The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1931-01-01
Murder Al BRIDGE
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with gun equipped with a Maxim
silencer, Too good an opportunity
to be missed, so he biGes his chance
to swipe the gun and silencer.
ITO make sure it will look like a
local crime, he pops of Nita when
that same bunch is at her house,
but it takes few days longer be-
fore he has the same opportunity to j.
get Sprague. But it came last night
and he took advantage Of it."
/; A VERY plausible theory, and
L n one which. in general, the
whole city of Hamilton has been
familiar with since the night Nita
was murdered" Dundee remarked
significantly.
What do you mean?" Strawn de-
manded. Its waterproof, amt it?
Doc Price says the bullet-and
.32-caliber one at that-entered
Sprague's body just below the
breastbone and Travelled an upward
course till it struck the extreme
light side of the heart
THE bullet entered exactly where
it would have to-. if the murderer
was crouching under that window
while Sprague was raising the
screen. And we have CarTaway'S
report that it was Sprague's finger
prints on those nickel plated things
you have to press together to make
the screen roll up or down.
Furthermore, haven't a doubt in
the world that the ballistics expert
in Chicago will report that the bull
let was fired from the same gun
that killed Mia Selim"
Neither have l." Dundee agreed.
But what 1 meant was that you
obligingly had furnished the muir
derer who fits my theory with a
theory he-or she-would not have
upset for the worldl
'Listen!" and he bent forward
very earnestly: "I'm willing to
grant that Sprague was shot from
the outside, through the window,
when Sprague raised the screen.
But there our theories part COM
pany. I believe that the murderer
was guest in the Selim home last
night, that he or she had made an
appointment to meet Sprague there,
on the promise of paying the hush
money he had demanded.
Naturally he or she-arld I'll
say ne from now on, for the sake
of convenience-had no intention of
being seen entering that room. The
bridge game was suggested by Judge
Marshall at noon. There was
plenty of time for the rendezvous
to be made with Sprague. Z
CAS- I see it, the murderer told
Sprague to excuse himself from the
game when he became dummy, and
to go to the trophy room and wait
there until the murderer had
chance to slip away and appear be-
meath the window.
"Sprague had been promised that,
when he raised the screen at a
whispered request, a roll of bills
would be handed to him, but-he
received a bullet instead"
"Ard which one of your six sus-
poets have you picked on?" Strawn
asked Sarcastically.
That's just the trouble. There
still are SIX" Dundee acknowledged
with a wry grin. after Sprague's
disappearance, every one of the six
was absent from the porch at one
time or another.
mo, by Georgel There are seven
suspects nowI I was about to forget
Peter Dunlap, who admits he was
alone on a fishing trip when Mia
was murdered and who left the
porch last night to go to the library
as soon as Sprague arrived!
CAS- for the original six: Polly
Beale took a walk about the
grounds; Flora Miles went upstairs
to hunt for Karen Marshall, and
was gone more than ten minutes;
Drake went to the dining room to
get the refreshments, and no one
can say exactly how long he was
gone; Judge Marshall went up to get
his wife, and Kad time to make a
little trip on the side; Janet Ray
mond walked over from her home,
and passed that very window,
arriving after Sprague had dis
appeared; and, finally, Give Ham
mond arrived alone in his car, which
he parked within a few feet of that
window. This morning he gets
married"
"a telegram, sir!'' interrupted
a plainclothesman, who had entered
without knocking.
Strawn snatched at it, read it,
then exulted: Read this, boy!"
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