The Persian alone knew the whole truth and held the main proofs,
which came to him with the pious relics promised by the ghost. It fell
to my lot to complete those proofs with the aid of the daroga himself.
Day by day, I kept him informed of the progress of my inquiries;
and he directed them. He had not been to the Opera for years and years,
but he had preserved the most accurate recollection of the building,
and there was no better guide than he possible to help me discover
its most secret recesses. He also told me where to gather further
information, whom to ask; and he sent me to call on M. Poligny,
at a moment when the poor man was nearly drawing his last breath.
I had no idea that he was so very ill, and I shall never forget
the effect which my questions about the ghost produced upon him.
He looked at me as if I were the devil and answered only in a few
incoherent sentences, which showed, however--and that was the main thing--
the extent of the perturbation which O. G., in his time, had brought
into that already very restless life (for M. Poligny was what people
call a man of pleasure).
When I came and told the Persian of the poor result of my visit
to M.
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