CHAPTER II.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXIX, Issue 8615, 3 August 1895, Page 4

CHAPTER 11.

If there had been no crime, at

least something extraordinary had taken place at the chateau ; the impassible justice might have been convinced of it, as soon as he had stepped into the vestibule. The glass door leading to the garden was wide open, and three of the panes were shattered into a thousand pieces. The carpeting of waxed canvas between the door had been torn up, and on the white marble slabs large drops of blood were visible. At the foot of the staircase was a stain larger than the rest, arid upon the lowest step a splash hideous to behold. Unfitted for such spectacles, or for the mission he had now to perform, M. Courlois became faint. Luckily, he borrowed from the idea of his official importance, an energy foreign to his character. The more difficult the preliminary examination of this affair seemed, the more determined he was to carry it on with dignity. ' Conduct us to the place where you saw the bod}',' said he to Bertaud. But papa Plantat intervened. 'It would be wiser, I think,' he objected, ' and more methodical, to begin by going through the house.' ' Perhaps — yes — true, that's my own view,' said the mayor, grasping at the other's counsel, as a drowning man dinars to a plank. And he made all retire excepting the brigadier and the valet de chambre, the latter remaining to serve as guide. 'Gendarmes,' cried he to the men guarding the gate, ' see to it that no one goes out ; prevent anybody from entering the house, and above all, let no one go into the garden.' Then they ascended the staircase. Drops of blood were sprinkled all along the stairs. There was also blood, on the baluster, and M. Courlois perceived, with horror, that his hands were stained. When they had reached the first landing stage, the mayor said to the valet de cbambre : ' Teil me, my friend, did your master and mistress occupy the same chamber?' ' Yes, sir.' 'As he spoke, the valet de chambre

staggered back terrified, and pointed to a door, the upper panel of which betrayed the imprint; of a bloody hand. Drops of perspiration overspread the poor mayor's forehead ; he too was terrified, and could hardly keep on his feet. Alas, authority brings with it teirible obligations ! The brigadier, an old soldier of the Crimea, visibly moved, hesitated. M. PJantat alone, as tranquil as if he were in his garden, retained his coolness, and looked around upon the others. 1 We must decide,' said he. He entered the room ; the rest followed.

There was nothing unusual in the apartment ; it was a boudoir hung in blue satin, furnished with a couch and four arm-chairs, covered also with blue satin. One of the chairs was overturned.

They passed on to the bedchamber.

A frightful disorder appeared in this room. There was not an article of mrniture,not an ornament, which did not betray that a terrible, enraged and merciless struggle had taken place between the assassins and their victims. In the middle of the chamber a table was overturned, and all about it was scattered lumps of sugar, vermilion cups, and pieces of porcelain. ' Ah !' said the valet de chambre, ' Monsieur and Madame were taking tea when the wretches came in !' The mantel ornaments had been thrown upon the floor ; the clock, in falling, had stopped at twenty minutes past three. Near the clock were the lamps ; the globes were in pieces, the oil had been spilled. The canopy of the bed had been torn down, and covered the bed. Some one must have clutched desperately at the draperies. All the furniture was overturned. The coverings of the chairs had been hacked by strokes of ti:e knife, and in pl?ces the stuffing protruded. The secretary had been broken open ; the writing slide, dislocated, hung by its hinges ; the drawers were open and empty, and everywhere, blood — blood upon the carpet, the furniture, the curtains — tains — above all, upon the bed curtains. 'Poor wretches !' stammered the mayor. ' ni hey were murdered here.' Everyone for a moment was appalled. But meanwhile, the justice of the peace devoted himself to a minute scrutiny, taking notes upon his tablets, and looking into every corner. When he had finished :

' Come,' said he, ' let us go into the other rooms.'

Everywhere there was the same disorder. A band of furious maniacs, or criminals seized with a frenzy, had ceitainly passed the night in the house. count's librar}', especially, had. been turned topsy-turvy. The assassins had not taken trouble to force the locks; they had gone to work with a hatchet. Surely they weie confident of not been over heard; for they must have struck tremendous blows to make the massive oaken bureau fly into pieces. Neither parlor nor smoking-room Lad been respected. Couches, chairs, canopies, were cut and torn as if they had been lunged at with bwoids. Two spare charabeis for guests were all in confusion. They then ascended to the second stoiy.

There, in the iiisl 100111 they penetiated they found, besides a trunk which had been a^auked, but which ■wd*, not yet opened, a hatchet tor splitting wood, which the valet dechambre recognized as belonging to the house.

'Do you understand now? ' taid the mayor to M. Plantat. 'Theassassins weie in force, that's clear. The murder accomplished, they g cattered through the chateau, seek-

ing everywhere the money they knew they would find here. One of them was engaged in breaking open this trunk, when the others, below, found the money ; they called him ; he hastened down, and thinking all further search useless, he left the hatchet here.' ' I see it,' said the brigadier, 'just as if I had been here.' The ground floor, which they next visited, had been respected. Only, after the crime had been committed, and the money secured, the murderers had felt the necessity of rofreshing themselves. They found the remains of their supper in the dining-room. They had eaten up all the cold meats left in the cupboard. On the table, beside eight emply bottles of wine and liqueurs, were ranged five glasses. 'There were five of them,' said the mayor. By force of will, M. Courtois had recovered his self-possession. ' Before going to view the bodies,' said he, ' I will send word to the procureur of Corbeil. In an hour, we will have a judge of instruction, who will finish our painful task.! A gemdarme was instructed to harness the count's buggy, and to hasten to the procureur. Then the mayor and the justice, followed by the brigadier, the valet de chombre and the two Bertauds, took their way towards the river. The park of Valfeuillu was very wide from right to left. From the house to the Seine it was almost two hundred steps. Before the house was a grassy lawn, interspersed with flower beds. Two paths led across the lawn to the river bank. . But the murderers had not followed the paths. Making a short cut, they had gone straight across the lawn. Their traces were perfectly visible. The grass was tramped and stamped down as if a heavy load had been dragged over it. In the midst of the lawn they perceived something red ; M. Plantat went and picked it up. It was a a slipper, which the valet de chambre recognized as the count's. Further on, they found a white silk handkerchief, which the valet declared he had often seen around the count's neck. This handkerchief was stained with blood.

