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About The Red Cloud chief. (Red Cloud, Webster Co., Neb.) 1873-1923 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 10, 1905)
-. luM I h f 4 9WfftW XSh e Holladay &3JWirlV5A",- ((."IVriS'tT.l).) "You're quite huioV You Unow litr well?" "Very well. I've known her far many years. She often drove to (lie olllee In the evening to take her father homo. 1 supposed that was what she came for yesterday." "You looked at her attentively'" Holers hitched impatiently in his chair. "I glanced at her as 1 always do," he said. "I didn't stnre." "But you're quite sure It was Miss Holladay?" "Absolutely sure, sir. Do you sup pose I'd make an assertion like that If 1 wasn't absolutely sureV" "No," said the coroner soothingly. "No, I don't suppose any such thing, not for a moment, Mr. Ilogers, only I want the Jury to see how certain the idi'iitillcation Is. Khali I proceed?" "Cio ahead, sir," said Itogers. "I'll try to hold myself together a little better, sir." "I can see what a strain this Is for you," said tne coroner kindly, "and I'll spare you as much as 1 can. Now, after Miss Holladay entered the Inner ofllce, how long did she remain there?" "About ten minutes, I should say. Not longer than that, certainly." "Did you hear any sound of conver sation or any unusual nolsu of any kind?" "No. sir. It would have been a very unusual noise to be audible. Mr. Hol iday's olllee has heavy walls and a double door which completely shut off all sounds from within." "Miss Holladay then came out?" "Yes, sir." "And walked past you?" "'Yes, sir; walked past me rapidly." "Did you not think that peculiar?" "Why, sir, she didn't often stop to speak to me. I was busy, and so thought nothing particularly about it." "Did you notice her face? Did she seem perturbed?" "No, sir; I didn't notice. I Just glanced up and bowed. In fact, I didn't see her face at all, for she bad Jowered her veil." "Her veil!" repeated the coroner. "'You hadn't mentioned that she wore a veil." "No, sir; when she came Into the of fice she had lifted it up over her bat brim you know how women do." Yes so you saw her face distinctly when she entered?" "Yes, sir." "Hut when she went out she had lowered her veil. V'as it a heavy one?" "Why, sir," the witness hesitated, "Just an ordinary veil, I should say." "But still heavy enough to conceal her face?" "Oh, yes, sir." The coroner nodded. "Now, Mr. ltogers, how long a time elapsed after "Js this the knifcT" he ashed. the departure of the woman before you went back into the inner ottlce?" "Not more than threw or four min utes. I thought perhaps Mr. Holladay was getting rendy to accompany bis daughter, and I dldu't wish to detain him." "Aml.vnn found him. as vou sav lying forward across his desk with a . ... ... ..! ti i i. t.i.i n...f. unuo hi ma uirom uuu wu uiuuu mmu- lug out. Did you recognize the knire? "Yes, sir. It was hlH knife a knife he kept lying on his desk to sharpen pencils with and eraso and bo on.N "Sharp, was It?" "It had one long blade, very sharp, ir." m f tr-Pi I Li i I'll! -sfljJPftTnK ' vx ! f " ! - - tJfiVi '''' 18b- A Mystery Of Two Continents "By BURTON E. STEVENSCN Copyright. 1903. by Henry Holt and Company fWW3 The coroner picked up a knife that win lying on the desk before him. "Is this the knife?" he asked. ltogers looked at It carefully. "That's the knife, sir," he said, and It was passed to the Jury. When they had ilnlslied with It. Mr. ltoyce and I examined It. It was an ordinary one bladed erasing knife with Ivory han dle. It was open, the blade being about two Inches and a half In length, and, as I soon convinced myself, very sharp Indeed. "Will you describe Mr. Holladay's position?" continued the coroner. "He was lying forward on the desk, with bis arms outstretched and bis head to one side." "And there was a great deal of blood?" "Oh. a great deall Some one appar ently had attempted to check it, for a little distance away there was a band kerchief soaked In blood." The coroner picked up a handker chief and handed It to the witness. "Is that the handkerchief?" he asked. "Yes, sir," said ltogers, after a mo ment. "Is It a man's or a woman's handker chief?" "Oh, a woman's, undoubtedly!" The Jury examined It, and so did we. It was a small square of tine cambric, with no mark that I could see, soaked through and through with blood un questionably