Argosy All-Story Weekly, Vol. 124, No. 3 — page 150: what you’re looking at

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

Foe Marg? by Isabel Ostrander Author of “ Ashes to Ashes,” “ Twenty-Six Claes,” “ Suspense,” ete. PRECEDING CHAPTERS BRIEFLY RETOLD ™X-ROUNDSMAN TIMOTHY McCARTY followed a suspicious-looking figure along the avenue. When the man entered the Creveling house, McCarty hid in the areaaway. A moment later the. second-story man leaped from a window and the cx-officer collared him. Clancy, the officer on the beat, answered his call for assistance, but the young burglar insisted he was not responsible for what they would find inside. On the library floor they found a gentleman in evening clothes shot through the heart. An army .44 lay close to his hand. Off the brary was'a breakfast-room with the remains of a late supper. From the rug McCarty picked up a bit of broken amber, part of a cigarette-holder. Clancy notified borough headquarters, and McCarty sent for his friend, Inspector Druet. The house was empty of servants, but on the third floor two of the servants’ rooms were littered with clothes. While the ex-rouindsman and the inspector were looking over this floor of the house, McCarty thought he first heard, then saw a fleeting form as he looked over the stairs to the floor below. . Then the bell rang and McCarty admitted a dapper gentleman, who explained he had arrived in answer to an urgent telephone message, which insisted that he come at once. He stated he was George Alexander, Mrs. Creveling’s uncle, and her husband’s business partner. The inspector's examination of Alexander failed to reveal any leads. ‘The dead man’s partner was as guarded in his answers as Frank Hill, Creveling’s valet, who next arrived on the scene. The valet testified he had taken a bag of clean linen to his master at the club on the previous night at eleven o’clock, after arranging for the supper at the house. Rollins, the butler, and his wife, the cook, had been given a holiday, and the other servants had been dismissed when Mrs. Creveling set out on her round of visits. McCarty in the meantime unearthed another lead; under the table-cover.in the library he found a playing card, the nine of diamonds, -blood-stained and torn. — 7 The ex-roundsman was pressing the valet to explain his whereabout from eleven o'clock of the night before until his arrival on the scene, when Mrs. Creveling arrived and demanded: “ What has happened to my husband?” No sooner was Mrs. Creveling informed of the death of her husband than she exclaimed “ who killed him?” The inspector found she had been summoned home by a telephone call which she supposed came from her cook. The call had come before five o’clock, a full three-quarters of an hour earlier than the wire sent by the police. Meanwhile, McCarty, whose eyes never left Hill, saw a furtive glance pass between him and Alexander. McCarty followed Hill from the room and they bumped -into the arriving butler and his wife. He was convinced there was also an understanding between Hill’ and Rollins, the butler. From the latter he learned Creveling and Waverly had had words about a fortnight ago and Mrs. Creveling had stated Mr. Waverly was not at Broadmead the night of the murder. Then Wade Terhune, the noted criminologist whom Mrs. Creveling insisted on calling, arrived. McCarty greeted him and then went out to keep an appointment with Waverly, who had phoned to the Creveling house to offer his assistance after hearing of the accident, from his wife. McCarty forced Waverly to admit he had frequently quarreled with Creveling because of the latter’s wild ways. However, he established an alibi for himself which Sam Venner, a shady character confirmed. McCarty was anxious to make his report to his chief and disclose the evidence of some one having opened the desk with the spring lock, between the time he had first examined the desk with his chief and the time he returned shortly after, for a second and more private inspection. Gloves had been used and the lock oiled. But as he was about to enter his apartment he encountered his young reporter friend, Jimmie This story began in the Argosy-Allstory Weekly for July 24. 524 — i Original from(CO [PM [(CloOO CS CON TT Digitized by Go gle THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY