Evening Star Newspaper, March 27, 1935, Page 24

B—8 . THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. U, WEDNESDAY, MARCE 27, 1983, DAILY SHORT STORY FLIMSY CLUES It Was a Perfect Crime Until the Sharp Eyes of the Doc- tor Surveyed the Scene, BY R. H. DAVIS. WooDWARD & LOTHROP 0™ oD O StresTs EN Philip Vane, valet, had slain his employer, old Daniel Giddings, he stepped back & pace—the smoking revolver still in his hand — and coolly surveyed the scene. Old Giddings was lying on the side of the high four-poster bed, with his left fore- arm dangling over the edge. He must not forget, Philip cautioned himself, that the old fool was left - handed. At the head of the bed stood a small table, holding & reading lamp and an ashtray. Gid- dings had liked to read for an hour or so before going “to sleep. ¢ On the rug at the side of the bed : was pread a single sheet of newspaper. Philip placed this here nightly, for he had learned that the old man would make scant use of the ashtray on the table. One of the reasons— Philip smiled icily—why he hated Giddings, but not the reason why he had killed him. What a fool the boy ~had been to téll him about that clause in his will leaving him a legacy of $5,000. Philip stepped to the side of the bed, being careful neither to step on the newspaper nor to bump against the small table. He took the dead man’s left hand in his own and curled the limp fingers around the butt of the gun, thrusting the index finger through the trigger guard. He pressed the dead hand firmly against the gun. The fingerprints must be clear and unmistakable. He moved the dead man's forearm so that it again hung slightly over the edge of the bed. Gently he placed the gun on the ash-strewn newspaper immediately beneath the dangling fingers. Peeling the black silk gloves from his hands, he went to the big center table, picked up the telephone and called police headquarters. “His troubles are all over,” the medical examiner said, straighten- ing up. The police inspector merely nodded, looking dreamily about the room. Knowing the doctor to be an expert in_medical jurisprudence, he let that efficient gentleman lead the way. The medical examiner stepped back from the bed and stood quietly ex- amining the scene. The police in- -spector smiled lazily at Philip. “Worked here long?” he asked. “Six years,” Philip replied. *He felt reassured, and it was a relief to talk. ‘The inspector planted a huge hip on & corner of the center table. “Did the old man ever say any- thing about killing himself?” he asked. “He had been pretty despondent lately,” Philip said. “His health wasn't very good. “Just you two live here?” the in- spector inquired. “A woman comes in every day, Philip said, “to clean up and do the cooking.” Philip saw the medical examiner drop to his knees by the newspaper " He stepped back a pace. | | | dead man’s cigarette—" on the rug. Using his handkerchief, the doctor care- fully lifted the gun and laid it on the 11 table at the head of the bed. Taking a magnify- ing glass from his coat pocket, he be- gan to study the urface of the newspaper. Philip heard him mutter, “Mighty flimsy clues—just a paper and ashes.” Philip looked at the newspaper with a shiver of dis- taste and fear, and cleared his throat. “What ' is he looking for?” he asked. The inspector pursed his lips and shrugged wide shoulders. “Been awful hot, hasn't 1t? Bet it rains before morning.” “Do you know of anybody who had a grudge against the old man?” the police inspector’s voice inter- rupted Philips thoughts. “Was there anybody who hated him enough to want to kill him?’ “No,” Philip declared. “Nobody hated him.” The police inspector looked curi- ously around the room, noting the luxurfous furnishings. He said, “I understand Giddings was a millionaire.” | “He was pretty well fixed,” Philip agreed. “Who gets it now?” the inspector asked. “Some nephews, I believe,” Philip said. He realized suddenly that the medical inspector was talking. “This man was murdered,” the | medical examiner said, without turn- ing around. “The newspaper and | ashes tell the story.” The police inspector frowned and looked inquiringly at Philip. “There is no doubt about it,” the examiner continued. “The gun did not drop from those dead fingers to | the newspaper. It was placed there gently. Too gently. If it had dropped from the edge of the bed to the newspaper—a distance of some two feet—it would have split the paper. There is no break in the news- paper.” A small muscle in Philip's face began twitching; blind terror gripped him by the throat. “Dropping that far,” the exam- iner went on relentlessly, “it would have caused a disturbance of the entire surface of the paper when it struck, for the paper is lying on a thick rug. You might compare it to throwing a large rock into a small pond. The ashes on the surface of the paper would have bounced and rolled. Each particle of ash is where it was when it dropped from the “It’s & lie,” Philip screamed, fight- ing to escape the huge hand tight about his arm. “We can get the details later,” said the medical examiner. (Copyright, 1935.) Tomorrow: The fate of a young bride, destined to fight nature for a scant living, is related in “Country Crisis,” by Cecilia McCabe. COTTON GARMENT MEN LOSE SUIT Justice Lulfring Dismisses Claim for Reinstatement in Code Authority. A suit for reinstatement by three former members of the Cotton Gar- ment Code Authority, who claimed they were illegally removed, was dis- missed in District Supreme Court yesterday by Justice Oscar R. Luhring. The former members of the code authority are W. E. Stevens, Nash- ville, Tenn., representing the Work Shirt Manufacturers’ Association; E. M. Joblin of New York City, his alternate, and Lee H. Jones, also of Nashville, representing the Southern Garment Manufacturers’ Association. Justice Luhring decided that be- cause they were serving without com- pensation, the plaintiffs had failed to show a sufficien. property right to maintain a suit in equity. The plaintiffs are officers of corporations which have filed suits against the code authorities and their removal was based on the theory they rep- resented conflicting interests. The National Recovery Board, de- fendant in the case, was represented by Assistant United States Attorneys David A. Pine and John J. Wilson. WIFE SLEPT IN TUB Retired in Bath Room Each Night in Fear of Husband. CHICAGO (#).—Mrs. Margaret Snowden may not have been exactly comfortable at times, but her story won her a separate maintenance de- cree, with $8 a week. She told a judge she slept in the bathtub and kept the bath room door locked for fear of her husband, John. He threatened to kill her with a gun, she added. Coughs Relieved Right Away You want prompt relief. Hall’s Expectorant quiets coughs due to colds amazingly quick. Soothes and heals irritated membranes. Special ingredients warm throat and chest and make you feel many times better. A cough, due to a cold, is Nature’s warning of danger ahead. Take no needless chances. Get a bottle of sooth- ing Hall's Expectorant today. 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