Then he and the doctor picked up the body and carried it out to the open to give it a thorough examination. There seemed to be no doubt that he had been slain by a wild beast. The body was badly mangled, particularly the upper part and the head. The clothes about the chest were ripped in shreds, indicating the savage nature of the slayer. But the clothing proved to be of good quality, indicating that their owner had not been a tramp.
“I bet he was a robber hiding from the police,” Hal declared as the coroner began to search the dead man’s pockets.
The next instant the official drew forth several envelopes and pieces of paper and began to examine them. Suddenly Dr. Byrd, who was watching this inspection closely, leaned forward and snatched an envelope from the coroner’s hand.
“Great heavens!” he exclaimed. “This is Maxwell, the instructor who stole my most valuable gems.”
CHAPTER XXII
CLEARING HAL
With nervous haste, Dr. Byrd took a piece of folded paper from the envelope and examined it. The letter was short and had to do with a purchase from a mail order house. It was addressed to Rodney Maxwell, Boulder, Colorado, care of the Miners & Merchants’ Bank.
“So that’s where he was,” the doctor muttered, half to himself. “The last I heard of him he was in Denver.”
Coroner Huffman, meanwhile, was examining the other envelopes. Suddenly, he looked up at the doctor and said:
“I think I can give you some interesting information. This Miners & Merchants’ Bank was robbed two or three months ago and the police are looking for this fellow Maxwell. He was a teller there, I believe.”
“You don’t say!” exclaimed the owner of Lakefarm. “It’s singular that I didn’t see it in the papers.”