Decatur Daily Democrat, Volume 49, Number 115, Decatur, Adams County, 15 May 1951 — Page 4

PAGE FOUR

DECATUR DAILY DEMOCRAT Published Every Evening Except Sunday By THE DECATUR DEMOCRAT CO., INC Entered at the Decatur, Ind.,' Post Office as Second Claes Matter a Dick D, Heller ..- President • • ' A. R. Holthouse ...X—l Editor J. H. Heller —Vice-President ;C. E. Holt house ....... Treasurer Subscription Rates: •I ’ • By Mall in Adams and Adjoining Counties: One year, $6; Six months, $3.26; 3 months, 11.75. By Mail, beyond. Adams and Adjoining Counties: One year, $7.00; 6 months, $3.75; 3 months, $2.00. i . By Carrier, 25 cents per week. Singletcopies, 5 cents.

Killed In Action:-— „ , .x ■ r • .< . ■ Sadness of heart and tears* to the eyes come with receipt of a message from the Army in notification of the death of a loved one in the service of his country. These sad tidings were conveyed to Mr. and Mrs. Herman Frans of Root township by the Adjutant General of the Army who reported that their son, Pvt. Ed- * ;. ■ i ‘ r win Frans, was killed in action in Korea on April 20.' He was an American fighting against thq communist invaders. their shock and grief over the death; of their gal-, lant son. A void has; been created in their family circle that cannot ever be filled. Their be replaced. As they suffer the. ultimate in severance of parental love, the son is honored with Jhe_ ultimate in epithets and fnationat— Filled in action? These cherished Sons of America shall be remembered alwiys! o—O ,;i * - The darker the night the brighter a candle can sipem, The mere perplexing the problem the more important faith and courage become. " | !' / Pf ——»o o The lawns and flower beds are riut With life and one forgets all about the drabness that greeted the eye a few . weeks ago. ■ - <>.>». o- ■ ThfTstate highway workers are \ repairing Second Street and Mercer avenue over which pass state routes. They are doing an efficient jsb and have the necessary equipment and manpower to speedily complete the work. — O o~ 7 ■ Maybe the defense effort could be financed entirely from a cigarette, and liquor taxy The government could take over these plants, turn out the products free and just collect a heavy tax from Übers, —o_ A Tennessee/, school teacher whp has taught school fey over -.forty, years is of the opinion that more emphasis should be placed < on education at the primary level. Without good elementary schools, r she contends,, it is impossible for the higher forms of education to accomplish much good. There are many people who* agree with her and who believe that greater .emphasis on elementary education V would be the steppfhgstone to an al>round Improvement in educa- {

\ U. I Reducing Diet May Cause Starvation Symptoms

THERE i.is no doutyt about the importance of avoiding over weight because the piling up of excess fat on the body does constitute a definite health hazzarji, bn the other hand, attempts to reduce, “all at once.” often carry with them their own dange*s, ■particularly if they are. continued so long as to bring individual to a state bordering on starvgt tion. I’ The body must haVe food, not only to.sustain life btit to perform its functions fcff|clently and to' generate /the energy needed for living. Recent studies clearly illustrate what may; happen when a person, ignorant, of the body’s basic Vieeds, sets out too enthusiaiticilly „on a faddish reducing jTograrti., • i \f ' Thirty-two persons volunteered for these Experiments Flarvatidn. After- a period off three months,' during which they; had a completely Adequate , diet containing the amounts of proteins, vitamins; and minerals, they were placed on meager fare for six months. This diet contained potatoes, cabbage, turnips, and cereals, with an extremely limited amount of animal proteins, such as in milk, meat, and eggs, iit resembled that- which was used in famine times in ’northern parts of Europe? • The diet contained only half of the '.H ’ ’

