Perry Mason (1957) s02e06 Episode Script

( noirish jazz theme playing ) ( soft upbeat theme playing ) Well, if you're going to be at your lodge all summer, Dr.
Blane, I guess I'd better not send any mail to your house here in the city.
Well, no harm if you do.
The house here in town is still open.
Sue likes to drop in once in a while.
( chuckles ) Glad to get away from her house, I guess.
Come to think of it, I haven't seen Sue for long time.
Me either.
Well, you know the old saying: Marry a daughter, lose a daughter.
I practically wouldn't see her at all if she and Jack weren't spending the weekends up at the lake with me.
Oh, uh, Jack.
This money is all in order.
Will you lock it up? Sure thing, Mr.
Randall.
How's that son-in-law of mine behaving? Oh, uh, he's doing fine.
That's the sickest "fine" I've heard in a long time.
You don't have to lie to me, Randall, just because I'm chairman of the board here.
Big ones for me Da-da dum, da-da dum Big ones for me Little ones for you Big ones for me Da-da dum, da-da dum Little ones for you Da-da dum, da-da dum Mm-hm.
Mm-hm.
Well, then you think I should call the board meeting after the bank examiners are finished here next week? RANDALL: Yes, I do.
Well, that's it, Mr.
Randall, all nailed down.
All right, Jack.
See ya Monday.
Aren't you coming up to the lake for the weekend? Sure.
Got my bag all packed.
See? Sue went ahead without me.
Well, fine.
Will you be there for dinner? Yeah, I think I will be.
But if I'm not, you go ahead and start without me, hm? Well, goodnight.
( ominous theme playing ) ( soft dramatic theme playing ) Well, where have you been? I thought you were coming straight from the bank.
Well, honey, I had something to do.
Well, Jean and Phil Strague are inside.
Will you try to be fairly civil while they're here? Well, Sue, when have I ever been otherwise, huh? ( door opens ) Hi, Jean.
Hi.
Phil.
Hi.
Wanna shoot some bridge? I'll even take my sister as a partner.
Oh, Phil.
That sounds very exciting, but there's something else I gotta do right now.
Is your father here? In the study.
Oh, uh, by the way, honey, don't block the door.
I may come out faster than I go in.
Oh, Jack.
( knock on door ) Yeah? Doc? Well, who did you expect? I got something to say to ya, doc, if you got a minute.
All right.
What is it? Beautiful night, huh? Yeah.
What do you want? That's doc, right down to brass tacks.
No small talk.
( chuckles ) Well, I guess maybe it's the best idea.
Don't prolong the agony.
Uh, doc, I got a- Kind of a confession to make.
What is it this time? Well, the fact is, I seem to have stolen a little money from the bank.
( sighs ) I might have known.
How much? Just about all of it, I guess.
All the cash, that is.
About a hundred grand.
What?! You miserable- Now, doc, don't get upset.
You know how bad it is for ya.
I haven't spent it yet.
It's a good thing.
You'd better not, either.
That is, not all of it.
What do you mean? Well, I kinda made some investments, you know- Investments! You mean horse races.
Now, look, doc, you play the stock market.
I mean, if you got a stock that goes up, you win.
If it goes down, you lose.
Go on.
Well, it's gonna come to light Monday, you know, with the bank examiners coming in, so I thought, why be a piker? ( chuckles ) So this afternoon I kinda swept the cupboard clean.
Now, look, doc, don't get upset.
Nobody knows about it yet.
If you're half-way reasonable, I think maybe we can make some kind of an arrangement.
Okay? And I'm sure you wouldn't wanna drag Sue through a mess like this.
( ominous theme playing ) After reviewing your letter of the ninth, I'm sure that this is a reasonable solution to the problem, and that the matter can be settled amicably and out of court.
( phone rings ) Yours sincerely.
Yes, Gertie.
Dr.
Blane, of Bear Lake Valley.
Put him on, Gertie.
Good morning, doctor.
How are you? Well, right at this minute, Perry, I'm just about ready to explode.
What's wrong? Oh! It's that son-in-law of mine, Jack Hardisty.
He never was any good to begin with, and now what's happened, well, h- he's stolen some money from the bank where I got him the job.
How did you find out about it? He told me and laughed.
Oh, he knows I guaranteed his bond, so he made me a proposition.
He said he'd return 75,000 if I'd make up the rest and not prosecute.
