The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1921-12-23
True
Detective Stories
IROQUoIs MURDER

THERE are many who have ridi-
culed the methods by which
Craig Kennedy, Sherlock Holmes
and other master sleuths of fiction
have arrived at their infallibly correct
conclusions by deductiye reasoning or
by mechanical apparatus which regis
tiers every fraction of a heartbeat or
every minute change in tile suspects
respiration.
But every now and then these same
methods are used by detectives In real
life, frequently with a great degree
of success.
For example. there was the Hotel
IrOquois murder case in which Police
Commissioner Dougherty of New York
applied mixture - the Holmes and
. Kennedy rules in such manner as to
make the guilty man practically con-
Wet himself. although at the time he
was ignorant of the fact that he was
doing 1t.
William H. Jackson, wealthy guest
of the hotel. was found dead In his
O'AAi OAlI sluDbEi.
the heart. His gold watch and sew
eral other pieces of jewelry had not
been touched. but the only money in
his clothes were three twenty-five
cent pieces in one of his vest pockets.
AS Jackson was known TO have car
ried a good deal of money. the sup
position was that he had been muir
dered by someone VINO had either lost
his nerve or who feared to take the
watch and jewelry because they could
be too easily traced. E'
Even Commissioner Dougherty's
knowledge of the working of the
criminal mind could find little that
could be dignified by the term "clue"
Jackson had evidently returned to
his room rather late the night before
in fact one of the clerks recalled
seeing him enter shortly after mid
night-but the elevator boy said that
he had come up alone, and that no
one had gone up or come down from
the same floor for several hours after
wards.
THAT means nothing" Dougherty
pointed out.
After careful examination of the
room and the body of the murdered
man. Dougherty returned to his Office
and contented himself with seeing
that the machinery of the police was
kept carefully oiled. But to no effect.
AS days passed without further de-
relopments, the public began to criti-
cize and find fault
Finally, when the wave OF criticism
had reached height that he could
no longer afford TO overlook it, Com
missioner Dougherty decided to try a
method which, as he phrased it. twas
shot in the dark-and hundred-to-
one shot at that"
"All we've been able to find out
he said to ore of his lieutenants. sis
that Jackson was stabbed by a left
handed man, standing behind him and
slightly to one side of him. Jackson
dropped without a sound and the muir
'derer was able to lift his roll with
out disturbing the body in the slight
est. The whole thing probably didn't
take more than sixty seconds. Now,
excluding the guests in the hotel at
the time-most of whom It's manifest
ly impossible to reach-I want you to
round up every person who was in the
Iroquois that night. Find out which
ones are left-handed. and bring 'em
down here and let me talk to 'em."
"Third degree. chief7"
"No!" snorted the commissioner.
THAT wouldn't do in this case At
least the old-fashioned kind wouldn't.
I'm going to try something new It's
gamble, but we've got to take a
chance"
One by one the Ieft-handed brigade
was marched into Dougherty's office.
One by one he put TO them set of
questions one of the first of which
regarded their health and the state Of
their pulse. Once he had his fryer
on the suspects wrist. he never lifted
II until the final question had been
asked and answered.
1t was not until the commissioner
commenced to question Paul Ge,del,
the elevator boy who had taken Jack
son up to his floor the night that he
had been murdered, that he noted any
material change in the pulse beats of
the persons he was examining. When
he asked Geidel what he had done I'M
mediatelv after Jackson had stepped
our of his car, the boys pulse hest
tated and then commenced to race.
But his voice was quiet enough as be
replied that Jackson had asked him
FOR some ice water. that he had
brought 1t. placed It outside his door,
AMI zone on WITH his work.
instantly & thought flashed into
nnugherty's mind Jackson npened
the daor, produced roll Of bills
asked for change for dollar. and
Timed Geidel quarter, Shipping the
ctl or three into his vest r1clyet