world!"

"But, father, think what people will say! I understand your book is read
and discussed from pole to pole----"

"And it may be hooted at from pole to pole for all I care! Oh, Peter!
Peter Boots! Good old chap!"

Peter's blue eyes beamed. The thing that had worried him most had turned
out all right. Moreover, Carly seemed still kindly disposed toward him.

Remained only the dreadful business of Shelby and that must be put
through.

"Then," Peter resumed, "I came home, and found old Gilbert Blair was
dead. Murdered. And Mac Thorpe arrested for the crime.

"I know Thorpe, and I know he never did it. And I wondered. Then I read
in father's book about that old tobacco pouch of mine being
'materialized.' So I knew there was trickery afoot. For I had handed
that pouch to Kit only a short time before I fell down. And he hadn't
handed it back. So, that accounted for its presence in the possession of
the medium, though it didn't necessarily incriminate Shelby. He might
have lost it or had it stolen from him.

"But, next I went to the Picture Show of 'Labrador Luck.' That, or at
least the plot, the backbone of it, was Blair's and mine. Together we
doped it out, sitting by our camp fire up there in the wilds, old Kit
dozing near by. He talked with us about it now and then, but his plans
were different from ours. All for a monster, spectacular production
which he has achieved, while Blair and I planned a little light comedy
affair. But the plot, the great theme of the thing, was Blair's,--and I
denounce Kit Shelby as the murderer of Gilbert Blair for the purpose of
using that plot alone and in his own way! Another motive lay in the fact
of his admiration for Carlotta Harper, whom, he thought, Blair was about
to marry.

"And, if these do not seem to you, Mr. Weston and Mr. Wise, sufficient
motive for murder, I will inform you that Blair had discovered Shelby's
visits to the medium, Parlato, and had learned that it was he who was
responsible for the tobacco pouch, the handkerchief and that forged
letter. Blair discovered or suspected all this, and went to the medium
and forced her to admit he was correct.

"Wherefore, Shelby had to be exposed and ruined, or--had to close
Blair's lips forever. He chose the latter course. The method was by a
poisoned soda mint, as has been suspected, and this I know, because
Shelby and I talked over methods of murder, when we were discussing
detective stories, and he detailed to me th