ith him the girl, Nellie, and the boy,
Howard, alleging as his reason for doing so that they and Alice were to
join their father, whose temporary effacement was necessary to carry out
successfully the fraud on the insurance company, to which Mrs. Pitezel
had been from the first an unwilling party. Holmes, Nellie and Howard
had joined Alice at Indianapolis, and from there all four were believed
to have gone to Cincinnati. It was here, accordingly, on June 27, 1895,
that Geyer commenced his search.

After calling at a number of hotels, Geyer found that on Friday,
September 28, 1894, a man, giving the name of Alexander E. Cook, and
three children had stayed at a hotel called the Atlantic House. Geyer
recollected that Holmes, when later on he had sent Mrs. Pitezel to the
house in Burlington, had described her as Mrs. A. E. Cook and, though
not positive, the hotel clerk thought that he recognised in the
photographs of Holmes and he three children, which Geyer showed him, the
four visitors to the hotel.

They had left the Atlantic House the next day, and on that same day, the
29th, Geyer found that Mr. A. E. Cook and three children had registered
at the Bristol Hotel, where they had stayed until Sunday the 30th.

Knowing Holmes' habit of renting houses, Geyer did not confine his
enquiries to the hotels. He visited a number of estate agents and learnt
that a man and a boy, identified as Holmes and Howard Pitezel, had
occupied a house No. 305 Poplar Street. The man had given the name of A.
C. Hayes. He had taken the house on Friday the 28th, and on the 29th had
driven up to it with the boy in a furniture wagon. A curious neighbour,
interested in the advent of a newcomer, saw the wagon arrive, and was
somewhat astonished to observe that the only furniture taken into the
house was a large iron cylinder stove. She was still further surprised
when, on the following day, Mr. Hayes told her that he was not going
after all to occupy the house, and made her a present of the cylinder
stove.

From Cincinnati Geyer went to Indianapolis. Here inquiry showed that
on September 30 three children had been brought by a man identified as
Holmes to the Hotel English, and registered in the name of Canning.
This was the maiden name of Mrs. Pitezel. The children had stayed at the
hotel one night. After that Geyer seemed to lose track of them until he
was reminded of a hotel then closed, called the Circle House. With some
difficulty he got a sigh