the trimming or ornamentation of a lady's dress.

These two objects of feminine origin--one partly outside the car, the
other near it, but quite inside--gave rise to many conjectures. It led,
however, to the inevitable conclusion that a woman had been at some time
or other in the berth. M. Floçon could not but connect these two finds
with the fact of the open window. The latter might, of course, have been
the work of the murdered man himself at an earlier hour. Yet it is
unusual, as the detective imagined, for a passenger, and especially an
Italian, to lie under an open window in a sleeping-berth when travelling
by express train before daylight in March.

Who opened that window, then, and why? Perhaps some further facts might
be found on the outside of the car. With this idea, M. Floçon left it,
and passed on to the line or permanent way.

Here he found himself a good deal below the level of the car. These
sleepers have no foot-boards like ordinary carriages; access to them is
gained from a platform by the steps at each end. The Chief was short of
stature, and he could only approach the window outside by calling one of
the guards and ordering him to make the small ladder (_faire la petite
echelle_). This meant stooping and giving a back, on which little M.
Floçon climbed nimbly, and so was raised to the necessary height.

A close scrutiny revealed nothing unusual. The exterior of the car was
encrusted with the mud and dust gathered in the journey, none of which
appeared to have been disturbed.

M. Floçon reëntered the carriage neither disappointed nor pleased; his
mind was in an open state, ready to receive any impressions, and as yet