"[PHONE RINGING]" "Clayton Beauty Salon." "Why, yes, Mrs. Gale." "Hair set and manicure?" "Well, Laura will be free at 1:30." "Good, I'll put you down." "Thank you." "Mrs. Bradford." " Yes, I'm Mrs. Bradford." " I'm Mrs. Bradford." "Well, there-- There seem to be two of us." "Which Mrs. Bradford is next?" "Mrs. Joseph Bradford." " Oh, that's me." " Well, then I'm next." "Mrs. Joseph Bradford?" "Why, yes." "Did you ever hear of anything like this?" "It's a small world, but" "Yes," "I do have the name down here twice." "I took one off though, thinking it must be a duplication." "[PHONE RINGS]" "Excuse me." "You ladies work this out between you." "Toss a coin or something." "Well, I" "I can't get over the coincidence." "Not that Bradford is such an unusual name but" "It is curious, isn't it?" "Do you live in Beverly Hills?" "Why, yes, on North Marquette Drive." "Really, this is" "What address on North Marquette?" "741." "You couldn't possibly" "Well, I've lived there with my husband for over a year now." "Look, I even have my key with my name and address engraved on it." "BRADFORD:" "Here are the keys to my boat, Harper." "I want her ready to go by 4." "Here's a list of supplies I'll need." "You know, Joe, I still think you ought to go by car." "That's an important deal." "If you're not in San Diego by Monday" "I certainly won't make it if you keep on yakking." " You're the boss." "BRADFORD:" "How right you are." "[PHONE RINGING]" "Get it, will you?" "If it's for me, I've gone." "You don't know where." "Yes?" "No, this is Jack Harper." "Hold on just a minute, I'll see if he's still here." "It's your wife." "I'm not here." "It sounds like she's crying." "Look, honey, I'm up to my ears in work." "Can't you call back later?" "Are you sure?" "Now wait a minute, don't go all to pieces." "We can discuss this matter when" "I'm not going into it on the phone and that's final." "All right, all right." "I'll meet you at Crane's Coffee Shop at 5:00." "Well, what are you waiting for?" "You just told your wife you'd meet her at 5:00." "Never mind what I told her." "She's your wife, Joe." "That's right, Harper, she's my wife." "And don't you ever forget it." "Joe." "[KNOCKING]" "Joe." "Joe?" "Where is he, Larry?" "Where is he?" " You mean, Joe?" " Yes." "I don't know." "I've been out on the field." "There was nobody here in the office when I got back." "I waited at the coffee shop for hours for him, but he didn't come." "He didn't come, Larry, and he promised me he would." "I'm afraid to go back home." "She has a key to the house." "Who?" "Who's she?" "A woman." "She told me she's married to Joe, but she's lying." " Martha." "Martha, now, stop it." "Stop it." " I know she's lying." "Come on." "Come on, now, you'd better sit down." "I'm sorry." "I must've sounded hysterical." "But you see, I ran into this woman at the beauty parlour." "She claimed she was married to Joe." "She even has a key to the house." " That's crazy." " Well, I thought so too." "I called Joe and he told me he'd meet me at Crane's at 5:00, but he didn't show up." "I've called here any number of times but there was no answer." " Wasn't Jack Harper around?" " No." "Oh, Larry, what should I do?" "I think you should go home, and get a good night's sleep." "You make me feel like I'm making a big fuss over nothing." "I don't think that at all." "In fact, if Joe doesn't shown up by morning," "I feel you ought to see a lawyer." "A lawyer?" "If there's truth in this woman's claims, you're gonna need one." "That's ridiculous." "Joe has his faults but I'm sure bigamy isn't one of them." "I can dream, can't I?" "You always say the right thing, don't you?" "I'm much better now." "Would you take me home?" "[DOOR CLOSES]" "Who's there?" "Joe, is that you?" "MARTHA:" "Then I found mud tracks of a woman's shoe across the entry hall." "Mr. Mason, I've got to find my husband." "I must speak to him." "I can't endure this uncertainty any longer." " What's his office number?" " Elwood 34271." "But he isn't there." "I've already called this morning." " Who's his second in command?" " Jack Harper." "Mr. Bradford, please." "Then let me speak to Mr. Harper." "My name is Mason." "MASON:" "Perry Mason." " Oh, yes." "What can I do for you?" "Mrs. Bradford's attorney?" "Since when?" "This morning." "It's very important that I get in touch with him." "Can you tell me where to reach