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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance Times, 1935-09-19, Page 6PAGE SIX WINGH AM ADVANCE -TIMES Thursday, Sept,1/4 19th, 1935 neSt.mielsoilefoe woRc6 co JP,DEP MILTON P OPPE SYNOPSIS Barbara Keith, wife of a prominent Philadelphia business man, is murd- ered as she waits alone in a side room to testify in the divorce case of Row- land vs. Rowland . . . She was to have testified for the husband, a friend, who was defendant in the ac- tion . , Detective Tommy Rankin is assigned to the case from police head- quarters . . . His preliminary investi- gation disclosed that both Mr, and Mrs. Rowland had gathered evidence against the other of infedelity . The will of Mrs. Rowland's first husband directed her lawyer brother, Mr. Wil- ' lard, to handle the estate until she remarried when the new husband was to come into control, Detective Ran- kin Ends motives and the evidence of guilt, for the murder of Mrs. Keith, leading to the doors of virtually all $zif the principles involved. These principals are, the two Rowlands, Mr. Willard, Mr. Keith, husband of the murdered woman, Hugh Campbell, paramour of Mrs. Rowland, and his tmderworld confederates . . efiti 64UMPERisealOpittlftweletie ward his next step. Indeed, he had no other avenue of approach, 11 un- covering Dennis as alikely suspect, as the murderer of Barbara Keith, he had been favored. The detective caught the Manhat- tan Limited, New York bound; that necessitated a change at Harrisburg, for the most direct route to Washing- ton. In the nation's capitol he knew were lodged the records of all enlist- ed men, as far back as the American Revolution. Eager and alert, he nev- ertheless retired, and for the second night in succession, slept aboard a train. So far as he could predict, the pursuit of Fred Dennis had just be- gun; through six years and in many places, because of the precarious life he led, he must trail the wanderings of the culprit. There was no judging how long the chase would take him. or how far afield. In the morning the detective dis- embarked at the Union Station in Washington. Offhand, he could not be certain exactly which but=eau housed the in- formation he sought. Rankin decided first to cover the possibility of Dennis having been a marine, and instructed a taxi to drive him to the Navy build - :rig. Within, his official card. speedily gained him the intelligence, at the information desk, that the 'records of enlisted men were in the charge of the adjutant -inspector's office. Once he proved his bona-fi.des, Ran- kin anticipated no difficulty in gain- ing access to the records he required, Mr. Roche, a blonde, dapper young .nan in a wing collar, was, however, 'mpressed with his own importance. Behind his cold politeness the detec- tive sensed suspicion and antagonism. Rankin did not mention the murder, giving Mr. Roche to understand that he hunted Dennis as the ringleader of a robber organization. It was. not until the latter realized the magni- tude of his quarry's activities and, more important, that he had been out A the service more than six years, that he thawed into affability. He nodded more graciously. "Yes, I think we should find the informa- tion you want in our files," he said. "What was the fellow's name, Mr. Rankin?" "Fred Dennis," Rankin returned. "That doesn't mean, of course, that he enlisted under it; he has probably changed it a dozen times since. But I've also brought his finger -prints to compare with those on file. You take the rnen's fingerprints, I believe?" "Oh, yes, that is included in the description." Mr. Roche extended his hand. "Give them to me and I'll ar- range to have the record ,examined now." "And what about photographs?" suits, The miscellaneous contents of the pockets included a small revolver, loose change, •a handkerchief, a ring of skeleton keys, and a flask. "Say, Becker, look at this belt! What do you make of that?" said Rankin suddenly. Abruptly, after his excited exclama- tion, lie broke off 'and extended the article in his hands. As he was re- packing it into the suitcase, he hap- pened