Well, that's just plain blackmail.
Has he been arrested? No, not yet.
I'd like to get this straightened out without any publicity.
Look, didn't you tell me once that there was a very good private detective agency that did all your work? Yes, the Paul Drake Agency.
Would you like Paul to get in touch with you? I certainly would.
All right, you'll hear from him shortly.
I think I'll take a little trip up there too.
Blackmail can be a pretty nasty business.
Too many cases end in serious trouble.
Quite a house this Hardisty has.
Must be a lot of rich people in this Sierra City.
I can't see much of it from here.
Why don't you check the layout.
I'll stand by.
Okay.
( light jazz music playing over stereo ) Ah.
( phone ringing ) Hello? Yeah? Oh? Where'd you get that idea? Yeah? Yeah, we can talk about it.
When? Yeah.
I'll be alone.
Okay, I'll be there.
( ominous theme playing ) ( car engine starts ) Hi, Perry, Della.
Well, where's the welcoming committee? Dr.
Blane inside? No, he's not.
Sue either, for that matter.
I got here about ten minutes ago, and the housekeeper told me Dr.
Blane left about, oh, five minutes before that.
Well, at least we can go on inside.
Uh, just a second, before you go in.
I've run into some trouble.
What is it? Well, I had two men tailing Hardisty.
One of them just called and said they lost him.
Oh? When was this? A little past 5.
Hardisty went through a signal just as the light was changing, so my men had to go through on the red.
Might know, there was a cop right there to pinch 'em.
Where'd it happen? Los Angeles, near Union Station.
And you haven't been able to pick up any trace of him since? They figured Hardisty might be about to skip out, but Faulkner checked all the trains.
No sign of him.
Well, um, what about his car? No luck there either.
They checked all the auto parks at Union Station.
You know how many of those there are.
I know.
When Hardisty left his house, was he carrying anything that could have been the money? Well, my man couldn't see him too clearly, so it's possible he could have put something in the car.
It isn't a very likely place to hide $100,000.
Hm.
What were you planning to do? Well, I was going to Sierra City in case Hardisty decided to come back home.
He, uh, hasn't had time to make it yet, but he will have long before I can get there.
All right, Paul.
Della and I'll be here.
We'll take any message your men may call back.
Fine.
See you later.
( ominous theme playing ) Who are you? Paul Drake.
Oh.
I'm Dr.
Blane.
Look- Look what's happened.
I am.
DR.
BLANE: It's Jack.
He's dead.
Yeah, so I see.
How did it happen? Well, I don't know.
I- I-I just got here about five minutes ago, a- and there he was.
Have you called the police? No.
W- well I was looking for the money.
You gonna call 'em? Unless you want to.
You should have already, doctor.
Believe me, we have no other choice.
No.
No, of course not.
Go ahead.
No sign of a gun around here.
You, uh, looked in both their cars? Yes, sir.
Well, keep looking.
I'd hate not to find it.
We can't find the gun anywhere.
Well, whoever it was would probably take the gun with him, wouldn't he? I guess so.
Do you have a gun, doc? A pistol? Uh- I know you wouldn't shoot anybody, but you understand I gotta ask all these things.
Oh, sure, Bert.
Of course.
No.
No, I don't own a gun.
Maybe I better write some of this down.
Now, when did you get here, again? Oh, about ten minutes of 8, I'd say.
That's as close as I can tell.
Well, you didn't call us then.
No.
No, I didn't.
Hi.
Hi.
Oh, I'm sorry, I-I didn't know you had guests.
I've just been resetting the cameras and I-I thought I'd stop by for a minute or two and- Well, I-I think I'll- Come on in.
Heh.
As a matter of fact, we have a rather distinguished guest.
Uh, Mr.
Rodney Beaton, this is Mr.
Perry Mason.
Well, this is indeed an honor, Mr.
Mason.
I've heard a great deal about you, of course.
I suppose everybody has.
Ah, thank you.
Your name is certainly familiar to me, Mr.
Beaton.
And Miss Street is Mr.
Mason's secretary.
Delighted.
Rodney Beaton.
Haven't I seen some of your photographs in Geographic? Uh, wildlife, I believe.
It's wonderful to find somebody that actually remembers your work by name.
Rather compensates for the, uh, paltry financial returns.
You said you were resetting cameras? Night shots? Uh, yes.
