Show t DRs FURNIVALL being the history of several herple perplexing ang cles d ses solved by the marvelous psychometric deductive powers of a famous physician detective by jo iby DR GEORGE F BUTLER and HERBERT ilsley THE coincident MAN ta a little before two clock on a november morning through the cold and hur ly burly of a howling northeast rainstorm a pa tro linan pushed up fair field street and turned into commonwealth ave nue the n was blank eted with a cavern like darkness except where widely dely separated street lamps glowed aloft and glistened on the wet pavements like huge misshapen eyes and so forlorn was the scene that the officer accas though he had become to night and dreariness shivered involuntarily as he stood a moment on the corner and cast the eye of duty around how ever except for the anger of the tern pest all seemed well not a soul was in sight and witha with A grunt of sat Is faction he turned and descended the area steps of the mansion before which he was standing seating himself on the wide window ledge in the cozy cor ner mer he found there secure from wind end sad rain and out of sight of any pos bible sible passerby passer by he closed his eyes baying saying over and over to I 1 itself like the mind healers I 1 must wake up in a 30 20 minutes I 1 must wake up in 30 min etes utes and within i a few seconds an insistent robust rumbling began to is sue from jils his nostrils mingling rowdily with the hurrah and clatter of the storm suddenly right above his head a voice screamed and immediately a pistol shot rang out and the officer in wide awake saw a man with a large bundle in hia his arms leap at one bound down the steps from the front adoor door to the sidewalk and dart away while a woman in her night nigh robe trobe waving a pistol I 1 in n her ha hadd d stood on the landing and shrieked police police stop thief t stop thief I 1 the patrolman pa olman dashed up to the street level throwing aside his hi long rubber coat as he did so and at the top of his speed pursued the fleet runner who was now nearly a halt half block away a shapeless blot dis ceral nible ble among the waving shadows of the trees only because it moved AK steadily forward at the first corner the fugitive turned to the left cutting diagonally across the avenue show showed pd a moment under the electric light and then disappeared down gloucester street but the officer was in good training and his long legs brought him to the opposite sidewalk in time to see the flitting shape just vanishing again be yond a second light he was gaining and gaining fast the thief was bur with a great bundle while his p issuer was running free what aled led the pol ceman was that the man should take this direction which would bring him into a wide and well lighted street where a certain number of people afoot and in carriages were sure to be moving about instead of making for the darker ree res dentral where he be might fin fill I 1 I 1 atle d ty ity in hiding among the numerous back alleys yards bards and high fences but the next instant he under tood A trolley car came clanging down boylston Coyl ston street and the fugitive with que ne last desperate sparl of speed reached it and threw himself upon the rear platform aha the owl car he ile knew about that then hes he s no and he had it all laid out the off officer still runn ng put his whistle to his lips the car was in scantly stopped and the next moment the policeman had his man by the collar he was d small fellow of 50 with a sandy mustache shabbily clothed and bis weak light ees ekes held within them a look of tear fear that plainly was not new there he ile shrank as the officer gripped him and with a poor attempt at a laugh said in a husky voice what have I 1 done now nowa the policeman motioned tor for the conductor to start the car along go ahead he said I 1 you re going our way stop at the station there were but four other germ ere all young men so sound asleep that the episode had not in the le least them i the officer examined his capture you re a nice one he said you knew there was nobody in that house but the caretaker but you forgot me I 1 was as round too the prisoner made a singular ture with his hands it expressed de 1 but the despair of martyrdom i rather than of guilt you re a high brow actor all right grinned the officer the small man looked at him queer ly I 1 dont don t know what you mean be ile said I 1 dont don t know what youre you re talking about I 1 haven t done anything his captor sneered then he laughed softly so that a your game is it ita he cabled ch sure thing you aln aint t done anything any hing you never done anything at af course not but see here he started up suddenly in conster nation and holding his man by the arm stared at the rear platform and then around the interior ol 01 the car where s that bundle what did you do with it if he shook him angrily I 1 don dent t know anything about any bundle I 1 haven t had any the voice was plaintive with a touch of impatience in it and he added repeating what he had said be fore I 1 don t know what you re talking about the conductor again stopped the car at a sign from the officer who yanked the little man violently from his seat and push pushing ing him on ahead alighted running him along to the nearest street lamp and regarding him