him?" "Why, yes." "He drove up to Skinner Hills yesterday." "That's about ten miles north of Fillmore." "Skinner Hills." "Thank you." "We'll drive up there." "MASON:" "What's the idea?" "Excuse me." "I make a little mistake." " That thing loaded?" " Sure." "But you don't got to worry." "I think you're somebody else." "Excuse me, I am Nikolides." "Who are you?" "My name is Mason." "Can you tell me where I can find Mr. Joseph Bradford?" "Joe Bradford?" "You crazy or something?" "No, I just want to see Mr. Bradford." "That Bradford." "He come here, Nikolides shoot him." "Dead." "Mind if we look around a little?" "What's the matter?" "You think I lie?" "Now, take it easy." "All right." "Come on." "I think you'd better go home now." "Hey." "Hey, where do you think you're pointing that gun, you fool?" "Martha, what are you doing here?" "Jack Harper told us Joe drove up here yesterday." "Harper knows better." "Joe wouldn't come near this place." "You bet he don't come near here." "Nikolides see to that personal." "Hey, Nik, I thought I saw a stray lamb over in the arroyo." " Huh?" "Which way?" " Oh, back there, about a mile." "Oh, excuse me, I'll go take care." "He won't bother you anymore." "MARTHA:" "Larry, this is Mr. Mason." "Mr. Sands is a friend I told you about." "He works for my husband as a surveyor." "I know your reputation, Mr. Mason." "I'm glad Martha took my advice." "Tell me, Mr. Sands." "What does this Nikolides have against Bradford?" "Well, this was all his property." "Bradford bought it for a song." "Then we struck oil back in the hills." "When we start pumping next month, he's gonna have to move his sheep out of here." "And, of course, Jack Harper knew all this." "Naturally." "Thanks." "MASON:" "Why did you send us on that wild-goose chase to Skinner Hills?" "[CHUCKLES]" "Funny, Mr. Harper?" "Only in a gruesome sort of way." "Did you run into Nikolides?" "That wasn't funny either." "Now, why did you tell me Bradford went out there?" "Because those were my instructions." "He's got a big deal in San Diego, and didn't want anyone to know where he was headed." "Do you realise his wife is worried sick?" "Why?" "It seems there's another Mrs. Bradford on the horizon." "You mean Joe and Martha might not be legally married?" "That's right." "Why didn't you say that in the first place?" " I didn't know you cared." " What kind of a crack is that?" " Where can I find Bradford?" " You can't." "He left yesterday for San Diego on the Mary Belle." " That the name of a boat?" " It is." "Where does he keep her?" "At a place called La Cuesta in the harbour basin." "You folks aim to do a little fishing?" "If you are, well, Captain Noble is your man." "Ever hear of a boat named the Mary Belle, captain?" "Oh, sure." "It belongs to Mr. Bradford." "She's anchored out there in the basin." "You can't see it from here." "Could you take us out there?" "Oh, that I can, mate." "That I can." "Come right this way." "Hurry in." "Now, don't be shy, miss." "I know every shoal in this channel." "Now, sit down." "Cut that line." "NOBLE:" "Ahoy, the Mary Belle." "Anybody aboard?" "Duck your head." "You think it's Bradford?" "Judging from his wife's description." "Notice anything special about that?" "The candle?" "It's crooked." "But it didn't burn crooked." "Knocked over in a scuffle?" "I don't know, Della." "Only one thing I'm sure of:" "We'd better phone the police." "MARTHA:" "Dead." "Murdered, to be exact." "Oh, I" "I don't believe it." "It's not true." "You know better." "You were on that boat last night." "What did you say?" "I was only giving you a sample of the kind of talk you'll get from the police." "They'll arrive any moment." "That woman, the one who claimed to be his legal wife, you said she was here last night?" " I thought she was." " What time was this?" "Somewhere around" "[DOORBELL RINGS]" "I'll get it." " Well, hello, lieutenant." " What's the big idea, Mason?" "You know better than to leave the scene before the police arrive." "I had to come ashore to phone you." "Offer your services to the widow?" " Mrs. Bradford?" " Yes." "I'm Lieutenant Tragg, Homicide." "We're investigating a murder." "Murder, lieutenant?" "Has there been an inquest?" "In such a short time?" "Don't be funny." "Well, surely you have something to back your theory." "What about the autopsy?" "I don't need an autopsy to tag this one." "It screams