ld it under the dimly glowing bulb he saw, scrawled in printed letters:

"Viola Carwell has a poison book."

"As if I didn't know it!" softly exclaimed the colonel.

And then, as he resumed his comfortable, but not very dignified
position, he heard some one coming boldly along the hall, and the voice
of Jack asked:

"Are you in here, Colonel?"

"Yes, come in. Did you get a reply?"

"Surely. Your friend must have been waiting for your telegram."

"I expected he would be. Let me see it," and the detective read a brief
message which said:

"Thomas much better after a long sleep."

"Ah," mused the colonel. "I'm very glad Thomas is better."

"Is Thomas, by any chance, a cat?" asked Jack, who read the telegram the
colonel handed him.

"He is--just that--a cat and nothing more. And now, Jack, my friend, I
think we're about ready to close in."

"Close in? Why--"

"Oh, there are a few things I haven't told you yet. Sit down and I'll
just go over them. I've been on this case a little longer than you have,
and I've done some elimination which you haven't had a chance to do."

"And you have eliminated all but--"

"Captain Poland and LeGrand Blossom."

At these words Jack started, and made a motion of silence. They were
still in the library, but more lights had been turned on, and the place
was brilliant.

"What's the matter?" asked the colonel, quickly. "I thought I heard a
noise in the hall," and Jack stepped to the door and looked out. But
either he did not see, or did not want to see, a shrinking figure which
quickly crouched down behind a chair not far from the portal.

"Guess I was mistaken," said Jack. "Anyhow I didn't see anything."
Did he forget that coming out of a light room into a dim hall was not
conducive to good seeing? Jack Young ought to have remembered that.

"One of the servants, likely, passing by," suggested the colonel. "Yes,
Jack, I think we must pin it down to either the captain or Blossom."

"Do you really think Blossom could have done it?"

"He could, of course. The main question is, did he have an object in
getting Mr. Carwell out of the way?"

"And did he have?"

"I think he did. I've been trailing him lately, when he didn't suspect
it, and I've seen him in some queer situations. I know he needed a lot
of money and--well, I'm going to take him into custody as the murderer
of Mr. Carwell. I want you to--"

But that was as far as the detective got, for there was a shriek in the