threateningly he said in his weightiest tones toe see here you dirty of a lobo you spring that lay on me I 1 fl fix you I 1 what did you do with that bundled quick now I 1 tell you I 1 dont don t know anything about he began his denial dental v hining ly but the officer cut him short by giving him a vigorous slap on each cheek and a shaking that rattle his teeth then he be caught him roughly by the coat collar and started back with him over the route they had taken in the flight and pursuit when we come to where you threw that bundle over the fence or what ever 3 ou done with it you point it out that s all said the bl fiecoat grim 13 1 1 I sha n t talk to you any more you hear 17 he man said nothing the other forced him along through the howling wind and soaking rain taking the in side himself walking close to the fences and houses searching with his eyes every plot of vacant ground and every doorway the bundle he re was white or light colored it had shown plainly through the darkness in the thief e arms as he jumped down the steps of the man sion slon and I 1 it m ouid show now once they came neala beai it but on and on they tramped without a glimpse of it past the side street two alleys and nu tiny yards and dim vestibules to the avenue down the avenue and finally reached the mansion on the corner here the officer exasperated halted and again shook the little man never saw this place before in your life I 1 a pose did yera he sneered the prisoner made no answer and in the darkness the expression of his face was invisible with an ominous exclamation the of fleer marched him up the steps be fore he could touch the electro button the door was opened by a woman who stood back in the lighted hall saying come in mr Pin annegan In I 1 saw you through the winder ha hal so you got him did yer yera I 1 thought you would the way you put it after him she was a short squat body of 60 with gray hair fresh colored cheeks a vigorous mien and very black eyes which as she turned them on the lit tl tie man seemed to waver between w rath and fear f ear yes I 1 got him answered the po eiceman I 1 got him all right but what was it t he stole her eyes flashed and her face flamed redder than ever with anger it was the raphael crucifix she answered hotly and its it s worth 50 but where Is it ita didn dian t you git that too 9 she threw a dismayed look at the officer 1 I crucifix he exclaimed an so that s it I 1 saw it was light colored but thought he had a sheet round it or newspapers no I 1 d t git it he wont won t tell what he done with it yet but how bow did he git in ina you den t know him I 1 s pose well now I 1 im in here tell me all about it they 11 want to know at the office the first thing I 1 knowel I 1 heard a noise nole as it if something fell on the floor in the y so I 1 jumped up and grabbed my pistol that I 1 always keep under the piller when I 1 im m alone in the house and run out inter the hall he was jest at the front door it I 1 seen he had so methin under his arm and I 1 screeched and fired after I 1 seen you goin fortham tori him I 1 went back inter the y to find out what he d been doin doln there and when I 1 lighted up there was the table the crucifix stood on tipped over and the crucifix gone he t take anything else as I 1 can see so tar far at any rate fifty thousand I 1 should say that would do all right enough tor for one haul well we got him any how I 1 guess that a all now mrs brown III see you later about this the officer marched the little man out down the steps and along the stormy streets to the station two blocks away what charge asked the desk man pan yawning and dipping his pen in the ink burgle replied the officer laconic ally the captor turned to the captive who catching his eye made a gesture of hopelessness with his right hand and answered huskily edward perkins where the dole place the poll policeman cema n replied he broke in haid nd stole ithe the crucifix the one the 50 one you know that was on exhibition last sum mer the desk man looked up from his blotter so suddenly that the action had the effect of a violent exclamation of unbelief this struck the police pollee man as an odd thing tor for th though ough the theft was certainly of an u uncommon kind he had seen the relation of stran ger incidents than that received by this lieutenant without the quiver of an eyelid and he paused involuntary lly fly in his charge staring at his su all whatever this show of emotion might mean it was over so quickly that the next instant the policeman found himself doubting it if it had been there at all it must have been fancy he thought either that or he had misunderstood the look for now the lieutenant pen posed po sed in hand his great red white led face up turned from the open book before him his gray eye cool and inquiring was sa saving ang well uell what are you stopping foro go ona therefore forgetting his surprise he fie proceeded with his story the lieuten lieutenant nt having made his notes leaned forward over his book and fixing fixing the little man wi with th a judicial eye said sternly well what have you got to the prisoner shifted from one bedraggled toot foot to the other fingering his soaked hat his eyes on the little pools and rills of water that oozed from his garments over the bare floor I 1 haven t anything