The Roman Hat Mystery (41 page)

On Tuesday evening, October second, promptly at 11:30 p.m., a tall man wearing a soft black hat and a black overcoat, the collar pulled up around his face to keep out the raw night air, sauntered out of the lobby of a small hotel on 53rd Street near Seventh Avenue and proceeded at a sharp pace up Seventh Avenue toward Central Park.

Arrived at 59th Street he turned to the east and made his way along the deserted thoroughfare in the direction of Fifth Avenue. When he reached the Fifth Avenue entrance to Central Park, off the Plaza circle, he stopped in the shadow of one of the big concrete corner posts and leaned back idly. As he lit a cigarette the flare from a match illumined his face. It was that of an elderly man, a trifle lined. A grizzled mustache drooped in a straggling line from his upper lip. Under his hat a gray patch of hair was visible. Then the light from the match flickered out.

He stood quietly against the concrete post, hands jammed into his overcoat pockets, puffing away at his cigarette. An observer would have noticed, had he been keen, that the man
’
s fingers trembled slightly and that his black-shod feet tapped the sidewalk in an unsteady tattoo.

When his cigarette burned down, he threw it away and glanced at a watch on his wrist. The hands stood at 11:50. He swore impatiently and stepped past the portals of the Park entrance.

The light from the overhead arcs bordering the Plaza dimmed as he walked up the stone lane. Hesitating, as if he were undecided as to his course of action, he looked about him, considered for a moment, then crossed over to the first bench and sat down heavily
―
like a man tired from his day
’
s work and contemplating a restful quarter of an hour in the silence and darkness of the Park.

Slowly his head dropped; slowly his figure grew slack. He seemed to have fallen into a doze.

The minutes ticked away. No one passed the quiet figure of the black-clad man as he sat on his bench. On Fifth Avenue the motors roared past. The shrill whistle of the traffic officer in the Plaza pierced the chill air periodically. A cold wind soughed through the trees. From somewhere in the Stygian recesses of the Park came a girl
’
s clear laugh
―
soft and far-off, but startlingly distinct. The minutes drowsed on; the man was falling into a deeper sleep.

And yet, just as the bells of the neighborhood churches began to toll the hour of twelve, the figure tensed, waited an instant and then rose determinedly.

Instead of heading toward the entrance he turned and plodded farther up the walk, his eyes bright and inquisitive in the gloomy depths created by his hat brim and coat collar. He seemed to be counting the benches as he proceeded in a steady, unhurried gait. Two
―
three
―
four
―
five
―
He stopped. In the semidarkness ahead he could barely make out a still gray figure seated on a bench.

The man walked slowly on. Six
―
seven
―
He did not pause, but went straight ahead. Eight
―
nine
―
ten . . . . Only then did he wheel and retrace his steps. This time his gait was brisker, more definite. He approached the seventh bench rapidly, then stopped short. Suddenly, as if he had made up his mind, he crossed over to the spot where the indistinctly looming figure rested quietly and sat down. The figure grunted and moved over a trifle to give the newcomer more room.

The two men sat in silence. After a time the black-garbed man dipped into the folds of his coat and produced a packet of cigarettes. He lit one and held the match for a moment after the tip of the cigarette glowed red. In the ray of the match light he covertly examined the quiet man at his side. The brief moment told him little
―
the occupant of the bench was as well muffled and concealed as himself. Then the light puffed out and they were in darkness once more.

The black-coated man seemed to come to a decision. He leaned forward, tapped the other man sharply on the knee and said in a low, husky voice the one word:

“
Papers!
”

The second man came to life immediately. He half-shifted his position, scrutinized his companion and grunted as if in satisfaction. He carefully leaned away from the other man on the bench and with his right gloved hand dug into his right overcoat pocket. The first man bent eagerly forward, his eyes bright. The gloved hand of his companion came out of the pocket, holding something tightly.

Then the owner of the hand did a surprising thing. With a fierce bunching of muscles he sprang from the bench and leaped backward, away from the first man. At the same time he leveled his right hand straight at the crouched frozen figure. And a fragmentary gleam of light from an arc lamp far off revealed the thing he held in his hand
―
a revolver.

Crying out hoarsely, the first man sprang to his feet with the agility of a cat. His hand plunged with a lightninglike movement into his overcoat pocket. He darted, reckless of the weapon pointed at his heart, straight forward at the tense figure before him.

