"If he did that, he was certainly a cool customer. It's a
wonder his victim didn't hear the noise he made."
"Making a knot isn't a noisy operation," Godfrey pointed out;
"besides, the back of the chair was toward the door. And then, of
course, it's possible his victim _did_ hear him."
"But then he would have jumped from the chair," objected Simmonds.
"Not necessarily. Suppose you were sitting there, and heard a noise,
and looked around and saw me standing here, you wouldn't jump from the
chair, would you?"
"No; I'd have no reason to jump from you."
"Perhaps Vaughan thought he had no reason to jump from the man _he_
saw--if he saw anyone. I'm inclined to think, however, that he didn't
suspect anyone else was in the room until he felt the cord about his
throat."
"And, of course," said Goldberger, taking the cord again and looking
at it, "it was while the murderer was making it into a noose with his
blood-stained fingers that he stained it in that way. Don't you agree,
Mr. Godfrey?"
"That is a possible explanation," Godfrey conceded.
"But why did he make this second knot?" inquired the coroner; "the
knot which holds the noose tight and prevents it from slipping?"
"If he hadn't knotted it like that he would have had to stand there
holding it until his victim was dead.
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