“I see,” Moffgat said. “Now getting back to this sale of the mine to Mr. Bradisson who was acting on behalf of the plaintiff in the action. You have no recollection of what you told him about that mine?”
“I only know I was talking to him about mining property, and then all of a sudden I felt that funny thirst, and Bob must have come in then because the next I remember was waking up with an awful hangover about two days later, and a lot of money in my pocket.”
“And,” Moffgat said, “you gave him certain samples of ore which you told him you’d personally taken from the Shooting Star Mine, didn’t you?”
“Well, now, I can’t remember about that.”
“Would you say that you did, or that you did not?”
“Well, I think there’s a pretty good chance that he might have got the ore from me while Bob was in the driver’s seat.”
“Now then,” Moffgat went on, “that ore had not been obtained from the Shooting Star Mining Group. That ore consisted of some samples that had been taken by you from specimens Mr. Banning Clarke was keeping in the lower drawer of a roll-top desk in his room, isn’t that right?”
“I’m not saying anything about those samples because I can’t remember a thing in the world about them.”
“Now this secondary personality which you call Bob didn’t assume charge until after you had started talking with Mr. Bradisson about the Shooting Star Group?”
“Well, I can’t remember exactly. We started talking about mining claims — and of course, since my wife owned this mining property, I may have said something about it. That is, before Bob came. After that, I don’t know what happened.”
Moffgat’s voice became silky. “I understand your position exactly, Mr. Sims. You, yourself, under no circumstances would be guilty of any fraudulent representation, but there are times when you are not exactly responsible, times when this secondary personality takes over and you are placed in the embarrassing position of being held responsible for things which were done without your knowledge and entirely without your volition.”
“That’s right,” Sims agreed. And then, after a moment’s thought, added with great emphasis, “That’s right!” He beamed at the lawyer with that warm friendliness which is inspired by perfect understanding.
“Now then,” Moffgat resumed, “on this day in question, you certainly had no idea, when you started out, that this impish secondary personality would lead you to defraud Mr. James Bradisson, did you?”
“I most certainly didn’t. Mr. Bradisson is my friend and I wouldn’t do a thing in the world to harm him. I just wouldn’t harm a hair of his head.”
Bradisson rubbed a well-manicured hand over his practically bald dome, and let his eyes soften into a twinkle.
Moffgat went on suavely, “You yourself had no intention, not even the most remote intention, of trying to sell any mining claims to James Bradisson that day, did you?”
“Absolutely not.”
“Now, had Bob been in possession of your personality at any time shortly prior to this conversation you had with Bradisson?”
“You mean that same day?”
“Oh, that day or within a day or two of that time,” Moffgat said carelessly.
“No, he hadn’t. He’d been letting me alone pretty much. And that should have been a warning to me too, because Bob only stays away about so long, then the thirst catches him and he comes in and takes charge.”
“I understand. But Bob definitely hadn’t been in what you refer to as ‘the driver’s seat’ during any time within three or four days prior to your conversation with Bradisson?”
“That’s right.”
“Then,” Moffgat sneered, dropping his suave manner, and appearing suddenly belligerent, “how do you account for the fact that you went to that conference with Mr. Bradisson with your pockets loaded with samples of ore that you had filched from the lower drawer in Banning Clarke’s roll-top desk?”
Expression popped into Sims’ face. His complacency was suddenly jarred as the full impact of that question dawned on him. He shifted his position uneasily in the chair.
“Go ahead, answer that question,” Moffgat stormed at the dismayed witness.
“Well, now... Now wait a minute. You ain’t sure those rocks came from Clarke’s desk.”
Moffgat triumphantly produced a small suitcase, opened it, thrust a rock out in front of the witness. “You see that specimen of ore?”
“I do,” Sims said without touching it.
“And you see this one which is marked with a little cross which has been chiseled into the surface of the rock. Isn’t this marked rock one of the specimens you gave James Bradisson, and isn’t that rock absolutely identical with this other specimen which came from Banning Clarke’s group of mines — the ones that are known as the Sky High Group?”
Sims fidgeted for a moment more, then suddenly blurted, “I never gave that rock to Bradisson.”
“You mean you didn’t give him this rock with the cross chiseled on it — the rock I am now showing to you?”
“No, I didn’t,” Sims said positively. “It’s his word against mine. I didn’t give it to him.”
“At no time during the conversation, or during the negotiations leading up to the signing of this contract with James Bradisson, did you give him this rock and tell him that it had been taken by you from this Shooting Star mining group, and represented a new strike you had made in that group of mines?”
“No, sir, I didn’t.” Sims’ manner was now dogged and stubborn.
“You’re certain of that?”
“Absolutely.”
“How can you be certain?” Moffgat asked, smiling triumphantly down at the witness. “You don’t remember a thing of that conversation. Your split personality was in charge at that time — Bob, as I believe you have mentioned, was ‘in the driver’s seat.’”
The witness ran his left hand up along his head, scratched at the hair over his left temple. “Well, now,” he said, “my memory’s beginning to come back mighty clear on that. Maybe it wasn’t because Bob had taken over. Maybe it was just because I’d got a little drunk and couldn’t remember things very clearly.”
“During the time that you were discussing this mine with Mr. Bradisson, you had been drinking?”
“That’s right.”
“And couldn’t remember things very clearly?”
“That’s right.”
“Then how can you testify positively that you didn’t give Mr. Bradisson this rock, together with certain other rocks, and tell him that these were specimens of a body of ore you had just uncovered in your wife’s claims — the Shooting Star mining group?”
“Well,” Sims said, squirming uncomfortably, “I’m beginning to remember it a lot clearer now.”
“Would you say that your memory was clear on the subject?”
“Well, pretty clear.”
“Then this secondary personality that you have referred to as Bob wasn’t in charge at all. He didn’t enter into the picture?”
“Well, I–I don’t think he did. Not the way things look now.”
Moffgat sarcastically slammed his file of papers closed, popped it into his brief case and slid the zipper in a dramatic gesture. “That,” he announced, “is all!”
He turned to Mason and said, “Well, Counselor, you certainly aren’t going to contest this case any further, in view of the circumstances. Are you?”