The evening world., 1922-03-15


Cunningham had been ID
dered at his home in the ParI sxl
Apartments.
He passed q wretched night. IN
distress that flooded his mind was
less to his own danger than to
anxiety for Rose. He could not IN
plain why he was in his uncl&(
apartment without duplicating Rol
and her sister. He would not betrd
them. That of course. But he hdl
told his cousins why he was goinslI
Would their story not start hunt fof
the woman in the case?
With the dawn he was out on tRoI
street to buy a copy of the News.
The story of the murder had the twoI
columns on the right-hand side of the
front page and broke over to the
third. He hurried back to his room
to read it,
As Kirby had expected, he was Sc
lected as the probable assassin. Al
reporter had interviewed Mr.. and
Mrs Cass Hull. who occupied the
apartment just below that of thd
murdered man. They had told m
t'1t a vo..1g man, stranger I'd
like a prosperous ranchman, had
knocked on their door about $50 to-
ask the way to the apartment OF
Cunningham. Hull explained that hel
remembered the time particularly be
cause he happened to he winding theI
clock at the moment.
A description of Lane was given I'D
two-column box" He reafpX
with no little amusement. wv
The supposed assassin Of James
Cunningham is described by Mrs.
Cass Hull as dressed in a pepper
and salt suit and white,
pinchedin cattIeman's hat. He is
about feet tall, between 25 and
80 years old, weighing about 200
or perhaps 21o pounds. His hair
is light brown and his face
tanned from the sun.
His age and his weight were over
stated. and his clothes were almost d
| khaki brown Otherwise Mrs. HUI
had given a very close description.
There was one sentence of the stori
he read over two or three times. Hui
and his wife agreed that il was aboul
go when he had knocked on thei
door Kirby knew this was wrong
He had looked at his watch just be
fore he had entered the Parade
Apartment. The time was 9.55.
Had the Hulls deliberately shiftel
the time back thirty five minuteE fu
so, why? Did they know more aDoI
the murder than they pretended
When he had mentioned his uncle
name the woman had been close I
collapse, though, of course, he coul
not be sure that had been the reasol
To his mind there flashed the mem
ory of the note he had seen on TIL
table. The man had called on Gun
Iningham and left word he might cay
lagain. Was it possible the Hulls v \
Just come down from the apartA y
labovc when he had knocked on the
ldoor? If so, how did tho presence {
Rose fit into the schedule?
The newspaper was inclined
bring up stage the mysterious me
who had called up the police at 10:
to tell them that Cunningham hi
lbeen murdered in his rooms. WI
was this man? Could he be the mu
derer? If not the killer, how did J
| Know IllaI n crime lldu Dttll tOi
mitted less than an hour before?
As soon as he had eaten hreakfas
Kirby walked round to the boarding
house on Cherokee Street where WI
Rose waA staying with her sstC
, Rose was out, he learned from q
llandlady. He asked if he might
her sister.
Presently Esther came down
: the parlor where the young mi
: waited for her. Lane introduc
I himself as a friend of Rose. He W
: worried about her, he said.
seemed to him in a highly wro'
, up, nervous state.
Esther swallowed a lump in
throat. She had never seen Rose
: llumpy. she agreed, Last night
had gone out for an hour alone. T
look in her eyes when she had col
. back had frightened Esther.
Then, suddenly, Esther's thrt
= swelled and she began to sob.
where is she n9w?" asked Kir
I gently.
e "I don't know. She didn't tell
= where she was going There't
there's something queer about her,
4 Tim afraid"
"What are you afraid of?''
"She's $3.50 kinda fierce" Est
walled.
=, Her eyes fell. They rested on
News some boarder had tossed on
table beside which she stood. T.
I thoughts were of herself and
{ might in which she had become I
Iolyed She looked at the big hef
;, lines Of the paper and for the n
n mont did not see them. What
: did see was disgrace, the shipwrt
Is or the young life she loved so mu,
Her pupils dilated. The words
i the headline penetrated to the brfS
k A hand clutched at her heart, s
3 read again hazily---
d JAMES Gun HAN :
I. MURDER o.
y then collapsed fainting into a en-:
10 Copyright. 1921. by William Macleod