Evening star., 1937-04-21

oA"'haA EaIl, wealthy, socially prom
inent and with more gray showing at
his temples than his thirty-seven years
warrant, takes his invalid mother to the
exclusive Sharlinden Hotel, seventy-flve
miles out OF New York City, where he
hopes they both may respond to the heal
Ing influence OF natures unfailing
1riendliness for the heartsore victims of
human cruelty. Parr, his secretary his
mother and her maid have reason to be
grateful for the quietude and peace OF
the Sharlinden neighborhood after
months OF humiliating publicity result
Ing from the sensational conduct of
Vashti Parr, widow of Jonathans
brother.
The investigation and trial which fol-
lowed Otis PARIS death resulted in a ver-
dict OF suicide, but both Jonathan and
his mother and those intimately ac-
quainted with the family know that
Vashti is guilty of the murder OF at least
two men by indirection If not by actual
deed-Otis and his father. The elder
PARIS untimely death was directly at
tr1butable to the performances of his
daughter-in-law, and If Otis Parr had
actually killed himself it was because
Vashti had driven him beyond the point
OF endurance.
Jonathan and his party have barely
become settled in the Sharlinden when
Vashtl arrives, bringing with her a large
group OF attendants and associates and
lndulging at once a grand show of ex-
traVagance and noise. Jonathan calls
upon her and asks her to leave, but
she announces that she has come to
the Sharllnden to write the story of
her life and that by this means she
intends to turn the blue blood of the
PARIS green. That night Vashti holds
an excessively lavish party for the pur-
pose OF announcing her engagement to
Wally Rops, the Monaco Kid The next
morning Vashti is found dead on a ter
race OF the hotel, her neck broken and
marks on her throat indicating that she
has been choked.
Ihere is some evidence that points
10 Jonathan Parr as the murderer. The
monaco Kid is not free from suspicion,
nor is mysterious musician in the hired
orchestra; Ruth Jowett, who is to do the
actual writing of the story of Vashtis
lie; Claudette Muir, Vashtis maid, or
even the elder Mrs. Parr and Glenn
bryoen' the Parr attorney. Besides
these more intimate associates of the
oead woman there are Elaine Proctor
and Mary Fletcher, hotel employees; Peter
Leeds, house detective; Harmon Ritchie,
motel manager; Johnny Landor clerk;
Gretchen Gale. telephone operator, and
Julie Britton, PARIS secretary.
A second murder, after an attempt at
blackmail, throws monkey wrench into
tne case and another effort at murder
compllcates matters still further as Can't.
nf ho
struggles with the clues and counter
clues, Jealousies, motives. blackmail plots
ana personal hatreds that simmer and
Doll over as evidence points first one
way and then another. The characters
are splendid representation of the
scale from wealth and culture to poverty
and crookdom. who perform with con.
slStent accuracy of type throughout the
Wen-constructed and cleverly handled
case.
1t is an exciting story. highly dra-
matte In the closing scenes and accom-
panied by an unobtrusive, pleasing ro-
nance that adds bit of charm to a
genulnely nne and absorbing mystery.
THE CASE OF THE DANGEROUS
DOWAGER. BY Erie Stanley Gard
ner. New York: William Morrow
g. Co.
The scene of the murder in this new
novel by the author of The Case of the
Suffering Bishop is a gambling shin
anchored in the Pacific Ocean beyond
the twelve-mile limit of American iuris-
diction. The Horn of Plenty is run bv
Sam Grieb and Charlie Duncan ex-
per1enced crooks who have been rather
smart at successfully running an outlaw
business and selling the regulations of
respectable patrons for top prices.
Sylvia Oxman is the pawn and her
granomother, who has short gray hair,
smokes cigars and has plenty of money,
is the hidden foe of the gambling out
Mt. 1t Is Matilda Benson, who admits
oelng great-grandmother as well as a
grandmother, who engages Perry Mason
10 OBTAIN l. O. US totaling $500 from
the gamblers and thus prevent their
sale to Frank Oxman for an exorbitant
profit, thereby furnishing that quite con-
temptible representative of the fra
ternlty Of husbands with information
which will establish his grounds for
divorce and at the same time convince
the court OF the unf1tness OF his wife to
have the custody or to handle the
fortune Of their child.
Mason, who is lawyer, hires Paul
Drake to do the detective work entailed
and the two make trip to the Horn of
Plenty to talk business. Their first plan
fails rather miserably because Sylvia
lets them down, but Mason makes a
second trip to the ship with a better
trap only to find Grieb shot to death
IN circumstances that indicate Sylvia as
the possible murderer. Before many
minutes pass Mason learns that Frank
Oxman was also on board about the time
that Gr1eb was shot, as was his elderly,
fearless employer and few other people
who might easily have been there for
the purpose Of putting Grieb out of the
way.
The murder is reported and police ar
rive from shore, ordering the shin
CLOSED" with all on board. A round-un
OF patrons for questioning soon reveals
that the gray-haired woman. who is
believed to have thrown gun overheard.
has disappeared from the ship since the
raising Of the landing platforms and
the canceling OF all boats ashore. The
handsomely gowned, cigar smoking
good-timer, however, has a reputation
as dangerous dowager" and is known
to be too clever to be caught in any
man-made trap. She has set out to
save her granddaughter and she intends
to do so.
An underling detective sells out to a
newspaper. A man has a written and
signed statement issued by a firm of
LAWYERS cOnfeSSinp that ha COW, c,I,,;.