tion. It is in the primary school that the child, at the moat impressionable stage of his life, makes his first contact With education and the world of ideas. For human Defense Secretary Marshall has shown stamina of a young man. The General will be 71 next December and for seven days he has testified \ before the U.S. Senate military .committee. He hds given the senators a full* description of defepse plans hi Europe and Korea and has answered, thousands of questions. Gen. Marshall contends that enlarging tW Korean War through bombing erf Chinese bases would bring Russia' intd the fight ’ ar.d that World War 111 would then be started. ’ —bßt-t A New Canal:— -f Shippers believe that jby 1960 tbV Panama Canil will be so clogged by traffic as to impose increasingly serious delays on shipping. This belief deads a wellknown geologist, Dr. William H. Hobbs, to consider whether the present canal should be enlarged or a new one bui’t to supplement It- ' One trouble with is its vulnerability to bombing. It Would still be so,; even if the present lock canal Were converted to channel and doubled in width. That reconstruction would, it is estimated, take ten' years! and cost $2,5^0,00Q.000. Where could a supplementary canal be built? Os two. possible sites, one through Nicaragua is tempting because Lake Nicaragua and the San {Juan river would n aterially reduce the amount of digging. On thp other hand, there \ \ ■' - . 't: is constant danger from earthquakes, . ■ I , On this gecount Dr. Hobbs proposes the selection pf the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Mexico, which is free from earthquakes. Its distance of 165 miles between the Atlantic and; the Pacific is eight miles Ipss than the Nicaraguan route. (Panama is much shorter, only 51 miles long.') Also, while the new canal was being built the old could continue to operate. The . Tehuantepec route would cut 2,000 miles off the sea lanes for all traffic except that to South America. One hitch is that Mexico would have to grant permission to cut the severing channel across her (territory. That should not be impossible to arrange.

riboflavin, vitamin B-complex, and vitamin A usually recommended. At the end of a six-month period, all of the dieters had lost about one-fourth of their body weight. All developed symptoms of starvation, such as the accumulation of fluid in the tissues, anemia or ■ lessening of color in the blood, slow heart beat, weakness, and depression. During the •period of starvation, the body used up some of its owb proteins for fuel material. Body fat, muscle, liver and skin are sources from which tissues are used to supply [\ energy. The hearty also undergoes loss in weight during continued starvation. However, to protect the heart, its rate elows down during starvation so that the work done by the heart decreases to. about half. It can be seen that rigid dieting, even after a short period of time, may contain some element ct danger, and that serious harm can result from prolonged rigid dieting. It is important to reduce, tut it ib equally necessary that it Le done safelg under the direction of a physician. ■ j ’ , 1 -]\ ’ QUESTIONS ANO ANSWERS H.A.; Can a woman with one fallopian tube become pregnant? Ahswer: It is possible for a woman with • one fallopian tube to have; children.

STUCK ON THIS POINT . ! r I ..J’" “jF- &***& ' ■ ■ *wßKr Jr J \ /

Q__ o | Modern Etiquette By ROBERTA LEE i qi Q. Will you please give me the correct forms 1 of salutation for busines letters? A A. Dear Sir: (Dear Sira is not good .form in America). Dear Madam: (for married and unmarried women). Gentlemen, Mesdames or Ladies. My dear Mr. Jones (formal). Dear Mr. Jones (informal). . j Q. When a man; meets a girl on the street anditliey stop to chat for a few minutes, which one ehould make 'the first move to walk on? A. The girl. The man should

