New Britain Herald Newspaper, February 23, 1929, Page 12

“Handsome Harry” Borden, pro- moter of dublous stock companies, 1a shot between one and four o'clck Saturday afternoon. His body s found Menday morning sprawled beneath the airshaft window of his private office hy his secretary, Ruth Lester, The first suspect questioned by Police Detective McMann is Mra Rorden, the promoter's wife and mother of his two children, She ad- niits calling Saturday afternoon for ker monthly alimony check but de- nies any knowledge of the murder. The aecond suspect is Ruth Lester who telln of Borden's attempt at fumiliarity with her Saturday morn- ing. but who insists she knows roth- ing of the crime. ‘The third suspect is Jack Hay- ward, Ruth's fiance, whose office I3 Jjust across the narrow airshaft from Borden's. He explains his presence on the seventh floge that fateful afternoon by saying he had returned for his and Ruth's matinee tickets left on his desk. Further suspicion Iz cast on Jack by the testimony of Till Cowan, who tells of hearing Jack threaten Borden Saturday morning when he saw the promoter attempt familiarity with Ruth in the opposite office. Cowan also tells of teclephoning Jack Raturday afternoon, of being plugged in on 2 busy lipe, and of hearing Borden’s voice quarreling violently, presumably with Jack. While plainclothes detectives are dispatched to bring in Benny Smith, Rorden’s office boy, and Rita Du- bois. night club dancer and friend of Borden's, McMann tells Ruth and Jack they may go to lunch. They are followed by a detective trained in lip-reading. Ruth returns to the office haunted with the fear that|detective had any minute may bring Jack's arrest. NOW GO ON WITH THE STORY CHAPTER XXIT “Miss Lester,” McMann called to Ruth, who was hanging up her hat and coat, “you're familiar with Bor. den's letter files of course. 1 wish you'd go through them and bring me every letter you can find ‘hat contains a threat of any kind. A promoter of his ilk is bound to have wade bitter enemies, and 1 dou't want to overiook any bets. Also Lring me his cancelled checks for |rifle through the the last year. If he has heen ray-|letters it contained. ing blackmail to anyone, I'd like |What gave vyon to know ft.” Miss Lester?"” “Yes, Mr. McMann.” Ruth agreed| “A big, cagerly. She was grateful for any|whom task that would keep her mind otf | never Jack Hayward's almost inevitable arrest. And her respect for the de- tective rose, He was not letting the blackness of his case against Juck Hayward make him indolent or carcless in opening up new ave- nues of investigation. A detective | next visit. —McMann: not just a third-degree bully, s she had feared. A few minutes later she entered Borden's private office, which the “Mr. Borden, when 1 first work for him, told me he wany blackmail instructed me to file al found fn his rail I'm sure he was afraid. he had a private detective sort of bodyguard.” McMann, obviously opened the heard and Mr. Borden Ruth answered new threat cagerly. * for the folder when Jake when 1 left, around in the hall, am if to protect Alr. Borden. 66 W. Main Street Crawford Vulcan Sterling A. D. Lipman 525 Main Street Wincroft Monogram Waterman Geisinger’s, Inc. 6 Main Street Porstow Stewart Dangler made his own, laid two bulky folders before him. and death-threat letters from ruined investors, in this folder. He pretended to laugh at them, but | apout him at all. Of course I never impressed, folder and began to odd collection of “That that impression, Mr. Borden called Jake—I nis last name--was n and out of the offices frequently, always saw him " | lef the mail, Mr. Borden always called | Frequently, also, when Me. Borden was still in his offices 1 saw Jake hanging that is the only explanation I oul} {think of.” came to! Mcdlann frowned in intense con- received | centration. Then: “Did this Jake have a key to the offices, Miss Les- ter?” Ruth shook her head. “I don't know. 1 don’t know anything else and and 1 that | T thing or some asked Mr. Borden any questiona and he never volunteered any in- formation.” McMann left the room, apparent- ly to give instructions to Detective Birdwell