Show I Murder at Telegram the Mocking Fiction t king House I By Walter Brown SYNOPSIS Apparently the policeman and md the stranger found dead in Pierre Du- Du nc's room have ha shot each other and apparently the stranger Is he who has been writing threatening letters to Dufresne But strange strands of suspicion attach to most of the persons in the house howe and nd Sergeant Harper cannot believe in the thc obvious solution He and Laff Lafferty Laferty erty begin begin begin be be- gin sorting out the strands CHAPTER 17 Sergeant Harper spread out a n blank piece of paper and drew a hasty but recognizable plan of ot the ground floor of at the Dufresne mansion mansion man man- sion with the adjacent grounds All windows and ond doors were designated Now before we look at those reports re ra- ro- ro ports lets let's get this matter of at the footprints footprints footprints foot foot- prints in the snow mow firmly in our heads Ive I've made a 1 complete circuit of the thc house Ill I'll mark in the tracks as I tell you about them then you ou can cango cango cango go out yourself end and check over m my work before the sun gets busy and destroys them First here is the beck back of or the house howe There are two doors both giving onto onlo a porch There are two sets of ily fly marked tracks leading from irom the side door of ot the thc garage building to the back door of this house howe Tracks in Snow They were made by Mr and Mrs Whitmore coming over in response to Andrews' Andrews call There are no other footprints at the bock of the house and naturally there are none in the snow to either the right or the left side of the house Secondly there is a confusion contusion of tracks from rom the pavement to the front door There is one set filled in inand inand inand and almost covered by the later snow now Mixed in with these are arc two sets of fresher tracks partly filled in The first set is the original trail left by b- Hamill the second lot were made b by Connolly and Hilleary ry as U the they fol Col fol- fol lowed Then there is a Q second group croup fortunately fortunately fortunately for for- to one side of at the others They were made by Clymer Smith Doyle and myself the second group to arrive on the scene A After that I had Connally shovel a path and ever every everyone everyone one entering or leaving has had to use the path Furthermore it was Connally who actually traced Hamill's footsteps footsteps foot oot- steps from the call box and he swears that when he ho and Hilleary arrived arrived ar ar- ar rived here there was one and only one set of prints leading up to the door I This gives us an accounting for every single person who entered this house howe before the path wes was cleared except the unidentified man He must h have ve come in before the snow started or before it was deep enough to retain the impression of a foot oot- print We know the snow started falling alling about past hall 3 yesterday afternoon but it U didn't really begin snowing heavily until an hour or so later Itis It Itis Itis is almost certain cerbin that this man w was Inthis inthis In Inthis this house before belore past half 5 Otherwise Otherwise Other Other- wise shapeless but noticeable ridges I would have b been n left lell in the snow Officer Hamill must have been killed as soon as he entered this room Miller Mil Mu- ler puts the thc hour of his death as be be- tween 7 and 9 As you ou see that leaves the most Important questions unanswered When and why did the murdered man break In What drew Hamill's attention to this house We have the record of all who entered this house last night between say past half 5 and half PS past t 10 always alwo's excepting our mysterious dead man men As far br as asI asI asI I can see its it's an unassailable record and it doesn't furnish much ground for the suspicion that oil all is not as It seems on the surface Do you feel sure that these marks in the snow weren't tampered with asked Laffert Lafferty Can you rely on them entirely I I 1 can see sec no room for doubt Harper replied You cannot walk through snow of any depth w without leaving traces Try it and see for yourself The Thc snow can go on for tor hours after a Q track has been made and it will still be vis visible ble That original unbroken surface of oC a fall fail fallot of ot snow cannot be be- duplicated Evidence Must Fit Hold on a ci minute Lafferty Latterly interjected interjected Interjected inter inter- someone tread in previously made tracks and get out that way Harper shook his hood head One look at Hamill's marks morl will convince you ou that that wasn't done I know that trick has been used but Ill I'll swear it didn't happen n in this ins instance Ive I've looked at those marks very cry carefully and they ore are absolutely bona fide Not even a a. cat walked across ross those grounds last night Lafferty thought it over Well we went over every hole and corner of at this house