About two-thirty in the afternoon, Lester Leith was loitering in a dead part of the shopping district, making no secret of his keen interest in a pair of flat-seam stockings—not in the sock window to his right. , but instead was vividly displayed on the legs of a young woman in a short skirt, about 50 feet in front of him. Lester Leith was a connoisseur in these areas, but his interests were only near abstract concepts, so he did not deliberately shorten the distance.Leith liked to wander around and observe the panorama of life passing by.A few seconds ago, his interest might have been in a characterful face, or in a passing passerby.But what fascinated him at this moment was a pair of graceful legs.

Half a block away, a woman's head poked out of a fourth-floor window.Her high-pitched cries could be clearly heard over the noise of traffic. "Come on! Police! Police!" Almost immediately, a black furry object was thrown from the window.For the first instant it was like a solid sphere.Then, the resistance of the air unfolded it like a fur shawl.It resembled a young man on a flying trapeze, flying freely through the air, and finally landed on the metal crossbar of a street sign downstairs. From the right, Lester Leith heard a mocking laugh.His eyes searched for prestige, and he found a face grinning in the crowd. These people seemed a little overconfident, calm and indifferent to everything that happened.

"Advertising trick," said the man, meeting Leith's eye, "there's a fur company over there. Someone throws a fur shawl. Do you know how it works? They're directing a scene that's going to get them a lot of money." Newspaper propaganda." Leith heard sirens and authoritative footsteps, and the traffic officer around the corner ran out onto the pavement. For reasons of her own, Leith was reluctant to come into contact with the police officers who were rushing to the scene of the crime.His strategy is so delicate and cautious that he will not incur any danger by accidentally stepping into the police trap.

"Thank you for reminding me," he said to the all-knowing stranger. "I almost believed it. Now I won't be late for my appointment." So Leisi turned around on purpose, facing away from the noisy scene of the accident. Lester Leith looked slender and debonair in evening dress.At the end of the first act of the performance, he stood in the foyer of the theater, debating whether to wait and see the show. The high-society dignitaries and the pretentious, who often come here on opening nights, wander the lounge or converse in small circles. Many women's eyes turned involuntarily to the straight-shouldered, thin-hip young man with approving glances, but Lester Leith at this moment was absorbed in the question he had been racking his brain all evening. middle.Why would a young woman, trying on a silver fox fur shawl, suddenly throw it out the window, pay cash for the purchase price without compromising, and walk away?She seemed nonchalant and indifferent to what was happening.

The melodious bell tells people that the performance will continue on time in two minutes.People started to stub out their cigarettes and flock to their seats through the curtained porch.Lester Leith was still hesitating. He had to admit, the performance was better than average, but his mind just couldn't concentrate on the entertainment on stage, occupied by the mysterious young woman who casually threw an expensive fur shawl from a fourth-floor window. his brain. Lester Leith thrust his thumb and forefinger into his waistcoat pocket and drew out the folded clipping which he had cut out of the evening paper.Even though he could almost remember the above, he read it again.

Passers-by on Beacon Street this afternoon were startled to hear the cry of a young woman who leaned out of a window of Gilbert's Fur Company on the 4th floor of the Cooperative Building, calling for the police.When they looked up they saw a silver fox fur cape falling plumb to the sidewalk.The shawl unfurled in the air, caught the breeze, and finally alighted on the crossbar of the Nelson Optical sign, where it came to rest just out of reach of a group of shopping women eager to reach.The screaming woman was later identified as Miss Fanny Gillmeyer, 321 East Grove Street, an employee of the Fur Company.

Officer James Haggerty, who was on duty at the intersection, took out his revolver when he heard the sound, left his post, rushed into the Tonglou building, requisitioned an elevator, and rushed to the fourth floor.As the officer ran down the hallway, he ran into Gilbert, the owner of the Gilbert Fur Company, who explained that the call to the police was a misunderstanding. Officer Haggerty insisted on an investigation.It turned out that a young female customer, whose name the company declined to disclose, had been trying on a silver fox fur shawl.All of a sudden, she said "I want this," and crumpled it up and threw it out the window.Miss Gilmina, who had been in charge of the business, thought it was a new form of shoplifting and immediately started calling the police.