I rig a camera with a flash attachment and focus it on some spot on a game trail, or- Or near a spring.
Then I run a thread from the shutter release down through a little ring on the tripod and across the trail.
Any animal that comes along trips the shutter, and flash.
( knock on door ) Excuse me.
Oh, Phil.
Come on in.
This is our neighbor on the other side.
Miss Street, may I present Phil Strague- Hello, Miss Street.
- and Mr.
Perry Mason, Phil.
How do you do? Mr.
Strague.
Didn't Jean come with you? No.
I came by earlier this evening to see if I could stir up some bridge, but when I saw the one strange car here- It must have been yours, Mr.
Mason.
- I went on back to my place.
I hope you'll be here tomorrow.
My sister'll die if she doesn't get to meet you.
She's quite a fan of yours.
Thank you.
I look forward to it.
Are you a photographer, Mr.
Strague? No, I'm working on a book, or supposed to be.
Uh, Mr.
Beaton was just telling us about his wildlife photography, that's why I asked.
Oh, Rod.
I'm awfully sorry, I'm afraid I spoiled one of your pictures.
I must have got off on the wrong trail coming over earlier tonight, and I set off a flashbulb.
Yes, I know.
I saw your tracks.
I think this is Dad.
Uh, Phil, you, uh, didn't trip it again just now, did you? PHIL: No, I was careful this time.
( footsteps ) Oh, Perry, am I glad to see you.
Dad, what is it? Is something wrong? Yes, honey, there is.
Jack's beenshot.
Is he? ( sobbing ) ( melancholy theme playing ) Now, come along, dear.
Maybe we'll be able to get you a little something.
No! I'm all right.
Then I came on home.
I'm a little surprised the sheriff let you go so easily.
Why not? He knows I wouldn't kill anybody.
That's what I hate about this.
We've never had any notoriety before.
Or anything like this, ever.
Well, you're in for some now, I'm afraid.
But outside of that, I don't think you have much to worry about.
No.
Except, well, I'm a little worried about Sue, Perry.
Oh, she- She didn't do it, of course, but she won't tell me where she was tonight.
And well, I- I did have a gun, and it's gone.
I thought you told the sheriff you did not have a gun.
No, I said I didn't own one.
I don't.
( sighs ) I did have one.
It belonged to Phil Strague.
He loaned it to us.
Who's "us"? Oh, all three of us: Jack, Sue and myself.
We were doing some target shooting, Rod Beaton and Phil got us started, and Phil let us have this pistol to practice with.
Now it's gone.
When did you first miss it? Just tonight.
When I looked in the glove compartment of the car where we kept it, it was gone.
And you think Sue took it? Oh, no, no.
Of course she didn't.
But I can't help worrying.
Doctor, don't you know that the sheriff is gonna learn about that gun, even if he doesn't find it? Well, I I guess maybe he will, at that.
It was a serious mistake not to tell him about it tonight.
A mistake that should be corrected.
Wellall right.
Della.
Do you want me to get the sheriff on the phone? Please.
Did anyone else know about that money Hardisty stole? Oh, sure.
Rod Beaton and the Stragues were here last night.
And my daughter, of course.
And after I'd kicked Jack out, I knew from their faces they must have overheard the fight, so I told 'em.
The Stragues and Beaton, are they close friends? No.
Just neighbors.
They couldn't locate the sheriff but I left word for him to call here.
MASON: Good.
Did you make a date with Jack Hardisty? Did you call him before you went to his house? No.
How did you know he'd be there? Well, I didn't.
I- I just assumed he would, I guess.
Look, I was in such a stew about this whole thing that it finally got too much for me, so I just got in the car and went down.
( knock on door ) Yes, what is it? Dadthe sheriff's here.
He wants to talk to you.
Well, ask him to come in, Sue.
Shall I tell him about the pistol? Tell him the exact truth about everything, unless I tell you not to answer.
All right.
Come on in, Bert.
Hi, doc.
Mr.
Mason, this is- Sheriff Elmore and I have met.
Well, Mr.
Mason, I never expected to see you here.
Good to see you again, sheriff.
How do, Miss Street? Hello, sheriff.
Come on in, Bert.
What is it? Is, uh, Mr.
Mason your lawyer? No, he's my friend.
He came up for the weekend.
