Year: 1865

:. this paper. Policeman Jones was lmme
diately sent off to Balston with the paper
to enquire of the bank manager whether
those were the numbers of the notes which
had been paid to the captain the day be
fore and, if so, to take measures to stop
them He also received orders to telegraph
Immediately to Scotland Yard an account
of the murder, and any facts he might as
certain at Balston


So far so good but where, after all, was
the body? From the blood on the stairs
and III the sittng-rOom, and the open gar
den door, it was presumed that it had been
removed from the house. After locking
the bedroom door, the inspector proceeded
to the garden. Outside the door on the
grass were the footprints of man, the
toes pointing toward the house, and the
heels deeply indcnted in the soft earth The
rest of the footprints were partially oblit-
Grated, as if something heavy had been
dragged over them The murderer must
have gone out of the sitting-room back
wards, dragging the body of his victim af-
ter him. Across the small grass plot, and
half way through the belt Of trees, the
footprints continued there they ceased
On the soft mud and leaves was an impress
sion as if long heavy body had been laid
there near this impression, lying on the
ground, was spade, and at the distance
of few feet the ground had been dug up
as f it had been intended to bury the body
there. This project, however, had been al
most Immediately given up, for the work
was scarcely begun. The murderer had
been interrupted, or perhaps had thought
of a better plan for disposing of the body.
But where? The policeman and inspector
looked at one another they had come to
the same conclusion. " In the river of
course !" Sure enough on the river bank
the footprints were again found This time
they pointed forward not backward and
the impression was clear and sharp. The
body must have been carried The river
at this point was deep and sluggish there
would be little difficulty in dragging it =
Drags were sent for, and the inspector went
home to breakfast, leaving policeman in
charge of the premises, with orders to ad-
nit no one except on business


The Inspector had hardly finished his
breakfast, when Policeman Jones returned
from Balston He had been eminentIy sue
cesstul The bank manager had identified
the numbers on the paper as those of the
bank notes paid the day before to the cap,
tain. The money, it appeared, had been
paid to him i'll pursuance of an order con-
tanned in letter received that Saturday
morning from their London correspondents,
Cowie, Nabob q Co., the great China and
India bankers Jones had then made in
quiries in the town, and at the railway sta
ton. At the station he found that man
in a greatcoat and wide-awake hat, who
| flaH orfo n,1 he
seemed to avoid observation, had left that
morning for London by the $3.50 train. He
had offered g5 note in payment for his
ticket The clerk remembered this, from
the difficulty he had in getting change 50
early on Sunday morning. The note was
produced and found to be one of those sto-
len from the captain A description of the
man and orders for his apprehension had
been telegraphed to London and an answer
had been received, stating that the police
were Oh the murderer's track but that, to
make all safe, a detective would be in
Poaktown by the middle of the day.


Mary Edgecombe, who had partially re-
covered from her fright, was now taken to
the building" She identified the clasp
knife, pocket-book, and various articles of
clothing which were lying about the cap
tain's room, as belonging to him. She sta
ted that she had retired at 9 o'clock on the
previous night, and that she had heard no
noise during the night She was posivive
that no one was in the house when she
went to bed, except herself and the captain
| But the garden door was often left unlocked
and could be opened from the outside The
inspector was satisfied The motive was
clear enough the police were close upon
the murderer's track all that was now
wanted was the body.


He turned to the river, pleased at the
promptness and energy he had shown, and
chuckled to think that the London detec-
tive would find nothing to do when he did
arrive The drags had now been at work
for some time, but without success. The
river had been dragged up and down, and
sideways and across, and at every conceiv-
able angle, but no body had been found
The Inspector was getting impatient, when
gig drove up to the building, and dap
per little man in frock coat buttoned to
the chin and with a heavy black nous
tache, jumped out, The crowd which had
collected by this time, made way respect
fully, for il was whispered that the stran-
ger was no other than Detective Perkins
from London.


In few minutes the detective had heard
all that the inspector had to tell.


Wait one moment" said he, let's get
it all straight All the village, you say,
knew the captain would have money to pay
his debts tomorrow"


The inspector nodded


(Which amounted in all to gl00, more
or less 2"


The Inspector nodded again.


And he drew out of the bank g27O-
Was that the whole legacy?"


1T was"


He didn't want g27O to pay gl0o, did
he ~


This was new light to the inspector,
who shook his head cautiously


From whom did the order to pay the
money come !"


HCowie, Nabob 4 Co."


HCowie, Nabob & CO., repeated Perkins,
referring to his notebook the great Chi
ma house And you suspect no one :"


"No one except the man who passed the
note"


"Of course But this woman who lived
with him" suggested Perkins


The inspector shook his head.


It's mans doing. She wouldn't have