The hands produced an envelope; also a small pair of tweezers The metal prongs were dipped into the envelope. They came out, carrying a small brown object between their tips. It was the end of a cigar, which had been clipped off with a cigar cutter.
The tweezers were dipped into the yellowish liquid. Half a minute went by; then the hand that held the tweezers removed them and let the soggy cigar end fall upon the envelope.
Now the phial was in use. Those living hands uncorked it and poured three drops into the glass. The bluish globules seemed to writhe and melt into the yellow liquid, until they had completely colored it a pale green. The goblet remained in view. The hands were motionless. The eyes outside the light were watching.
For a short while, nothing occurred. Then, with mysterious slowness, the color of the liquid again began to change. The green darkened. It took on a brownish tinge. When the metamorphosis was complete, the clear liquid had become a dark, muddy solution.
THE right hand picked up the pencil. Upon the paper it inscribed a Chinese character. Beneath, the hand wrote the word li-shun. Then it inscribed words of explanation:
This poison, in liquid form, dries and adheres to any object upon which it is applied. Moistened, it quickly comes away and leaves no trace. Some one opened the cigar box in Philip Farmington’s desk drawer. The box contained no loose cigars. The second layer was intact. Not wishing to leave traces, this person removed a cigar from the center of the row and inserted a similar cigar, which had been treated with li-shun. This cigar was slightly loose, so that it would be taken without effort by Farmington.
The hand rested. Then it added:
First proof: The remainder of the row was intact. Farmington would have disturbed it in taking a cigar from a tight row. Second proof: Cardona did not notice the strong aroma of the cigar which Farmington smoked. The person who placed it in the box had not obtained a cigar as strong as Farmington’s own brand.
Another pause. Then:
No trace of the poison could remain on the cigar after Farmington had chewed the end. But the tip, cut off beforehand, lay on the floor where Farmington had thrown it. The analysis shows li-shun on that tobacco.