The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1930-12-27

lie I1dOlL OF uSul8 tiAc DAA "a ~
an audience and as an excuse Tor
puzzling and mulling aloud had
grown on him during the year he
had owned the doughty old Cap'n.
AS I was about to say, my dear
Watson, Captain Strawns boys out
at the Selim house will have their
chance to nab our manor woman
unless Dexter Sprague ignores my
warning and tries TO carry on the
blackmail scheme, which he I'M
doubtedly knew all about and which,
most probably. he encouraged Mia
to undertake-the friend she had
to consult, you know, before she
could decide to accept Lois Dun
laps offer"
The parrot interrupted with a
hoarse cackle.
Have you gone over to the
enemy, Cap'n?" Dundee reproved
the bird. you sound exactly like
Strawn when he laughed at my in
depreciation Of this message this
afternoon.
My late chief contends-and it is
Just possible, of course, that he is
right-that Nita was afraid she
couldn't swing the job of organizing
and directing Lois Little theater,
and wanted Sprague here, both as
lover and unofficial assistant.
But that's a pretty thin expla-
nation, don't you think? Oh,
all right Laugh. damn you'll But
I'd feel better if Strawn had taken
my advice and set dick to trail
Sprague. to see that he keeps out of
mischief. All this, however, gets
us no nearer to answering that
eternal question"
With deep sigh the troubled
young special investigator reached
for the time table" he had drafted
from his notes made during the
grisly replaying of the death hand
at bridge" and scanned it again:
5:20-F1ora Miles, dummy, table
No. 1, leaves living room to tele-
phone.
5:22-Clive Hammond arrives and
goes directly into solarium.
5:23-End of rubber at table No.
i. Players: Polly Beale, Janet
Raymond, Lois Dunlap, Flora Miles
dummy. Polly Beale leaves liv-
ing room to join Give Hammond in
solarium.
5:24-Janet Raymond leaves
room; says she went straight to
front porch.
5:25-Tracey Miles parks car at
curb; walks up to the house, hangs
up hat in clothes closet and CHS
estimate) at
5:27-Miles enters living room,
talks with Nita, who, as dummy,
has Just laid down her cards at
table No. 2. Players: Karen Mar
shall, Penny Grain, Carolyn Drake.
5:28-Nita leaves living room,
goes to her bedroom to makeup.
5:231z-Lois Dunlap and Miles go
into dining room, Miles to make
cocktails.
5:31-Judge Marshall enters liv-
ing room, interrupts bridge game.
5:33-John G. Drake enters living
room, having walked from Country
Club, which he says he left at $40,
and which is only tfree-quarters of
a mile from the Selim house.
5:36-Karen finishes playing of
hand, and Dexter Sprague and
Janet Raymond enter from front
porch, proceeding into dining room.
5:37-Penny Grain finishes scor-
ing, and Karen leaves room to tell
Nita the score.
5:38-Karen screams upon dis
covering the dead body at the
dressing table.
tt n
DUNDEE laid aside the typed
H. sheet and reached for another,
the tipping of which was perfect,
since Penny's efficient fingers had
manipulated the keys.
When he had telphoned to the
Office just before 5 o'clock Monday
afternoon to see if anything had
come up, Dundee had learned from
Penny that Peter Dunlap had Is
sued an informal call to "the
crowd" for a meeting at his home
that evening.
you're going, of course?" Dun
dee had asked. Then, during the
discussion of the case, I wish you'd
try to get the answer to some ques-
tons which need clearing up-if you
can do so without getting yourself
in dutch with your friends.
Got a pencil?"
And now he was re-reading the
report" she had conscientiously
written and left on his desk Tues
day morning:
Peter, declaring he wanted to
get at. the bottom of this case, pre-
sided almost like a judge on the
bench, and asked nearly every ques-
ton you wanted the answer to.
Every one in the crowd adores
gruff old Peter and no one dreamed