Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1920-06-04
CHAPTER TX.

CHAPTER TX.
A prisoner in a police station cell,
passed a sleepless night. Conscious
as 1 was of my utter innocence and
confident of my speedy release, never
theless 1 had to admit that the de-
tectives from their point Of view were
perfectly justified in placing me I'M
der arrest.
For a burglar to have gained access
to the apartments without the conniv-
ance of the employees seemed almost
an impossibility. For him to have
escaped from the building after hav-
ing murdered Miss Lutan without be-
ing detected seemed also highly i'm
probable. Then, too, there was the
damning evidence of the blood on my
coat and the fact that l had been
found at the door of the apartment.
had not observed the stain on my
clothing until the detectives discov-
cred it. My explanation of. how it had
gotten there was the true one, yet 1
could readily realize that it might
sound fishy to others.
On the face of it the tragedy in
the Granddeck looked like an inside
job. The revolver, with one bullet
missing. was the strongest sort of evil
dence that l was the murderer. Yet
I never had seen the weapon before
and could not imagine who could have
placed II there. There was only one
explanation possible. 1t had been pur-
posely planted there with the definite
object of throwing suspicion on me.
The one person-the only person
whom l knew to have been in my
rooms after the murder was committed
was Claire Bradford Could she have
done 1t? I remembered that Barbara
had showed me a revolver In her pos
session. / wondered If this could be
the same weapon. I did not think it
possible that Claire herself could have
used IL. / could imagine no motive
why Claire Bradford would want to
kill Miss Lutan, yet it must have been
she who had hidden the revolver in my
dresser. What had been her motivei
How had she got possession of the re-
volver after the murder?
Come what may, / had no intention
Of telling any one-not even German
of Claire's second visit to my apart.
ment. For Barbara's sake I made up
my mind 1 would keep my lips closed
about that incident. even If had to
stay in prison indefinitely. At the po.
lice station when the detectives had
brought me in, had quietly but firmly
refused to answer any questions, al
though they had badgered me for near
ly two hours before they let me alone
"Where did you live before yor
came to the Granddeck?"
"Where did you work?"
where is Rufus Gaston?"
"Where do your people liver
"Why did you kill Daisy Lutan?"
"Where did you get the money yoJ
have?"
"We've got the goods on you. VIII,
don't you confess?"
These were the sort of question:
that we're flung at me, first by one ant
then the other. Evidently at frs
they had had hopes of breaking M
down.
'T have nothing to say" had beel
my unvarying answer to all their cues
tions.
Finally they gave 1t up and locke,
me in cell for the night, leaving m
thankful that the honor Of being sus
pected murderer relieved me fror
sharing cell with some of the frows
prisoners I saw brought past M
barred door.
"Haven't you any friends you woul,
like to have notifiedT" was the las
question they asked as they left me.
81 have nothing to say" I repeate
once more.
Nor was this answer this time mer
stubbornness. Who was there that
could notify of my plight? Birge an
Roller, my two intimates, were some
where on the high seas. The me
whom l had known in the office wher
had worked, for obvious reasons
were not to be called on. / had n
idea of the whereabouts of my age
relatives beyond the fact that the
were somewhere in Maine.
l had no intention whatever of con
municating the fact of my arrest t
my mother. Indeed, was hoping tha
she would not hear of it until after m
innocence was established.
thought of German. would hav
been glad of his counsel, but 1 remen
bered that l did not know where b
: lived. He had told me he was givin
up his position at the hotel. 1t woul
be useless to try to find him unit
} morning.
Yet in spite Of my apparent frient
lessness, although to all appearance
there was no one in New York [
| whom l could turn In this time {
trouble, it was a wonderful comfol
I to feel that 4 was sure of one stanC
{ friend-Barbara Bradford.
: Although we had been acquainte
r but few days, and although hardly
) word of love had passed between u
| knew that her feeling for me alread
] was something greater than friendshi
{ l knew that she trusted me and tn;
! she would remain faithful in her a
Z fection for me, no matter what a
D cusations were brought against me.
2 had been madly in love with her fro
/ almost the first time saw her. Wha
| lever happened, 1 must keep her o1
a of it. / must find some means
warning her to say nothing to any on
1 knew that her first impulse as 500
: as she heard Of my arrest would
b to come to my rescue, regardless
/ the fact that in establishing an ali
for me she would be blasting her ov
q reputation. Under no circumstance
: even If was convicted, must she
2 permitted to speak. No explanatit
can account for the presence
a young girl alone in a mans room
at eleven o'clock at night, eve
I though she and / both knew how I
+ terly undeserving of censure h
q presence there was and how importa
e had been her motive in coming thel