The After House Part 28

"What did you do with the wheel when you left it?"

"Lashed it. There are two rope-ends, with loops, to lash it with. When I was on the Sarah Winters--"

"Stick to the question. Did you see the mate, Mr. Singleton, during your watch?"

"Every half-hour from 12.30 to 1.30. He struck the bells. After that he said he was sick. He thought he'd been poisoned. He said he was going forward to lie down, and for me to strike them."

"Who struck the bell at three o'clock?"

"I did, sir."

"When did you hear a woman scream?"

"Just before that."

"What did you do?"

"Nothing. It was the Hansen woman. I didn't like her. She was a bad woman. When I told her what she was, she laughed."

"Were you ever below in the after house?"

"No, sir; not since the boat was fixed up."

"What could you see through the window beside the wheel?"

"It looked into the chart-room. If the light was on, I could see all but the floor."

"Between the hours of 1 a.m. and 3 a.m., did any one leave or enter the after house by the after companion?"

"Yes, sir. Mr. Singleton went down into the chart-room, and came back again in five or ten minutes."

"At what time?"

"At four bells--two o'clock."

"No one else?"

"No, sir; but I saw Mr. Turner--"

"Confine yourself to the question. What was Mr. Singleton's manner at the time you mention?"

"He was excited. He brought up a bottle of whiskey from the chart-room table, and drank what was left in it. Then he muttered something, and threw the empty bottle over the rail. He said he was still sick."

The cross-examination confined itself to one detail of Charlie Jones's testimony.

"Did you, between midnight and 3 A.M., see any one in the chart-room besides the mate?"

"Yes--Mr. Turner."

"You say you cannot see into the chart-room from the wheel at night.

How did you see him?"

"He turned on the light. He seemed to be looking for something."

"Was he dressed?"

"Yes, sir."

"Can you describe what he wore?"

"Yes, sir. His coat was off. He had a white s.h.i.+rt and a white vest."

"Were the s.h.i.+rt and vest similar to these I show you?"

"Most of them things look alike to me. Yes, sir."

The defense had scored again. But it suffered at the hands of Burns, the next witness. I believe the prosecution had intended to call Turner at this time; but, after a whispered conference with Turner's attorneys, they made a change. Turner, indeed, was in no condition to go on the stand. He was pallid and twitching, and his face was covered with sweat.

Burns corroborated the testimony against Singleton--his surly temper, his outbursts of rage, his threats against the captain. And he brought out a new point: that Jones, the helmsman, had been afraid of Singleton that night, and had asked not to be left alone at the wheel.

During this examination the prosecution for the first time made clear their position: that the captain was murdered first; that Vail interfered, and, pursued by Singleton, took refuge in his bunk, where he was slaughtered; that the murderer, bending to inspect his horrid work, had unwittingly touched the bell that roused Karen Hansen, and, crouching in the chartroom with the axe, had struck her as she opened the door.

The prosecution questioned Burns about the axe and its disappearance.

"Who suggested that the axe be kept in the captain's cabin?"

"Leslie, acting as captain."

"Who had the key?"

"I carried it on a strong line around my neck."

"Whose arrangement was that?"

"Leslie's. He had the key to Mr. Singleton's cabin, and I carried this one. We divided the responsibility."

"Did you ever give the key to any one?"

"No, sir."

"Did it ever leave you?"

"Not until it was taken away."

"When was that?"

"On Sat.u.r.day morning, August 22, shortly before dawn."

"Tell what happened."