Show THEMAN THE THEMAN MAN N IN INGRAY INGRAY INGRAY GRAY By BA BAYARD YARD D YORK r 1926 West Western rn r Union r 0 SU SUM I It up Sidney Ham Ham- Hammond TO mond said ald slowly the man manIn manIn In gray came here herc at ut a few minutes before ten o'clock last night he lio entered the house and murdered Sir Mr Ir Lathrop or so we be- be belleve be believe lieve then he lie vanished as utterly as asH asU asIf U H the ground had hod swallowed him Sam Linton sheriff for the town of Corning nodded emphatically That light full fail of snow at nine nine- thirty nine thirty left tracks outlined as plain plain as day he said When I got here after Mrs Lathrop's telephone call there was Just one set of tracks foot where had come conic Into the house house- house f not a track leading out n again in lIe came that fellow In gray but ut he lie never never walked out again And yet yet-he yet he et he Isn't here I The detective smiled grin ly Well he commented Its an age I of airplanes and radio and mysterious things I lie didn't get et away In an airplane Linton said decidedly I And I dare say he lie didn't broadcast himself out of the lie house Sidney Hammond remarked That leaves leaves- leaves lie he stopped abruptly at the deepen deepen- deepening deepening ing gloom on the other mans man's face face It was not a time for even passing levity In the adjoining room lay IllY a man roan bru bru- brutally bru- bru brutally brutally tally murdered And this crime had come as the climax to a series of daring robberies which had finally brought the wrath of time the lie town upon the poor banded baffled sheriff You see the time criminal has just van van- vanished vanished into thin air every time exactly time like this tills man In gray Linton said Sidney arose and arose and ex extended tended his band hand I haven't forgotten the good turn you did dill me In tile the lie Mullen case he said Im glad you sent for me this morning No Now Ill I'll get to work Will you ask Mrs Irs Lathrop to stop In here I suppose youe youve you've considered considered- she Oh Oh she didn't do llo It the sheriff exclaimed quickly You Tou saw his Ills head It It took a blow of savage strength to the time skull like that And An the they've ve always been devoted to each cadi other The detective nodded lIe He refrained from saying that he had known vari varI- varIous various various ous voted devoted couples so-called so who at times felt eit like murdering each other other- other but as ht h was yas aware the nature of the blow precluded a wom womans woman's Ds D's hand A Aman man man-an d a strong man had man mur mur- mur murdered murdered I dered Lathrop Was there some one among the neighbors with whom Sir Mr Jr Lathrop had had Trouble rouble he was asking a mInute later Mrs Lathrop shook hook her head slow slow- slowly slowly ly Iy It was evident that time the tragedy had upset her but she gathe gave ga the Im- Im impression Im Impression pr of being able by a vigorous exercise of her will power to keep her bel composure The sheriff S says you OU went to bed early arl and so know nothing about the the caller m mysterious man roan In gray gray- gray who came to see sec Mr Lathrop last eve eve- evening evening ning I know that someone that called called thatIs Is all she answered I was aas just dropping off of to sleep when I heard voices 1 I listened for listened for a then minute minute thought no more about It until I awoke voke at twelve o'clock and found that m my husband had not come come to bed Left alone In the time stiffly stilly furnished front room the time detective did not move mo for tor a space of several minutes A somewhat creep creepy sensation was tray trav traveling cling eling along his Ills spine Airplanes ra- ra radIo radio ra radio dIo- dIo dio At the moment It seemed to him as If It something spiritual was try try- trying trying ing Int to communicate with him him-as him as It some Mme presence In the room was say saying ing leg Dont you see see-don't see dont don't you ou see lie He E shrugged his Ills shoulders ThIs Is non nonsense ense he lie said But even then he did not move The round table w with h Its red globed kero Itero kero- kero kerosene kerosene sene lamp and the huge family Bible the brass candlesticks on the mantel Ithe the ancestral portraits with their enormous normous these frames frames and other de- de details details de details tails of the room photographed them them- themselves themselves selves on his Ills mind At length he lie crossed Bossed the hall hail to the room where the body of William La- La Lathrop La Ia Lathrop still I lay a Slowly he lie checked over o all his knowledge e of the details of the time crime and realized that Inel Inevitably Inevitably tably the trail led cd d to that man in gray the man who had