Norwich bulletin., 1922-06-09
Ward Not At Home
Notwithstanding
Note Leads to Testimony of
a Woman Member of the
Card Party at Wards New
Rochelle Home.

~NOCAlGAlG ElOE1lCs
White Plains, N. Y, June s-Discov-
cry of note on the moor of machine
| taken to a garage for a wash served
today to life the certain of mystery sur,
| rounding the card party held in the New
Rochelle home of Walter S. Ward the
night he shot and killed Clarence Pc
tcrs.
At the same time the Westchester
county grand jury, resuming its inyesti-
cation of the case after a days recess,
went into conference with District At
| torney Weeks over newspaper reports of
| its activities and the necessity for great
| er secrecy during the inquiry When the
| jurors adjourned until Tuesday after
examining five New Rochelle policemen
nothing could be learned regarding the
nature of their testimony.
| The note-the latest clue in the mys-
terry which has been puzzling detectives
since May 16-Was turned over to the
county authorities by Benjamin Kendall,
an employe in White Plains garage. He
! said he found the letter addressed to
Mrs. Charles Dubois of Atlantic High
landS, N. j., in a car belonging to j:
Franklin Burke, of Scarsdale. connected
| with a New York woolen firm
According to Kendall, the note read
| in part:
s'Fran was there when it happened
and left at 1890. The glass that they
found in the driveway was not from
Wards car at all. 1t came from mine.
Walt didn't arrive until $50 although
Beryl was waiting"
Discovery of this note caused fur
ry among Investigators. who pondered OH
i the pronoun .'it' in the phrase when II
happened" The first deduction made
was that "it'' referred to the shooting
and was interpreted by some inyesti-
gators as tending to substantiate th'
story of James ]. Cunningham, race
track detective held as a material wit
ness, that the shooting occurred IN the
Ward home, instead Of near the henslct
reservoir, as Ward maintains.
Later, however, communication was
. established with Mrs. Alfred H. Hook
who lives across the street from the
Wards, and who is a sister of Mrs
Burke. Mrs Hooks first name, Frances
is abbreviated into Fran" by her init
} mates.
Asserting that her sister had told he
: of losing the letter. Mrs Hook, wh'
: said she was one of those who attend
! ed the Ward card party the night Q
the shooting. said that Mrs. Burke re
/ ferred to 'ft'' to the breaking of tn
a glass in the windshield of her car whe
IT era shed into another on the War
driveway. Mrs Dubois, she said, was
G close friend and Mrs. Burke wished I
a let her know that the broken glass o
the driveway di not represent the pan
which Ward said had been punoture
In his coupe in a pistol battle near
treservoir with Peters and band Of
: legged blackmailers,
According to Mrs. Hook, her siste
r, had left the Ward home and had nef
II lorlx Off
/. starting her car. This caused it to cras
n into another.
= She added that enither she nor Mr.
Burke had considered the accident in
d portant and therefore had not reporte
s. n baceuse OF a desire to escape pil
IS rcNty She contended, however, tha
she was perfectly ready to testify befoi
the grand Jury, that she had nothing
N hide and that she would have answe
le ed any questions put to her by the coul
/ tv authorities if anyone had appeared
quiz her.
Then Mrs. Hook told this story of Il
card party:
y 'on the night of the shooting, 81
said, she crossed the street to the Wa
n home to take a walk with Mrs. War
h After a brief conversation, however, MI
r Ward decided to get up mixed pok
re- party and assembled her guests by Il
IN ephone.
~ Mr.. Hook was i'll and did not atten
ne according to his wife, who said she ie
nA at 1880. About dozen guests we
ar still playing cards at that time, she sa1
She declined to name the guests beto
n being officially questioned, but assert
an that they were our own set"
:; No disturbance occurred in the Wa
ho home while she was there, she cont
- Eued, and she heard none later. Ward W
- not at home and she did not see Pete
in the house
District Attorney Weeks declared t
= explanation of the broken glass was t
first hint he had heard that accide
had occurred on the Ward driveway t
night of the shooting.
When he was asked if Mrs. Hook
| the Burkes had been subpoenaed, y
| Weekc declared there had not been tin
l | Meanwhile, Burke, who was understo
l to have met Mrs. Burke, and his s
u ter-in-law in New Rochelle today. te
H phoned Sheriff Werner that he wished
H see him and hoped to get down tonig
H from his home in Scarsdale.
H When the district attorney was pres
H ed further by newspaper men as to VIII
II Mrs. Hook would be questioned, he
| lplied:
n There is lots of time. Without bel
\ discourteous, 1 hope you gentlemen W
II permit me and the grand jury to condu
Il this investigation in our own way and
h our own time"
II The grand Jury was in session 70
H and one-half hours. Cunningham, W
\ first was reported to have been call
H before it, remained in Mr.. Weeks
II fee. The reason for his presence W