Was He the Man ?

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10209, 11 April 1911, Page 2

Was He the Man ?

OUR Si:RIAL. 3

BY F. L. DACRE, o Author of "A Phantom of tli© Past," "Tronholme's Trust," "The Doctor's .Secret," "A Loveless Marriage," "Sir John's Heiress," etc.

( H A FT FAI XIT.-Continued. So saving In- disappeared through tin. folding doors into his bedroom. ;! ])!! soon returned as s])iek and span though I'had walked otit of his favourite cafe for a stroll in the AveniK' do I'Opera. lie said, seating himself at tr - table, and reaching out for the

la Eoquetto prism, and, T trust, clear up the mystery of Denver's double." "If it does, I will call you the Prince of Detectives," I said, when Morel paused to roll another cigarette.

"Ymi will honour ran too much ; but _voii shall find that I ara right. And now I must, get on, for it is getting late. So far, thanks to assisted destiny, my course had been easy. Hut how was I to find one man among fivo million people, and one coat among, say, twenty million coats. So far I had assisted destiny. Destiny now repaid tho compliment, and assisted me. I argued that if Robson had sold the coat —I was quite sum he would not give it away—he could only have sold it in a shop about tho docks, or privately to some sea-faring man. But there are hundreds of such shops, and thousands of such men. Where was I to begin ? "I confess that 1 was at a loss. But here destiny stepped in and helped me. A worthy friend of mine— a compatriot—keeps a restaurant in Chatham ; and last Sunday, feeling that I wanted a change of air, I decided to spend the day with him. I did so, and when ho opened in the evening, business was so brisk that I offered to help him. Most of his customers were sea-faring men, and you will give me credit for keeping a sharp eye on their coats. You smile, but what say you ' when I tell you that the last man that i entered the cafe that night wore my ' ideal coat ?" • ! "Bless me" I exclaimed, "how extraordinary. And you bought, the coat, I suppose, there and then?" "Mr Grey," replied the detective, with an oracular gesture, "science, like nature, does nothing by jumps. No, I made the man's acquaintance. He was a Frenchman, and we cracked a bottle to the glory of la grande nation. Before the bottle was finished, I learned that lie had bought the coat at a second-hand store in the town. I took the address, and then I took a fancy to the coat. It was rather on the small side for my friend, and my own coat was a trifle big for me. We exchanged just for a joke. My friends, ! when T put that coat on, I felt my I hand on Robson's shoulder, in more senses than one. Did I take it ofF again? No, my own was the better coat, and a better fit for my friend. Another bottle clinched the bargain, and the coat was mine.

- !'i-ky decanter. "let me mix a glass of your whisky grog, and then I will "ire v-)u ;i full account of my share of tin- chase, as far as 7 have yet followed tile vceut."

A jrlav. of "whisky grog" duly concerted. and a cigarette rolled and lighted. Monsieur Morol settled himself in his easy chair, and proceeded to satisfy our eurio-itv.

"When I landed in England I posseted. as you know, an extradition warrant, a photograph, and the measurements of his head. Another cine was placed in my hands, through the strange psychic projection, or what you will, that led you to make your last visit to the houso of Major Den- : ver, Mr Grey. The clue was only a 1 liorn bvjtton. a mere trifle, and yet. as you- wili a. most, important link in the chain th- J are seeking to forge. found, the next st to f i:id t l -' 1 coat lo which it had belonged. A difPcult task? Yes, an a task that lmrd.lv ever has heen achieved without t l, -• a.irl of what call- chance, ard other", who think more deeply, dest , '"" , \ np" np-t. I not believe in chance, hut I do believe, not only in destiny, but in the possibility of assisting it, if I may be allowed to say so. Oonseouently, for days and days T wandered about the streets of East London, looking at what you call the slop .shops, and trying to picture the coat from which such a button as that in my pocket might have come.

"For a time, n. consequence of another clue. which also cam© from you, Mt- Grey, T dropped the first chic in the hope of trapping Robson at the news' agent's. But, after my little fiasco there, it was \tseless to prolong my wateh in that direction. Our man Mould give the neighbourhood a wide berth. So T went to work on the first clue nsiain.

