1960-07-23 — Page 15

MURDER

IN TRANSIT

Today: a story

of the Lyons Mail

-No. 2 in a new

spries

by EDGAR LUSTGARTEN

NOURIER

COURIE

THE CHINA MAIL, SATURDAY, JULY 23, 1960.

When whispering women say a man is guilty

Thierry when the police arrived for Mim, Pure chance, of course.

"But the hell of it be cause I was there they seized my papers, and run Just off now to the Central Police. Bureau to get them back. Core with me, there's a pal; then we can go for R walk together."

But against Lesurques? Nothing except the Innkeepers, the serving girls, the ostlers.

Seven of them saying "I recog- ake the man"—a man not im- plicated by actions past or sub-

sequent, by things possession. by his confederates. *

in his supposed

As they stood waiting in the To a hostile judge and A main hall of the Bureau, pliable jury, though, it proved Grenot probably, Lesungues chough. Together with Couriol certainly, did not know that and the man who had loaned his among the crowd waiting with horses (but not Guenot, who them were some of the witnesses produced a cast iron albi), the who had seen the four horse happy Paris lounger found him- men on the road, and who self condemned to death. had now been summoned to Inspect Couriol.

A MESSAGE

"Lesurques had nothing to de with it" cried Couriol from the dock, forgetting his own anguish In this nightmare of injustice, And

his Couriol maintained Neither of them

noticed two

protest to the bitter end. woinen clutch each other's arms,

*I am gulity, but Lesurques is whisper together frantically.

he cried again and send an usher somewhere innocent,"

At Lieursaint served by local innkeepers and

ostiers--who Paris over the Lyons Mall. Headers to attend the judges Couriol in

4

& gallant effort to exculpate Lesurques, had named the real despotters of the Lyons Mail. Himself and four habf-

Excoffon did not like his solitury passenger. Perhaps he had Jost the taste for travelling companions; passengers generally went. by the dili-

or other with an urgent message, repeatedly from the tumbril. gence. Perhaps he felt a

Neither understood why they In the interval between his execution. little nervy and unsociable

Be had shared the dismay of suddenly received peremptory sentence and, his because the Lyons Mail was carrying the most valuable and postillion.

They stopped again to leave a serving girls and load In his long experience. batch of letters.

had foltered about the neigh had shared the opinion of Paris Private room bourhood during the fateful who could do otherwise? that Huge sums in cash (ar "Rum chap I've got aboard,"

evening, and who had inquired the murderous hold-up crowned the sputary passenger, now miss the Italian front), jewellery, son, who took the letters from Mail.

ing, was a party. word

On the coach and seize the plate, fine cloths and rare silks him. "If he gives you a -Excoffon alone was responsible you'd think he'd done you some

And when 10 days after the

The judge scanned Lesurques courier as the other four, on the coldly. for them all, and he could have great favour, Well, if he keeps

he heard upon

horseback, held it up. Dubosq crime,

possessed a superficial rescm- done without this unexpected himself to himself. I can do the

boulevards that the police had

"Like Guenot, your associate." blance to Lesurques. stranger sharing his front seat same."

traced one of the villains and and distracting his attention.

he'd him under arrest, Lesur- he said, you have been twice

THE CLUE The lad grinned; the courier, A short, dark, disagreeably with a friendly wink, rejoined

quey shared the satisfaction this identified as one of the evoked in Paris and the hope horsemen under suspicion for pockmarked stranger, whose his coach. A whoop, a shout, a

that it would lead to the delee- the attack upon the Lyons Mall. appeared only luggage

to Ught flick of the relns, and the

You, too, will be taken into tion of the rest.

custody."

marked for Nupolean's army on he remarked to the postmaster's, about the running of the Lyons a carefully devised plot to which ques meantime kicked his heels tual griminals: Dubosq, Roussy,

Everyone knew eventually ot the solitary passenger, who had completely disappeared, along with the Mail's third horse --- was equipped the horse that with the dead postillion's saddle. Everyone knew-and every

rossiped endlessly. None,

What 50 perhaps. more Citizen Lesurques. He had

be a sword. However, Ex- Lyons Mail clattered away into one coffon thought as he clambered the gathering gloom. up on top, with thirty hours to- gether on a lonely road ahead of them, there was nothing to be done but make the best of It

DREADFUL

turned

The clocks had just struck five on that April afternoon when the coach, with its three horses and a postillion astride one, out of its Paris headquarters in Rue Martin, and headed south east for the Marine bridge at Charenton, where it wheeled abruptly right to strike the Lyons road,

one

Its next named halt was at not only the inclination, but the Melum, some nine miles farther time. At Melum they waited through the night, but the Lyons Mail never came,

on.