to study it more closely. It was a finely grained, strong belt of shining brown leather. Smooth and wide, the usual holes were punched at one end; at the other, a heavy brass buckle still glittered brightly, after years of storage and neglect. Rankin's eyes shone, as though at NOW GO ON WITH THE STORY "Well, Rankin, here it all is,' said the lieutenant, "You can have aid in going through it, if you need it. What are you particularly interested in?" "Every bit of it," Rankin returned. "I'll want to make a thorough search. But first, have you found a picture of Dennis among his belongings?" Becker shook his head. "There wasn't any, or our hunt for him might have been more successful," "I suppose a description of Den- nis will have to do then," Rankin ob- served. "Of course, you obtained full details of his looks from Miss Trent.' "Yes, it's right here—as exact a picture of him as she could give us." Disappointingly, however, the rec- ord was not overly practical for iden- tification; it might have applied to thousands of similar youngish, attrac- tive men. "What about his fingerprints?" the detective queried. "He must have left 'plenty in his quarters on the articles he handled." Lieuteant Becker produced an ink - smudged paper. "These are the ones -we found on his furniture." "I'd like a copy of these," Rankin requested. The detective searched for a suit- • case. "I'll start going through Den- nis' things," he said, "If you'll get 'some one to open these other bags, lieutenant, and help me sort their, con- t,et'ete, it won't take long." .i 11‘elnilead of summoning assistance, Ikcker lent Rankin a hand himself. There were three bags altogether, the one on which Rankin began his ex- amination being of brown leather, ob- long and held, together by straps. The around them on the outside. They're • second was a roomy black satchel, somewhat old and frayed, while the • third was a pateht-leather overnight case. None bore travelling tags, and • only the last a manufacturer's int- priht; though on the suitcase, the name of the retailer, a. well-known • department store in Chicago, was tamped. Mr. Lewis watched the detective, •with admiration and wonder at his thoroughness. Careful to miss no it- em, the detective examined the band of a crushed felt hat and a gray cap, both size 7i, seeking a clue as to where they were bought. He also searched for hairs from Dennis' head that might cling to them, Similarly, he scrutinized his safety razor kit, which was unmarked. The fugitive had three unexpensive but sporty He turned it over. "Well, what about it, Rankin?" an unexpected inspiration, causing Becker to take it with a bewildered frown. He turned it over. "Well, what about it, Rankin?" he returned. "It's an exceptionally fine piece of leather,. I'll admit; but it's just a belt as far as I can see." "I wonder," the other's voice rang with enthusiasm. "That's just it; it's too good and. strong for an ordinary civilian belt. It look's to me very much like a russet belt—a fair leath- er belt is the slang for it in the ser- vice." "Service?" Becker repeated, obvi- ously startled by the suggestion, "You mean this is an army belt?" "Either that or a marine belt, lieu- tena.nt." Rankin directed his explana- tion more to Mr. Lewis than to the officer. "No doubt you've noticed ser- vice men in the winter --particularly soldiers and marines—wearing khaki overcoats; they put these russet belts Special Bargain Excursions TO ALL STATIONS IN WESTERN CANADA Going Dates: Daily Sept 21 to Oct. 4 Return Limit: 45 days. ONE CENT PER MILE Good in Coaches only SLEEPING CAR PRIVILEGES /Passage Tickets also on sale good hi (a) tourist sleeping cars at ApprOX1,- mattly 114c per mile, plus regular berth fare. (b) parlor and standard sleeping ears at approximately II/2c per mile, plus regular seat or berth fare. Stopovers granted at Port Arthur, Ont acid all stations west thereof, particulars from any agent something like the Sam Browne belts officers wear about their uniforms." The lieutenant inspected it careful- ly. "But there's nothing on it to in- dicate that it's part of service equip- ment," he