Townsend Harris High School - Crimson Gold Yearbook (Flushing, NY)

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CRIMSON AND GOLD Four years coming next Septemberf' During your service here has there at any time arisen any question as to your honesty and fidelity? 'iNo, sir. Did Mr. Apely ever have any other bellhop besides you? No, sirf, How is that possible? You don't mean to say that you are here every day in the year, do you? No, sir. Well, then account for thisf' You see, sir, Mr. Apely was dumb. It seemed that I was able to accommodate him quite easily. I readily comprehended every sign that he made to me. For this he was indeed grateful and showed it by his large tips. He did not like to be bothered unnecessarily, so before I left, I prepared everything he desired. He ate all his meals in his suite. When I was off, he ate from a supply of canned goods. In fact, he never left his room except between nine and ten in the evening when he would usually take a walk. It seems that I was the only one here who had any connection with him during his stay. Every Saturday, he would settle his account with me in cash. He always had bills and change with him. Where it came from I never cared to inquire. Whenever I entered the room I always found him lounging in his arm-chair smoking a pipe. He had a fair sized library but I doubt if he ever read any of the books because they were always in the same place. I suppose that's about all I can tell you, sir. Who was Dr. Sunger's bell-hop? Stevens further inquired. I was, sir,', answered John. In what apartment did he reside? Apartment 5D, sir. Next door to Mr. Apelyf' ' Did they ever meet?', Not as far as I know, sir. Pago 'Fifty-six Thank you for your information, john. No doubt it will prove very use- fulf, Turning to Mr. Manger, Stevens continued. The inquest will be held here tomorrow morning at ten o'clock. Meanwhile you will keep both Sunger's and Apelyis rooms locked. Good-night. Ah! thank you, Mr. Stevens. Good- night. III. In spite of a sleepless night, I was at the hotel at nine-thirty the following morning, eager to learn if anything new had developed. Entering the lobby, the scene of the crime, I was amazed to hnd the usual tranquillity prevalent. Mr. Manger presently recognized me as the shadow of Mr. Stevens during the preced- ing night. Immediately he conducted me into the Violet and Gold Room and bade me be seated. It appeared that I was not as early as I had presumed, for quite a few gentlemen were already seated. Nor were the rest long in coming. At pre- cisely ten o'clock, Stevens entered with the coroner. Beckoning the former with a nod of my head, I made room for him on the bench on which I was seated. The coroner, Dr. Blade, opened the in- quest by requesting the city physician to divulge the results of his autopsy. After a brief external examinationj' the physician testified, I was indubitably convinced that the deceased, jonathan Apely, had met his death by a knife wound close to the heart. The murderer was acquainted with the physique of the human body as evinced by the fact that he knew exactly where to strike to cause instant death. Thus proceeded the inquest. The seven eye-witnesses repeated their tale, each in the same manner, practically with the same words, until the monotony of the situation was almost unbearable. For six consecutive hours testimony was presented. Finally addressing the jury, Dr. Blade declared: Gentlemen, it is your duty to

