Messengers of Evil

e assembled in the vast editorial room, writing out their copy, in the midst of a perfe

age," might easily have thought he was witnessing some thirty schoolboys at play in recreation tim

who came into the editorial room at this hour, he was preoccupied with one thing only-where the caprice of his editorial secretary would send him flying for news, in the course of a few minutes?

ted, the editorial s

nute! I am on the make-up: w

charge of the landing

ft. Have you seen the

it i

pidly through the

I have it! That article of yours on the rue Norvins affair, yesterday evening, was interesti

do you

de Vibray? Or about Dollon? About no matter whom, in fact? After all, it's our

or seemed t

ake up the past-refer t

t pa

t have an inkling

ot

e have had to mention these personages in our column

lady was implicated ... to her d

n to be the children of old Dollon, who was murdered in the train-an extraor

secretary: "Dollon, the father, was the Marquise de Langrune'

tress, he entered the service of the Baroness

look here, Fandor-like father, like son, eh?... If this young Dollon has murdered Madame de Vi

ndor shoo

on-place, but the assassination of the Marquise de Lang

find out anyth

e details as clearly in mind as if they had happened only yesterday.... The Gurn affair was one of the first I

r gre

y fed us up with this villain, so mysterious, so extraordinary, who was never run to earth, could not be captured, was

r gre

nt?mas is an invention of Juve and myself: that Fant?mas never existed!... And that because this monster, who is a man of genius, has never been id

s famous detective

boulevard Inkermann at Neuilly) in cornering Fant?mas, he was well aware that he risked his life in entering the bandit's abode. What happened was that the villain found means to blow up the house, and to

In what

ed up to the hilt, the existence of Fant?mas.... More, it has forced this villain to disappear; it has restored peace, tranquillity to soci

d the editorial secretary shook a threatening finger at his colleague: "I'll wager you still believe in Fant

followed the records of crimes perpetrated during recent years: you could not make them believe in the e

e sai

doings connected with Fant?mas are frightful, rousing our feelings in the highest degree, I repeat

ompromising anyone with

ses a young painter, whose mistress she may or may not be, and she ends up by get

have to fall back on the opening o

w who are going to speak at the inauguration ceremony, and I can add names this ev

he would have finished that morning, he thought with pleasure, a

u are being asked fo

ases out of ten, in similar cases, that he was not to be found.

ill

Fandor went up to th

ened.... I must go to the Palais de Justice ... you d

ong! But w

ssassin of the rue Norvins? Well, this imbec

isy rue Montmartre, crowded with costermon

he Pa

ers of his acquaintance-one never knew when they might impart a special piece of information which let an enterprising journalist into the k

t! The news is not known y

met him, with a

at the telephone just now, although I w

ious mistakes! When, for once, you succeed in immediately arresting the assassin of someone well known, and are in a position to bring into play all the power

voice, as usual, but, at imperative sign

it?" he

riend

he galleries! I have something to say to you, and, joking

nt o

ne of the corridors of the Palais, known only t

, "your assassin has han

arrister: "My assassin! Allow me to info

It is the fashion of the day to transform all murderers into innocent

have just copied it

paper handed to him by his

o the Public Prosecutor, a letter addressed

plant!" cr

ing, you wi

r con

ear M

inconvenience I am going to cause you; I turn to you be

eurs Barbey-Nanteuil, of whom I have often spoken to

am ruined. You quite understan

uxurious surroundings so necessary to me, I

t me a terrible blow,

the disaster is exaggerated. I have no family, I am already old; apart from the satisfaction it gives me to use my influence on behalf of youthful talent, and to help forward its development, my life ha

h I am going to drink to the last drop, without any weakening of will,

henever there is some doubt about a suicide. It is on account of this I now write to you, so

, I only; tha

sed my ruin. I once more apologise, my dear ma?tre, for all the measures you will be forced t

gn

ss de

. Jacques Dollon was innocent; you arrest him; he is so terrified that he hangs

ult!" protested th

et innocent prisoners hang themselves in their cells, I am no longer surprised

t has just been brought to the Public Prosecutor's office by Madame de Vibray's solicitor, Ma?tre Gérin. You came on the

in his

with the examination relativ

r written. And you know, I am ever so obliged to you for the matter you've given me! But, mind you, I am going to put together a bit of copy that will

" began Fandor's

!" cried Fandor. "I am going up to

s, Fandor gained the office

n of Juve and Fandor-for long the arrest of Fant?mas was their one aim-the young magistrate had gradually come to believe in what had seemed to him nothing but the detective's hypothesis. Open-minded, gifted with an alert intelligence, Fuselier had carefully followed the investigations of Juve and Fandor. He knew every detail, every vicissitude connected

n of Juve, and his attitud

oing over the past a

dor would have been full of enthusiasm for the Dollon affair; for its interest was increasing, its mystery deepening! But Fandor was single-handed now

up with single-minded devotion to any task he took up; his sole satisfaction being duty well fulfilled.... Well, the Dollon case should

ook hands with the magistrate, "you must k

rue Norvi

p?t affair! It is there

Fuselie

know

in, yes!" confessed Fandor, smiling in his turn: "You know that at La C

know all about it, why put my professional discr

ut on Clock Quay? Don't they supe

he was immediately conducted to Monsieur Bertillon: there

ushed: he submitted to all the tests without making the slightest objection; but he never spo

on the housetops!... When he le

dnight the chief warder made his rounds and saw nothing abnormal. It wa

he hang hi

You fancy that there has been a want of common prudence-that the warders were lax-that they had let

ide remains in

stened these shirt ropes of his to the iron bars of his bed, and strangled himself by

see him?" a

m?" asked the magistra

.." Fandor stopped short.

