“Who else lives in the house?”      

       “The sexton and the dairymaid.”      

       “And no one else has left the house to-day or has entered it?”      

       “No one. The main door has been watched all day by a gendarme.”      

       “Is there but one door out of this room?”      

       “No, there is a small door beside that bookcase.”      

       “Where does it lead to?”      

       “It leads to a passageway at the end of which there is a stair down into the vestry.”      

       Muller gave an exclamation of surprise.     

       “The vestry as well as the church have neither of them been opened on the side toward the street.”      

       “The church or the vestry, you mean,” corrected Muller. “How many doors have they on the street side?”      

       “One each.”      

       “The locks on these doors were in good condition?”      

       “Yes, they were untouched.”      

       “Was there anything stolen from the church?”      

       “No, nothing that we could see.”      

       “Was the pastor rich?”      

       “No, he was almost a poor man, for he gave away all that he had.”      

       “But you were his patron, Count.”      

       “I was his friend. He was the confidential adviser of myself and family.”      

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