PAGE SIX
DEATH MANOR
M. E. CORNE CaJTRALPRE^ASSOCIATION^^^^^^|
"Are you calling me a liar?”
READ THIS FIRST:
Elsie Ritter, a beauty shop operator,
taking the place of a friend for a week
in the private salon of Mrs. Horace
Witherspoon, Sr., ilnds herself involved
in a murder mystery when first the
eccentric old lady and later her mid
dle-aged daughter-in-law are found
dead under the same hair drier. Elsie
was attending each at the time, though
out of the salon for a few moments be
fore discovering the old lady's death.
A string of emeralds, belonging to Mrs.
Sr., are strangely miss
ing. Certain members of the Wither
spoon family, and some* of the house
guests, strike Elsie as queer. Phil Ben
son, newspaper reporter and close
friend of Elsie, arrives as the police
launch their investigation. He imme
ately phones for Mac Mclntyre, head
of the Chicago homicide squad, who
happens to be in town. Meanwhile
Richard and Daphne Witherspoon, chil
dren of the second victim, conduct
: themselves oddly during questioning.
(NOW GO ON WITH THE STORY),
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHIEF ELLIS grinned when
Richard referred to him as a jack
ass. "Suppose,” he suggested gent
ly, "suppose you tell me what you
know.”
"Richard doesn’t know a thing,”
Daphne cried. "He wasn’t in the
house this morning.”
"No? And where was he?”
"I was in town,” Richard in
formed him savagely, "and what
I was doing is none of your busi
ness!”
"Richard is excited,” his sister
put in quickly. "He was doing some
errands for me —at the drug
f **
"That right, son?”
"Yes,” the boy admitted sullenly,
"that’s right."
“All right. We can check on
that.” Ellis waved him aside. “Now,
Miss Witherspoon, you haven’t told
me where you went after leaving
the salon.”
"I went to Miss Westcott’s room.
I helped her pack.”
"Pack ?”
"She is leaving on the evening
train.”
“Oh, no, she isn’t!" Ellis contra
dicted her. “No one leaves this
house until I give the word.”
“But, officer!” Glad Westcott
protested this order. She rolled her
big eyes in his direction. 'Tve sim
ply got to catch the evening train.
My mother’s expecting me.”
“Sorry.” He refused to be
vamped. "No one can leave. Where
were you this morning when you
weren’t packing?”
She pouted, reproachfully: "I
was in bed, officer,” she drawled.
"I never get up before ten o’clock.”
“Did anyone see you there?”
"Why, officer!”
Chief Ellis’ neck turned fiery red.
“One up for Georgia,” whispered
Phil, and I giggled, but sickly.
“Quiet, please!” Ellis glared at
us. “Now you, Miss—” he signaled
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Della Craig. "What have you to
say?”
The actress regarded him coMly.
“Nothing whatsoever.” She had
evidently made up her mind not to
forgive his earlier lapse.
"You were a friend of the de
ceased?”
"Naturally.” / /
"She invited you here?”
"The family invited me.”
"I see. You are Della Craig, the
actress, are you not?”
“I am.”
“And where were you this morn
ing?”
“In my boudoir.”
"So?” He regarded her suspi
ciously. "What were you doing
there?”
“I was writing letters.”
"Alone?”
Della’s glance would have frozen
an Eskimo. “Quite!”
"All right.” His eyes rested upon
Toots Lemoine, and that young
woman twisted and untwisted her
jeweled fingers in her lap.
"Miss Lemoine?” He consulted a
scrap of paper in his hand.
"That’s me,” affirmed Toots, and
crossed her legs so that her silken
shafts were revealed above her
knee.
“You are a guest here?”
"Yeah.”
“A friend of the deceased?”
"Not exactly.” She cocked her
head to one side and exploded her
bombshell. "I’m engaged to Rich
ard Witherspoon!”
“No!” cried Daphne involuntar
ily. “No!”
“Say!” Toots forgot her role of
lady and reverted to type. “Are
you calling me a liar? Ask him!
Ask your darling little brother! Go
on, ask him!” She glared at Rich
ard. The boy’s eyes were glued to
her face. Once at a street carnival
I saw a snake the glazed eyes of
which watched those of the Egyp
tian snake charmer who owned him
as Richard’s watched Toots. He
was as if mesmerized; he bobbed
his head jerkily at her command.
"It’s true,” he said, and he
sounded as hopeless as a man can
sound. “We’re engaged.”
“Oh, Dickie!” Beneath her rouge
Glad Westcott paled. "How could
you?”
“I’m sorry, Glad.”
"Sorry, eh?” Toots said shrilly.
“Sorry for what? You asked me to
marry you, didn’t you? Didn’t
you?”
“No wrangling, please.” Ellis
stepped in and took over the reins.
"Did Mrs. Witherspoon approve of
your engagement, Miss Lemoine?”
"She—she didn’t know.”
"Secret, eh?”
