The Argosy, December 1905 — page 96: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

78 tell us about the personal affairs of the dead man?” * According to his clerk here, he was a bachelor, middle-aged, and a German by birth. He’s been in the instalment and loan business for about ten years, and is worth quite a little money. That is all we know about him.” _ Perriam and the other reporters took notes. “Very good. Much obliged to you for this information,’ said Perriam. “ Nothing else that you know, is there, Connaughton ? ” “No. That’s about all, I guess. If we catch our man to-day, youll hear of it, of course.” Perriam walked out of the office, fol- lowed by the other reporters. When they reached the sidewalk they held a conference. “ Looks like a plain case of murder to my mind,” said Perriam. “ What do you fellows think? ” “T can’t see any mystery feature about it,” replied Osborne of the World. “'There’s no doubt at all that this fellow Ladd killed him. By the way, Perriam, since you know Ladd, what can you tell us about him?” “Not much,” said Perriam. “ He occupies a room at my boarding-house. We are merely casual acquaintances. I know that he’s a draftsman in an archi- tect’s office, and has no folks, although he comes from pretty good stock, I understand. He plays the races quite often, too. That’s all I know about him.” ) “Well, it’s a pretty good yarn, at that. Lguess Connaughton was right in doping it out that he killed the jeweler because of the latter’s threats. Must be a fiery sort of beggar, eh?” remarked another reporter, and the conference broke up. The other men went back to their re- spective offices, and a few minutes after they had arrived there and reported to their city editors the details of the case the sound of their respective typewriters could be heard clicking away for dear life on the story of the murder of Jacob Meyer by Arthur Ladd. But Perriam did not return imme- diately to the Star office. Instead, he THE ARGOSY. jumped on a north-bound car and rode up-town to his boarding-house. When he reached there he found his good landlady, Mrs. Jarvis, greatly ex- cited. Policemen, horrible-looking ruf- fians with big feet, which they did not wipe on the door-mat as they came into the parlor, had been to the house, and were, in fact, waiting across the street at that very moment, watching everybody that came in and out. They wanted Mr. Arthur Ladd, and they accused him of murder. She was sure there must be some terrible mis- take! None of her young gentlemen were in the habit of committing murders, and so she had indignantly told the policemen. Oh, she had given them a piece of her mind, indeed! But, oh, Lord! © What a disgrace to the house! All these things she communicated to Perriam in one breath. “Calm yourself, Mrs. Jarvis,’ said the reporter soothingly. “There is really no cause for you to feel alarmed, so far as the reputation of the house is concerned. Nobody can blame you for this regretful affair. You see, this murder occurred on Nassau Street, way down-town.” “Then you know all about it, Mr. Perriam. Please do tell me. Surely it ean’t be true that Mr. Ladd is in any way guilty?” “Yes, I am afraid he is, Mrs. Jarvis. I’ve been out on the story and it looks like a clear case against him. He went down to a jeweler’s on Nassau Street, where he was buying some diamonds on the instalment plan. “They got quarreling over Ladd’s inability to pay, and Ladd stabbed the jeweler through the heart with that sword cane he always carries.” “Oh, the poor young man! The poor young man!” sobbed Mrs. Jarvis. “I can’t believe he did it, I really can’t be- lieve he did it. He was always my fa- vorite boarder, although I never told him so. Such a nice-mannered, honest young chap. “Only this very day, too, I was quar- reling with him about his board bill and telling him he would have to leave this house unless he paid up. Perhaps that COMMICOOO S (C@