Henderson daily dispatch. (Henderson, N.C.) 1914-1995, 1938-03-10
CHAPTER 48

"THIS ERE Williams was the
cleverest kind of a murderer,
Sergeant Beef continued, the one
100 knows 'ow to take advantage
of an opportunity. That's arr
the game. I'm of the opinion that
anyone could be murdered, ana
no one found out, if every muir
derer did it just at the right mo-
ment. That's wot this Williams
was thinking when e was pre-
tending to search the room. II
knew that DR.. Thurston was in
the game with 'er, but he knew
very we'll that when the doctor
found she was really dead, ed
never dare let on to that, because
ed of been 'anged himself-for
certain. All e lad to be sure of
was that the doctor went upstairs
alone, and made the discovery on
is own, too.
ST don't suppose that was diff
cult. e knew the doctor was
downstairs alone in the lounge.
All e 'ad to do was to suggest to
i'm something that would send
i'm upstairs again. P'raps e
pretended to ear a sound from
the room. P'raps e didn't ave to
suggest nothink, because the doc
tor would want to go and ave a
smile with is wife over the joke,
when you was all out of the way.
We shan't never know. But at
all events, Williams comes back
into the lounge, says it's no good,
e can't get an answer on the tele-
phone, as though ed never left
the receiver.
"Then DR.. Thurston goes up to
is wife. But when e gets into
the room, e finds she really as
been murdered. Els just going
to shout out, when e sees that it's
going to look bad for i'm. He's
innocent, but after all e sug-
gested that dam silly game. He
made 'er pretend. And when any
one sees 'ow it was done ell be
suspected. Especially with i'm
up ere alone now. Sc e says
nothink, and comes downstairs,
just as Williams 'opes e will.
AT the bottom of the stairs e
meets Mr.. Townsend, Mr.. Strick-
land and Mr.. Norris, coming in
from their search of the grounds.
e knows someone's done it, since
you all left the room upstairs,
and e doesn't know 90 to sus-
pect. So e asks you chaps where
you've been. Then e sees that it
'ud look funny for i'm to be ask
ing questions now, so e drops it.
From that moment, though, 'e's
'oping that the murderer'll be dis
covered. e doesn't like keeping
the secret, but e as the sense to
see e might 'ang if e was to tell
the ole story of the joke"
The sergeant paused to drink
again. There's not much more
to tell, except that I didn't ought
never to've let them go in the
other room together. See, DR..
Thurston was just going to come
out with it that e 'ad planned
that lark with is wife, but never
'ad nothink to do with the muir
der, when Williams, as you know,
stopped i'm. DR.. Thurston didn't
know 90 to suspect, but ed never
suspected Williams. e was led
off like a lamb to the other room.
Tell you the truth, I wouldn't
never ave let him, only I was
hoping that we might get a bit
more evidence if Williams was to
tell i'm not to say anything, and
e got suspicious of Williams.
But that's wot comes of trying to
make your case too cast iron. AS
soon as e got i'm 1T there Will
liams shot i'm, stuck the revolver
in is and and opened the door,
with a story ready of 'ow ed just
turned is back and DR.. Thurston
shot himself. If that 'ad of come
OFF ed ave been clear, see?
"Williams must ave thought I
really suspected DR.. Thurston.
But I didn't. I knew it was Will
liams."
"How?" I asked. after all, it
was Thurston who had arranged
the so-called joke. It was Thurs
ton who had said she was dead.
How did YOU know it was Will