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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 2, 1940)
PAGE EIGHT MEDFORD MATT TRIBUNE, MEDFORD, OREGON, TUESDAY, JANUARY 2, 1940. 1 by Frances Chapter 49 Explanations THE little breakfast room was bright with sun. The French door from the study was pushed open and four young people entered. All bore marks of train, of sleepless nights and of worry, but the air of tension had disappeared. "Will you sit here, please, Dun ean?" Tuck murmured, indicating the chair on her left. Michael dropped Into his own ' chair when she was seated. "And I," Tuck agreed. "It was o nice of you to come to breakfast, Duncan. How is your brother?" The fine eyes darkened. "Not very well, the doctors say, but they think they'll pull him through. He's had almost three months of , . . torture, you know. Drugs. He Isn't sane yet." The percolator bubbled and sang. Bunny leaned forward, her hands folded on the edge of the table. 'There are seventeen things I absolutely must know before I can stop this whizzing in my head," she announced, "and I've been waiting for years, it seems, al though it's only thirty-six hours to ask them. Has the time arrived? May I?" Michael tried his best to look like an oracle. "You may." "Thank you, Michael. It's so kind of you. . . . Very well. I've got most of it straight, you know. It's true, isn't it, that all the things you told us yesterday, all the dreadful things you heard about Edgar Murchison from that poor soldier Smith and from everyone , , , the things you so carefully kept from our tender little ears . . , were not true? Or, rather, were true only if you put McBain's name in each time instead of Edgar Murchi son's? It's true that Dr. McBain was deliberately impersonating Dr. Murchison Just to keep himself out of trouble and get the other man into It?" Duncan's brows drew together. Michael looked at him swiftly. "That's it, Bunny. But I was pretty stupid about it. I got an inkling of the truth when Jameson described how Murchison acted when the delegation came to him with that paper from the pound bearing his signature. Me naa a perfect right, you see, to get animals to experi ment on from the pound. It s al ways aone mat way. it ne nad been ruilty of torturing those animals. I figured, he'd have had a story ready for them. But he didn't. He Insisted on seeing the signature and then he said, 'Very well, rentiemon, you win now, wny did he insist on seeing the naner? That's what I asked myself. Be cause, i arguea, ne naan t Been jetting animals from the pound to use in the ordinary way, anses thetized. Because he didn t believe they had any such paper. If he didn't believe they had it, then he coma never nave signed it. There fore, since the paper obviously existed, someone else had forged his name. Who? Well, I reasoned It could only be one of two people, Duncan Murchison or Dr. McBain. In either case Dr. Murchison might have acted as he did, through a sense of responsibility. In his brother's case it would be because he wanted to shield him. In Mc Bain's case it would be because Murchison felt responsible for whatever went on in the lab any way and knew that he must settle It with McBain himself." "But the shrieks, Michael I The poor tortured animals . . . wouldn't Be have known about them?" "I doubt It. I don't think it hap pened very often, you know. A thing like that doesn't need to happen very often before people itnrt talking. That very story ibout the animals crying at night made me suspicious. You see, Jameson couldn't say that it was Murchison himself who worked