Show T the h colfax C L 10 ap aff a t SYNOPSIS on a certain momentous monday d morning miss constance ice fuller cataloguer and seller of rare books at darrows new and secondhand second hand lland bookshop new york notices that the first customer la Is a dignified white bearded old old gentleman who ra into the alcoie pla yoris pter stirton Bt irton 0 one 1 is ot of the employees omazel C constance istance 0 by tellice her heald at auction for or an old law book containing a colfax fax bookplate suddenly a girla barlek lek of murders Mur derl rings out in th e store thi the elderly customers custo custa merv mek la Is on the fl floor unconscious with chis als right wrist blat slashed just if heveri falls in A faunt alle calls calle out to peter att keep it tor for renej we P etere nancy began that 1 morning working ot at darrows nancy tells constance ot of her elo elopement piment with brandon to tower a shorthand teacher an elopement which was cut short when tower attempted to make olt off with nancys suitcase BUlt case constance explains darrows card index system to captain ashland of england a nephew of mr dar rowa they examine the book peter paid for and find the bookplate to bi be a forgery J JIM L A CHAPTER V continued 6 ata the ne the young woman ali who discovered ier grosvenor unconscious F on the floor off the shop was identified as his granddaughter miss gro of the thelama same sama address gb she e mn vas also inver in mercy hospital having sustained on an injury to her foot i when giving ovan g the alarm alaci and being i ren idi dered ed U unconscious i nc by it for several hours detectives under the direction of sergt bergt denjamin benjamin almy were immediately assigned to io the case from headquarters arters ir As ai yet however no motive pr or clew bearing on the attack has been found nor any trace of a weapon discovered henry ballard attorney at law mr air Grosve nors degal adviser expressed himself as greatly surprised and chocked ot aitho the accident ili 1 I h bod ad not seen mr mi grosvenor for come some months sold eald mr D ballard allard my occasional acas lonal transactions for him expended i te n ded ov over er t the lie last ten years since mi retirement reffie nt from bus business ineas heend he bad n no 0 family bul two grandchildren who cje a ro cousins one of them miss julin julia br grosvenor enor so unhappily the discoverer of this distressing attack on tier her Arand grandfather father Is a most charming and young lady and recently returned i u arned from completing her professional education in H italy the other Is a young man named charles mae mac Ivor who 1 I believe does not llvell alvo in new york the dead man was fated ns as being worth close taa to n million dollars the address of harler charles macivor could not be ba obtained up to a late hour lash las night I 1 had bad no quiet moments in the shop that morning NO yellow notes were ism needed heeded to make the staff punctual or v even even ahead of time that tuesday daisy s y abbott had been the first ta to 0 arrive on the scene and had bad found n group of reporters waiting gaiting outside for mr Dar darrow roii and a photographer irom rom dally snapshots who with more acumen than some some of his con 1 freres the correspondents hail had displayed was arns faung n picture of ulys eai tes as faithful black identifier of victim to quote next days caption dabsys Dai lin importance got on every blodys nerves somewhat except the virtually nonexistent ones of captein Ai ashland liland who bad come coffia down unaccountably early to join us in gazing nt ct tile the ec rc enery dut but a happy diversion xia was s imminent suddenly we were weri joined by nancy nahey looking like the rosy dawn in an extremely new frock and f followed 6 closely by leter ieter apo do you think this dress iball Is all right constance Cons constance tOnCe 1 I dont you think dark brown lat crepe la Is really much better than blue serge after lall all I 1 got abt it down in gr grand and street last r night of course OUI S le the skirts nowhere near near eight inches off the ahe ground but bu I 1 1 how could bouldi I 1 possibly let down a knife P plaited bitted hem bem what in the world ts Is the matter peter darling for heavens 11 eavens m ge huk up ann nancy ey I 1 and if you eer call me that again hervill he here ril have you tired V 1 hissed alet reter er giving affectionate sister a highly fraternal glare nancy shot phot a glance of solicitude at mi his handsome purple io countenance and addressed addre sved the meet ing T he lle would drink three cups ol of tobee collee 4 this morning gl I 1 ieter Peter bays says my coffee Is s so eo good goedl I 1 cut but three cups do make hi him art nervous still this dorming ahe surprise you known know ile he needed somo som 1 thing the surprise echoed daisy an bott as quick cs as lightning in 10 a sweet elder shierly tone nicely calculated to glee nancy iancy ilie ilic encouragement encourage me n t she did doi cot at all need va r oh you dont know fenorl I 1 why wha a do you all think that beautiful girl who fainted right here yesterday ay lives liver in the floor below us in normandy terrace I 1 01 71 S this time I 1 just managed to over ili haul aul daisy I 1 think thinie theres something you drun i nancy 11 I 1 shot in after