The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1923-04-08
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vile, | want to save him and his nephew
unnecessary distress and anxiety. By
full and frank discussion we can decide as
man to man whether there is any real case
for Marsland to answer. / submit that
you have justification for some suspicious
in regard to him, but let US see if the fog
of suspicion cannot be cleared away by a
discussion of the facts.
ut will take great deal to convince
me that he doesn't know more about this
tragedy than he has told u.s." said Gillett
doggedy.
But we to find him guilty merely
because he chooses to keep silent on Ger
tain points?''
what is his object in keeping silence?
What his object in making false
statement? What is his object in putting
obstacles in our way? Is that the conduct
of an innocent man."
at is not the conduct of man anxious
to help the police to the utmost of his pow
er without regard to consequences said
J Crewe. "But there is a wide gulf between
being guilty of keeping something back and
being guilty of murder
when the thing kept back suggests a
T. motive for getting the who was
dered out of the way, it is natural to see
a connection between the two,' returned
Glett
'And what was the thing that Marsand
kept back"
"He kept back that he was an officer
in the army-captain in the London Rifle
Brigade. He kept back that this man,
Lumsden, was private in his company
''But the discovery of these things did
not present any great difficulty to police
official of your resources, Gillett."
mo, they did not the detective ad-
mitted. But we should have been told of
them in the first place."
True. But listen to the explanation
why you were not told. Marsland has been
an invalid for some months. He was in
valded out of the army because of wounds
and nervous shock. He broke down as
many others have broken down, under a
long experience of the awful horrors Of
the front. In order to assist in his recovery
the doctors ordered that as far as pos
sible his mind should be kept from dwelling
on the war. For this reason, the war is
mentioned in his presence by those
who know of his nervous condition He is
never addressed by them as an army Of
ficer, but civilian
CAN that is very interesting, Mr.. Crewe,
but it does not dispose of the information
in our possession. You see, the circum-
nsances in which Captain Marsland came
into this affair were so very extraordinary
that he might we'll have told Westaway the
truth about the military connections be-
tween himself and Lumsden. 1t was an oc-
casion when the whole truth should have
been told. We could not have been long
in learning from his relatives that he was
suffering from nervous shock and we
would hove shown him every consideration"
THAT is an excellent piece of special
pleading" said Crewe. "But you do not
take into consideration the fact that the
evasion of everything that dealt with the
army, and particularly with his old regi-
ment, has become habit with Marsand"
"Our information said Gillett slowly
and impressvely, "is that he believed Lums-
dend was dead-that he had been killed in
France: That in his capacity as an officer
he sent Lumsden and another man to their
death. He had a grudge against this other
man. Lumsden's companion was killed but
Lumsden was taken prisoner and subse-
auently escaped. If that is correct, it sup
plies a strong motive for getting Lumsden
out of the way when he discovered that
Lumsden was alive and in England
"When did Marsland make this discov-
cry"
"That l don't know. But he could easily
have made~it and obtained Lumsdens ad-
dress from the headquarters of the London
Rifle Rripade'