Argosy All-Story Weekly, December 4, 1926 — page 96: what you’re looking at

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

406 shining through his dejection, caused the editor to add impulsively: “ Say, here’s a tip. It’s an idea I’ve had dormant for a long while. Maybe you can grab it.” The boy turned eagerly and grasped at the straw. . “Tt’s to prevent a suicide,” said the ed- itor. “I believe it can be done.”’ “ And you want an ‘ exclusive’ on it?” “No object otherwise.” The reporter protested: ‘“ I’d have a bet- ter chance worming my way into the con- fidence of a thief on the verge of a bur- glary than into the confidence of a suicide. I guess you’re just ragging me.” “No,” returned the editor, “I am merely offering you for nothing, because I have taken a shine to you, a tip it has taken me ten years of service on this desk to acquire.” ‘Tt took you ten years to think up that idea?” “There’s more to it. Listen. We've got a big German population in Cincinnati. If this were an Irish town the chance to pick a suicide in advance would be nil. A Mick would bump himself off whenever he feels like it, in the middle of the day or the night, whenever he is blue enough; that’s his final expression of emotional intensity. “Tt’s different with a Teuton. With him suicide is the baffled revelation of intellec- tual poverty, and he is usually orderly about it. Now take a morning, an early morning, especially a rainy one, when times are bad. Nearly every morning like that—this is where the ten years’ observa- tion comes in—produces a Dutch suicide for us. “The Nordic temperament is inclined to be observant of the decencies, too. It will not only plan the thing in advance, but will try to do it with as little disorder as possible. Observing this, I’ve long had the notion a man might Sherlock Holmes his way into a pre-suicide.”’ -“ Huh!” mused. the reporter, cogitating. ** I can be even more explicit,” the editor warmed to his hunch. “ Putting yourself in the place of the man whose mind has about abandoned all hold on life—a Dutch- man—~you will find he means to go to Riv- erside Park—city property, where the ref- ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. use man cleans up—about dawn, and there, secluded, will drink his poison, or shoot himself. Now, if you can step in on one of those episodes—” ee Etry.”’ “Don’t mistake me. I don’t want a suicide. They’re covered for us by the city news, but if you can prevent a suicide, and bring us the facts, authenticated—”’ ‘Much obliged,” the reporter thanked him. “I'll do my best.” As he went down the stairs he said to himself: ‘“ That’s a tough one!” He dined that night—on fifty cents. The next dawn he was at the entrance to Riverside Park. Presently, along came a dawdling figure, shuffling, hands in pock- et, gaze on the ground, a slouch hat pulled over his face. The reporter slipped to the ground. The shuffling figure passed him, feet slowly dragging, and now it could be seen that one of his pockets bulged outward with a parcel whose paper top protruded. The light was very dull. Yet it was day. A slight drizzle, hardly a rain, more like a heavy fog, penetrated to the flesh. The shuffling man came to a halt in the rear of a bench, half-fell, half-stumblied to his knees, bowed his head and held his hands before him in an attitude of prayer. Behind a bush near by hid the reporter, his heart in his throat. He realized that he must nicely calculate his action. He must first be certain that this was indeed a suicide. Also, he must prevent it. However, it was equally necessary that he possess proof of the fact as of the motive. Respect mounted for the editor whose intuition had directed him to this spot that he might become the god in the machine of this obscure tragedy. The silent prayer, if such it was, was over. The man took from his pocket the parcel and from the cumbersome folds of a newspaper unwrapped a heavy, old-fash- ioned revolver. The reporter edged his way to within a space which he could encompass with a single leap, and he was about to cry out when his action was stayed by the fact that the man placed the revolver carefully (eo) DOOKS AMG (E©)