The Case of the Negligent Nymph

Chapter 19

THE BAILIFF CALLED THE JURY.

Judge Garey returned from his chambers and settled himself on the bench.

Gloster said, “I had finished my direct examination of the witness, Sam Durham.”

“Cross-examine,” Judge Garey said.

Mason said, with a quiet smile, “You examined this canoe for fingerprints at what time, Mr. Durham?”

“Well, it was the evening of the third. Very late in the evening. Nearly midnight, and the examination continued over until the morning of the fourth.”

“Now the third was the night of the murder.”

“Yes, sir.”

“And you understand that the first was the night the canoe had been rented?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Where did you find these fingerprints?”

“In various places.”

“Now how long, in your opinion, would a fingerprint, that is a latent fingerprint, last on a surface of that nature?”

“Well, it would depend somewhat on atmospheric conditions and various circumstances, but I would say that one could expect to find fingerprints over a four-day period.”

“You are prepared to state that those are my fingerprints?” Mason asked.

“I have compared them with an inked card containing an authentic set of your fingerprints. There can be no question as to the points of identity. If you wish, I have prepared enlarged photographs showing the . .

“No, thank you,” Mason said, smiling. “I am not questioning the fingerprints. I am merely trying now to fix the time element.”

“Yes, sir.”

“So that sometime within four days before the hour of midnight of the third of August you would say that I had handled that canoe.”

“Yes, sir.”

“It could have been any time up to four days before you examined the canoe for fingerprints?”

“Yes, sir.”

“It could have been before that?”

“Conceivably it could have been, but I would say that around four days would be the extreme time that fingerprints would be preserved under those circumstances.”

“And sometime within four days of the time you made the examination around midnight of the third, the defendant had also left her fingerprints on that canoe?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Now, my fingerprints could have been made at any time during that four-day period?”

“Yes, sir.”

“As recently as ten minutes before you arrived to test the latent? ?”

“Well... I… I’m not prepared to say.”

“Why not?”

“Well, I… I suppose that could ha ve been the case.”

“And the fingerprints of the defendant could have been made at any time within the four-day period.”

“Yes, sir.”

“As much as four full days before you made your test?”

“Yes.”

“So,” Mason said, triumphantly, “according to your own testimony the fingerprints of the defendant could have been made four days before you made your tests, and mine could have been made when I was looking the canoe over for evidence not more than ten minutes prior to the time you made your tests.”

“Your Honor, I object to that line of questioning. I object to that as assuming a fact not in evidence,” Gloster shouted. “I object because there is no evidence and there can be no evidence indicating that Mr. Perry Mason was looking that canoe over for evidence. Why, I can prove…”

Mason grinned broadly, and said, “I was merely asking questions as to the time element.”

“I defy you to state in court and in front of this jury that you ever examined that canoe for evidence,” Gloster said. “And if you did, I demand to know what caused you to…”

“Don’t get excited,” Mason told him. “My questions of this witness relate merely to the time element. I’m trying to find the margin of time. You would like to be very dramatic and make it appear that because my fingerprints and the fingerprints of the defendant are on the same object, they must have been made at the same time. All that I’m trying to show on cross-examination is that they could have been made at any time over a ninety-six-hour period and could have been made ninety-six hours apart So if you want to put me in that canoe at the same time the defendant was in it, Mr. District Attorney, you are going to have to do a lot more than that.”

Gloster’s face showed that that phase of the case had dawned on him for the first time.

Mason turned back to the witness. “Do you know, Mr. Durham, that the authorities searched the apartment of this defendant for evidence?”

“Yes, sir. I was there.”

“And District Attorney Gloster was also there?”

“Yes, sir.”

“So that if you examined that apartment now, you could reasonably expect to find objects bearing the latent fingerprints of both the district attorney and of the defendant?”

“Why, I … I guess so … yes … Only they would have been made at different times.”

“Exactly,” Mason said, smiling. “And now, your Honor, we’re quite willing to adjourn until Monday morning.”

Judge Garey smfled. “The Court will take a recess until Monday morning at ten o’clock.”