Perry Mason (1957) s02e20 Episode Script
The Case of the Stuttering Bishop
( noirish jazz theme playing ) ( mysterious theme playing ) Good evening, Bishop.
Yes? You are Bishop Mallory? That's right.
My name is Lang.
I'm an advertising consultant for the Tribune.
You've been running this ad in our paper for the past two months.
"I'm looking for a young lady, approximately 24 years of age, "prefer someone from the Midwest who can speak French and play the piano.
" Well? I was wondering if you found the girl.
We're doing a survey on the effectiveness of our ads.
It's rather late to be doing research, isn't it? ( chuckles ) We work around the clock.
May I see your identification? Show him your identification, Leo.
I, uh-- Must have left it in my other suit.
You'll have to forgive him, Bishop.
He's always forgetting things.
You're working for Charles Burroughs, aren't you? I thought I was asking the questions.
Did you find the girl? ( chuckling ): You're fighting me, Bishop.
( jazz music playing ) All right, Leo.
( blows landing ) ( dramatic theme playing ) ( groaning ) ( water running ) Oh, don't move! H-- How did you get in here? The door was open.
Who are you? Don't you remember anything? I called about 5:30 in answer to your ad.
And you told me to come up this evening for an interview.
You must be Carol Delaney.
Mm-hm.
I called the desk, and they're sending you up a doctor.
( groans ) Get me the desk, please.
Hello, this is Bishop Mallory.
No, I'm perfectly all right, I-- There's absolutely no need for a doctor.
( breathing heavily ) Of course I'm sure.
Where do you come from? The Midwest.
Where in the Midwest? Des Moines.
What was your father's first name? Paul.
A-and your mother's? Vivian.
Is either of them alive? No, they were both killed in an auto accident about eight months ago.
Do you have any u-unusual birthmark? Y-you'll have to forgive the catechism, my dear, but I-I had to be sure.
Suppose I told you that you were the grandchild of a multimillionaire? What would you say to that? I'd better get you a doctor! I tell you, I'm perfectly all right.
I've been searching for you since November.
My name is Mallory.
Bishop Arthur Mallory.
I'm from Sydney, Australia.
I came over on the Princeton five months ago.
This is from the ship's newspaper.
CAROL: It's very interesting.
MALLORY: But you don't understand.
That's you.
You're Charles Burroughs' granddaughter.
I can help you prove it.
Please, you've got to believe me.
Your father was Charles Burroughs, Jr.
Myfather was Paul Delaney.
No, your real father died before you were born.
He had been disinherited when he married your mother.
C-consequently, you can understand her bitterness.
S-she would have nothing to do with your grandfather, s-so she came to me.
She had no one else to turn to.
There was a wonderful family in my congregation named "Delaney.
" They wanted a child desperately.
And, of course, you made the necessary arrangements.
They changed your name from Janice to Carol.
And where did all of this take place? Near Albany, New York.
T-that was my first pastorate.
S-shortly thereafter, I was transferred to Australia.
Well it was very nice meeting you, Bishop.
You don't believe me? Well, let's just say that I'm perfectly satisfied being Carol Delaney.
Buthow would I know all about your foster parents? How would I know their names? Because I told you.
And all you did was agree with me.
Why didn't you come out in your ad and ask for Carol Delaney? I was afraid your life would be in danger.
And I guess the reason you didn't call was because my phone number isn't listed.
Exactly.
Ha, ha.
Well, it was a nice try, Bishop.
Better luck with the next girl.
( dramatic theme playing ) So I said to him, "Thank you very much, but, no, thanks.
" You mean, you walked out just like that? Well, I don't see what the Bishop could have said for an encore.
Well, how do you know he wasn't telling the truth? Oh, now-- Do you realize who Charles Burroughs is? The guy's worth 5 or 6 million.
Now, you get on that telephone and call the Bishop-- I don't like to be given orders to, Larry.
Aw, honey, I didn't mean it like that.
I only meant it for your own good.
But if Charles Burroughs really is your grandfather-- Oh, now, Larry, please, I-- Well, how do you know? Stranger things have happened.
( chuckling ): Not to me.
All right, honey, I'll grant you, the guy's a phony.
But there's always that one chance, and if you hit, you got millions.
Now, those aren't bad odds.
Well, why would a guy make up a story like that? At least you can investigate.
( knocking on door ) If the guy's a phony, you can-- Miss Delaney? Yes? I wonder if you could spare me a few minutes? My name is Lang.
I'm employed by Charles Burroughs.
Oh, come right in.
Oh, I'm sorry.
I didn't know you had company.
Oh, that's all right.
Yourhusband? CAROL: No, just a friend.
Kenyon's the name.
Larry Kenyon.
Do you think you could give us a little privacy? Oh, he can hear anything you have to say.
You were up to see an Arthur Mallory tonight.
What did he tell you? I don't think it's any of your business.
You're not buying his story that you're Charles Burroughs' granddaughter? I didn't, originally.
Meaning now you're changing your mind? I was just wondering whatyou'redoing here.
Well, I dropped by to give you some advice.
Mr.
Burroughs doesn't like publicity.
So? So that's what I'm doing here.
I-- I keep his name out of the papers.
Now, why don't you be a good girl and forget all about this? Otherwise? Otherwise, you might be buying yourself a lot of trouble.
You play ball with that phony Bishop, and Mr.
Burroughs is bound to feel that you're just as crooked as Mallory is.
You know the old saying, "birds of a feather.
" I think you've said just about enough.
So do I.
If you have any influence on this girl, you'll advise her to keep her skirts clean.
It's been nice knowing you.
You see, honey? That proves there's something to the Bishop's story.
Now, promise me you'll see a lawyer.
Well, I don't know, I-- Oh, promise me! All right.
Oh.
( dramatic theme playing ) Under the circumstances, C-Carol felt we should consult an attorney.
MASON: You say that this man Lang is the same man who assaulted you? Yes.
Then let's swear out a warrant for his arrest.
No! No! You can't do that.
I-I can't a-afford that kind of publicity.
My superiors would be terribly upset.
Tell me, Miss Delaney do you, uh, honestly believe that Charles Burroughs is your grandfather? Of course she does.
Well-- Excuse me, Bishop.
Do you, Miss Delaney? Well, I really don't know what to believe anymore.
That's why I wanted to see a lawyer.
When the Bishop told me that story, I thought he was a crook.
I'm sorry, Bishop, but I-- Don't apologize, my dear.
I-I don't blame you in the slightest.
Now you've changed your mind? CAROL: Well, let's say that Mr.
Lang changed it for me.
Why, I wouldn't trust him as far-- As far as you'd trustme.
Y-you understand, w-we aren't asking for charity.
If you can establish that Carol is really the grandchild of Mr.
Burroughs, I-I would say that a fee of $50,000 is not unreasonable.
Bishop Mallory, what's your interest in this? There are rewards other than financial.
Uh, let me think about it.
T-that's all we ask.
Goodbye, Miss Street.
Come, my dear.
Thank you, Mr.
Mason.
That's the first time I've ever heard a stuttering Bishop.
He must be quite a sensation in the pulpit.
You mean, you think he's not a Bishop? Well, I certainly think it's funny there's no one alive who can vouch for his story.
Della, see if you can arrange an appointment with Mr.
Burroughs? Mm-hm.
( mysterious theme playing ) MAN: Is it Mason? ( doorbell rings ) I think so.
Now, don't forget, Grandpa, you're not going to let him upset you.
You promised me.
Don't you worry about me, Janice.
Now, you know somebody has to.
You're such a big baby.
I-- ( knocking ) Yeah? Mr.
Mason is here.
Well, what are you waiting for, applause? Tell him to come in! Really, Uncle Charles.
Sometimes you can be-- ( laughing ) That wasn't nice, Grandpa.
You're much too hard on Philip.
Do him good.
What kind of a man would be satisfied acting as my so-called secretary? There's nothing to do but listen to my insults.
If he had any backbone, he'd tell me to go fly.
Youwould.
Oh, come in, Mason.
My granddaughter: Janice Burroughs.
How do you do? How do you do? Won't you sit down? Thank you.