I'd like to have him stay, though, if you wanna talk about Jack's death anymore.
Oh, sure.
Sure, that's all right.
As a matter of fact, we tried to get you on the phone.
Dr.
Blane has something he wants to clear up.
Oh? What's that? Well- Well, you see, Bert, um- What I told you earlier- That is, well, I don't actually own a gun, but I did have one in the car.
Oh, I know.
I should have told you.
But I was nervous and- And upset.
Is it there now? The gun, I mean? No.
It's gone.
Is this it? Yes.
Where'd you find it? Down at Jack Hardisty's.
One of my boys found it in the fork of a tree.
Was it tested for fingerprints? Yeah.
It had been wiped clean.
At least, I guess it had.
There weren't any prints.
What about ballistics tests? We'll get to that first thing in the morning.
Doc, your housekeeper said you left here about quarter of 6.
Is that right? Well, I'm not certain, but that sounds about right.
And you said you got down to Sierra City about 10 minutes of 8.
Isn't that pretty slow? Better than two hours.
It only took us an hour and a half to come up.
Well, when I got halfway down there, I- I changed my mind and turned back.
ELMORE: Have, um, you been having any trouble with Jack Hardisty? A little.
You see, I started down to his place to try to talk him into something.
Then I realized it was hopeless.
That's when I turned back.
But as I was driving along, I suddenly remembered this gun in the glove compartment.
And I thought if I took it in there with me and pretended to get real mad, maybe I could scare him into it.
So I turned around again and started back.
But when I got there and looked for this pistol, it was gone.
Well, uh, what was this you were trying to talk him into? ( sighs ) He'd stolen some money from the bank.
Well maybe we'd better sit down for a minute.
But Dad couldn't possibly have done it.
You know that, Mr.
Mason.
It's just insane.
We know that, Sue, but we must consider how the facts appear to the district attorney.
I met Mr.
Hale.
He's a fine prosecutor.
But Dad just couldn't kill anyone.
Mr.
Hale must know that.
Dad's a doctor.
He's been saving lives too long to take one.
Anyone's.
I know.
Speaking of your father he's very upset that you wouldn't say where you were last night.
Would you tell me? Mr.
Mason, I wasn't anywhere near my house last night.
There's no use telling you where I was, because I can't prove it and it would be embarrassing.
Listen to me, Sue.
If I'm gonna help your father, I'm gonna need your help, everything you know.
If it has nothing to do with this case, I assure you it will go no further.
Well for a long time now, there's been nothing between Jack and me.
I'd have divorced him, but he threatened to make a scandal, for no reason, really then.
But lately I've been seeing Phil Strague.
We've been meeting at Dad's house- The one in Sierra City, that is.
And you went out there last night? Yes, but he didn't come.
Oh, we got mixed up, I guess.
He said he thought we were to meet up here.
So if it turns out I should need an alibi I guess I'm out of luck.
Well that was the district attorney on the phone.
We've agreed to a preliminary hearing Tuesday of next week.
Will that give you enough time to check on the people we're interested in? I hope so.
Perry, did you point out that it makes absolutely no sense for Dr.
Blane to have killed Hardisty for $100,000, which he will just have to return to the bank anyway? Yes, but the district attorney had another angle on that, Paul.
He said there was only Dr.
Blane's word that Hardisty had stolen the money, that Dr.
Blane could have been in league with his son-in-law.
He played the market extensively.
He might have cooked up this story to cover his crime.
That could be.
Well, anything else in here? Yeah.
Here is a funny thing.
The only fingerprints in the Hardisty house were Hardisty's, Sue's and Dr.
Blane's.
And one thing more: In the dish drainer, there were three washed glasses.
Is that all? Yeah, that's it.
Now, you want me to check on everyone who knew Hardisty had the money.
Well, it'll give us a motive for someone to have killed Hardisty.
The only problem is to find the someone who had the opportunity.
Except for your client and his daughter, you mean.
Yeah.
Except for my client and his daughter.
( chattering ) ( dramatic music playing ) Morning, Della.
Morning, doctor.
Good morning, doctor.
You certainly look calm enough.
Why not? The whole thing's ridiculous in the first place, and Darwin Hale knows it.
Bert Elmore too, for that matter.
MAN: Good morning, Mr.
Mason.
Welcome to Sierra County again.
Good to see you again, Mr.
Hale.
Dr.
Blane.
