Evening star., 1927-11-27
I'd Yard Masters the Case of the Mysterious Coffin

The lid was thrown back. They
looked into a coffin which contained
nothing but a few odd scraps OF metal
placed there to make UP the weight
of the supposed body. The whole
elaborate burial was now demon
strated as an obvious sham.
II don't seem to be wanted, re-
marked the doctor.
II scarcely expected that you would
be-" said Druscovich, with a half
smile.
AS the waiter had said. NJ. Douat
was a humorous man. Druscovich
saw the joke, and it was appreciated
the more by the insurance company
as their caution had prevented them
being several thousands of dollars out
of pocket To complete the amuse-
ment of the various parties 1t was
only necessary to lay hands on Douat.
To this task Druscovich addressed
himself with energy, and he asked
the curate in the meantime to look
after Nine. Douat.
The lady. however. was not to be
found. Something had frightened her
no doubt the stiff attitude of the
insurance Company-and she had dis
appeared. Druscovich, armed with
warrant for the arrest of Douat on
charges of fraud and attempted fraud
in France, followed the trail of his
man to Liverpool. There he was con-
clusively satisfied that Immediately
after the bogus burial the other had
set out for America under still an.
other assumed name. Probably Douat
had felt that having done his share
he could safely leave the collection
of the spoils to his efficient wife.
The Scotland Yard man could do
no more. It was doubtful If Douat's
actions in England constituted a legal
offense. Druscovich had done all and
more than could have been expected
from him. The running down of
the fugitive now became a matter for
the French police. lie handed over a
report to them and officially dropped
the case.
EOR some reason or other the
French people did not go to the
trouble of searching for and eXtradit
ing Douat from the United States.
That subtle individual. finding that
the hue and cry was suspended. came
to the hasty conclusion that he was
forgotten. His enterprise did not find
"A full scope in America-and a man
must live.
So he came hack to Europe and
took up his abode in Antwerp, where
he used another name and called him.
self an export merchant. The sense
of the theater that he had evinced
at Bordeaux and in London served him
adequately for a time among the
Dutchmen. and he succeeded in induc-
ing insurance companies to issue
policies on a shipment of laces, clocks
and other goods to certain foreign
ports by the ship Due de Brabant,
An unfortunate calamity at the
quayside before these goods were
loaded on to the boat resulted in their
total destruction by fire. NJ. Douat put
in a claim for $4,000, and produced
invoices to show that the goods were
worth at least twice as much. He
might have got away with this but
for an unfortunate oversight in the
matter of detail. An insurance official
nosing among the ruins found two
| barrels of tar. and the debris of cases
which close examination showed had
contained resin. chips, alcohol, pow
der and charcoal.
Despite his protests he was arrested
and during his trial he was identified
as Vital Douat of Bordeaux, much
wanted in France. After a lengthy
lIldl lS was bub WIG
French government asserted that they
held a prior right to deal with him.
The common sense Dutchmen. who
probably felt that they might as we'll
! be spared the expense of maintaining
him in one of their own prisons, con-
ceded the point and Douat was sent
on to Paris.
| There Druscovich. sent over to give
evidence, saw for the first time the
man against whose vivid ingenuity
| he had matched himself. The tale
of the empty coffin was unfolded, and
the legal advisers of the prisoner saw
that the we'll dressed young dandy of
4 detective had left no loophole by
which their client could escape.
| Douat was tried only for the fraud
on the insurance company and was
condemned to a long period Of penal
servitude. The elusive Nine. Douat
kept well out of the way, and no more
was heard of her.
THE END.
fCopyri1ht 1927