When Mr. Gilbert, the owner, appeared on the scene, the customer was calmly counting out the purchase price.She gave no explanation as to why she had thrown the shawl out of the window, but gave some casual account of where it would be taken when it was recovered.There was a period of confusion before the arrival of Officer Haggerty, during which the young woman left the building.She was described by some as a gorgeous blonde of about twenty-five. Officer Haggerty was inclined to think the woman was an actress bent on fame.If this is the case, her wish will be dashed when the fur company refuses to disclose her name and address.The shawl was then recovered, cleaned, and probably delivered to the eccentric customer by Gilbert Fur Company.

The dimming lights tell people that the second act of the play is about to begin.Lester Leith put the clippings back in his pocket, made up his mind, and walked up the street.A taxi parked there took him to the Cooperative Towers building on Beacon Street. The exterior of the Co-op Building offers no clues to the customer's strange behavior.Gilbert's Fur Company occupies the entire 4th floor.The window from which the shawl was thrown was apparently directly over the Nelson Optical sign. Lester Leith noticed two men across the street who thought something was going to happen in the not-too-distant future and were obviously waiting for it to happen.

The Rust Business Building is just across the street from the Co-op Building.They pretended to be "hanging out" on both sides of the entrance of Rust Commercial Building, and they turned a blind eye to each other. However, every time they heard the clang of the elevator door coming from the lobby of the office building, they turned their heads in unison, which shows that They have some kind of the same purpose.In addition, whenever the office workers who got off work at night came out of the building, the two people would gather at the door, and after watching what happened, they would walk away as if nothing had happened.