What's on your mind? I was, uh, consulted this morning by a Bishop Mallory on behalf of Miss Carol Delaney.
You know, Mason, you surprise me.
I didn't think a man of your ability would be so gullible.
What do you know about this so-called Bishop? Suppose you tell me.
You've had time to do a lot more checking.
He's an out-and-out fake! Oh, there was a Bishop Arthur Mallory in Sydney, Australia, but it isn't the same man.
The real Bishop left on a sabbatical five months ago.
He told no one where he was going.
That was a heaven-sent opportunity for your client.
Well, he isn't my client.
Not yet, anyway.
Now you're using your head.
According to the Bishop-- According to the Bishop, my granddaughter had dark-brown hair, green eyes and a birthmark on her forearm.
Don't you believe it.
I had one of the smartest detectives in the country looking for years.
A man named Wallace Lang.
May I ask where Mr.
Lang found you? No, sir, you may not! Well, I don't mind.
Though I do! Janice, would you mind leaving us alone for a minute? Now, go on, honey.
I'll be all right.
I just wanna set this fellow straight on a couple of things.
You know, Mason, you're supposed to be smart.
Thank you.
Hmm.
Eight years ago, I directed the executor of my will to do everything in his power to find my grandchild.
If she had been found, everything would go to her.
Well, tomorrow morning at 9:00, I'm signing a new will.
I'm leaving everything to Janice.
Notice I didn't say I'm leaving everything to my granddaughter.
I said to Janice.
I'll specify it makes no difference whether she's related to me or not.
Now, how do you like those apples? It's your money, Mr.
Burroughs.
Uh, just one question.
If you, uh, make the type of will you describe, isn't that an unconscious admission that you're afraid Miss Burroughs' claim won't hold up? Think it over.
( dramatic theme playing ) ( knocking ) CAROL: Who's there? It's me, honey.
Oh, I'll be right out.
Funny thing.
I was talking to a lawyer today named Whittaker.
Real sharp character.
I told him a little-- ( phone ringing ) Want me to answer that? Please.
Hello? Let me talk to Carol Delaney.
Tell her it's Charles Burroughs.
Well-- Well, just a moment.
Carol.
It's Burroughs.
Well, I don't want to talk to him.
If he has anything to say, you just tell him to call Mr.
Mason.
Sorry, Mr.
Burroughs, but she just stepped out.
Don't insult my intelligence, young man.
I know she's right there.
You tell her I want to see her at 5:30.
And tell her I don't like to be kept waiting.
( dramatic theme playing ) I'd just about given you up for lost.
I covered a lot of ground with Paul.
Any calls? Mm-hm.
Here they are.
Philip Burroughs has been waiting in my office since 5:30.
Five-thirty? Mm-hm.
Better have him come in.
Right.
Will you come in, please? Oh, thank you.
Mr.
Burroughs, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting.
I hope you understand.
Coming here was not my idea.
My uncle sent me.
I-- Oh, really.
This is most distressing.
Perhaps you'd better get it over with.
Won't you sit down? Thank you.
Well-- My uncle wanted you to have this.
There's $5,000 in there.
And all I have to do is convince Miss Delaney to forget the whole thing.
I know it sounds suspiciously like a bribe, but, believe me, that was the furthest thing from my uncle's mind.
I told him he was wrong.
And that pleases you? Oh, no end.
My uncle rarely makes a mistake.
Heh.
I'd be less than human if I weren't delighted at one of his few errors.
Good night, Miss Street.
Where's your grandfather? I don't know.
I just got home five minutes ago.
He's probably-- ( ominous theme playing ) Blood.
Uncle Charles! There's something wrong with this light switch! I'll try the desk lamp.
( clock chiming ) ( dramatic theme playing ) ( screams ) ( sobbing ) Oh, let's stop the play-acting, darling.
I suspect your affection for the old boy was even less than mine.
Oh, I wouldn't go, my dear, unless you want me to phone for the police right now.
Have you ever seen them operate? ( gasps ) Suppose they should learn of a marriage that took place in Allentown four years ago.
Oh, yes.
I know allabout it.
Where were you tonight? When I left at 4, he was perfectly all right.
He was perfectly all right when I left at 5:30.
He was napping.
I-I could hear him snoring as I went by.
Where did you go? You know perfectly well I go riding every day at this hour.
Oh, really, my dear? I thought you could do better.
It's the truth.
And while we're on the subject, where were you? You say he was asleep when you left at 5:30? Well, at 5:30, I was in Mr.
Mason's office, running an errand for his majesty.
I left there at 6:30.
It took me half an hour to drive home.
Well it would seem that I can account for mytime oh, a little better than you can yours.
I didn't kill him.
Well, frankly, I don't care one way or the other.
I'm simply pointing out how it might look to the police.
Butyou know, I mightbe able to help you.
How? Now, my dear, you know what a mercenary soul I am.
And if I'm any judge of things, Uncle Charles didn't leave me a sou.
I'll give you $10,000.
No, my dear.
You'll give me Well, I-I-I'd have to discuss that with-- Mr.
Lang? Oh, there isn't time.
Make up your mind, dear.
Time's a-fleeting.
All right.
Nowthe first thing to do is to set the stage.
I know that he had a 5:30 appointment with a Carol Delaney.
Did she keep it? There was somebody in the driveway when Iwent out.
Did Uncle Charles talk to her? I don't know.
Besides, what difference does it make? It might make all the difference in the world.
( dramatic theme playing ) CAROL: I'm telling you, lieutenant, for the last time, I don't know anything about it! Why, I haven't even met Charles Burroughs.
Didn't you go to his home last night? Yes.
He called and asked me to come to see him.
She's telling you the truth.
I talked to him myself.
What time did you arrive there? About 5:30, but I didn't go in.
I'm telling you I didn't go in.
I rang the doorbell three or four times, and I waited about 20 minutes.
And when nobody answered, I just left.
And you never entered the house? No! Just turned around and took the next bus back? MAN: Excuse me, lieutenant.
Found this in the kitchen.
Didn't a, uh, knife come with this set? Yes.
I didn't find one.
I think I know where it is.
I'm afraid you'll have to come with me.
CAROL: And that's the whole story, Mr.
Mason.
Somebody stole that knife from my apartment.
Why, you can open my door with a hairpin.
You can't open the door to Mr.
Burroughs' study with one.
That door locks only from the inside.
Now, if you were in there-- Well, I wasn't! Did they find my fingerprints in there? No, the room had been wiped clean.
Well, I didn't do it.
And that's the truth! Of course, none of this answers the big question.
Why did you go out to see Mr.
Burroughs? I told you.
He called me.
And I told you to refer him to me if he got in touch with you directly.
Well-- Well, Bishop Mallory called me around 2:30, and I told him about Mr.
Burroughs' call.
I wasn't even going! And he said he'd received a similar call from Mr.
Burroughs and he'd meet you out there? That's right.
He said he was going out about 5:00, that Mr.
Burroughs wanted to talk to him first.
Did he happen to mention that I had informed him that Mr.
Burroughs was preparing a new will, leaving everything to Janice, whether they were related or not? Yes.
Well, obviously you didn't meet the Bishop out there.
Now, what happened? I don't know! Why don't you ask him?! I tried to.
Unfortunately, we haven't seen him since yesterday afternoon at 4:30.
( dramatic theme playing ) You mean, he's disappeared? That's exactly what I mean.
All I can find out is: the Bishop took a cab from the hotel to the Harris Car-Rental Agency on Fillmore.
He rented a brand-new convertible.
He shouldn't be too hard to find, Paul.
A Bishop in a convertible.
Well, all he's gotta do is change his clothes.
But it isn't so easy to change his speech pattern.
Isn't it? Well, the desk clerk at the Quentin Hotel told me the Bishop was a guest there for a month, and he never noticed anything wrong with his speech.
No further word from Australia? According to the last cable I got, the real Bishop's due back the middle of June.
However, I did run down a Dr.
Stratford in San Fernando.
He and the Bishop went to school together 30 years ago.
He says he can identify him if he could see a picture.
All right, let's get one.
I tried.
Seems Bishop Mallory is camera-shy.
