The Holladay Case

ip of Cir

ant dampness. Only behind the little railing before the coroner's desk was there b

s. The reporters took up most of the space in this small room, paper and pencils were everywhere in evidence, and in one corner there was a man with a cam

ats. I examined them, man by man, with some little anxiety, but they all seemed intelligent and fairly well-to-do. Mr. Royce was looking ov

hey're all right, I gue

er, as he took the paper. "Better tha

he added, and he got up and came down to our table. "You

and our junior looked around t

An alibi's the only thing that c

it," retorted Mr. Royce. "I think the cas

ed a conviction in two or three capital cases which had threatened for a time to baffle the police. He evidently scented something of the same kind here, or he would have entrusted the case to one of his assistants. It might b

oment, the room was called to orde

siness way, and had the highest respect for him. He had been with Mr. Holladay much longer than I

so on, Coroner Goldberg asking the questions. He was a reall

f your desk in Mr. Holl

om that, a smaller room where my desk is placed. Ope

day's office a

, s

ce be had by

t side of the building. We occ

ire-es

g-there are none on the street

aving the private office must

rily; ye

pass without y

would be quit

k in his chair. There

n way and with as much detail as possible, exactly what happened

d his lips nervously from time to time, and his hands grasped convulsively the

them, when the outer door opened and Mr. Holladay's daughter came in. She asked me whether her father was engaged, and upon my saying no, opened the inner door and entered his office. She remained, I should think, about ten minutes; then she came out again, walked rapidly past without looking at me, and, I suppose, left the building. I

rough the room. There was an indefinable horror in the

d and mopped his forehead feverishly. "I want the jury to understa

es

s quite

d been suffering with indi

able to attend

was nothing at all se

ed to your own. How long had you bee

r five m

was it

laday-the daughte

sure? You kn

rove to the office in the evening to take her father h

d at her a

d impatiently

s I always do," he s

te sure it was

s giving way for an instant, "do you suppose I'd make

such thing, not for a moment, Mr. Rogers; only I want the ju

. "I'll try to hold myself t

ndly; "and I'll spare you as much as I can. Now, after Miss Ho

should say; not longer

f conversation, or any un

udible. Mr. Holladay's office has heavy walls and a doubl

aday then

s,

lked pa

walked past

t think tha

speak to me. I was busy and so tho

her face? Did sh

up and bowed. In fact, I didn't see her

oroner. "You hadn't mentio

ffice she had lifted it up over he

r face distinctly

s,

she had lowered her ve

hesitated, "just an ordi

y enough to con

yes,

a time elapsed after the departure of the wom

erhaps Mr. Holladay was getting ready to accompan

ross his desk with a knife in his throat and the

he kept lying on his desk to sharp

p, wa

ong blade, ve

a knife that was lying

he knife?"

ked at it

oyce and I examined it. It was an ordinary one-bladed erasing knife with ivory handle. It was open, th

Holladay's position?"

desk, with his arms outstretc

as a great d

ttempted to check it, for a little distance a

a handkerchief and han

handkerchie

aid Rogers, a

or a woman's

man's und

at I could see, soaked through and through with blood-unquestionably a woman's handkerchi

re is one point more. Has there been anything in your knowledge

shook his he

iness was prospering; he was happy and contented-why,

that he did actually stab himself in his daughter's

give the alarm-to summ

rg nodded to my chief. "I turn the wit

at present, on your identification of the woman who, presumably, was in Mr. Holladay's office when

used for a mom

ast, "with some sort of narrow dark trimming-blac

the

he hat, sir. I onl

thing unusual-nothing which suggested to your m

ing,

demeanor, perhap

ness he

so well as usual," he said slowly. "S

ice, was it not, at five o'

the lights half an

ffice well

y desk, sir, and there

your visitor's face wi

rly enough to recognize

t her looking p

that was my

y, did she use the words 'my father

esitated in the eff

"Her words, I think, were, 'Is M

ss Hollada

on from his forehead. "I have no wish to incriminate Miss Holladay unneces

n in the negative, did she hesitate

he went str

y lettering

ual lettering, '

cquainted with the place, she mi

r; I sup

could have heard no sound of an altercatio

could have h

Holladay a long time,

irty yea

mately acquainted

s,

xpenditure, any correspondence, anything whatever-which would lead you to think that M

g to swear that such a thing is not possible. I sh

aid Mr. Royce. "I shall want to r

ling from the effects of his last outburst. I confess th

ome letters; the woman must have entered the office while he was away. He saw her come out again,

, and that he had bled to death-was dead, indeed, before they reached him. It would take, perhaps, ten minutes to produce such an effusi

on the inside, precluding the possibility of anyone swinging down from above or clambering up from below. Nothing in t

from home yesterday afte

rdered for three o'clock. She was

time did s

just in time to d

ng unusual in her deme

aring doubtless that s

ade her worse instead of better. She seemed very nervous and ill. I advised her to lie down and not dress for dinner, but she would not listen.

our mind that she was

or to look for him when he did not co

oint in our fa

father's death reached h

her breath to choke back a sob. "She fainted dead away. Afterw

any questions to ask

eld my breath, wondering whether it were wise to ask it. "Do you reme

was a dark red broadcloth, made very plain, with