Читать книгу Never Fire First - James French Dorrance - Страница 8

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Nowhere in the civilized world, perhaps, is there more respect paid to the coroner and his inquests than in the Dominion of Canada. This regard is not confined to the settled provinces, but reaches beyond the Arctic Circle even to the farthermost post of the Royal Mounted in latitude 76—Ellesmere Island, on the edge of the Polar Sea. This afternoon in Armistice was being devoted to the ancient formality of the law.

As one of the miners, brought in by Constable La Marr from Prospect to serve as juryman, put it in half-hearted protest to Seymour:

"You red coats would hold an inquest at the North Pole if word came to you that some one was violently dead up there."

In his capacity as coroner, Sergeant Seymour first called the inquest over Mrs. Olespe, whose Eskimo name was too complicated with gutturals for English pronunciation. Upon chairs and one of the bunks in the living room of the post sat the jury—the three gold hunters from Prospect and Factor Karmack. At a table beside his superior was Constable La Marr, acting as clerk of court.

The prisoner, more stolid than sullen, was brought in from the guard room and planted on another of the bunks beside Koplock, the interpreter who regularly served the Arctic Traders.

Seymour's first difficulty was to make certain that Olespe understood the warning that had been given him at the time of his arrest, for he had not entirely trusted the ability of the volunteer translator who had served him up North.

"Ask him if he knows who the Royal Canadian Mounted Police are," was the first address to the interpreter.

There followed verbal explosions back and forth.

"Olespe says they are the rich men of the country," reported the interpreter.

Shrugging his shoulders over the apparent hopelessness of the situation, Seymour tried again: "Ask him what he thinks the police came into the country for."

"To make us unhappy," came the report presently.

"In what way—unhappy?"

"By not let us shoot at what is ours to shoot and which we can hit."

Feeling that he was making progress, the sergeant got to the vital point. "Ask him what I said to him when I put him under arrest?"

"He says," translated the interpreter, "you told him he'd get hurt if he talked too much."

Seymour decided to let it go at that and led the way to the outbuilding used as morgue. There Olespe identified the remains of his wife, which had been sledded so many snowy miles because there was no possibility of finding a white jury nearer. The Eskimo added indifferently what was translated into "She no good wife."

Back in the station the sergeant told of his investigations at the scene of the crime, listed possible witnesses and summarized their version of a tragedy all too common among the Eskimo who are prone to the ménage à trois. The jury promptly brought in a verdict against Olespe, and Seymour, in his capacity of magistrate, held him to trial.

They were ready then for the second case of the day, the formal inquiry into the death of Oliver O'Malley. As Karmack was to be the most important witness, a change was made in the jury by substituting for him the recently arrived missionary. With these four and his constable clerk, Seymour went down the trail to the hut which Avic had occupied. That Karmack elected to stick by the stove at the post until the jury returned caused the coroner-sergeant secret rejoicing. He saw to it that La Marr did not enter the hut. The jury, seeing the interior for the first time, did not miss the fox-pelt clews which he had appropriated that morning.

Karmack and the Eskimo relative who had loaned Avic the hut, gave the only testimony. This the jury held sufficient on which to find a verdict against the fox hunter and when the fact had been duly recorded the coroner's court was declared closed.

The saddest task of the day was at hand—one from which these strong men shrank, but which none was ready to shirk. Presently a strange procession came up the trail from the hut of tragedy. In the lead was the police team of malamutes, with La Marr beside the foremost dog, holding him by leash to a dignified pace. They drew a sled carrying a blanketed burden. This vehicle Seymour steadied with the aid of a gee-pole. The prospectors and Harry Karmack brought up in the rear with bowed heads.

The way led, naturally, to the newly opened Mission House at the door of which Morrow met them. The dogs were unhitched and taken away by La Marr. The others picked up the sled and carried it into one of the bedrooms. From another room could be heard stifled sobs and words of comfort. Moira O'Malley knew, then, that her sisterly rush into the Frozen North, whatever its real object, had been in vain. The missionary's wife had broken the news of death without the real detail and now was comforting her.

On returning to the post, Seymour was momentarily surprised to see that the police dog team had been hitched to another sled—this one lightly loaded. The native hostler was holding them in waiting. Inside he found La Marr pacing the floor like some animal tenant of a zoo.

"Where away, Charlie?" he asked.

"After Avic. I'm just waiting for you to issue the warrant. You promised me the chance at him, you must remember."

"But why to-night?"

The constable gave him an impatient glance. "I can make that Eskimo camp on Musk-ox to-night; I'll be that far on my way. Haven't we lost time enough through my mistake?"

It took but a moment for Seymour to issue the warrant charging one Avic, Eskimo, with the murder by strangulation of Oliver O'Malley, which was in accord with the verdict.

"Remember the motto of the Force, young fellow," he cautioned as he handed over the document.

La Marr stuffed it into a pocket underneath his parkee.

"Aye—get me man!"

"Not that," said his superior with a frown. "It's 'Never fire first!' See that you bring Avic back alive. There's more depends on that than you know."

The constable looked startled. "You don't mean—— Why it's an open and shut case. The coroner's jury——"

"Bring Avic back alive, that's all. Good luck."

La Marr squared himself for a formal salute and went out into the gathering dusk. He had his orders.