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Ay LF = BY 8. 8. VAN DINE. 3 SYNOPSIS, Phily Vance becomes interested in the Greene Murder Case after Julla Greene is killed and her sister, Ada, is wounded. There are Mrs, Greene and five children, Julia, Chester, Sibella, Rex and Ada, an adopted daughter, ving | the old Greene mansion. Chester Greene is the next victim, murdered in his bedroom. Sibella seems 10 be on Intimate terms with Dr. Von Blon, the young family physician. Ada, the adopted daughter, comes to District Attorney Markham's office. While she is there Rex is murdered in his bed- room. In each case there aru footprints outside the house. Dr. Von Blon re- ports that deadly doses of morphine and strychnine have been stolen from his bag at the Greene house. The next morning Ada Is poisoned with morphine, but the doctor reaches her in time. The same night Mrs. Greene dies of strych- nine poisoning. Ada and Sibella are the only survivors. Vance summarizes the points of the case. CHAPTER XXXVI.--(Cont'd.) "Can you make any sense--esthetic or otherwise--out of this?" Markham petulantly tapped the sheet: of paper. "I can see certain traceries," mused Vance, "so to speak--certain sugges- tions of a pattern; but I'll admit the main design has thus far eluded me. The fact is, Markham, I have a fezl- ing that some important factor in this case--some balancing line of the pat- ern, perhaps--is still hidden from us. [ don't say that my resume is insus- septible of interpretation in its pres- mt state; but our task would be greatly simplified if we were in pos- session of the missing integer." Fifteen minutes later, when we had returned to Markham's main office, Swacker came in and laid a letter on the desk. "There's a funny one, Chiel," he said. Markham took up the letter and read it with a deepening frown. When he had finished, he handed it to Vance. The letterhead read, "Rectory, Third Presbyterian Church, Stamford, Conn."; the date was the preceding day; and the signature was that of the Rev. Anthony Seymour, The contents of the letter, written in a small, precise hand, were as fol- lows: "The Honorable John F, . Markham. "Dear Sir.--As far as I am aware I have néver bétrayed a confidence. But there can arise, I believe, unfore- seen circumstances to modify the strictness of one's adherence to a given promise, and indeed impose upon one a greater duty than that of keeping silent. "I have read in the papers of the wicked and abominable things that have happened at the Greere resi- dence in New York; and I have therefore come to the conclusion, after much heart-searching, that, it is my bounden duty to put you in possession of a fact which, as the rsult of a prom- Ise, I have kept to myself for over a year. I would not now betray this trust did I not believe that some good might possibly come of it, and that you, my dear sir, would also treat the matter in the most sacred confidence. It may not help you--indeed, I do not see how it can possibly lead to a solu- tion of the terrible curse that has fallen upon the Greene family--but since the fact is connected intimately with one of the members of that fam- ily, I will feel better when I have com- municated it to you. "On the night of August 29 of last year a machine drove up to my door and a man and a woman asked that I secretly marry them. I may say that I am frequently receiving such re- quests from runaway couples, This particular couple appeared to be well- bred dependable people, and I con- curred with their wishes, giving them my assurances that the ceremony would, as they desired, be kept confi- "The names that appeared on the li- cense--which had been securel in New Haven late that afternoon--were Si- bella Greene, of New York City, and Arthur Von Blon, also of New York City." : Vance read the letter and handed if k. "Really, 3' know, I can't say that I'm astonished--" Suddenly he broke off, his eyes fixed thoughtfully before him. Then he rose nervously and paced up and down. "That tears it!" he exclaimed. Markham threw hin a look of puz- zled interrogation. "What's the point?" "Don't you see?" Vance came quick- ly to the District Attorney's desk. "My word! That's (ne one fact that's missing from my tabulation." He then unfolded the last sheet and wrote: 98. Sibella and Von Blon wera sec- retly married a year ago. "But I don't see how that helps," Protested Markham, "Neither do I at this moment," Vance replied. "But I'm going to spend this evening in erudite medita- tion." The Boston Symphony Orchestra was scheduled that afternoon to play a Bach Concerto and Beethoven's C Minor Symphony; and Vance, on leaving the District Attorney's office, rode direct to Carnegie Hall, He sat through the concert in a state of re- laxed receptivity, and afterward in- sisted on walking the