But things were happening. The peaceful tableau, so suggestive a bare instant before of open spaces and dark country silence, was transformed magically into a scene of intense activity
―
a writhing, yelling pandemonium. From a cluster of bushes a few feet behind the bench a swiftly moving group of men with drawn guns materialized. At the same time, from the farther side of the walk, a similar group appeared, running toward the pair. And from both ends of the walk
―
from the entrance about a hundred feet away and from the opposite direction, in the blackness of the Park
―
came several uniformed policemen, brandishing revolvers. The groups converged almost as one.

The man who had drawn his gun and leaped from the bench did not await the arrival of reinforcements. As his companion of a moment before plunged his hand into his coat pocket the gun-wielder took careful aim and fired. The weapon roared, awakening echoes in the Park. An orange flame streaked into the body of the black-coated man. He lurched forward, clutching his shoulder spasmodically. His knees buckled and he fell to the stone walk. His hand still fumbled in his coat.

But an avalanche of men
’
s bodies kept him from whatever furious purpose was in his mind. Ungentle fingers gripped his arms and pinned them down, so that he could not withdraw his hand from his pocket. They held him in this way, silently, until a crisp voice behind them said,
“
Careful, boys
―
watch his hands!
”

Inspector Richard Queen wriggled into the hard-breathing group and stood contemplatively above the writhing figure on the pavement.

“
Take his hand out, Velie
―
easy, now! Hold it stiff, and
―
stiff, man stiff! He
’
d jab you in a flash!
”

Sergeant Thomas Velie, who was straining at the arm, gingerly pulled it from the pocket despite the violent flounderings of the man
’
s body. The hand appeared
―
empty, muscles loosened at the last moment. Two men promptly fastened it in a vise.

Velie made a movement as if to explore the pocket. The Inspector stopped him with a sharp word and himself bent over the threshing man on the walk.

Carefully, delicately, as if his life depended upon caution, the old man lowered his hand into the pocket and felt about its exterior. He gripped something and just as cautiously withdrew it, holding it up to the light.

It was a hypodermic needle. The light of the arc lamp made its pale limpid contents sparkle.

Inspector Queen grinned as he knelt by the wounded man
’
s side. He jerked off the black felt hat.

“
Disguised and everything,
”
he murmured.

He snatched at the gray mustache, passed his hand rapidly over the man
’
s lined face. A smudge immediately appeared on the skin.

“
Well, well!
”
said the Inspector softly, as the man
’
s feverish eyes glared up at him.
“
Happy to meet you again, Mr. Stephen Barry, and your good friend, Mr. Tetra Ethyl Lead!
”

Inspector Queen sat at the writing desk in his living room scribbling industriously on a long narrow sheet of notepaper headed the queens.

It was Wednesday morning
―
a fair Wednesday morning, with the sun streaming into the room through the dormer windows and the cheerful noises of 87th Street faintly audible from the pavements below. The Inspector wore his dressing gown and slippers. Djuna was busy at the table clearing away the breakfast dishes. The old man had written:

Dear Son: As I wired you late last night, the case is finished. We got Stephen Barry very nicely by using Michaels
’
name and handwriting as bait. I really ought to congratulate myself on the psychological soundness of the plan. Barry was desperate and like so many other criminals thought he could duplicate his crime without being caught.

I hate to tell you how tired I am and how unsatisfying spiritually the job of manhunter is sometimes. When I think of that poor lovely little girl Frances, having to face the world as the sweetheart of a murderer . . . . Well, El, there
’
s little justice and certainly no mercy in this world. And, of course, I
’
m more or less responsible for her shame . . . . Yet Ives-Pope himself was quite decent a while ago when he telephoned me on hearing the news. I suppose in one way I did him and Frances a service. We
―

The doorbell rang and Djuna, drying his hands hastily on a kitchen towel, ran to the door. District Attorney Sampson and Timothy Cronin walked in
―
excited, happy, both talking at once. Queen rose, covering the sheet of paper with a blotter.

“
Q, old man!
”
cried Sampson, extending both hands.
“
My congratulations! Have you seen the papers this morning?
”

“
Glory to Columbus!
”
grinned Cronin, holding up a newspaper on which in screaming headlines New York was apprised of the capture of Stephen Barry. The Inspector
’
s photograph was displayed prominently and a rhapsodic story captioned
“
Queen Adds Another Laurel!
”
ran two full columns of type down the sheet.

