"I'll magnify the writing."
He had a projecting machine, and, lighting it, he placed the signature on the will and several more signatures of Mr. Dalton in the machine.
The names were reflected on a sheet, in enormous proportions.
Three were exactly alike, but the fourth was entirely unlike them.
Magnified, the finest lines of the writing were now as coarse as a broom handle, so that every little mark was plainly visible.
"Explanations are useless here," said the expert, smilingly. "You can easily see for yourself all I could tell you. The three signatures which are alike are taken from a check, a letter and a bill. You will notice there isn't the slightest deviation in any of the lines from the fixed method Mr. Dalton had of signing his name. The odd-looking signature is the one affixed to the will. Here you will see that the loops, straight lines, curves and angles are all entirely unlike the original; the width of the lines and shading are different, and the angle at which the letters are set is not the same as that in the others."
The Bradys saw all this and more, too.
In fact, they had every evidence before them that the will was a base forgery and they were well satisfied.
With this fact established, they went to the Central office.
Here they encountered their chief.