Newspapers / The Chatham Record (Pittsboro, … / Sept. 6, 1928, edition 1 / Page 2
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Thursday, September 6, 1928 THE HUMAN SPHINX BY Ellis Parker Butler ILLUSTRATION BY RE.WATSON * THIRD INSTALLMENT WaiAT HAPPENED BEFORE Simon Judd, amateur detective, and William Dart, an undertaker, are visiting John Drane, eccentric man of wealth, at the Drane place. Sud denly the household is shocked to find John Drane has been murdered. The dead man is first seen by Josie, the maid, then by Amy Drane and Simon Judd. The latter faints. NOW GO ON WITH THE STORT When Simon Judd returned to conciousness it was largely be cause of the pain in the ear and when he tried to move his head he could not do so. For a moment or two he was unable to remember where he was or how he came there for, close to his eyes, wa s what seemed to be an enormous black pillar. It seemed to be, as his .senses returned a most unaccount able thing—a low black shoe out -of which arose a phenomenally large ankle, and when he put his hand to hi s ear he was no longer in doubt, a foot was standing on his ear. Someone was standing with one heel against his nose and the toe of the other foot on his ear, and he tried to push the latter foot away. “Leave be! Stop it, you!” a hoarse voice whispered, but the foot re moved itself from his ear and Si mon Judd sat up. He found him self encompassed bv skirts and he backed out from among them and .got to his feet. He was in a group at the door of John Drane’s room; evidently he had been unconscious but a moment or two, for Amyg Drane was still standing in horror on the threshold. The madi Josie .still lay where she had fallen, but there were now others peering into the room. Norbert, the colored house man, was there, and the big foot that had been pressed against Si mon Judd’s nose was that of the cook, a woman almost as enormous as Simon Judd himself. Behind the cook was a second maid, Zella, with her hands pressed against her cheeks, and Drane’s chauffeur was running up the stairs. To him Simon Judd turned. “John Drane’s been murdered,” Simon Judd said to the chauffeur. “I can’t look at him; I faint off at the sight of blood. Always did and dare say I always will. this heie girl’s fainted, too. Help me get her into a bed somewhere and out of the way or she’s like to be trompled. Here you!” He touched Zella on the shoulder “You come and get this girl out of her faint,’ he said. “Where we goin’ to put her?” “Here —this way,” Zella said, crossing the hall and opening a door. “Miss Amy’s room. Let me .help you, George. You and me take her shoulders and he can take her feet. Go easy, George—she’s got heart trouble.” They carried Josie to the bed in Amy’s room and' Simon Judd fol lowed the chauffeur into the hall. “If you know who the family doctor is you better send for him,” Judd said. “You better send for the police, too; this ain’t my baili- Jwick.” “Yes, I’ll do that,” the chauffeur said. He, at least, was efficiently businesslike. “You better not let them touch anything in there, un less he’s alive yet.” “I know all that, young man,' Judd said. “I’ll take hold here; you get a move on.” “I’ll telephone,” the chauffeur said, and he started for the stairs, but the cook took his arm. “George! Aain’t it awful? Ain’t it just awful?” she cried. Simon Judd beckoned the two officers into the house “‘Mighty bad, Maggie,” he said, n “‘No, nothing to be done,” she , feaid and turned and then, suddenly, she broke into sobs and threw her- i "self against Simon Judd, weeping j tempestuously on his shoulder. “He was all I had!” she sobbed. “‘He was so good to me; he was So kind to me!” “There, there!” Simon Judd com forted her. “I know just how you feel, girl. You cry all you want to, it won’t do you no mite of harm. All of you keep out of that room!” he ordered, and then to the weep 4q3u |9oj i„ juibSb ijiS 3ui comfortable about that hired girl we put in your room; the other one •said how she ha R heart trouble. I don’t know but what you might help in there some, if you feel up to it.” “Josie?” Amy asked. “In my Toon!? Yes, I’ll go to her.” She wiped her eyes and hurried across the hall, and Simon Judd looked after her. ■ “There’s a real kid, he said to I him c e'f. “If that’s a flapper she ain’t flapped none of the common sense out of her yot, anyhow. He looked at those remaining at John Drane’s door. “Say, look here!” he said sud denly. “Where’s that other feller; the man with the whiskers. What did John say his name was. Dart. The housekeeper turned. , “Mr. Dart? Yes, sir. Why, J . don’t know where Mr. Dart is. l made ud the blue guest room for him. Mr. Drane said he was going to stay the night.” . .. “I left him down theer mthe parlor, or whatever you call it, when I come up to bed, bimon Judd said. ”They had something to talk over, seemed like. I guess may be they talked late; maybe he amt UP “See, Norbert, if he’s in his room,” Mrs. Vinvent ordered and the negro went. He came back at once. * “No, ma’am,’ he said. “He am t in his room; his bed ain’t been slep in. I guess he got so mad —” He stopped. T ~ “You guess what?” Simon Judd i demanded. ~_ T * «t “1 said mad,” said Norbert. I mean mad. What I mean is Ive got this cough on my chist and l been takin’ medicine for it. The doc give me a medicine for to al leviate the cough, and he says take a swaller whenever the cough comes upon me, and last night 1 leaves the bottle down there. So when 1 starts to cough I go down to get my bottle. Yes sir!” “What time was it?” Simon Judd “ ‘Well, I don’t rightly know. May be one o’clock, maybe two o’clock. I ain’t look at no time pice, I just «tarts down. And when I get on the step* here I hear Mist’ Drane and Mist’ Dart talkin’ together, and Mist’ Dart he surely is might mad about it. Yes sir! swearin’ and cus sin; yes, sir! Mighty mad So I don t go down. I comes up.” “What were they talking about' Simon Judd asked. . “Now,* that I don’t know, said Norbert. “I ain’t listen; it ain’t none of my business what gentlemans talk about. 