in the outer office, then returned and hegan to wtudy the letters again, frowningly. “Nothing 0? ‘ uncouth-looking man | recent here.” he said at last, clow- ing the folder. “but of course T'li put a man on this joh. Bomething may tyrn up, but I doubt it. Now ee these cancelled checks. Yon ‘And if 'Iit'hvck»d his bank stutements for had been received in| him, T suppose?” “Yes. 1t was difficult, for he sel. dom made an entry on a check stub, \ and when 1 questioned him about a blank stub in an effort 1o keep the record straight so that he would not overdvaw, he would say, with him 8aturday. made his waiting At least Now Is the Time for A New Gas Range ‘Oh, 1 don’t know! Two or three hundred, | guess. Just charge it to “cash.” ' Sometimes he drew us much ag two or three thousand dol- lars out of the bank in a singte week.” “Any checks to women ?" McMann demanded. “Only to Mrs. Borden,” Ruth told him. <« “80 ‘Handsome Harry’ woman's fool” MeMann approved, smiling crookedly. ny charge accounts for his lady friends?” Again Ruth shook her head. “No, not in his®name at least. But from what he said to Rita Dubois on Saturday I gathered that he had given her letters to the credit man- agers of several shops. | imagine the accounts were to be opened in her name, with his name as guar- antee of payment, but of course 1 can't be sure.* “Just one of the little points that Rita can clear up for us,” McMann commented dryly. “RBy the way, how long had Borden's affair wjth the dancer been going on?" “I don’t think it had really be. sun.” Ruth answered honestly Ruth answered honestly. “From what 1 overheard between them on Saturday and from what Mr, Borden said after Rita had left—"" “What did he say?" terrupted sharply. “Something about ‘they all fail sooner or later,' and that he like them when they weren't too casy.” Ruth answered, flushing, “He met Rita Duybeis at the Golden Slipper about three. weeks ugo, and was infatuated with her from the first.” “And she with him?" Ruth’s flush deepened. * no. She hated for him even 10 touch her hand. I was syrprised that she had agreed to go to Winter Haven with him Saturday.” *“There's something else, Lests Out with it!” “Well,” Ruth admitted reluctant- ly, “she practically admitted to me that she was gold-digging Mr. Bor- den. That was Saturday morning She noticed the change in my ap- pearance, too, and charged e, good-naturedly, with having ‘dolled up’ to mp' Mr. Borden. She laughed then, and said § could have him ‘next week' implying that she would get all she wanted out of him over the week-end. Then she warn- ed me not to tell Borden what she had sald. 1 replied by telling her of my engagement to Mr. Haywa.1 Mr, Borden came out of his private office then and eaded the conversa- tion between Miss Dubois and my- self.” McMann in- Miss “Hmm!" McMann' frowned, as he scraw otes on a sheet of vellow paper. No wonder she was sore when he ‘stood her up.’ Now, Miss Lester. 1'd like you to tell me, it you can, who preceded Rita Dubois in Borden's affections, There was fomeone, of course?” Ruth hesitated, loath to involve another woman. probably as inno- cent as hersel? of Rorden's murder, but she realized that now, when the shadow of arrest hung over the man she loved, was no time to “e scrupulously etnical. And if she did pot tell, MeMann would learn from other sonrces. “Krom the time I came to work for Mr. Borden until I met Miss Dubola* she began slowly, “Mr.. Borden was very attentive to s Mis Gliman— Cleo Gilman.” “Were they tovers?" asked bluntly. “] don’t know, but — I presume Ruth answered reluctantly. “I heard her remind him, on the McMann tifth of December, I believe it was, | og that her rent was due. and | saw him give her cash to pay it. She did not come to the office very fre- quently, but until he met Miss Du. bols ha made an engagement with by telephone nearly ery day.” “Her telephons number and ad- dress?” McMann demanded. T don’t know her address, but the telephone aumber was “Vayne 3400," Ruth told him. - “And did they quarrel over Miss Dubois?"” . “I don't know. He simply stopped calling ber on the phone and gave me instructions to tell her he-was