The Skyland post. [volume] (West Jefferson, N.C.) 193?-1988, 1938-07-28
FINAL INSTALLMENT

Sergeant, how about rounding ev-
erybody up and invitin' them to the
Purple House tomorrow, around
noon?" he asked. "I'm speakin' Of
Fleel, Kenyon Renting, and Quag-
gy. Mrs. galloway and her son will,
I'm sure, be there, in any event"
We arrived at the Renting resi-
dence, Vance driving us there in his
car, fifteen minutes before noon.
Weem took our hats and made sur
1y gesture toward the drawing-room
Sergeant Heath and Snitkin were
already there.
A little later Fleel and Kenyon
Renting arrived together, followed
almost Immediately by porter Quag-
gy. They had barely seated them
selves when old Mrs. galloway, sui
ported by her son Fraim, came down
the front stairs and joined us.
I'm so anxious about Madelaine, !"
Mrs. galloway said. "How is she,
Mr.. Vance?"
s'Mrs. Renting is doing even bet
ter today than 1 would have ex-
pected. I can assure you that she
will be home in two or three dayvs,
fully recovered and in her normal
mind.
"And imagine she will have
most interestin' tale to unfold. I
know, it was not intended that she
return.
s'The truth is, this was not a kid
mapping case at ALL. The authorities
were expected to accept it in that
light, but the murderer made too
many errors-his fault lay in trying
to be excessively clever
There is no doubt whatever that
Kaspar Renting made an appoint
ment for the early morning hours,
after he had returned from his even
ing's entertainment at the casino,
with Quaggy.
'sWhen Kaspar left this house
early Wednesday morning, he was
met at the appointed place not by
the person with whom he had made
his appointment, but by others
whom he had never seen before
They struck him over the head be-
fore he so much as realized that
anything was amiss, threw him IN
to a coupe, and then drove off with
him to the East River and disposed
of him, hoping he would not be
found too soon. 1t was straight,
brutal murder. And the persons
who committed that murder had
been hired for that purpose and had
been instructed accordingly. You
will understand that the plotter at
thg source never intended anything
less than murder for the victim
since there was grave risk in letting
him live to point an accusing tmger
later. =. The slender Chinaman-
the Iobby-gow of the gang-then re-
turned to the house here, placed the
ladder against the window-lt had
been left here previously for just
that purpose-entered the room
through tn window, and set the stage
accordingly to instructions, taking
the toothbrush, the comb, and the
pajamas, and pinning the note to the
window-sill, generally leaving mute
but spurious indications that kas-
par Renting had kidnapped him
self in order to collect the money he
needed to straighten out his debts.
$50 far the plot was working nice
lv. The first setback occurred al
ter the arrival in the mail of the
ransom note with the Instructions
to take the money to the tree. The
scheme of the murderer to collect
the money from the tree was thwart-
ed. maxim necessity further steps.
The same day Mrs. Renting was ap-
preached for an appointment, per-
haps with a new promise OF news
of her husband, obviously by some
one she trusted, for she went out
alone at ten o'clock that night to
keep the appointment. She was
awaited possibly just inside Cen
trail Park-by the same hard gentle
men who had done away with her
husband. But instead of meeting
with the same fate as Kaspar Kent
ing. she was taken to the house on
Lord Street I visited last night, and
held there as a sort of hostage.
rather imagine, don't y know, that
the perpetrator of this fiendish
scheme had not yet been able to pay
the price demanded for the neat
performance of Kaspar's killing
thereby irking the hired assasins
The lady was, so to speak, threat
held over one criminal by another
criminal who was bit more clever
'Poor Kaspar! He was a weak
chappie and the price for his own
murder was being wangled out Of
him without his realizing it
Through the gem collection of ole
e II xfyoc