The Key West Citizen Newspaper, April 7, 1939, Page 3

FRIDAY, APRIL 7, 1939 OLD HOME WEEK MURDER by Phocbe Atwood Taylor Chapter One Old Home Week ‘OU listen to me, Asey!” Between each word Weston Mayhew paused. and banged the top of his desk. “You listen, Asey Mayo! This is important! You’ve got to—” The rest of his sentence dissolved into the vast} P&¢ miscellany of noises which for days had been enveloping the ————— eee Town Hall of Billingsgate. Listening impartially to the sum tetal of din, Asey found it difficult to dissect the individual elements. But in a general way, it all began in front of the Hall’s viciously Colonial entrance, where a score of men pounded professionally at a nearly completed grandstand. It jained somewhat down in the ‘omen’s Club Parlor. whose walls were gradually disappearing un- der miles of bunting and crepe per and carpet tacks. Real v>l- Une tame from the assembly hall, where the moans of vacuum clean- ers and floor-waxing machines ted with the practice swings of Upjohn’s Merrymakers, hack- ing away at a popular tune. E-ery- thing came to a head outside the selectmen’s office. There the dauntless soprano, imported espe- cialiy from Boston, rehearsed “Billingsgate Beautiful” with for- ty members of the Grange chorus. There were of course other noises, but Asey lacked the spirit to delve into them. “Will you stop making faces and covering up your ears, and listen!” Weston shouted. “You got to, see? You got—” Asey Mayo rose from the win- dow seat, tilted his yachting cap to the back of his head, and grinned at his cousin. “I got to cover’em up, if that’s what you mean,” he said gently, during a sudden lull, “or split my ear drums to shreds. I never heard nothin’ like this hullabaloo. No wonder you're rampin’ around like a wild man. ie off somewheres quiet. where you can startall over at the general b’ginnin’ of what's ailin’ you. Come on,” he took Weston bv the arm, “That song, that darn song!” The ordisarily undemonstrative Weston clutched at his forehead and preceeded to unburden nim- self in a series of shrill yelps, like @ man bitten by a number of bees at onee. “That cussed song! Ban- ners! Ice cream! That radio guy— blah, blah. blah, Mr. Mayhew! Blah, blah. blah! What atout the parade torches? And the le? And the fireworks? And the judges. And the exposition. And who's going to meet the governor. Who’s—Asey. what’re you doing, Asey? You—” Rb cya < Weston’s protests, Asey his pocket handkerchief lengthwise and forcibly bandaged his cousin’s head: When a member of his own family took to near- hysterics, something had to be oonvat for? F re me ir?” Weston yell Sine mene! un- lock that office door! Don’t—oh, you 3 and done ‘it, now! Now they’! The second the door opened, People began te surge in. Weston co his eyes as the questions OR ifes, them es, them banners ain’t—” “Weston, Who’s got the pro- grams? Jef€ says you, and Brinley says—” “Mr. Mayhew,” the golden voice of Vincent arose al the others, “the microphones are not yet—” Tm Pretty Scared’ AFTER glancing at Weston, Asey cleared his throat, pointed to the improvised bandage. and sum- moned up his best quarter-deck bellow. Vincent Tripp jped in admiration as Upjohn’s pe makers, a away, us through. please! He’ Hell be be oo Gangway—gangway. here!™ He haul feston and take even stop this mess. “Old Home ne Weston said bitterly, twisting his tie back i place. “Old Home Week. a family quite so obtuse. The town’s forth- coming celebration was not news. Not, at least. to anyone on the Cape who possessed even a rudimentary use of éars or eyes. Billingsgate Old Home Week posters were tacked on L proatiasiie every scrub = Old Home Week news blared m radios and loud speaker trucks. and everyone had been talking about it constantly for at least eight #Ponths. “Uh-huh.” Asey said. “I know. 1 sort of heat about it. Three hundred years of Billingsgate, an’ how it grew. With festa’ an’ early settlers—say, I hear you got ole Winslow Billings washed an’ scrubbed an’ sobered up. I'd be kind of wary about disp! yin’ the last Billings. They’ re a slow but hard rilin’ family. “Brinkley’s idea.” Weston said. “Asey. listen to me. I called in state cops. he town’s full of'em. I got extra constables to handle traffie and. crowds and all. 1 got extra fire wardens, and fire volun- teers, and extra coast guards and life guards. I got the Boy Scouts and the Legion all lined up, and then I got a dozen good solid men I know. all armed and posted and ready. I s’pose,” he added thought- fully, “T could get that destroyer up from P-town, if I pulled enough wires: Pd like—” “Specifically,” -Asey inquired with a chuckle, “what are you ex- tin’.cousin? Fires, or riots, or just war?” - “You see.” Weston went on seri- ously. “that fool Brinley—J. Ar- thur Brinley, he thought this Old Home Week up. and Uncle Jeff Leach ana me. we thought it seemed a good idea. The three of us selectmen. we pushed it through. It was geod, and it stil! is. Only ‘t’s got too big. It’s got beyond 1s. That’s why I called you over. Asey. Mostly [’m mad, but Pm scared. too.” He