The Tupelo journal., 1915-09-03
A Mystery
Being a Story OF How a
Murder Case Was
Not Solved.
By DONALD cHAMBERLIN

lis that you. ThompsonT"
YES"
I'm Parker. / 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?"
II can't ask you to dinner, for l
haven't a servant In the house."
well I'll be over about 8 o'clock.
Will that do?"
Yes; much obliged"
Parker was the junior partner in a
large jewelry firm and a man who
never shrank from any duty involving
danger. Therefore l 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. fancied he must
be i'll, or he would not have asked any
lone TO sleep in the house with him.
At 8 O'Clock | rang his doorbell, and
he admitted me himself. He appear
Sd neither iii nor troubled. He led me
into an apartment he used for a smok-
ing room. where he produced cigars,
And we sat down for a smoke. l waited
some time for him to tell me why he
wished for some n to sleep in his
house with him. but he did not. chat
ting on ordinary topics until rose to
go 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 disagreeable episode and are apt
to make too much Of it. Doubtless in Il
few days or a few weeks l shall think
nothing of the one in which L am o n
cerned. Why take up a lot of time
going over it with you. especially since
it would be unpleasant for me to do
500"
| excused him and went to my room.
having told him that l must be up ear
ly in the morning and off. for my time
for going to business was Z O'Clock.
while he did not need to do so till y
O'Clock. | babe him good night, telling
him that if he should be wakeful to
come into my room for a chat. He
said be expected to sleep soundly. and
with that we parted.
In the morning | went out, treading
softly that | 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. w%hereupon he told me
every day at home.
[ called up Parker the same evening
by telephone to ask him if he required
my services again. but there was no
response to the call. | thought nothing
of this, for there was no one besides
himself to answer. and l. presumed he
was not at home. Several days passed.
and | 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 his bach
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 go
to the house where the murder had
been committed. On the way l 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 at Inspector O'Con-
nor's office" said the policeman.
I'm going to the house Of a friend of
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 his
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 it placed me. ! am sure turned
pale, and l 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 it 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 IN Parker's telling
me the story connected with his OBJ
jecting to sleep in the house alone
The circumstance attending my beins
there. together with the revolver found
under his pillow. made it plain as tn
SIM IN hoa ven tina he had feared SOM