Nogales international., 1928-10-16
WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE


Simon Judd, amateur detective, and VII
| Ham Dart, an undertaken. visit John Drane.
All eccentric man of wealth, at the Drsne
place. Suddenly John Drane is murdered.
| body, makes the astounding revelation to
| Amy Drane that her uncle 10 woman
! and not man.
All the servants in the household are
sick, it is noted, and it is found that Dfaae
never discharged a servant for i'll health.
| Dick Brennan, detective, arrives at the
| house sid makes thorough investigations.
| Simon Judd tells him the story Of the
actual John Dsane with whom he .Uutld)
was acquainted in Riverbank. Judd pro.
| with Brennan in the solution of the crime.
| Brennan accepts, then Judd declares that
| Amy is not John Drane's niece or any rels-
tive Of Drane. Mrs. Vincent, housekcerer,
| tells Brennan that Drane picked his SER
| wants from smsng the chronic patients .:
| the hospital. DIR. Blessington is asked il,
| he had ever noticed any special change Ia
Drane. =
DR.. Bicssington has but little information
to give. The talk veers to Drane's employ
ment of chronic inyalids, and suddenly Judo
astonishes the doctor by asking when
".Drane murdered the 6rst of those hired
hands of hist"
NOW GO ON WITH The STORY
That DR.. Blessington was utterly
amazed and genuinely shocked by
this brazen question discharged at
him by Simon Judd is putting it
mildly. He glared at the fat Iowan
and when he tried to speak he
could only splutter Brennan him
self looked at Simon Judd with
smiling curiosity. but as Judd's
possible thought suggested itself to
him he Strengthened with per-
ceptible jerk.
"Murderedl" spluttered the doc
tor. II take exception to that
word. sirl IL demand that you
"Well, black my catsw Simon
Judd said good naturedly. "You
don't have to go Ayip' off the
handle at me, doc. / amt said you
murdered anybody. 1t just sort of
struck me that maybe this dead
lady had been doin' some. don't
know but what-if I was female
person tryin' to let on to be male
man, and if / had affixed big rea-
sons for keepin' it dark would
sort of like to get rid OF any nosey
hired help that got a notion |
wasn't what / let on to be. Seems
reasonable to me, some ways. amt
sayin' you had anything to do with
it, doc. Don't think you had, my
self. You amt that sort"
'Why-why-" DR.. Blessington
stammsred, still too angry to have
control of himself.
Never mind, Blessington,"
Brennan. said soothingly. "Our
friend here is a new hand at this
business. He only thought he
had found something interesting.
Don't let it worry you. Stop as
you go out, if you want to talk
it over; it's probably unimportant."
Eat when the doctor had entered
the house Brennan did not act as
if he thought the suggestion unim-
portant.
Have you seen anything to
make you think there has been
murder of that sort done" he
asked Judd, but the Iowan was un-
able to say that he had.
Now, don't you go payin' too
much attention to what | say from
time to time, Dick" he said. I'm
gabby, ann Always was an old
fool when it come to shootin' off
my mouth; notion hits me in the
head and | blat out like kicked
! billy goat. Wouldn't surprise me
"a mite if / was all wrong about
these sick and halt hired hands
bein' murdered; prob'ly just one, of
my fool notions. Doc wouldn't go
and bury nobody without hndin'
out what they died of"
"He certainly would motif he
suspected anything" Brennan said.
| But if he had no reason to sus-
! pect? If he saw insa death only
the operation of the disease he had
been treating? There may be
! lot in this idea of yours. . 'f.~''a
"Pshaw, nor Simon Judd said
with exaggerated carelessness;
Just the fool talk of a fat old
feller that don't know nothin'
much. You better forget it, Bren-
! man, Go on and ask some more OF
the help about things"
Il never forget anything, Judd"
Brennan said, but he did continue,
as his text step, the questioning
of the servants. The local reporters
had by this time had word of the
murder and began to arrive, and
Brennan referred the first to DR..
! Blessington and the officers up
stairs and told Norbert to send any
others to DR.. Blessington, To have
privacy for his further questionings
he went into the library and had
the servants sent to him there.
From the servants, however, he
was able to draw nothing new.
With Simon Judd's murder sugges-
ton in mind he dug a little more
into that phase of the life in the
Drane home Norbert said that he
had succeeded houseman who
had died, and the cook Maggie
Nancy admitted that she had come
while her predecessor still lay dead
above stairs, but she insisted she
had known the former cook and
that she had always been sickly
and weakly. The others had fol-
owed servants who had gone to
W.C.T.U. Leader,