Oh? What'd you find out about Janice Burroughs? Not one single blessed thing.
She wouldn't even talk to my man.
Paul, do you know an operative who could do a little acting? A woman about 48, one we could trust.
Yeah, I think so.
All right, get her.
Now? Now.
( dramatic theme playing ) All right, Della, let's get to work on a script for this lady.
PAUL: I appreciate your courtesy in seeing us, Miss Burroughs, especially at this time.
But Mr.
Mason felt you should hear this lady's story.
Her name is Blanche Atkins.
She came up to see him tonight.
Right after I seen your picture in the paper.
Oh, honey, you shouldn't wear black.
It don't do a thing for you.
Will you get to the point? Well, like I said, the minute I saw your picture, it rang a bell.
Heh.
I said, "There's my kid Ruthie.
She's the spittin' image of her old man.
" Are you trying to say that you're my mother? Well, Iknow I did a lousy job, puttin' you in that orphanage when you were only six weeks old, but-- What else was I to do? What orphanage was that? St.
Michael's.
I was raised in the Wyckoff Orphanage in Pittsburgh.
Honey, I left you at St.
Michael's.
Then the place burned down a couple of months later.
That's when they sent you to Wyckoff.
Didn't they call you "Ruth Fulton"? No.
My name was Mildred White.
Mildred white? I, uh, think there's been some mistake.
LANG: I don't think so.
I'll say one thing for Mason: he doesn't miss a trick.
Hello, Blanche.
You know her? She's an operative.
I used her once myself.
PAUL: I'm sorry, Miss Burroughs, but you left us no choice.
Mason's got a client charged with murder.
LANG: Say, Drake give my regards to the Bishop.
Where's Philip? In his room.
( dials phone ) PHILIP ( over phone ): Yes? Phil, will you come down here for a minute? Why? I wanna talk to you.
I heard from the attorneys this afternoon.
I'll be right down.
Why don't you go for a little walk? What are you gonna do to him? Just gonna point out the error of his ways.
I wanna remind him a gentleman never blackmails a lady.
Go on, baby.
( dramatic theme playing ) You're probably wondering why I came here.
Thank you.
Chair? I'd like to help Miss Delaney.
Well, you're very generous.
Suppose I told you that my cousin Janice and Mr.
Lang are man and wife? Are they? You might consult the Marriage Bureau in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Uh, that eye.
Lang do that? I told Janice I'd keep my mouth shut.
But under the circumstances, I feel released from that promise.
This is a letter Lang sent her shortly after she came to live with my uncle.
Janice must have been out of hermindto keep it.
"Dear Janice "everything's going to be completely okay.
"Burroughs is "Just play it as we rehearsed it, "and we won't have a thing to worry about.
Love, Wally.
" When did you find this? A week after my uncle's funeral.
Please, don't ask me where.
May I keep it? Of course.
Thank you for coming by.
The pleasure was allmine.
Goodbye, Miss Street.
Goodbye.
He's a nice fellow.
He has all of the finer instincts of a scorpion.
Do you think there's anything to that? I wouldn't be surprised.
He was probably trying a little polite blackmail against Janice, and Mr.
Lang took a hand.
Oh, but if we can prove that Janice was the phony-- We may be in real trouble.
Mr.
Burroughs' will was made eight years ago.
He left everything to his grandchild.
And if we prove that Carol is the grandchild-- We give the district attorney a precise and positive motive.
( dramatic theme playing ) If the court please JUDGE: Is there a problem, Mr.
Weston? I thought by this time that Mr.
Burger would be free.
I've just received word requesting that I continue with the hearing since he is still unavailable.
You may proceed, Mr.
Deputy.
Thank you, Your Honor.
And now, doctor, will you answer the question I had previously posed before our, uh, interruption? Yes.
I saw the body at approximately Death had been instantaneous.
The victim had been stabbed four times with this knife.
Any one of these wounds might have proved fatal.
The first penetrated the heart.
Were you able to fix the time of death? I would say death occurred between 5:30 and 7 p.
m.
Thank you very much, doctor.
You may cross-examine.
Doctor, I have only one question.
From the position of the body, can you tell us if Mr.
Burroughs was sitting or standing when the blows were struck? Well, that's difficult to say.
Well, could he have been reclining? It's possible.
By any chance, was the deceased under sedation at the time of death? Yes, we did find traces of Nembutal.
Thank you, doctor.
That'll be all.
JUDGE: You may stand down.
When was the last time you recall seeing this knife? LARRY: On February the 6th.
WESTON: That would be the day before the murder.
Yes, sir.
Thank you.
Take the witness.
No questions.
JUDGE: You may stand down.
Your Honor, I would like to call Philip Burroughs.
MAN: Mr.
Philip Burroughs to the stand, please.
Do you solemnly swear that the testimony you're about to give is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth? PHILIP: I do.
MAN: Be seated, please.
That's when I called the police.
They arrived about ten minutes later.
Mr.
Burroughs, how long had you lived with the deceased? Fifteen years.
And just what were your duties? I acted as my uncle's secretary.
On the day of his murder, had your uncle given you any special instructions? Yes, sir.
Now, in performance of those instructions, just what did you do? Well, I phoned his attorneys, Logan and Standsbury.
I told Mr.
Logan that my uncle wanted to see him the following morning to sign his new will.
And that night he was murdered? Yes, sir.
Mr.
Burroughs, are you familiar with the terms of the existing will? MASON: I object, Your Honor.
This is not the best evidence.
Let the document speak for itself.
WESTON: I am perfectly agreeable, Your Honor.
As a matter of fact, I subpoenaed Mr.
Logan to appear here this afternoon.
My question, however, was only to the witness's knowledge.
MASON: In that event, Your Honor, we further object to the question as an attempt on the part of the prosecutor to cross-examine his own witness.
It's immaterial whether or not this witness has any knowledge of the terms of his uncle's will.
In view of the evidence that Mr.
Logan will be a witness this afternoon, the court will sustain the objection.
Have you any further questions? No, sir.
JUDGE: Mr.
Mason? Now, Mr.
Burroughs, you testified that you were the one who discovered the body.
That's right.
What time did Janice Burroughs enter the room? A few seconds later, after I managed to turn on the desk lamp.
I seem to recall there was a light switch near the door.
It didn't operate.
That switch lit the table lamps, but someone had turned off the lamp separately.
There were no overhead fixtures in the room? Mm, no, sir.
Is the name S.
J.
Hyers familiar to you? I believe I've heard the name somewhere.
Could that "somewhere" be San Diego? Possibly.
Did you have any dealings with Mr.
Hyers? I borrowed some money from him.
How much money? Twenty-thousand dollars.
How was the loan secured? You merely walked into Mr.
Hyers' office, and he gave you the money just like that? Well, naturally, I signed some sort of a paper.
I expected a share in my uncle's estate.
Then the debt became payable upon the death of your uncle? There's no need to put it that way.
It's the truth, isn't it? Yes.
I have no further questions.
I have one or two questions on redirect.
Mr.
Burroughs, do you have any money of your own? Very little.
WESTON: Then if this debt became payable on the death of your uncle, wouldn't you say it would be to your advantage to keep your uncle alive as long as possible? Of course.
Thank you.
You may stand down.
Call your next witness.
I call Wallace Lang.
MAN: Mr.
Wallace Lang to the stand, please.
I first went to work for Charles Burroughs about seven years ago.
He hired me to find his grandchild.
Then he put me on a permanent basis as a kind of troubleshooter for the Burroughs Construction Company.
Mr.
Lang, what was the nature of your last assignment? Well, in October of this year, Mr.
Burroughs was approached by a man who called himself Bishop Mallory.
Mallory claimed the defendant was Mr.
Burroughs' grandchild.
And you investigated that claim? Yes, sir, I did.
Mallory had inserted a vague ad in the newspapers, one that would have fit a hundred different girls.
He told me he was to interview a Carol Delaney that evening.
He felt since she needed a job, she'd cooperate with him.
Thank you, Mr.
Lang.
You may cross-examine.
Mr.
Lang, you say you investigated Bishop Mallory's claim? No, sir, I said I investigated the claim of a man whocalledhimself Bishop Mallory.