BAILIFF: Everybody rise and face the flag.
Now then, Dr.
Ritchie, did you examine the body of the deceased as soon as you arrived on the scene? I did.
From your examination, could you determine the time of death? Yes, fairly accurately, as it happens.
I arrived shortly after the shooting and made a careful examination of the body as to temperature, blood coagulation and certain other medical tests.
In my opinion, the death occurred between 7:35 and 7:45, or approximately at 7:40.
If it please the court, I agree with Dr.
Ritchie that the physical evidence bears out his conclusion.
Thank you, Mr.
Mason.
Now, Dr.
Ritchie, I believe you also performed the autopsy, to determine the cause of death? That's right.
Death was instantaneous, caused by a gunshot wound.
Did you remove the fatal bullet? Yes, I turned it over to the ballistics expert in the sheriff's office.
Now, then, Dr.
Ritchie, did your autopsy disclose any condition which you might regard as unusual or unexpected? Yes, sir.
A drug had been administered.
Scopolamine.
Will you please describe the nature of this scopolamine drug to the court? Well, it, uh submerges certain inhibitory areas of the brain without affecting other functions.
Might it be used as sort of a truth serum? Yes, definitely, in some cases.
It leaves the memory, hearing and powers of speech unimpaired.
However, it's not as dependable as sodium pentothal.
Well, would it have an advantage over sodium pentothal in some other way? Yes.
The pentothal requires an injection, whereas the scopolamine could be given in a drink.
How long does it take to have effect? Oh, 20 to 30 minutes.
Can you say definitely how the scopolamine was administered to the deceased? Yes.
Orally.
Thank you, Dr.
Ritchie.
Cross-examine.
No questions.
I call as my next witness, Sheriff Bert Elmore.
JUDGE: You may be excused, doctor.
Sheriff, did you make a test of the driving time between the defendant's lodge and the home of the decedent? Yes, sir.
Driving normally, never exceeding the speed limit, the exact time was one hour and 31 minutes.
I see.
Now, Dr.
Blane's housekeeper testified he left home at 5:45.
Waiting one hour and 31 minutes, we get 7:16, I believe.
Sheriff, did Dr.
Blane tell you what time he arrived at the home of the decedent? Yes, he said he got there at 10 minutes of 8.
Seven-fifty.
ELMORE: Yes, sir.
Now, on Sunday, the day after Jack Hardisty was murdered, did you have your men search the defendant's lodge at Bear Valley Lake? Yes, sir.
Did they find anything significant? Well, they found a little bottle of scopolamine in the doctor's cabinet.
Thank you.
Will you examine, Mr.
Mason? Sheriff, I believe you testified that you found half a bottle of whiskey in the kitchen of the decedent's house? That's right.
Now, the three glasses you found in the dish drainer, did they show any traces of whiskey? No, sir.
Traces of scopolamine? No, sir.
Thank you, sheriff.
No further questions.
Now, Mr.
Strague, I show you this pistol, introduced in evidence as people's exhibit A and identified as the murder weapon.
And I ask, do you recognize it? Yes.
It's mine.
In whose possession was it when last you saw it? Dr.
Blane's.
I loaned it to him.
Your witness.
Thank you.
Oh, uh, excuse me.
Thank you.
Mr.
Strague, in lending this pistol to Dr.
Blane, weren't you actually lending it to Sue and Jack Hardisty as well? Oh, sure, all of them.
And they all knew where the pistol was kept? Yes, in the glove compartment of the doctor's car.
And you knew, of course.
Anyone else know? Well, I guess Rodney Beaton did.
I object, Your Honor.
This is an assumption.
Strike the answer.
Very well.
Thank you, Mr.
Strague.
That's all.
You may step down, Mr.
Strague.
Miss Strague, you heard the testimony regarding scopolamine? Yes.
Did you know anything about scopolamine before today? Oh, well, yes, I did.
There was an article about it in a magazine over at Dr.
Blane's, about its being a truth drug.
We were all discussing it.
Now, uh, at this time, did you know about the money Dr.
Blane said had been stolen? Yes.
You'll have to pardon this next question, Miss Strague, but I want to establish exactly where everyone was at the time of the murder, particularly the people who knew the victim might have a large sum of money in his possession.
Therefore I ask, where were you at this time? I was at our cabin.
Did you see or talk to anyone who can confirm this? Well, yes, my brother.