to say except that I 1 t do it he answered at length and he added with a sud and denly raised voice what is the good ol 01 my saying anything you wouldn t believe me nobody would it a al ways so A man wit out a pull might as well be serving lime time as here no matter how innocent he Is all you want Is to nab somebody and now you ve got me make the most of it that a all I 1 don t care what becomes of me anyhow but I 1 didn dian t steal that statue just the same I 1 d etick tick to that it if it was my last word on earth now give me a bed I 1 im in tired HP turned with an appearance of ut ter weariness toward the door leading to the cells but the policeman in obedience to a look from the lieuten ant took him by the arm and re strained him what were you doing out on the streets at two clock in the morning in this kind of weather it if you were not spotting that crucifix 7 the desk man demanded peremptorily fhe rhe prisoner remained calmly silent have you got any home the boffl cial persisted still there was no an awer ahe two off officers leers exchanged glances of disgust now once more growled the lieu tenant threateningly I 1 ash you it you have any friends or acquaintances in this cita this time some spark of fire adeep deep within the mail man edmed to be struck into life for he flamed forth friends friends there a no such as a friend on god s earth I 1 ve found it so and you have too and you know it every man is for him self the good as much as the bad As soon as your friend needs help you don dont t know him any more he must dig tor for himself when even the small est boost might save him Is that friendship 9 and youre you re all alike friends I 1 ha ha there isn t a friend this s de the grave that wo we lid ild be decent food tor for the worms it if bis his time should come to night he finished this vanish ang through the door wayNor for the pa at an impatient sign from the desk man had seized him by the collar and was dragging him to a cell toward which a turnkey silently led the way the papers the he next morning con tallied the story of the theft and ap to it was an abstract of a con cession by the thief yes the deter mine I 1 man who had dec ared that with bis his last breath he would deny that charge had made a lull full confession he said in effect that he was a tramp a stranger in the city with no place to sleep and noticing as he passed that the front door of the apparently deserted dole mansion was aar ajar ably loosened by the high wind he went in to take whatever he could find he happened to lay hands on the statue he had no idea of its worth but supposed he could get some thing on it in the darkness he had knocked over a table and the noise startled him so that he was afraid to stay any longer so holding on to the statue he made tor for the door when the woman appeared and fired he ran and when he saw that he was pursued he threw his burden into a doorway and by the merest chance caught a car that was going by and boarded it though he had no money but the officer who was after him got him just the same that was the truth and for telling it as it was confessing at once without putting the court to the expense of a trial he thought he deserved clemency and confidently looked forward to it at eight clock that morning a middle aged man dark clean shaven and of businesslike business like mien rang dr furnivall a door bell dr furnivall he said as soon as he wag was admitted to his study my name Is perkins john C perkins boots and shoes traveling agent I 1 have the queerest case for you that you ever tackled but in the first place did you ever hear of such a person as a coincident mana coincident man dr furnivall re heated with interest yes A man who let him do what be he will say what he will yes even think what he will is sure to run into sone so ne tangle of coincidences that throw him down and out outa he looked at the doctor with a halt half appealing half dogged air as one who would give the impression chati le l e ex pacts you to understand while at the same same time he is sure you do not or at least that you have no sympathy with him Is it yourself are ou the counci dent mana man 9 the doctor as ed elamin ing him through the thick spectacles the visitor started and flushed as it if ashamed ahamed of the imputation oh no he said quickly it is my brother edward perkins perhaps you saw in the papers this morning how he is accused of stealing a ah ali dr furnivall made a move ment of interest yes he said I 1 have read the story what did you think of it I 1 haven t data enough to warrant an opinion well mr air perking perkins knitted his brows and went on carefully choosing his words plainly it was to him a moment us affair that he was engaged upon ai d he felt the necessity of pro pr beeding with a caution that would pre elude mistakes I 1 myself took no stock in these co incidents to which ma brother laid all his failures in life or I 1 did not until recently I 1 knew they happened to him some I 1 knew of personally especially the e earlier alier ones when we were boys together but I 1 attributed his misfortunes in all his undertakings to incapacity to shift or something or other which he was to be blamed tor for I 1 believed he must be lying to me that it must be some vice or other gambling or drinking or something of |