FRED DICKENSON -

SYNOPSIS Marrying playooy Konme Ttompklna is mysteriously «*ia n ois luxurious oume, iMspits eagM eye or uetscuvs Macs MvUane. engsgsu to guard aun agauiat posMOW vtotent deatn. Koutus's cneiwred intod. FrasMr FarwaU, a awe jocxcy, aau oeen asissp IQ UM aouse u>o oignt or me •aurUer. out Mart oo sound ot struggle. McGinn wans Chanty uonea. « vauurUr model woo was to become Tompkins' seventh wile, to remain away from ner nome while the law's man-nunt is on. In a dark street the detective comes upon a sinister figure shadowing nlm—knocks the fellow down. But the “shadow*' proves to oe an old acquaintance, ace reporter. Dink Wexton. who'd covered all ot Ronnie's romances tor bls newspaper. CHAPTER TEN > IN McGANN'S dream, someone was rapping on a giass-t opp e d desk. He could see the desk floating in front of him and make out the closed hand moving slowly up and down. The hand barely left the glass but the rapping was sharp and brisk. It woke him up. He looked at the clock on the dresser. It said a quarter after nine so ne had been asleep about five nours: he and Dink Wexton bad spent most of the night going through the newspaper clippings and photos on the late Ronald Tompkins and his wives. / . ' \ ■ He shuddered at the thought of a mountain of pale yellow envelopes, each bulging with clippings. Some were new: others were brown and cracked with age. When they finished, McGann had been dusty but full ot Tompkins knowledge. His eyes still smarted. The crack of knuckles on glass resumed. He turned toward the fire-escape windows of the apartment bedroom and saw what had intruded upon his dream. It was a blonde. Her smooth yellow halt was pulled tightly toward the back of her head and she was holding one hand cupped at the left side of ner face to shut out the light. She half crouched on the fireescape, face up close to the glass and peering in. McGann leaned on one elbow and studied her interestedly. She couldn’t get in because the window that opened .directly onto the fileescape . was locked, and the open one next to it was too far away to reach. \ Her fingers fluttered in a tentative wave when she saw that he was awake. McGann waved back. She frowned impatiently and raised both hands, palms up. Her lips mov<ed soundlessly to form the finmistakable command, “Let me in!" McGann replied with a circular motion of the hand meaning, “Turn around" and covered his eyes. She turned around. He got up, put on short) and a robe and slippers. Then he walked over, threw’ off the window catch and raised the sash. He said, “Won’t you climb in?" A black suede pump was followed by a Slim, bare leg, and the process was immediately repeated. McGann put a helping hand under the small of her back as she slid into the room. < •Thanks," the said, and straightened up. As soon as she looked at McGann she pursed her thin lips. T thought you were dead, too," she said. “What was the matteroverdose of Oval tine?" McGann nibbed his unshaven chin. “You wrong me,” he said. “A detective to the core, I never sleep. I was feignmg, Mrs. Tompkins. It

MOATUB MILT DanOCBAT, DBCATOB, INDIANA

keep chatting until she shows an inclination to leave. Q. Is it all right,’ when entertaining dinner guests, to use a folded napkin to brush the crumbs off the table? A. Yes, this is quite all NOTICE bF final mettlement : OF ESTATE /i\ N*. 4544 Notice is hereby aiven to the cred* itors,’ heir* and legatees of William W. Briggs, decee»<ed to appear in the Adams Circuit Court, held at Decatur, Indiana, on the the Sth day of June, 1951, and show cause,. any, why the FINAL SETTUEMKNT AfOCOUNTS w|th the estate of said des-edqht should not be approved; and said heii> are notified to then and there make proof, of heirship, and receive their distributive shared. / \l > I'l ''■ William C. Briggs, Administrator de bonis non. I>eoatur, Indiana, May 14, 195 1. Attorney, John L. DeVoas MAY 15—22

