e air
as he said. "Once--for about an hour. That was when I found out that
you were partly German. I got over it, though."

"So did I," declared Nichols. "I got over the German part in no time. I
enlisted!"

"That's a good answer! The best one I know!"

Delaney turned to his chief. He drew in his legs. "There's a question
I'd like to ask," he said.

"What is it?"

"That magpie?"

Drew eyed Loris. "It's her bird now," he said. "She may not want it
dragged back here again. I shouldn't think she would."

"I don't!" exclaimed Loris. "I wish that you would explain how you
followed the clew, though. It talks so seldom, and then when it does
talk it says such nonsense it's a perfect enigma."

"That bird," said Drew, "was the fine turning point of the case. Before
it was brought into the office, downtown, I had no clew to start from.
There was no indication to show from whence the blow had fallen. Your
father was slain for a motive. He was talking to Morphy when he died.
Cuthbert had connected the two men."

"Through the two booths?" asked Loris.

"Yes. Through the booths at Grand Central. Their conversation was
probably a brief one. Morphy undoubtedly gloated a minute or two, then
told Mr. Stockbridge that his time had come on this earth. Naturally
Mr. Stockbridge asked who was talking. Morphy answered by stating who
he was, and also that he was at Sing Sing. Mr. Stockbridge repeated
this statement aloud. He probably said, 'What, Sing Sing?' or 'Ah,
Ossining!' or words to that effect. The bird heard it and remembered it."

"How strange!" exclaimed Nichols.

"Not at all," said Drew, leaning forward. "It was just like a magpie to
pick out the one salient part of a conversation and repeat it. The
couplet 'Sing Sing' was one it had never heard. It is so striking to
even a bird. It probably came with such emphasis, there was no
forgetting it!"

The group facing the detective was silent for a long minute. Delaney
moved uneasily as Nichols toyed with his cup. Loris breathed in
suppressed wonder at the tiny clew which had overthrown the best laid
plans on the part of Morphy and his confederate. It was like an echo of
a dead voice coming back to confront a murderer. She shivered as she
widened her eyes and stared at Drew.

"There's another question," she said. "How did the trouble-man get into
this house in the first place, Mr. Drew?"

"I was responsible. He forced my hand!"

"How?"

"By a clever subterfuge. He