ti a swift glance at peter ie you heerd 51 hat the old roan man who woe was hurt here yesterday day morning tins lias died 1131 mercy ercyl I 1 gasped nancy for once astonished when yesterday after 7 noon no we we loyal and disciplined specimens of young womanhood k abot ulu wilkes frays all the by AGNES MILLER Sery leq 0 ly by century co stenographers roust must bedient be get told I 1 anything like that I 1 expect wo we oro are too young all we knew was that been tin an accident why you tell me ind about the poor old gentleman and not let me talk so eo much peter idear E elevators leva tors walton announced ulysses ingra ingratiatingly ala tingly at this crucial instant peter hurled butted into it politely wa waved ved captain ashland in ahead of him flammee the door in the tb e face of the amazed operator and let the car shoot up as tile the clock struck nine cine thinking he had rendal remained nd downa down stairs to speak to mr case about some business I 1 resolved to get a word in first but as I 1 turned him he was already coming down the aisle whatever am I 1 going to do with that confounded kid lie broke out ashes most eff efficient lelent I 1 sighed though b I 1 cannot always follow her technique ive a piece of 0 news I 1 hate to break to you but here it Is that colfax bookplate Is 19 a counterfeit counter felt you were deceived I 1 almost was its so clever but its not no an engraving its a drawing for a minute peter ieter looked as it if he had been hit on anthe the head hard then gnarly tie he go gasped sped in that case why does everybody want it bif bet anything that old man too was after III I 1 nearly hugged him bluml for independently li ho he had plainly arrived at the same conclusion which I 1 had reached and abandoned as foolish find and had all the time longed to stick to namely that omo i irresistible irresistible interest was inherent in that bookplate for everybody 1 one other piece of information I 1 demanded imbat wha t wakes makes you think the old man was after the bookplate peter you heard what she sold eald to met mel peters tone showed no overwhelming respect for ray my mental processes keep it for me she remembered roe me from the only thing she associated with me mb was that thai book the thing rhe he wanted to in it was the bookplate for I 1 saw he her r examining it closely so naturally tilly I 1 think tier her grandfather grand futher who you know collected virginia books was after what she was after see but I 1 had bad no time then to hug my satisfaction the dear public was taking unusual lateresa terest Int lA crest to in our quaint bookshop where q a local citizen had met his end then to in of the morning daisy calwy abbott was 49 alsi covered CD vered in her desk dek at the he rear of the shop and sobbed out tae the sad news that mr 1 roberta ilind had jest given tier her a weeks notice it seemed that A ou his early morning tour of df inspection SPec tiOn of tile the building mr roberts roberta bad found tier her letting the dally snapshots roan man take her picture on the roof to illustrate an interview for his special palladium of liberty gallivanting that particular morning offa and disobeying specific orders not to discuss the accident rubbed him the wrong way and daisy was wa out of 61 a job rain finally brought us u s some slight respite with the multitude and I 1 seized the chance to start work again on the rare book catalogue I 1 sought Y i I 1 r t daisy abbott was wa discovered in hysterics at her desk at the rear hear of the shop th atie shelves of the tillo rj alcove whither I 1 had been tie diled tie the pre pm ilous afternoon crosien interrupted und while collecting c colne hooks hook I 1 needed I 1 heild dabsys voice absolutely I 1 tell fell tilia him an thing that Is if hardly anything I 1 heard tier insulter fiercely tle rely fifthly fifth lV mot hint was a secret anyhow you both heard wliam she suld said just as well or mel me I 1 she says to burton betl it f niel mel sure I 1 heard her flints 11 ints alia tou jou told him Is it inquired the hie trin pathetic voice olce of george henry dili jim din and for that ihna get tired I 1 in ighel it was indiscreet 1 i and indecorous and officious I 1 if it immoral too believe me id like to know what in time this if it thing was in anyhow I 1 1 at a volume noted in the catalogue as south worth 06 on the ahe of notion during daring the 64 wi war with mexico a sticker I 1 had resolved to get rid of this time ilme or peris perl sli it landed on the floor door with a loud crash for which I 1 promptly apologized around tho the corner comer of the alcove tho the apology was received in the spirit of truest courtesy and the session at dabsys desk broke up I 1 picked up ui the gallant framing how ham who had come to the rescue of a lady in in distress tit nt the price of an exceedingly awk awkward ward fall out opt back baci upward and as he left the floor ho he dropped a note at my feet it it wits was yellow it seemed dimly familiar I 1 pick picked ad it up it boro bore a list of history books neddy neatly written in tiny precise letters remembrance of 0 Harringt bas visit the previous day shot across my mind for far those books were such tta as tie be would buy and fie be had retrieved my yellow note from the wastebasket waste basket that was