The Nameless Man by Rodriguez Atto LINGI. Mister Barnes was sitting in his private
room, with nothing of special importance to occupy his thoughts, when his office
boy announced a visitor. What name, asked mister Barnes, None was the
reply. You mean, said the detective, that the man did not give
you his name. He must have one, of course, show him in
a minute later, the stranger entered, and, bowing courteously, began the
conversation. At once mister Barnes, the famous detective, I believe, said
he. My name is Barnes, replied the detective. May I have the
pleasure of knowing yours? I sincerely hope, So continued the stranger. The
fact is I suppose I have forgotten it, forgotten your name. Mister Barnes
scent it an interesting case, and became doubly attentive. Yes, said the
visitor. That is precisely my singular predicament. I seem to have lost my
identity. That is the object of my call. I wish to discover who
I am, as I evidently am a full grown man. I can certainly
claim that I have a past history, But to me that past is entirely
a blank. I awoke this morning in this condition, yet apparently in possession
of all my faculties, so much so that I at once saw the advisability
of consulting a first class detective, and upon inquiry I was directed to you.
Your case is interesting from my point of view, I mean to you.
Of course, it must seem unfortunate, yet it is not unparalleled.
There have been many such cases recorded, And for your temporary relief, I
may say that sooner or later, complete restoration of memory usually occurs. But
now let us try to unravel your mystery as soon as possible, that you
may suffer as little inconvenience as there need be. I would like to ask
you a few questions, as many as you like, and I will do
my best to answer. Do you think that you are a New Yorker?
I have not the least idea whether I am or not. You say you
were advised to consult me by whom the clerk at the Waldorf Hotel where I
slept last night, Then of course he gave you my address. Did you
find it necessary to ask him how to find my office? Well? No,
I did not. That seems strange, does it not? I certainly
had no difficulty in coming here. I suppose that must be a significant fact.
Mister Barnes. It tends to show that you have been familiar with New
York, but we must still find out whether you live here or not.
How did you register at the hotel M J G. Remington City. You
are sure that Remington is not your name? Quite sure? After breakfast this
morning, I was passing through the lobby when the clerk called me twice by
that name. Finally, one of the hall boys touched me on the shoulder
and explained that I was wanted at the desk. I was very much confused
to find myself called mister Remington, a name which is certainly not my own.
Before I fully realized my position, I said to the clerk, why
do you call me Remington? And he replied, because you registered under that
name. I tried to pass it off, but I am sure that the
clerk looks upon me as a suspicious character. What baggage have you with you
at the hotel? None? Not even a satchel. May there not be
something in your pockets that would help us letters? For example? I am
sorry to say that I have made a search in that direction but found nothing.
Luckily I did have a pocket book, though much money in it in
the neighborhood of five hundred dollars. Mister Barnes turned to his table and made
a few notes on a pad of paper. While he was so engaged,
his visitor took out a fine goal watch, and, after a glance at
the face, was about to return it to his pocket, when mister Barnes
wheeled around in his chair and said, that is a handsome watch you have
there of a curious pattern too. I am rather interested in all watches.
The stranger seemed confused for an instant and quickly put up his watch, saying
there is no nothing remarkable about it, merely an old family relic. I
value it more for that than anything else. But about my case, mister
Barnes, how long do you think it will take to restore my identity to
me? It is rather awkward to go about under a false name, I
should think so, said the detective. I will do my best. No
clue to work upon, so that it is impossible to say what my success
will be. Still, I think forty eight hours should suffice at least.
In that time I ought to make some discoveries for you. Suppose you call
again on the day after tomorrow at noon precisely? Will that suit you very
well? Indeed, if you can tell me who I am at that time,
I shall be more than convinced that you are a great detective, as
I have been told. He arose and prepared to go, And upon that
instant mister Barnes touched a button under his table with his foot, which caused
a bell to ring in a distant part of the building, no sound of
which penetrated the private office. Thus anyone could visit mister Barnes in his den
and might leave unsuspicious of the fact that a spy would be awaiting him out
in the street, who would shadow him persistently day and night until recall by
his chief. After giving the signal, mister Barnes held his strange visitor in
conversation a few minutes longer to allow his spy opportunity to get to his post.