hesitated. “I —I guess. I'm pretty scared.” Asey looked at his cousin, then took his pipe out of his mouth and transferred his attention to the bowl When one of his family, his own family. confessed to being afraid of something, there was no sense to oh-ing and ah-ing and dallying around with useless questions. Weston Mayhew and the rest of the _Billingsgate relatives might fy their name the old ~.ay, but ey were none the less Mayos. They had all the physical hall- marks. Even sitting at a select- man’s desk for fifteen years hadn’t hurt Weston’s waistline. He was tall and lean like the rest. There were mental likenesses, too. The Mayos thorght quickly and to the point. None of them were easily moved. but once moved, they went into action. To the best of Asey’s > nowledge, there were few cowards in the lot, and Weston was not among them. His jugful of war medals and his record in France proved that. ‘Fix Up This Mess’ \ 428 here was Weston, ramping and yelling. Aroused, but dithering. And not just dithering, | sto! but admittedly afraid! “And the trouble,” Weston said Plaintively. “is that I haven’t the time to be scared in. This Old Home Week’s got to go over with a bang. Now, Asey, your name means a lot. People know all about you, and the cases you’ve — and detected and a the chances are that your = it won’ at even a week, either. Just mind, I can cope with that bunch. I can cope with anything, as long as I know what it is I’m coping. Get along, Asey. I got fifty mil- lion things to do before tomorrow morning.” re laughed, and continued to “This isn’t funny.” Weston was highly indignant. “And don’t you think it is, either! It’s no joke!” “Maybe not, but what’s this all about, Wes?. What're you scared of? Why’m I supposed to turn into a police chief for? What is this, anyway?” “Didn't you hear anything 1 said to you, back there ia the office, when L.explained?” Weston demanded. Asey shook;his head. “I tried to tell you that the boiler factory had you licked from the start. Oh. I knew you was all het up. You got that much over.” “You mean, you didn’t hear about how .they tried to set the Town Hall on fire? Or—” “Who tried to set the Town Hall on fire?” “I don’t know. Or about cutting the grandstands, so’s they’d smash down? Or about stealing the town gis every last one ofem? Or—” “Wes, don’t you think,” Asey noe an, and. broke off. A look ai earnest. “Or abeut the shotguns disap- ae. or any of the rest?” “What,” Asey asked with great restraint, “what rest?” “About someone trying to kill m oer mien Asey repeated. “You mean, there’s anything else to add to that?” “Well.” Weston said, “they’ve tried to get the other two select- men. Brinley and Enis Jeff. Only those two are too dumb to catch = There. There’s the whole You.can take care of it Itlibea emer for you. Now, hustle this roadster back off, to. town.” “You're quite sure.” Asey made no attempt to veil the irony in his voice, “you’re quite sure that’s all there is, are you. W-s?’ “It’s all I know. anyway. Start jot to get things going. While Fn sy, you just fix up ee Wouldn' t want me to throw in a solution of the farm problem, til} would you?” Asey drawled. “Or settled! Now, bas tac maaberibbi es irene ner the labor problem? Or the fiscal Problem, or decentral’zation, or somethin’? Wes. be sensible! If one tenth of ae you said is true, you need help, Ou. — P’fessional help, an Call in the state ni Know? Hult Asey, ane one know’ f told you is true. And what's you're going to settle the usiness yourself.” —$— taf | Normal Precipitation ___ is cousin’s face convinced him | that the man was entirely in | THE WEATHER seeoessoccooooooococecce | ‘ sugar production in Florida when, | Yesterday’s Precipitation .0 Ins. 05 Ins. *Thix record covers 24-hour period euling: at & o'clock thix morning. 12:48 12:16 5:40 7:05 @ m., today took — 30.03 | WEATHER FORECAST (Till 7:30 p. m., Saturday) Key West and Vicinity: Partly cloudy tonight and Saturday; no decided change in temperature; moderate southerly winds, be- coming variable. Florida: Mostly cloudy tonight and Saturday, in central portion and near east coast; cooler in central northeast portions tonight. Jacksonville to Florida Straits and East Gulf: Moderate north- erly winds over north portion, and moderate southerly winds +becoming-- variable over south portion, and paéftly overcast wea- ther tonight and Saturday, pos- sibly scattered showers. Today's Horoscope JeSseecseesresacee-seece Today brings with it a some- what selfish tendency and a speculative nature on the part of the native. It sometimes pro- duces very successful financiers and lavish spenders. Lucurious tastes may prevail and a certain lack of judgment In making the best use of the resources. e Svocceccccceccccs — THY IT TODAY — The Pavorite In Key West STAR >* BRAND CUBAN COFFEE ON SALE AT ALL GROCERS =: SOTTTITTTISSIOTOTTOS PPP PP PP NJ Annual Electric Range Sale A set of ‘WOULD and ; model General Electric Range sold and installed during this sale. Al- so—a liberal allowance will be made fer your old steve. PAGE THREE | speaking-on- the Kilender- sugar| higher wages paid in the Ever- bill, he stated that the people of| glades than in other areas supply- Florida had spent many millions! ing the American market © and making the Everglades ready for| stating that the worker in the cultivation and, now, the people} Everglades spends a hundred of Florida were asking that they | times as much as the Cuban sugar be allowed to produce the sugar! worker, he called attention to the Senator Andrews presented a/for the production of which the fact that Florida was not even telling .argument for increased | Everglades were drained. | permitted to fill its own sugar After touching upon the much bowl. SUGAR OUTPUT CLEWISTON, April 7 (FNS).