arrived ed on the nine nine- thirty thirty seven train and twice Inquired the way to the Lathrop home homme Had this mysterious person really rally come to the house and then vanished Or was he still still- The still The thought came like the crashing boom of a cannon Was the murderer still concealed In the house walling fin an opportunity to escape It seemed very ery Improbable For one thing there could not well b be a better than the time previous night night had afforded Slowly a grim smile deepened on time tile detectives detective's face fuce He lIe was still as much lt in the dark as ever but the rc- rc re had come to him that back backof backof of this brutal crime was something unusual and and baffling and Interesting And spirits he murmured I best st at ut I midnight midnight I shall spend time the night In fu this tills hOI house se He lIe was just finishing the breakfast kindly provided by Mrs Irs Lathrop lthrop time the next morning when Brown time the coro coroner ner hurried In Weve eve got the man mun he said Ills name Is Morgan lives Morgan lives an-lives lives nearby It seem seems lie Le owed Lathrop three hundred dollars dollars-dallus claims he hu came over last and raid paid It but he lie hasn't an any receipt As I 1 see He It he planned the ch whole thing disguised himself nd dressed up In ln gray ruy nv to throw us off or his trail Then Then- ilien- ilien Have you rou figured how he got out of the lie house without leaving lea Ing any tracks Sidney Hammond asked no ell Well no Brown admitted nut flut that will take care cate of probably itself Itself Linton was mistaken anwa anyway Can you ou bring brins Morgan around at atten ten o'clock o clock the detective ve suggested I think by that time I I shall have some Interesting facts to report report report-It It was five minutes past ten when Sidney entered the front room where the sheriff and time the coro core coro coroner corener ner to together with Morgan and Mrs Lathrop awaited him He lie carried a arni bulky package under his Ms which arni-which ho he proceeded to unroll The gray clothes Linton cried Where did dill you find them than All In due time Sidney Hammond replied I you ou arc are all to be congratulated for tor you U arc are gathered at athe atthe time the climax of a remarkable crime to crime hr hi accurate the climax of a series of remarkable crimes for the time connection between this his murder and the robberies In town Is vcr very close He lie slipped his Ills left hand Into his side coat which pocket pocket which had hall bulged outward noticeably There Then is such a thing as the spirit or of a n place he said Ive been In churches that seemed cold and un- un un Christian and and Ive I've been In churches that radiated warmth and brotherly love loye This Tills room In which we are gathered has a that spirit spirit spirit tried to speak to me yesterday esterday At first I Idid Idid Idid did not get the message But last night night- lIe He shifted his position slightly With his right hand he lie drew a small automatic revolver er from his pocket and held hell It It Last night I discovered this gray suit stuffed stuffed Into the J chimney he went on It bad been put there by bythe bythe the thc man In gra gray In the for attic attic forgotten gotten for the moment apparently l apparently found some very interesting newspaper newspaper newspaper per clippings c concerning time the actIvities of two crooks named Corliss and Da- Da Da rather Illson rather strange timings things to find In thIs tills quiet respectable country home Even then I might have ha missed time the message of this tills room and the so- so solution solution so solution lution of our problem had hud I not dis dis- discovered discovered covered these thingS thing'S With his left hand he drew a razor and shaving brush from his coat pocket Rather Innocent and unusual things to pin a charge of murder a person he remarked And yet yet- yet that is just what they do Dont Don't move moc The last two words were out with whit sudden sternness Snap the time handcuffs on him sh sher sheriff r lIT iff he lie continued continued- The messa message e this room tried to tell me yesterday was that It had never been touched by a womans woman's hand liand That message was re- re repeated repeated re repeated b by the time razor and shaving brush when I 1 found them locked In Mrs Irs La 11 room time room brush still damp Here Is the whole sordid stor story This person whom you OU have known as Mrs Irs Lathrop Is the man In gray She Is none other than the crook Davidson who has helped plunder this comma comma- community y and who at last Itching to get all of the loot for himself struck his partner Corliss to death believing that we the would be misled by the trail of the theman theman man In gray l I I |