Lincoln County leader. (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, June 21, 1912, Image 6

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Lincoln County leader., June 21, 1912, Image 6

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Newspaper Page Text7H"e THIRD DEGREE cA Narrative cTVIetropolitan I Life 1 By CHARLES KLEIN and ARTHUR HORNBLOW ILLU8TRATJ0NS BT RAT WALTERS (Coprricht, 1MB, br (i. W. UiUlngbam CompanjJ ju SYNOPSIS. Howard Jeffries, banker's son, under the evil Influence of Robert Underwood, fellow-student at Yale, leads a life of dis sipation, marries the daughter of a gam pier who died In prison, and Is disowned by Ma father. He Is out of work and In desperate straits. Underwood, who had one been engaged to Howard's step inother, Alicia, Is apparently In prosper ous circumstances. Taking advantage of Ws Intimacy with Alicia, he becomes a port of social highwayman. Discovering nls true character, Alicia denies him the house, He sends her a note threatening ulalde. Art dealers for whom he acted HS commissioner, demand an accounting. le cannot make good. Howard calls at lis apartments In an Intoxicated condl Jen to request a loan of 12,000 to enable llm to take up a business proposition. FJowsrd drinks himself Into a maudlin condition, and goes to sleep on a divan. A caller- la announced and Underwood craws a screen around the drunken Sleeper. Alicia enters. 8he demands a firomlse from Underwood that he will not ake his life. He refuses unless she will renew her patronage. This she refuses, and takes her leave. Underwood kills himself. The report of the pistol awa kens Howard. He finds Underwood dead. Howard Is turned over to the police. Capt. Clinton, notorious for his brutal treatment of prisoners, puts Howard through the third degree, and finally gets an alleged confession from the harassed men. Annie, Howard's wife, declares her belief In her husband's Innocence, and calls on Jeffries, Br. He refuses to help unless she will consent to a divorce. To are Howard she consents, but when she finds that the elder Jeffries does not in tend to stand by his son, except finan cially, she scorns his help. Annie appeals to Judge Brewster, attorney for Jeffries, Br., to take Howard's case. He declines. It is reported that Annie Is going on the Jtage. The banker and his wife call on udge Brewster to find some Way to pre vent It. Annie again pleads with Brew ster to defend Howard. He consents. CHAPTER XVI. Continued. "Ah! I begin to understand. You knew Robert Underwood? Howard knows your voice he heard you talk ing to him Oh, Mrs. Jeffries! Are you the woman who visited his apart ments that night?" The banker's wife bowed her head and collapsed on a chair. "Yes," she. murmured In a low tone. . Annie looked at her In amazement "Why didn't you come forward at once?" she cried. "Think of the pain which you might have spared us!" Alicia covered her face with her handkerchief. She was crying now . "The disgrace the disgrace!" she moaned. "Disgrace!" echoed Annie, stupe- fled. Indignantly, she went on: "Dis grace to you? But what of me and Howard?" "Can't you realize what It means to be associated with such a crime?" she walled. "Disgrace!"-cried Annie contemptu ously. . "What Is disgrace when a hu man life Is at stake?" "It seemed so useless," moaned Al icia "a useless sacrifice In the face of Howard's confession. Of course If I'd known If I'd suspected what you tell me I'd have come forward and told everything no matter at what cost." Tearfully she added: "Surely you realize the position It puts me in?" A new light shone in Annie's eyes. What was this woman's misery to her? Her duty was to the poor fel low who was counting the hours until he could set him free. His stepmoth er deserved no mercy. Utterly self ish, devoid , of a spark of humanity, she would have left them both to perish In order to protect herself from shame and ridicule. Her face was set and determined as she said calmly: "It must be done now." "Yes," murmured Alicia In a low tone that sounded like a sob, "it must be done now! Oh, if I'd only done it before If I'd only told Mr. Jeffries the whole truth! You speak of How ard's sufferings. If he didn't do It, he has at least the consciousness of his own Innocence, but I the con stant fear of being found out Is worse than any hell the Imagination can con jure up. I dreaded It I dread It now it means disgrace social ostracism my