He stopped short, glared indignantly at the two soldiers planted in the middle of the room.
"What are you two up to now?" he cried.
The ridiculous pair saluted, but did not reply.
"Lieutenant, remove those men! We do not want any more of them here!
Take them out of my sight!" growled Dumoulin.
The commandant felt he must have a breath of fresh air, collect his thoughts, and calm down before resuming conduct of the case.
"We shall continue this interrogation in ten minutes" time," he announced and left the room.
The short interval had done its work. The commandant had calmed down, Fandor had regained his self-possession. No longer was it an irascible officer facing an inimical accused: two men, fellow-citizens, were prepared to argue and talk together.... The formal interrogation recommenced.
"Fandor," began the commandant in an amiable tone, "you have evidently been drawn on by unforeseen events to commit irregularities. Name your accomplices!"...
Fandor replied in a similar tone.
"No, Commandant, I have not been drawn into the spy circle really, nor have I practised spying.... I considered it right to a.s.sume the personality of Corporal Vinson solely to obtain information regarding the relations this unfortunate maintained, compulsorily and quite against his better judgment, with the agents of a foreign power. When I had obtained the facts I sought, my intention was to leave the law to deal with them."
"In other words," said Dumoulin: "you aimed at playing the counter-spy!"
"If you like to put it so!"
The commandant smiled ironically.
"They always say that!... In the course of my career, Monsieur Fandor, I have had to examine three or four spy cases: well, the defence of the guilty man is always the same--you have taken up an identical position: I sell secret doc.u.ments in exchange for more important ones!... This system of defence will not hold water!"
"I cannot take up any other position!" declared Fandor.
"The Council will take that at its proper value," announced the commandant.
Fandor was asking himself how he was going to get out of a position that was growing worse, and that in a very curious way!
The commandant"s next question struck a shrewd blow at the accused.
"Fandor--How about those accomplices you refuse to name?... Have they not remunerated you for your pains?"
"What do you mean to imply by that?" demanded Fandor.
"Have they not given you money?"
"No!"
"Think carefully, and be frank!"
Fandor ransacked his memory.... Ah!... What of that interview in the printing works of the Noret brothers? Would it be best in accordance with his aims to deny it? It went against the grain of his naturally frank nature to tell such a lie.... Nevertheless he had vowed to himself a well-considered vow that he would not reveal what he had learned: it would be a grave mistake at present.
He lowered his head as he persisted in his declaration:
"No, Commandant! I have not received money from the spies."
The commandant called to the reporter:
"Make a special note of that: underline it with red pencil. This is a most important statement!"
The commandant turned over some papers in his drawer, drew out a sealed envelope, opened it, extracted another envelope.
Fandor asked himself, with a thrill of foreboding, what this new move of the commandant"s meant.
From a third envelope, Dumoulin took out several bank-notes, yellowed and crumpled. He held them up for Fandor to see.
"Here are three fifty franc bank-notes--new ones!... They bear the following numbers: A 4998; O 4350; U 5108. They were found, with others, concealed in your baggage at the Saint-Benoit barracks at Verdun. Do you recognise these notes as having been in your possession?"
"How do you think I can know that?" countered Fandor. "One bank-note is not distinguishable from another!"
"Yes they are: by the numbering," a.s.serted the commandant.... "I willingly admit that it is not usual to write down for reference the number of every bank-note which pa.s.ses through one"s hands!... We have a better way of demonstrating that the notes I have in my hand were in your possession."
"What exactly is he going to spring upon me now?" Fandor asked himself.
There was an impressive pause.
"These notes," declared Dumoulin, "have been carefully examined by the anthropometric service. It has been demonstrated that they bear distinct traces of your finger-marks.... I hope, Monsieur Fandor, that you do not contest the exact.i.tude of the Bertillion method?"
"No," replied Fandor simply. "I accept the evidence of the anthropometric method."
The commandant looked more and more satisfied.
"You acknowledge then, that these notes were in your possession?"
"Yes, I do."
The commandant again addressed the reporter:
"Note that important confession! Underline it with red pencil!"
Dumoulin fired a point-blank question at Fandor.
"Did you know Captain Brocq?"
"No."
"You did know him," insisted the commandant.
"No," repeated Fandor. He questioned in his turn: