Rensselaer Journal, Volume 10, Number 46, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 25 April 1901 — the IVORY OUEEN [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

the IVORY OUEEN

A Detective Story Of a Chicago Suburb. Tbe Murder at The Grange and How Its Mystery Wit Solved by Darrent. the American Lecoq.

BY NORMAN HURST.

(continued. J “But, Darrent, the papers say that you are”— “The American Lecoq, precisely, but I am very much afraid that their knowledge of M. Lecoq has only been derived from French sensational novels, according to which he never erred, was absolutely infallible. I think M. Lecoq himself would tell a very different story. We have followed one set of circumstances closely and —well, with the result that it brands Astray Marsden as the murderer. Very well; now we’ll

forget all about that and go on an entirely different track. What is the mystery connected with the set of Indian chessmen ? Let ns look at this question a little. "tij way nave tney been stolen, and by whom ? * “(2) If Astray murdered old Marsden to obtain any secret connected with the chessmen, why did he leave them behind? “(8) If Astray murdered old Marsden and only discovered afterward the hidden value of the chessmen, where is the motive of the murder ?

“(4) If Astray did not commit the murder, who did ? “Once find the secret of the chessmen, and you’ll find the murderer. Now, what have we got as our clew—the one piece here, a pawn, missing from the set (there cannot be many sets like this one, Thompson), and a chip from another piece ? Still, we cannot go into everybody’s house and examine curiosities and bric-a-brac to discover if they have the set we are in search of. Now, clew the second is more valuable, and that is the knife. You see it is of an ordinary Norwegian pattern, with a spring blade, but the letter ‘A’ is branded into the yellow wood of the handle. Find to whom it belongs—if ‘A’ means Astray, if young Marsden ever owned this knife—and we shall be nearer the hand that struck the blow. Now, then, Thompson, whe do vou think committed the murder?” “Well, I don’t know, sir. The way yon put it, it might be any one. ” “So it might, ” Darrent replied* “It might be any one, and perhaps we haven’t got within a thousand miles of the right one yet. Still, I’ve done all I can till I get news from Chicago, and I’m going for a skate on the river. I’m not a sleutlihound longing for blood, but I’ve been longing to get on that stretch of ice ever since I’ve been in Norcombe. ” CHAPTER IV. GETTING CLOSER. Herbert Darrent spoke the truth when he said that he did not belong to the sleuthhound type of detectives. He was too thoroughly American to take a morbid delight in mere man hunting, his profession notwithstanding, but he possessed sufficient sound common sense to make use of some especially acute and discerning faculties that nature had endowed him with and was generally admitted to be one of the very smartest young detectives that Chicago had ever been proud to possess. If there seemed absolutely no clew, the cry was, “Send Darrent,” and if

Darrent gave it up it was hopeless. Although the last man in the world to neglect duty for pleasure, he took a keen delight in all sports and pastimes and could handle a baseball bat or cue and pull an oar with the best. He had mentally decided that the very first step in this investigation must be to trace Astray Marsden, and as no further progress could be made until he got his reply from headquarters he decided to take an hour’s spin upon the river, an hour on that perfect stretch of ice, and then he would be back in time to drive over and catch the express from Barnstaple to Chicago if required there. It was simply glorious to glide along at racing speed over miles of smooth black ice, hut rather annoying to Darreut, who count ad himself a good skater, to find that he could never-overtake a man who kept steadily on some 40 yards in front of him, sometimes letting him decrease the distance that separated them to only a few feet and then suddenly sweeping a quarter of a mile ahead. Darrent felt decidedly piqued as for the fourth time the stranger spurted double his pace and easily left him behind, but at last, apparently contented with the exhibition he had given of his prowess, the man curved round and came bearing down upon him. “Bah Jove!” he ejaculated as he maneuvered to Darrent’s side by a series of complicated twists and curves. “Bah Jove, stranger! You skate a bit, eh?”

Darrent acknowledged the brusque compliment by a shake of the head and replied: “I tried my level best, but I could not get near you. ” “Well, I fawncy I’m fast; spent a few years on the other side of the big pond. ’ ’ “I beg your pardon?” “In England.” “Oh!” “And in Canada, the country that has such great skating; fawncy good ice for months, y’know.” “Oh, yes!” Darrent gazed with some curiosity at his companion as side by side they sped along toward Norcombe. “It’s a great country, sir—England.” “Yes; so I have always understood from Englishmen. ’ ’ “The finest on earth, hah Jove!” “You seem much imuressed bv it.” ‘Why, certainly. 1 fawncy I am rather proud to be a citizen of one of the big cities of England. Slick bit of ice this, eh?”

“Very good." The next remark from the stranger surprised and nettled Current. . “Fawncy you’re a ’tec from Chicago, eh ? On the scent; sort of bloodhound. ’ ’ “I beg your pardon ?” “You needn’t. I saw you pottering round The Grange this morning, examining footpaths and finger marks. I fawncy I am a bit clevah —just a bit. Spotted your man yet?” “Eh?" “The man who helped old Marsden to collect bis chips and hand ’em in.” “Oh, no! Not yet. ’’ “Now, I ra4her fawncied you’d lay hold of him at once.’’ “Indeed!” “Touching young Marsden, eh? What price that?” “I’m afraid I don’t exactly follow vou. ’ ’ “No? Well, I fawncy not. I’m a bit clevah. sir, I am,” and the Englishman tapped the side of his nose with a long

forefinger. “Find if young Marsden’s returned. Ah, not that I’m oversorry old Marsden’s pegged it. Of course I didn’t want him murdered, but I fawncy I might stand to be a bit better off in a week or two. ’ ’ “How so?” “Really, now, don’t you see, he never recognized me, but I’m a cousin, sir, and I fawncy I’ll shake things up a bit presently. There are one or two others m this neighborhood, sir, and you may be sure we shall contest the will.” “That is, if it’s not satisfactory to your ideas, I presume?” “Precisely. What’s the law, now, if that old miser, Marsden, has left all his dust to the youngster and it’s proved that the youngster murdered him? What’s the law?” “Don’t you think, Mr.”— “Silas Gosnell, sir—Silas Gosnell. ” 1 - {ID BE OONTIimKD.]

Darrent took a cigarette from his case.

"Silas Gosnell, sir—Silas Gosnell."