The Coolidge examiner., 1932-01-15
CHAPTER IlI-Continued

The states attorney was not so
willing as the lieutenant to dismiss
all consideration of accident even
in Browns death and less so In
Trembly's.
doubt dismisses ITSELF" said the
lieutenant. "Trembly went from the
Dutch Mill to Lac Vieux. The Me-
nominee says he saw as the two
men met each other in the lodge
that they were not strangers, al
though they introduced themselves
TO each other. This boy may be
liar, but he tells an intelligent story.
Something about all these men.
Clayton, Trembly and Brown, makes
them want to meet as strangers. My
guess is that they are watching for
breaks and considering their alibis.
They're not cunning for one another
in anger. Brown was surprised by
Trembly, just as Clayton was, but
1t is my guess that both knew what
it was all about as soon as the other
man appeared. The trouble is that
we don't.
THE hOld-up was the break of
luck for Trembly in the Dutch Mill.
The knife throwing was his break
in the Little Butte lodge. The Me-
nominee boy started that. He said
the men were wrestling and rough
ing it to show how good they were,
and he thought he'd change the
game. Maybe he had more in mind,
but Trembly couldn't have foreseen
that"
"Yet he had a peculiar knife
which could be used as he used it.
said the states attorney.
II know it." said the lieutenant.
TITS peculiar. It's startling, but |
didn't invent 1t. Haven't heard
that each crime has its own pecu-
liarlty? Why did it snow the day
Buck called at Little Butte? If it
had been the weather of two weeks
before or of the next day the gang
wouldn't have been drinking and
roughing in the lodge. Why was
there a hold-up at the Dutch Mill
when Buck was hunting Dunn? Why
did Bucks killers know and remem-
Der that the bridge was out on his
road south. and why did Buck, If he
knew it, forget It? He had the
knife II was beauty, teakwood
handle, silver mounted with four
inch blades of Spanish steel. A
Spanish shield in silver was set in
the handle An unusual knife. I'd
like TO know where he got it."
1.-THE lieutenant forgot to say. If
he had observed, that the handle
also had inset in silver of exquisite
and minute lettering the words
"Espana sangre. carne. q fuego
a saco i'-the cry of the troops in
the Spanish Fury of the massacre
and sack of Antwerp. Trembly had
stolen it in Peru when he was there
VII lilC VI SOlu iluLlsJ
My guess is" continued the lieu
tenant, that Trembly expected to
think quickly whenever he saw an
opening and that he did when the
Menominee gave him one. 1t might
have failed. Then he would have
tried something else. He had moth
ing to lose. Assume that ii was the
same when Trembly was killed
Whoever took the lights away from
the bridge approach couldn't know
that Buck would be sent off the
road There was a chance he would
be. If he got across the detnur
safely something would have hap
pened to him farther along the
road. He might have been crowded
off into a ditch. He might have
forced the other fellows to some
crude work. They might have had
to shoot him, probably safe enough
on those stretches of road in Oc-
tOber."
You're sure the lanterns were
taken away and replaced?
There's perfect evidence of that.
A farmer came along just after
dusk and was d-n mad because
they weren't on the road. He
thought the construction concern
had neglected the job. He knew the
road and didn't need the lights 10
warn him. but when he got home he