Illinois Valley News, Thursday, January 17, 1946 OVERNIGHT GUEST BEN AMES WILLIAMS |e,89 WNU FtATuatS THE STORY THUS FAR: Adam Bruce, FBI operator, and Inspector and Mrs. Tope met while on vacation In North­ eastern wilds. Tope discovered the body ol a murdered man at the auto camp of Bee Dewaln, a friend of Bruce's. He called Bruce, who brought State Trooper Quill. L'pon the arrival of the D. A., Nat Cumberland and Dr. Medford, they decided to beep the murder a secret as long as possible. The body was moved to the home of Amasa Dewaln for further InvestlgaUon. Mrs. Tope told her bus­ band that she recognized the body as that of Mr. Ledforgo, head of New England utilities. Bee stated that a musky smell on murdered man's hair reminded her v, suiueouc. CHAPTER V "Mrs. Priddy was busy Saturday, so I made the beds, changed the linen. I smelled this same musky smell on one of the pillowslips in Little Bear. Oh, I'm sure of it.” "Who were they?" Cumberland asked. "I don't know," Bee confessed. "Earl Priddy took them to the cab­ in. They came late Friday night and left very early, I didn't see them at all. But I’m positive about the smell.” There seemed no more to say. They moved out of doors again, and Cumberland asked heavily: "What did they do to him. Doc? How'd they kill him?" Doctor Medford said unsteadily: "I can stand most things all right; but this get« me." And he continued, without prompt­ ing: "It wai more or less luck that I hit it so soon. I didn't find any wounds, knife, bullet, nothing like that; so I went into the abdomen thinking of poison. I found t'ne an »wer there." He hesitated and Cumberland urged: "Go ahead, Doc. »• "All The Doctor said grimly: right, It's hard to believe; but this man died of peritonitis, from a rup­ tured appendix. Rupture resulted from a gangrenous condition pro­ duced by a crease in the omentus that bent a fold in an artery, the way you do a hose, and shut off the blood supply. That's how he died!" For a moment no one spoke, till Cumberland muttered: "Then it's not murder, Tope!" Tne Inspector said impatiently: "They tied him up, gagged him. left him half-smothered with a blanket around his head when he was run­ ning a temperature and pretty sick and needing a doctor quick. If that wasn't murder, it was t'ne next thing to It!” "Manslaughter, maybe," Cumber­ land admitted. "Well," Tope suggested, "suppose it was you that had fetched this man to Faraway and left him there to die. Wouldn't you be worried for fear some one had spotted you?” "U was dark,” Cumberland re­ flected. "I'd have kept my hat pulled down, my collar turned up." "How about the car? Wouldn’t you be afraid Priddy might remember car?" Then, putting himself in other man's place. Tope went "Of course, maybe I'd steal a to do the job. Mat. have you any reports of a car being sto­ len around here?” "I wouldn't know about that," Cumberland confessed. “Ned Quill would, though. The Stale police get all those bulletins.” "Where is he?" "Asleep inside He was up all night.” “Well, send him out." Tope di­ rected The District Attorney went into the house, and after a moment Ned Quill appeared, elaborately rubbing his eyes. Tope spoke to him. “Get any rest, did you?" “Sure!" the trooper told him cheerfully. “A good three hours!” Tope nodded. “Quill, have the State police had any reports of a car being stolen around here. the last few days?" "Sure, cars are stolen al) the time." "You go find out whether any cars have been reported stolen within fif­ ty miles of here since Friday." Tope directed "Or since Thursday, for that matter.” Quill assented He started away; but Tope detained him. "Wait a minute." he said. “Something else. You know the country around here?” “Lived here ull my life up to now. Yes, I guess I do." “Well then," Tope asked, “sup­ pose you had a car on your hands that you had to get rid of, some- where around here, where would you put it?” The trooper considered. "I'd run it into the woods." he decided "There are a lot of old roads that nobody uses except to park In. on moonlight nights; and nobody would notice one more car among so many." Tope shook his head “That's not good enough! Some one might spot it the first day Is there any place where a car could be sunk in deep water?’ “Well, there are some old lime stone quarries, above Ridgcomb 1 haven't been up there since I was a kid; but there's always water in the quarries, and it's gray with lime, go you can’t see down into it." “Any other place that would do the trick?" “Nary a one that I know of. ’ Tope nodded. "All right," he agreed * Now go find •ut whether there'« been a car stolen, and let me know.” When Quill was gone. Tope turned you know where to Adam. ’ "Son, " these quarries are?" “I can find them.” ‘‘Get Miss Dewain to drive you up there,” Tope directed. "That way, you can enjoy yourself and help me too. Take a flshingline and a sinker and make some sound­ ings—see if you can locate anything in the quarries that might be a car. Look for tire tracks on the road." "I came up to get some fresh vegetables for dinner.” Bee remem­ bered. "Adam, come help me. Then we can go.” So she and Adam departed toward the garden, and the Inspector and Mrs. Tope got under way; at once he proposed: "Now ma’am, we'll drive down to Ledforge’s summer place and see what they say there!” She assented; but first he bade her stop at the