Show CAGED Co I I I I B By y I I J I I Courtney Ryley Cooper Service by Courtney Ryley Coooer PRECEDING EVENTS Joe Derry Carry country youth In New York eke ekes out a living as a. caretaker In a poor pour rooming house ane and accordion player In Louie Louse restaurant Lured Luree by the open country he spends a night In the fields nelds near Newburgh discharges discharge him Friendless and broke he heIs heis Is III offered altered by a man he knows knowlI only as Martin to Impersonate impersonate Im im- im personate ale a liquor runner facing arrest It means the penitentiary but Joe Is desperate lie He defers decision until the next night I and Is given 1000 on account Next da day Joe deposits In country banks giving his name as Joseph Bradley Outside a circus cir Ir cus cu tent he Fees sees an accordion and Is tempted to play It A girl Sue Dayton niece of the owner who admires the music urges him to join loin the circus but Joe says he must first return to New York on business lie He has decided to refuse Martins Martin of of of- fer ter In his room four men ac accost accost accost ac- ac cost him Bewildered Joe sees seen the men who are ere detectives find large amounts of money a machine machine machine ma ma- chine gun and two revolvers Next day under arrest Joe Is Identified by men who had seen lIeen him the night before near Newburgh Newburgh New New- burgh when two prohibition agents were killed and robbed Joe Is charged with th their lr murder and robbery He lie realizes Mar Martins Olar- Olar tins object objeCt to to h have Ve ve him found guilty of the murders executed ane and the case ase closed A man known as Full house wetter walter at hurts hurls Joes Joe's case by his evidence Joe keeps keers silent as to his previous days day's doings fearing to embarrass Sue Day ton CHAPTER IV 11 Joes Joe's defiance hall had anything thing but a deterrent effect upon his bis questioners Here was something which be he desired to conceal therefore It was the thing they desired most to know But ut at the end of ot an hour Pete Maxwell spread his hands against his chest straightened straightened straight straight- ened and strode ow away y from the table Suppose you let the old Bottle ottle and ond Stopper have this bird alone for tor awhile he said sold When they were alone Pete picked up op his chair choir and ond brought It to the side of ot the prisoner Look here bere kid be he said Lets get together It was the first time he had used that term Joe looked up with something some thing tiling of ot wonderment There seemed to be more of ot a personal touch to the detectives detective's tone Tou e been treated In a straight I businesslike manner by men who are in the business of ot finding out who committed crimes and who haven't got the slightest Interest In anything else That's our Job Were We're given a af aset aset f set et of ot Jig saws that'll work Into something something some some- thing If It we can piece them together togE Its It's what were we're paid for tor to keep picking pick ing tag up pieces pierIs and bunting hunting for tor little angles and curlicues until wee weve got the puzzle beat enough to decide that twelve men ought to hear more about It Most of ot the thE- time the detective said Mid sald quietly when Its It's a kid like you we hope we cant can't work It t out out Joe looked up Ills hands bands half hall raised Then why hy dont don't you give me a chancel I he begged Ive told you I 1 didn't even know what all this was about until you dragged me in here beret l I lYou You dont don't expect us to believe that you didn't even see anything about It ItIn itIn In tn the newspapers You told us about being near Orrs Orr's Mills on a vacation That Isn't a new gag Its It's I been len worked before by people pE-ople who know they're licked on an Identification to try to switch It Into an alibi Rut But ut we brought In the people didn't we You showIng show shot Ing lag up there an hour after the murder mur lOur der might have been n all right but It doesn't sound well WE-II when It matches s up with three guns found In your room aid the money off of a dead man Martin put them there Just like he called you up so sn you'd know Just when to arrest orrest me Pete Maxwell reached ached Into a pocket and brought ht forth a letter Rend Read It It he sold said It was In to feminine fem tem nine writing upon hotel paper I 1 am an Albany woman oman In New NewYork NewYork NewYork York for tor a few tew day days Naturally I do donot donot donot not care to give ghe my mi name since It Is really not necessary and because this may concern something attracting widespread publicity I 1 ha have ha e been reading In the papers about a murder which occurred after atter the overturning overturning oVE of a rum runners runner's ear car While dining last night at Louis Loul restaurant restaurant rant on 1 Eighth street I heard hE-ard a young man quarreling with the proprietor o over O er being absent from work It he hI had been In the vicinity of ot this affair and on thinking