The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1939-06-29
THREE Shattered HOUSES
BEN AIMEs WILLIAMS

to relieve the pressure on his brain.
Otherwise the young man may die
without recovering consciousness"
And he directed: Help me. Push
those two tables together. Put wa
ter on to boil. Where's Mrs. Taine?"
SIN the front room," said Tope.
with June" And he explained:
"Asa's dead, in the car, outside.
He ran into that pine tree. Neck
broken, ! believe. Alive at first.
Talked, then he tried to move, his
head twisted to one side, and that
was the end of him"
well, such things have hap
pened," the Doctor confessed, after
a moment. "Some shock dislocates
the vertebrate without dislodging
them. Then movement, an at
tempt to turn the head, and the big
neck muscles drag one vertebra
across the other like a pair of
shears. Snip the cord
Doctor Cabler and Mrs. Tame,
Clint and June could do all that was
needful here. Tope watched them
for moment; then he went to the
telephone, called Miss Moss and
told her guardedly that Rab was
hurt and Asa dead.
She whispered: ASA dead?"
Yes" he said.
SIS his wife there?" Miss Moss
asked. "Lissa?" And at TOPICS neg
alive: 'She would want to be. She
has a right to be. I'm coming out.
III bring her"
He was full of a deep comfort to
know that she would come. "Al
right" he assented. do"
He looked at his watch and re-
turned to the veranda. As he did
so, Inspector Heale came hurriedly
across the lawn from the road.
Heale exclaimed: "Tope, what's
happened here?"
Tope said slowly: "Rab's hurt
got bad crack on the head. Doc
tor Cabler's working on him." He
added: "And Asa's out In the car
with broken neck"
Broken neck?" Heale echoed.
His voice was husky. ''Is he dead?"
"Just as dead as if he'd been
hanged" Tope assented. He said
it with something like contentment
N his tones, as though he perceived
a seemliness and order In the world:
They don't hang in this State any
more; but I always said it was the
thing-for murderers, I mean"
Heale calculated: "Murderers?"
And Tope told him briefly: Eyes.
He and Rab had an argument to-
night, In the garage. He hit Rab
with a monkey-wrench, propped
him against that pine tree by the
corner of the drive, got out his car.
He drove to the road and turned
around and came back again. He
meant to run into Rab, finish him.
But I was there. Before Asa got
back, I'd dragged Rab away from
the tree. Asa saw me. Seeing me
must have startled him so that he
stepped on the gas. Anyway, he
rammed into the tree so hard it
snapped his own neck"
Heale stood In an incredulous
amazement, and Tope concluded:
Didn't kill him right off. He came
to. He thought he'd hit Rab, and
he told us it was an accident, that
Rab lodged In front of the car.
When I told him he hadn't hit Rab,
that Rab was alive, he went for his
gun.
But when he moved, his neck
snapped. Finished hirnl"
Heale was almost wordless.
"Gun?" he repeated.
Here it isl said Tope, and de-
hvered Asa's weapon to the other
man.
Then Doctor Cabler came out to
them. Gentlemen" he said, salts
faction in his tones, "Rab is show
ing signs of returning conscious
ness"
Hell liver" Tope asked.
"Oh. that, certainly" the physi-
clan confidently agreed. "And I
think by morning he may be able to
talk to YOU"
He went back into the house; and
Heale reused from his paralysis Of
surprise. "You think Asa did the
rest of it," he asked.
1--we known that, since this morn
ing," Tope replied.
NWhy didn't you tip me?"
knowing isn't proving" Tope re-
minded him; and Heale ruefully as
Sented
ST guess III call Derrie," he de-
cided at last. Have him up here
IN the morning." And he confessed
a little grudgingly: You've made
a double-barreled fool out of him,
InSnHcf0r %