The Inspector, however, seemed singularly unimpressed. He waved his visitors to chairs, and called for coffee, and began to talk about a projected change in the personnel of one of the city departments as if the Field case interested him not at all.

“
Here, here!
”
growled Sampson.
“
What
’
s the matter with you? You ought to be throwing out your chest, Q. You act as if you
’
d pulled a dud rather than succeeded.
”

“
It
’
s not that, Henry,
”
said the Inspector with a sigh.
“
I just can
’
t seem to be enthusiastic about anything when Ellery isn
’
t by my side. By jingo, I wish he were here instead of in those blamed Maine woods!
”

The two men laughed. Djuna served the coffee and for a time the Inspector was too occupied with his pastry to brood. Over his cigarette Cronin remarked:
“
I for one merely dropped in to pay my respects, Inspector, but I
’
m curious about some aspects of this case . . . . I don
’
t know much about the investigation as a whole, except what Sampson told me on the way up.
”

“
I
’
m rather at sea myself, Q,
”
put in the District Attorney.
“
I imagine you have a story to tell us. Let
’
s have it!
”

Inspector Queen smiled sadly.
“
To save my own face I
’
ll have to relate it as if I did most of the work. As a matter of fact, the only really intelligent work in the whole sordid business was Ellery
’
s. He
’
s a sharp lad, that son of mine.
”

Sampson and Cronin relaxed as the Inspector took some snuff and settled back in his armchair. Djuna folded himself quietly in a corner, ears cocked.

“
In going over the Field case,
”
began the Inspector,
“
I will have to refer at times to Benjamin Morgan, who is really the most innocent victim of all.* I want you to bear in mind, Henry, that whatever I say about Morgan is to go no further, either professionally or socially. I already have Tim
’
s assurance of silence . . . .
”

Both men nodded wordlessly. The Inspector continued:

“
Inspector Queen
’
s statement here is not altogether true. Benjamin Morgan was far from
“
innocent.
”
But the Inspector
’
s sense of justice compelled him to shield the lawyer and keep his word regarding silence.
―
E. Q.

“
I needn
’
t explain that most investigations of crime begin with a search for the motive. Many times you can discard suspect after suspect when you know the reason behind the crime. In this case the motive was obscure for a long time. There were certain indications, like Benjamin Morgan
’
s story, but these were inconclusive. Morgan had been blackmailed by Field for years
―
a part of Field
’
s activities of which you gentlemen were ignorant, despite your knowledge of his other social habits. This seemed to point to blackmail as a possible motive
―
or rather the choking off of blackmail. But then any number of things could have been the motive
―
revenge, by some criminal whom Field had been instrumental in
‘
sending up.
’
Or by a member of his criminal organization. Field had a host of enemies, and undoubtedly a host of friends who were friends only because Field held the whiphand. Any one of scores of people
―
men and women both
―
might have had a
motive
for killing the lawyer. So that, since we had so many other pressing and immediate things to think about and do that night at the Roman Theatre, we did not bother much with motive. It was always in the background, waiting to be called into service.

“
But mark this point. If it was blackmail
―
as Ellery and I eventually decided, since it seemed the most likely possibility
―
there were most certainly some papers floating about in Field
’
s possession which would be enlightening, to say the least. We knew that Morgan
’
s papers existed. Cronin insisted that the papers for which
he
was looking were about somewhere. So we had to keep our eyes constantly on the alert for papers
―
tangible evidence which might or might not make clear the essential circumstances behind the crime.

“
At the same time, in the matter of documents, Ellery was piqued by the great number of books on handwriting analysis he found among Field
’
s effects. We concluded that a man like Field, who had blackmailed once to our knowledge (in the case of Morgan) and many times to our suspicions; and who was keenly interested in the science of handwriting, might have been a forger to boot. If this were true, and it seemed a plausible explanation, then it probably meant that Field made a habit of forging the original blackmail papers. The only reason he could have for doing this, of course, would be to sell the forgeries and keep the originals for further extortion. His association with the underworld undoubtedly helped him master the tricks of the trade. Later, we discovered that this hypothesis was true. And by that time we had definitely established blackmail as the motive of the crime. Remember, though, that this led us nowhere, since any one of our suspects might have been the blackmail victim and we had no way of telling who it was.
”

The Inspector frowned, settled back into his seat more comfortably.

