The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-06-24
BOOK II
The Law and Its Victim.
CHAPTER XII.
Details.

The days of my obscurity were over.
Henceforth 1 was regarded as a decided
factor In this Casa case which, from
this time on, assumed another aspect
both at headquarters and in the minds of
people at large. The reporters, whom we
had hitherto managed to hold In check,
now overlooked both the coroners office
and police headquarters, and articles APP
peared in all the daily papers with Just
enough suggestion In them to fire the
public mind and make me- for one, an
ticipate an immediate word from Mr.
Jeffrey calculated to establish the alibi
he had failed to make out on the day we
talked with him. But no such word came.
his memory still played him false, and
no alternative was left but to pursue the
official inquiry in the line suggested by
the interview just recounted. g.
No. proceeding in which had ever been
engaged interested me as did this inquest
In the first place, the spectators were Of
very different character from the ordi-
nary. AS I wormed myself along to the
seat accorded to such witnesses as myself
1 brushed by men of the very highest
| station and a few Of the lowest; and bent
my head more than once in response to
the inquiring gaze of some fashionable
lady who never before, I warrant, had
found herself in such a scene BY the
| time I reached my place all the others
were seated and the coroner raped for
order.
I was first to take the stand. What I
| said has already been fully amplified in
the foregoing pages. Of course, my evil
dence was confined to facts, but some
| of these facts were new to most of the
! persons there. 1t was evident that a
| considerable effect was produced by them,
not only on the spectators, but upon the
witnesses themselves. For instance, it
was the first time that the marks on the
| ~ q N q Al hAl 40 II a.,
the majors office, or the story so told
as to make it evident that Mrs. Jeffrey
| could not have been alone in the house
{ at the time of her death.
| A photograph had been taken Of those
marks, and my Identification Of this pho
! tograph closed my testimony.
AS l returned to my seat I stole a
look toward a certain corner where, with
face bent down upon his hand, Francis
jeffrey sat between Uncle David and the
heavily yelled figure Of Miss Tuttle. Had
there dawned upon him as my testimony
was given any suspicion Of the trick by
/ which he had been proved responsible for
those marks? It was impossible to tell
From the way Miss Tuttles head was
/ turned towards him. one might judge him
to be labOring under an emotion of nc
1 ordinary character, tho he sat like a
i statue and hardly seemed to realize how
1 many eyes were at that moment riveted
! upon his face
I was followed by other detectives who
had been present at the time and who
corroborated my statement as to the APP
pearance of this unhappy woman and the
way the pistol had been tied to her arm
Then the doctor who had acted under ths
coroner was called. After a long and nc
doubt learned description Of the bule
wound which had ended the life of this
unhappy lady-a wound which he insisted
with a marked display of learning, mus
have made that end instantaneous or a.
least too immediate for her to move foo
or hand after it--he was asked if the body
. showed any other mark of violence.
To this he replied:
s'There was a minute wound at the base
q Of one of her fingers, the one which il
popularity called the wedding finger
This statement made all the wome1
stare with renewed interest; nor was /
altogether without point for the men, es
pecially when the doctor went on to say
THE hands were entirely without rings
AS Mrs. Jeffrey had been married with
ring. noticed their absence"
WAS this wound which you character
ize as minute a recent one?''
Il "It had bled little 1t was an abra
sion such as would be made If the RIM
she usually wore there had been draw
off with jerk. That was the impression
received from its appearance. "a do no
state that it was so made
A little thrill which went over the au
dience at the picture this evoked com
municated itself to Miss Tuttle. VIII
trembled violently. 1t even produced
slight display of emotion in Mr.. jeffrey
whose hand shook where he pressed
against his forehead. But neither uttere
sound. nor looked up when the mex
:. witness was summoned.
To be continued tomorrow.