objected. "I always sup- posed the stuff was marked—either stamped with the name of the corps, or the initials of the army or navy punched on." • "You'll generally find the name of the depot that issued it," Rankin ag- reed. "But it's usually placed on a • small loose leather strip, inside; that connects the buckle with the loop for the end of the belt ,to keep it from flapping. And that's easily removed, If Dennis didn't want the fact known that he had been in the service, he could gin off that strip. I enlisted during the war, and from my train- ing camp days I recall that much about my uniform." The lawyer also examined it. "It's very likely this is a service belt," he then agreed, "only you mustn't jump to conclusions. It is possible this did• n't come from a post, but from an army and navy store; I understand they can be purchased there quite easily." For an instant this idea took Ran, kin aback; then his confidence in his theory reasserted itself. "That's a chance have to take," he replied. "But one thing is certain, he added, with enthusiasm and excite- ment. "If Dennis was ever in either military branch, we'll be making gen- uine progress. They maintain a com- plete record of their men, and we should get valuable information about him." orderly returned withmore papers than he had taken with him. "There were several Fred Denises in the file, sir," the man reported. bri4kly, "but none of them answers the description of the chap you're af- ter. On the other hand, I've also had the prints traced from their general Pattern; Mr, Gorges, in the Bureau, .says they fit some one named Steve Harmon, So I've brought his record along, Mr. Roche waved his hapd, "Good, Carson. Put them down on the desk, and, thank you." He waited until the orderly left the office before inspecting the record with Rankin. "Steve Harmon," he read aloud, "age twenty-two, height six feet one inch, eyes blue, weight a hundred sev- enty ,thin, broad -shouldered, hair dark . that appears to fit your des- cription. I suppose there's no danger some one else has similar prints." . "Not a chance in ten million .of their being duplicated," Rankin as- serted. • He bent over the inkmarks intently, • "Yes, these agree exactly with those the authorities have," he pointed out, "those lines and that bro- ken curve. And note the ovals along the upper ridge, "Well, here is complete history." The secretary opened a pamphlet and turned its pages, "He enlisted in Ap- ril, nineteen -twenty-five, at San An- tonio, Texas, and was sent for prelim- inary training to the San Diego Mar- ine Barracks. Has no family ties or responsibilities. Was assigned to the U. S. S. Wyoming in June . , . Hmm, he was a pretty poor specimen of a marine and needed plenty, of disci- plining. Insubordination, X.. W. 0, L. and petty thieving of clothes; he was leniently let off with a month in the brig. And he ended by deserting in October." (Continued Next Week) 04101......11MINNIMMO0 World Wide News In Brief Form Swastika New German Flag • Nurnberg, Germany—Adolf Hitler called his Reichstag into unexpected Sunday session to proclaim the Swas- tika, bold symbol of the Nazi Reich, as Germany's only national flag, and to pronounce it the "Flag • of Free- dom." radian Pac�ic * * * Despite the optimism he expressed about •the elite from Fred Dennis' suitcase. Tommy Rankin fully realis- ed the slenderness of the thread on which he depended. Nevertheless, having .progressed as far AS poSSible itt Iiiievestigation at Port Wayne, he looked hopefully to- gand _ . -- Rankin produced the data he brought from Fort Wayne. New Record for Land iPlanes Santa .Ana, Cal.