all I 1 crushed it carelessly preparatory to casting it back into tile tho basket when suddenly waybe maybe because nil my nerves were on edge with yesterdays accident and its ita increasingly crea singly mysterious complications lit it seemed to me that for flimsy second on id sheet paper that note crushed d feeling curiosity enough to unfold it I 1 flattened it out and turned I 1 it t list side down yes it was nothing but my yellow note it ii had beao torn ah that was why the crushed paper had folded stiffly and scraped my hand there were three rows of little littie tears on tho the lofb indeed each one one a serles series of silts 1 I wondered r vaguely guely why professor harrington had concealed his book list la in fram ingham unless chehad he had thought to give it permanent burial why he bad chosen to carve a pattern patterson patt ernon on it it I 1 stuffed the yellow note into my sweater pocket and resolved to look at it again some time when I 1 bad no catalogue to write when I 1 had flitted flirted from shelf to shelf long enough to collect notes for nearly two pages of catalogue aa a I 1 tinkling of my desk telephone summoned me to mr rob roberta erts office I 1 stepped up as requested and there was mr almy sit down please miss puller fuller said mr roberts mr almy would like some information mr almy turned Ms clear gray eye on me miss fuller he be inquired what do you know about this jon janitor aitor of yours ulysses jackson i he Is always affable but lie ho gives out about abou t aam ns much uch information as a department of state I 1 nearly swooned ned cherf ho he chose to present me with that clipping last ev evening enina how did he come to ave have it 1 he sold said he he had seen old mr gros tenor inthe in the store and so when his picture appeared in the paper he cut it out ile he hai bas worked here thirty years you know and darrows to i its ita smallest d etall detail Is his aa whole life time dad he be give it to you your about half past tour four perhaps five minutes before I 1 I 1 handed it to you then lie he knew ew who ib 0 mr grosvenor aros venor was long before he said so ulisses should not have held back this information I 1 wonder what mi madella madel lm do so well I 1 believe he got sulky and held back the information because feelings were hurt hurl how dow were his feelings hurt 9 well for one tiling thing he was sent to 0 watch the shipping office dl door 1 instead of being allowed to see alillie nil llie excitement in the shop for another r he be alleges that mr case spoke to him roughly sir air case I 1 ejaculated mr roberts decidedly stirred yes of nil all people what did he say asked mr A I 1 my ulysses alleges said 1 that M mr 4 i cuse called I 1 islin ilin a super superstitious fOus old old fool foell I 1 how when and where aher e were no not forthcoming possibly mr W case was just juit hs bs excited us na the mhd rest of us os it Is to be sure quite true that ulysses Is superstitious flut anyway he be did a useful thing in identifying mr pros grosvenor venor however to much uch he talok his time in doing so a you may be aniere interested ste d 66 to kno know p observed mr It Il something g about the wound suffered by mr grosvenor yes indeed that stashing of his right wrist snapped a tendon fendon the doctors believe it was thea pain of this suddenly broken tendon which made him faint though an artery arberr had beep cut emust at It must a iery very darger danger i au 0 and peculiar wound aes ekes sold said mr ald almy y there were viima numerous adu s slashes on tits his wrist wilst each ab about au t half on an loch inch long they were on the Inside of the wrist nil parallel to the hasa it W av i ery strange 2 f arn mr almy turned briefly to the deek deck telephone wound the wrist was badly mangled the wounds had apparently been made with a small sharp thin blade their number certainly gave the 04 impression pres slon that the attack was w as not only unusual but spiteful as lip well lit if the artery was severed you see and the old man can rendered unconscious for some little time death would have f inevitably resulted the purpose of all those other sis s Is not clear t they dangerous f te or painful 1 IB only moderately they would never have pr prevented a vented the he victim from struggling 9 or crying for help I 1 in that case I 1 inquired hesitatingly their presence suggest ug su suicide I 1 ca de 7 mr almy shook ills his head other facts dont bear that reasoning puta out 1 tie he answered in the 1 first place the blow that at c u t the artery was dealt swiftly and forcibly now mr grosvenor the doctors report hod had a we weak heart and every appearance pe arance of fi annn who had lived for years under a heavy beary I 1 nervous strain lie he was also right ha handed Uee ue could duld not possibly have dealt such a forceful blow against hie bit own right wrist then fis as you know the weapon what everit everl was had been removed consequently some one him it Is nay my business to lind out who tent was and as I 1 understand under you yon tire willing to assist roe me in duing so will vill ask you now to lain here while I 1 try ry 0 to o get some further ri from your sou fellow fo ahe dis dir civery of that hint ocel accident dent in th the e shop 11 ap mr almy turned briskly to the lie |