husband must know the whole world will know.". Annie was not listening. Still be wildered, she gazed with the utmost astonishment at her companion. To think that this mysterious woman they had been seeking was Howard's stepmother. "So you're the missing witness we have all been hunting for!" she said; "I can't believe it even now. How did It happen?" "He and I were once engaged, i broke It off when I found him out After I married Mr. Jeffries I met Un derwood again. Foolishly, I allowed the old Intimacy to be renewed. He took advantage and preyed on my friends. I forbade him my house. He wrote me a letter in which he threatened to kill himself. I was afraid he meant It I wanted to pre vent him. I went to his rooms that night I didn't tell Mr. Jeffries. When the truth la known and I ac knowledge that I visited this man can you see what It means? what a fuss there'll be. Everybody will put the worst construction on It " "Trust them for that!" said Annie grimly. She was sorry for the wom an's distress, yet, being only human, she felt a certain sense of satisfaction in seeing her suffer a little of what she had been made to suffer. "They'll say that I God knows what they'll say!" went on Alicia dis tractedly. "My husband' wil be dragged through the mire of anotheV public scandal his social prestige will oh, I dare not think of it I know my duty is to that unfortunate boy. 1 mustn't think of myself." ' "Have you the letter that Mr. Un derwood wrote you?" demanded her companion. "Yes I've never been, able to de stroy It I don't- know why I kept it, but thank God I have it!" Moaning, she went on: "The disgrace! the disgrace! lt'B ruin degradation! It's the end of everything! the end of everything!" Annie regarded with contempt this poor, weak, wailing . creature who lacked the moral courage to do what was merely right. Her voice was not unkind as she said: "I don't want to disgrace you or ruin you. But what am I to do tell me, what am I to do?" "I don't know," moaned her com panion helplessly. "Howard must be saved." "Yes." . ' "Will you tell Judge Brewster or shall I?" "Judge Brewster! Why should he know?" cried Alicia, 6tartled. More composedly and as if resigned to the inevitable, she went on: "Yes, I sup pose he must know sooner or later, but, I" She broke down again and burst In to tears. Annie watched her in si lence. "It's tough Isn't it?" she said sym pathetically. "Yes," sobbed Alicia through her tears, "it's it's tough!" Rising, she dried her eyes and said hastily: "Don't say anything now. Give me a few hours. Then I can think what is best to be done." , Annie was about to reply when the office door suddenly opened and Judge Brewster entered. Addressing Alicia, he said: "Pardon me, Mrs. Jeffries, I hope I haven't kept you waiting." Noticing her agitation and traces of tears, he looked surprised. He made no com ment but turned to Annie: "I have been talking to Dr. Bern stein over the 'phone." Annie approached him softly and said in a whisper: "I've told Mrs. Jeffries that you have undertaken Howard's defense." .Judge Brewster smiled at his wealthy client, almost apologetically, Annie thought Then addressing her, he said: "Yes, I've been quite busy since I saw you. I have put three of the best detectives we have on the trail of the woman who visited Underwood that, night- I don't think the police have been trying very hard to find her. They're satisfied with Howard's con fession. But we want her and we'll get her" "Oh!" gasped Alicia. The judge was proceeding to tell of other steps he had, taken when the door opened and the head clerk en tered, followed by Mr. Jeffries. "I told Mr. Jeffries that Mrs. Jef fries was here," said the clerk. "You might have told him that there were two Mrs. Jeffries here," laughed the judge. The clerk retired and the banker, completely ignoring the presence of his daughter-in-law, turned to his wife and said: "I regret, my dear, that you should be subjected to these family annoy ances." - Judge .Brewster came forward and Cleared his throat as If preliminary to something important he had to say. Addressing the banker, he said bold ly: "Mr. Jeffries, I have decided to un dertake 'Howard's defense." His arlstocratlo client was taken completely by surprise. For a mo ment he could say nothing, but sim ply stared at the lawyer as If un able to believe his ears. With an ef fort he at last exclaimed: "Indeed! then you Will please con aider our