"I had seen it before, many times. I used it at night when I was
watching at the foot of the staircase." The detective was
satisfied. "When he offered the watch to me, I knew it, and I
pretended I was going to buy it. We went into an alley and I got
the watch." The tramp shivered. It was plain how Alex had
secured the watch. "Then--I got the story from this fellow. He
claims to have seen the whole affair. He says he was in an empty
car--in the car the automobile struck."
The tramp broke in here, and told his story, with frequent
interpretations by Alex and Mr. Winters. He used a strange
medley, in which familiar words took unfamiliar meanings, but it
was gradually made clear to us.
On the night in question the tramp had been "pounding his ear"--
this stuck to me as being graphic--in an empty box-car along the
siding at Casanova. The train was going west, and due to leave
at dawn. The tramp and the "brakey" were friendly, and things
going well. About ten o'clock, perhaps earlier, a terrific crash
against the side of the car roused him. He tried to open the
door, but could not move it. He got out of the other side,
and just as he did so, he heard some one groan.
The habits of a lifetime made him cautious. He slipped on to the
bumper of a car and peered through. An automobile had struck the
car, and stood there on two wheels. The tail lights were
burning, but the headlights were out. Two men were stooping over
some one who lay on the ground.
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