IGHT not be a fact.
My first thought, therefore, was to get the local police on the job
as quickly as possible and still keep in touch with the incident
myself."

"You may ask why I didn't telephone the Police Department, instead
of running into the street. When I looked at my watch I saw that it
was two o'clock, and I knew from observation that a patrolman was
likely to be within a block or two of the house at that hour. On the
other hand, if I telephoned, it might be twenty minutes before your
men arrived, and you know, Morgan, that a lot can happen in twenty
minutes."

"After your man had telephoned for help he was disinclined to have
me butt into the matter any further. Yet, you can see how imperative
it was for me to be on the job as well as your men. The first
thought, and the most logical excuse, which came to my mind, was to
tell the patrolman that the tenant of the flat was a personal friend
of mine. This made it seem perfectly natural for me to follow up his
interests in the matter. As to keeping track of your movements, it
was only natural that I would want to keep in touch with your
progress in the case as much as possible."

"One question, Marsh," said Morgan. "How in thunder could you see my
partner's footsteps, as you said you did, in your apartment?"

Marsh laughed.

"Through a very simple precaution that I have taken ever since I
moved in here--a little talcum powder sprinkled over the dining room
floor. Now, Morgan, I have laid my cards on the table. You can see
the close connection that probably exists between the Atwood
counterfeiting case and whatever took place in the flat over us. If
you have found out anything, outside of what you supposed to be my
connection with the case, I would like to have the information.

"So that you can see how close the connection between the two cases
really is, I will tell you that after your men left Tuesday morning,
I did a little further investigating on my own account, and found
what I believed to be a definite clue to the Atwoods' connection
with the trouble."

"What was that?" asked Morgan.

"A SMALL SMEAR OF BLOOD ON THE DOORKNOB OF THE ATWOOD APARTMENT!"

The fact that Marsh, who had been surrounded by such suspicious
circumstances that Morgan had been enabled to build up one of his
quickest cases, had now turned out to be an operative of the Federal
Government, was one of the most astounding things with which Morgan
had ever met. It was obvious t