business relations to have ceased from this moment" The lawyer bowed. "As you please," he said suavely. The banker turned to his wife. "Alicia come." . He offered his arm and turned to ward the door. Alicia, In distress, looked back at Annie, who nodded reassuringly, to her. Judge Brewster rose and, going to the door, opened It The banker bowed stiffly and said: "Pray don't trouble. Good morning, sir." As Alicia followed her husband out she turned and whispered to Annie: "Come and see me at my home," When she had disappeared the judge came back Into the room and sat down at his desk. "Well, that's done!" he exclaimed with a 6lgh of relief. Rummaging for a moment among his papers, he looked up and said with an encoura ging smile: "Now, If you please, we will go over that evidence bit by bit" CHAPTER XVII. The 'news that Judge Brewster would appear for the defendant at the approaching trial of Howard Jeffries went through the town like wildfire, and caused an immediate revival In the public Interest which was begin ning to. slacken for want of hourly stimulation. Rumor said that there had been a complete reconciliation in the Jeffries family, that the banker was now convinced of his son's inno cence, and was determined to spend a fortune, if necessary, to save him. This and other reports of similar nature were all untrue, but the judge let them pass without contradiction. They were harmless, he chuckled, and If anything, helped Howard's cause. Meantime he himself had not been Idle. When once he made- up his mind to do a thing he was not con tent with half measures. Night and day he worked on the case, preparing evidence, seeing witnesses and ex perts, until he had gradually built up a bulwark of defense which the police would find difficult to tear Each Was Absorbed In His Own Thoughts, down. Yet he was not wholly reas sured as to the outcome until Annie, the day following the interview In his office, informed him breathlessly that she had found the mysterious woman. The judge was duly elated; now it was plain sailing, Indeed! There had always been the possibility that How ard's confession to the police was true, that he had really killed Under wood. But now they had found the one important witness, the mysteri ous woman who was In the apart ment a few minutes before the shoot ing and who was in possession of a letter in which Underwood declared his intention . of shooting himself. doubt was no longer, possible. Acquit tal was a foregone conclusion. So pleased was the judge at Annie's find that he did not insist on knowing the woman's name. He saw that Annie preferred, for some reason, not to give It even to her legal adviser and he let her have her way, exacting only that the woman should be produced the Instant he needed her. The young woman readily assented. Of course, there remained the "confession," but that had been obtained unfairly, Il legally, fraudulently. The next Impor tant step was to arrange a meeting at the judge s house at which Dr. Bern stein, the hypnotic expert, would be present and to which should be invi ted both Capt Clinton and Howard's father.' In front of all these witnesses the judge would accuse the police cap tain of browbeating his prisoner Into making an untrue confession. Per haps the captain could be argued into admitting the possibility of a mistake having been made. If, further, he could be convinced of the existence of doc umentary evidence showing that Un derwood really committed suicide he might be willing to recede from bis position in order to protect himself. At any rate it was worth trying. The Judge Insisted, also, that to this meet ing the mysterious woman witness should also come, to be produced at such a moment as the lawyer might consider opportune. Annie merely de manded a few hours' time so she could make the appointment and soon re turned with a solemn promise that the woman would attend the meet ing and come forward at whatever moment called upon. ' Three evenings later there was an Impressive gathering at Judge Brew ster's residence. In the handsomely appointed library on the second floor were seated Dr. Bernstein, Mr. Jef fries and the judge. Each was ab sorbed In his own thoughts. Dr. Bern stein was puffing at a big black cigar; the banker stared vacantly Into space. The Judge, at his desk, examined some legal papers. Not a word was spo ken. They seemed to be waiting for a fourth man who had not yet ar nn rive:. Presently