At last they arrived at the river

bank, under the wiilows from which Philippe had intended to cut off a branch ; there they saw the body. The sand at this place was much indented by feet seeking a firm support. Every thing indicated that here had been the supreme struggle. M Courtois understood all the importance of these traces. ' Let no one advance,' said he, and, followed by the justice of the peace, he approached the corpse. Although the face could not be distinguished, both recognised the countess, Both had seen her in this gray robe, adorned with blue trimmings. Now, how came she here ?

The mayor thought that having succeeded in escaping from the hands of her murderers, she had fled wildly. They had pursued her, had caught up with her there, and she had fallen to rise no more. This version explained the taces of the struggle. It must have been the count's body that they had dragged across the lawn.

M. Courtois talked excitedly, trying to impose his ideas on the justice. Hut M. Plantat hardly listened ; you might have thought him a hundred leagues from Valfeuillu ; he only responded by monosyllables — yes, no, perhaps. And the worthy mayor gave himself grear pains ; he went and came, measured steps, minutely scrutinized the ground. There was not at this place more than a foot of water. A mud bank, upon which grew some dumps of flags and some water lilies, descended by a gentle decline from the bank to the middle of the river. The water was very clear, and there was no current ; the slippery and slimy mire could be distinctly seen. M. Courtois had gone thus far in his investigations, when he was struck by a sudden idea. ' Bertand," said he, ' come here.' The old poacher obeyed. 'You say that you saw the body from your boat ?' ' Yes, Monsieur Mayor.' ( Where is your boat ?' • There, hauied up to that field.' • Well, lead us to it. 1

I It was clear to all that this order had a great effect upon the man. He trembled and turned pale under his rough skin, tanned as it was by sun and storm. He was even seen to cast a menacing look towards his son. ' Let us go,' said he at lastThey were returning to the house when the valet proposed to pass over the ditcii. ' That will be the quickest way,' said he, ' I will go for a ladder -which we will put across.'

He went off, and quickly re-ap-peared with his improvised foot bridge. But at the moment he was adjusting it, the mayor cried out to him, < Stop !' The imprints left by the Bertauds on both sides of the ditch had just caught his eye. 'What is this,' said he; 'evidently someone has crossed here, and not long ago ; for the traces of the steps are quite fresh.'

After an examination of some minutes he ordered that the ladder should be placed further ofT. When they had i cached the boat, he said to Joan, 'Is this the boat with which you went to take up your nets this morning ?' « Y"eb.' •Then.' resumed M. Courtois, 'what implements did you use? your cast net is perfectly dry ; this boat-hook and these oars have not been wet for twenty-four hours.'

The distress of the father and son became moie and more evident.

' Do yon persist m what you say, Bertaud ?' said the mayor. ' Certainly.' * And you, Philippe ?' 'Monmwr,' stammered the^oung

man, ' we have told the truth.' ' Keally !' said M. Courtois, in an ironical tone, 'Then you will explain to the proper authorities how it was that you could see anything from a boat which you had not entered. It will be proved to you, also, that the body is in a position where it is impossible to see it from the middle of the river. Then you will still have to tell what these footprints on the grass are, which go from your boat to the place where the ditch has been crossed several times and by several persons.' The two Bertauds hung their heads. 1 Brigadier,' ordered the mayor, ' arrest these two men in the name of the law, and prevent all communication between them.' Philippe seemed to be ill. As for old Jean, he contented himself with slfrugging his shoulders and saying to his son, « Well, yon would have it so, wouldn't you ?' While the brigadier led the two poachers away, and shut them up separately, and under the guard of his men, the justice and the mayor returned to the park. ' With all this,' muttered M. Courtois, 'no traces of the count.' They proceeded to take up the body of the countess. The mayor sent for two planks, which with a thousand precautions they placed on the ground, being able thus to move the countess without effacing the imprints necessary for the legal examination. Alas ! it was indeed she who had been the beautiful, the charming Countess de Tremorel ! Here were her Btniling face, her lovely speaking eyes, her fine, sensitive mouth. There remained nothing of her former self. The face was unrecognisable, so soiled and wounded was it. Her clothes were in tatters. Surely a furious frenzy had moved the monsters who had slain the poor lady ! She had received more than twenty knife wounds, and must have been struck with a stick, or rather with a hammer ; she had been dragged by her feet and by her hair ! In her left hand she grasped a strip of common cloth, torn, doubtless from the clothes of one of the assassins. The mayor, in viewing the spectacle, felt his legs fail him, and supported himself on the arm of the impassible Plantat. ' Let us carry her to the house,' said the justice, ' and then we. will search for the count.' The valet and brigadier (who had now returned) called on the domestics for assistance. The women rushed into the garden. There was then a terrible concert of cries, lamentations,. and imprecations. • The wretches ! So noble a mistress ! So good a lady !' M. and Madame de Tremorel, one could see, were adored by their people. The countess had just been laid upon the billiard table, on the ground floor, when the judge of instruction arid a physician were announced. •At last !' sighed the worthy mayor; and in a lower tone he added, ' the finest medals have their reverse.' For the first time in his Hie, he seriously cursed his ambition, and regretted being the most important personage in Orcival.