Back in Paris, for the next few days they talked of little else. Each morsel of news from the Lyons road spread through the town like wildare.

.

A. FORTUNE

At 33 Lesurques bad already made a fortune out of specula tion in confiscated land. Released from the necessity to work, he courted pleasure; a year ago,. Everyone knew at once of the forsaking his native Doual for dreadful discovery made on the the capital, he had plunged following morning down the enthusiastically into a life of Poullly by-road, three miles ease. north of Melum; the coach itseif pushed out of the way

and

With a wife and children in

tenantless; s courier and the Bue Montmartre, a pretty From ingrained habit and na- postillion lying sisin near by: young mistress in the working tural civility, the courier occa- its cargo scattered and sys- quarter, and mumerous cronies sionally vouchsafed some re- tematically plunderd; two of its to assist him fritter away each mark. His passenger nodded of horses loosely tethered to an ad- day, he was a typical affluent grunted in reply.

substituting jacent tree.

Parisian rentier, At Villeneuve Saint Georges Everyone knew very soon of Paris's business for any of his they stopped to change horses the four mounted men-ob- OWEL

1

He said as much to his old friend and schoolmate, Charles Guenat, whom he met by chance in the course of an aim- less stroll

Guenol's expression changed, and he drew closer to Lesurques "y know all about that," he said. The man they've got Couriol

**Couriol?"

is

"Yes, You've met him with He hasn't a me-remember? chance, I can tell you. There were brand new notes on the Mail-never been in circulation and Couriol had some in his wallet when they nabbed him."

he

Lesurgues looked — as doubtless fell wholly at sea.

'But how did you...”” "I happened to be staying at the same house in Chateau-

Guenot went in first, Lesur

When at last Impatiently, was called, Guenot was longer there. ̧*

17

he

(1)

ZOUT

Lesurques almost choked from astonishment and horror.

"T horsemen Lyons

they must be mad." "We shall see," the judge con- Adently rejoined.

Mail

He had ample reason for his confidence. From then on, à deadly

snowball

gathered speed.

HOSTILE

Vidal, and Laborde.

Laborde's job was to travel

The authorities were duly informed of this, but took no action.

Lesurques's headless body had been four months under- ground when a clue, furnished by and inherited from Couriol, led to a man "passing under the name of Durochat. He was short; and dark. and dis- agreeably pocksharked.

Under interrogation, he pre- sently confessed that he had sometimes used the name Laborde; that he had been the solitary passenger on the Lycus Mall and that he had thus Against each of the Ave who played his part in an infamous.

Lesur design.

who were his fellow. ultimately stood beside ques charged with complicity in the Lyons Mail affair, there was conspirators in that infamous something more substantial, less design? Duboeg, Roussy. Vidal, conjectural, than somebody's be- Couriol. Hef in external recognition.

Against Guenot, that he had been inseparable from Couriol Against another, that he had long been known as Coll's fight hand mani,

Against another, that he had loaned his horses and shared in

"And

Lesurques? He had never known of such a man.

Durochat, alias Laborde, "went

to the guillotine, and by various patha, at various times. Quborn, Roussy and Vidal followed him.

The mills of God grind slowly. and they grind exceedingly small a comforting reflection, could

the loot. Against another, that he have made D, for Learques,

he had sheltered Couriol after the event. As for Couriol him- self, the brand new noles apart, be had been well and truly shopped by his own mistress.

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KOWLOON

IN

Know Your Dog

By H.M. HOWELL

TRIALS FOR THE WORKING DOG

IN our article a few weeks ago we mentioned the Obedience Trials at Crufts; where brain not neces- sarily beauty counts. Several interested people have asked what these trials consist of—so here goes!

recent years very small breeds meanour was commited, he han have held their own.