"Gradually there formed in my mind the image of a blue pilot coat with black velvet collar and seamed cuffs, and two rows of buttons such as this. To the finding of such a. coat as this with tfne button missing T now devoted mv energies. YAu smile at

"ThJ> next morning I sought the shop whore it had been obtained. Of course, the dealer was a Jew, and he wanted to buy back the coat the moment T called his attention to it. I pointed out the odd button, and lie confidentially informed me that 110 had noticed it before.' In fact, he had got it for a shilling less because the button was odd. T blessed the stupidity of Robson, in tlras fixing the dealer's attention on rev central fact, and then T asked him whether he would recognise the seller of the coat again. 'Yes,' he .said, 'he would, for the man had bargained like a Jew.' I then put my little album into his hand, and asked him whether he saw his customer there. Destiny did not fail me, for lie pointed out tho man at once. At this point he became more reserved, and the answers to my next questions were obtained with difficulty. • *

mv ideal coat? Please remember it was th"> mo-t substantial clue that was available at the time, and, therefore, as good as any other. But I had not exhausted t-h'o possibilities, of my button yet. For days I pestered clothiers. whoV'sale and retail, to match it for me. Thev produced hundreds more or less like it, but not one exactly like it.

'/So the soar eh narrowed, and T was instified in concluding that my button was not of English make. More than this, it was not apparently in tho English market. I then photographed it. and sent it to the Paris nolice. They found the maker. I liad felt certain that it was of French make. and. what was vprv important, i liey learned from him that only a few hundreds of that particular pattern had been made, in consequence of the breaking down of the stamping machine employed uvxxn it. To trace these few hundred buttons into the trade was easy. As a matter of fact, all had gone to one wholesale house, arc! that, in turn, had sold them all to one maker of ready-made clothes in Havre —they, in turn, had out them all on one style of sailor's pilot coat. I may lie excused for exm-essing the satisfaction I felt on learning that my ideal coat was almost exactly of this style.

"The retail snops 01 iT;« vre. among which these coats had been distributed, were next visited by an agent, who presented the photograph of Robson to each in turn. One recognised him as a man to whom he had sold one of the coats six months previously; and thus the field was finally narrowed to the area of a single coat, if T may use the expression, that Robson had brought to England and had worn when he crawled through the study window at Gravesend."

"An excellent sample of the method of logical conclusion applied to detective practice," exclaimed Fenton, as Morel paused to sip his whisky and roll a fresh cigarette. "Yours is evidently the science of trifles, Monsieur."

_ Morel stopned suddenly, and mixed his second toddy with the air of a man who had told of great deeds in modest words.

"Well, before we go any further, I vote we all fill up, and drink to Monsieur Morel's past and future success." It was Fenton who spoke, and when the glasses were full, he clinked his with the Frenchman's. Then, raising it to ami's length, he exclaimed, in tragic tones: "The Deadsure Detective! the Button ! the Burglar! and the—the —" "Barrister," mildly suggested Burton, as Fenton was manifestly at a loss to complete his alliterate tirade. (To be Continued).

"Pardon, there are no trifles in criminal cases, my dear sir," replied tho Frenchman, acknowledging the compliment with a. wave of the cigarette paper.

"I sit rebuked," laughed Fenton, in reply, "and now for the coat." "You will see," continued Morel, "that T now had to decide whether llolison still had the coat in his possession , or had parted with it. I confess that my logical faculty was here at fault. Granted that he knew that he had lost the button at Ryelands, ho would be too cunning not to mask the clue that the lost button might afford, and would either get rid of the coat, or have all the buttons renewed. "Had he taken the latter course my clue would have been broken in my hand, but, happily, the criminal always neglects these trifles of which it is the business of the true detective to take account. He got rid of the coat without changing the. buttons, and that little mistake will conduct him to

"I soon suspected the reason. Certain signs about the shop and the man had already told me that MiSolomon was what you English call a 'fence.' T had no time to waste, and so I told him point-blank that t-h-3 man who sold him the coat T wore was a thief who had, perhaps, sold Him other things. He saw my meaning, and began to bluster a little, but when [ showed him my warrant for the arrest of Robson on a chaige of murder, and assured him that I would not trouble him about smaller matters, if he would heln me. he confessed that my man had sold him a few things.' for which, of course, he had accounted quite satisfactorily, srid he also admitted that Robson had promised to bring him a few more things for his inspection that very evening. The result-of a threat and a promise was that, a few hours later, I hgd found my man and had followed hiin to his lodgings. That, is the story of the matter, as far as I have yet- pursued it."