is Mrs. Tompkins, isn't it — nee IrmA Nelson ?” Wile Na 4 nodded her smooth blonde head, and brushed at her skirt. “Right with Eversharp," she said. She gestured toward the window. "1 wanted to talk to you and 1 didn't think it was any business of that dizzy-looking detective in the lobby." “So oy coming up the fire-escape you think you are keeping him in tots* darkness 7" Irma Nelson stared stonily. McGann clucked. “Wrong," he said. “The finest watch both front and rear. They know you're here, all right. 1 won’t ask how you found my window." At his gesture, she preceded him to the adjoining living room. “Good. I wouldn’t want to tell on that wholesome-type janitor. Bet he gives you plenty of heat in the wintertime." \ “He’s a definite Vulcan," McGann said. He opened the door of the tiny kitchenette. “Coffey?” By the time the percolator was on, Irma Nelson Tompkins was reclining in McGann's favorite chair with bare knees crossed. She took a cigarette from the box on the coffeetable. McGann took one, too, and held a fight. She laid her cool hand over his to steady the flame, then looked up through lashes curiohsly dark against her sleek hair. For a moment he returned her gaze, then he decided that he’d better see if the coffee was /doing anything yet It wasn’t. "Stop jittering around," she said, "and tell me something. Who killed Ronnie7 You?" x , "Absolutely not," McGann said. '•Word of honor. Did you?" She gave him a skw smile that was without warmth. "Don't get me wrong, Handsome. If you had I wouldn't think any less of you and that’s not because it’s impossible. I knew Ronnie Tompkins backwards and he was asking for it" McGann surveyed her speculatively. She was wearing a hint of greenish eye shadow, odd both for the hour and her coloring. Her pale left hand drooped languidly over the arm of the chair. She seemed completely without nerves. “Don’t talk like that tn front of O’Callahan," he said. “He'll have you trying on chairs for size." She dismissed the inspector with a flick of tapering fingers. “Little Irma can take care of herself. What 1 wanted to ask you about was that pillow.” “The little one with the lace under Ronnie’s head? What about it?" “Weft, did the police say anything about it while you were there? Anything that wasn’t in the papers?" • \ “Wait a minute," McGann said. “Let's get this straight. You read about the pillow in the morning papers. You also read about me, complete with address, and clambered up here like Tarzan’s mate. Why?” “It’s my pillow.* V “Ah.* The percolator started bubbling through the silence. Her gaze was locked with his. level and unblinking. He said, “I see. Your pillow. Odd little thing. A memen-

I 20 YEARS AGO I I TODAY | 0 O March 15—Judge Erwin names W. A. Lower and John Mosure as members of the Adams county board of review. / \ Roy Kalver has been transferred from Chicago to the Paramount theater in Detroit Ferdinand Weins, a native of India and now residing at Berne, speaks to the Decatur Rotary club on “Why England cannot withdraw from India.’* ,Mrs, L. G. Ellingham appointed a. member of' the board of charities. \ ? .Mrs. Sophia Beineke, 83, died last night at her home, 815. West Monroe street. . ; --K \ The Philadelphia Athletics now lead the American league and St. Louis the National. \ O— o t Household Scrapbook > | By ROBERTA LEE | o— e Mouse Bait Better than cheese or bacon for baiting a mouse trap is a fresh raisin. Squeeze a little of the laisin juice over the trap and then place the whole raisin securely on the hook. This bait is irresistible to the\mouse. Cigarette Stains Obstinate cigarette stains on the fingers can be removed by means of well-soaked pumice stone and hot water. Plain lemon juice will remove lighter, stains. f Tastes Like Cream When it is necessary to use milk .instead of cream on. cereals, or in coffee, scald it first and then serve hot; it will the effect of cream. . l(rt)S8 of her colonies in Ainericr prompted Britain to colonize Australia. Before the American revolt! tion no effort was made to settia the Antipodes.