murder." "When it stops screaming and starts following the rules of evidence," "I'll start listening." "My, we're very legal this morning." "I'm sure you're as anxious as we are to clear up the mystery of your husband's death." " Of course." " Then you won't mind coming down to headquarters and making a voluntary statement." "I'll meet you there in exactly one hour." " If you hold her any longer" " Yes, I know, I know." "Guess I'll be asking for trouble." "Good afternoon." "Did you locate the other Mrs. Bradford?" "PAUL:" "No, not yet." "But she's definitely not a mirage." ""Bradford, Mrs. Joseph." "Maiden name, Rita Wassell." "Married, Lake Charles, Louisiana, 1945." "Divorced, Calexico, 1948."" " That's good news for our client." " It is if that divorce holds up." "Here's a picture of her." "It ran in the local society section just before the divorce." "MASON:" "Not bad." " The understatement of the year." "Oh, I turned on the charm and talked to Bradford's secretary." "It appears the boss and his wife don't get along too well." " Gossip." " Could be." "This Rita Bradford fascinates me." "Imagine, went to the current wife and making all these wild claims." "Why?" "If we knew that, we'd be halfway home." "[PHONE BUZZES]" "Yes, Gertie." "Miss Bradford?" "I'll see her in a moment." "Have her wait in Della's office, will you?" "Thanks." "Okay?" "Well, don't I get to meet the femme fatale?" "On your way, boy." "MASON:" "Miss Bradford?" "Yes." "Come in, please." "I'm sorry to have kept you waiting." " This is my secretary, Miss Street." "RITA:" "How do you do?" "Won't you sit down?" "Miss Bradford, I've been trying every way possible to find you, and here you walk right into my office." "I couldn't be more surprised." "Surprised, Mr. Mason?" "Then how do you account for this?" "RITA:" "Who told them you were representing me?" "I'm representing the present Mrs. Bradford." "I am the present Mrs. Bradford." "When was the last time you saw your husband?" "Last night." " Where?" " Aboard his boat, the Mary Belle." " Get Burger." " Mr. Mason, don't you think you'd better hear the rest of my story?" "Yes, I do, but for your own protection," "I suggest you tell the district attorney first." "RITA:" "The boat gave a lurch as I started down the companionway and I had to stop a minute to get my balance." "I called to him again and I thought I heard him groan." "That's when I saw his face." "You saw his face?" "Yes." "He was slumped against the door at the front of the cabin." "According to your statement and our subsequent photographs, the body was lying face down with its head toward the companionway." "That's not true." "So you just told it." "Well, if you don't believe me, there's no point in my going on." "I don't think there is, Mrs. Bradford, for the moment." "I'll see you to the elevator." "I'll be right back." "I don't understand, Mr. Mason." "Why wouldn't he believe me?" "Well, he's naturally sceptical." "With murder, you have to be." " Where can I reach you?" " I'm staying at the Monica-Wilshire under my maiden name, Rita Wassell." "I don't wanna move back to the house, now that" "Mr. Mason, I feel so lost." "I don't know where to go, what to do." "I'll be in touch with you." "Please don't forget." "Well, I did my best, Hamilton." "Now, when are you gonna release Martha Bradford?" "I'm sorry, Perry." "We're not gonna release her." "You haven't one shred of evidence against her." "My client wasn't aboard the Mary Belle." "Is that what she told you?" "MASON:" "What's that?" " Exhibit A." "Shoe, with blood traces, property of your client." "It's Bradford's blood type too." "In short, we're holding Martha Bradford for murder." "Sure you don't want to eat, Mr. Mason?" " No, thanks." " It's good." "I'll take your word for it." "Now, what about the Mary Belle?" "It's funny you should ask that." "Hey, what are you guys sitting around for?" "You got no work to do?" "What I pay you for, huh?" "Got to watch them every second, Mr. Mason." "Besides, it's better we got no witnesses." "You know what I like about you, Nikolides?" "Sure." "I'm peasant." "Eat big, hate big." "You're no more a peasant than I am." "It's just an act." "That gun you pretended you were gonna use, all those threats." "You know, you're a pretty good actor." "You understand my character." " We can do business." " Can we?" "Sure." "What if I tell you I was