The Groote Park Murder

The stationmaster hurried off, and Joseph turned to carry out his orders. Ten minutes later the special pulled out. having on board the stationmaster, Joseph, Sergeant Clarke of the City Police, as well as Dr. Bakker, a police surgeon, and two constables. It stopped a few yards short of the mouth of the tunnel, and the men, clambering down from the van. went forward on foot. Even the hardened nerves of the police were not proof against the horrible sight which met their eyes on reaching the body, and all six men stood for some moments, shocked into silence. Then, with a muttered oath. Sergeant Clarke took charge. "We'll not touch anything for a minute until we have a look round," he said, and suiting the action to the word, he began to take stock of his surroundings. The dead man was lying parallel to the rails in the offset, or flat track at the side of the line. He was dressed in a suite of light brown tweed, with brown tie and soft collar. On his feet were tan shoes, and his soft brown felt hat. cut nearly in two. lay between the rails some yards nearer to the station. The gleam of a gold watch chain showed beneath his partly open coat. The manner of the happening was writ only too clearly on the ground. The first mark, some thirty yards farther into the tunnel, was a small stain of blood on the rail, and from there to where the body lay, the traces of the disaster were sadly apparent. Except as to the man's identity, there was no mystery here. Each one of the group standing round could reconstruct for himself how the tragedy had occurred Sergeant Clarke, having observed these details, turned slowly to his companions. "Who found the body?" he asked, producing a well-thumbed notebook. Both Joseph and the driver claiming the distinction, Clarke took statements from each. "It's clear from the marks," he went on, "that the man was killed by an incoming train?" The stationmaster at whom he glanced, nodded decisively. "Now, what trains pass through during the night?" "Down trains?" the stationmaster answered. "There are four. First there's a local passenger from Harrisonville; gets here at 8.50 in the evening. The next is the mail, the through express for the north. It passes here at 11.10 p.m. Then there's a goods gets in about midnight, and another goods about 2.30 a.m. These are not very regular, but we can get you the time they arrived last night."