“Did they make much noise in moving about?”
“Very little.”
Nick now turned to the windows opening on the roof of the lean-to to the west. The structure was covered with a gravel roof, and during the rain of the night of the murder little pools of water had formed. Into these sand had been swept. Nick examined every one of these closely. In a moment he called Chick to his side.
“Here is the autograph of one of the burglars,” he said, pointing to an impression in one sandy pocket of the roof.
“Rubber shoes,” said Chick.
“Exactly, with a tear in the sole of the right shoe. It ought to be easy enough to follow this fellow.”
Chick made a circuit of the little roof and came back to his chief.
“The cut in the shoe which shows there,” he said, “was made after the robber got to the roof. The tin strap which supports the eave trough at the west, where the ladder was raised, is broken, and Mr. Burglar stepped on the sharp, upturned edge.”
Nick descended the ladder, which remained as the robbers had left it, and walked about the grounds for a few moments, after which he returned to the west room.