We were together all evening, in fact, until about 10, except for a few minutes when he went over to the Blanes' to see if anyone wanted to play bridge.
Thank you, Miss Strague.
Your witness.
As I understand it, Miss Strague, your brother can confirm your alibi, and you, of course, can confirm his.
Is that right? Yes.
Well, now, with no intention of discounting the value of this mutual protection, may I ask if there is someone else who can confirm your story? ( sighs ) No, there isn't.
Thank you.
That's all.
You may step down, Miss Strague.
Your Honor, since counsel for the defendant has questioned Miss Strague's account of her whereabouts at the time of the murder, and in connection with this, I should like to recall Mr.
Philip Strague to the stand.
Very well.
Will you return to the stand, please, Mr.
Strague? Mr.
Strague, will you tell the court where you were on the evening of this murder from, say, 6:00 until 10? Well, I spent most of the time at the cabin, except for a few minutes that I went over to Dr.
Blane's house.
But I noticed a strange car outside, and I realized they had company, so I went back home.
Then I went over later too.
But that was about 10, I think.
Do you recall about what time it was when you went over to Dr.
Blane's the first time? Oh, 7:30, 8, somewhere around there, I guess.
Was your sister there with you at home before you went over to Dr.
Blane's this first time? Yes, sir, the whole time.
Was she there when you got back? Yes, sir.
Now, Mr.
Strague, when you went over to Dr.
Blane's the first time, about 7:30 or 8, do you recall anything happening which was unusual or out of the ordinary? Well, no.
I don't seem to- Oh, I accidentally set off one of Rod's- Mr.
Beaton's.
- flash things.
Bulbs.
I got off on the wrong trail.
Was there any mention made of this when you went back to Dr.
Blane's later in the evening? The second time.
Yes, I told Rod about it.
Was there anyone else present when you told Mr.
Beaton you had accidentally tripped his flash? Your Honor, on the ground it calls for self-serving declaration, that question is objected to.
However, if it please the court, since I was there myself, I withdraw the objection.
Thank you, Mr.
Mason.
You may answer the question, Mr.
Strague.
Yes, sir.
Sue- Mrs.
Hardisty.
- was there, and Mr.
Mason, and his secretary, Miss Street.
I see.
Now, Mr.
Strague, I show you this picture and ask, do you recognize it? Why, that's me.
Did I take this when I tripped the flash? Yes, I guess it would.
Then it is a picture of yourself? Yes, that's me.
Your Honor, I ask that this photograph be accepted in evidence as people's exhibit C.
I will later present testimony identifying it positively and tying it in as to exact time and place.
Mr.
Mason? No objection.
Mr.
Drake, when you arrived at the decedent's house at 7:55, was the defendant there? Yes, he was.
What was he doing? Looking around.
Wasn't he searching the place? He said he was.
Did he say how long he'd been there? Yes.
Five minutes.
And he hadn't called the police? He hadn't? I'm asking you, Mr.
Drake.
Had he? I don't know.
Mr.
Drake, did the defendant say he had not called the police? Yes.
Thank you.
Your witness, counselor.
Mr.
Drake, when Dr.
Blane told you that he'd been at the Hardisty house only five minutes, did you make any effort to determine the accuracy or inaccuracy of his statement? Yes, I did.
What did you do? Immediately after I called the police, I went out to check the defendant's car.
I felt the hood on the outside, lifted it, sniffed the air in the engine compartment, felt the radiator, the cylinder head and the exhaust manifold.
At the time of this examination of the defendant's car, how long would you say the motor had been idle? Eight or nine minutes, not over 14 at the outside or under six.
Thank you, Mr.
Drake.
That's all.
Does the district attorney have any further questions? Yes, if the court please, one or two.
Mr.
Drake, as practiced as you've become in these estimates, they are nevertheless still estimates, are they not, as distinguished, say, from measurements? Yes.
Now, Mr.
Drake, I may assume, I trust, that when you work for someone, you try to give them dependable, thoroughly loyal service? Yes, sir.
And at the time you made this estimate, you were employed by the defendant at a very generous rate of pay? But that would in no way affect- The question requires only a simple yes or no, Mr.
Drake.
Yes.
Thank you.
Make it about All right.
Sorry I'm late, but I stopped to bring some lunch.
Hi, Paul.