a woman's handkerchief. Then ltogers told the rest of the story how ho had summoned aid and In formed the police. "Now, Mr. Rogers," said the coroner, when be had finished, "there Is one point more. Has there been anything In your knowledge of Mr. Holladay or bis business to suggest the Idea of sui cide?" The witness shook his head decid edly. "Nothing whatever, sir," ho said pos itively. "His business was prospering, he was happy and contented why, ho was planning for a trip abroad with his daughter." "Let us suppose for a moment," con tinued Goldberg, "that he did actually stab himself In bis daughter's pres ence. "What would you naturally ex pect her to do?" "I Bhould expect her to give the alarm to summon aid," replied ltog ers. "Certainly unquestionably." And Goldberg nodded to my chief. "I turn fhe witness over to you, Mr. ltoyce," he said. "Now, Mr. ltogers," began our Junior Impressively, "you know, of course, that this whole ease hinges at present on your Identification of the woman who, presumably, was In Mr. Holla day's olllee when he was stabbed. I want to be very sure of that Identifica tion. Will you tell me how she was dressed?" The witness paused for a moment's thought. "She wore a dress of very dark red," he said at last, "with some sort of nar row dark trimming black, possibly. That's all I can tell you about It." "And the hat?" "I didn't notice the hat, sir. I only glanced at her." "But in that glance, Mr. ltogers, did you see nothing unusual, nothing which suggested to your mind that possibly It might not be Miss Holladay?" "Nothing, sir." "Some change of demeanor, perhaps; of expression?" The witness hesitated. "I thought she was looking not quite so well as usual," lie said slowly. "She seemed a little pale and worried." "Ah! It was dark in the olllee, was it not, at 5 o'clock yesterday after noon?" "We had turned on the lights half an hour before, sir." "Is your otllce well lighted?" "I have a light over my desk, sir, and there's another on the wall." "So you could not see your visitor's face with absolute clearness?" "No, sir, but quite clearly enough to recognize her," he added doggedls. "Yet you thought her looking pnlo and worried?" "Yes, sir; that was my Impression." "And when she asked for Mr. Holla day did she use the words 'my father,' as your evidence would suggest?" Again the witness hesitated in the ef fort at recollection. "No, sir," ho answered finally. "Her words, I think, were, 'Is Mr. Holladay imirniMvl nt iirpspiit?' " engaged at present?' "It was Miss Holladay's voice?" "I could not say, sir," answered tho witness, again mopping tho perspira tion from bis forehead. "I bare no wish to Incriminate Miss Holladay un necessarily. I'm not sufficiently well I acquainted with her voice to swear 10 n "Well, when you answered her ques tion In the negative, did she hesitate before entering the private olllee?" "No, sir; she went straight to It." "Is there any lettering on the door?" "Oh, yes, the usual lettering, 'Pri vate Olllee.' " "So that, even if "lie were not ac quainted with the place, she might still have seen where to go?" "Yes, sir; I suppose so." "And you stated, too, I believe, that you could have heard no sound of an altercation in the private otllce had one occurred?" "No, sir; 1 could have heard noth ing." "You have been with Mr. Holladay a long time, I believe, Mr. ltogers?" "Over thirty years, sir." "And you are intimately acquainted with his affairs?" "Yes. sir." "Now, Mr. ltogers, have you ever, In all these years, run across anything any item of expenditure, any corre spondence, anything whatever -which would lead you to think that Mr. Hol laday was a victim of blackmail or that he had ever had a liaison with a woman?" "No, sir!" cried the witness. "No, sir! I'm willing to swear that such a thing Is not possible. I should In evitably have found It out had It ex isted." "That will do for the present," said Mr. ltoyce. "I shall want to recall the witness, however, sir." The coroner nodded, and ltogers stepped down, still trembling from the effects of his last outburst. I confess that, for my part, 1 thought we were very deep In the mire. The olllee boy was called next, but added nothing to the story. He had gone to the chute to mall some letters. The woman must have entered the otllce while ho was away. He saw her come out again, but, of course, did not see her