in the lab at night. He wasn't on duty then. No one was; and McBain had managed so cleverly to spread a net of insinuations over his col league that when anything went wrong, it was Murchison who was iccused. That's why he gave that paper to Smith signed presumably by Murchison. I got a hint of that the night of Dennes' party, when I tnlked to McBain. He said, i was trained In a day when the human body was sacred, when men had louls, when every life was of value, but I refuse to condemn a younger man who was trained dif ferently and has the courage to act according to his training.' Prettv clever, and I swallowed it almost whole , . . then. I began to think Just what he wanted me to think, that Murchison was a pretty cold blooded lot." Tleclng Things Together' "U'HEN Smith sent for me," ' Michael went on, "and said that he'd seen Murchison himself I got it all. It couldn't have been Murchison, with every man on the force on the lookout for him: and by piecing things together it was plain. McBain had been using Murchison's name and identity to further his own oleasant little plans, and Murchison had found it out. They had quarreled, and Mc Bain had taken the quickest way out. He was bitterly Jealous of Murchison anyway, a younger man who had been brought In over his head, and had hated him from the beginning because of his clever ness. The motive was plain Jealousy, and a fear for his own skin, in case Murchison exposed him. So I decided that he had killed Edgar Murchison and dropped his weighted body into the river. "What I didn't think of." Mi ehael went on bitterly after a pause, "waslhe truth. I wondered what happened to the bodies of those animals Jameson talked Hobokon Blue. Hoboken, N. J., Jan. 2. M'l Firemen fought late Monday a blaze which broke out in the recently completed home of Mayor Bernard N. McFcely and spread to a nearby factory and several other buildings. No other Information was available Immediately Shelley Wee about, and I'd come to the conclu sion that McBain had Invented some new sort of solvent that would dissolve animal matter completely , . . and I admit, I thought of that later . . . however," he went on hastily at the expres sion on Tuck's face, "I didn't sus pect for a moment that he had a secret laboratory near by. I should think that fact would explain the disappearance of those bodies , . . as it explains so many other things. He'd have had no trouble getting them through the woods unseen at night, and into his boat. If I'd guessed of the existence of that place ... or dreamed that Murchi son was still alive, I'd have had McBain shadowed, sooner." "Sooner?" "Yes. Donovan was shadowing him the night . , , the night he got you. Tuck. Hall was up here, you see, but too late. After Smith said he'd seen him buying an oar-lock, I decided it was time to keep an eye on him. I thought he had some devilish scheme up his sleeve to dispose of us through this boat, and we couldn't take any more chances. We'd thought, you see, that it was enough to search for the boat. It wasn't. So Donovan was watching him down town that night for an hour or two until I could get fresh men on the trail, but then he was pretty tired, and McBain gave him the slip. My fault, but Donovan insisted on doing It. He hated McBain after what he did to Gordon." Duncan looked up quickly, "What about the attack on you, Forrester? The gas? How did he do it? There wouldn't have been time for so much gas to have es caped Just while the two men were at Deanes', would there?" Michael shook his head. "There are a lot of places where he was too clever. I