two miles back to his quarters--an almost, unheard- of thing for him. Shortly after dinner Van.e bade me good-night, and, donning his slippers and housé-robe, went into the library. I had considerable work to do that right, and it was long past midnight when I finished. On the way to my reom I passed the library door, which had been left slightly ajar, and I saw Vance sitting at his desk--his head in his hands, the cummary ly- ing before him--in an attitude of oblivious concentration. He was smoking, as was habitual with him during any sort of mental otivity; and the ash-receiver at his elbow was filled with cigarette stubs. I moved on quietly, marvelling at the way his new problem had taken hold of him. It was half-past 3 in the morning when I suddenly awoke, conscious of footsteps somewhere in the house, Ris- ing quietly, I went into the hall, drawn by a vague curiosity mingled with uneasiness, At the end of the corridor a panel of light fell on the wall, and as I moved forward in the semi-darkness I saw that the light iscued from the partly open library door. At the same time I became aware that the foot- steps, too, came from that room. I could not resist looking inside; and there I saw Vance walking up and down, his chin sunk ¢n his breast, his hands crammed into the deep pockets of his dressing gown. The room was dense with cigarette smoke, and his figure appeared misty in the blue haze. I went back to bed and lay awake for an hour. When finally I aozed off it was to the accompaniment of those rhythmic footfalls in the library. \ I rose at 8 o'clock. - It was a dark, dismal Sunday, and I had my coffee in the living room by electric light. When I glanced into the library at 9 Vince was still there, sitting at his desk. The reading lamp was burn- ing, but the fire on the hearth had died out. Returning to the living room, I tried to interest myself in the Sunday newspapers, but after scan- dential, ning the accounts of the Greene case Qo . 7, Z can ~~ Christies 8 AFrOWr OOS Contain pure arrowroot; always fresh; their quality is rigidly maintained. i DUDLEY DAWSON Who, at the annual meeting of the directors of the Dominion Bank, was appointed general manager. Mr. Daw- son was formerly assistant general manager. ---------------------------------------------- I lit' my pipe and drew up my chair before the grate. It was nearly 10 o'clock when Vance appeared at the door.. All night he had been up, wrestling with this self- imposed problem; and the devitaliz- ing effects of this long sleepless con- centration showed on him only too plainly. There were shadowed ecir- cles round his eyes; his mouth was drawn; and even his shoulders sagged wearily. But, despite the shock his appearance gave me, my dominant emotion was one of avid curiosity. I wanted to know the outeome of his all- night vigil; and as he came into the room I gave him a look of question- ing expectancy. When his eyes met mine he nodded slowly. : "I've traced the design," he said, holding out his hands to the warmth of the fire. "And it's more horrible than I even imagined." He was sil- ent for some minutes. "Telephone Markham for me, will you, Van? Tell him I must see him at once. Ask him to come to breakfast. Explain that I'm a bit fagged." He went out, and I heard him call- ing to Currie to prepare his bath, I had no difficulty in inducing Markham to breakfast with us after I had explained the situation; and in lesc than an hour he arrived. Vance was dressed and shaved, and looked, considerably fresher than when I had first seen him that-morning; but he was still pale, and his eyes were fa- tigued. : No mention was made of the Greene case during breakfast, but when we had sought easy chairs in the library, Markham could withhold his impa- tience no longer. "Van intimated over the phone that you had made something out of the summary." "Yes," Vance spoke dispiritedly. "I've fitted all the items together. And it's damnable! No wonder the truth escaped us." Markham leaned forward, his face tense, unbelieving. "You know the truth?" "Yes, I know," came the quiet an- swer. "That is, my brain has told me conclusively who's at the bottom of this fiendish affair; bu even now --in the daylight--I can't credit it. Everything in me revolts against the acceptance of the truth, The fact is, I'm almost afraid to accept it. .... Dash it all, I'm getting mellow. Mid- dle-age has crept upon me." He at- tempted to smile, but failed. ' Markham waited in silence. "No, old mas" continued Vance; "I'm not going to tell you nov. I can't tell you until I've looked into oné or two matters. You see, the pattern is plain enough, but the recognizable objects, set in their new relationships, are grotesque--like the shapes in an awful dream, I must first touch them and measure them to make sure that tley're not, after all, mere abortive vagaries," "And how long will this verification take?" Markham knew there was no use to try to force the issue. He real- ized that Vance was fully conscious of the seriousness of the situaiion, and respected his decision to investigate certain points before revealing his conclusions, = (To be continued) -- te Room and Board for $3 St. Louis.