face. He bad been em ployed recently and did not know Miss Holladay. Then the physicians who had attend ed the dead man were called and tes tified that the knife blade had pene trated the left carotid artery and that he had bled to death was dead, Indeed, before they reached him. It would take perhaps ten minutes to produce such an effusion of blood as ltogers had noticed, certainly more than live minutes, so that the blow must have been struck before the woman left the Inner otllce. The pollcemnn who had responded to the alarm testitied that he had ex amined the windows and that they were both bolted on the inside, preclud ing the possibility of any one swinging down from above or clambering up from below. Nothing In the olllee had been disturbed. There was other evi dence of an Immaterial nature, and then Miss Holladay's maid was called. "Was your mistress away from home yesterday afternoon?" asked the coro ner. "Yes, sir. She had the carriage or dered for y o'clock. She was driven away shortly after that." "And what time did she return?" "About 0, sir. Just in time to dre.SB for dinner." "Did you notice anything unusual In her demeanor when site returned?" The maid hesitated, fearing doubtless that she might say too much. "Miss Holladay had complained of a headache in the morning," she said, after a moment. "She was looking bad wheu she went out, and the drive made her worse instead of better. She seemed very nervous and ill. I advised her to lie down and not dress ' for dinner, but she would not listen. ' She always dined with her father and did not wish to disappoint him. She I was in a great hurry, fearing that he'd got back before she was ready." I "There's no doubt In your mind that she was really expecting him 7" "Oh, no, sir! She even went to the door Vi look for him when ho did not come. She seemed very uneasy about him." That was one point in our favor cer tainly. "And when the news of her father's death reached her how did she bear it?" I "She didn't bear It at all, sir," an swered the maid, catching her breath to choke back a sob. "She fainted dead 1 away. Afterward she seemed to be in a kind of daze till the doctor came." I "That is all. Have you any ques- I tlons to ask the witness, Mr. ltoyce?" "Only one," said my chief, loaning ' forward. I know what It was and held my breath, wondering whether it were 1 wise to ask it. "Do you remember the gown your mistress wore yesterday afternoon?" he questioned. "Oh, yes, sir!" And tho witness j brightened. "It was a dark red broad ' cloth, niado very' plain, with only u little narrow black braid for trlin- nilng." CHAPTER III. F HOM the breathless sllcnco that followed her answer she saw that she had Bomehow dealt her mistress a heavy blow, and the sobs burst out beyond control, choking her. I could see how my chief's face turned livid. He had driven another rivet In tho chain Just tho one it need-' ed to bold It firmly together. My head .wob whirling. Could It bg goggl big. after all, that this gentle, cultured girl was really such a fiend at heart that she could strike down - 1 put the thought from me. It was monstrous, unbelievable! The coroner and the district attorney were whispering together, and I saw the former glance from the blood stained handkerchief on the desk be fore him to tho sobbing woman on the stand. It needed only that her Iden- tlfication of that square of eanibrlc-to , complete the evidence. He hesitated a J moment, said another word or two to Singleton, then straightened up again In his chair. Perhaps he thought the' chain was strong enough; perhaps he saw only that the witness was in no condition to go on. "Anything further, Mr. ltoyce?" he asked. "Not at present, sir," answered our Junior hoarsel.v. 1 think he was Just beginning fully to realize how desper ate our case was. "We will dismiss the witness, then, temporarily." said the coroner. "We shall probably recall her later on." The maid was led back to the wit ness room on the verge of hysteria, and Goldberg looked over the papers on his desk. "We have one more witness," he said at last. "Miss Holladay's coach man, and perhaps a little testimony In rebuttal. If you wish to adjourn for lunch, Mr. ltoyce, I'm quite ready to do so." "Thank you, sir," said my chief, wel coming an opportunity to pull himself together and prepare a plan of de fense. "1 do wish It." "Very well, then. We'll