had been behind us."

"Did you see the murderer running towards the end of the right wing?"

"Yes, as clearly as I saw them afterwards carrying the keeper's body."

"What became of the murderer?--You were in the courtyard and could
easily have seen.

"I saw nothing of him, Monsieur President. It became quite dark just
then."

"Then Monsieur Rouletabille," said the President, "must explain how the
murderer made his escape."

Rouletabille continued:

"It was impossible for the murderer to escape by the way he had entered
the court without our seeing him; or if we couldn't see him we must
certainly have felt him, since the court is a very narrow one enclosed
in high iron railings."

"Then if the man was hemmed in that narrow square, how is it you did not
find him?--I have been asking you that for the last half hour."

"Monsieur President," replied Rouletabille, "I cannot answer that
question before half-past six!"

By this time the people in the court-room were beginning to believe in
this new witness. They were amused by his melodramatic action in thus
fixing the hour; but they seemed to have confidence in the outcome. As
for the President, it looked as if he also had made up his mind to
take the young man in the same way. He had certainly been impressed by
Rouletabille's explanation of Madame Mathieu's part.

"Well, Monsieur Rouletabille," he said, "as you say; but don't let us
see any more of you before half-past six."

Rouletabille bowed to the President, and made his way to the door of the
witnesses' room.

I quietly made my way through the crowd and left the court almost at the
same time as Rouletabille. He greeted me heartily, and looked happy.

"I'll not ask you, my dear fellow," I said, smiling, "what you've been
doing in America; because I've no doubt you'll say you can't tell me
until after half-past six."

"No, my dear Sainclair, I'll tell you right now why I went to America. I
went in search of the name of the other half of the murderer!"

"The name of the other half?"

"Exactly. When we last left the Glandier I knew there were two halves to
the murderer and the name of only one of them. I went to America for the
name of the other half."

I was too puzzled to answer. Just then we entered the witnesses' room,
and Rouletabille was immediately surrounded. He showed himself very
friendly to all except Arthur Rance to whom he exhibited a marked
coldness of manner. Frederic Larsan came in als