Watch out for the thread! Make yourself comfortable, won't you? I, uh, have some more recent dope on the Stragues.
As you remember, all we knew before was that he'd been in the Navy and was discharged eight years ago.
Yes.
The Stragues came to Sierra City from the Bay Area not long ago.
It seems that Phil Strague was on very friendly terms with a married woman there, one of the old families.
Now, we don't know exactly what happened, but we do know that they left the Bay Area suddenly and bought a new car shortly afterward.
Paul, do you have any contacts in the post office department? Yeah, I, uh- I know an inspector pretty well.
Perhaps you can find out if Hardisty rented a box in the main post office next to Union Station between 5:05 and 5:20 on that day.
If he did, I'd like to find out if there's any mail in that box.
All right, I'll get right on it.
Perry, is this what you're thinking: That Hardisty was killed about 7:30, but in order to be given the scopolamine and have time for it to take effect, he had to be home no later than 7? Now, if he had just moved the money- But, uh, why would he rent a box? After all, he can't put $100,000 in it.
He could have used it to send himself a key or a claim check.
But suppose somebody had given Hardisty this truth serum to get him to tell where he had hidden the money, and he told them where he'd hidden the money in the first place: in his own home.
Actually, he'd moved it after that.
But they killed him, and when they went to look for the money, it was gone, and they haven't been able to find it yet.
I agree with you, Della.
That's exactly how it happened.
Well, I finally figured that one out.
Or wait a minute, does that get us any closer as to who killed Hardisty? Not a bit closer.
Come on, Della.
( sighs, clicks tongue ) Have yourself a nice picnic.
Mr.
Beaton, on the Saturday night Jack Hardisty was killed, were you sitting on your cabin porch watching for a photoflash, as you described? Yes.
Did you see any? Yes, I did.
Do you recall about what time it was you saw this flash? Yes, it was about 7:30.
I see.
Mr.
Beaton, I show you this photograph, the people's exhibit C, and I ask: Is it a print from the same negative exposed in this camera about 7:30 the night Jack Hardisty was killed? Yes, it is.
Thank you.
That's all.
Cross-examine.
Mr.
Beaton, how long were you on your cabin porch the night of the murder? From, uh, 6 until nearly 10.
Did you see anyone or talk to anyone at that time who can confirm this? Well, no, um I saw the flash when Phil- I mean, Mr.
Strague.
- tripped the camera at 7:30, and I made a note of it, and he can confirm that time.
Mr.
Strague testified that he mentioned that fact to you later that same night.
Wasn't that the first time that you knew that he tripped your camera? Oh, no.
I knew it when I reset the camera, before I even saw him.
I could see his tracks.
Would you describe these tracks for us? You're an experienced tracker, I take it? Yes.
Fair.
Well, nothing unusual.
Clear enough.
He was just walking right along, heading down toward Dr.
Blane's lodge.
A deer came along after he did.
I see.
Your Honor, may I have a moment? Of course, Mr.
Mason.
Perry, your hunch was right.
Hardisty did rent a post box that afternoon, and there's one letter in it, addressed simply to the box number.
Mr.
Beaton, how long does it take you to reset your camera? Oh, not long- One moment, please.
For the sake of clarity, would Your Honor permit Mr.
Beaton to demonstrate as he testifies? I don't think the prosecution could object to that.
You may step down, Mr.
Beaton.
Well, first of all, of course, I put in a new flashbulb.
Then I re-cock the shutter, and turn over the film holder.
Withdraw the slideso.
If the thread is broken, I have to attach a new one to this trip arm that operates the flash and the shutter.
I string it down the tripod leg and out across the trail to where I tie it off.
All right? You, uh, don't change the focus or the diaphragm opening or something of that nature? No, no.
That's all set, and I leave it alone.
I believe you told me that you shoot with the lens practically wide open.
Yes, I usually shoot at f4.
The lens is 3.
5.
Thank you, Mr.
Beaton.
That's all.
Your Honor, that will conclude our case.
Very well.
Does counsel for the defendant wish to present any evidence in this case? Naturally, it's only a preliminary hearing, and while the people's case is by no means conclusive, as matters stand, the court would consider it mandatory to bond the defendant over for trial, and it would require really conclusive evidence on his behalf to alter this opinion.
I appreciate the court's frankness.
I have no wish to put on a case or call a lot of witnesses.
