Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-02-06

mo, no, / was late this morning.
I was not on the beach at all. l
have come straight from the Gables.
What can 1 do?'
You can hurry to the police sta
ton at Fulworth. Report the matter
at once"
Without a word he made off at top
speed and l proceeded to take the
matter in hand, while Stackhurst
dazed at this tragedy, remained by the
body My first task naturally was to
note who was on the beach. From
the top of the path | could see the
whole sweep of it, and it was absolute
ly deserted. save that two or three
dark figures could be seen far away
moving toward the village of Full
worth. Having satisfied myself upon
this point l walked slowly down the
path. There was clay or soft mari
mixed with the chalk, and every here
and there / saw the same footstep,
both ascending and descending. No
one else had gone down to the beach
by this track that morning. At one
place 1 observed the print Of an open
hand with the fingers toward the in
cline. This could only mean that poor
Mcpherson had fallen as he assembled.
There were rounded depressions, too,
which suggested that he had come
down upon his knees more than once.
At the bottom of the path was the
considerable lagoon left by the re-
treating tide. At the side of it Nc
Pherson had undressed, for there lay
his towel on a rock. 1t was folded
and dry, so that it would seem that,
after all. he had never entered the
water. Once or twice as / hunted
round amid the hard shingle l came
on little patches of sand where the
1oY>iY0f Of hfc CHI I'D ole Of
his naked foot, could be seen. The
latter fact proved that he had made
all ready to battle, though the towel
indicated that he had not actually
done so.
And here was the problem clearly
defined-aS strange a one as had ever
confronted me. The man had not been
on the beach more than a quarter of
an hour at the most. Stackhurst had
followed him from The Gables, so
there could be no doubt about that.
He had gone to battle and had strip
ped. as the naked footsteps showed
Then he had suddenly huddled on his
clothes again-they were all di-
sheveled and unfastened-and he had
returned without bathing, or, at any
rate, without drying himself. And the
reason for his change of purpose had
been that he had been scourged in
some savage, inhuman fashion, tor
tured until he bit his lip through in
his agony, and was left with only
strength enough to carwl away and
to die. Who had done this barbarous
deed? There were, it is true, small
grottoes and caves in the base OF the
cliffs, but the low sun shown directly
into them, and there was no place
Tor concealment. Then, again, there
were those distant figures on the
beach, They seemed too far away to
have been connected with the crime.
and the broad lagoon in which Nc.
Pherson had intended to battle lay be-
tween him and them, tapping up to
the rocks. On the sea, two~or three
nshlng boats were at no great dis
lance. Their occupants might be ex-
amined at our leisure. There were sew.
eral roads for inquiry, but none which
led to any very obvious goal.
y X
WHEN 1 at last returned to the
body l found that little group
of wandering folk had gathered round
II. Stackhurst, was. Of course, still
there, and Ian Murdoch had Just ar
rived with Anderson, the village con-
stable, a big, ginger man
of the slow, solid Sussex breed-a
breed which covers much good sense
under a heavy, silent exterior. He
llstenerd to everything, took note of
all we said, and finally drew me
aside.
I'D be glad of your advice. Mr..
Holmes. This is big thing for me
to handle, and III hear of it from
Lewes If / go wrong"
L advised him to send for his i'm
mediate superior and for doctor, also
n ftasR -
few fresh foptmarks as possible to be
made until they came. In the mean
time j searched the dead mans pock-
cts. There was his handkerchief, a
large knife and a small folding card
case. From this projected a slip of
paper, which | unfolded and handed
TO the constable. There was written
on 1t. in scrawling, feminine hand:
| will be there, you may be sure.
Maudie. 1t read like a love affair,
an designation, though when and
where were a blank. The constable
replaced it in the card case and re-
turned it with the other things to the
pockets of Burberry. Then, as moth
ing more suggested itself, l walked
back to my house for breakfast, hav-
Jig first arranged that the base of the
cliffs should be thoroughly searched.
Stackhurst was round in an hour or
two to tell me that the body had been
removed to The Gables, where the in
quest would be hell. He brought with
him some serious and definite news.
AS / expected, nothing had been
found in the small caves below the
Cliff. but he had examined the papers
in McPherson's desk, and there were
several which showed an intimate cor
respondence with certain Maude Bel.
lamy of Fulworth. We had then es-
tablished the identity of the writer of
the note.
THE police have the letters" he ex.
planned. Il could not bring them
But there is no doubt that it was a
serious love affair. l see no reason,
however. to connect it with that hor-
ribie happening, save, indeed, that the
lady had made an appointment with
him."
But hardly at bathing pool which
all of you were in the habit of using"
j remarked.
1T is mere chance said he, that
several of the students were not with
McPherson.'
Was it mere chance?"
Stackhurst knit his brows in
thought
Ian Murdoch held them back" said
he. He would insist upon some alge-
braic demonstration before breakfast.
Poor chap, he is dreadfully cut up
about it ALL
And yet gather that they were
not friends"
At one time they were not. But
for year or more Murdoch has been
as near to Mcpherson as he ever could
be to any one. He is not of very
sympathetic disposition by nature"
$50 l understand. ! seem to remem-
Der your telling me once about quar-
rel over the i'll usage of a dog"
THAT blew over all right
But left some vindictive feeling,
/ perhaps"