not in if she called him.” “And what dJid she say to y when you told her Borden wasn't in?" the dimple in the corner of Ruth's enchanting littie mouth, “The first time she ieft word for him to call her, and he didn't, of course. The sccond time she laughed .and said, ‘Well, well! 8o that's that! Lis- ten, darling. tell him Cleo says ‘Goodby good. luck and God bless you.”' She never ‘called again, when T was here.” “You're sure of that? Sure she wasn't the woman wbo called him Saturday morning and wouldn't leave her name?” McMann prodded. “No. The voice was not the same at all.,” Ruth replied unhes. itutingly. *“The woman who called Saturday morning had a heautiful throaty contralto voice. Miss Gil- man's is a little nasal and quite bigh-pitche McMann reached for the exten- sion of the telephone which he hal had hooked up with police hea. quarters. “Hello! That you. tain? McMann speaking. Have a 800d man sent out to bring in Cleo Gilman. Yes—that's right. One of Torden's lady friends that he broke with about three weeks ago. Tele- phone number, Wayne 3400. . Yes. . . . Too much rather than too Iittle. 1 got enough suspects to fill » jail. . . . No, I'm not making any arrests yet. f “What's that? The boys didn" find a gun in either place? . ® Well, 1 didn't think they would. . By the way, Captain, any re. port on Borden's man servant, Ashe, yet? 1 told Birdwell an hour ago to have him brought here. . . . Not at Worden's apartment, eh? | Well, 1 want him brought here as soon he shows up. . . . Yes, here! I'm making these offices my headquarters for today, at least. Yes, she's a lot of help to me, and 1 don’t want to drag her down to Leadquarters if 1 can help it,” Mec- Mann nodded and smiled at Ruth, to indicate that he was referring to her, “Mrs. Borden? T sent her home at noon. She has a sick child. No, no danger of her blowing, . . . The ghost of a amile tugged tl Oh, sure, she's still in the picturs. O'Brien’s keeping an eye on her. + + o All right, Captain. Ses you soon,” and McMann hung up the receiver just as .Rirdwell -opened the door between the two offices. “Detective Clay and Rita Dubols, sir.” “Good! Shows Rita in. I'll speak to Clay out thers,” Mchann direct. 5 he rose from Borden's desk. “Shall T leave the room, Mr, Mec- Mann?" Ruth asked, but so wist. fully that the stern-faced detective smiled again, with something like paternal fondness. “I should say not! I'm count. ing on your help,” he boomed, and bolted from the reom before she could thank him. A minute later the door opened to admit Rita Dubois. The dancer's black eyes looked enormous in the thin, exotically beautitul . but there was a nonchalant smile on th vividly rouged lips. “Well, well! We meet agahn, durling,” she drawled, as she swayed, gloved hand on a slin hip, ! |toward Ruth Lester. “I see you've shed the hera-rimmed spectacles, along with the rest of your scared bunuy diaguise, and believe me, you're & riot.” She had come quite close, and suddenly her voice dropped to a Whisper: “Listen, infant! Slip me a'tip, won't you? Does that big Stiff of a detective know I was here Saturday afternoon? Is that why he sent a dick out to drag me in?" Ruth smiled, felt again that warm rush of friendliness toward the brocsy, slangy dancer. “The elevator operator told him . he brougnt you up about twe o’'clock Saturday afternoon,” she answered in & whisper. “Thanks, kid!” The dancer drew & sharp breath, the nonchalant smile was wiped from the rouged lips. ' Buddenly she looked old and tired and very much afraid, (TO BE CONTINUED) Read the next chapter for lta Dubois’ story. The clews are flying thick and fast, READ HERALD CLASSIFIED ADS Around 87 per cent of India's agricultural unplement imports re It i | A1 e %f;f? ziif The Toonerville Trolley That Meets All the Trains. By Fontaine Fox. THE SKIPPER HAS A DERBY HAT HE WEARS AROUND AT THE TERMINALS To KEEP HIM ABoUT STARTING UP THE CAR. GERS FloM PESTERING J. M. Curtin & Co. 404 Main Street Glenwood Chambers Somerville You will appreciate the wonderful con-enience, cleanliness and complete oven control of a modern Gas Range. 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