“
But I
’
m tackling this explanation the wrong way. It just goes to show you how habit will take hold of a man. I
’
m so accustomed to beginning with motive . . . . However! There is only one important and central circumstance which stands out in the investigation. It was a confounding clue
―
rather, the lack of a clue. I refer to the missing hat . . . .

“
Now the unfortunate thing about the missing hat was that we were so busy pressing the immediate inquiry at the Roman Theatre on Monday night we couldn
’
t grasp the full significance of its absence. Not that we weren
’
t bothered by it from the beginning
―
far from it. It was one of the first things I noticed when I examined the body. As for Ellery, he caught it as soon as he entered the theatre and bent over the dead man. But what could we do? There were a hundred details to take care of
―
questions to ask, orders to give, discrepancies and suspicious discoveries to clean up
―
so that, as I say, we inadvertently missed our great opportunity. If we had analyzed the meaning of the hat
’
s disappearance then and there
―
we might have clinched the case that very night.
”

“
Well, it hasn
’
t taken so long after all, you growler,
”
laughed Sampson.
“
This is Wednesday and the murder was committed a week ago Monday. Only nine days
―
what are you kicking about?
”

The Inspector shrugged.
“
But it would have made a considerable difference,
”
he said.
“
If only we had reasoned it out
―
Well! When finally we did get around to dissecting the problem of the hat, we asked ourselves first of all: Why was the hat taken? Only two answers seemed to make sense: one, that the hat was incriminating in itself; two, that it contained something which the murderer wanted and for which the crime was committed. As it turned out, both were true. The hat was incriminating in itself because on the underside of the leather sweatband was Stephen Barry
’
s name, printed in indelible ink; and the hat contained something which the murderer very emphatically wanted
―
the blackmail papers. He thought at the time, of course, that they were the originals.

“
This did not get us very far, but it was a starting point. By the time we left Monday night with the command to shut down the theatre, we had not yet found the missing hat despite a sweeping search. However, we had no way of knowing whether the hat had managed in some mysterious manner to leave the theatre, or whether it was still there though un-revealed by our search. When we returned to the theatre on Thursday morning we settled once and for all the question of the location of Monte Field
’
s pesky topper
―
that is, negatively. It was
not
in the theatre
―
that much was certain. And since the theatre had been sealed since Monday night, it follows that the hat must have left that same evening.

“
Now everybody who left Monday night left with only one hat. In the light of our second search, therefore, we were compelled to conclude that somebody had walked out that night with Monte Field
’
s hat in his hand or on his head, necessarily leaving his own in the theatre.

“
He could not have disposed of the hat outside the theatre except when he left at the time the audience was allowed to leave; for up to that time all exits were guarded or locked, and the left-hand alley was blocked first by Jess Lynch and Elinor Libby, next by John Chase, the usher, and after that by one of my policemen. The right-hand alley, having no exit other than the orchestra doors, which were guarded all night, offered no avenue of disposal.

“
To go on with the thought
―
since Field
’
s hat was a tophat, and since nobody left the theatre dressed in a tophat who was not wearing evening clothes
―
this we watched for very closely
―
therefore the man who took away the missing hat
must
have been garbed in full dress. You might say that a man planning such a crime in advance would have come to the theatre without a hat, and therefore would have none to dispose of. But if you will stop to think, you must see that this is highly improbable. He would have been quite conspicuous, especially while entering the theatre, if he went in minus a tophat. It was a possibility, of course, and we kept it in mind; but we reasoned that a man working out such a consummate crime as this would have shied from taking any unnecessary chance of being identified. Also, Ellery had satisfied his own mind that the murderer had no foreknowledge of the Field hat
’
s importance. This made still more improbable the possibility that the murderer arrived without a hat of his own. Having a hat of his own, he might have disposed of it, we thought, during the first intermission
―
which is to say, before the crime was committed. But Ellery
’
s deductions proving the murderer
’
s lack of foreknowledge made this impossible, since he would not have known at the first intermission of the
necessity
of doing away with his own hat. At any rate, I think we were justified in assuming that our man had to leave his own hat in the theatre and that it must have been a tophat. Does it follow so far?
”