How will you pass the time away, mister Remington said he We may
as well call you by that name until I find your true one. Yes,
I suppose so, as to what I shall do during the next forty
eight hours, why I think I may as well devote myself to seeing the
sights. It is a remarkably pleasant day for a stroll, and I think
I will visit your beautiful central park, a capital idea. By all means,
I would advise occupation of that kind. It would be best not to
do any business until your memory is restored to you. Business why, of
course, I can do no business. No, if you were to order
any goods, for example, under the name of Remington later on, when
you resume your proper identity, you might be arrested as an impostor by George.
I had not thought of that. My position is more serious than I
had realized. I thank you for the warning. Sight seeing will assuredly be
my safest plan for the next two days. I think so call at the
time agreed upon, and hope for the best. If I should meet you
before then, I will send to your hotel saying good morning. Mister Barnes
turned to his desk again, and as the stranger looked at him before stepping
out of the room. The detective seemed engrossed in some papers before him,
yet scarcely had the door closed upon the retreating form of his recent visitor.
When mister Barnes looked up with an air of expectancy. A moment later,
a very tiny bell in a drawer of his desk rang, indicating that the
man had left the building, the signal having been sent to him by one
of his employees, whose business it was to watch all departures and notify his
chief. A few moments later, mister Barnes himself emerged, clad in an
entirely different suit of clothing, and with such an alteration in the color of
his hair that more than a casual glance would have been required to recognize him.
When he reached the street, the stranger was nowhere in sight. But
mister Barnes went to a doorway opposite, and there he found written in blue
pencil the word up, whereupon he walked rapidly uptown as far as the next
corner, where once more he examined a door post, upon which he found
the word right, which indicated the way the men ahead of him had turned.
Beyond this, he could expect no signals for the spy shadowing. The
stranger did not know positively that his chief would take part in the game.
The two signals which he had written on the doors were merely a part of
a routine and intended to aid mister Barnes should he follow, but if he
did so, he would be expected to be in sight of the spy by
the time the second signal were reached, and so proved in this instance,
for as mister Barnes turned the corner to the right, he easily discerned his
man about two blocks ahead, and presently was near enough to see Remington also.
The pursuit continued until mister Barnes was surprised to see him enter the park,
thus carrying out his intention as stated in his interview with the Detective.
Entering at the fifth Avenue gate, he made his way towards the menagerie,
and here a curious incident occurred. The stranger had mingled with the crowd in
the monkey house and was enjoying the antics of the mischievous little animals when mister
Barnes, getting close behind him, deftly removed a pocket handkerchief from the tail
of his coat and swiftly transferred it to his arm. On the day following,
shortly before noon, mister Barnes walked quickly into the reading room of the
Fifth Avenue Hotel. In one corner there is a handsome mahogany cabinet containing three
compartments, each of which is entered through double having glass panels in the upper
half. About these panels are draped yellow silk curtains, and in the center
of each appears a white porcelain numeral. These compartments are used as public telephone
stations, the applicant being shut in so as to be free from the noise
of the outer room. Mister Barnes spoke to the girl in charge and then
passed into the compartment numbered V. Less than five minutes later, mister Leroy
Mitchell came into the reading room, his keen eyes peered about him, scanning
the countenances of those busy with the papers or writing, and then he gave
the telephone girl a number and went into the compartment numbered one. About ten
minutes elapsed before mister Mitchell came out again, and having paid the toll,
he left the hotel. When mister Barnes emerged, there was an expression of
extreme satisfaction upon his face. Without lingering, he also went out, but
instead of following mister Mitchell through the main lobby to Broadway, he crossed the
reading room and reached twenty third Street through the side door. Thence he proceeded
to the station of the elevated railroad and went uptown. Twenty minutes later,
he was ringing the bell of mister Mitchell's residence. The butler, who answered
his summons, informed him that his master was not at home. He usually
comes in to luncheon. However, does he not, asked the detective.