adjourn till J o'clock." and he pushed back bis chair. "May I have one word with you, sir?" asked Mr. ltoyce. "Certainly." "I should like to see Miss Holladay a few moments In private. We wish, of course, to arrange our rebuttal." The coroner looked at him for a mo ment with eyes In which Just a tinge of curiosity dickered. "I'll be very glad to allow you to see her In private," he answered readily. "I regret greatly that wo couldn't llud you last night, so that you could have opportunity to preparo for this hear ing. I feel that in a way wo haven't been quite fair to you, though I don't see how delay could have altered matters, and In a case of tills kind prompt ac tion Is import tint. I had no intention of placing Miss Holladay on the wit ness stand, ho I thought It best to pro ceed at once with the inquest. You must admit, sir, that as the case stands there's only one course open to me." "1 fear so," assented the other sadly. "It's a most incomprehensible case. The chain of evidence seems absolutely complete, and yet I'm convinced as every sane man must be that there is in it some fatal Haw, which, once dis covered, will send the whole structuro tottering. It must be my business to find that Haw." "Strange things happen In this world, Mr. ltoyce," observed Singleton, with a philosophy born of experience. "The impossible never happens, sir!" retorted our Junior. "I hope to show you that this belongs in that category." "Well, I hope you will," said the dis trict attorney. "I'd lie glad to find that some one else is guilty." "I'll do my best." And Mr. ltoyce turned to me. "Lester, you'd better go and get some lunch. You look quite done up." "Shall I bring you something?" I asked. "Or, better still, have a meal ready for you In half an hour? Itotln's Is Just around the corner." He would hnve refused, I think, had not the coroner Interfered. "You'd better go, Mr. ltoyce," he said. "You're looking done up yourself. Per haps you can persuade Miss Holladay to eat something. I'm sure she needs It." "Very well. then. Have two meals ready In half an hour, Lester," he said. "and a lunch we can bring back with us. I'll go to Miss Holladay now and then go direct to Itotln's." He hurried away nfter the coroner, and I walked slowly over to Itotln's to give the necessary orders. I chose a table In a snug corner, picked up a paper and tried to read. Its one great item of news was tho Holladay case, and I grew hot with anger as I saw how utiquostlonlngly, how complacently It accepted the theory of the daughter's guilt. Still, I asked myself, was It to blame? Was any one to blame for thinking her guilty after hearing tho evidence? How could one escapo It7 Why, even I Preposterous! I tried to reason calm ly; to find an opening In the net, yet how complete it was! The only point we had gained so far was that tho mysterious visitor had asked for Mr. Holladay, not for her father, and what an Infinitesimal point It was! Suppos ing there had been n quarrel, an es trangement, would not sho naturally have used those very words? After all, did not the black eyes, tho full lips, the deep colored checks bespeak I a strong and vlrilo temperament, depth I of emotion, capacity for swift and vl I olent anger? But what cause could there be for a quarrel bo bitter, so fierce, that it should lead to such a tragedy? What cause? And then sud denly a wave of light broke In upon mo. There could be only one. Yes, but there could bo onel Capnclty for omotlOD mcant capacity for passion. If site had a lover, If she had clung to him despite her father! 1 knew his reputation for severity, for cold and relentless condemnation. Here was an explanation, certainly! And then I shook myself together angrily. Here was I reasoning along the theory of her guilt, trying to find a motive for Itl I remembered her as I had seen her often, driving with her father: I recalled the many stories I jul )u,iml t)f tu,,. devotion; 1 reflected how her whole life, so far as I knew it, pointed to a nature singularly calm anil self controlled, charitable and lov ing. As to the lover theory, did not the light hi her eyes which had greeted our Junior disprove that at once and forever? Certainly, there was some fatal Haw In the evidence, and It was for us to find It. ( Co be Coirlmi' d ) Do You Eat Meat? When you are hungry and want. 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