ishes to see y

r I am t

to say that

her n

her card,

r looked at the

Heavens, what am I to say to thi

violently open, and a girl,

where is

ademois

reetly withdrew to the further side of the room; he was anxious that the magistrate should forg

gged the magistrate. "Your brother has pe

am sure of it, bu

eadful thing would be

at liberty yet? He has not

..." Monsieur Fuselier stopped short, intensely pained, n

sitate! You have learned something fresh

... your brothe

had passed a horrible night after her return to Paris

legram said he was injured-nothing serious

our brother has had a terrible shock!..

lizabeth D

u said that! How can

r did not reply, sh

papers said this morning that he also w

t .

antic with terror: she wrung her hands in a state of des

t look, his air of discomfiture, the ho

ied. She was s

istrate, filled with pity. He tried to find some word

t is certain your bro

s! Huddled up in an arm-chair, she lay inert, collapsed. Presentl

see him! They have killed hi

ed the right to go to her brother, to kneel beside him, th

ing to take you to him; but, for Heaven'

esence he suddenly remembered. But our journalist, taking advanta

aries at the Dép?t. The warders were coming and going, talking among themselves, lea

o more of this d

s about to hold forth to his subord

s it?"

has a gentleman with him. He has a p

onsieur

tleman accom

Why, yes-if he

way shrugging his sh

s morning, the chief isn't,"

ter last night'

over this business!" The ward

ured: he was hoping that when Fuselier learned that a journalist had obtained admittance to the Dép?t, and had seen the corpse of Jacques Dollo

that there is no likelihood of her recognising me-we were such children when we parted-she especially! Had she any recollection of the little rascal I was at the time of poor Madame de Langrune's assassination?" And, closing his eyes, Fandor t

Fandor continued his

?t, supporting the unsteady steps of poor Elizabeth D

ait until the cell door is opened. If Fuselier does not wish to give me permission

ing steps of the poor girl whom Monsieur

s pointed out by the head warder, Monsi

o bear this trial, mademoiselle?... Y

d; the magistrate turn

to instructions from the Head, we have placed him on his bed again....

in the direction of the bed where the body of

ns! The dead

l riveted to the floor, in this little cell which the eye could glance round in

the cell," said the

ied the asto

you, that Jacques

re a few mi

have taken him

have never

come

.. Hey! You down there!" yelled the warder: "Who knows what has be

red the cell: not a soul had touched the corpse!... Yet it was no longer there! Jér?me Fandor, well in the background, followed the scene with an ironical smile. The frantic war

e has escaped ... but if he wanted to escape he must hav

the shoulders, almost rough

, was this man de

Dollon was

lives!" and la

is hand as though t

doctor will tell you so, too: also my colleague, F

om here? If he was dead, he could no

" declared the war

flew in

did not keep proper watch and ward!... The investigatio

dead!... There are all the hospital attendants of the Dép?t as well!... There is the doctor, and the

ate: "I am going to inform the Public Pro

d Jér?me Fandor, who had not mis

the irate magistrate: "

replied our

rankly, there is no need for you to augment the scandal!... Will you, therefore, be kind enough to take y

bly linger in the corridors of the Dép?t. The warders, too, w

Ah, it's a wretched business!... Here, this w

d staircase of the Palais, steadying the

s! My brother is guiltless-I could swear to that!... He

nothing better, only

influential people in high places, do not leave any stone unt

to speak. He bent his head in the affirmative merely. Hailing a cab, he put her int

nly possible-do ever

e. The cab had disappeared, but our journalist stood motionless, abso

s innocent. It's true the letter may be fictitious ... therefore we must put it aside-we have no guarantee as

La Capitale so absorbed in thought that he jostled the pas

ated this improbable statement, so absurd, of neces

ead, and he has got

he perceived the solution of t

connection with one man! There is only one individual in the world capable of mak

e of Juve, he had never had occasion to suspect the presence, the intervention of Fant?mas in

Fant?mas! This bandit, this criminal who has not shrunk f

He sticks

ll the extraordinary, improbable, impossible things that had really

t?m

of the Baroness de Vibray, one must not be astonished at anything; neither at

t?m

n of those who were pursuing him, such were his tricks, such his craft and cunning, such the fertility of his invention, so well conceived his d

t?m

out mercy-a fight to the death! Fant?mas would assuredly defend himself with all the immense elusive powers at his command: Jér?me Fandor would pursue him with heart and soul, with his very life itself! It was not only to satisfy his sense of dut

rvins. When it was finished he returned to his modest little flat on the fifth floor in the rue Bergere. He was about to enter t

-and there is no nam

work. Then he bethought him of the letter, which he had carelessly thrown

To prevent his handwriting being recognised, Fandor's correspondent had cut letters out of a newspaper, a

which you are concentrating all your powers is worthy of all p

here was no

rning referred t

the inquiry into the rue Norvins murder should be dropped!... It must be Jacques Dollon!... But how could Dollon know my address? How could he have found time between his flight from the Dép?t and the present minu

s puzzled

as a door nail-dead beyond dispute, because fifty men have seen h

andor was still turning the whole affair over

is extraordinary, this mysterious aff