The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1915-07-02
4 Mystery
Being q Story Of How Q
murder Case Was
Not Solved.
D DONALD cnAMBeRuN

! D DONALD cnAMseRuN !
My telephone bell rang and, going to
the instrument, l took up the receiver.
is that you. Thompson"
Yes"
I'm Parker. l wish you to come
down and stay in the house with me
tonight. I'm alone and nervous"
Certainly. old man. What's the mat
ter with you!"
q" can't ask you to dinner. for I
ha vent a servant in the house."
We'll. Ill be over about 8 o'clock.
viii that dor
YES: much obliged"
Parker was the Junior partner In a
large jewelry 6rm and a man who
nev shrank from any duty involving
danger. Therefore I was surprised at
his shrinking from sleeping in a house
alone. He was a widower without chill
dren. and though he lived in the house
he had occupied with his wife. he took
his meals at his club. hiring no servant
except for day work. I fancied he must
be i'll. or he would not have asked any
n to sleep in the house with him.
At 8 o'clock ! rang his dOorbell. and
he admitted me himself. He appear
ed neither Ill nor troubled. He led me
into an apartment he used for a smok-
ing ROOM. where he produced cigars.
and we sat down for q smoke. l waited
some time for him to tell me why he
wished for some one to sleep in his
house with him. but he did not. chat
ting On ordinary topics until ! rose to
60 to bed. Then ! asked him what had
made him nervous.
There is a story connected with It.
and l don't feel like telling it tonight"
he said. I'VE are all connected with
some d~isagreeable episode and are ap,
to make too much Of 1t. Doubtless in Il
few days or a few weeks | shall think
nothing of the one In which | am n
cerned. Why take up a lot Of time
going owe 1t with you. especially since
it would be unpleasant for me to do
so?"
l excused him and went to my room.
having told him that l must be up ear
ly in the morning and of, for my time
for going to business was Z O'Clock,
while he did not need to do so till 8
o'clock. l babe him good night, telling
him that If he should be wakeful to
come into my room for a chat. He
said he expected to sleep soundly. and
with that we parted.
In the morning l went out. treading
softly that 1 might not awaken my
| friend. and emerged from the front
door before most persons were stirring.
A milkman drove up at the time and
| carried a bottle of milk to a rear door.
| He looked at me and l spoke to him.
expressing surprise that he should
leave milk at a house where no meals
were served. whereupon he told me
that Mr.. Parker drank a quart of milk
every day at home.
l called up Parker the same evening
by telephone to ask him II he required
my services again. but there was no
response to the call. l thought nothing
Of this. for there was no II besides
himself to answer and / presumed be
was not at home. Several days passed.
and l heard nothing from him. Then
on taking up my morning paper | saw
under large headlines a statement that
he had been found murdered In his bed.
The man who left the milk at bis back
door. seeing that the bottles remained
unemptied where he had left them. no.
tilted a neighbor, who broke into the
house and found Parker stabbed to the
heart. A loaded revolver was under
his pillow that had not been used.
Mortified. l started Immediately to g.
to the house where the murder had
been committed. On the way | met the
milkman in company with a police
man. On seeing me the former said
something to the policeman. which !
did not hear. and the two stopped be-
fore me.
You're wanted ut Inspector O'COn-
nor's Office" said the policeman.
I'm going to the house Of u friend VI
mine who has been murdered. I'll call
later at the inspectors Office"
you'll have to go with me now"
was the reply.
Then for the first time it dawned
upon me that ! was under arrest for
Parker's murder; that he had been
killed the night l had slept at bis
house; that the milkman had seen me
coming out the morning after the muir
der had been committed. The situation
flashed upon me and the danger In
which 1t placed me. ! am sure ] turned
pale. and ! felt my legs tremble be-
meath me.
Not a human being knew of my hav.
ing been called upon by Parker to stay
at his house the night he was MUIR
dered. l had been seen leaving 1t early
in the morning Of the murder. There
had not been another person In the
house during the night than myself
except the murderer. What a pity ]
had not insisted on Parker's telling
me the story connected with his OBJ
jecting to sleep in the house alone!
The circumstance attending my being
49, A.-~Al-- -,SAl> Aho ~~~o1vvn~ rns,ud