It was a short-barrelled automatic pistol.
"Hullo!" he said, interested.

"Is that the gun that killed Thornton Lyne ?" "That's the weapon," said the cheerful Whiteside.

"An ugly-looking brute, isn't it ?" "Where did you say it was discovered ?" "At the bottom of the girl's work-basket." "This has a familiar look to me," said Tarling, lifting the instrument from the table.

"By-the-way, is the cartridge still in the chamber ?" Whiteside shook his head.
"No, I removed it," he said.

"I've taken the magazine out too." "I suppose you've sent out the description and the number to all the gunsmiths ?" Whiteside nodded.
"Not that it's likely to be of much use," he said.