on Joe Bradford's boat last night?" " That makes three so far." " Mm-hm." "What if I tell you Jack Harper is there too?" " Getting quite crowded." " Is a fact." "Harper and Bradford have fight." " About what?" " Mrs. Bradford." "So Harper kill husband, marry widow." "Make sense?" "Where do you fit into all this?" " I don't fit." "You fit." " Oh?" "Bradford steal oil rights from me." "You prove contract we make no good." "How do I prove that?" "What one lawyer gives, other lawyer can take away." "Old Greek proverb." "And in return?" "I fix up alibi for your client." "I say I see Harper kill Bradford." "Won't work." "We need a tougher suspect." "One who hates everybody." "Hmm." "It's a good idea." "Who you got in mind?" "You." "Hey, what's the matter?" "You crazy or something?" "Hey, Mr. Mason." "I make a big joke." "I don't mean nothing." "Mister" "How do you like that?" "All them brains and no talent." "Junior, come on." "Let go." "Good boy." "LARRY:" "Who's there?" "What are you doing here, Larry?" "What's the idea?" "I asked you a question." "I came to look and see if there's something that would help Martha." "Great time to play detective." "Police have been through here with a fine-toothed comb." "What about you?" "I just came to get some of my gear." "Oh, yes." "I forgot." "You were always the perennial weekend visitor." "Sore because you were never invited?" "Look, Harper, all this wasted time fighting." "There must be something we can do." "Don't you realise she may go to the gas chamber?" "Of course, I realise it." "You think it's easy for me?" "Oh, I know you're very fond of her, and she thinks the world of you, but it's a great deal more than that with us." "Has been for some time." "You and Martha?" "Couldn't you tell?" "No, you covered it up very well." "But suddenly something makes a lot of sense to me." "Where were you when Joe was murdered?" "I could say it's none of your business." "But if you wanna get technical, I put supplies in the boat, then headed back for town." "Used my credit card to buy gas at Benson Beach and was miles away when Joe Bradford was murdered." "When you rig an alibi, you really rig it, don't you?" "As long as we're pointing fingers, where's your alibi?" "That's right, I don't have one." "Just one other thing now, Harper." "Does Martha still want you?" "We still want each other." "More than anything else." "I'm ready." "I'm not." "I can't think of a thing." "I think a night's sleep might help." "It won't hurt." "What about you?" "Oh, I just have a few pages to type up." "It shouldn't take me over ten or 15 minutes." "All right, see you in the morning." "Oh, Mr. Mason." " I was afraid I might miss you." " You didn't." "I've got to talk to you." "It's getting pretty late, Mr. Sands." "Couldn't it wait till tomorrow morning?" "I don't think so." "You see, I killed Joe Bradford." "Now, you still wanna wait till tomorrow morning?" "That's very interesting." "You killed Joseph Bradford at 11:00 at night." "It could've been a little closer to midnight." "The man outweighed you 50 pounds, but he never lifted a finger to try to stop you." "He didn't have a chance." "Before he could move, I hit him with a rock I picked up on the beach." "Go on." "Well, he fell against the table and went down." "And that's when the lamp chimney broke." " What lamp chimney?" " Well, the one that held the candle." "Must've been about-- Oh, about so long." "The base was made of brass, I think." "Must have" "Never mind about that." "Tell me about the candle." "Well, it went out when the lamp chimney broke and then I re-lit it." "Did you notice anything peculiar about the way the candle was set into the base?" "No." "It wasn't crooked?" "Oh, well, now that I think of it" "It was." "Yes." "Very interesting." "You were never anywhere near that boat." "Wait a minute." "In the first place, Joseph Bradford was murdered at about 5:00 in the afternoon, not 11 at night." "And in the second place, the murder weapon was not a rock." "Well, I just made a mistake." "You made several mistakes." "You can go, Mr. Sands." "Thank you very much." "Get me Perry Mason." "BURGER:" "You were the police officer in charge of the scene of this homicide, Lieutenant Tragg?" "TRAGG:" "Yes, I was." "Would you tell us, in your words, what you saw when you examined the cabin of the yacht, Mary Belle." "Well, the body of Joseph