don't see how he pulled that stunt about the poison ing of the meat but he did. Perhaps he'll tell. However, he certainly had the furnace fixed, possibly weeks before, with the chimney pipe disconnected, and certainly he pulled the gns lever with that string through the window. When, we don't know. He must have done it Just after our bedroom lights went out. At first the ens wouldn't be noticeable, you see, and we'd get off to sleep . . . and then it crept up and caught us. I think perhaps he had a second cord tied to the first, running out to the hedge. I don't know, it was a very dark night. You can ask him your self, Dune, if you'd like to try it sometime." Key Or KeysT '"pHANK you. I'll remember that. Another thing will you tell me now why you were having me followed?" "I wasn't. That's Just It. If you were followed, McBain himself was doing it. I was afraid of that. He was away from home a great deal too much. I knew he'd do it, nfter Miss Lissey talked to you on Sunday. You see, he was almost sure she suspected or knew the truth. In any case, she knew too much. And he was sure that you'd discovered that he'd signed, your brother's name once or twice, and he didn't know exactly how much your brother had told you. He thought you might be wnHiino- only for confirmation before you spoKe, ana you were very danger ous to him. That's why he put the keys and the poison In your rooms, you see. He hoped you'd be arrested long ago. He was counting on the enmity between you and the Devoes and perhaps he got the idea itself from what shall we say Mrs. Jarcd Devoe . . . said about the keys. She overheard your brother saying he would leave vou the keu. I take It the key to the mystery of the diamonds ana the papers relating to her future those love letters from another man. After she had tes tified at the Inquest that your brother said ketis. McBain eat a new idea. So did I." "So that's it," he said. "Key . . . keys. Certainly. And those love let ters, fcdgar expected to leave a message as to where I could find them certainly he did. I told you that. The key. It hadn't occurred to me just what she meant that she'd overheard. And the moment I saw those loiters I knew what they meant, that she wasn't worthy of anv consideration from Edgar." He fell silent, thinking. Then "How'd you know he had planted those things on me?" Katie, Michael answered promptly. "Katie Jameson. She was watching for me. The first time McBain showed his nose around the residences she was to telephone me. She called nearlv a week ago. I told her to look for the things in your room, and she found them. We Just left them there for a while lotting things transpire. I hoped McBain would make a move to cast you further into suspicion and incidentally get himself into the limelicht. My hands were tied, you see. He couldn't be arrested for the murder of Edgar Murchi son when we had no body. He'd have gotten off on some count, trust him. With Miss Lissey's death, the evidence was against you, and with poor old Mrs. Devoe It was going to be hard to prove it wasn't suicide. He didn't take many chances. For instance he stole Fred's body because he didn't know what the reactions might be to that poison. Of course he didn't know that Jethro had tried it on his cat. Mrs. Devoe's death was suicide. She was standing there that night when he came up nut of the stump. He stabbed her. But the proof! Well, one of these transcendental detectives could have managed it. hut not I. I can't see far enough. If I could . . . Turk wouldn't have had to stand that . . . that . . ." Concluded Monday Congressman Hat Stroke Johnstown, O., Jan. 2. (.4") Hep. William A. Ashbrook (D Ohio) suffered a paralytic stroke today and his family said his condition is critical. Ashbrook. 