Urth Net
Croixcodile Keystone Kops?
"Who wrote that table of figures in Marsch's copy of A Field Guide to the Animals of Sainte Anne, which officer Constant identified as ballistics tables for a .35 cal rifle, and cited as evidence 'John V. Marsch' (Victor Trenchard) came to St. Croix intending to assasinate someone by sniping" would make a good IAQ if the answer were not so obvious.
The "real" Dr. Marsch, avid hunter that he was, to judge by his journal entries, calculated and wrote down these figures. (1) See a critter, (2) look it up in the Field Guide to identify it, (3) consult the ballistics table in the same cover to see how best to kill it. I have to wonder if this somehow signals that the real Dr. Marsch was doomed to failure in any case, since he so blithely destroys what he discovers?
Victor, having learned (strangely enough) sufficiently of anthropology and academic life, during his sojourn in the back of beyond, to fool every professor on both planets into accepting him without question upon his return, never learned to shoot and probably never bothered to learn the significance of ballistics tables. Thus, 'John V. Marsch' (Victor) told Constant he was a terrible shot and knew nothing of the figures.
Yet Constant and the other officers no doubt had learned from the journals that Marsch claimed to be a great shot with a .35 rifle. Did the Croix secret police think this inconsistency proved their theory that "Marsch" was an assasin from sisterworld?
Or had the police read the clues in the journals and Victor's prison writings to figure out he was an impostor, therefore presumably up to no good in any event?
An interesting clue: in the framing tale of "V.R.T.", the officer assigned to review the case told his fellow officer that the case was criminal, not political.
Talarican
(as you can see, what they call my obsession and mania, was in ancient times a respected academic discipline, which they named 'anthropology'!)