Judge Brewster looked up and said: "Gentlemen, I expect Capt Clinton in a few minutes, and the matter will be placed before you." Mr. Jeffries frowned. It was great ly against his wish that he had been dragged to this conference. Peevish ly, he said: "I've no wish to be present at the meeting. You- know that and yet you sent for me." Judge Brewster looked up at him quickly and said quietly yet de cisively: "Mr. Jeffries, it is absolutely nec essary that you be present when I tell Capt Clinton that he has either willfully or ignorantly forced your son to confess to having committed a crime of which I am persuaded he is absolutely Innocent" The banker shrugged his shoulders. "If I can be of service, of course. I I am only too glad but what can I say what can I do?" "Nothing," replied the Judge curtly. But the moral effect of your presence Is invaluable." . More amiably he went on: "Believe me. Jeffries. I wouldn't have taken this step unless I was ab solutely sure of my position. I have been informed that Underwood com mitted suicide, and to-night evidence confirming this statement is to be placed lu my hands. The woman who paid him that mysterious visit just before his death has promised to come here and tell us what she knows. Now, If Capt. Clinton can be got to admit the possibility of his being mistaken it means that your son will be free In a few days." "Who has given you this Informa tion?" demanded the banker skeptic ally. "Howards wife," answered the Judge quietly. The banker started and the lawyer went on: "She knows who the woman Is, and has promised to bring her here to-night with docu mentary proof of Underwood's sui cide." "You are depending on her?" he sneered. "Why not?" demanded the Judge. "She has more at stake than any of us. She has worked day and night on this case. It was she who aroused Dr. Bernstein's Interest and persuad ed him to collect the evidence against Capt Clinton." The banker frowned. "She is the cause of the whole mis erable business," he growled. The door opened and the butler, en tering, handed his master a card. "Ah!" ejaculated the Judge "Here's our man! Show him up." When the servant had disappeared Mr. Jeffries turned to his host With a show of irritation he said: "I think you put too much faith in that woman, but you'll find out you'll find out" Judge Brewster smiled. I (TO BE CONTINUED.) For the Children. The mother who believes in begin nlng the artistic education of her chil dren at the earliest possible moment may do a great deal in that direction with the aid of the nursery walls The sides of the room are first pa pered with some plain neutral color, then divided into a frieze and panels, outlined with the darkest shade oi the chosen neutral tint and upon thess subdivisions are pasted brightly col ored and well-drawn figures of ani mals and birds, which are to be ob talned In the form of long sheets ol wall paper, which may easily be cut out and affixed to the walls. Thus a young child may not only be taught much that Is essential In regard tc the proper placing of colors and theli composition, but because of the ques tions which they will be apt to asi about the animals and birds, will ao quire a great deal of valuable Informa tion about natural history. A Taste for Good Books. If I were to pray for a taste whlci should stand me in stead under every variety of circumstances, and be source of happiness and cheerfulness to me through life and a shield against Its Ills, however things might go amiss and the world frown upon me, it. would be a taste for reading. I ' speak of it of course, only as a worldly advantage, and not in the slightest degree as superseding or derogating from the higher office and surer and stronger panoply of re ligious principles but as a taste, an Instrument, and a mode of pleasurable gratification. Give a man this taste, and the means. .of gratifying it, and you can hardly fall pf making a happy man, unless, indeed, you put Into his bands a most perverse selection of books. Sir John Herschel. The Umpire at Home. "Billy Evans sat alone in his horn the other evening meditating on the approaching baseball season which means his return to the arduous um piring pursuit ' He was thinking of a number of vexatious features of his calling, when his thoughts were Interrupted by the ringing, of the telephone bell. Some woman desired to talk to Evans' Wife, wno aia not nappen to be at homo. "She's out!" shouted