Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1915-10-14
"rry another ,oIt of old George G.

BOOZE, ne invited.
Market-ruined men are not unusual
In downtown cafes, and one quick
glance had shown my eyes the "out OF
order" sign over his own typewriter.
1t took three big drinks of the fiery
stuff to take the chill from inside me
and bring back the old color to my
cheeks.
Buck up" advised the friendly bar
man as I turned to leave. Don't get
any fool idea of musslng yourself all
UP with a gun. T'morro's another
day"
Suicide! I'd never thought OF that.
Then the incongruity of considering
the taking of my own life and my
paralysis Of fear at the thought OF the
electric chair struck me. There would
be no self destruction. was too much
of coward! 1t was life wanted;
life at any cost. f..
The cost was to be two hundred
thousand dollars to the father OF the
girl l loved; two hundred thousand
dollars of the money entrusted to him
by the neighbors back home.
But life is a sweet thing, made
sweeter to my kind by its very worth
, lessness. ! must 20 on. I must play
the game for the man who was to
turn me adrift when l had finished it.
must rob those / loved to pay the
man hated above al men.
| For an hour l walked the streets,
! trying to steel myself to meet the
| brown eyes of the girl. l was hungry
| for the last precious minutes with her.
| for that would be the only memory I'd
have as / strolled the gay boulevards
Of Paris, spending the money had
accumulated in my years OF grating
and watching for simple American
tourists who would be my prey.
came to subway station and hur-
ried down. The sight of news
stand made me curious to see what
new facts the papers had. The 1T
tle l had read at Kennedy's was all /
knew.
grabbed a later edition Of the
same lurid sheet and ran for the up
town train. It was not until l was
safely seated that l opened in. My
gloved hands tishtened so they tore
the edges, and / drew in my breath
sharply.
In the center OF the first page, pic
tured in heavy black, were the thumb
and four fnger-prints that had been
photographed from the tray. Every
line and curve was perfect; the black
hand seemed monatrous huge rs It
stared from the surrounding white
ness of the three-column space.
stared at it, and il required all my
will-power to keep my eyes from my
own gloved hands that gripped the
pages.
"Startlingly vivid, isn't it?" The
words of the man rext TO me brought
me to life. Had he noticed my agi-
tation and suspected the cause?
"Sure is" l muttered with we'll
assumed Indifference when I'd sized
him up as the sort who talks to any
one who will listen.
"a murderer might Just as we'll
leave his photo and address as that"
|
those prints certainly would have to
have a cracker-jack alibi II he wanted
to get off,"
Alibil The words Strengthened my
muddled senses with jolt. Why
hadn't / thought of it before? There
ven an alibi?
He must have had to go somewhere
TO take that tray and give instruc
tions TO the man who did the actua
killing. He'd hardly have nerve
enough to let him come to the Office
Kennedy would swear to my manufac
tured alibi! I'd been a fool with NJ.
senseless, childish fears!
jumped out as the train stopped
and ran from the station. The on'
man who had helped me would do
again. The fear Of Mike Garven still
; gripped me, and was afraid to TAX
a chance myself. But Kennedy coul'
find some one to do 1t.
I'd pay. Heavens, how I'd pay
Mike wouldn't suspect me this time
He couldn't have read my soul on tn
DEVILS palm. because my terror ha
been real Ny soul would have show
as much fear as my face-because r
forgotten my one chance!
was shaking like leaf as hi
: voice came to me over the wire in tn
first closed telephone booth I fount
But he cut me off in the middle Of m
first eager sentence.
i've felt the hand of the divi
Jimmy-boy," the words came to M
and could hear the sobbing break
them. Hes towld me something this
not even my priest knows--1T hhy
to swear that you left me to see BIZ
ers oHagen-and how ye came bacl
Do what the divil saws. Jimmy. a
may Heaven help vel"
The telephone girls warning tb'
my three minutes were up told u