“THE TURN OF THE TIDE.”

Star (Christchurch), Issue 17219, 10 December 1923, Page 10

“THE TURN OF THE TIDE.”

OUR SERIAL.

By FRED M. WHITE. < HAPTEIi XlX.—Continued. “ You have oofoio at the right moment,” he said. *• l have just finished by analysis in connection with the death of that unfortunate man William Avory. It was just as L told you. The poor fellow was dead before he was placed in the water, as I guessed at the time. You remember 1 what I told you at the inquest, Mr I .Ellis. A little knowledge is a danger- | ous thing. It is no difficult matter to place a body in water without any marks of violence upon it, and with no ! Injury to the internal organs, so as /to delude everybody into the idea that • loath was duo to drowning. Hut ' the people responsible for that did not. j know quite enough. They didn’t know, j for instance, that a drowned person has 1 water in the lungs, and that there . would be no moisture in the lungs of ! a corpse placed in the water that i*. ] a dead body placed in the water after j decease. Hut of course the police sur- | geon knew that, and very wisely said j nothing about it. AY hen we come to | the adjourned inquest lie will speak I candidly enough, because by that time | I hope that our friend. Inspector Lock. will have laid the miscreant by the | heels. You can see now. Air Ellis, ! why we entered into that little con- [ spiracy with the connivance of the J coroner. 1 ’

: ‘Oh. I quite appreciate that, proj t'essor.” Ellis said. I don't want I to be unduly inquisitive, but perhaps you can tell me how my unfortunate friend was killed.'

“ Ah, that I am in a position to do now beyond the shadow of a doubt. I have worked it all out. and T don’t think there can possibly he a flaw ill my diagnosis. You remember me calling your attention to certain marks like scalds or burns on one of the dead man’s hands. It was a mere nothing, and would have escaped the attention of the average man. though to me it was eloquent enough. Avory was killed by an electric shock. " •What, do you mean deliberately?” Ellis asked. “ l "have not the slightest doubt of it,” the professor went on. “He must have been deliberately lured into some place, a workshop perhaps, where they use « deal of power. My analysis points to at least two thousand volts. Avory was induced, no doubt, to touch a live wire, which means that he died instantly. But. nothing to notice except that little burn on one hand. We must find out now where that workshop is.'’ Lock allowed his gaze to wander round the room. Then he turned round and smiled at the speaker. “This is where I come in.” he murmured. “ Because I can tell you exactly where this vile thing was done.’’ CHAPTER XX. THE MAJOR SPEAKS. Saturday was usually a day that did not count for much in Great Bower Street, and indeed Croot had never been in the habit of attending th© office at all on Saturdays. As a matter lof rtkt. the office closed at twelve I o'clock, and as likely as not Gilmour had gone off on the Friday evening on one of those mysterious week-end excursions ot' his which, he known it. was occupying a of Jack Ellis’s attention. The latter new. that Gilmour had departed for the country early on thh Saturday in question, and shortly after midday he put in an appearance in the hall of the block of flats called Kverard Mansions, and was asking questions of the caretaker. He was going down to Cray to play golf himself by a train that would get him down re the Club House in time for lunch, where he hoped to be joined by Vera, together with Pat Langley and Geoffrey Rust. He had beeq ,denied th© entree of the Manor House, but nothing had been said as to his meeting Vera elsewhere, and as Croot was still confined to the house, Ellis was looking forward to what ought to prove a pleasant afternoon. True, there was delicate business to he discussed. but that ought not to detract from the pleasure of the day. Ellis walked into the hall of the Mansions breezily enough, and inquired of the hall porter as to Gilmour’s movements. He was dressed in the smartest of golfing kits, and hoped to pass himself off as a friend of Gilinoijr's without exciting suspicion.

‘•No, sir. Air Gilmour is not here.' 1 the porter replied in answer to Ellis’s brief question. I think he has gone i off playing golf. He went away in a taxi, and told me that he shouldn't he hack before Alonday morning. •* Now, that’s rather annoying.” Ellis said. “ I had hoped to catch him before he started. The fact is. I have a bit of property of his. something he lost which 1 picked up ” “Lt don’t appen to ho a latch-key, sir, | suppose?” the porter asked. “Because Air Gilmour lost one.’ 1 This was precisely what Ellis hoped to hear. It occurred to him that if Gilmour had come home late one evening he would he compelled either to | knock up his house keeper or invoke the assistance of the porter, who. in i well-arranged block of flats, is usu--1 ally prepared for such an emergency. Well, as a matter of fact it is.” ihe smiled. “Do you know when Atr I Gilmour lost his key?” | A good deal depended upon the ani swer. and Ellis awaited it with some I anxiety which he was at some pains i ••Oh, of course I can tell you that. sir." 1 the porter replied. It was Wednesday night. 'E came back very late, and asked me if I could help him. E didn’t want to wake up ’is landlady. so > asked, me for a spare key. ! I keep those locked up. and 1 lend j them to the tenants, of course taking ! care to get ’em back in the morning. We has to he very particular about i that, because it leads to trouble some- | times If vou have that key. sir. I shall he very glad to have it back

i again. 11 Ellis hesitated tor a moment. H© : did not in the least want to part with i the key. and, on the other hand, he • could not obtain the desired in formai tion without approaching the porter on I the subject. Some time or another it ! might he necessary to use the latch-key j with a view to inspecting the interior | ot Gilmour’s flat. hut. if Gilmour was j to be informed that some triend ot his j had found the missing property, it i would have to he given up again, ami ; Ellis was not in the least anxious to , have, his name connected with the mat- ) ter. At. any rate, his morning had not j been wasted, because he had aseertained beyond a doubt that Gilmour I hud been away from home till very late ion (he night ot th© last raid on Ihe Thames, and this in itself was of great •value. (To he Continued.)