1 just comes up.” The chauffeur George came up “I got Doctor Blessington,” he told Simon Judd. “He’ll be right out. And I got the police station; they’re sending men.” In fact the police officers arrived almost immediately, the local head quarters having telephoned to the station nearby. They came, two them, on popping motorcycles that they parked alongside the veranoa, and entered the house together. From the top of the stairs Simon “but don’t get excited about it. You keep calm; you don t want to fetch on another of those spells of yours. You better go down and take a—-take a drink of water or something.” “Yes, I’ll be doing just that,’ she said. “It’ R turrible, George a mur der right in the house. Who done it, do ye think?” “We can’t tell that yet,” he said. “Come on, if you want me to help you down. I got to phone the doc and the police.” Simon Judd turned toward the murdered man’s room. He put his hand over his eyes to hid the dead man from his sight. „ “Now, you see here, Miss Amy, he said. “You better go downstairs awhile until the doctor comes; that man of yours is sending for him and for the police. There ain t no thing to be done until they come.” Judd bade them to come up. v “No one been in the room,” one of the officers asked as he saw the group at the door. “No one,” Simon Judd told them. “Not that I know of, anyway,” and he told of having heard the scream of the girl Josie and of coming at once from his room. The officers entered the room. “Looks like murder, Joe,” one said. “Sure is murder,” the other re plied. “Looks to me like a case for Brenny.” “Yes, he ought to get on it right away, too. You better go down and phone headquarters; I’ll stay here. This man’s dead, all right. Any body sent for a doctor?’ “One’s coming,” Simon Judd said. “We’re going to have Brennen on this case, most likely,’ ’the officer said. “They hand him most of these murders these days. He’s a good one; he’ll clear up this in no time if there’s any clear up to it. He’s the best man we’ve got on Long Island. Who’ s that?” It was Dr. Blessington entering the house. He came up the stairs, a small black case in his hand. “In here?” he said and entered ; John Drane’s room. Below, the second officer was telephoning headquarters. “Ah, good morning, officer” he said to the man in John Diane’s room. ‘Murder, is it? Too bad! This sort of thing is getting altogether too common. You might ask these folks to go downstairs. We’ll just close this door.” “And all of you hang around down there, see?” said the officer. “Trere’ll be questions to be ask ed.” “Come! We’ll go down,” said Simon Judd and, as Amy Drane tame from the room where the Maid Josie lay. She stood back to make way for Her. “She doin all right?” he asked. “That’s good. The cop wants us to go down and wait; the doctor’s in there.” They went down. The servants went into the dining room off the hall and waited there, and Simon Judd and Amy went into the veranda. The girl sat twisting her hands, saying nothing, now and again wiping her eyes, and when the doctor came down the stairs did not arise. She held her hand kerchief over her quivering mouth. Dr. Blessington came out into the veranda and set down his black case. His face was drawn into serious lines and he was frowning. “You are Mr. Drane’s niece—his grand niece, I believe? ’ he said. “And this gentleman?” “Why I’m just a feller that knew John when he was a boy,’ explaine’d Judd. “Him and me used to play together back in Riverbank, lowa, long before he ever came East—6o years ago, anyway. I’m east on a sort of business and I telephoned old John yesterday, just for old ! times’s sake, and he says to come j out and see him a day or so.” “How long is it since you saw him last, before yesterday?” Dr. Blessington asked. “Thirty-five years,” said Simon Judd. “That is a long time; he is great ly changed since then, isn’t he?” “Well, yes,” Simon Judd admitted. “Yes, John had changed quite a bit. Just as bony as ever and so on, but a lot older.” “Would you have known him if you had not known he was John Drane? Would you have recognized him, for example, if you had met him on the street by chance?” Simon Judd rubbed the back of his head thoughtfully. “Novvv that’s a hard one, doc!” he said at length. “I might have, and 1 might not have. Maybe not. It’s been so blame long since I saw John last. Why, what are you getting at anyway?” Dr. Blessington turned to Amy. “I wanted to tell you this myself, Miss Drane,” he said, “for I know it will be a shock to you. The ‘man’ up there in the bed, the mur dered ‘man, the ‘man’ we