The crooked crossDutton, Charles J. (Charles Judson)
General
The crooked cross
Dutton, Charles J. (Charles Judson)
Bartley, John (Fictitious character) -- Fiction; Detective and mystery stories; Murder -- Investigation -- Fiction
The next witness proved to be the man that worked around Warren's
place. The gardener was the usual type of a workman, rather dull, with
a heavy, uninteresting face. He announced somewhat loudly that he knew
nothing about the murder and said that he had not known that his
master was dead until he heard the news in the village late in the
evening. When asked about the Chinaman, he replied that he had not
seen him. Most of the afternoon he had been working in the garden,
which, I judged from his testimony, was so placed that he could not
see the library. It seemed as if his testimony was to be of no
importance when, just after he had been excused, the coroner called
him back to ask if he had seen any one around the library.
He stumbled back into his seat and thought a moment, then said:
“Can't say that I did. But when I was going to the house after the six
o'clock whistle blew, I saw something. Don't think it is of any
importance.”
“What was it?” was the question.
“Well,” came the slow reply, “I came down by the library, and I seen a
rowboat going round the bend of the point. Did not see the person in
it because the boat was just getting out of sight.”
The coroner suggested he could not swear that the boat had come from
Warren's shore, and was surprised by having the man say he was pretty
sure it had. But why he was sure of this he was unable to say, and
though the doctor pressed him to explain, he could not. He left the
stand having given, as far as I could see, no evidence of any
importance.
Again the coroner and the chief held a short conversation. Then the
doctor surprised us by saying that the inquest would be adjourned
until after lunch. As it was only eleven-thirty this seemed rather
odd, for there was still time to hear another witness. As it was, the
morning session had been of little value. Nothing had been brought out
that we did not know, and the testimony of the gardener regarding the
row boat seemed of little worth. He was not sure the boat had come
from Warren's shore line.
The crowd filed out with a great deal of noise. They seemed to be a
bit disappointed. There had been no spectacular revelations, nothing
sensational. Just the bald recital of the murder and nothing more. One
could tell by their talk, and the shaking of heads, that the inquest
had not proven what they expected. And after they had all gone out we
went to the car and drove back to Carter's for an early lunch.
Lunch was a rather quiet affair and it was not until we had gone out
on the veranda for our smoke that any one mentioned the inquest. Then,
when we had settled back in our chairs to enjoy the thirty minutes
which remained before our return to the Court House, I asked what they
thought of the morning session.
Carter, watching the smoke from his cigar as it curled away in the
breeze, replied:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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