Nogales international., 1928-09-25
WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE

@iuacA 1ucas amateur oetecttvs. ana
4 WiliiA1a Dart. an undertaken, are visiting
| Iohn Drane. eccentric man Of wealth, at
| he D.aas place Suddenly the household
| ls shocksA to Snd that John Drans has
seen usurdsrsd. The dead man Is frst seen
hy Josie, the maid. thsn BY Amy Draae and
i police of6cers cali and investigations
4 hegin. Dr.. Bicse;agtca 10 called, and after
see:ag the murdered John Drane. makes
the ss.oundinE, revelation to Amy Drama
Or. Bieaainsscn discounts the theory Of
suicide, saying that Drane was definitely
murdered. Dr.. Blessinzson comments on
| tne fact that all the sesyants in the house
hold OF Drane are sisk. and thas Drans 2, nl. has
! never discharged a servant for Ill health
Dick Freeman. the detective, arrives to
| investigate the case.
Ersnnan. auestions. the persons Il ths
house. sshiag ,aj A@y i s.y0ns had Any F'a-
Amy ssys no one lad any reason to kill
her uacle. After further questioning, she
is saked about Dart. Meanwhile Judd has
told the story OF bis ac9uaintance With the
actual Joha Drane IN Rivsrbank.
NOW GO ON WITH THE STORY
mo, nothing. He was uncle
SJohn's friend a long while--long
Ebefore | came here" Amy said,
"They have played cards together
many evenings.
!. Never quArreiedP
mo"
you've not. noticed anything
queer about the servants" Bren-
nan asked after moment.
"Do you mean that they were
sickly'" Amy asked
Are theyf"
Yes: I think they are all sickly.
don't know why uncle John had
such siekly servants, unless he was
SO kind hearted. DR.. Blessington
is here nearly every day for one
or another Of them, some one OF
| them Is always in bed 1t makes
4 yery.hard for Mrs Vincent, the
housekeeper. but I'm afraid she's
| the sickest Of any"
"Rut aside from that you've nor
noticed anything queer in them.
! Anything you might call craziness.
any mania?' 49,
"Oh. no; never anything Like
| that" Amy said"
"You don't know Of any enemies
your uncle hadf"
| "No: he never spoke OF any.
"Hc had business in New York.
in't he? Had an Office there"
Yes" Amy said. and told him
| che address, which Brennan jotte,
| down in his notebook. "He wa
speeulator, / think. He woult
| wait and buy great lot Of some
one kind of stocks and then they
would go up and he would sell
] think he always made a grea
deal OF money that way. / dom
really know much about that
They can tell you more at his
| office. His manager there is Rufus
| .Iode.mann. He is quite an old
man and he has been with uncle
! f3I a long while, / think"
Brennan jotted down this name
/ il his notebook. q
! Who else is there? You don't
kaow? No matter-I can look that
| uo.' the detective said. putting his
look in his pocket again. "And
| think that is ali / have to ask
you now, Miss Drane, unless you
can tell me something about the
:" s"rYants-who they are and where
they came from"
Il Il think Mrs. Vincent. the house
keeper, can tell you more about
4i.at," Amy said. I've not really
paid much attention to that; I've
always felt | wasn't wanted to in
! terfere. Mrs. Vincent had been
here quite while when I came,
| and uncle was old and liked to
have things as they were. He
didn't seem to want to have me do
anything but enjoy myself"
But you were always ready to
do your share if anything turned
up" said Brennan, smiling can
see that. Miss Drane."
! ''Of course" Amy said. '"It
wasn't that didn't want to-"
II "Mr. Drane just did not seem
Ito want you to bother with the
! servants and the household afairs
and SO on: that was it. wasn't it?"
i Yes; he never said much but
hat was what I felt" she replied.
I'm trying not to be unpleasant,
asking SO many questions" Bren-
I nan said. "but this whole thing Is
HHuSeAiSu, - you UHOeFSI4nO--JOn Onn
Drane being a woman and being
murdered this way-and / have to
get into my head .As best picture
lof the household as it was, the
i best picture can. Flow was your
nncle about money!"
Amy wrinkied her brow, trying
to get the meaning Of the ques-
ton
/ "Do you mean with me?" she
Asked. "He paid me an allowance.
always on the fsst Of the month.
I It was fifty dollars while I Was At
lfchool, bat when came here he
gave me hundred dollars n
itmonth. haven't used nearly ali
Of il. ! asked him what I should
10 with the rest and he told me
could put it in a savings bank.
+: and l did. The house expenses he
settled with Mrs. Vincent-once a
month, I think. I've heard them
going over the bills. He seemed
particular about them"
He was a woman" suggested