Yes, sir, responded the boy. Is missus Mitchell at home, no,
sir, Miss Rose, Yes, sir ah, then I'll wait take
my card to her. Mister Barnes passed into the luxurious drawing room and was
soon joined by Rose, mister Mitchell's adopted daughter. I'm sorry Papa is not
at home, mister Barnes, said the little lady. But he will surely
be into luncheon if you will wait, Yes, thank you, I think
I will. It is quite a trip up, and being here, I
may as well stop awhile and see your father. Though the matter is not
of any great importance. Some interesting case, mister Barnes, If so,
do tell me about it. You know I am almost as much interested in
your cases as Papa is. Yes, I know you are, and my
vanity is flattered. But I am sorry to say, I have nothing on
hand at present worth relating. My errand is a very simple one. Your
father was saying a few days ago that he was thinking of buying a bicycle,
and yesterday, by accident, I came across a machine of an entirely
new make, which seems to me superior to anything yet produced. I thought
he might be interested to see it before deciding what kind to buy. I'm
afraid you are too late, mister Barnes. Papa has bought a bicycle already.
Indeed, what style did he choose I really do not know, but
it is down in the lower hall if you care to look at it.
It's hardly worth while, miss Rose. After all, I have no interest
in the new model, and if your father has found something that he likes,
I won't even mention the other to him. It might only make him
regret his bargain. Still, on second thought, I will go down with
you if you will take me into the dining room and show me the head
of that moose which your father had been bragging about killing. I believe it
has come back from the taxidermis. Oh yes, he is just a monster.
Come on. They went down to the dining room, and mister Barnes
expressed great admiration about the moose's head and praised mister Mitchell's skill as a marksman,
but he had taken a moment to scrutinize the bicycle which stood in the
hallway, while Rose was opening the blinds in the dining room. Then they
returned to the drawing room, and after a little more conversation, mister Barnes
departed, saying that he could not wait any longer, but he charged Rose
to tell her father that he particularly desired him to call at noon on the
following day. Promptly at the time, appointed Remington walked into the office of
mister Barnes and was announced the detective was in his private room. Mister Leroy
Mitchell had been admitted, but a few moments before, ask mister Remington in,
said mister Barnes to his boy, And when that gentleman entered, before
he could show surprise to find a third party present, the detective said,
mister Mitchell, this is the gentleman whom I wished you to meet. Permit
me to introduce to you mister Mortimer J. Goldie, better known to the
Sporting Fraternity as G. J. Mortimer, the champion short distance bicycle rider
who recently rode a mile in the phenomenal time of one point five six on
a quarter mile track. As mister Barnes spoke, he gazed from one to
the other of his companions with a half quizzical and wholly pleased expression on his
face. Mister Mitchell appeared much interested, but the newcomer was evidently greatly astonished.
He looked blankly at mister Barnes a moment, then dropped into a chair
with the query, how in the name of conscience did you find that out?
That much? Was not very difficult? Replied the detective. I can
tell you more. Indeed, I can supply your whole past history, provided
your memory has been sufficiently restored for you to recognize my facts as true.
Mister Barnes looked at mister Mitchell and winked one eye in a most suggestive manner,
at which that gentleman burst out into a hearty laughter, finally saying,
we may as well admit that we are beaten. Goldie. Mister Barnes has
been too much for us, but I want to know how he has done
it. Persisted mister Goldie, I have no doubt that, mister Barnes will
satisfy you. Indeed, I am as curious as you are to know by
what means he has arrived at his quick solution of the problem which we set
him. I will enlighten you as to detective methods with pleasure, said mister
Barnes. Let me begin with the visit made to me by this gentleman two
days ago. At the very outset, his statement aroused my suspicion, although
I did my best not to let him think so. He announced to me
that he had lost his identity, and I promptly told him that his case
was not uncommon. I said that in order that we might feel sure.