Do you know for a positive fact that this man was not Bishop Mallory of Sydney, Australia? He admitted it to me.
Under what circumstances did he make that admission? Did you apply force? No, sir, I did not.
You had an associate with you at the time.
Did he apply the force? There was no force applied by anyone.
MASON: You just entered the man's room and he confessed? LANG: That's about it.
So the man purporting to be Bishop Mallory then admitted he was a fraud? Yes, sir.
What was his real name? I don't know.
The man just said he was a fraud and you were satisfied? You didn't ask his real name or where he came from? I guess I made a mistake.
I would guess you made several.
Do you know where he disappeared to? No, sir.
Let's, uh, turn our attention for the moment to the deceased.
How did you convince Mr.
Burroughs that Janice Burroughs was his grandchild? LANG: I had documentary proof.
MASON: What do you call documentary proof? WESTON: Your Honor! I think this is wholly irrelevant.
If it please the court, I think this goes straight to the heart of the matter.
The state maintains that my client was involved in a plot to pass herself off as the grandchild of Charles Burroughs.
I have every right to know on what evidence it was decided that Janice Burroughs was the grandchild.
The court is going to overrule the objection, but on the grounds that it may go to the motivation bias and interest of the witness.
You may proceed, counselor.
Thank you, Your Honor.
Now, Mr.
Lang, I ask you once again.
How did you convince the deceased that Janice Burroughs was his grandchild? Well, first I found the death certificate of Charles Burroughs, Jr.
He had died in Sheboygan, Wisconsin.
His doctor gave me a lead to Mrs.
Burroughs, and I finally traced her to Pittsburgh.
Before her death, she lived with a family named Crane.
Mrs.
Crane was with her the night she left the child at the Wyckoff Orphanage.
Did the deceased ever talk to Mrs.
Crane in person? Yes, sir, he did.
I brought all the parties in the case to him.
All those who were alive, that is.
Then there was no doubt in his mind at all that Janice Burroughs was his grandchild? Absolutely none at all.
MASON: Now, Mr.
Lang, what were your arrangements with Mildred White? What do you mean, "what were my arrangements?" How would you describe your relationship with Miss White? Would you say you were good friends? I'd like to think so.
Andnothing more? Isn't that enough? If it please the court, I would like to introduce into evidence, subject to identification, a certified copy of a marriage license made out to Wallace Lang and Mildred White.
Miss White is also known as Janice Burroughs.
( suspenseful theme playing ) Mr.
Weston, I would like the testimony of this witness to be examined for possible charges of perjury at the conclusion of this hearing.
Yes, Your Honor.
MASON: Your Honor, I have no further questions of this witness.
JUDGE: You may stand down, sir.
I think this might be an appropriate time for the luncheon recess.
This court stands adjourned until 2:00 this afternoon.
Any word on the Bishop? I thought I had a lead, but it petered out.
Keep on it, Paul.
( indistinct radio chatter ) This is your idea of a practical joke, sonny.
It's no joke, lieutenant.
You ought to give me credit for having a little sense.
It was right around here.
Maybe you just imagined it.
I didn't imagine it.
I've been skin-diving for years.
I ought to know when I see something.
( dramatic theme playing ) BOY: What'd I tell you? DIVER: You better send for the crane.
There's a car down here, all right.
Brand-new convertible.
TRAGG: Anybody in it? Fella who was driving.
He looked like a minister.
All right, Mr.
Weston, you may proceed.
Your Honor, may we approach the bench? You may.
During the recess, I learned of the discovery of Bishop Mallory's body.
( rapping desk with pencil ) His car went off the old wharf into El Camino Bay.
How do you know it wasBishop Mallory? Well, he was positively identified by an old friend, Dr.
Stratford, who went to school with him.
Were there any bruises on the body? Yes, there was.
On the temple.
Which he apparently got when the car went over.
On the another hand, he might have gotten it by being hit with a familiar blunt instrument.
Mr.
Mason, are you maintaining that Bishop Mallory was murdered? Yes, Your Honor, I am.
I think his murder alters the entire complexion of this case.
Under the circumstances, I'd like the privilege of recalling a witness.
Which one? Philip Burroughs.
Is Mr.
Philip Burroughs in the courtroom? Will you retake the stand, please? Uh, that won't be necessary, Mr.
Burroughs.
You're already under oath.
Mr.
Burroughs, do you recall your two visits to my office? I do.
During your second visit, you gave me a letter.
Is this that letter? It is.
If it please the court, I would like this marked for identification.
Mr.
Weston? WESTON: No objections, Your Honor.
Thank you.
Now, Mr.
Burroughs, to whom is the letter addressed? PHILIP: Miss Janice Burroughs.
MASON: And the sender? PHILIP: Wallace Lang.
MASON: Would you read the letter for us, please? "Dear Janice, everything is going to be completely okay.
"Burroughs is "Just play it as we rehearsed it, and we won't have a thing to worry about.
" It's signed, "Love, Wally.
" Thank you.
Just a moment, Mr.
Burroughs.
I have one or two more questions.
I believe you are the only child of Kenneth Burroughs, who was the brother of the deceased? That's correct.
As such, you are the sole surviving relative of Charles Burroughs? With the exception of his grandchild.
Yes.
May I ask where you were when Charles Burroughs was murdered? Youought to know.
I was cooling my heels in your reception room.
I got there at 5:30 and left at 6:30.
But the coroner testified that death could have occurred at any time between 5:30 and 7.
Where were you at 7:00? Well, if you can't remember, I was busy discovering the body.
No, Mr.
Burroughs, you were busy murdering your uncle.
What are you talking about? Before you left home that afternoon, you gave your uncle Nembutal.
You knew he would be deeply sedated by the time you returned home from my office.
I came to your office because my uncle sent me! No, that was your own idea.
What about the money I tried to give you? All I saw was a sealed envelope.
You knew I wouldn't accept it.
You planned to use me for an alibi.
Well, that's ridiculous.
You testified you went directly home from my office.
What time did you get there? Well, I told you.
At 7:00.
Yet we heard the coroner testify that he didn't examine the body until 10:27.
Why didn't you notify the police immediately? I was going to, but Janice wanted to talk to me first.
MASON: I submit that you wanted to talk to her.
I submit that you wanted to have a nice long talk with her so that by the time the body wasexamined, there'd be no way to pinpoint the exact time of death.
You murdered your uncle right after you returned from my office.
Right after you broke through that door.
Are you insane? Janice was with me all the time.
Not allthe time.
You entered that room alone.
It was dark.
Janice didn't enter until after you'd turned on the table lamp.
During that interval, you had ample opportunity to kill your uncle.
A man can be stabbed a dozen times in a few seconds if he's unconscious.
What about the blood on the carpet? What about the blood? I say it's just some more of your dressing the stage.
But let's have it analyzed.
Let's see if it matches the blood type of the man you murdered.
( dramatic theme playing ) I'm finished with the witness.
MASON: See, Philip Burroughs had to do two things at once.
He had to discredit Janice as the rightful heir, and he had to frame you for murder so you couldn't inherit.
That's why he had to kill the Bishop.
If the Bishop had appeared, you would have had an alibi.
And that's how Mr.
Mason got on the track.
Then after he killed Bishop Mallory, he went to myapartment and got the knife.
MASON: That's right.
And everything the Bishop told me is true.
About my real father, my real mother.
Yes, everything.
I have a letter here that verifies that.
CAROL: From whom? The police found it among Bishop Mallory's effects.
May I read it to you? It's addressed to Bishop Arthur Mallory.
The first part of it restates the actual events of your life.
It ends like this: "When I asked you to find a good home for Carol, "I gave you my promise "that I would never again let her know of my existence.
"I have never lived a happy moment "since I made that mistake, "but live by it, I will.
"You must never tell Carol about me.
"I only beg you to help her avoid the suffering "caused by my ignorant vanity and foolish pride.
"I ask for no sympathy, Bishop Mallory.
I can only pray for forgiveness.
" It's signed "Mrs.
Charles Burroughs, Jr.
" My mother? A human being, Carol.
She made a mistake as all of us do.