“No, it wasn’t!” Toots denied
. HENDERSON, (N. C.) DAILY DISPATCH MONDAY, JANUARY 9, 1939
quickly. "We just made up oor
minds this morning.”
“While Richard was in town?”
Ellis demanded shrewdly.
“Never you mind when!” Toots
was losing her temper.
"Well,” he changed the subject,
“maybe you can tell me where you
were between eleven and eleven-fif
teen this morning?” <
“I was in bed,” snapped Toots,
and this time the chief let well
enough alone.
It was Count Orsini’s turn next.
He answered promptly—too
promptly, in my opinion—the ques
tions put to him. He was, he ex
plained smoothly, a guest in the
house at the invitation of his fian
cee, Miss Daphne Witherspoon. He
had met Miss Daphne in Paris the
winter before through f mutual
friends. Ellis got nothing from him
save the fact that he had spent the
morning in his room, and had been
seen there as late as eleven o’clock
by the maid who entered to change
his bed.
“I’ll get to the servants later,”
promised the chief, and then turned
to Jeffrey Todington. “Are you
also engaged to one of the ladies
present?” he inquired sarcastically.
“I am not.” Jeffrey’s face flushed,
and I guessed he was trying to re
main cool and collected and refrain
from punching the chief of police
on the nose. i
It turned out that Jeffrey was a
house guest at the Manor at Mr.'
Richard’s invitation. Mr. Richard'
and he were fraternity brother*
and Jeffrey was a family friend of
long standing. There was no men
tion made of his relations or for
mer relations with’ Daphne, but,
then, I guess a man naturally does
not boast of being jilted by the girl
he loves. And Jeffrey was in love
with Daphne. Any fool could tell
that by the way he looked at her.
“And where did you spend the
morning?”
“I was in the aboretum, and as
far as I know no one saw me
there.”
“Communing with nature, eh?”
Ellis was losing his temper.
“That’s my business!” Jeffrey’s
coolness threatened to rise to fever
pitch. ,
“And mine,” added the chief so
berly. “Everything connected with
this household is my business —
now!” And at his words I had an
other shivering spell.
What secrets would this police
man unearth before he had fin
ished with us? What skeletons
would he drag forth from dark
closets? I stole a quick glance
about the rdom.> Others, evidently,
shared my fear and wonder.
(To Be Continued)
"Thanks for Saving My Life”
Seven-year-old Dickie Morrison, safe in bed at Waltham, Mass., thanks
little Bobby Christenson, 5, for his heroic rescue. Dickie had crashed
through the ice on the Charles River. While spectators gasped, Bobbie
crawled out over the perilous ice and pulled Dick to safety.
(Central Press)
Ai Tiu. O. Rtm i
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New York’s district attorney, Thomas E. Dewey (right) was acclaimed
the leader of the Republican party in crucial New York State following
his address at a state-wide party dinner in Albany, in which he pledged
the G.O.P. to liberalism. He is pictured with the dinner host, Edwin F.
Jneckle, chairman of the executive committee.
, "Digesting” President’s Speech
mm
■ ppp
John W. Hanes (left), Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, Sumner
Welles (center), Under-Secretary of State, and Harry Woodring, Secre
tary of War, are pictured in earnest consultation after hearing the Presi
dent, addressing joint session of Congress, say that the nation is at the
. “deadline of danger.”
Police Rescue Police Dog
Policeman John Daley grabs a line from shore as he and Nick Fierro, a
park attendant, rescue a big German police dog from New York’s Central
Park Lake. The dog had spied some ducks far out on the ice, raced joy
fully toward them and plunged through thin ice one hundred feet from
shore. (Central Press)
Flames Frame a Picture
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This remarkable spot-news study in light and shadow was shot by an alert
cameraman who came upon sedan burning at Springfield, L. 1., after it
had crashed into a pole which toppled on the auto roof. A high-tension
wire exploded the gas tank. Radio police rescued three occupants.
Loretta Stands by Him
William P. Buckner is pictured in Hollywood with Loretta Young, scree*
actress. Buckner, accused in New York of defrauding investors, in a
$1,000,000 Philippine railway bonds case, was given court permission to
go to California on a two-week business trip. While denying they would
announce their engagement at this time, Miss Young said her feelings for
Buckner had not been changed by the charges against him.
On Trial in Prison Deaths
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Deputy Warden Frank A. Craven (right) of Holmesburg County pfisorf,
Philadelphia, confers with his attorney, John R. K. Scott, as they arrive
at court for Craven’s trial on charge of manslaughter. Four convicts
were alleged to have been literally cooked to death in the Klondike section
of the Holmesburg prison last summer when steam was turned on.
Landon Back from Lima
vi^^l
Ex-Governor Alf M, Landon, of Kansas, flashed a big smile as the photog
rapher snapped him at Fort Worth, Tex., when he alighted from an afr
liner. Landon was enroute home from the Pan-American Conference at
lama, Peru. (Central Pre*o.