1937-12-10 — Page 19

- འ་.

THE CHINA MAIL FRIDAY SUPPLEMENT, DECEMBER 10, 1987

THE PROFESSOR'S FIRST CASE

(Continued from Page 1)

refutable witnesses.

This Herculean task occupied five days. The greater part of the Police Force and the whole of the card index staff were em ployed on it. The Commandant did not find it necessary to drive his subordinates. worked day and night, goaded by the ferment of public opinion expressed in inch type on the front pages of the newspapers.

Everyone

The disadvantage of a ma- chine is its inelasticity. On the the morning of December the 24th., the head of the machine was on the point of confessing himself beaten.

At 2.30 p.m. that day, the city was prostrated by the news of a fresh slaying.

were

At 4 pm an angry, excited mob invaded the quadrangle in front of Police Headquarters. Three times the crowds scattered only to reform and surge back. The toughs of the city were there in full force; for once they had popular sym- pathy behind them.

Stones were hurled. One crashed through the window of the Commandant's private of- fice. He gave a curt order to a frock-coated official. Five min- utes later, the quadrangle was deserted save for half-a-dozen prone figures. In the distance, he heard the whine of the arm- oured cars as they chivvied the- fleeing, crowd.

The Commandant glanced clock His anxiously at the

and sunken eyes

twitching mouth bore witness to the ter- rific strain of the past week.

A harassed looking secretary entered the room and handed him a card. He glanced wearily at the inscription:

Professor Carl Krayzl, Gothmann University. -Pencilled at the bottom was:

The Child Slayer Case:

"Send him in," said the Com- mandant, tonelessly.

The Professor, a pleasant- faced, middle-aged man, nery- ously fingered his umbrella. He bowed awkwardly in the direc- tion of the massive table

"Good evening, Professor. You have something of import- ance to communicate?”..

The Professor nodded jerkily. He spoke rapidly. "I am a psy- chologist, Your Excellency. I have formulated a theory; these terrible outrages are the fruit of a morbid psychopathic in- hibition. The Criminal-”

апу

"Yes, yes." There was a note of impatience in the Comman- dant's voice—“I have heard all that before. It does not bring themadman's capture

nearer t

"Pardon me, Your Excellency, but I was about to explain. The murderer is a man who was suf- fered at the hands of his vie tims. A man to whom their little, innocent faces appear as monstrous gargoyles; their childish prattle, anathema. A man who has been badgered and tortured by them until his brain reacts violently at the very sight of children.”

“Badgered and, tortured peated the Commandant incre dulously

badgered and tortured"

Professor, firmly. Chil. often cruel. To hate as

this maniac hates, points to a constant association with them. <For example; a schoolmaster. Overworked, underpaid, he must teach hundreds of tiny block- heads, day come day, year after year. Such a man; neurotic; a dreamer; perhaps capable of higher things, gradually be- comes eccentric, then warped, and in the end violently anta- gonistic to his pupils."

"A Schoolmaster," muttered the Commandant, Yes. could imagine it.”

one

The Professor shook his head. "I merely quoted him as an ex- ample."

A powerful grey saloon swung into the square. Despite the murders, the place was crowd- ed and the brilliantly lighted shops, busier than ever, though a casual scrutiny of the heavily laden shoppers revealed that they had left their children at home. The little ones were to spend

indoors..

Christmas Eve safely

The car stopped outside Teclaus. The Professor, leadingTMTM the way, closely followed by the Commandant, passed over the spot where Johann had beer cut down and disappeared through the swing doors. Inside, the Professor made a systematic tour, going up in the lift and descending floor by floor. The Commandant stuck to his heels, sweating profusely, for the at- mosphere was stiflingly hot. On the ground floor, are looking little non-plussed, the Profes- sor went over to a shop walker and whispered something in his ear. The man pointed to the Bar- gain Basement stairs. Grasping the Commandant's arm, the Pro- fessor pushed a way through the crowded aisles.

The Bargain Basement housed the cheapest goods was a solid mass of perspiring, good tem- pered humanity. Far over on the left a huge fir tree towered, brilliantly. illuminated, its branches festooned with multi- coloured balls and hung with toys.

The Professor, using his feet and elbows freely, hacked his way towards it. By the tree, he paused and abstractedly began to play with a woolly rabbit. The tree's guardian who was dressed in traditional costume laughed through his mask--The Commandant stared at his com- panion. His expression reflected astonishment and anger; valu- able time was being frittered away; even now the slayer might be planning to strike again.

Suddenly the Professor kick- ed Santa Claus on the ankle. With a howl of pain, the old fellow bent forward. As he did so, a long bladed knife slipped from the sleeve of his robe and lay gleaming on the carpet. A second later, the Commandant hurled himself at the doubled- up figure.

*Exactly how did you figure it out Professor?” asked the Crizne Beporter.

The Professor smiled. “In the first place, accidentally. A week before the murders commenced, I took my small daughter to choose her Christmas present. Just before entered the

scene" of the criminal's arrest, she cried: "Look daddy poor Santa Clans!" I turned round and saw the man we now know to be the murderer, surrounded by half-a-dozen ragged urchins -poor little devils, they were trying to raid his sack. The old fellow was terribly upset. He shouted angrily and beat them off with his staff.”

"The incident," continued the Professor," "faded from my mind. Then the outrages start- ed. I read the newspaper re- ports of the razzia. Everyone in the street had been searched and examined; likewise all the shoppers inside the shops. I at once concluded that the slayer must be a shop assistant. But whom could it be for it was not reasonable to suppose that an employee could wander the streets at all hours of the day without his absence being mented on. Indeed, the police had assumed that to be impossible because two of the victims, had been cut down some miles away from the scene of Johann's end. No, it had to be somebody whose absence would be taken for - whose presence working inside granted and, at the same time, the store would arouse no com- ment. Again, the slayer killed in broad daylight, in crowded cer-

Agents

JARDINE,

MATHESON

& Co. Lid

tres. To enable him to do this without being immediately de- tected, he had to be a person above suspicion. Furthermore, the nature of the outrages pointed to a person suffering 'from

a. repressed hatred of children.

"Santa Claus," said the Pro fessor, sadly, "was the one per- son who answered all my postn- lates. It was part of his duties. to parade round the streets ad- vertising the shop, in addition he was expected to lend a hand inside. No one would dream that the Patron Saint, the time hon- oured benefactor of children could be guilty of such monstr ous crimes against them. Thanks to my daughter drawing my at- tention to the harassed Santa Claus in the street, I knew that at least one of them did not live

up.

to his traditional reputa tion"

"Thanks, Professor,” said the reporter as he scribbed away.

"And now, one more question if I may?"

**Certainly"

"You had definite proof be- fore you kicked the slayer's ankle?

"I noticed that his beard was splashed with red. That con- vinced me," added the Profes-

sor

There's no mistaking this whisky!

Breathe that rich fragrant

Feel that soft -am

Then wait for the glo that wonderful- could be wrong.

liqueur!

WHITE HORSE

WHISKY

Sole Agents for S. China: JARDINE MATHESON