Are you ready to forgive her? D-do you have her address? ( dramatic theme playing ) ( noirish jazz theme playing )
Yes? You are Bishop Mallory? That's right.
My name is Lang.
I'm an advertising consultant for the Tribune.
You've been running this ad in our paper for the past two months.
"I'm looking for a young lady, approximately 24 years of age, "prefer someone from the Midwest who can speak French and play the piano.
" Well? I was wondering if you found the girl.
We're doing a survey on the effectiveness of our ads.
It's rather late to be doing research, isn't it? ( chuckles ) We work around the clock.
May I see your identification? Show him your identification, Leo.
I, uh-- Must have left it in my other suit.
You'll have to forgive him, Bishop.
He's always forgetting things.
You're working for Charles Burroughs, aren't you? I thought I was asking the questions.
Did you find the girl? ( chuckling ): You're fighting me, Bishop.
( jazz music playing ) All right, Leo.
( blows landing ) ( dramatic theme playing ) ( groaning ) ( water running ) Oh, don't move! H-- How did you get in here? The door was open.
Who are you? Don't you remember anything? I called about 5:30 in answer to your ad.
And you told me to come up this evening for an interview.
You must be Carol Delaney.
Mm-hm.
I called the desk, and they're sending you up a doctor.
( groans ) Get me the desk, please.
Hello, this is Bishop Mallory.
No, I'm perfectly all right, I-- There's absolutely no need for a doctor.
( breathing heavily ) Of course I'm sure.
Where do you come from? The Midwest.
Where in the Midwest? Des Moines.
What was your father's first name? Paul.
A-and your mother's? Vivian.
Is either of them alive? No, they were both killed in an auto accident about eight months ago.
Do you have any u-unusual birthmark? Y-you'll have to forgive the catechism, my dear, but I-I had to be sure.
Suppose I told you that you were the grandchild of a multimillionaire? What would you say to that? I'd better get you a doctor! I tell you, I'm perfectly all right.
I've been searching for you since November.
My name is Mallory.
Bishop Arthur Mallory.
I'm from Sydney, Australia.
I came over on the Princeton five months ago.
This is from the ship's newspaper.
CAROL: It's very interesting.
MALLORY: But you don't understand.
That's you.
You're Charles Burroughs' granddaughter.
I can help you prove it.
Please, you've got to believe me.
Your father was Charles Burroughs, Jr.
Myfather was Paul Delaney.
No, your real father died before you were born.
He had been disinherited when he married your mother.
C-consequently, you can understand her bitterness.
S-she would have nothing to do with your grandfather, s-so she came to me.
She had no one else to turn to.
There was a wonderful family in my congregation named "Delaney.
" They wanted a child desperately.
And, of course, you made the necessary arrangements.
They changed your name from Janice to Carol.
And where did all of this take place? Near Albany, New York.
T-that was my first pastorate.
S-shortly thereafter, I was transferred to Australia.
Well it was very nice meeting you, Bishop.
You don't believe me? Well, let's just say that I'm perfectly satisfied being Carol Delaney.
Buthow would I know all about your foster parents? How would I know their names? Because I told you.
And all you did was agree with me.
Why didn't you come out in your ad and ask for Carol Delaney? I was afraid your life would be in danger.
And I guess the reason you didn't call was because my phone number isn't listed.
Exactly.
Ha, ha.
Well, it was a nice try, Bishop.
Better luck with the next girl.
( dramatic theme playing ) So I said to him, "Thank you very much, but, no, thanks.
" You mean, you walked out just like that? Well, I don't see what the Bishop could have said for an encore.
Well, how do you know he wasn't telling the truth? Oh, now-- Do you realize who Charles Burroughs is? The guy's worth 5 or 6 million.
Now, you get on that telephone and call the Bishop-- I don't like to be given orders to, Larry.
Aw, honey, I didn't mean it like that.
I only meant it for your own good.
But if Charles Burroughs really is your grandfather-- Oh, now, Larry, please, I-- Well, how do you know? Stranger things have happened.
( chuckling ): Not to me.
All right, honey, I'll grant you, the guy's a phony.
But there's always that one chance, and if you hit, you got millions.
Now, those aren't bad odds.
Well, why would a guy make up a story like that? At least you can investigate.
( knocking on door ) If the guy's a phony, you can-- Miss Delaney? Yes? I wonder if you could spare me a few minutes? My name is Lang.
I'm employed by Charles Burroughs.
Oh, come right in.
Oh, I'm sorry.
I didn't know you had company.
Oh, that's all right.
Yourhusband? CAROL: No, just a friend.
Kenyon's the name.
Larry Kenyon.
Do you think you could give us a little privacy? Oh, he can hear anything you have to say.
You were up to see an Arthur Mallory tonight.
What did he tell you? I don't think it's any of your business.
You're not buying his story that you're Charles Burroughs' granddaughter? I didn't, originally.
Meaning now you're changing your mind? I was just wondering whatyou'redoing here.
Well, I dropped by to give you some advice.
Mr.
Burroughs doesn't like publicity.
So? So that's what I'm doing here.
I-- I keep his name out of the papers.
Now, why don't you be a good girl and forget all about this? Otherwise? Otherwise, you might be buying yourself a lot of trouble.
You play ball with that phony Bishop, and Mr.
Burroughs is bound to feel that you're just as crooked as Mallory is.
You know the old saying, "birds of a feather.
" I think you've said just about enough.
So do I.
If you have any influence on this girl, you'll advise her to keep her skirts clean.
It's been nice knowing you.
You see, honey? That proves there's something to the Bishop's story.
Now, promise me you'll see a lawyer.
Well, I don't know, I-- Oh, promise me! All right.
Oh.
( dramatic theme playing ) Under the circumstances, C-Carol felt we should consult an attorney.
MASON: You say that this man Lang is the same man who assaulted you? Yes.
Then let's swear out a warrant for his arrest.
No! No! You can't do that.
I-I can't a-afford that kind of publicity.
My superiors would be terribly upset.
Tell me, Miss Delaney do you, uh, honestly believe that Charles Burroughs is your grandfather? Of course she does.
Well-- Excuse me, Bishop.
Do you, Miss Delaney? Well, I really don't know what to believe anymore.
That's why I wanted to see a lawyer.
When the Bishop told me that story, I thought he was a crook.
I'm sorry, Bishop, but I-- Don't apologize, my dear.
I-I don't blame you in the slightest.
Now you've changed your mind? CAROL: Well, let's say that Mr.
Lang changed it for me.
Why, I wouldn't trust him as far-- As far as you'd trustme.
Y-you understand, w-we aren't asking for charity.
If you can establish that Carol is really the grandchild of Mr.
Burroughs, I-I would say that a fee of $50,000 is not unreasonable.
Bishop Mallory, what's your interest in this? There are rewards other than financial.
Uh, let me think about it.
T-that's all we ask.
Goodbye, Miss Street.
Come, my dear.
Thank you, Mr.
Mason.
That's the first time I've ever heard a stuttering Bishop.
He must be quite a sensation in the pulpit.
You mean, you think he's not a Bishop? Well, I certainly think it's funny there's no one alive who can vouch for his story.
Della, see if you can arrange an appointment with Mr.
Burroughs? Mm-hm.
( mysterious theme playing ) MAN: Is it Mason? ( doorbell rings ) I think so.
Now, don't forget, Grandpa, you're not going to let him upset you.
You promised me.
Don't you worry about me, Janice.
Now, you know somebody has to.
You're such a big baby.
I-- ( knocking ) Yeah? Mr.
Mason is here.
Well, what are you waiting for, applause? Tell him to come in! Really, Uncle Charles.
Sometimes you can be-- ( laughing ) That wasn't nice, Grandpa.
You're much too hard on Philip.
Do him good.
What kind of a man would be satisfied acting as my so-called secretary? There's nothing to do but listen to my insults.
If he had any backbone, he'd tell me to go fly.
Youwould.
Oh, come in, Mason.
My granddaughter: Janice Burroughs.
How do you do? How do you do? Won't you sit down? Thank you.
What's on your mind? I was, uh, consulted this morning by a Bishop Mallory on behalf of Miss Carol Delaney.