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CRIMSON AND GOLD JONATHAN AIPIELY PHILIP GOODMAN I. T is barely within my power to X, .1 describe my innermost senti- ments when I consider the as- pects of the People vs. Sunger case. I have dwelt for the past K' month on this tale of a fantas- tic creation-a frankenstein-formed in a half-crazed mind of one of the world's greatest surgeons, Dr. Sunger. I was seated with my friend, Ronald Stevens, a detective of New York, slightly indulging in a much sought-for as well as prohibited beverage, when we were unceremoniously interrupted by the ring- ing of the telephone. It was an unex- pected emergency call for Stevens from Headquarters. Being inquisitive and seeking excitement, I begged leave to go with him. This he readily granted, not being adverse to company at that hour of the night. Arriving at Headquarters, Stevens was informed that a murder case warranted his immediate attention. I-Ie was given plenary command of the situation. Dr. Sunger had been taken into custody on the charge of the murder of Jonathan Apely. The turnkey offered to conduct Stevens to the cell of Sunger. After passing through long corridors, I ap- proached the cell in which I noticed a forlorn and aged man, seated on the edge of the cot, swaying to and fro, bemoan- ing his predicament. Despite Stevens' countless questions, the only answer obtainable was a staunch denial of guilt. This, however, seemed absurd, since all of the seven eye- witnesses affirmed that they had seen Dr. Sunger stab Apely. Seeing that he could gain no satisfaction or enlightenment from the accused, Stevens decided to visit the Hotel Calpin, the scene of the catas- trophe, and see if any light could be thrown on the affair from that source. 92 4? .5 P 'Y' 'Y' . '-if TIF 4-9' th 1 ' A 2 lb Ll II. Our entrance into the Calpin was greeted with thunderous oaths and un- complimentary remarks magnanimously bestowed upon some of the employees of the hotel by the outraged proprietor. For the nth time he threatened to kill the next reporter that approached him. Stevens, with his usual tact, calmed him and persuaded him to bestow lavish pecuniary gifts on the agents of the press in order to suppress this undesired notoriety. Hof facto, the proprietor, Mr. Charles A. Manger, ushered us into the room where the corpse lay. The blinds were drawn low. A ray of sunshine through the corner of the blind disclosed to me the features of the ugliest creature I had ever seen. The last throes of agony he had suffered from the knife thrust left the body in a distorted condition which added to its hideousness. Upon further inspection, Stevens remarked to me con- cerning the incontrovertible apelike fea- tures of the deceased. Mr. Manger informed Stevens that the murdered man had registered about six months ago as Jonathan Apely of Eng- land. Since he had never had any per- sonal dealings with Mr. Apely, he was unable to reveal any further useful material. Stevens ordered the body to be re- moved to the morgue and phoned the city physician to perform the autopsy im- mediately. Mr. Manger, upon the inquiry of Stevens, summoned the bell-hop who had attended exclusively to the wants of Apely. What is your name? was Stevens' first question. John Dudley, sir, he responded. How long have you been employed in the Hotel Calpin PI' Page Fifty-five

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CRIMSON AND GOLD determine what was the cause of this death. Beyond the fact that the accused asserts that he did not commit murder, the indications strongly refute this. However, that is for you to decide. The gentlemen of the jury retired to make their deliberations, and, within four minutes, re-entered. The foreman stepped forward and delivered the verdict to the gentlemen present. He read the most logical and anticipated answer, Murder in the first degree, as a result of a knife wound in the vicinity of the heartf, IV. At the request of Dr. Sunger, Mr. Sur, the attorney for the defense, arranged that the trial be held as quickly as possi- ble. Accordingly within ten days follow- ing the inquest, this was effected. All preliminary formalities having been completed, the District Attorney was granted the floor and he proceeded to prove that Dr. Elias A. Sunger had mur- dered jonathan Apely. Sunger was seated, quite composed and free of expression. By his side was Sut displaying one of his usual conf'ident-of- victory smiles. The first witness to take the stand was Sidney Orkin. After having been duly sworn in, he proceeded to reply to the queries of the prosecuting attorney. Are you a resident of the Hotel Cal- pin P Yes. Wl1ere were you on the evening of March tenth between nine and ten o,clock?,' I was seated in the lobb of the Cal Y - pin with another resident, Mr. Benjamin Berk. Did anything unusual occur? Yes. At about ten minutes past nine I saw Dr. Sunger, with whom I had pre- viously made an acquaintance, draw up close to Apely, who had just come out of the elevator, extract a knife from the pocket of his top-coat and, without a change of expression, plunge it into the breast of Apely. The latter reeled and fell forward. This done, Sunger stood serenely gazing at the result of his act. That is all. I will now submit you to a cross-examination by the attorney for the defence, Mr. Sur. With a sweeping bow and a smile of satisfaction, the District Attorney gestured Mr. Sut to proceed with the cross-examination. I do not choose to cross-examine the witness, was the amazing statement of Mr. Sut. This answer was repeatedly rendered throughout the presentation of the state's lawyer. Q The six other eye-witnesses testified to the same effect, disclosing no additional helpful knowledge. john Dudley, the bell-hop, then bore witness concerning the character and habits of Apely. Finally the District Attorney recapitu- lated his side and concluded as follows, addressing the jury: No substan- tial motive has been established for this crime other than a desire for gaining pub- licity and then relying on your mercy. It is time that these crimes were obliterated. I ask you to convict this man, not upon evidence which is gathered inferentially from the circumstances in the case, but upon actual facts testified by numerous creditable witnesses. Gentlemen, to ful- fill the trust invested in you by your fellow-citizens, it is your duty to return a verdict of guilt. The jury would have willingly obliged the People without hearing the defence had the court allowed it to do so. At this moment, Mr. Sut opened the defence by requesting that the case be dismissed from court on the following grounds: jonathan Apely was not a man, and the game laws of New York State make no provision for the prosecu- tion of ape-killers. These statements presented without oratorical elaborations brought consternation and perplexity to the District Attorney. Page Fifty-seven