I did not doubt his tale. But truly his case, if he were
telling the truth, was absolutely unique. Men have lost recollection of their past,
and even have forgotten their names. But I have never before heard of
a man who had forgotten his name and at the same time knew that he
had done so. A capital point, mister Barnes said, mister Mitchell,
you were certainly shrewd to suspect fraud so early. I cannot say that I
suspected fraud so soon, but the story was so unlikely that I could not
believe it immediately. I therefore was what I might call analytically attentive during the
rest of the interview. The next point worth noting which came out was that
although he had forgotten himself, he had not forgotten New York, for he
admitted having come to me without special guidance. I remember that, interrupted mister
Goldie, and I think I even said to you at the time that it
was significant. And I told you that at least it showed that you had
been familiar with New York. This was better proven when you said that you
would spend the day in Central Park, and when after leaving here you had
no difficulty to find your way. Thither do you mean to say that you
had me followed? I made sure that no one was after me. Well,
yes, you were followed, said mister Barnes with a smile. I
had a spy after you, and I followed you as far as the part
myself. But let me come to the other points in your interview and my
deductions. You told me that you had registered as m J. G.
Remington. This helped me considerably, as you shall see presently. A few
minutes later you took out your watch, and in that little mirror over my
desk, which I use occasionally, when I turned my back upon a visitor,
I noted that there was an inscription on the outside of the case.
I turned and asked you something about the watch, when you hastily returned it
to your pocket with the remark that it was an old family relic. Now,
can you explain how you could have known that, supposing that you had
forgotten who you were? Neatly caught Goldie laughed, mister Mitchell, you certainly
made a mess of it there. It was an asinine slip, said mister
Goldie, laughing Offso now, then, continued mister Barnes. You readily see
that I had good reason for believing that you had not forgotten your name.
On the contrary, I was positive that your name was a part of the
inscription on the watch. What then could be your purpose in pretending otherwise?
I did not discover that for some time. However, I decided to go
ahead and find you out if I could. Next, I noted two things.
Your coat opened once so that I saw a pin to your vest a
bicycle badge which I recognized as the emblem of the League of American wheelmen.
Oh oh, cried mister Mitchell. Shame on you, Goldie, for a
blunderer. I had entirely forgotten the badge, said mister Goldie. I also
observed the detective went on little indentations on the sole of your shoe as you
had your legs crossed, which satisfied me that you were a writer even before
I observed the badge. Now, then we come to the name and the
significance thereof. Had you really lost your memory, the choosing of a name
Aim when you registered at the hotel would have been a haphazard matter of no
importance to me. But as soon as I decided that you were imposing upon
me, I knew that your choice of the name had been a deliberate act
of the mind, one from which deductions could be drawn. Ah, now
we come to the interesting part, said mister Mitchell. I love to follow
a detective when he uses his brains. The name as registered, and I
examined the registry myself to make sure was odd. Three initials are unusual.
A man without memory and therefore not quite sound mentally, would hardly have chosen
so many. Then why had it been done in this instance? What more
natural than that these initials represented the true name. In assuming an alias,
it is the most common method to transpose the real name in some way.
At least it was a working hypothesis. Then the last name might be very
significant. Remington. The Remingtons make guns, sewing machines, typewriters, and
byles. Now this man was a bicycle rider. I was sure if he
chose his own initials as part of the alias. It was possible that he
selected Remington because it was familiar to him. I even imagined that he might
be an agent for Remington Bicycles. And I had arrived at that point during
our interview when I advised him not to buy anything until his identity was restored.
