Show It THE THEMAN TH THEMAN MAN IN INGRAY INGRAY INGRAY GRAY By BA BAYARD YARD D. D YORK 1926 1926 Western Newspaper Union r j iO 0 SUM It up Sidney HamI Hammond Ham Ham- TO I mond said slowly the manIn man manI I JL In gray came here at ut a few minutes before ten o'clock last Jast night he entered the house and murdered Mr Lathrop or so we believe believe be be- lieve then he vanished as utterly as ns asIf asif 1 if the ground had swallowed him Sam Linton sheriff for the town of Corning nodded emphatically That light full of snow at nt nine- nine thirty left tracks outlined as plain as ns day he said When I got here after Mrs Lathrop's telephone call there was Just one set of tracks foot where somebody had come Into the house house- not a track leading out again He lie came that fellow In gray but he never walked out again And yet he yet be Isn't here I The detective smiled grimly Well Veil he co commented its an age of airplanes and radio and mysterious things He didn't in get away an airplane Linton said decidedly And I dare say he didn't broadcast himself out of the house Sidney Hammond remarked That leaves leaves- He stopped abruptly at the deepen- deepen ing groom glOom on me wo ower man mains mans man's s nice lace 11 u was not a time for even passing levity In the adjoining room laya man brutally brutally bru bru- tall tally murdered And this crime had come as the climax to a series of daring robberies which had finally brought the wrath of the town upon the the poor balled baffled sheriff You see the criminal has Just vanished vanIshed vanished van van- into thin air every time time exactly exactly like this man In gray Linton said Sidney Hammond arose arose and and extended extended extended ex ex- ex- ex tended his handI handI hand I haven't forgotten the good turn you ou did me In the Mullen case he said Im glad you sent for me this morning Now Ill I'll get to work Will you you ask Mrs Lathrop to stop in here I suppose youve you've considered considered- Oh she Oh she didn't do it the sheriff sherIf exclaimed quickly You saw his head it at it took toole a blow of ot savage strength to smash the skull like that And they've always been devoted to each other The detective nodded He refrained from saying that he had known varIus various various vari varI- ous us devoted couples so-called so who at times felt like murdering each other other- other other- but as h hh was mas aware the nature of the blow v precluded a n womans woman's hand A Aman Amana man and man man man-a ami l a strong man man had had murdered murdered murdered mur mur- dered Lathrop Was there some one among the neighbors with whom Mr Ur Lathrop i ir r had had trouble he was asking a minute later i Mrs Lathrop shook her head slowly slow slow- ly It was evident that the tragedy I had bad upset her but she gave the im f of being able by a n vigorous exercise of her will-power will to keep her composure The sheriff says you went to bed earl early and so know nothing about the caller the caller the mysterious man In gray gray- gray who came to see Mr 1 Lathrop last evening evening evening eve eve- ning I know that someone called that called that thatis is all she answered I was Just dropping off to sleep when I heard voices I listened listened for for a minute then minute then thought no more about It until I awoke at twelve o'clock and found that m husband h had d my not come to bed i Left alone In the furnished front room the detective did not move for tor a a space of several minutes A somewhat creepy creep sensation was traveling traveling traveling trav trav- eling along his spine Airplanes radIo radio radio ra ra- ra- ra dio dIo- dIo At the te moment It seemed to him as if something spiritual was tryIng try- try r In fag Ing to communicate with him him ns as If It some presence In the room was sayIng sayIng say say- Ing Dont you see see see-don't don't dont you ou see He shrugged his lIs shoulders This is nonsense he said But even cven then he did not move The I round table with Its red-globed red kerosene kerosene kerosene kero kero- sene lamp and the huge family Bible the thc brass candlesticks on the mantel the ancestral portraits with their I I enormous frames these frames these and other details details de de- de- de tails of ot the room photographed themselves themselves themselves them them- selves on 00 his mind At t length he crossed the hail haJi to the room where the body of William Lathrop Lathrop Lathrop La La- still lay Iny Slowly he checked ov over r all his knowledge of ot the details of ot the crime and realized that inevitably inevitably Ined- Ined tably the trail led Jed to that man In gray the man who had arrived on the nine- nine thirty seven train and twice Inquired the way to the Lathrop home Had this m mysterious