Edgar Wallace

“ It is the liquid your uncle drank on the night of his death."
"What is it?" demanded Fare quickly.
"Ask him," smiled Gonsalez, nodding to the man.
John Munsey turned on his heels and walked to the door, and the police officer who had accompanied Fare followed him.
"And now I will tell you what it is," said Gonsalez. "It is liquid air!"
"Liquid air!" said the Commissioner. "Why, what do you mean? How can a man be poisoned with liquid air?"
"Professor Tableman was not poisoned. Liquid air is a fluid obtained by reducing the temperature of air to two hundred and seventy degrees below zero. ”

“ No trace of poison has been found in the body, and no other sign of violence. They are arresting Stephen Tableman today."
"I was afraid of that," said Gonsalez gravely. "But why the sporting press, George?"
Manfred did not answer the question, but went on:
"Fare is quite certain that the murder was committed by Stephen Tableman. His theory is that there was a quarrel and that the young man lost his temper and choked his father. Apparently, the examination of the body proved that extraordinary violence must have been used. Every blood-vessel in the neck is congested. ”

“ There was a tap at the door.
"Will you open, please, my dear George? I do not think our young friend will move. If he does, I will throw the contents of this glass in his face."
Fare came in, followed by Stephen, and with them an officer from Scotland Yard.
"There is your prisoner, Mr. Fare," said Gonsalez. "And here is the means by which Mr. John Munsey encompassed the death of his uncle—decided thereto, I guess, by the fact that his uncle had been reconciled with Stephen Tableman, and that the will which he had so carefully manœuvred was to be altered in Stephen Tableman's favour." ”

“ He had beckoned the waiter and paid his bill before he spoke again.
"I shall not disdain to draw upon your ripe experience," he said, "for it is possible we may need all the assistance we can get in this case."
"What is it?" asked Manfred, as the Commissioner's car threaded the traffic at Hyde Park Corner.
"A man has been found dead in extraordinary circumstances," said the Commissioner. "He holds rather a prominent position in the scientific world—a Professor Tableman—you probably know the name."
"Tableman?" said Gonsalez, his eyes opening wide. "Well, that is extraordinary! ”

“ The habitual criminal is an easy man to deal with. It is when you come to the non-criminal classes, the murderers, the accidental embezzlers——"
"Exactly!" said Gonsalez. "Now my contention is——"
He was not to express his view, for a footman had brought an envelope to the Commissioner, and he interrupted Gonsalez with an apology to open and read its contents.
"H'm!" he said. "That is a curious coincidence ..."
He looked at Manfred thoughtfully. ”

“ Gonsalez put on his glasses again and returned, apparently, to his study of the morning newspaper. He did not wilfully ignore the question, but his mind, as George Manfred knew, was so completely occupied by his reflections that he neither heard the query nor, for the matter of that, was he reading the newspaper. Presently he spoke again.
"Eighty per cent. of the men who are charged with murder are making their appearance in a criminal court for the first time," he said, "therefore, murderers as a class are not criminals—I speak, of course, for the Anglo-Saxon murderer. ”

“ They met in the laboratory; I was not present, but I believe that there was a terrible row. When I came in, Stephen had gone, and Mr. Tableman was livid with rage. Apparently, he had again insisted upon Stephen giving up his fiancée, and Stephen had refused point-blank."
"How did Stephen arrive at the laboratory?" asked Gonsalez. "May I ask that question, Mr. Fare?"
The Commissioner nodded.
"He entered by the side passage. Very few people who come to the house on purely scientific business enter the house." ”

“ He pointed to a small green bottle by the side of which was an empty glass.
"It is a bottle of crème de menthe," said the youth; "my uncle took a glass usually before retiring."
"May I?" asked Leon, and Fare nodded.
Gonsalez picked up the glass and smelt it, then held it to the light.
"This glass was not used for liqueur last night, so he was killed before he drank," the Commissioner said. "I'd like to hear the whole story from you, Mr. Munsey. You sleep on the premises, I presume?" ”

“ Scientists use the liquid for experiments, and it is usually kept in a thermos flask, the mouth of which is stopped with cotton wool, because, as you know, there would be danger of a blow up if the air was confined. ”

“ He was a devout Christian, a popular man, a bachelor, and had plenty of money, and there seemed no reason in the world why he should murder anybody, and yet he did. He murdered another doctor who threatened to expose some error he made in an operation. ”

“ Manfred nodded.
"They were very kind and charming. We are lunching with one of the Assistant Commissioners, Mr. Reginald Fare, tomorrow. British police methods have improved tremendously since we were in London before, Leon. The finger-print department is a model of efficiency, and their new men are remarkably clever."
"They will hang us yet," said the cheerful Leon.
"I think not!" replied his companion.
The lunch at the Ritz-Carlton was, for Gonsalez especially, a most pleasant function. Mr. ”

“ Then he went to one of the apparatus in a corner of the laboratory and worked steadily for an hour and a half. At the end of that time he went to the telephone again. Another half hour passed, and then he pulled from his pocket a pair of thick woollen gloves, and unlocking the door leading to the house, called Manfred.
"Ask Mr. Munsey to come," he said.
"Your friend is interested in science," said Mr. ”