last night and there was no one In hiding waiting for a chance to sneak out So So if no one left the house after the shooting and no one was ves In the house when we searched it theres there's an end of the matter matter mat mat- ter Harper smiled doggedly No that's not the end of the matter I already have hints of certain things that requIre require require re re- quire explaining Were We're going to sit down in this room and reconstruct this affair movement by movement If it Il really was an unforeseen and aimless business then ever every single bit bitof bitof of at evidence c we wc have gathered will wm fit into place place place-If If it does docs not then something something some some- thing thin has been tampered with But who could have tampered with it This has been under guard gU-3rd every minute since Hilleary first looked In and saw the bodes Exactly But what about the interval interval in in- between the shooting and nd Hileary's HIl Hi- leary's lenry's arrival the detective asked Certainly but youve you've just finished proving pro to me that no one could have left here herc after the shooting without leaving tracks in the snow and I know that no one W was lS hidden in the house What are your our driving at Simply this this the the visible evidence t tends to show that thal there two men were absolutely alone in this house and that they killed each other But Bul Bulit if it the evidence leads us to impossibilities then the evidence must be wrong Lafferty gave his superior a knowIng knowIng knowing know- know Ing look Then you ou hove have got tot something some some- thing up your sleeve he accused No No I haven't except an instinctive feeling that were we're going to run into some mighty queer things Now lets let's have c a look at Jacksons Jackson's surprise package Perhaps well we'll get some help from it Harper began to op open n the scaled envelopes marked marled with his name While I get these sorted and nr or- ranged he suggested suppose you YOli ou step outside and check cheek over m my work on the footprints There w was anI only one mark anywhere in the snow that I 1 couldn't account for The detective put d down wn a little X Xon Xon Xon is curved on his sketch There a n gash in the snow about twenty feet from the side of ot the house Just the thc theone theone one solitary mark and not more than inch below the top Its It's the sort of ot mark that would be made by a abent abent abent bent twig except that there is nothing nothing noth noth- nothIng ing burled buried there in the snow It is about eight or ten inches long I cant can't cantsee cantsee cantsee see any significance but you ou h had d better take a look and see if you ou can explain il it We may cs as well be thorough thor thor- ough Lafferty took the sketch drawn by Harper and left while the latter spread out on the table all aU the material material mate male rial that had come up from tars But before he had hod a chance to delve into this there was a discreet tapping at the door and Andrews' Andrews grave grove face appeared in response to the detectives detective's invitation to enter There is a Mr Howard Doyle to see you ou sir the butler announced but the officer wont won't let him in unless unless unless un un- un- un less you say so all right Andrews let him come in The butler gave his stiff jerky jerk nod and withdrew and shortly afterward the Dally Daily Ledgers Ledger's crime reporter en en- How are arc tricks Ser Sergeant he asked in his usual breezy wa way For a a. minute I thought I was persona persona per per- sona SOM n non n grata around here Pull over a chair Doyle Ive I've been waiting to have a few words with you ou find and I may as well ell get them off my chest right now The TIle reporter brought a chair over overto overto overto to the table and sat sal down unbuttoning unbutton unbutton- ing big his overcoat Listen H Harper before before be be- fore tore you ou start talking answer me mC one question Did you OU S say y anything about what I did last night Just answer yes or no rio and no hard hud feelings either cither wo way I did not How about Captain M Macklin MackIm Harper shook his head Im in full charge of this case ease Doyle Macklin Mackun Mack- Mack un lin wouldn't do anything like that without consulting me first The chances are arc he doesn't even know about it it Doyle lit a and took several eral puffs in silence his eyes fixed on c Co corner of the ceiling Get this I Harper lint Har lt per Ive I've been pulled off the case What does that sound like to you ou It sounds to me as if it Dufresne has had something to Sri say to your our front office oUke Harper replied promptly prompt prompt- I ly and after that Hut bonehead play of yours ours Im I'm not surprised Bonehead play you ou call it Doyle grinned impishly Listen Har Harper you'll be plenty glad I made de it before I leave here herc Copyright 1924 1 Walter C. C Brown To be Continued |