You know, Mason, you surprise me.
I didn't think a man of your ability would be so gullible.
What do you know about this so-called Bishop? Suppose you tell me.
You've had time to do a lot more checking.
He's an out-and-out fake! Oh, there was a Bishop Arthur Mallory in Sydney, Australia, but it isn't the same man.
The real Bishop left on a sabbatical five months ago.
He told no one where he was going.
That was a heaven-sent opportunity for your client.
Well, he isn't my client.
Not yet, anyway.
Now you're using your head.
According to the Bishop-- According to the Bishop, my granddaughter had dark-brown hair, green eyes and a birthmark on her forearm.
Don't you believe it.
I had one of the smartest detectives in the country looking for years.
A man named Wallace Lang.
May I ask where Mr.
Lang found you? No, sir, you may not! Well, I don't mind.
Though I do! Janice, would you mind leaving us alone for a minute? Now, go on, honey.
I'll be all right.
I just wanna set this fellow straight on a couple of things.
You know, Mason, you're supposed to be smart.
Thank you.
Hmm.
Eight years ago, I directed the executor of my will to do everything in his power to find my grandchild.
If she had been found, everything would go to her.
Well, tomorrow morning at 9:00, I'm signing a new will.
I'm leaving everything to Janice.
Notice I didn't say I'm leaving everything to my granddaughter.
I said to Janice.
I'll specify it makes no difference whether she's related to me or not.
Now, how do you like those apples? It's your money, Mr.
Burroughs.
Uh, just one question.
If you, uh, make the type of will you describe, isn't that an unconscious admission that you're afraid Miss Burroughs' claim won't hold up? Think it over.
( dramatic theme playing ) ( knocking ) CAROL: Who's there? It's me, honey.
Oh, I'll be right out.
Funny thing.
I was talking to a lawyer today named Whittaker.
Real sharp character.
I told him a little-- ( phone ringing ) Want me to answer that? Please.
Hello? Let me talk to Carol Delaney.
Tell her it's Charles Burroughs.
Well-- Well, just a moment.
Carol.
It's Burroughs.
Well, I don't want to talk to him.
If he has anything to say, you just tell him to call Mr.
Mason.
Sorry, Mr.
Burroughs, but she just stepped out.
Don't insult my intelligence, young man.
I know she's right there.
You tell her I want to see her at 5:30.
And tell her I don't like to be kept waiting.
( dramatic theme playing ) I'd just about given you up for lost.
I covered a lot of ground with Paul.
Any calls? Mm-hm.
Here they are.
Philip Burroughs has been waiting in my office since 5:30.
Five-thirty? Mm-hm.
Better have him come in.
Right.
Will you come in, please? Oh, thank you.
Mr.
Burroughs, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting.
I hope you understand.
Coming here was not my idea.
My uncle sent me.
I-- Oh, really.
This is most distressing.
Perhaps you'd better get it over with.
Won't you sit down? Thank you.
Well-- My uncle wanted you to have this.
There's $5,000 in there.
And all I have to do is convince Miss Delaney to forget the whole thing.
I know it sounds suspiciously like a bribe, but, believe me, that was the furthest thing from my uncle's mind.
I told him he was wrong.
And that pleases you? Oh, no end.
My uncle rarely makes a mistake.
Heh.
I'd be less than human if I weren't delighted at one of his few errors.
Good night, Miss Street.
Where's your grandfather? I don't know.
I just got home five minutes ago.
He's probably-- ( ominous theme playing ) Blood.
Uncle Charles! There's something wrong with this light switch! I'll try the desk lamp.
( clock chiming ) ( dramatic theme playing ) ( screams ) ( sobbing ) Oh, let's stop the play-acting, darling.
I suspect your affection for the old boy was even less than mine.
Oh, I wouldn't go, my dear, unless you want me to phone for the police right now.
Have you ever seen them operate? ( gasps ) Suppose they should learn of a marriage that took place in Allentown four years ago.
Oh, yes.
I know allabout it.
Where were you tonight? When I left at 4, he was perfectly all right.
He was perfectly all right when I left at 5:30.
He was napping.
I-I could hear him snoring as I went by.
Where did you go? You know perfectly well I go riding every day at this hour.
Oh, really, my dear? I thought you could do better.
It's the truth.
And while we're on the subject, where were you? You say he was asleep when you left at 5:30? Well, at 5:30, I was in Mr.
Mason's office, running an errand for his majesty.
I left there at 6:30.
It took me half an hour to drive home.
Well it would seem that I can account for mytime oh, a little better than you can yours.
I didn't kill him.
Well, frankly, I don't care one way or the other.
I'm simply pointing out how it might look to the police.
Butyou know, I mightbe able to help you.
How? Now, my dear, you know what a mercenary soul I am.
And if I'm any judge of things, Uncle Charles didn't leave me a sou.
I'll give you $10,000.
No, my dear.
You'll give me Well, I-I-I'd have to discuss that with-- Mr.
Lang? Oh, there isn't time.
Make up your mind, dear.
Time's a-fleeting.
All right.
Nowthe first thing to do is to set the stage.
I know that he had a 5:30 appointment with a Carol Delaney.
Did she keep it? There was somebody in the driveway when Iwent out.
Did Uncle Charles talk to her? I don't know.
Besides, what difference does it make? It might make all the difference in the world.
( dramatic theme playing ) CAROL: I'm telling you, lieutenant, for the last time, I don't know anything about it! Why, I haven't even met Charles Burroughs.
Didn't you go to his home last night? Yes.
He called and asked me to come to see him.
She's telling you the truth.
I talked to him myself.
What time did you arrive there? About 5:30, but I didn't go in.
I'm telling you I didn't go in.
I rang the doorbell three or four times, and I waited about 20 minutes.
And when nobody answered, I just left.
And you never entered the house? No! Just turned around and took the next bus back? MAN: Excuse me, lieutenant.
Found this in the kitchen.
Didn't a, uh, knife come with this set? Yes.
I didn't find one.
I think I know where it is.
I'm afraid you'll have to come with me.
CAROL: And that's the whole story, Mr.
Mason.
Somebody stole that knife from my apartment.
Why, you can open my door with a hairpin.
You can't open the door to Mr.
Burroughs' study with one.
That door locks only from the inside.
Now, if you were in there-- Well, I wasn't! Did they find my fingerprints in there? No, the room had been wiped clean.
Well, I didn't do it.
And that's the truth! Of course, none of this answers the big question.
Why did you go out to see Mr.
Burroughs? I told you.
He called me.
And I told you to refer him to me if he got in touch with you directly.
Well-- Well, Bishop Mallory called me around 2:30, and I told him about Mr.
Burroughs' call.
I wasn't even going! And he said he'd received a similar call from Mr.
Burroughs and he'd meet you out there? That's right.
He said he was going out about 5:00, that Mr.
Burroughs wanted to talk to him first.
Did he happen to mention that I had informed him that Mr.
Burroughs was preparing a new will, leaving everything to Janice, whether they were related or not? Yes.
Well, obviously you didn't meet the Bishop out there.
Now, what happened? I don't know! Why don't you ask him?! I tried to.
Unfortunately, we haven't seen him since yesterday afternoon at 4:30.
( dramatic theme playing ) You mean, he's disappeared? That's exactly what I mean.
All I can find out is: the Bishop took a cab from the hotel to the Harris Car-Rental Agency on Fillmore.
He rented a brand-new convertible.
He shouldn't be too hard to find, Paul.
A Bishop in a convertible.
Well, all he's gotta do is change his clothes.
But it isn't so easy to change his speech pattern.
Isn't it? Well, the desk clerk at the Quentin Hotel told me the Bishop was a guest there for a month, and he never noticed anything wrong with his speech.
No further word from Australia? According to the last cable I got, the real Bishop's due back the middle of June.
However, I did run down a Dr.
Stratford in San Fernando.
He and the Bishop went to school together 30 years ago.
He says he can identify him if he could see a picture.
All right, let's get one.
I tried.
Seems Bishop Mallory is camera-shy.
Oh? What'd you find out about Janice Burroughs? Not one single blessed thing.
She wouldn't even talk to my man.