However, as long as the witnesses are present, I should like to recall one of them to complete the development of a certain point.
Very well.
Proceed.
Will Mr.
Philip Strague please return to the stand? Mr.
Strague, I just want to check on a point or two in connection with the flash picture taken of you by Mr.
Beaton's camera.
Yes, sir.
As I recall your earlier testimony, you said that this happened while you were on your way to Dr.
Blane's lodge about 7:30 that night.
Yes, sir.
Now, referring to your tracks, which Mr.
Beaton says he saw, I believe he testified that there was nothing unusual in them, that you were just walking right along, headed for Dr.
Blane's.
Now, does that agree with your recollection? Yes.
Would you tell me why? Why what? Would you tell me why those tracks showed that you were just walking right along? Well, because that's what I was doing.
I don't understand.
Why not? If I were walking along in the woods at night, and suddenly the blinding brightness of a flashbulb exploded in my face, I believe it would startle me, Mr.
Strague.
Yet apparently, on the night in question, this did not startle you at all.
I ask you, why not? WellI don't know.
I guess I was thinking about something.
Concentrating, you know.
But you not only did not stop, you did not even slow down.
( scoffs ) Well, it didn't matter much, I guess, not being able to see, dark as it was anyhow.
( door opens ) I believe you know a good deal about photography, Mr.
Strague, having served in the Navy as a photographer.
Oh.
Oh, yes.
That was such a long time ago, I've forgotten most of it, probably.
While we're at it, haven't you forgotten something else? How do you mean? Haven't you forgotten to tell this court that Jean Strague is not your sister but is, in reality, your wife? Haven't you? I didn't think it was n-necessary.
But you haven't forgotten that she is.
No, sir.
Let's see how much of your photography you can remember.
For instance, if you stop a lens down to f22 or 32 without changing the shutter speed, you will virtually eliminate any exposure.
Does that sound right? Iguess so.
Of course you know that you can replace one film holder with another.
I guess.
And let us suppose that early on the night in question, you stopped down the lens on Mr.
Beaton's camera, replaced the film holder with one that contained an exposed shot of yourself.
Thus when the camera was tripped at 7:30, Mr.
Beaton saw the flash, but no picture of you was taken at that time, because at that time you were actually engaged in the murder of Jack Hardisty.
That's a lie.
It's just a wild piece of invention, and you know it! Even if that could be done to a camera, I couldn't do it! How could I trip the flash at 7:30 and be somewhere else at the same time? It wouldn't be difficult at all, Mr.
Strague.
If Your Honor please, may I demonstrate this point? Yes, Mr.
Mason.
I'd like to see how this is done.
( ticking ) Now, Mr.
Strague, suppose you had set this alarm so that it would go off at 7:30.
And then you had attached the trip cord from the camera to the alarm winding key.
And then you had buried the clock facedown very near the camera.
( ringing ) Now, when the alarm went off and tripped the camera, you and your wife were at Jack Hardisty's home, having made a date with him there for 7:30.
Which one of you did the killing, Mr.
Strague? No! You can't drag me into this! I went along with the scopolamine to get the money, but I wanted no part of the murder! No! No, I tell you! It's a lie! He can't prove that! He can't prove a thing! Your Honor, the defense rests.
DRAKE: Perry, come on, now, admit it.
When you started on your cross-examination of Beaton, you had no idea how that footprint business was gonna turn out.
Of course.
I was lucky, Paul.
Thanks.
You know, cross-examination is like prospecting.
You see something that looks promising, you work a vein for all it's worth.
If you're lucky, you may hit a bonanza.
In a way, it's no different from what the Stragues were doing.
They started with a badger game to shake down Sue Hardisty, and then went on to bigger and better things when they saw Jack Hardisty with all that money.
( phone rings ) Yes, Gertie? Dr.
Blane.
Put him on, Gertie.
Hello, doctor.
Well, good.
Yes, I guess we were all lucky.
Of course I will.
Thanks for calling.
Well, they found the money.
Hardisty put it in a bag that he checked at Union Station.
Then he mailed the baggage check to himself in care of that post office box he rented.
That's it.
It all proves one thing: Strague made his biggest mistake when he buried the clock.
Everybody knows that's no way to kill time.
Ooh.
Ooh.
( alarm clock ringing ) ( laughing ) No.
( noirish jazz theme playing )