The Argosy, Christmas 1912 — page 219: what you’re looking at

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

WIZARD OR CROOK. “Who’s loony now?” The head of the department shouted in the ex- uberance of his relief and amazement. “Who's loony now?” CHAPTER VI. WIZARD OR CROOK? THE following morning Ramsdell, a trifle shy in the matter of eyebrows, and with various points of his anat- omy more or less bandaged, rode down from his modest lodgings on Morning- side Heights in a big red automobile. It was the police commissioner’s own private car which had been sent up to convey him to headquarters, and when he arrived at the great gray building he found no difficulty this time in se- curing an audience with its presiding genius. Indeed, McConnell was eagerly await- ing him, and lost no time in pressing on him the box of big, black cigars. The student, however, despite the flattering cordiality of his reception, was just as diffident and deprecatory as ever. He seemed in nowise changed by the rather startling series of events through which he had passed the eve- ning before. McConnell studied him with a puz- zled expression as he sat there awk- wardly on one corner of his chair, his round, moonlike face as bland as a baby’s, his eyes concealed behind the heavy convex glasses. Finally the commissioner broke into a laugh. ““T pass,” he said. “It’s up to you, Ramsdell, to explain whether you are a wizard or a crook. The facts in the case will bear out either theory.” “TI don’t know what you mean,” said Ramsdell a trifle uneasily. “All right, then; let’s run over the points. The fire at No. 86 last night broke out, as we have now learned, in an inside room on the third floor, catching from the too close proximity of a gas-jet to a piece of flimsy dra- pery. It spread thence to the story 205 above, and out toward the front of the house ;~but at the time it began, and for some time afterward, it could not possibly have been discerned from the street. “Yet you, over in the library where there was no possible outlook, discov- ered the blaze before even the people in the house were aware of it, and rushed madly out to give the alarm. ‘ Not only that,” continued McCon- nell, “but later you made the surpri- sing discovery that a woman was still in the burning house, and succeeded in effecting her rescue, although every- body else was willing to swear that no living soul remained in the building. Certainly none of the other spectators of the fire dreamed it for an instant.” “Yes,” assented Ramsdell quietly, “those are undoubtedly the facts. Now, what are your deductions? ”’ “ Well »—the commissioner paused to light a fresh cigar—‘ most people would call it magic, and give you credit for all sorts of occult powers. I think that’s about the way the fire depart- ment — from top to bottom — has got you sized up. But over here on Centre Street we're pretty much from Mis- souri. We've seen so many wonder- workers come and go, and most of them, we remember, ended up with a little trip to Sing Sing.” “You think, then, that what I did last night was a set-up job?” “I don’t say so. I merely suggest that it might have been. Your discov- ery of the fire, for instance, could easily have been managed, if it had been prearranged that at a certain defi- nite time some one was to slip into that inside room at the boarding-house, and shove the gas-jet into the drapery.” “True,” assented Ramsdell with a touch of sarcasm; “and I suppose you think it could have been equally pre- arranged that the young lady was to remain quietly in that Gehenna, so that I could spring another coup by rescu- ing her? ” “That might have been an over- sight,” retorted McConnell. ‘“ Perhaps oO cComicbooks CO