But I was sure of my quarry when I stole a handkerchief from him
at the park and found the initials M J G upon the same marked Lennon
on your person, exclaimed mister Mitchell. Worse and worse, we'll never make
a successful criminal of you, Goldie, perhaps not. I shan't cry over
it. I thought sure of my success by this time, continued mister Barnes.
Yet at the very next step I was balked. I looked over a
list of l a W members, and could not find a name to fit
my initials, which shows, as you will see presently, that, as
I may say, too many clues spoil the broth. Without the handkerchief,
I could have done better. Next, I secured a catalog of the Remingtons,
which gave a list of their authorized agents, and again I failed.
Returning to my office, I received information from my spy sent by messenger,
which promised to open away for me. He had followed you about mister Goldie,
and I must say you played your part very well so far as avoiding
acquaintances is concerned. But at last you went to a public telephone and called
up some one. My man saw the importance of discovering to whom you had
spoken, and bribed the telephone attendant to give him the information. All that
he learned, however, was that you had spoken to the public station at
the Fifth Avenue Hotel. My spy thought that this was inconsequent, but it
proved to me at once that there was collusion, and that your man must
have been at the other station by previous appointment, as that was at noon
a few minutes before the same hour on the following day that is to say,
yesterday, I went to the Fifth Avenue Hotel, telephoned and secreted myself
in the middle compartment, hoping to hear what your partner might say to you.
I failed in this, as the boxes were too well made to permit
sound to pass from one to the other. But imagine my gratification to see
mister Mitchell himself go into the box. And why, asked mister Mitchell.
Well, as soon as I saw you, I comprehended the whole scheme.
It was you who had concocted the little diversion to test my ability. Thus,
at last I understood the reason for the pretended loss of identity. With
the knowledge that you were in it, I was more than ever determined to
get at the facts. Knowing that you were out, I hastened to your
house, hoping for a chat with little miss Rose, as the most likely
member of your family to get information from. Oh Fie, mister Barnes,
said, mister Mitchell, to play upon the innocence of childhood. I am
ashamed of you. All's fair et city. Well I succeeded. I found
mister Goldie's bicycle in your hallway, and, as I suspected twas a Remington.
I took the number and hurried down to the agency, where I readily
discovered that wheel number five thousand and eighty six is written by G. J.
Mortimer, one of their regular racing team. I also learned that Mortimer's
private name is Mortimer J. Goldie. I was much pleased at this because
it showed how good my reasoning had been about the alias. For you observed
that the racing name is merely a transposition of the family name. The watch,
of course, is a prize, and the inscription would have proved that
you were imposing upon me, mister Goldie, had you permitted me to see
it. Of course, that is why I put it back in my pocket,
I said. Just now, said mister Barnes, that without the stolen
handkerchief, I would have done better having it. When I looked over the
L A. W List, I went through the g's only without it,
I should have looked through the g's, J's and m's, not knowing how
the letters may have been transposed. In that case, I should have found
G. J. Mortimer, and the initials would have proved that I was
on the right track. You have done, mister Barnes, said, mister
Mitchell, I ask Goldy to play the part of a nameless man for a
few days to have some fun with you. But you have had fun with
us. It seems, though, I am conceited enough to say that had
it been possible for me to play the principal part, you would not have
pierced my identity so soon. Oh I don't know, said mister Barnes.
We are both of us a little egotistical. I fear undoubtedly Still, if
I ever set another trap for you, I will assign myself the chief role.
Nothing would please me better, said mister Barnes. But gentlemen, as
you have lost in this little game, it seems to me that some one
owes me a dinner. At least I'll stand the expense with pleasures, said
mister Mitchell, not at all interrupted mister Goldie. It was through my blundering
that we lost, and I'll pay the piper. Settle it between you,
cried mister Barnes. But let us walk on. I am getting hungry.
Whereupon they adjourned to Delmonico's and of the Nameless Man