“We propose to connect it up, Your Honor,” Ginsberg said, “with our next witness.”
“Very well, proceed.”
“That is all. Cross-examine.”
Mason said to Etna, “You cross-examine her, Jim.”
Etna said, “Why did you take her clothes away?”
“I was instructed to do so.”
“You knew that until she had been formally charged you could only hold her as...?”
“I followed instructions,” the matron said. “That’s what I’m there for. If you want to argue the law, argue it with the district attorney.”
“You mean you received instructions from the district attorney?”
“From his office, yes.”
“And what became of these clothes that you took away from her and which were turned over to Philip Groton?”
“If you’ll wait until our next witness is called, that question will be answered,” Ginsberg said.
“Very well,” Etna said. “That’s all.”
“Call Philip Groton,” Ginsberg said.
Philip Groton, a tall, thin, studious-looking individual, with high cheekbones, and thick-lensed glasses which seemed to reflect the light so that at times one saw only a blank face with two reflecting ovals where the eyes should be, took the stand and qualified himself as an expert toxicologist, chemist and technical investigator.
“You received certain garments from the matron who has just testified?” Hamilton Burger asked.
“I did. Yes, sir.”
“Did you make an examination of those garments?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Did you find anything unusual on those garments?”
“I did.”
“What did you find?”
“Human blood.”
“You have those garments with you?”
“I do. Yes, sir.”
“I ask that they be introduced in evidence.”
“No objection,” Mason said.
The garments were introduced in evidence.
“Cross-examine,” Hamilton Burger said.
“You state this was human blood on the garments?” Mason asked.
“Yes, sir.”
“How do you know?”
“I performed a precipitin test.”
“Now when you perform that test you don’t ordinarily test the blood for the purpose of finding whether the blood comes from any particular animal, do you? As I understand it, you have a test solution which will give a reaction to human blood, and will give no reaction to animal blood. Therefore you simply test a bloodstain for the purpose of determining whether it is human blood or animal blood. If it is animal blood you ordinarily don’t bother to classify it. If you get a positive reaction you then know it is human blood. Is that right?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Is that test infallible?”
“That test is infallible.”
Mason said, “I should like to cross-examine Mr. Groton a little more on his qualifications as an expert witness, but I’ll confess to the Court that I am not at the moment prepared to pursue the line of questioning that I want. I intend to check on a certain bit of information before completing the cross-examination.”
“Is there any objection on the part of Counsel to having this phase of the cross-examination postponed?” Judge Mundy asked the prosecutor.
“None whatever,” Hamilton Burger said, waving his hand with a gesture of complete assurance. “We will be glad to have Mr. Perry Mason or anyone else cross-examine Mr. Groton as to his qualifications for an entire day if he so desires, and at any time he so desires.”
“Very well, Mr. Groton, you may step down, and will be recalled later for that phase of your cross-examination. Who’s your next witness?”
Burger, a sudden note of triumph in his voice, called the other officer who had been in the car that had taken Mason, the defendant, Josephine Kempton, and Della Street to police headquarters. He described how the three had been seated in the back seat, the fact that he had turned and kept his eye on them most of the time.
“After you arrived at police headquarters, what was done with the car?” Burger asked.
“It was put back into service.”
“Who occupied that car?”
“My partner and I.”
“And what time did you go off duty?”
“At four o’clock in the morning.”
“What was done then?”
“I... well, I realized that I hadn’t checked the cushions on the back seat, something that we ordinarily do when we have suspects in the car who are not handcuffed. So my partner and I raised the back seat, and as we did so we found a document underneath the cushions of the back seat.”
“Generally, what was that document?”
“It was a cashier’s check for twenty-five thousand dollars that was payable to Benjamin Addicks, and it had on the back of the check an endorsement ‘Pay to the order of Josephine Kempton,’ and beneath that was a signature purporting to be that of Benjamin Addicks.”
“Did you make some identifying mark upon that check?”
“I did. Yes, sir.”
“What did you do?”
“I put my initials in pencil on the upper left-hand corner on the back of the check.”
“Would you know that cashier’s check if you saw it again?”
“I would. Yes, sir.”
“I show you a check and ask you if this is it.”
“That is it.”
“I ask that it be introduced in evidence,” Burger said.
“No objections,” Mason said promptly, forestalling any attempt on Etna’s part to interpose a technical objection.
Burger then called a handwriting expert who stated that the signature of Benjamin Addicks on the back of the check was a palpable forgery, that an attempt had been made to follow the general characteristics of Addicks’ signature, but it was quite apparent that the signature was a forgery.
“Cross-examine,” Burger said.
Mason said, “That cashier’s check was given you by the district attorney?”
“Yes, sir.”
“And the district attorney also gave you certain samples of Addicks’ handwriting, certain exemplars that were concededly in his handwriting?”
“Yes, sir.”
“What else did the district attorney give you?”
“What do you mean?”
“He gave you some samples of the defendant’s handwriting, didn’t he?”
“Well, yes.”
“And he told you that he wanted you to see if you could detect characteristics in the signature, which you have pronounced a forgery, which would show that it had been made by the defendant?”
“Well, not in exactly those words, but he did give me some samples of the defendant’s handwriting.”
“And did he tell you for what purpose those were given to you?”
“I believe he did generally.”
“And what was that purpose?”
“About what you have stated, Mr. Mason.”
“Now then,” Mason said, “you had to report to the district attorney that the defendant did not make that forgery, that she was not the one who had forged the signature of Benjamin Addicks, didn’t you?”
“Well, no, sir. I told the district attorney that there wasn’t enough evidence to tell; that I could be positive that it was not a signature of Benjamin Addicks, but that I felt certain it was a tracery.”
“What do you mean by a tracery?”
“Someone had held a genuine signature of Benjamin Addicks against a source of strong light, perhaps a ground glass illuminated with a powerful electric bulb, or perhaps just a common, ordinary window, then the cashier’s check had been placed over that signature so that the signature of Benjamin Addicks came through from the other side, and the forger had traced that signature.”
“How could you tell it was a tracery?”
“It’s a very easy distinction to make, Mr. Mason. A person signing his name uses firm, fast strokes. The lines are quick, so that any small tremor is spread over quite a length of line.