But the next moment he had run to the wash-stand and pulled it out from the wall.  Behind it, where it had fallen, lay a towel, covered with stains, as if some one had wiped bloody hands on it.  He held it up, his face working with excitement.  I could only cover my eyes.

“This looks better,” he said, and began making a quick search of the room, running from one piece of furniture to another, pulling out bureau drawers, drawing the bed out from the wall, and crawling along the base-board with a lighted match in his hand.  He gave a shout of triumph finally, and reappeared from behind the bed with the broken end of my knife in his hand.

“Very clumsy,” he said. “Very clumsy.  Peter the dog could have done better.”

I had been examining the wall-paper about the wash-stand.  Among the ink-spots were one or two reddish ones that made me shiver.  And seeing a scrap of note-paper stuck between the base-board and the wall, I dug it out with a hairpin, and threw it into the grate, to be burned later.  It was by the merest chance there was no fire there.  The next moment Mr. Holcombe was on his knees by the fireplace reaching for the scrap.

“Never do that, under such circumstances,” he snapped, fishing among the ashes.  “You might throw away valuable—­Hello, Howell!”

I turned and saw a young man in the doorway, smiling, his hat in his hand.  Even at that first glance, I liked Mr. Howell, and later, when every one was against him, and many curious things were developing, I stood by him through everything, and even helped him to the thing he wanted more than anything else in the, world.  But that, of course, was later.

“What’s the trouble, Holcombe?” he asked.  “Hitting the trail again?”

“A very curious thing that I just happened on,” said Mr. Holcombe.  “Mrs. Pitman, this is Mr. Howell, of whom I spoke.  Sit down, Howell, and let me read you something.”

With the crumpled paper still unopened in his hand, Mr. Holcombe took his note-book and read aloud what he had written.  I have it before me now: 

“’Dog meat, two dollars, boat hire’—­that’s not it.  Here.  ’Yesterday, Sunday, March the 4th, Mrs. Pitman, landlady at 42 Union Street, heard two of her boarders quarreling, a man and his wife.  Man’s name, Philip Ladley.  Wife’s name, Jennie Ladley, known as Jennie Brice at the Liberty Stock Company, where she has been playing small parts.’”

Mr. Howell nodded.  “I’ve heard of her,” he said.  “Not much of an actress, I believe.”

“’The husband was also an actor, out of work, and employing his leisure time in writing a play.’”

“Everybody’s doing it,” said Mr. Howell idly.

“The Shuberts were to star him in this,” I put in.  “He said that the climax at the end of the second act—­”

Mr. Holcombe shut his note-book with a snap.  “After we have finished gossiping,” he said, “I’ll go on.”