“Is the place surrounded by a fence?”

“On two sides only.  In the front there is a hedge and in the rear the little stream forms the boundary of the property.”

“I understand.”

“At the time of the tragedy there were four persons in the house, so far as known—­Mr. and Mrs. Langmore, Mr. Langmore’s daughter, Margaret, and a servant, Mary Billings.”

“Wait a moment.  You said Mr. Langmore’s daughter.  Was she not Mrs. Langmore’s daughter also?”

“No.  You see Mr. Langmore was a widower when he married the present Mrs. Langmore, who was a widow.  There are two sets of children.”

“I understand.  When did the tragedy occur?”

“At some time between eleven and twelve in the morning.  During that time Margaret Langmore was in her room writing several letters, and was practicing on the piano in the parlor.  The house is a large one, with sixteen rooms and several hallways and stairs.”

“Where was the servant?”

“In the kitchen and out to the barn.  There are two other girls, but one is in the hospital sick and the other was to town on an errand.”

“Where were Mr. and Mrs. Langmore?”

“The daughter thought her stepmother had gone out to visit a neighbor, as she had said something about doing so earlier in the morning.  Mr. Langmore had gone to the bank in town at nine o’clock and Margaret saw him come home about half-past ten or eleven.”

“What was she doing at the time?”

“Practicing on the piano.  She heard her father go directly to his library, which is situated across the hallway from the parlor.  She heard the door shut, and then went on with her practicing.”

“Did she hear anything in the library?”

“She thinks she heard something, but is not sure.  She was practicing a very difficult piece by Wagner—­”

“And it was loud enough to drown out every other sound.”

“That’s it.  When the clock struck twelve she stopped practicing to learn if lunch was ready.  She also wanted to speak to her father, and so crossed the hallway and opened the library door.”  The young man’s voice began to tremble a little.  “She found her father stretched lifeless in an armchair.”

“How had he been killed?”

“That is a part of the mystery.  He was either choked or smothered to death, or else he was poisoned.  The doctors don’t seem to be able to get at the bottom of it.”

For the first time since Raymond Case had begun his recital Adam Adams began to show an interest.

“If the man was strangled his throat should show the marks,” he observed.

“There are no marks, and the doctors have found no trace of poison.”

“Humph!” The detective rubbed his chin reflectively.  “What next?”

“Margaret Langmore was so horrified she ran from the room screaming wildly.  Her shrieks brought the servant to the spot, and a minute later two of the neighbors, Mrs. Bardon and her son Alfred, came over from next door.”