In fact all owners should give he was in hiding. In this case, more time to training their dog he was not allowed to attack or if not, send the dog to a, pro when the criminal was discover fessional handler.

the dog would give tongue on had

but to be told to get to work and

hé will plek up the scent, the Working trials of a very dif only trouble being that he might ferent character preceded those possibly "hunt heal," a 12 10 for Alsatians, by slightly more termed, which means, in this ed unless he resisted, but than half a century, but they case, he would track the man in

Influence upon We must give Alsatianists the finding his man.

the the direction in which he had general public so far as teaching come and not that in which, he credit of having Introduced working trials for ordinary dobi

Therefore it le im So far, it cannot be said that men and women- how to give had lott,

their domestic dogs good man-

portant. If possible, to get some

по

and In doing so, they placed all these trials, except the simpler ners. These were field trials for Indication by footmarka as to doh owners under an obligation obedience items, were of any Bloodhounds, designed to foster the way the man has gone. to them. Until 1924 domestic great value to the ordinary dog the instinct that had been in- dogs received a certain amount owner, but A really important nate In these noble hounds for of training in obedience or they step in the educative work oc- didn't, according to the enter currad

NOT OFTEN

many centuries — that was the when show executives prise of their owners. 8oon after started putting on

It was not often that the capacity to hunt a human being. obedience the first war ended,

particularly on a cold scent, hounde werp engaged in any Alsatiane tecta in large rings provided for without his booty having been spectacular cases such as would became all the rage, our service the purpose. The curriculum,

men who had seen their value to though not particularly elabor. doctored with aniseed for any alve them headlines in the dally!

the German and French armies ate, certainly gave

all dog

at the front began to import owners an idea of what could be

them in considerable numbers.

So much public attention was given to these trials which ware then a completo novelty, that they have been continued ever eince,

done without any great technical knowledge.

WALK QUIETLY

other cenepotion.

The difficulty was to know how

papers, but occasionally they did something of 'more importance thần tracking hen-roost robbere

to compres a number of trials ·and' such small fry, 27;

within a short period such se two

dia.

or three daye, if the runner for ∙Great Britain was much behind each hound had more than an Continental countries. In hour's

start over about three-Covering the value of dogs, áž- tached to the forces during the miles.

war. They wern capable of gar-

At these side shows the come petitors have to walk quietly on

On the whole, some very satisi forming admirably various duties. In the simpler part of the pro- the left side of the handler, both pramme, dogs had to walk to on and off the lead to wit im factory work was done, and such as liaisons work, by carry. hool (which in, this case rogans mediately the handler stops to Veral owners, trained thele; the messages from the front to on the left side), on leash and remain sealed while he walks on hounds to hunt's line twenty off a leash they had to lie down and not move until called; to four hours cold, for ten minutes while their, retrieva wooden dumbbells, and This is an interneting, sport handlers disappeared, to re do a few other things that are entirely apart from its pulty trieve articles brown, or go back at useful in a comistic dog, aspect, since owner can do organisation.

positions at the rear by helping dentries at night to detect the sp preach of an enemy, and by donerally assisting the Red Crom

gn the trail to pick up some ob- After seeing one or two of these bit of hunting over country of It is characteristic that feat that the handler had early obedience tests, said that their choice with one hound of the Guide Dos for dropped, Jump fences, reale a great expect an, dogs Croxton a couple,

and Amegiation was started it bon

walla "spark on command, re- Smith "I came to the conclusion Bloodhounds have fallen upon in an extremel fuse food from a ranger, that a number of British dogs Jelly Umes since the second war, may withhe quard objects pick out an would be list is capable of but it is hoped that before long primitive major at Walines article belonging is the owner being taught as the German they will iner in numbers: Chabited st from a heap of others, and per Bhepherd (Alsatian) dog, and shoshal Hair" "DWAYNE WILL QU forms parlato Bier evolution was glad to see that what the inorge give attention 19: 14la yark DIMUN-advanced part was-clampsa were:bre

described Wi* man work,” the bredda,, the: Alatians by + 70. kies /

Presumed eri plaat being pro- means had a monopoly for thesis not nonry the a well-

dded suites A priza.The

Quñas of trained Bloo

him:tos and is track filmy when give

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