Mill; and he went to talk with Priddy for a while. "They put him under the bed in Faraway.” When he returned to the car, there was a deep excitement in his eyes; but he only said: “All right, let's go along." Not till they were on the road did he explain. Then he told her: "Some one else is on this trail we're running." •Who?" "Those two men last night. Whit­ lock and Beal! Whitlock told Prid­ dy he was an insurance agent, said he was trying to trace a stolen car— a Chevalier coupe, pale gray with blue trim. Earl told him a car like that was here Friday night.” "Is that the one with the English­ man?" "Yes!” "Did Earl get the number of the car?" "No, but he says it was a coupe, light gray. He didn't see the man's face, or the woman's They drove in late, and Priddy had to get out of bed. He took them to Little Bear, The man gave him the money for the cabin without getting out of the car, and Priddy went back to bed; but he says the man was small, and that he talked like an Englishman— whatever that means! And Priddy says the car had blown out an ex­ haust gasket He heard it puffing ” He added: "I had to go at Priddy easy, so he wouldn't realize I was asking questions. That's what took me so long For a while, then, he said no more. For several hours the Topes were busy . . . The District Attorney's office was in North Madderson. a dozen miles from Ridgcomb Quill had preced­ ed the Topes to announce their com­ ing, Mat Cumberland and another man w^je here to greet them—a brisk young man. sure beyond his years "This is Joe Dane. Inspector." Cumberland said. "Heard Mat speak of you." Tope said courteously, his hand extend­ ed. "Says he couldn't get along without you” And he went on: "Late last Friday night, a little man who talked like an Englishman, and who had a wom­ an w ith him. drove up to Dewaln s Mill in a gray Chevalier coupe with blue trim. They had this man that's dead now under the rumble seat. Priddy put them in the cottage called L’ttle Bear During the night they carried this man down to Far­ away and put him under the bed there." "How can you know at? D in* demanded "Well, I’m guaranteeing it. Tope assured him mildiv; and he went on: "They put him under ihe bed in Faraway , and sometime before daylight they pulled out. I figure that they'd want to get rid of the I've a notion it's in an old car quarry Ned Quill here told me Adam Bruce has gone to about. see ” lfie District Attorney looked at Joe Dane. “You and me wouldn't .SFR7.VG CIRCIE PATTER'S A Princess Party Dress for Tots SERVICE Classic Frock Smart. Comfortable BUREAU have thought of that. Joe," he said. EDITOK’S NOTE: Thu newspaper But Dane retorted: “We don't know the car's there! That's just a through special arrangement with th» W ashingion Bureau of Ueslern News­ stab in the dark." paper Union ut 1616 Eye Street, N. W., "Why. that's right," Tope agreed Uashington, D. is able to bring readily enough. "But I tried anoth­ readers this weekly column on prob­ er stab,” he continued. "Quill helped lems of the veteran and serviceman me on this too. I asked him to and his family. Questions may be ad­ find out whether any car had been dressed to the above Bureau and they stolen around here. Well, there was trill be ansu ered in a subsequent col­ one. belonged to a man named Hol­ umn. No replies can be made direct by dom. has a summer place down near mad, but only in the column uhirh will Ridgcomb. It was taken Friday appear in this newspaper regularly. night, out of the garage. Nettie On the Job Training Pineyard — she’s Holdom's bouse- keeper—says Mrs. Kell, the chauf- Veterans' administration officials I feur’s wife, drove it away." say there is a decided trend among He hesitated; but no one spoke, veterans who are taking advantage . and he went on: of the provisions of the educational "Saturday morning, Holdom tele­ ' features of the G.I. bill to get away phoned from New York to the po- from college and university study I lice in Ridgcomb that the car had in favor of on-the-job training tor been stolen.” He turned to Quill. various trades. This trend was alsu "Ned you go call up your friend, the noticeable following World War I. ► insurance man—see if he had insur­ As of December 1 there were ance on that car and whether Hol­ 103.526 veterans taking on-the-job dom reported the theft to him too.” training or enrolled in colleges and Quill disappeared and Tope spoke universities and officials point out more softly: “Didn't want Quill to that if the heavy enrollment con­ hear what I'm telling you now,” he tinues, many schools will be said. "But Mrs. Tope here saw Led- ! swamped with applications by ths forge, the Utilities man that lives ; time the fall terms open in 1946. down below Ridgcomb. at a meeting i Disabled veterans are also taking once, and she saw the dead man advantage of Public Law No. 16 and this morning. She thoueht he was as of December 1 there were 35,353 Ledforge!" in training — 24.126 in schools and Cumberlar-d leaned forward, and 11,227 on-the-job trainees. The veterans' administration has Dane leaped to his feet. "Ledforge!" he whispered hoarsely, ‘By God- also announced that there are more frey! Say, if that's so—” His eyes than 87.000 veterans, an all-time shone. peak, receiving hospital treatment But Tope said mildly: "Wait a and domiciliary care and with a minute, Mr. Dane. I only said that tremendous increase hospital facili­ Mrs. Tope thought the dead man ties are taxed to capacity. • * was Ledforge. But Ledforge is in Questions and Answers New York. He was at a bank di­ Q.