Paul, do you know an operative who could do a little acting? A woman about 48, one we could trust.
Yeah, I think so.
All right, get her.
Now? Now.
( dramatic theme playing ) All right, Della, let's get to work on a script for this lady.
PAUL: I appreciate your courtesy in seeing us, Miss Burroughs, especially at this time.
But Mr.
Mason felt you should hear this lady's story.
Her name is Blanche Atkins.
She came up to see him tonight.
Right after I seen your picture in the paper.
Oh, honey, you shouldn't wear black.
It don't do a thing for you.
Will you get to the point? Well, like I said, the minute I saw your picture, it rang a bell.
Heh.
I said, "There's my kid Ruthie.
She's the spittin' image of her old man.
" Are you trying to say that you're my mother? Well, Iknow I did a lousy job, puttin' you in that orphanage when you were only six weeks old, but-- What else was I to do? What orphanage was that? St.
Michael's.
I was raised in the Wyckoff Orphanage in Pittsburgh.
Honey, I left you at St.
Michael's.
Then the place burned down a couple of months later.
That's when they sent you to Wyckoff.
Didn't they call you "Ruth Fulton"? No.
My name was Mildred White.
Mildred white? I, uh, think there's been some mistake.
LANG: I don't think so.
I'll say one thing for Mason: he doesn't miss a trick.
Hello, Blanche.
You know her? She's an operative.
I used her once myself.
PAUL: I'm sorry, Miss Burroughs, but you left us no choice.
Mason's got a client charged with murder.
LANG: Say, Drake give my regards to the Bishop.
Where's Philip? In his room.
( dials phone ) PHILIP ( over phone ): Yes? Phil, will you come down here for a minute? Why? I wanna talk to you.
I heard from the attorneys this afternoon.
I'll be right down.
Why don't you go for a little walk? What are you gonna do to him? Just gonna point out the error of his ways.
I wanna remind him a gentleman never blackmails a lady.
Go on, baby.
( dramatic theme playing ) You're probably wondering why I came here.
Thank you.
Chair? I'd like to help Miss Delaney.
Well, you're very generous.
Suppose I told you that my cousin Janice and Mr.
Lang are man and wife? Are they? You might consult the Marriage Bureau in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Uh, that eye.
Lang do that? I told Janice I'd keep my mouth shut.
But under the circumstances, I feel released from that promise.
This is a letter Lang sent her shortly after she came to live with my uncle.
Janice must have been out of hermindto keep it.
"Dear Janice "everything's going to be completely okay.
"Burroughs is "Just play it as we rehearsed it, "and we won't have a thing to worry about.
Love, Wally.
" When did you find this? A week after my uncle's funeral.
Please, don't ask me where.
May I keep it? Of course.
Thank you for coming by.
The pleasure was allmine.
Goodbye, Miss Street.
Goodbye.
He's a nice fellow.
He has all of the finer instincts of a scorpion.
Do you think there's anything to that? I wouldn't be surprised.
He was probably trying a little polite blackmail against Janice, and Mr.
Lang took a hand.
Oh, but if we can prove that Janice was the phony-- We may be in real trouble.
Mr.
Burroughs' will was made eight years ago.
He left everything to his grandchild.
And if we prove that Carol is the grandchild-- We give the district attorney a precise and positive motive.
( dramatic theme playing ) If the court please JUDGE: Is there a problem, Mr.
Weston? I thought by this time that Mr.
Burger would be free.
I've just received word requesting that I continue with the hearing since he is still unavailable.
You may proceed, Mr.
Deputy.
Thank you, Your Honor.
And now, doctor, will you answer the question I had previously posed before our, uh, interruption? Yes.
I saw the body at approximately Death had been instantaneous.
The victim had been stabbed four times with this knife.
Any one of these wounds might have proved fatal.
The first penetrated the heart.
Were you able to fix the time of death? I would say death occurred between 5:30 and 7 p.
m.
Thank you very much, doctor.
You may cross-examine.
Doctor, I have only one question.
From the position of the body, can you tell us if Mr.
Burroughs was sitting or standing when the blows were struck? Well, that's difficult to say.
Well, could he have been reclining? It's possible.
By any chance, was the deceased under sedation at the time of death? Yes, we did find traces of Nembutal.
Thank you, doctor.
That'll be all.
JUDGE: You may stand down.
When was the last time you recall seeing this knife? LARRY: On February the 6th.
WESTON: That would be the day before the murder.
Yes, sir.
Thank you.
Take the witness.
No questions.
JUDGE: You may stand down.
Your Honor, I would like to call Philip Burroughs.
MAN: Mr.
Philip Burroughs to the stand, please.
Do you solemnly swear that the testimony you're about to give is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth? PHILIP: I do.
MAN: Be seated, please.
That's when I called the police.
They arrived about ten minutes later.
Mr.
Burroughs, how long had you lived with the deceased? Fifteen years.
And just what were your duties? I acted as my uncle's secretary.
On the day of his murder, had your uncle given you any special instructions? Yes, sir.
Now, in performance of those instructions, just what did you do? Well, I phoned his attorneys, Logan and Standsbury.
I told Mr.
Logan that my uncle wanted to see him the following morning to sign his new will.
And that night he was murdered? Yes, sir.
Mr.
Burroughs, are you familiar with the terms of the existing will? MASON: I object, Your Honor.
This is not the best evidence.
Let the document speak for itself.
WESTON: I am perfectly agreeable, Your Honor.
As a matter of fact, I subpoenaed Mr.
Logan to appear here this afternoon.
My question, however, was only to the witness's knowledge.
MASON: In that event, Your Honor, we further object to the question as an attempt on the part of the prosecutor to cross-examine his own witness.
It's immaterial whether or not this witness has any knowledge of the terms of his uncle's will.
In view of the evidence that Mr.
Logan will be a witness this afternoon, the court will sustain the objection.
Have you any further questions? No, sir.
JUDGE: Mr.
Mason? Now, Mr.
Burroughs, you testified that you were the one who discovered the body.
That's right.
What time did Janice Burroughs enter the room? A few seconds later, after I managed to turn on the desk lamp.
I seem to recall there was a light switch near the door.
It didn't operate.
That switch lit the table lamps, but someone had turned off the lamp separately.
There were no overhead fixtures in the room? Mm, no, sir.
Is the name S.
J.
Hyers familiar to you? I believe I've heard the name somewhere.
Could that "somewhere" be San Diego? Possibly.
Did you have any dealings with Mr.
Hyers? I borrowed some money from him.
How much money? Twenty-thousand dollars.
How was the loan secured? You merely walked into Mr.
Hyers' office, and he gave you the money just like that? Well, naturally, I signed some sort of a paper.
I expected a share in my uncle's estate.
Then the debt became payable upon the death of your uncle? There's no need to put it that way.
It's the truth, isn't it? Yes.
I have no further questions.
I have one or two questions on redirect.
Mr.
Burroughs, do you have any money of your own? Very little.
WESTON: Then if this debt became payable on the death of your uncle, wouldn't you say it would be to your advantage to keep your uncle alive as long as possible? Of course.
Thank you.
You may stand down.
Call your next witness.
I call Wallace Lang.
MAN: Mr.
Wallace Lang to the stand, please.
I first went to work for Charles Burroughs about seven years ago.
He hired me to find his grandchild.
Then he put me on a permanent basis as a kind of troubleshooter for the Burroughs Construction Company.
Mr.
Lang, what was the nature of your last assignment? Well, in October of this year, Mr.
Burroughs was approached by a man who called himself Bishop Mallory.
Mallory claimed the defendant was Mr.
Burroughs' grandchild.
And you investigated that claim? Yes, sir, I did.
Mallory had inserted a vague ad in the newspapers, one that would have fit a hundred different girls.
He told me he was to interview a Carol Delaney that evening.
He felt since she needed a job, she'd cooperate with him.
Thank you, Mr.
Lang.
You may cross-examine.
Mr.
Lang, you say you investigated Bishop Mallory's claim? No, sir, I said I investigated the claim of a man whocalledhimself Bishop Mallory.
Do you know for a positive fact that this man was not Bishop Mallory of Sydney, Australia? He admitted it to me.
