The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1909-11-04
THE ALTENBURG CASE
By GEORGE DIRE ELDRIDGE
(Continued.)

Not even that he kept the appoint ment"
 sAs yet. as a matter of proof. not even that he kept the appointment. I think. too. that we are bound to de- termine in advance whether we shall question the Caldens as to their hav- ing seen or heard anything of a visitor Tues sday evening. It's my opinion that. in fairness to them. no less than in. the interest of truth. we ought to-"
 Cant we leave that to Beckwith ?''
 'Tf it was a trial and they were the accused. yes. But it isn't. This is search in the interest of justice. and innocently involved"
 But the confession?" suggested the county attorney
 'Is no confession at all. as I don't need to tell you You've got the right man That's all there was to it. Is that, honestly. to be accepted as confession that murder has been done2"
 Not if unsupported and uncorrobo- rated-that is. if he holds his tongue from this on and puts us to the proof"
 Wouldn't you almost agree. on trial. if you were his lawyer. to keep it out altogether" demanded Trafford.
 'eYes. I think I would: at least with nine judges out of ten"
 well. that settles it to my mind It isn't specific enough to rank as a con fession. and If we accuse Calden. which am-far from prepared to do as yet, we've got to count that so-called con- fession out. If it gets in at all. why so much gained"
 And you haven't found out any thing regarding the proposed visit?'
 Beyond this scrap of paper nothing that is tangible. think 1t possible that by questioning the Caldens we may find they have reason to believe that some one did visit the house Tues day evening and possibly spent the night there. but that is all such pure supposition that I'm not prepared to attach any weight as yet to 1t. though I may feel differently before the in quest actually opens Of course, the old woman wouldn't have known if regiment came. and the Canadian didn't sleep in the house. The more turn 1t over the more do feel that we ought to question the Caldens. and question them closely. If 1t opens an apparent door for their escape and Beckwfth takes advantage of it. then we must meet that condition when 1t arises We can't predicate safety on concealment in any event"
 "AlI right, I'm agreed; but what bearing can the visit have. anyway? 1t was Tuesday night. and Altenburg of nsn Wednesday afternoon" z Tt isn't the visit itself that inter ests me, it's the secrecy of the visit. If a man came and went to the farm. and it's impossible to trace either his coming or going. as it has been up to this time. 1t must imply the most ex- traordinary precautions on his part. precautions far beyond anything that I have ever encountered under similar circumstances. The only alternative is the deepest stupidity in the investiga- tion. I'm free to admit that. looking at it from those two points of view, at the absence of all signs of fear on Altenburg's part. and at the fact that the only intent that can be assigned to the suggestion in the note Is avoid ance of Mrs. Calden. I incline to the opinion that the visit wasn't made. Either that or a meeting at the usual place is. think. the solution of the matter. That's what I want to know. and know it I will yet"
 Then we must check that off to ask of the Caldens. if either Is called at the inquest"
 Horace Calden left the Altenburg house about o'clock Wednesday morning" Trafford resumed. "He was seen by David. from whom he appears to have taken no trouble to conceal himself. It's one of the oddities of this affair that the Caldens haven't seemed to keep their movements. up to the time of the murder. concealed from anybody save Altenburg. They're ap- parently playing an open hand. or would be were it not that the mo- ment the murder is committed they begin to conceal or withhold in the most reckless way, and to the point of involving matters that. so far as I can see. would help them immensely to have known Thus we find that Horace Calden can be traced back to the Melton farm. where he arrived about o'clock that morning, by a dozen witnesses His sister joined him there that day. having come with her mother to Augusta, and they were to- gether at the lake camp part of the day. At five he left Melton farm in a buggy. came back at a quarter-pastf seven. when he and his sister left again on horseback. They arrived at the Altenburg house not far from s o'clock.
 T can't get trace of Calden. the elder. aboutsthe place all day wednes- day. No one seems to have suspected his presence. unless it was Altenburg, whose suspicious or knowledge are closed to us. I cannot Identify him with the man who gave David the drink The description of the two boys is hopelessly worthless. David himself. after consistently denying the whole thing. until I was half inclined to think the boys lied. suddenly owned up.. but he declares the man was as