--A new home in which room and board for women is furnished at §3 a week for those earning less than $10 a week, has been opened here by the Women's Auxiliaries Wel- fare Association. ---- . Gulity? In Oklahoma, Miss, Negro David '| Zawrence, on trial charged with mur | 'fevast. The "wreckers" Between high and low water. Life of Selvage Worker A{ wor Ami Fed of etn: 1 One of the difficulties of salvage work at sea is that almost eyery case presents its own special problems. ie diy an A ens 'an ican troop-ship w wen : hore during the War on .:e Antrim -ork complicated by the he sea was like , and that on y glass, e Antrim coast at that time of the ear there was hardly 'any Siflerence to float her off they acked for a [destroyer to create an artificial swell! modore Sir Francis Young, formerly head of the Admiralty Salvage See- founc their] fact that One arrived and--we are told by Mr.| Desmond Young, son of the late Com-| safety depended -on the weather, the tuw-rope, a patch remaining in posi- tion, and the pumps. They struck vile weather, as it happened, and it took them a month tc reach the Tyne. The strangest incident of all, how- ever, occurred in London. sians were to return from Tilbury them at Euston and bring them to the office. Two taxis were needed; in the second 'the young man put the. Rus- sian cock and a man named Savanoff, and, without giving the driver the address, told him to follow the first taxi in which he himself rode with the others. The second taxi pre- sumably lost the first in the trafiie, for it never arrived at the office. And that, in spite of our inquiries, was the last we heard of the cook and of Savonoff, What became of them? They neither of them spoke a word of English; they neither of them knew the name of the ship by which they were to return to Libau; they had no permits and no tickets; they had no ONLY TWO FAILURES. pat, Mr, Young tells us that his father, in over four hundred cases before the War, v The Rus-+| Mr. Young sent an assistant to meet | English money with which to pay the| Actual failure is rare for the ex-| tion, in "Ships Ashore"-she began at the same :ase fo on to make short runs at Zull speed : Don't eall me ' close to the stranded shi, - . : Passing The utmost strain possible was put pped the Commander. I. youl wis upwards of half 2 million bully pus on all the anchore wires and ai! avail-| 87 said Jonathan, "I've taken 2 lik- | they gradually have Oe against able tugs were doing their best. The|i& to yon" And frievds they were in popularity. In some ee Bich as on fit Oriana rolled and siruggled to free for the rest of the job. ¢ thermore, the duties are a5 high as eolored goggles. herself each time the destroyer pass- and discomforts are met}to mak the winds js coutly: fied wh ih te al vat he: | Hie icy are og Stop the Four 'or five runs at very close| Yet "aptain BXuties. one old farmer quarters set up the effect of bad| Ways went wrecking wearing a top] As carly as the 16th Century, can sliy. of 2 wezther for two or three minutes at a| hat! One is constantly comin across | aries were popular. The science Bim. "If you ladies and gentlemen, a time. This was exactly what shel the bizarre and in this| cultivating their voices improved bit|, _ .; -gouldnt mind turning vour : . i +. " wanted. At the sixth run, the Oriana | Story of a little-known occupation] by bit util now they are put through |, i, other way maibe I'd get ber ? rolled, shook, slipped, and came away where all is excitement and uncer- | a thorv gh ~ schooling, from Which past" we ra into deep wate. tainty--s gamble with time and a|tkey have to graduate, as it were, They were of strange and awful : race against the weather. And after|icre being approved for shipment. ; .;..5es at the beginning. There was THE DIVERS' DAY OFF, reading the book one can understand | Among the most skilful teachers im} "oc cupposed to resemble 3 Mr. Young himself took to salvage] smmething of the power of what Mr.