Argosy, Vol. 118, No. 4 — page 70: what you’re looking at

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

540 ous over the loss of his job that he had put a bullet into Hollender. On his word of honor he didn’t do it. Somebody must have entered the office and committed the mur- der during the few minutes-that he was away from his desk, visiting the pool-room. As I reflected over this interview, on my way back to my office, I asked myself, wenderingly, what reason my partner could possibly have for believing the fellow’s im- probable story. Now that I had seen and spoken with fhe man, Mcllvaine’s mysteri- ous interest in him perplexed me more than ever. A possible answer to the question came to me the next day in a startling form. IJ was in conference with Marvin—who had not gone back to his window-washing, although I could detect no signs of his hand being | sprained—when Miss Hodgins, our steno- grapher, entered the room to announce a visitor. ““ He’s a Mr. Davidson,” the voung wom- an explained. ‘He savs that vou don’t know him, but that he has some important information to give you concerning the Brixton Building murder case.” ‘Show him right in,” I said, eagerly. The visitor, a middle-aged man of pros- perous appearance, told us that he was in the export and import business and had a suite of offices on the sixth floer of the Brixton Building. ‘“‘ My private office is right next door to the office of that chap who was murdered,” he continued. “ Our windows, you under- stand, are side by side. That is why I am inclined to think that the incident I have come to tell you about may have some bear- ing on the case. ; : ‘“ At half past eleven, last Tuesday morn- ing—the day and-hour of the murder—I was seated at my desk, with my back to the window, when I heard a sound behind me. I turned quickly and was startled to find that a rough-looking fellow in overalls was in the act of rxaising my window-sash and letting himself into my office. ‘“T thought he was going to hold me up, at first, but before I could make any out- cry he had apologized for the intrusion, ex- plaining that he was a window-washer and had come to clean my window. THE ARGOSY. “The man was so excited,” said Mr. Davidson, ‘and his manner so queer, that I*was not entirely satisfied by his explana- tion. I asked him where his pail and other implements were, and he gave me some in- coherent response about having left them down-stairs, and said that he would go cown and get them. Before I could make a move to prevent him, he was hurrying out of the room, by way of the door—and that was the last I saw of him. He did not come back to clean my window, as he had promised. And later I discovered his pail and rags outside on my fire escape, so evi- dently’ he was lying when he said that he had left them down-stairs, and had merely told me that as an excuse for making his getaway. “T didn’t attach a great deal of impor- tance to the incident at the time,” our visi- tor concluded. ‘I was too busy to give much thought to it. But later, when I heard about the murder next door, I began to put two and two together. I went to the police and suggested to them that, inas- much as the fellow had evidently come across the fire-escape from Hollender’s office, there was a possibility that the win- cdow-washer was the murderer, and that the man they had arrested for the crime was really innocent. They laughed at me, and seemed to resent my butting in, so I thought I would come to you gentlemen and tell vou my story. I saw in the newspaper this morning that you had been retained by that unfortunate clerk as his counsel, . and I said to myself that you would be mighty glad to hear about my experience.” There followed a long pause. It was broken by McIlvaine, whose face had turn- ed rather pale during this recital, I thought. ‘What you have told us is indeed very interesting, Mr. Davidson,” my partner said. “ Your testimony ought to prove ex- ceedingly helpful to our client, when re- peated on the witness-stand.” Then, after a brief hesitation: Could you give us a de- scription of this mysterious window-washer —tell us what he lcoked like?” Our visitor nodded. : ‘“ His face was very dark,” he responded. “He looked to me like a foreigner—an Italian, I believe. And he was about your mM (Cl QO) NOOLK