have known as John Drane, is not a man at all. ‘He’ is a woman.” CONTINUED NEXT WEEK Ar ttfou Ready * When your Children Ciy for It Baby has little upsets at times. All your care cannot prevent them. But you j can be prepared. Then you can do what I any experienced nurse would do—what ; most physicians would tell you to do— ■ I give a few drops of plain Castoria. No 1 sooner done than Baby is soothed; relief is just a matter of moments. Yet you have > eased your child without use of a single doubtful drug; Castoria is vegetable. ! So it’s safe to use as often as an infant has any little pain you cannot pat away. And it’s always ready for the crueler 1 pangs of colic, or constipation, or diar rhea; effective, too, for older children. ; Twenty-five million bottles were bought 1 last year. 1 Icastorial THE CHATHAM RECORD NEW HILL NEWS (Written for last week) Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Webster and little daughter Evelyn of Greensboro, and Mis s Mary Webster spent a de lightful week-end at Wrightsville Beach. They returned Thursday by "White Lake and spent a few r hours. Mr. Zeb Hearn and daughter, Sa rah and Mrs. Bettie Raynor and lit tle daughter, of Raeford spent the iast few days in this section. Mrs R. L. Trotter and son R. L. Jr , have gone to Richmond to visit her sisters Mrs. P. F. and Mrs. Tom Kirk. Mr. W. T. Mann is confined in A hi spital in Raleigh. He is in a serious condition we understand. His relatives and friends .ire visiting him often. There was an ice c-ean supper given by the New Elam Christian Li«<cvor society last S.iiK day eve ning. Quite a neat sum -was real ized which will be used for the fcftmfit of the school. Mr. T. M. Lassiter of Durham, has been visiting his parents Mr. and Mrs. J. C. Lassiter. M ; s s Josie Woods has been visit ing relatives in Durham for a few days. Mr. J. R. Sturdivant of Siler City s;cnt the week-end at home with his parents, Mr. and Mrs. R. L. Stur divant. Masses Rose Sturdivant and Ren nie W ebster are spending the week !»"• Greensboro with Mr. and Mrs. Henry Webster. Tut sday a little daughter was bom to Mr. and Mrs. Henry Eliis of Sanford. Mrs. Ell's was before her marriage Miss Janice Carr and the little lady has been named Jan ice Marion. KIMBALTON NEWS (Written for last week) Adrew Burges s and family of Burlington spent last week with their uncle John Bowers. Mrs. Sam Hancock and children of Sweepsonville spent last week w T ith her mother, Mrs. Brooks McMath. Oakley Baseball team will play Hickory Mt. at Hickory Mt. next Sat urday. The revival meeting at Hickory Mt. Baptist church closed Friday night after a successful meeting. There were fifteen baptised and six new members by letter. * * fir Economical Transportation The COACH *585 The Touring $/Qtf or Roadster . . * The Coupe .. $595 Silt D “ r .. *675 The Convertible Sffiole, ... $ 695 The imperial $7 •» C Landau..... « tj ( Chassis Only ) Light $^7C Delivery .... -J t ( Chassis Only ) Ml prices f. o. b. Flint , Michigan Cheek Chevrolet Delivered Prices They include the low est handling and fi nancing charges available. . > Moncure Chevrolet Co., Stout Motor Co. MONCURE, N. C. GOLDSTON, N. C. Q _u,~a~ l~ i T_Y Ayr ,l~ouw cjjlSjT i ♦ 1 | i: On The Rural Route | II I Why not let Uncle Sam work for you? His services o are cheap, prompt and business-like. II I J[ Suppose you are on the farm and receive notice of ;jj i ► < (, J[ an account that is due in town. If your funds are at <► the bank, just mail the party a check by R. F. D., and o <► <► go right ahead with your work. It's all done for a <► o two-cent stamp. Os course, if you really want to come <► 4 , to town—that's different. <► j: . ! if II if || iiiLL THE BANK OF MONCURE a II !E % <► I; •‘.’’i'l'! MONCURE, N. C. ♦ o C !t • <1 i rrm J A MIGHTY MEAN MAN We heard tell of a man the other day who was so mean that he called his wife ‘‘Radio" because she broadcasted all the news. Some cranky old fellow, no doubt, who never lets his wife get in a word edgewise. We often wish this Bank had a real radio broadcasting station so we could tell all the people the good features of our reliable bank. The nearest we can come to it is by advertis ing. If you are not already a patron,, please take this ‘ as an invitation. 4 THE BANK »f GOLDSTON HUGH WOMBLE, Pres. T. W. GOLDSTON Cashier GOLDSTON, N. C. Choice of the Nation for 1928/ Although the Bigger and Better Chevrolet offers elements of beauty never before thought possible in a low-priced auto mobile .«. although it offers the features of advanced design and completeness of detail de manded in the world’s finest cars... one of the fundamental reasons for its tremendous suc cess is found in its amazing per formance— THE ECONOMY MOTOR CO. 1 SILER CITY, N. C. —so smooth, so powerful and so unfailingly dependable that it'has literally captivated more than three-quarters of a million : buyers since January Ist! Come in and drive this sensa tional car! Drive it as long and as far as you like—in traffic and on the road* We know that you’ll say that no other auto mobile in all the world can give you so much —at prices so amazingly low! PAGE TWO
The Chatham Record (Pittsboro, N.C.)
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Sept. 6, 1928, edition 1
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