Adventure, December 1914 — page 21: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

The Stolen War Secret The letter certainly showed that the two had been on intimate terms. The Professor wrote: Among other wonders of this place, I have been very much interested in a cavern, or, as the natives here call it, a subterréneo. It seems to have been built in the shape of a cross originally. Each arm of the cross probably extended about twelve feet underground. Tradition says that the center was guarded by a block of stone called ‘‘The Pillar of Death.” There is a superstition repeated from mouth to mouth that whoever embraced this stone would die before the sun went down. I was also interested in learning that tradition says that from this cavern there once led a long underground passage across the court to another underground chamber which was full of Mixtec treasure. Treasure-hunters have dug around it, but nothing has ever been discovered. According to the gossip of the region, two old Indians are the only ones who know of the immense amount of buried gold and silver, but will not reveal it. “That’s the sort of fellow Neumeyer was,” commented Sinclair thoughtfully, “always delving about and bringing up something not only of scientific value but of practical value as well. I’m going up to the city with you, if you are going,” he added. Kennedy had already despatched a wire to Dr. Leslie, telling him where we were and asking him to hold things in their present condition until we could get back. the station when we arrived. “I’m glad to see you,” he greeted us after the introductions were over. “I’ve been trying to get you, Kennedy, all day.” He was plainly perplexed and made no effort to conceal it as he hurried us into his official car which was waiting there. ‘Such a sight as I saw when I got there,” he exclaimed as we crowded into the car and sped uptown. ‘There, in his big desk chair sat Neumeyer, absolutely rigid, the most horribly contorted look on his face that I have ever seen—half of pain, half of fear. ‘Before him lay a book of beautiful col- ored plates of inscriptions published by the National Museum of Mexico City. He had evidently been studying them. “Well, I walked over and bent down to touch him. His hand was cold, of course. As nearly as I could make out, he must have been dead six or eight hours at least, per- haps longer.”’ Sinclair had been listening intently but THE coroner was waiting for us at 19 had said nothing. He was impatient of every delay, but at last we reached Neu- meyer’s. The Professor had occupied a back room and an extension on the first floor of a pri- vate house which he rented, using the ex- tension as a study and miniature museum of his own. We entered the little private museum which all night had guarded its terrible se- cret. The very atmosphere of tragedy in it sent a shudder over me, and Sinclair was nervous and shaken. Kennedy began at once by examining the body which had been moved by the Coroner from the chair and was lying, covered up, on a couch. In the fleshy part of the back of the neck, just below the left ear, was a round, red mark, with just a drop of now coagulated blood in the center. As I caught sight of it, I could not help exclaiming involuntarily— “Just the same as that on Madame Val- cour!”’ Kennedy said nothing, but squeezed out from the little wound on Neumeyer’s neck a few drops of liquid on another little glass microscope slide from the emergency-case in his pocket. __ “You say most of his work had been car- ried on in Mitla?” asked Kennedy, looking about at the crowded room, “Not all of it,” replied Sinclair. ‘A year ago he was in Yucatan. But this year he had been in Mitla, until the rebels made it dangerous. After that he spent some time at the pyramids near Mexico City, but even that became dangerous and he came back here. But it was Mitla that he was most interested in.” “Vou were familiar with what he had here, I presume?”’ went on Kennedy. “Very,” answered Sinclair. “Then I wish that you would look through the room and see if there is any- thing missing. I am going outside in the back yard under the windows to look about.” Sinclair began carefully running over the stuff. 7 In the yard Kennedy first looked about to get the general bearings of the house. It was several houses in from the corner, but comparatively easy to reach over the back- fences from the side street. Under the window of the extension, which DOO C©