The Darrow Enigma by Melvin L. Severy (best fiction novels of all time TXT) 📖

explanation was now to be made and it

is no wonder that the excitement was intense.

 

I omit all uninteresting formalities.

 

Q. Have you ever seen me before to-day?

 

A. Not to my knowledge.

 

Q. Have you any reason to believe I have ever seen you before to-day?

 

A. None whatever - er - that is - unless on the night of the murder.

 

Q. Were you acquainted with John Darrow?

 

A. Yes.

 

Q. How long have you known him?

 

A. About six months - perhaps seven.

 

Q. What were your relations?

 

A. I don’t understand. - We had gambled together.

 

Q. Where?

 

A. In this city - Decatur Street. =20

 

Q. What motive led you to kill him?

 

A. He cheated me at cards, and I swore to be even with him.

 

Q. Had you any other reason?

 

A. I owed him twelve hundred and thirty-five dollars which I borrowed

of him hoping my luck would change. He won it all back from me by

false play, and when I could not meet it he pressed me over hard.

 

Q. You say this occurred on Decatur Street. What was the date?

 

A. I do not remember.

 

Q. What month was it?

 

A. It was in March. Early in March.

 

Q. You are sure it was in March?

 

A. Yes.

 

Q. Should you say it was between the 1st and 15th of March?

 

A. Yes. I am positive it was before the 15th of March.

 

Q. Have you long known that M. Godin was at work upon this case?

 

A. No.

 

Q. When did you first become aware of it?

 

A. Not until my arrest.

 

Q. When did you first see M. Godin?

 

A. When I was arrested.

 

Q. Did he ever call at your rooms?

 

A. Never - not to my knowledge - I never saw him till the day of my

arrest.

 

Q. With what weapon did you kill Mr. Darrow?

 

A. I made use of a specially constructed hypodermic syringe.

 

Half-smothered exclamations of surprise were heard from every part

of the room. Even the Judge gave a start at this astounding bit of

testimony. Every person present knew perfectly well that no human

being could have entered or left the Darrow parlour without certain

discovery, yet here was a man, apparently in his right mind, who

soberly asserted that he had used a hypodermic syringe. Maitland

and Godin alone seemed cool and collected. Throughout all Latour’s

testimony, M. Godin watched the witness with a burning concentration.

It seemed as if the great detective meant to bore through Latour’s

gaze down to the most secret depths of his soul. Not for an instant

did he take his eyes from Latour. I said to myself at the time that

this power of concentration explained, in a great measure, this

detective’s remarkable success. Nothing was permitted to escape

him, and little movements which another man would doubtless never

notice, had, for M. Godin, I felt sure, a world of suggestive

significance.

 

Maitland’s calm demeanour, so resourceful in its serenity, caused

all eyes to turn at length to him as if for explanation. He

continued with slow deliberation.

 

Q. In what particulars was this hypodermic syringe of special

construction?

 

M. Latour seemed nervous and ill at ease. He shifted from side to

side as if M. Godin’s glance had pierced him like a rapier, and he

were trying vainly to wriggle off of it. He seemed unable to

disengage himself and at length replied in a wearied and spiritless

tone:

 

A. In two particulars only. In the first place, it was very small,

having a capacity of but five or six drops, and, in the second place,

it was provided with an internal spring which, when released, worked

the plunger and ejected the contents with extreme rapidity.

 

Q. What operated this spring?

 

A. Around the needle-like point of the syringe, less than a quarter

of an inch from its end, was a tiny, annular bit of metal. This

little metallic collar was forced upward by the pressure of the flesh

as the sharp point entered it, and this movement released the spring

and instantly and forcibly ejected the contents of the cylinder.

 

Q. Did you use a poison in this syringe?=20

 

A. Yes, sir.

 

Q. What did you use?

 

M. LATOUR hesitated and shifted helplessly about as if he dreaded to

go farther into these particulars, and fondly hoped someone might

come to his rescue. His gaze seemed to shift about the room without

in the least being able to disentangle itself from that of M. Godin.

He remained silent and the question was repeated.

 

Q. What did you use?

 

Again the witness hesitated while everyone, save only Maitland and

Godin, leaned eagerly forward to catch his reply. At length it

came in a voice scarcely above a whisper.

 

A. Anhydrous hydrocyanic acid.

 

A long-drawn “Hum!” escaped from Maitland, while M. Godin gave not

the slightest indication of surprise. It was quite evident to us

all that the astute Frenchman had acquired complete control of the

case before he had arrested the assassin. At this juncture the Court

said, addressing Maitland:

 

“This substance is extremely poisonous, I take it.”

 

“Your Honour,” Maitland replied, “it is the most fatal of all poisons

known to chemists. It is also called cyanhydric, and, more commonly,

prussic acid. An insignificant amount, when inhaled or brought into

contact with the skin, causes immediate death. If a drop be placed

upon the end of a glass rod and brought toward the nose of a live

rabbit he will be dead before it reaches him.”

