ce to do, too. I've only got a clue to the murderer. It will
take the whole organisation to follow it up, believe me. Now, Inspector,
can you spare the time to go down to Parker's office and take me over
the ground? No doubt we can develop something else there."

"Sure," answered O'Connor, and within five minutes we were hurrying down
town in one of the department automobiles.

We found the office under guard of one of the Central Office men, while
in the outside office Parker's confidential clerk and a few assistants
were still at work in a subdued and awed manner. Men were working in
many other Wall Street offices that night during the panic, but in none
was there more reason for it than here. Later I learned that it was the
quiet tenacity of this confidential clerk that saved even as much of
Parker's estate as was saved for his widow--little enough it was, too.
What he saved for the clients of the firm no one will ever know.
Somehow or other I liked John Downey, the clerk, from the moment I
was introduced to him. He seemed to me, at least, to be the typical
confidential clerk who would carry a secret worth millions and keep it.

The officer in charge touched his hat to the inspector, and Downey
hastened to put himself at our service. It was plain that the murder had
completely mystified him, and that he was as anxious as we were to get
at the bottom of it.

"Mr. Downey," began Kennedy, "I understand you were present when this
sad event took place."

"Yes, sir, sitting right here at the directors' table," he replied,
taking a chair, "like this."

"Now can you recollect just how Mr. Parker acted when he was shot? Could
you-er--could you take his place and show us just how it happened?"

"Yes, sir," said Downey. "He was sitting here at the head of the table.
Mr. Bruce, who is the 'CO.' of the firm, had been sitting here at his
right; I was at the left. The inspector has a list of all the others
present. That door to the right was open, and Mrs. Parker and some other
ladies were in the room--"

"Mrs. Parker?" broke in Kennedy.

"Yes: Like a good many brokerage firms we have a ladies' room. Many
ladies are among our clients. We make a point of catering to them. At
that time I recollect the door was open--all the doors were open. It
was not a secret meeting. Mr. Bruce had just gone into the ladies'
department; I think to ask some of them to stand by the firm--he was
an artist at smoothing over the fears of custom