Leith got back into the taxi and said to the driver, "We'll just wait here." The taxi driver smiled knowingly. "Want to listen to the radio?" he asked. "No thanks," Leith said, leaning back comfortably, lighting a cigarette, and waiting vigilantly.After about 20 minutes, a slender young woman stepped out of the elevator, across the lobby, and to the exit.She is wearing a blue skirt and jacket.Wearing a tight-fitting hat, the hat tilted smartly towards the right ear.Her slender legs were swinging smoothly, and she was in a hurry. The two watchers turned and walked towards the door again.This time they didn't turn around and walk away.They each grabbed an elbow as soon as the young woman stepped out the door.They push her across the sidewalk when a car mysteriously pulls up from nowhere and screeches to a stop just in time, and they hurl her into it. Lester Leith stubbed out his cigarette and said to the driver, "Let's follow that car." The taxi driver quickly turned the front of the car and followed the car. The red light signal ahead made him drive the car to a very favorable position. "Is there any violence?" He asked suspiciously. "Of course not," Leith said. "I'm just curious." The taxi driver stared at the license plate of the car in front: "Is it some illegal act?" "That's exactly what I'm trying to figure out right now," Leith said. The taxi driver didn't seem particularly enthusiastic, but he followed the car deftly until it stopped in front of a downtown office building.He looked at the three people who came out of the car with experienced eyes. "They're federal agents," he said. "I don't think so," said Lester Leith. "Their blatant methods, their need for each other's support, and their lack of discretion make them more like officers from an old-fashioned police school. I I personally think they are detectives from a private detective agency." The taxi driver looked at him in awe. "Gee," he said, "I bet you're a federal agent yourself." "Who are you betting against?" asked Lester Leith. The taxi driver grinned, "And myself." Liz said seriously: "This is a good way, you won't lose." Edward Beaver serves Lester Leith as a valet, but his obsequious appearance of loyalty is only a mask he has carefully prepared to conceal his true character. Police have suspected for some time that Lester Leith is a special super-sleuth--a man with a sharp mind who has solved a myriad of intricacies.And all the cases to which Lester Leith had devoted his attention had a singular and uniform outcome.When the police followed the tortuous but always very precise path that Leith opened for them to achieve their goals, they all found that the perplexed criminals had already taken all the stolen goods. Because of this, the police "placed" a manservant next to Leith as an insider.Yet as much as the police would love to catch Leith alone and get the booty, so far the undercover campaign has been as fruitless as those watchful committees of spectators who watch stage magicians perform their tricks. Beaver was still waiting and not sleeping when Leith put the latch key in the penthouse door. "Good evening, sir." "Why, Beaver, you ain't asleep yet?" "Yes, sir. I've been thinking you might have a little Scotch and soda. I've got everything ready, sir, your coat, hat, stick, gloves. Yes, sir. Well, Would you like to change into your dressing gown and slippers?" Leith said, "No, I want to stay like this for a while. You can bring me the Scotch and soda, Beaver." Leith stretched out on the recliner, sipping the drink that Beaver served, brooding.Beaver stood by, lest he should not be taken care of. "Biver," said Leith at last, "I think you seem to be reading about crime, don't you?" Beaver coughed sheepishly, "Forgive me for saying this, but I've developed a habit of reading crime news ever since you briefly suggested that there are often important facts about criminals in news reports. Habit. A kind of intellectual game that one plays on one's own." Lester Leith took two more languid sips from his glass before speaking: "A charming way of diversion, isn't it, Beaver?" "Yes, sir." "But make sure your solutions are always purely academic, and make sure you rot them in your head. Beaver, you know what Officer Ackley is--overzealous, irrational--he's suspicious, and it shows he's Has always been swayed by prejudice." Leith yawned, and he tapped his index finger a few times out of politeness, but didn't type it out: "Beaver, when you read the crime news, did you see what happened in the Rust commercial building?" The report of the case?" "Rust Commercial Building? No, sir, I don't have one." Leith said, "I found out, Beaver, that the sixth floor of the Rust commercial building is occupied by a whole row of offices for a precision instrument design and installation company, more commonly known as Pidico. You've heard what happened there What case is there?" "No, sir, I haven't." Leith stretched, yawned, and said, "That's annoying, Beaver." "What's the matter, can you tell me?" "Rely on newspapers for information — knowing that something you're interested in has happened, but waiting 12 to 24 hours to read it." Beaver remained calm, surprise hidden under his stiff facial expression.Curiosity burned in his eyes, but his demeanor remained deferential, and he said, "Can I be of service to you, sir?" Lester Leith frowned, thinking about Beaver's initiative: "Beaver, can I trust you?" "Absolutely, sir." "Okay, Beaver, I've got an errand for you--a very confidential one. There's a private detective agency in the Channing Commercial Building, and I don't want to bother to check it out. There's some guys who put the A young woman was taken there. They questioned her, and maybe released her, maybe not yet. If I deduce correctly, she is an employee of the Precision Instrument Design and Installation Company. Go find out if this is the case. If it is So, give me her name and address. If the situation is not as I suspect, I will not care about it at all." "Okay, sir. In case it turns out that you are right, sir, may I ask you the nature and extent of your interest?" Leith replied, "Just to give a logical explanation to what's bothering me to relax my mind." "Can you tell me what it is?" "The throwing of a fox fur cape from a fourth-floor window." Beaver's eyes lit up. "Oh, yes, sir. I read about that in the paper." "Really, Beaver? What do you think about it?" "Yes, sir. I've considered that matter a long time, and I've come to a very satisfactory conclusion. I said to myself—if you don't think that presumptuous, sir—I'll assume I'm Leigh. Stuart Leith, was reading the clipping, trying to find some important clue that the police had been ignoring." "So what did you deduce?" "That woman was just a small part, part of a very elaborate plan." "Biff, you really amaze me!" "Yes, sir. It seems to me that her sole function was to distract all present while one of her accomplices was carrying out a foolproof plan." "What's the plan?" "Swap the price tag, sir." "Can you go into more detail?" "Yes, sir. Some tops are second-rate or imitation, priced between $75-100. Others are authentic, valued at $1,200-$2,500. Apparently swapping price tags is an opportunity for a lower price tag." for an expensive coat." "Brilliant, Beaver!" said Lester Leith. "You've done a great job." "Thank you, sir. Do you think this is the case, too?" "Of course not, but you're making progress after all, Beaver." "You mean you don't think so?" "Yes, Beaver." "But the explanation is perfectly logical," Beaver insisted. Leith yawned again. "That's why I don't think so, Beaver, and now I think I'm going to bed. Don't call me before nine o'clock tomorrow morning."