—The world's speed record for land planes was pushed nearer six -miles -a -minute by Howard Hughes, movie producer, who narrow- ly escaped death in a forced landing at the finish. Taking the air only ten days after the racing car of Sir Mal- colm Campbell rocketed the speed re- cord on land to 301.337 miles an hour, Hughes roared six times over a fixed course, being clocked unofficially at 353 miles an hour -837, 350, 340, 350 and 353 m.p,h., respectively, French Stand Pleases London London—The Geneva speech of France's Premier Laval, was received with varying degrees of enthusiasm, but all sources agreed upon one thing 'There is no sign as yet that the.,East African war clouds will be dispelled. Italy Takes Firm Stand Rome—Italy announced. she would go straight ahead with her plans in East Africa. At the same time a semi- official newspaper said the country would take "answering measures" to Great Britain's concentartion of the Mediterranean fleet around Suez. States and reviewing the United Stat- es.attitude in the Italo-Ethiopian cris- is, Hull called on all signatories of the Kellogg-Briand pact to observe their pledge to maintain world peace. August Relief •Cost $6,416,603 Ottawa—The total cost of direct re- lief during August was $6,416,603, of which the Dominion's share was $1, 753,000, exclusive of additional grants of $292,000 for residents in the Sas katchewan drought areas, Hon. W. A. Gordon, Minister of Labor said here. For the same month a year ago the total relief cost amounted to $5,297,- 813. Italians Arrested at Gibraltar Gibraltar—Two _Italians, ...arrested Fere, were in thg custody of British military authorities after they had tried to enter the military zone carry- ing documents described as "incrim- inating" and lacking proper papers of identification: Ethiopian Army Getting Restless Addis Ababa—Thousands of Ethi- opian troops concentrated on the It- alian Soinaliland frontier in the Og- aden Province equipped with rifles and sabres, were reported to have ask- ed Emperor Haile Selassie for per- mission to attack the Italians immed- iately. Uprising of African Blacks Seen Geneva—The Union of South Af- rica took a firm stand on the Italo- Ethiopian dispute. Before the League of Nations Assembly and in a broad- cast speech later, Charles Te Water, South African delegate, declared that South Africa was prepared without hesitation to join collective sanctions against an aggressor, and warned that if Italy wars on Ethiopia the blacks of the continent "will arise and over- throw." Rankin spoke a bit anxiously. "Have you pictures of your men as well?" The secretary shook his head. "We don't take them as a regular part of the enlistment process, But whenever recruits have to undergo a prelimin- ary training, they are usually photo- graphed in training camp, arid their picturet put in their record book, There is a space for it," The detective produced the data he brought from Fort Wayne; and quick- ly scribbling a few notes, Mr. Roche rang a bell on his desk. To the ord- erly who answered it be passed both the papers and the message. He was gone for more than a half hour, fraught for Rankin with intense suspense and, anxiety, He had no oth- et workable clue to Dennis' trail; so much depended on his uncovering facts about him in one of the two military divisions. He sighed in secret relief when the Bennett Prime that the cided to lend the Government of Al- berta $2,250,000, secured on its one- year Treasury bills, to tide it over until the end of October. It will car- ry the Western Province until the end of October, when negotiations toward a total advance of $18,389,000 will be opened with the next Government. Loans Alberta $2250,000 Minister Bennett announced Federal Government has de- Ran Amok in London Hospital London, Ont.—Three charges of wounding were laid by Norman F. Newton, Crown Attorney, ,against Themes Bateman, the mystery man who ran amok in Victoria Hospital and slashed three attendants with a razor. Bateman was before Magis- trate E. S. Livermore in county Pol- ice Court, Magistrate Livermore sent him to the Ontario Hospital for ob- servation, and if he is found sane he will face the wounding charges later. English Miners Trapped Barnsley, Yorkshire, Eng. --Trapped behind a wall of flame, sixteen miners met an agonising death and nine oth- ers were burned seriously after an ex- plosion rocked the North Gawber Col- liery, The deadly blast roared through a 200 -yard gallery in the mite, cutting off the Met working at the far end. Mite& States Appeals to Italy Washington—A new appeal to Italy and Ethiopia not to go to war in Af- rica, was