high iron
railing around the archbishop's house. In the railing is an iron gate with
a night bell for Extreme Unction. Ring this bell and ask to see the
sacristan Bonneton, and when he comes out give him this." Coquenil wrote
hastily on a card. "It's an order to let you have a dog named Caesar--my
dog--he's guarding the church with Bonneton. Pat Caesar and tell him he's
going to see M. Paul, that's me. Tell him to jump in the cab and keep
still. He'll understand--he knows more than most men. Then drive back here
as quick as you can."

The doorkeeper touched his cap and departed.

Coquenil turned to Tignol. "Watch the pistol. When the doorkeeper comes
back send him over to the hotel. I'll be there."

"Right," nodded the old man.

Then the detective said to Pougeot: "I must talk to Gritz. You know him,
don't you?"

The commissary glanced at his watch. "Yes, but do you realize it's after
three o'clock?"

"Never mind, I must see him. A lot depends on it. Get him out of bed for
me, Lucien, and--then you can go home."

"I'll try," grumbled the other, "but what in Heaven's name are you going to
do with that dog?"

"_Use him,_" answered Coquenil.

CHAPTER VII

THE FOOTPRINTS

One of the great lessons Coquenil had learned in his long experience with
mysterious crimes was to be careful of hastily rejecting any evidence
because it conflicted with some preconceived theory. It would have been
easy now, for instance, to assume that this prim spinster was mistaken in
declaring that she had seen the pistol thrown from the window of Number
Seven. That, of course, seemed most unlikely, since the shooting was done
in Number Six, yet how account for the woman's positiveness? She seemed a
truthful, well-meaning person, and the murderer _might_ have gone into
Number Seven after committing the crime. It was evidently important to get
as much light as possible on this point. Hence the need of M. Gritz.

M. Herman Gritz was a short, massive man with hard, puffy eyes and thin
black hair, rather curly and oily, and a rapacious nose. He appeared
(having been induced to come down by the commissary) in a richly
embroidered blue-silk house garment, and his efforts at affability were
obviously based on apprehension.

Coquenil began at once with questions about private room Number Seven. We
had reserved this room and what had prevented the person from occupying it?
M. Gritz replied that Number Seven had been engaged some days b