j ' - if f / tr ot wnat they call happier days? Something out ot the long ago?" < “I left it there yesterday." She was still featuring the candid* “I-nave-nothing-to-hide” look. McGann walked over and waited a miliute before turning off the gas under the coffee. Tompkins might have gone to that nightclub beyond the horizon but he certainly had left a legacy rich in wackiness. “You left it there yesterday?" “Yes." “Under his head’" \ “Can the gaiety," Irma Nelson \ said. T must have left it somewhere in that stuffy study of his. It was a dumb thing to da My ijame’s embroidered on it." “That’s a clue right up O’Callahan’s alley," McGann said. “He learned to read at an early age and has never entirely forgotten. Suppose 1 pour this devil’s brew and you tell me all about it?" “Pour away." Over the coffee-cups, Irma Nelson Tompkins explained. It was simplicity itself. She had remained friendly with ner transitory husband: Tompkins nad endeavored to maintain amicable relations with all of his ex-wives. “I just dropped in to see Ronnie about one o’clock," she said. “It was something personal — that doesn’t matter. 11 had that silly little pillow with, me because 1 was going to stop ill Altman’s and try afid get a box it would fit in." “Where’d It come from?" Oh, that. Well. Irma Tompkins had a six-year-old niece. Horrible brat but still she had her moments like when Irma had given her a doll and the kid had named it Irma. Kind of touching. So she had planned on giving the child a pillow for the doll’s carriage. “That's why I embroidered the name on it,” she explained. “You should have seen Solly’s eyes when he found I could do IL" Solly?" McGann’s mind flashed back to the stacks of clippings of tile night before. A column that said Irma "Blondshell" Tompkins was showing a preference for Spanish omelets. The item which wondered what midtown character : had come down with Irmatitis. . . . He thought it best to let her make her own revelations. He said again, “Solly?" 'VI “Solly Spanish, my dream boat. The only man of his kind in New York." j ,\ “Sounds lonesome. But go on. You saw Tompkins and then left, forgetting your niece’s gift?" "That’s Fight. Like I say, it was a dumb thing to do. Talk about putting yourself on a spot. But who’d of thought anybody was going to plunk Ronnie?" "Who indeed?" McGann said. He thought of the heavy draperies of the ex-wives’ art gallery, the labyrinthean mazes of the old brownstone. He said casually, “So Ronnie saw you to the door and that was that?* I Her expression did not change but her eyes flickered and there was an expectant pause. She shoved the coffee cup back from the edge of the table. “I found my own - way out," she said. The thin lips twisted bitterly. “I did it once before, you know.” (To Be Continued; AKIkS

/ \ I 'wl F 1 f : I * r w-' JOj r JE - , r M V - 'JI L] 8-FEET-2 Felipe Berrier, newcomer in New York from Puerto Rico, is gazed upon in aw» by 4-year-old Elizabeth Sanchez. Perhaps she heard about the breakfast he ate k at a friend's home his first day in town; 17 pork chops, two dozen eggs, two quarts of milk, two loaves of bread. He came to the U. S. to seek a job with a circus ’. and was snapped Up immediately by a Puerto Rican theater in the Bronx. Doctors say Felipe, 22, win grow till he’d 30 or 35 and may roach in foot tall. f/HtcmationalJ Accepts Pastorate. At Pleasant DaW T We Rev. John Mishlefc, a native of Roann, has accepted a call to serve as pastor of the Pleasant Dale Church of the Brethren in Kirkland township. He will succeed the Rev. Russel Weller, who resigned several months ago. Rev Weller Is also an instructor at the Berne-French high school. Rev. Mishler will assume the charge in September, following his graduation from a seminaryin Chicago. ‘ \