— CHEVROLET 0.022% sins, ‘All Thats Best at ‘amie Cost IN SALES The biggest selling 1939 model car in America—and more than that—the biggest selling car for seven out of the last eight years! 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All these are yours with the new General Electric—plus added advant- ages no other range can offer. TERMS $ 69 Pe \ N IN N . N \ . . . . . . \ . ‘ N N \the regulars pob at short, ae jmay beat out Owens for back-| | stopping and it is too early to! ! judge the three pitchers but they | 49 PASSENGERS. look good. Boston Bees have a SOO SCS SSS SSS SSS SS SOSSSSSSSSSSSSSSOSSS SS SSSSSSSESS | find in Eddie Miller at shortstop. SPORTS SHORTS— |GOOD CROP OF ROOKIES— _ Dodgers have infielder Pete Ries-| Steamship Cuba, of the P. and Don’t be surprised if Chicago| Big league clubs have turned jer and pitcher Whit Wyatt, who} ©: S. S. Co, arrived from Tampa} Cubs, starting their first season|up-a good crop of rookies—Rich, | played in the American Le under Gabby Hartnett, begin de-| Williams and Taber among the several years. Manuel Saivo is) Yesterday and was at the dock fense of their National League leaders. Rich will pitch for the | the best bet on the Giants’ pitch-| at 7 a.m. On board were four championship with a 21-year-old} Red Sox and Williams will play jing staff, Hafey and Myatt are/ | first cabin passengers for Key rookie at the vital shortstop spot. the outfield for the same club. | fighting for the third base job—/| west, 44 first cabin and one sec- Diek Bartell is_on the shelf, and Jim Taber, who is a third base-|Hafey may stick if Myatt does} cant ania Sue Meas: Stephen Mesner, a pro-ball play- man, has won a regular berth on | net hit. Cincinnati have Junior) er sinee he was 16 years of age, the Red Sox. | Thompson and Livengood, two! Arrivals at Key West were: J. will start et short. New York Yankees have four rookies who look good and may) P. Tonetti, "Mrs. H. Angeoke, Fred University of. Havana baseball dandy rookies in catcher Buddy |make the grade from Class D to ! Kessler and Mrs. Kessler. and track team passed through Rosar, pitcher Bauer, and out-/ the majors in one year. | Shown on the manifest of the Key West yesterday on their way fielders Gallagher ‘and ~ Keller. / ——— j vessel were, the following items: Senators have Ortiz, colorful | PICK: OF FANS— | For Key West, 33 tons of freight Cuban pitcher; Materson, the! Bobby Schultz claims the ma-| and one sack of mail, and for | Venezuelan Carrasquel, who will| jor league teams will finish in Havana, no freight and 48 sacks be Alexander to the scorekeeper | this order: National—Cincinnati, | of mail. : H in the league, and another Cuban, | Chicago, New York, Pittsburgh,; The vessel sailed for Havana, Estallella, who will play leftfield} St. Louis, Boston, Brooklyn and! shortly before: 11 o’elock with 38+ regularly. Connie Mack thas'Philadelphia; American — New/}first cabin passengers and one} Nagal, cocky third baseman, and | York, Detroit, Cleveland, Boston,; second, two automobiles Miles, who will play the outfield. Washington, Chicago, St. sas eight sacks of mail. Detroit Tigers claim | and. Philadelphia. Hutehinson, the $100,000 beauty, Yours truly believes Boston Red! land Philadelphia tagging along who won 25 games last year for Sox will cop the American) behind in that order. Seattle, and McCoskey, a fleet| League pennant and New York . FOLLOWING THROUGH (CUBA BRINGS IN BY AGUILAR “SPEEDSTER”—G-55 | back home. The baseball club was not successful but the track team was.. The ball players won only three games and lost six, and the track teanr won five out of eight events. Coach Kendrig- an told the writer that Fileberto Rivero won most of his races and was the star of the meet. The coach will attempt to have a local elub go over to Havana the first week in August. Manager Bucky Harris claims that Krakauskas will piteh the opening game for the Senators. A’ by year ago Joe Krakauskas could pitcher from New. Orleans. St.| Washington, St. Louis and Phila-. not make the grade in a minor Louis Cardinals have six classy delphia. Over in the senior cir-| league. He walked 14 batters in young fellows, pitchers w cut.fonbe an Spkebeane euler “COMET "—G-32 FREE—ELECTRIC COOKING UTENSILS! The Key West Electric Company \ VOI IITLSLILSISIIILIIIOLILILIL IIIS ISTE, \ \ \ \ . . ‘ IN) \ ; N . : N N a. EN =" N : N N N ES A cen. Sef