person really come to 10 the house and then vanished Or was he be still The thought came like the crashing boom of or orn a n cannon Was the murderer still concealed In In the house waiting an opportunity to escape It seemed very improbable For one thing there could not well b be a better opportunity than the previous nl night ht- ht had bad afforded Slowly a grim smile deepened on the detectives detective's face lie He was still as much In the dark as ever cyer but the realization re ra- re- re had come to him that back backof of ot this brutal crime was something unusual and baffling and baffling and therefore Interesting And spirits he murmured walk best at i midnight l ht-l shall spend the s nl night ht In this house honse I He lIe was Just finishing the breakfast I kindly provided by Mrs Lathrop the next morning when Brown the coroner coroner coro- coro ner nor hurried In Weve Veve got the man he said His i name ame Is Mor Morgan Morgan lives an lives nearby It Ii seems ems he owed Lathrop three hundred dollars lonar dollars claims claims he lie came over last light and paid it but he hasn't any I I receipt As I bee It he planned the whole thing thing disguised disguised himself and dressed up In gray to throw us off oft his trail trall Then Then Then- Have you ou figured how he got out oat of the house without len leaving any tracks Sidney Hammond asked Well no Well no Brown admitted D But t that will take cure care of itself probably itself probably Linton was mistaken anyway Can Cnn you OU brIn bring Morgan around at atten atten atten ten o'clock the detective suggested I think by that time I shall have some interesting facts to report It was fine e minutes past ten when Sidney Hammond entered the front room where the sheriff and the coroner coroner coro coro- coroner ner ner together with Morgan and ond Mrs Lathrop awaited malted him He lIe carried a bulky package under his arm which arm which he proceeded to unroll The gray clothes Linton cried Where did you find them All In due time ante Sidney Hammond replied I think you are all nIl to bo be congratulated for fOI you are gathered at atthe atthe atthe the climax of a remarkable crime crime to to bye be accurate ate the climax of a a series of ot remarkable crimes for the connection between n this murder and the robberies in an town is ver very very- close He Fie slipped his left hand and Into Into- hI his side coat cont pocket which pocket which had bulged outward noticeably There is such a thing as the spirit of t a place he said Ive been In churches hurches that seemed cold and unChristian un- un I i Christian ChrIstI Christian and and n and Ive I've been In churches that radiated warmth and brotherly love This room In which we are gathered has a spirit that spirit that spirit tried to speak to me yesterday At first I Idid I. I did dd not get et the message But last night night- He lie shifted his position slightly With his right hand hind he lie drew a small automatic c revolver from his pocket and held it I Last night I discovered this gray suit suit stuffed stuffed Into the chimney chimney- he went on It had been put there by bythe bythe bythe the man In gray In the attic attic for for forgotten gotten for the moment apparently I I found some very Interesting newspaper newspaper newspaper per clippings concerning the activities of two crooks named Corliss and Davidson Da Da- rather rather strange things to find in this q quiet note let respectable country home borne Even then J ji might have Kaye missed the message of this room and md the solution solution so so- lution of our problem had hud I not discovered discovered discovered dis dis- covered these things With his left hand he drew a razor and shaving brush from his coat pocket Rather nather Innocent and un unusual sual things to pin a charge of murder upon a person he remarked And yet yet yet- that is just what they do Dont Don't move I IThe l The last two words were whipped out with sudden sternness Snap the handcuffs on him sh sherIff sheriff sher sher- r. r Iff he continued The message this room tried to tell me me yesterday esterday was that it at had never ever been touched by I a womans woman's hand That message was re repeated repeated reo re- by the razor and shaving brush when I found them locked In Mrs La throes op's room room brush still damp Here is the whole sordid story This person person whom you ou have known as ns Mrs Lathrop is the man in gray She Is none hone other than the crook Davidson who has helper helped p plunder under this community community community and who at nt last Itching to get all of the loot for for himself struck his partner Corliss to death be believing leving that we would be bem misled ded by the h trail of ot the theman theman theman man In gray I I |