72, first was stricken last Octo ber In Washington but had Im proved rapidly. Um Mall TriVjuo aul art. On the RADIO CHAINS STATIONS Where to Find Them on the Dial: KEX, Portland. 1180; KH, 640, Loa Angrln; KGA, 1470, Hpokane; KOO, 790, Han Kranrlsco; KGW, B20, Portland: KJH, 970, Seattle; KNX, 1030. Loa Anielea; KOA. S30, Denver: KOIMi, 040, Portland; HOMO, 920. Keatlle; KI'O, (130. Han Franrltro; KM., 1180, Call Lake. Tueiday 5:00 Aldrlch Family, KPO, KPI, KOW; Frank and Archie, KJR. 6:30 Sherlock Holmea, KOO, KEX. KJR; Pot of Gold. KPO, KPI, KOW; Court of Miming Hetra, KNX, KOIN, KSL. 6:00 We. the People, KSL; Caval cade, of America, KPO, KPI, KOW. 6:30 Fibber McOee, KPO. KOW, KPI: Human Side of Literature, KOO, KEX. 7:00 Bhlelda Revue. KEX: Drama, KOO; Bob Hope, KPO, KOW, KPI; Calling All Cars, KNX. 7:30 SporU Huddle, KNX. KOIN; Mammoth Mlnatrela, KOO. KJR; Dog House, KPO, KPI, KOW; Newa, KSL. 8:00 Fred Waring. KPO, KPI, KOW; Amoa and Andy, KNX, KOIN-, KSL; Information Please, KOO, KEX, KJR. 8:15 Jlmmie Fldler, KSL, KNX, KOIN; I Love a Mystery, KPO, KFI, KOW. LATE TRAIN COB DOWN TO SUBURBAN StfrflONlbMEEfCOUoW IRMft ARRIVING OM ME EvtNN6HyMU.SDWS 1b KEEP WARM WAHPERS-fHRW DESERT EPl'MrtertiorVlCPllte PAPER 1b RW euM iuiiufrti rRHrised br Th TAILSPIN TOMMY A Heavy I : s i i . TO FLY THE V m SMALL ) I POrVpc cPl J V tVJt0-, 1 F WE1 ON HOW LONG (rfl A GOIN&1N FOR V2 .CRUISING RANGEJ- k AZ 3CT BEN WEBSTER'S CAREER But, I. Her By EDWIN ALGER VOU SAW THE MASS 1-22 WELL. MY FRIEND. WWo I Y wuitta uu c, , .mA I I , . v 1 the n ebbs Come Out of It lr ; KJOW LOOK weRE.KUDY.Y Uf J- DO'saG this X we dowt 1 ;! TUATSRISUT.AWDIFVVKADX ' ji; ' 1 THIS THING HAS GOT TO BECAUSE I'M GETTING EED ALLTHAT TO YOU EVER r ,: , EvERVTHlMS WE WAMTEO WE , ( STOP '. VOU'LL HAE A. .) j&fcAjr OP IT WE OUST MONEY -OP TO Think iFT wOiaDUT HAVE ANYTHING TO -A NERVOUS BREAKDOWN: ( i QSTMit t im"op nou AP1 T"r pr-r-R X'0U HAD EVERYTHIN&NaRSuE ABOUT-AnD weVe enjoyed yy-JZ-- - i I WHEN 1 LOST THAT 1J 'TWPF WAMT COULLsrrJsCwe STRENUOUS ARSUMENTS.l Vr-Y jS U J ' I ' ' 1 V cKoL m A ZW-CHt ENdOY ThE ANTlCl-flCOONT THINK WE OUITEFiNISHED J ' 8:30 Aldrlch Family, KOO, KEX, KJR: Johnny Presenta, KPO, KPI, KOW; Big Town, KOIN, KNX. 8:00 w, the People, KNX, KOIN; Beyond Reasonable Doubt, KOO. KJR; Doner's Orch., KPO. KOW. 8:30 Battle of the Sexea, KPO, KOW. KPI; Lorch'a Orch., KNX, KOIN; Meaaner'a Orch., KOO; News. KJR. 10:00 Newa Reporter, KPO. KPI, KOW: Paul Sullivan, KNX, KSL: Heldfa Orch., KOO, kx, KJR; Newa, KOIN. 10:30 Foster's Orch., KPI. KOW; Saundera' Orch., KOO, KJR, KEX; Ted Flo Rlto. KSL; City of St. Francis, KPO. 11:00 Ravazza'a Orch., KPO, KFI; Thla Moving World. KEX: Oray'e Orch., KSL, KOIN; Newa, KOO, KNX, KGW. Wednesday 5:00 Frank and Archie. KJR; Sunset Shadows, KOO; Waring' Orch., KPO. KOW, KPI. 5:30 Kelaejrs Orch., KPO; We Preaent, KOO, KJR. 8:00 star Theater. KSL, KOIN, KNX: Radio Oulld, KOMO; Musical Soiree, KPI, KOW: Safety First. KPO. 6:30 Horae and Buggy Day, KOO; Hollywood Playhouse, KPO, KFI. KOW. 7:00 Mlller'a Orch., KNX, KSL, KOIN: Kyser'a Program, KPO. KOW. KPI; Shield's Orch., KOO, KJR, KEX. 7:30 Burna and Allen, KNX, KOIN. KSL. 8:00 Warlng'a Orch., KPO; John WESNTSEEWWHEfiof HERE &0 EARLY. WALKS UP AMP PCWlNPUtTroRM MP READS ALL AVAILABLE AWERHSW6 6I6U8 NEvTR KHEW1iME1b?ASS SOSLvWLV.