Under what circumstances did he make that admission? Did you apply force? No, sir, I did not.
You had an associate with you at the time.
Did he apply the force? There was no force applied by anyone.
MASON: You just entered the man's room and he confessed? LANG: That's about it.
So the man purporting to be Bishop Mallory then admitted he was a fraud? Yes, sir.
What was his real name? I don't know.
The man just said he was a fraud and you were satisfied? You didn't ask his real name or where he came from? I guess I made a mistake.
I would guess you made several.
Do you know where he disappeared to? No, sir.
Let's, uh, turn our attention for the moment to the deceased.
How did you convince Mr.
Burroughs that Janice Burroughs was his grandchild? LANG: I had documentary proof.
MASON: What do you call documentary proof? WESTON: Your Honor! I think this is wholly irrelevant.
If it please the court, I think this goes straight to the heart of the matter.
The state maintains that my client was involved in a plot to pass herself off as the grandchild of Charles Burroughs.
I have every right to know on what evidence it was decided that Janice Burroughs was the grandchild.
The court is going to overrule the objection, but on the grounds that it may go to the motivation bias and interest of the witness.
You may proceed, counselor.
Thank you, Your Honor.
Now, Mr.
Lang, I ask you once again.
How did you convince the deceased that Janice Burroughs was his grandchild? Well, first I found the death certificate of Charles Burroughs, Jr.
He had died in Sheboygan, Wisconsin.
His doctor gave me a lead to Mrs.
Burroughs, and I finally traced her to Pittsburgh.
Before her death, she lived with a family named Crane.
Mrs.
Crane was with her the night she left the child at the Wyckoff Orphanage.
Did the deceased ever talk to Mrs.
Crane in person? Yes, sir, he did.
I brought all the parties in the case to him.
All those who were alive, that is.
Then there was no doubt in his mind at all that Janice Burroughs was his grandchild? Absolutely none at all.
MASON: Now, Mr.
Lang, what were your arrangements with Mildred White? What do you mean, "what were my arrangements?" How would you describe your relationship with Miss White? Would you say you were good friends? I'd like to think so.
Andnothing more? Isn't that enough? If it please the court, I would like to introduce into evidence, subject to identification, a certified copy of a marriage license made out to Wallace Lang and Mildred White.
Miss White is also known as Janice Burroughs.
( suspenseful theme playing ) Mr.
Weston, I would like the testimony of this witness to be examined for possible charges of perjury at the conclusion of this hearing.
Yes, Your Honor.
MASON: Your Honor, I have no further questions of this witness.
JUDGE: You may stand down, sir.
I think this might be an appropriate time for the luncheon recess.
This court stands adjourned until 2:00 this afternoon.
Any word on the Bishop? I thought I had a lead, but it petered out.
Keep on it, Paul.
( indistinct radio chatter ) This is your idea of a practical joke, sonny.
It's no joke, lieutenant.
You ought to give me credit for having a little sense.
It was right around here.
Maybe you just imagined it.
I didn't imagine it.
I've been skin-diving for years.
I ought to know when I see something.
( dramatic theme playing ) BOY: What'd I tell you? DIVER: You better send for the crane.
There's a car down here, all right.
Brand-new convertible.
TRAGG: Anybody in it? Fella who was driving.
He looked like a minister.
All right, Mr.
Weston, you may proceed.
Your Honor, may we approach the bench? You may.
During the recess, I learned of the discovery of Bishop Mallory's body.
( rapping desk with pencil ) His car went off the old wharf into El Camino Bay.
How do you know it wasBishop Mallory? Well, he was positively identified by an old friend, Dr.
Stratford, who went to school with him.
Were there any bruises on the body? Yes, there was.
On the temple.
Which he apparently got when the car went over.
On the another hand, he might have gotten it by being hit with a familiar blunt instrument.
Mr.
Mason, are you maintaining that Bishop Mallory was murdered? Yes, Your Honor, I am.
I think his murder alters the entire complexion of this case.
Under the circumstances, I'd like the privilege of recalling a witness.
Which one? Philip Burroughs.
Is Mr.
Philip Burroughs in the courtroom? Will you retake the stand, please? Uh, that won't be necessary, Mr.
Burroughs.
You're already under oath.
Mr.
Burroughs, do you recall your two visits to my office? I do.
During your second visit, you gave me a letter.
Is this that letter? It is.
If it please the court, I would like this marked for identification.
Mr.
Weston? WESTON: No objections, Your Honor.
Thank you.
Now, Mr.
Burroughs, to whom is the letter addressed? PHILIP: Miss Janice Burroughs.
MASON: And the sender? PHILIP: Wallace Lang.
MASON: Would you read the letter for us, please? "Dear Janice, everything is going to be completely okay.
"Burroughs is "Just play it as we rehearsed it, and we won't have a thing to worry about.
" It's signed, "Love, Wally.
" Thank you.
Just a moment, Mr.
Burroughs.
I have one or two more questions.
I believe you are the only child of Kenneth Burroughs, who was the brother of the deceased? That's correct.
As such, you are the sole surviving relative of Charles Burroughs? With the exception of his grandchild.
Yes.
May I ask where you were when Charles Burroughs was murdered? Youought to know.
I was cooling my heels in your reception room.
I got there at 5:30 and left at 6:30.
But the coroner testified that death could have occurred at any time between 5:30 and 7.
Where were you at 7:00? Well, if you can't remember, I was busy discovering the body.
No, Mr.
Burroughs, you were busy murdering your uncle.
What are you talking about? Before you left home that afternoon, you gave your uncle Nembutal.
You knew he would be deeply sedated by the time you returned home from my office.
I came to your office because my uncle sent me! No, that was your own idea.
What about the money I tried to give you? All I saw was a sealed envelope.
You knew I wouldn't accept it.
You planned to use me for an alibi.
Well, that's ridiculous.
You testified you went directly home from my office.
What time did you get there? Well, I told you.
At 7:00.
Yet we heard the coroner testify that he didn't examine the body until 10:27.
Why didn't you notify the police immediately? I was going to, but Janice wanted to talk to me first.
MASON: I submit that you wanted to talk to her.
I submit that you wanted to have a nice long talk with her so that by the time the body wasexamined, there'd be no way to pinpoint the exact time of death.
You murdered your uncle right after you returned from my office.
Right after you broke through that door.
Are you insane? Janice was with me all the time.
Not allthe time.
You entered that room alone.
It was dark.
Janice didn't enter until after you'd turned on the table lamp.
During that interval, you had ample opportunity to kill your uncle.
A man can be stabbed a dozen times in a few seconds if he's unconscious.
What about the blood on the carpet? What about the blood? I say it's just some more of your dressing the stage.
But let's have it analyzed.
Let's see if it matches the blood type of the man you murdered.
( dramatic theme playing ) I'm finished with the witness.
MASON: See, Philip Burroughs had to do two things at once.
He had to discredit Janice as the rightful heir, and he had to frame you for murder so you couldn't inherit.
That's why he had to kill the Bishop.
If the Bishop had appeared, you would have had an alibi.
And that's how Mr.
Mason got on the track.
Then after he killed Bishop Mallory, he went to myapartment and got the knife.
MASON: That's right.
And everything the Bishop told me is true.
About my real father, my real mother.
Yes, everything.
I have a letter here that verifies that.
CAROL: From whom? The police found it among Bishop Mallory's effects.
May I read it to you? It's addressed to Bishop Arthur Mallory.
The first part of it restates the actual events of your life.
It ends like this: "When I asked you to find a good home for Carol, "I gave you my promise "that I would never again let her know of my existence.
"I have never lived a happy moment "since I made that mistake, "but live by it, I will.
"You must never tell Carol about me.
"I only beg you to help her avoid the suffering "caused by my ignorant vanity and foolish pride.
"I ask for no sympathy, Bishop Mallory.
I can only pray for forgiveness.
" It's signed "Mrs.
Charles Burroughs, Jr.
" My mother? A human being, Carol.
She made a mistake as all of us do.
Are you ready to forgive her? D-do you have her address? ( dramatic theme playing ) ( noirish jazz theme playing )