The Coolidge examiner., 1932-03-04


Smooth, didn't you think?"
Very. Did he shoot Dunn?"
Il never knew" she said. Il think
not. He put him there. He had
some one else do the rest. What do
you think?"
I'm never be certain. l knew
Dunn. He didn't need much of a
chance but | guess he wasn't given
even that"
"No he wasn't. They used me
and Dunn's affection for me to kill
him. He was the only square one
in the outfit. He was the only one
Turner had 10 business including
in the will. Dunn and | were on
the square. He was square and
had TO be. He would come to me
anywhere if he got note like that
and believed ii was from me. He
probably thought | needed him.
When Buck came in Dunn could sus-
pect almost anything except prob
ably that | had not written the
note. I'll not believe he could have
thought that l had betrayed him. I'll
not believe it. suppose he sat
there quietly awaiting the next
move and planning his own. He
had no chance"
"Your husband" said Stanton.
Buck. 1t wasn't jealousy?"
Not a chance. He was one of
two people who knew hadn't
written the letter. | was the other"
But his trick got rise"
"He knew it would. but he knew
Dunn was square. And jealous
Stanton, If could laugh would. My
tender Buck was not of a Jealous
nature. l don't know why he didn't
tell me TO chase myself and get a
divorce. And | don't know why |
didn't do 1t without being told. Still
we got along. You know. 1t was
what they call respectable. An old
hen would rather be in out of the
rain. When you're thirty-five you're
looking at the sunset. Most wom-
en- think they are before that. No,
it was this will. I'll tell you what
it was. 1t was a panic"
rs Ashley in town." the lieuten-
ant asked.
"Yes dear little Howard him
self"
"And Blair?"
THAT / don't know. I'd presume
so if Roberts were alive but with
him dead can't tell. Howard will
tell me-"
They got Roberts" !" the lieuten.
ant exclaimed. Il thought he'd get
clear for a time at least"
II suppose they got him. All
know is that when Ashley tele,
graphed me to come to Chicago he
said that Roberts had died in San
Francisco. How could | know? II
might nave been heart disease, an
automobile or something else. II
didn't make any noise. did it? Nc
police stuff"
Nothing" said the lieutenant.
You see, this had been a panic
from the beginning. You know what
l mean. Like people smelling smoke
in a theater and sitting there won.
dering if they can trust one another
| not TO break for the exit. Tier
all of a sudden they all break be,
cause each thinks the other is go
ing to. You understand what
mean? A panic. These fellows
could have gone along with what
they had. Thirty thousand isn't sc
bad, but they couldn't trust one an
other, none except Dunn Clayton
He was the white man. He was
also the most dangerous one. That's
why he was the first to go whe1
the instinct of self-preservatiOn got
to working. panic, and Blair and
Buck got the jump on the others"
Did your husband talk to you
about it?" Stanton asked.
mot in so many words. He didn't
say he was going hunting for them
He harped on what the others were
likely to do. Either nervous or ali
bling himself. Talked about getting
away to some -the-way place
in Europe where the mere appear
ance of any of the other five woulC
make case of self-defense if yOu
shot him on sight. | could see BucE
living in an Out-of-the-way place ii
Europe. And | told him if he was
going to kill anyone in that kind OF
self-defense he'd better do his stuff
in the United States, where they
understood it. Imagine a gendarmt
patting a boy on the back who haC
just popped eff an innocent visitor
in their midst. Buck decided to bC
true to his own institutions"
(TO BE CONTINUED