-TlllNVSWWcrl MUST HAVE SloPPED WANDERS OUf R&filN AMD IMMEDIATELY c5Ef5 A CIN DER. IN HI& Evt REMOVES if AND WANDERS MrolWlb&(6A&E1'lCKEf A&ENflNTALX. AfsCNfJS BUSY MAKING OUY REPORTS Bll flrndtrat. Int I Assignment! ny Present. KOO, KJR, KEX: Amoa And Andy, KNX, KOIN, KSL. 8:151 Love a Mystery. KPO, KOW, KPI: Lum and Abner, KSL, KNX, KOIN. 8:30 Sketch. KNX, KSL, KOIN; Quiz Program. KOO. KJR, KEX; Avalon Time. KPO. KFI, KOW. 8:00 Al Pearce, KNX, KSL. KOIN; Fred Allen. KPO. KOW, KFI; Be yond Reasonable Doubt. KOO, KEX, KJR. 0:30 Nobles Orch., KOO, KEX; Newa. KJR. 10:00 Martin's Orch., KGO. KEX; Newa. KNX. KSL; Newa Reporter, KPO, KFI. KOW; Newa, KOIN. 10:30 Heldfa Orch., KGO, KJR, KEX: Ravazza'a Orch., KPO. KFI, KGW. 11:00 Grays Orch.. KOIN. KSL: Nottingham Qrch., KPO, KPI; Thla Moving World, KEX, KJR; Newa, KGO, KOW. Radio Highlights By Aisociated Presi (Pacific Standard Time) New York, Jan. 2.- Opening of congress and the president's message will be broadcast from the nation s capital tomorrow. All three networks will trans mit both programs, the opening session to go on the air over MBS at 8:45 a.m. and via WJZ NBC and WABC-CBS at 9 a.m. Broadcast of the president's message will be started at By GLUYAS WILLIAMS pRl&HfElJSUPWHEN Af lOrfG LA&f HE HEARS M PROACHItfe fPAD), WHICH 7R0UES 1b BE fi SLOW FREI6HT RErtRK lb CORNER OF WMTir6 ROOM AND BROODS UMiL TRAIN PULLS IN, FiFtEEN MINUTE LATE 10:45 a.m. by MBS and at 11 a.m. by WEAF-WJZ-NBC and WABC-CBS. Toniffht: EnrnnA WARP. CBS 5:55, 8; MBS 6, 6:15; WtAf -NBtJ-East 8. Wednesday: Europe NBC 5 a.m.; WABC-CBS 5 a.m.; 3:30 p.m. WJZ-NBC 2 Mrs. F. D. Roosevelt on "Traininir For Democracy." Use Mall Tribune want ads. STRANGE AS IT SEEMS By JOHN HIX For farther proof address the author. Inclosing a stamped envelope for reply. Reg. TJ. S. Pat Off. & faKRT 4ICK IN OR JEKVI.U AND PKSAWIEP, BURNED (T AND RBWROfc The enVrb&ory ifi 3 MORS A R0&IN GUILT HEI? NEST UNDSR A FENDER Of MP 0WN6P Si l GAME m CemmefLMillef, Augusia Co.,Ga. INVALID'S MASTERPIECE Robert Louis Stevenson was ill in bed when he wrote "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde." His inspiration was a real character Deacon William Brodie of Edinburgh, Scot land, a town councilor who spent his nights at burglary. Brodie invented the gallows drop, and later was hanged on his own invention. THE COMMODORE'S MISTAKE Two years before the United States officially look over California (then part of Mexico). Commodore Thomas Jones, U. S. N heard rumors of war and sailed into Monterey Bay to hoist the Stars and Stripes over the Presidio. Two days later he learned his mistake. TOMORROW: Four Centuries of Mourningl Happy Texas Happy, Tex., Jan. 2. (P) Thousands of persons through out the country received "happy New Year" greetings bearing the postmark, Happy, Tex. The volume of yearend mail was . third heavier than a year ago. Air Lines Set Record Washington, Jan. 2. UP) The civil aeronautics authority esti mated today that commercial airlines in the United States had Louis Tevenson- SEP, WROT6 MR. HWlN DAYS A CAR HARDEN I y vv. jit i-r . FMllrt BrndloU. Inc. N PUDDING TROT He , (STLJ t. is tlli .1 I IJk T rrF,r. . .--1 ld?K P0&E950N OF CALIFORNIA FOR q-8 HOURS "BYMISlAKcf tf WioM&'b MEXICO, WHICH Ht eeUflfeD T & AT WAR WITH THE DA -October, flown 750,000,000 passenger miles in 1939. with only nine passenger fatalities and three crew fatalities. The 82,000,000 passenger miles flown per pas senger fatality was nearly four times the 1938 record. Seven tea tasters distate the tea tastes of America. They meet annually to test tea sam ples and to decide which teas shall be admitted to the United States. I8VZ - By HAL FORRES By SOL HESS