Evans, absent mlndedly, In such a thunderous tone that be nearly ruined the poor worn an's fiAF drum PlavnlAnl Plain - w. -. m ,iMi Dealer. I GIRL HURT IN FLIGHT TRIES TO ESCAPE FROM POtlCE 8TATION BY ROPE. Slides Down Torn 8heet, Falls Fif teen Feet Breaks Arm and Dislocates Knee Is Then 8ent to a Hospital. Chicago. An improvised rope of bed meets torn into strips was used In a shrilling attempt by Margaret Slebert. sixteen years old, to escape from "the woman's annex on the third floor of the South Clark street police station it 2 a. m. the other day. Lowering herself from a window the girl slid quickly to the end of the rope, and then dropped 15 feet tq the pavement Her right knee was dislocated and her right arm was fractured in the falL The Slebert girl lives at 5233 Aber deen street and was to have been taken to the state home for girls at Seneva, 111. To girl companions she bad confided her determination to es cape being taker to the Geneva insti tution by some means, but they had paid little attention to her. The daring escape was planned by the girl while other inmates of the annex with one exception were asleep. That one was little Clifton Nelson, seven years old, who between tears was trying to tell Mrs. Mary Murray, the matron, how sorry he was for run ning away from home. Without attracting the attention of the matron, the girl quietly tore her bed sheets Into strips and then knot ted them tightly. She dressed herself hurriedly and then crept softly to the South Clark street side of the build in b. She entered a room next to that of the office of the matron. There she Fastened the improvised rope to a ra diator and then threw open the win dow. The rope was short reaching only to the second floor, but Margaret did not hesitate. She swung quickly onto the rope and started downward. At the end of the rope she swung for a minute and then let go. Her subse quent scream of pain as she fell brought three policemen, who found her writing on the pavement They were Desk Sergeant John O'Connell and Daniel Kearney. In spite of her fractured arm and seem ingly helpless condition, the young prisoner tried to struggle with them. Those in the matron's department did not become aware of the girl's hazardous plunge and escape until In formed some time later by Desk Ser geant O'Connor. The windows In the matron's department are not barred. "I was tired of the old place and I Just wanted to get out of there to . show them that they could not keep me locked up like a criminal," the girl said while she was in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. . SEES WHEN TEETH COME OUT Sight Is Restored to Man Blind Five Years After Dentist Jerks - , Molars. , ' Sandusky, O. Partially blind for Five years, totally blind for the past seven months, Edward Kennedy, thirty-nine years old, a farmer residing at Parkertown. saw the light of day re cently following the extraction of two teeth by Dr. J. T. Nicholson. The, case Is without parallel In dentistry. Mr. Kennedy had been de clared beyond human aid by eye spe cialists and had obtained a pension from the , blind relief fund. Doctors gave the cause as paralysis of the optic nerves. Accompanied by Fred Patch, Mr. Kennedy came to Dr. Nicholson's office suffering severe pain. An examination showed that two teeth, an upper molar and a lower wisdom tooth, were badly ul cerated, necessitating extraction. Hardly bad the second tooth been pulled when Mr. Kennedy exclaimed, "I can see. I can see the light I can see the crack In the window. I can see you." Dr. Nicholson was at a loss to ac count for the outcome. MAY MUZZLE AN ALLIGATOR Citizens of California Town Annoyed by Cavernous-Faced Reptile Af flicted With, Wanderlust. San Francisco. The peregrinations of a pet alligator have caused the town trustees of Mill Valley to consider the advisability of passing an alligator muzzling ordinance. Dr. S. L. HIgglns of that town has an alligator that Is affected with wan derlust, and each time the animal Jour aeys from its home women and chil dren In the neighborhood become great 'y agitated. So far the cavernous-faced reptile . bas committed no more serious offense '.ban attempts to be friendly with those net on his wanderings, but the atten tion of the trustees has been called to the fact that the bite of an alligator might be dangerous, and Dr. HIgglns irs been requested to mussle his pet r provide the animal with an "Oregon soot"