 

A profound silence - the death-like quiet which accompanies an almost

breaking tension - reigned in the courtroom as Maitland turned again

to Latour.

 

Q. I understand you to say you used anhydrous hydrocyanic or

cyanhydric acid.

 

A. Yes, sir.

 

Q. Do you sufficiently understand chemistry to use these terms with

accuracy? Might you not have used potassium cyanide or prussiate

of potash?

 

A. I am a tolerably good chemist, and have spoken understandingly.

Potassium cyanide, KCN, is a white, crystalline compound, and could

hardly be used in a hypodermic syringe save in solution, in which

condition it would not have been sufficiently poisonous to have

served my purpose.

 

At this reply many of the audience exchanged approving glances.

They believed M. Latour had shown himself quite a match for Maitland

in not falling easily into what they regarded as a neat little trap

which had been set to prove his lack of chemical knowledge. They

attributed Maitland’s failure to further interrogate Latour upon

his understanding of chemistry as evidence that he had met an equal.

To be sure, they were not quite clear in their own minds why Latour’s

counsel should be at such pains to carefully examine a man who had

already confessed, but they believed they knew when a lawyer had met

his match, and felt sure that this was one such instance. Clinton

Browne, who sat in one of the front seats, seemed to find a deal

more to amuse him in this incident than was apparent to me. Some

men have such=20a wonderful sense of humour!

 

Maitland continued:

 

Q. When Mr. Darrow was murdered he sat in the centre of his parlour,

surrounded by his daughter and invited guests. Will you tell the

Court how you entered and left this room without detection?

 

Again the witness hesitated and looked irresolutely, almost

tremblingly, about him, but seemed finally to steady himself, as it

were, upon Godin’s glance. It’s a strange thing how the directness

and intense earnestness of a strong man will pull the vacillation

of a weak one into line with it, even as great ships draw lesser

ones into their wakes. The excited audience hung breathlessly upon

Latour’s utterance. At last they were to know how this miracle of

crime had been performed. Every auditor leaned forward in his seat,

and those who were a trifle dull of hearing placed their hands to

their ears, fearful lest some syllable of the riddle’s solution

should escape them. M. Latour remained dumb. The Judge regarded

him sternly and said:

 

“Answer the question. How did you enter the Darrow parlour?”

 

A. I - I did - I did not enter it.

 

Again a half-suppressed exclamation of surprise traversed the room.

 

Q. If you did not enter the room how did you plunge the hypodermic

syringe into your victim’s neck?

 

It seemed for a moment as if the witness would utterly collapse,

but he pulled himself together, as with a mighty effort, and fairly

took our breath away with his astounding answer:

 

A. I - I did not strike Mr. Darrow with the syringe.

 

The audience literally gasped in open-mouthed amazement, while the

Court turned fiercely upon Latour and said:

 

“What do you mean by first telling us you killed Mr. Darrow by

injecting poison into his circulation from a specially prepared

hypodermic syringe, and then telling us that you did not strike him

with this syringe. What do you mean, sir? Answer me!”

 

A sudden change came over M. Latour. All his timidity seemed to

vanish in a moment, as he drew himself up to his full height and

faced the Judge. It seemed to me as if till now he had cherished

a hope that he might not be forced to give the details of his awful

crime, but that he had at last concluded he would be obliged to

disclose all the particulars, and had decided to manfully face the

issue.

 

Every eye was fixed upon him, and every ear strained to its utmost

as he turned slowly toward the Judge and said with a calm dignity

which surprised

us all:

 

A. Your Honour is in error. I said that I made use of a specially

constructed hypodermic syringe. I have not said that I struck Mr.

Darrow with it. There is, therefore, nothing contradictory in my

statements.

 

Again the prisoner had scored, and again the audience exchanged

approving glances which plainly said: “He’s clever enough for them

all!”

 

Then the Court continued the examination.

 

Q. Were you upon the Darrow estate when Mr. Darrow met his death?

 

A. Yes, your Honour.

 

Q. Where?

 

A. Just outside the eastern parlour-window, your Honour.

 

Q. Did you strike the blow which caused Mr. Darrow’s death?

 

A. No, your Honour. =20

 

Q. What! Have you not said you are responsible for his murder?

 

A. Yes, your Honour.

 

Q. Ah, I see! You had some other person for an accomplice?

 

A. No, your Honour.

 

Q. Look here, sir! Do you propose to tell us anything of your

own accord, or must we drag it out of you piecemeal?

 

A. No power can make me speak if I do not elect to, and I only elect

to answer questions. Commission for contempt will hardly discipline

a man in my position, and may lead me to hold my peace entirely.

 

The Court turned away with an expression of disgust and engaged

Jenkins and Maitland in a whispered conversation. The prisoner had

again scored. There is enough of the bully in many judges to cause

the public to secretly rejoice when they are worsted. It was plain

to be seen that the audience was pleased with Latour’s defiance.

 

Maitland now resumed the examination with his accustomed ease. One

would have thought he was addressing a church sociable, - if he

judged by his manner.

 

Q. You