.
You keep out of this place unless
you want your neck broken" he said,
furiously
Half an hour later the youth came
out again and went home.
THAT night several of the mechani- |
cal men of the Berlin police ma,
chine jimmied their way into the vein |
stube and noiselessly explored the |
room where the youth had vanished |
so mySteriouSly. AS the stool pigeon |
had reported, there was but one door |
to the room. the one by which the !
mechanical men now stole in, and no !
other outlet, not even a window. With |
pocket flashes lighting their silent |
search. the detectives explored every /
inch of the room.
An hour spent thus brought no re- !
suits. There was but one way left to |
conduct such search---to tap and |
knock at every bit of floor and wall. !
which would, of course, alarm every |
one In the house. But there was no |
alternative.
One of the mechanical men went |
outside again and summoned the re- |
serves waiting for word from them. |
A dozen detectives headed by a SUI |
perior officer tramped into the vein |
stube. shouted for the landlord to APP
pear and proceeded 10 explore the
mysterious room with all the noise in |
the world.
Pounding on the floor soon yielded