SYNOPSIS Marrying playboy Ronnie Tompkins ■ mytiertousiy aiain in tus luxurious noma, despite Uie eagle eye ot Detective Mack McGann, engaged to guard nua against poealNe violent deem. Konnie'e cnertabed friend, Frasier Farweß. • dise jockey, bad peen asleep in the bouse toe mgnt ot tne murder, nut neart no sound of struggle. McGann warns Chanty Jonea, a neauUful model wtx> wai to berotne Tompkmr seventh .. wife, to remain away from ner noma while j the iew'e man-nunt aoa to a dark street tne detective comae upon a sinister bgure shadowing nlm—knocks the fellow down. But uw "snadow’* proves to oe an oM acquaintance, ace reporter. Dink Wexton, who'd covered all of Ronnie's romances for tils newspaper.' MCGann learns from blonde Bombshell Irma Tompkins, ex-wife No. 4. that she'd oeen with Ronnie shortly before bls demise. .' CHAPTER ELEVEN -ON APRIL 11, three years ago," McGann said. “I’ve been cramming.” He poured two more cups of coffee. “Not that I don't appreciate company at breakfast but why come to me?* "I thought maybe you’d tell me what to da Solly's really no help in a thing like this and would probably blow his top if he knew I had gone to see Ronnie." , “Go to 'the police.” -I don't like that, either." "You’ll have ta Simply tell them what you’ve told me. They'll take a statement but you shouldn’t have any trouble. Only you won’t get your .pillow back for a long time. If ever. It’s evidence." v "Let the doll sleep in a chair." She relaxed with the smile of a person relieved to have found a course of action. “You’re right, I guess. I’ll try it." McGann thought she’d leave immediately but she appeared still to be turning somethin < over In her mind. At last she said diffidently, "Just in case you're interested, that Rogers dame could have had a grandstand seat for the fireworks.” ' “How’s that?* , i , i “She just got an apartment on the next street so her bedroom window is only across the court. 1 know Ronnie was sore about it. Said in a town as big as New York why did she have to park so close.” McGann suggested sentimental reasons, an attachment for the neighborhood where Kathleen Rogers had spent the happy minutes \of her married life. “Let’s see,” he mused, “weren’t you her Immediate predecessor?" T wouldn't be her anything." T mean Tompkins married her after—after you and he split?" She rose. “Rogers was the consolation prize that year, yes, Anyway, 1 thought you might like to know about her place. Isn’t that a clue or something?" "It opens a fascinating vista," McGann said. He trailed her to thu door. “Incidentally, bow'd you like the Gobelin yesterday?" "The which?" -The tapestry. It must have been Tompkins' last acquisition, excepting the thirty-two in the back. He was raving how terrific it looked in the study." “Oh, that." Het hand hovered above the knob. "Why, marvelous, I suppose, if you go in for that sort of stuff. But I liked it all Fight.” / McGann nodded. "I thought you .might" She turned the .knob without opening the door, then reached over and rubbed her left palm gently • along hjs stubby cheek. Her eyes

IF? Change In Address Mr. William Bultemeyer, roqte yL today received, the following Changed address from their son ik the navy: Roland Bultemeyer, Sft" 43M1-M, Co 450, USNTC, GBdt Lakes, 81. \ . ' g *—* 1 {• V Baca in Japan Pvt. Hubei-t P. Schmitt, Jr., sbu of Mr. and Mrs. H, |». Schmitt, Is back in Japan where he has been assigned to a specialist school, according th word received by his parents, tiis address is: Pvt. Hubert Pg Schmitt, Jr., US ~ I. \ 1 '

— - i iii ------- I yr floors-'WC-[dAN BE COLORFUL! A TOO/ Kohne Drug Store w.

crinkled. "Come out from behind that hedge some day and let me see you,” She said. " I may like the result,? McGanflpatted her shoulder. “From thSday forward my window is always open. Climb up any time.” She went out, closing the door gently. , McGanfl was working shaving soap into his beard when the buzzer sounded. He swung the floor open, wondering what Irma Nelson had forgotten, and Dink Wexton walked in. The reporter leered pleasantly. “It must be wonderful to be a detective," he said. “You meet ho many." *8 v , I “I deduce that you saw Mrs. Tompkins—lrma ?* “In the flesh. Fink, that is." “There’s coffee on the stove," McGann said. He returned to the bathroom washbowl and was executing neat furrows with the safety razor when Wexton camels with aCUp. He said, "AU right, give." f McGann gave. "It’s pretty obvious that she was lying all of the way through, '* he concluded. “You mean the tapestry gag? I don’t remember seeing any in the study last night but then I wasn't looking tor it" “Therh wasn't any. She took a chance And guessed wrong. Fm still wondering why she came up at all unless she wanted to give the Rogers Woman some trouble." Wexton shrugged. He drank the lukewarm coffee and seemed lost in thought. Then he balanced the cup on the edge of the washbowl and took a folded sheet of copy paper trom his inside coat pocket., ’T’ve g(4 news for you." he said. “They’ve.traced the gun." “Wonderful. Who to?" “Ronnie Tompkins." “Ugh!*? McGann splashed water over his lace. "I was afraid of that. Details?" Dink Wexton had them. The murder weapon had been a Colt .32 automatic purchased by Ronnie TompklnS two years before. He had kept it in the upper right-hand drawer dt' the desk in fils study and had a jpennlt for it. The permit had been properly renewed and was good Until December 3L “One bUHet had been fired and there were seven left in the (flip,” Wexton read from the notes. .“How about the bullet in the body 71 presume Brother Tompkins surrendered it without further struggle?* “He didn’t say a word." Wexton checked off the additional information Oha r d metal-jacketed with six Barrow rifle markings slanting right to left from base to dome. “The ballistics boys said it was fired from that gun. all right.” “And that ejected shell?" Firing pin marking- jibed, Wexton related proving that the shell had come from the Tompkins gun. The mark left by the ejector mechanism was Corroborative proof. He said, “One;gun, one shell, one bullet, one corpse." ; “No fingerprints, I suppose? Never got Wie off a gun yft." “Nope. Clean as a beagle's bicuspid.” ||' During She oxchenge, McGann had He tightened his tie .. S ’ r'