made by Secretary Hull. In a tomprefiensive ,StateIrietit emphasiz- irig the peaceful ideals of the 1.,Inited Coyotes in Ontario There are coyotes in Ontario—hun- dreds of them. This may be news to the general public of this Eastern the general public of this Eastern Province, who have been accustomed to think of coyotes only as howling denizens of the West and disturbers of sleep on the lonely prairies. But it's a fact. They've been in Ontario for ten or fifteen years now, masquer- ading as "brush -wolves." And they stand revealed. as perhaps the most di.1,11.do 1 ro • ange Campaign 20% Off Regular Prices SMALL DOWN PAYMENT. • 2 YEARS TO COMPLETE PAYMENT Also Range Wiring financed under above plan. New Low Prices on all reliable makes of Electric Ranges. CALL AT YOUR HYDRO. SHOP FOR FULL INFORMATION. mgham Utilities Commission successful defiers of civilization among North American fauna. Bennett Proposes Lower Interest Rates Ottawa—Premier Bennett proposes to reconstruct and reduce public debt by asking Canadian bondholders to agree to a scheme of conversion at substantially lower rates of interest. In other words, Canadian holders of Dominion, Provincial, Canadian Na- tional Railways or municipal bonds will be asked to exchange them for new bonds paying much less interest. Leaves Field to Bennett Ottawa—Premier Aberhart of Al- berta said he did not favor running a Social redit candidate against Prem- ier Bennett in the Federal constitu- ency of Calgary West, "But" he add- ed, "you can never stop a man from being nominated on his own." War May Begin October 10th Rome—Italy tightened the ties be- tween her land and sea forces in and near East Africa, as hints were heard in diplomatic circles that Oct. 10 might be the "zero hour" for hostil- ities with Ethiopia. Hitler Hits Out at Church in Politics Nurnberg—Chancellor Hitler bitter- ly attacked President Woodrow Wil- son's famous Fourteen Points, and gave official sanction to continuance - of the Nazi campaign against "polit- ical Catholicism" and "Jew bolshe- vism." She: "Why don't you like girls?" He: "They're too biased." She: "Biased?" He: "Yes, bias this, and bias that,. until Prn broke," MONUMENTS at first cost. Having our factory equipped with the most modern machinery for the exe- cution of high-class work, we ask you to see the largest display of monu- inents of any retail factory in Ontario. All finished by sand blast machines. We import all our granites from the Old Country quarries direct, in the rough. You can save all local deal- ers', agents' and middleman profits by - seeing us. E. J. Skelton & Son at West End Bridge—WALKERTON Professional J. W. BUSHFIELD Barrister, Solicitor, Notary, Etc. Money to Loan. Office — Meyer Block, Wingham Successor to Dudley Holmes. 41111111.10•1111 IL W. COLBORNE. M.D. PHYSICIAN AND SURGEON Medical Representative D. S. C. R. Phone 54, Wingham Directory R. S. HETHERINGTON BARRISTER and SOLICITOR Office — Morton Block. • Telephone No. 66 A. R. & F. E. DUVAL CHIROPRACTORS CHIROPRACTIC and ELECTRO THERAPY North Street — Wingham • Telephone 300. Dr. Robt. C. REDMOND M.R.C.S. (England) • L.R.C.P. (London) 'PHYSICIAN AND SURGEON F. A. PARKER OSTEOPATH All Diseases Treated. Office adjoining residence next to Anglican Church on Centre St. Sunday by appointment. Osteopathy Electricity Phone 272. Hours, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. J. H. CRAWFORD Barrister, Solicitor, Notary, Etc. Successor to R. Vanstone. Wingham -:- Ontario DR, W. M. CONNELL PHYSICIAN AND SURGEON ' Phone 19. J. ALVIN FOX Licensed Drugless Practitioner CHIROPRACTIC - DRUGLESS THERAPY - RADIONIC EQUIPMENT Hours by Appointment. Phone 191. Wingham Business Directory ADVERTISE IN THE ADVANCE -TIMES THOMAS FELLS • AtICT/ONEEE REAL ESTATE Wt.]) A Thorough knowleige' of Farm Stock. PhOne 231, %right:at Wellington Mutual Fire • Insurance Co: . Established 1840. Risks taken on all classes of insur- • ance at reasonable rates. • Head Office, Guelph, Ont. ABNER COSENS, • Agent, Wingham. HARRY FRY Furniture and. • ' Funeral Service LESLIE GORDON. 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