} tke German bird academic are blind swan: bul. owing to the neck being work after the War. His first job was| Young's father used to call the "sal-|ex-soldiers. T . . | short, it looked more like a duck, thas one of his hardest. When he arrived | vage bug," which has attacked the] The color of the birds 's an im-|. ;r's joked like anything. To fil 3 the Ulidia had already bn ashore] most unlikely people "including par-| portant matter. United States fan |... giator. you unscrewed the hesc . for two years at Soroka, in the south-| sons, colonels; and an American di- | éiers always have preferred the light | __, poured the water flown the peck: west of the White Sea, straining on| rector of a famous life company." yellow type, but Britain, for example, | _ 4 "4c you drove the screw would ; M the rocks with the tide rising and w | ----pr-------- likes them ol elie The desired | _ oo 100se, and the thing would turr' Sel falling inside her. Work started; first| The Sound colors are secured cross-breeding; | | ..3 and look at you out of one eye there was a strike among the Rus- os pairing white and green birds, for in-| oss were shaped like canoes und sian workmen. This was seitled by a 8 Laughter stance, yields blue ones in the third gondolas, Ome firm brought out 2 } show of bombs and a Lewis gun.| All the bells of heaven may ring, 2 tion. Cay pepp also} g It had a red tongue, and you 5 When the Ulidia was eventually float-| All the birds of heaven may sing, [listed as a dietary item in developing |... (ne spare wheel on its tail -- H ed off, the divers were ordered to o| All the wells on earth may spring, |the red-yellow shade. Jercme K. Jerome, in "My Life and | dewn to locate the damage. But they| All the winds in earth ma; bring i Times." i. Lad other ideas: it was a Sunday, All sweet sounds together; oul WiLL sme deem and at roon they always krocked off | Sweeter far than all things heard, [For though with judgment we on alentine" . for the day:-- 2 Hand of harper, tone or bird, things reflect, "To My vi alent d the They were endangering the ship at| Sound of woods at sundow 1 stirred, | Our will determines, mot our imtel| The cuit of St. Valeniie - the eleventh hour, when tie was| Welling water's winsome word, Jeet. observance of St. Yaienting's Sy e practically in safety, out it vas use- Wind in warm wan weather. -- Pimusd Waller. |the last survival of an oleer Eng less to point this out to them, or to : ee fpr land, Jder promise them that they could stand| One thing yet there is, that none Electricity js the driving power of Punch and easy for as long as they liked once| Hearing ere its chime be doie 2 new English model motor-car intend- | olier than the essential work was don: . . Stop| Knows not well the sweetest one ccach. vrork they would, and did, and having | Heard of man beneath the sun, The England washed and put on their best clothes, Hoped in heaven hereafter; faery Mab and went ashore to stroll about in the | Soft and strong and loud and light, whe armed his sunshine! Very sound of very light the corn, when THE TREACHEROUS PILOT. |F.eard from morning's rosiest height, the hour when The rext missed heart-best came| When the soul of all delight was ig when the tugs near'y got the ship Fills a child's clear laughter. dlemas ashore again on the same rocks im- 1 Christmas mediately after leaving Soroka!" Re- Golden bells of welcome rolled noise to the § pairs were made at Archangel, and| Never forth such notes, nor cld- feta, a when the time came to leave, an old | Hours so blithe in tones so bold, z Yussian pilot came un board to take|AS the radiant month of gold chimes that . A o 2 the Ulidia dowr. the windinz river. Here that rings from heaven. Seasons. Suddenly and without any warning Sh acting | she struck a bank, -and, ays Mr. 5 » » days ebruary. Young, there can be no doubt that the Something seen and heard of men Samar of the gubdess cf ¥eb ok pilot had put us ashore on purpose,| Might be half as sweet as when feast the day when the birds begin . Fortunately the tide had jv.* begun Laughs a child of YON... Rare te. Charles Lamo sang its to make, and the ship had mot gone --Swinburne "Poems. "A raises. for in his day and later, until very fer up on the mud bank whic " * " £ ' 3 had been selected for her. It was,| "Hard work, more than any other the exd of the ghia, Jon Bubgh woman in the world, is the one to on St. Valentine's Eve your Lowever, a very moot point whether ' "gir Valentines. They lay in white card- she would float or not, and, as a fact, | stand up ben or: her man, board boves, aromatic with a particu she only did 'so at the top of high James M. Barrie. lar scent; they were soft to the touch water. His age and our preoccupation| ? : . : aione saved the old pilot. . ... The hungry; 'suffering millions of ind pleasant pleasant tg the «eve; their apes} i unemployed will not again get em- 4 was 3 But they go off again, end yale il the high cost of gov- with lace, and they mostly for England towed by only one tug.|Pleyment Wy me BE en pg Rony 'of a Cupid aiming an The only experieaced sailozs on the| ernment or arrow at a heart, and a little piece of Ulidia were three Russians! Their|B. Byrd. : +B iT i] ih i 4 i i i i { i { ' i k g f & dF iy §f i : i E E 8 ! i g i :