It ii over o I 1 felt fell perhaps you might rare to toques ques question lion tion him with the Idea of ot gaining a clew w to the murders So o See gee SE-P. SE said Pete fete as ne hI rev re ed t the hp missive e. Nobody turned sl you It la at alt all You did It yourself We merely went to the restaurant rE found out this letter was wat true and went up after you JOn You Ton weren't there so we waited outside until we saw you come In In Got Cot Got a lawyer kid kid No sir Better get one one one-as as soon noon as they take you JOu to Newburgh This thing I means the chair you rou know Yes Yell sir said Joe vacantly cantly Pete rete looked at his watch Look here came bluntly Youre only hurting hurling yourself with this story Im I'm not trying to bull you youre you're youre you're no timer old I know that You haven't got any record Maybe If you could show me that you'd been pulled In on this thing and could tell me the names of the rest of ot the gang so I could get the real heads of ot It It maybe I could help you to a lighter sentence Youre You're not up against any easy rap and youre you're going up against an upstate upstate up up- state Jur Jury That's where you'll be trIed tried you know They give a fellow tellow the chair a lot easier than we do But its it's up to you JOn Joe Barry arry rubbed his eyes eyell Please Ilease he be begged please begged please wont won't you Just leave me alone Ills His Jaw began to Jerk spasmodically Keep a fellow tellow up all night asking him this and asking him that never give him any chance to rest twist everything he says Into a lie leave lip leave me alone 1 l lIlls Ills His wild fists pounded the table now until at nt last little lines of ot blood broke from the creases Leave mi mt alone you and your death house You and your promises You and your lies lies lies- leave me alone leave me alone alone I I Gradually he quieted merely swayIng sway- sway Ing drunkenly Pete Maxwell rose and walked around him slowly a puzzled light In his blue eyes Then not nol unkindly he caught at the prisoners prisoner's prisoners prisoner's pris pris- oner's shoulder All right kid kid he said Wed better better better bet bet- ter h b be moving mo I 1 guess This time It was another Journey by patrol up Center street to a dual bull building ln conne connected by bridged bridgeS across the street Inside one of ot them Joe was taken and to another cage on the first floor whence be he could look out upon the monotonous activities of ot a courtroom At last Joe was led for tor- ward He lIe heard a question from above e him on the desk the desk the words were legal and indistinguishable Then br he heard beard the voice of ot Pete fete Maxwell Max Max- well Not guilty your honor bonor And It If your honor bonor please It II omy be necessary necessary necessary sary to re arraign him on a short a am Ill Ill- da davit vit at the expiration of ot forty eight hours on account of ot the Indictment upstate and some delay on the war war- rants The man above e him had something to say In reply legalities which Joe did not understand Then tired and numbed ht hl felt the handcuffs again and knew that he be was walking out of the room and up a n long stairway like the stairway of ot a castle he had seen once In a motion picture and and after that Into a cage which seemed Inter Inter- They were In the Tombs More lIlore bars and more grills Then Thena a key clattered and a door opened In there said the guard and added to some one Inside Heres lIeres a gangster pal for tor you Now you two rats can each take a corner and squeal at ot each other The door closed Joe stood there while u 4 trim youth his clothIng cloth cloth- Ing Immaculate even here his hair shining and sleek his thin venomous features Immobile except for tor the Jerk of a crooked smile came sinuously from a bunk the rap Joe knew v the term by now Homicide e. e They say I 1 killed two state policemen up by Orrs Orr's Mills Yeah His Ilis sleek companion lit lita a cigarette Yeah he asked again you go to school I 1 17 Joe stared The last place was In Missouri l Yeah Who was your teacher Miss lIss Price Why Yeah Yenh asked the rat and pullIng pullIng pull pull- Ing In his under lip blew his Inhalation Inhalation inhalation tion against his breast Why didn't she teach you bow to address a gen gen- gentleman gentleman Joe Barry glanced dazedly around aroundhim him himI I l didn't know I was doing anything anything any any- thing wrong he said sold Ive never been In a place like this before No the gangster asked Then suddenly Come here and sit down Wet ears Once Joe was be beIde him he be whirled talking In low swift tones the Idea stool he demanded Youre not even smart enough to know how to answer my questions hut If It youre you're after Information Ill I'll give you some Information When they take you out you tell em cm they aint tooled fooled nobody still got friends Tell em era Im I'm going to beat this rap If It takes my life lite And If It I 1 do do somebody's going to get shoved over I l TO BE nE CONTINUED |