—My husband, who has been in rectors' meeting there this morn- the army for 28 months, who spent ing.” Dane made an exasperated ges- 19 months in France and Is now in ture. "Well, for heaven's sake, if Japan, should be eligible for a dis­ it’s not him. why set off a skyrocket charge. Will he get one soon? H< is a corporal and in the 549th Port. here?" But then Quill returned. "Charley Co.—Wife, Scottsboro, Ala. A.—Your husband is stationed In Fay had the insurance on the coupe,” he said. "But he hasn't any Kure, Japan, as of December 26, and the war department has no report about its being stolen.” Tope nodded, and gently he dis- word on when his company will be missed the trooper, "You've been moved home. Q.—How many points will dis­ a lot of help, Ned," he said. "I wish you'd drop in at Dewain’s Mill charge a navy enlisted man and how and see if Adam's there. Tell him are points counted for dependents? —Navy wife, Thayer, Mo. I’ll be there soon.” A.—The navy allows 10 points for So Quill departed; and Tope looked dependency, regardless of the num­ at Cumberland. "Now, I want to do a little tele­ ber of children. On January 1. 1946, phoning, Mat," he said. "Mind if I the navy point score dropped to 36 use your name?" Cumberland as­ points for enlisted men and 43 for sented silently; and Tope put in a officers. The navy announced fur­ call for Police Headquarters in New ther one point cuts to go into effect January 15 and February 2. York. Q.—My husband will have been While they waited. "There are two or three things we ought to know," In the army three years the 26th He was recently Tope explained. "Kell was at Hol­ of December. dom's Friday night; but he left, and sent overseas to Japan. He arrived Mrs. Kell hasn't been back since she there November 18. He is in the drove the car away. I'd like to know 32nd division. Will he have to stay- where they are. And there's anoth­ there after the hill is passed in Feb­ er thing: There was a man named ruary that three-year men le ill be Whitlock at Dewain's Mill last eligible for discharge, even though night, said he represented the insur­ he is in the occupational army?— ance people, trying to trace a sto­ Mrs. L. R. M., Pocahontas, Iowa. A —The army says your husband len car. The way he described it, it was this car. But if Holdom hasn't is at Fukrata. Japan, and that high reported it to the insurance peo- point men will be screened out of the 32nd division to be brought home pie—" "Where is Whitlock?” Dane de- as soon as transportatii n is avail­ able. They will make no predictions manded. "He sounds fishy!” "He got away before I found out on the possible passage of the bill what he was up to," Tope confessed; to which you refer Q.—My husband was a veteran of and Dane made a disgusted gesture. Then the j5hone rang, and Tope took World War I. serving five months and three days. At the time he the instrument. was to go overseas he became ill "Hello. Pat?” he said in friendly and remained in the hospital 111 tones. "Tope speaking Tope! Tope, da>N with pneumonia and measles you young whelpl How are you, and his right car was affected, lie Pat'* Haven't seen you in five years cannot hear from that ear and has . . . Sure, you heard right! I was a medical record showing he was married a year ago. Still on my sick, but they won't give him a pen­ honeymoon." sion. He is 52 years old and the He became serious, “But Pat, Its- doctor says he is unable to work ten I'm speaking from Mat Cum­ Is there any way you can help get berland's office He's the D A up a pension?—Wife, Jamison. Ala. here in Highland County. Massa­ A.— If your husband has made ap­ chusetts. yes. North Madderson is the town. He wants some informa­ plication to the veterans' adminis­ tion. OK? All right, take this tration for a disability rating and if he has been turned down, he has down." And he gave careful Instructions: the right to ask for a review of hit To find out whether Ledforge wsa In case. He also has the right to ap- New York; to check his recent move­ peal the decision to a reviewing ments What kind of hair-oil did he board of the veterans' administra- use? Was he in New York over the tior. Suggest you write the near- week-end? Check up on Holoom. est regional office of the veterans about your hus­ where he had been, where he was administration band's case. now. Q.—My husband served a little "And Holdom's plane crashed Saturday morning." Tope explained. over three months in World War I. "Pilot, named Bob Flint, was killed. He has been in the veterans' hos­ Down on the Sound somewhere Find pital at Wadsworth. Kans., two dif­ ferent limes in the last two years. out what made tne plane fall." He finished, hung up the receiver; He is still weak and very nervous, Joe Dane started to speak, anrj Tope unable Io do hut very little work looked at tne young man. • -ertain and goes all to pieces. I want to know if there is any way we can sympa*hf m his eyes "Son." he said. "I krsw just about get help. —Mrs. D S.. Gashland, how you feel—you'itching to get Mo. A 11 yvui husband is disabled action I'm t«-s old to run around in circles; rot if you want a job. as you say. you have the right to here « sr