"What did you do?"
"I tried the door of the store.It was locked. There was a spring lock on the inside, but I sensed somethingwas wrong and I started for a telephone. I wanted to get there as fast as Icould and notify the police."
"You were familiar with theneighbourhood?"
"Yes, sir."
"Did you know where the nearesttelephone was located?"
"Well now, I'm not certain thatit was the nearest telephone but I knew there was a telephone booth at aservice station about three blocks down the street, so I started running."
"How fast were yourunning?"
The witness grinned. "As fastas I could at the start, but I slowed down pretty quick. I used to do somesprinting but I found out I was pretty badly out of shape. I slowed down to ajog-trot after a couple of blocks and then I heard the siren and saw the redlight of this police car coming, so I ran out in the middle of the street,waved my hands and flagged it down."
"All right, we'll pass up whathappened after that for the moment," Burger said, "and go on to whathappened later on."
"Well, you mean about thesketch?"
"Yes."
"Well, a man whose name wasParley Fulton came to call on me. He had a sketch, a pencil sketch, and heshowed it to me and asked me if that was the man I had seen … Well now, waita minute. There was some conversation before that. First he asked me generallyto describe the man I'd seen. He told me he was a private detective and showedme his credentials, and then he showed me this sketch and asked me if thatwasn't a picture of the man I had seen and if the physical description wasn't amatch."
"What did you tell him?"
"I looked at the sketch andtold him no, that wasn't the man."
"Then what happened?"
"Well, he became ratherinsistent. He told me that there was no question about it, that was the manthat the night watchman had said it was a perfect likeness."
"Then what happened?"
"Well, I told him I didn'tthink so, but I got worrying about it, thinking about it. Frankly it botheredme a lot. I'd been held up before and I didn't want -"
"Now, never mind that. Nevermind your thoughts or your background," Hamilton Burger interrupted."Just what did you do?"
"Well, I went to the office ofPaul Drake, the detective who employed Parley Fulton, and I asked him if Icould see that sketch again. Well, he put .through a telephone call to Mr Masonand asked him -"
"Now, just a minute,"Hamilton Burger interrupted, "when you say Mr Mason, you mean Mr PerryMason, the attorney representing the defence in this case?"
"That's the one. Yes,sir."
"And what happened?"
"Well, he called Mr Mason, andMason had us come down to his office and when we got down there Mason talkedwith me himself."
"And what was the tenor ofMason's conversation?"
"Objected to as calling for aconclusion of the witness," Mason said.
"Sustained," Judge Saxtonsnapped.
"Well, what did Mason say toyou?"
"Well, I can't remember allthat he said, but I remember he showed me the picture and I told him that theman I had seen was older and heavier and taller, and he told me that experienceshowed that under such circumstances witnesses almost invariably described theman as being older and heavier and taller and more powerfully built than theactual criminal."
"In other words, he was tryingto get you to identify this sketch?"
"Just a moment, YourHonour," Mason said. "I object to the question as leading andsuggestive, and calling for a conclusion of the witness."
"Sustained," Judge Saxtonsaid. "Mr District Attorney, in a matter of this importance kindly refrainfrom asking leading questions."
"Well, I think it was obviouswhat was happening," Hamilton Burger said. "I was simply trying tosummarize the situation."
"Just let the evidence come inby question and answer," Judge Saxton said, "and there will be noneed to summarize the situation."
"At any time did Mr Mason askyou to identify this sketch?"
"Well, I can't remember exactlythat he said those exact words. I know what he was trying to get me to do, but -"
"Move to strike out the answeras not being responsive to the question," Mason interposed.
"Sustained. Motiongranted."
"Did Mi Mason at any time askyou to identify this sketch?"
"I thought he did. I wascertain that's what he was trying to get me to do."
"Move to strike out the answeras not being responsive and being a conclusion of the witness," Masonsaid.
"Motion granted."
"Well," Hamilton Burgersaid, "getting back to your own mind now. Did your conversation with Masonraise any doubt in your mind as to the identity of the man you had seen?"
"It did."
"In what way?"
"Well, I thought I knew whatthe man looked like pretty well, but after I'd seen that sketch half a dozentimes and after they'd talked with me about it, I began to get a littledubious."
"Did you say anything to MrMason which indicated such was the case?"
"I told him that there wassomething wrong with the picture of the fellow's mouth but the eyes werebeginning to look a little familiar. They looked like somebody I had seensomewhere."
"And what did Mr Mason say withreference, to that statement?"
"He seemed quitegratified."
"Never mind what heseemed" Hamilton Burger said. "I'm asking you what he said."
"Well, he told me that it wasvery important to get the right man and that I was to search my recollectionand do the best I could."
Hamilton Burger looked at PerryMason. "We can stipulate that that sketch was one of Collister Gideon, MrMason?"
"We can stipulate nothing ofthe sort," Mason said. "If you want to prove your case, go ahead andprove it."
"If I have to, I can put theartist on the stand and show that he made the sketch from a picture ofCollister Gideon and that in doing so he was acting under instructions."
"And how are you going to showthat was the same sketch that was exhibited to his witness?"
"Oh," Hamilton Burger saidirritably, "if you want to drag this thing out in a last-ditch fight, goahead. Actually I have a photographic copy of the original sketch made by theartist in my office."
"That's not the one that wasshown to the witness here," Mason said.
Judge Saxton said, "Well, I canappreciate, in a matter of this importance, counsel wants to protect hisrights. Why don't you excuse this witness, get the artist to produce a copy ofthe sketch and bring it here this afternoon?"
"I'll do that," HamiltonBurger said, "but I'd like to tie up the testimony of the witness."
He turned to Kearny "Did yousubsequently see a photograph of Collister Gideon?"
"Yes, sir."
"And was this sketch that MrMason's detective, Parley Fulton, showed you a likeness of CollisterGideon?"
"Just a moment," Masonsaid. "Let's get this thing in its proper sequence. That question callsfor a conclusion of the witness, and furthermore you can't ask that questionunless you can first show how he knows the picture he saw was that of CollisterGideon. If his knowledge was based on hearsay statements, you cannot connectthe picture up in that way"
Hamilton Burger made a gesture ofsurrender. "All right," he said, "all right, all right. If theCourt please, I ask to withdraw this witness until this afternoon andsubstitute Lieutenant Tragg."
"Just a moment," JudgeSaxton said. "The Court would like to ask this witness a fewquestions."
Kearny looked up at Judge Saxton.
"You were interrogated by thepolice about what you had seen on the night of the third and the early morningof the fourth?"
"Yes, sir."
"And I suppose that by the timethe morning papers came out you knew the nature of the crime that had beencommitted?"
"Yes, Your Honour."
"And you read thosepapers?"
"Yes, sir."
"In other words," JudgeSaxton said, "you didn't get very much sleep that night."
"I didn't get to bed untilabout three-thirty"
"And then this detective showedyou this picture?"
"Yes, sir."
"Did he say anything about thepicture when he showed it to you?"