TUESDAY, MAY 15, 1951

56(M0422, EkTA-Jima, | Specialist School, Co. I, 8698 Army Unit, APO 354, % Postmaster; San Francisco, Calif. Following completion of his basic training he was sent to Japan and then to Korea. He wa» one of 12 men Felected for the specialist schoo. and was ordered > bach to Japan, oh the southern edge of the Island. . L Advanced i Word was received here thet Norbert L. Bleeke. US 55061297, Btry B. 6th AAA Tng, Ft. Bliffls. Tejt>„ has been Advanced to the rate of private first class. . - Only the female mosquito bites. Glasgow is Scotland's largest city.

and pusned a nat on ms neao. have been cordially invited to attend the inquest, or else," be said. “Ride along?" ;!■ . \ L “Absolutely. The desk says Fm to Stick to you like yesterday's band-aid. One more miss and I'm back to second-string copy boy." “I'll Up you off with my dying breath." , In the lobby, McGann nodded pleasantly to a heavyset man J whose plainclothes calling was not difficult to fathom. He could see why /even Irma Nelson had been alerted and had chosen to detour. The plainclothesman returned the j ; nod, followed them out and climbed i into his car while they hailed a cah. - | \ They were rolling downtown when Wexton pulled a copy of the morning Blade from his topcoat I jacket and handed it over. "Read all About it," he said. “Swell," McGann said. “Is Dick Tracy still trapped in that bubble bath?" He spread out the Page One banner, i SEEK MYSTERY j BLONDE IN TOMPKINS SLAYING. “What’s this?" *- "Second day lead." "Hmm," McGann said. He ' scanned the story qpickly. "A mysterious blonde is being . sought throughout the city today by a score of detectives investigating the weird slaying of play- \j boy Ronnie Tompkins. The muchmarried copper heir was found shot to death—* \ “It doesn’t say who she Is," Me- V Gann complained. Wexton grinned. "It never does. In this business you always have > to look for a mysterious blonde th) day after a murder. You can't write ii Story saying the victim is still dead.” “Don’t you ever look for a mysterious man ?" Wexton looked shocked. “Do you ‘ want to put us out of business?" \ McGann handed the newspaper back. “Bring me an extra the day t you find her.” “Don’t worry, we’ll never do > that. It would set journalism back t fifty years." He turned to page I twa "Here’s something, though. They can’t account for one cartridge." ! / Wexton proceeded to read. a short item about the box of -32 I calibre cartridges which O’Calla- < han's men had found in the drawer of Tompkins’ desk. It was designed to hold fifty bullets but there were only 41 in the container when, police discovered it. "Forty-one in the box, seven in the gun and one in Comrade Tompkins," he added. “Grand total— I forty-nine. Bullet, bullet, who’s got the bullet?* - The cab spun past the soaring Empire State, began to squeal protestingiy as the Fifth Avenue lights ahead flashed red. McGann studied the plaque on the cab partition which said that the vehicle _ was being driven by Joseph V. Romano Na 78620. \ “That could be important," he said. “On the other hand, Tompkins might have fired a test bullet at the butler to see if the gun i worked when he got it" \ "I wouldn’t have put ft past ’ him. Sometimes his humor was on the pixie side." - , , (To Be Conttnyed}