Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1912-05-31
The detective drew I, from his pocket

The detective drew II from his pocket
aud looked at It renectively.
Il showed it to. you that day down
town merely to create the impression
suspicion and had not thought Of you
| In connection with the matter. He
probably threw 1t there thoughtlessly
| In his trouble as he entered the house
| on the morning we were all there to-
gether. Now l am satisfied that you
drugged the poor devil. and ! know
that you had the cabman send him TO
that resort. That was bad enough in
| Itself, but when | remember also
| that you tried to fasten suspicion
| upon him l am inclined to lose all
| sympathy for you which | might
| otherwise have. To my mind your
| treachery in that respect is by far the
| worst element of your offense. | can
understand how mans infatuation
| for woman may sometimes lead him
! to dishonesty or even bloodshed, and
under those circumstances ! am liable
| to have lot of charity for him. But
! when he attempts to put a friend
| whom he knows Is innocent into a
felon's cell and thus destroy him and
| the happiness of a sweet woman, he
does an act unworthy of any one who
possesses the semblance of humanity
or decency."
''LeDuc," l cried brokenly, what
ever else say you may believe or
not as you see fit. but when | tell you
| this l want you to believe me inn
plcitly. l had absolutely no idea of
trying to fasten it on Bruce. | told
you and everybody else from the be-
| ginning in the strongest language
that | could command that ! did not
| for an instant believe that he could
be guilty. Neither would | have per-
| mitted him to be punished for the
! crime. If he had been tried and con-
victed should have confessed come
| what might. But knew he would not
! be convicted, because I was certain
| If he had no other alternative he
would tell where he spent the night.
/ I did not know how he came in pos
| session Of the key and simply told you
| of having seen him have it, because
I wished to appear as telling you all
| that l knew, and having no idea but
| that Bruce would Immediately account
| for 1t. l admit that | dropped drug
| in his cocktail, and that l was the
| one who told the cabman where to
| take him after he fell unconscious
| upon the seat, but that was for an
entirely different purpose than to try
IN in 70 I IN
| conscious merely out of fear that he
would return to my uncle's house In
another attempt to borrow money and
| possibly roll into my bed for the
| night as he has sometimes done thus
interfering with my plans. And l had
him conveyed to the place he was
| taken to instead of to where he
was known for the reason that | did
not wis his friends to see him in
that co .dition and think he was in
toxicate |. l had no idea that he would
be suspected of this affair, for | did
| not know he would be so obstinate
about refusing to tell where he had
been, Lor did | know that he would
! deny having had the key; while az for
the cigarette | had nothing to do with
it. Therefore | supposed he would
| awake in the morning, come away.
and that no harm would have been
done. And when | feared that by
reason of several accidents he was in
danger Of being suspected, said
| everything | could to clear him ex-
cept to acknowledge my own guilt"
Il am glad that you have explained
that the way you have. ! like you
whole lot the Better for it. But how
about your mentioning the fact of the
money to Mrs. Dace, and why did
you cough as you choked your uncle?
| Was that an attempt to implicate
Mackay?"
You may look at 1t In that light If
you choose | utterly despised the
man: knew that he would do me all
the harm that he could by fair means
or foul, and did not care what hap
pened to him. | did 1t with the idea
that Il might possibly furnish a false
clue for you to tire yourself out on"
Anything more?" he urged as |
paused Utterly within his power
made tbs last appeal.
oh. y lulS hHoMil5 tAH all
crir.mal and by all law should go to
prison for many years, probably to
die there, | have this to say in justi-
iication of myself Until l COM
mitted this crime | had always been
an honest man with no thought of be-
ing otherwise and with no desire to
harm a living thing. But because
of nv love for woman for whom |
would this moment gladly give my
life and because | could see no other
way of gaining her except by specu-
| lation. l fell into temptation as many
a better man has done. Driven on
ward by love at whose command |
would have faced hades itself. | used
my own money first losing $1,000
Ii, In tha aIte1,nI It To lin