The New York herald., 1921-04-11


know what day got home. 1t wa.
the Fourth OF July"
Recalls the Gift Of Socks.
Harris. or Leonard. laughed an6
chided her for having bad memory
Together and separately Oswald pumped
the two; neither was shaken. Then ono,
more they faced each other. and once
more the detective questioned them or.s
at a time. The wife told him, when. he
asked her to tell him why she wa.
so sure that she was in New York, thai
a woman couldn't forget what she die
on her husbands birthday, and as ii
this case the birthday followed the Elwel
murder by only two days. she was al il
to recall just what took place in The
few days preceding the birthday, incltld
ing the murder date.
did you give him anything on hir
birthday" oswald asked.
Yes" she said, II bought him two
pairs of socks in store on Columbus
avenue. One was brown. the other black
I gave them to Benny at 33 Wes
Eighty-fourth street In the evening, al
the house where we We're living"
Mrs. Harris was taken into another
room and again Roy was brought iron
his cell. He told his story again. re.
peating 1t in the old phrases. Oswald
cited its many known inaccuracies. but
they didn't bother Harris. Finally sale
Oswald:
When is your birthday, Roy?"
June 49," said Harris.
Get any presents on your last one?'
Yes"
"What?''
Socks from my wife"
''oh. that's so. what color were
they?'
Two pairs. one black. the other
brown"
Where were you living then?'
"Thirty-three West Eight y-fourtf
street"
"And your wife?"
same place"
You were both in the same place
were you?"
"Yes"
'"rhen what do you mean by saying
she was i'm Ontario?"
That's where the BREAK" started
Harris guessed he might as we'll admit
that his wife did not so to Ontario unit
July 3. just as she said. Oswald. Il
whom the prisoner had taken grea1
shine, drew him along with other queries
With the socks as a starter. he got Har-
ris to concedc that the wife spoke th'
truth when she said ;iarris and she weir
together the evening before the Elwel
murder and all that night. lie told Os
wald u.at he took no part i'm the mar
der, but knew a lot about it. sIn fact
he said, the proposal that he go into thu
scheme had been made to him, just q!
he had said all along, but that he hac
Ia~ lo,. a haI M haa ~ TN
murder
At this interesting point the nights Ions
Interviewing ended and Oswald wen
back to his hotel confident that to-da,
would bring forth the whole truth. Abou
noon. after Oswald had talked with Dis
trict Attorney Moore, Mr.. and Mrs. Har
ris were taken to the latters office. Har
ris looked GUNNER than usual. He wa
handcvffed TO Detective Howell. VIII,
with Detective Flynn made the arres
last week. He had not shaved and th'
rumpiei condition of his serge suit be
trayed constant intimacy with the jai
cot ana none whatever with q tailor.
Two hours passed. Then tie Distric
Attorneys door opened ana out came Os
wald with MIR. and Mrs. Harris. Til
smile Harris gave reporters was sheep
ish. His wife seemed amused abuu
something, yet close to tears, too.
You're not going to cry. are you?
a detective said.
mot Just now" she answered. wit
q toss of her bright green spring hat.
Got Idea From Reading.
Harris and Detective Howell wer
again united by the chain connecting tn
handcuffs. Benny. the confessor, locke
dor y Mt the nickel plated manacle.
"They don't belong on me now, bu
/ it's All right" he said, as the outer doc
opened for his exit.
Then out Of his Office came Distric
Attorney Moore.
Harris" he began, has completed
retracted his statement. He says h
| knows nothing about the Elwell cas-,
lie practically made the retraction las
night to Detective Oswald. He said the
while he did not take part In the mur
/ der he knew something about IL. III
said that Mrs. Fairchild and Jerry, he
chauffeur, were realities and that the
made a proposition to him and the ma
Duncan to murder Elwell, but that Har
ris refused to go in.
II talked with Harris to-day lie no'
retracts the latter part and says tn
whole thing was fabrication. He say
ne doesn't know anything about tho muT
\ der.
''The motive he attributes 70 himself
| this: lie says that when he was al
/ rested here on the charge Of forgery b
expected 20 be disgraced.
'IIe had been separated from his VIII
ana was desperate and discouraged. II
thought that by connecting himself wit
\ the murder he could be put away. II
wanted TO 70 either 10 prison or to I'll
| electric chair and be done away will
/ Recently he read that a new clue ha
\ been discovered In the Elwell case, an
1 that suggested to him the story he toll
proof that he had attempted
4 break into literature has been discovere
\ In his effects. He wrote short stor.
After the tale he told In the Elwcn cas-
! should say he was qualified TO VIII
f fiction.
II have teiephoncd TO Albany to ha,
Mr.. whitman informed upon his arrivi
there on his way TO Buffalo OF the tur
\ tho case has taken, so that he may us
his own judgment ps to continuing b
4 Journey Harris In really. held on =
1 charge az all now, but merely for furths
diy9opition. lie will not be release
until we head definitely from St Cath'
rines and from Mr.. Whitman"
How was the story broken down
The District Attorney was asked.
We'll" hc said. the Inaccuracies {
Il were constantly shown to him. y
was confronted with his wife, and sh
| stated facts which made II impossibl
rcr him 70 maintain his impossible storl
For example. there was the birthda,
June 13, 1920. lie had said all the tim
that ahe was In Canada then. Whe
che recalled the present Of the pair :
rocks he saw that that part Of his nai
rative was untrue | then said to hin