Bradford was lying face down on the starboard side of the cabin with the head toward the companionway." "And he had been hit once on top of the head." "I show you now this small fire axe." "Can I ask if you can identify it for us, please?" "Yes, that was affixed to the bulkhead of the cabin of the Mary Belle." "It was checked out by the police laboratory?" "TRAGG:" "Yes." "There were traces of the victim's hair and blood adhering to the flat side." "BURGER:" "I ask that this be marked Exhibit 1 and entered in evidence as the murder weapon." "Were there any fingerprints, lieutenant?" "No identifiable prints, Your Honour." "I now show you this object and ask if you can identify it." "Yes, that's the candle that was used to light the cabin of the Mary Belle the night of the murder." "It was found to bear certain fingerprints?" "The only fingerprints on it were those of the defendant, Martha Bradford." "Is there any possible explanation for those fingerprints, except that the defendant was actually on that boat?" "Your Honour." "My client has been aboard her husband's boat on numerous occasions." "Her fingerprints are undoubtedly all over it." "But that doesn't prove she was there the night of the murder." "Does the prosecution intend to develop this any further?" "Not at this time, Your Honour." "Then we'll set this exhibit aside for the time being." "BURGER:" "Your witness, Mr. Mason." "May I?" "Your Honour?" "Lieutenant Tragg, would you say that, that candle is crooked or rather that it is leaning at an acute angle?" "Obviously." "Was it in the same condition when you found it aboard the Mary Belle?" " As far as I can tell." " Now, look at it closely." "You will see that the candle has been deliberately set in wax at that angle." "TRAGG:" "That's right." "Now examine the wick." " Would you say it has burned evenly?" " Yes." "Lieutenant Tragg, you stated that the fingerprints on that candle prove that the defendant and no one else could've handled it." "Oh, someone else may have handled it previously, wearing gloves." "However, it still follows that the defendant must've placed the candle in the holder in this manner." "Undoubtedly." "Thank you, lieutenant." "That is all." "BURGER:" "Your name is Rita Bradford." " Yes." "BURGER:" "Would you speak a little louder, please?" "I realise this is a great strain for you, I'll try to be as brief as possible." "Thank you." "When did you first meet the defendant, Mrs. Bradford?" "At the Clayton Beauty Shop." "There seemed to be a mix-up because of our" "Having the same name." "There was actually more to it than just the similarity of names, wasn't there?" "Well, it seemed that we were married to the same man." "In short, one of you was either lying or seriously deluded." "RITA:" "Yes." "BURGER:" "You now realise, don't you, that Mr. Bradford divorced you over a year ago?" "I realise that now, yes." "Why didn't you realise it then?" "Because I had no memory of what happened during that period." "Well, what was your last memory before the encounter with the other Mrs. Bradford in the beauty shop?" "I" "I'd had an argument with my husband." "I told him I was leaving him for good." "And then I" "I remember getting on the train for New York, but that's all I do remember." "I don't know where or when I got off." "But that's over two years ago, Mrs. Bradford." "Don't you have you any recollection to cover all that time?" "Absolutely none." "The first thing I can recall after that was finding myself on Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills." "BURGER:" "On the 14th day of this month?" "Yes." "I can't even say it was like a bad dream, it wasn't." "I just kept thinking, "What do I wanna do today?"" "And then the ridiculous thought, "I" " I must have my hair set."" " So you went to the beauty shop?" " Yes." "BURGER:" "And what did you do after you met the new Mrs. Bradford at the beauty shop?" "Well, naturally, I was terribly upset." "I didn't know what to do." "And then I realised the logical thing to do would be to call my husband at his office." " And?" " I did, but he had left." "You see, I was afraid to go home." "She had a key." "You subsequently changed your mind on that subject, didn't you?" "Yes." "I did." "Would you please tell us what happened?" "Well, the house was dark when I arrived." "I unlocked the front door and went in." "BURGER:" "Go on." "And then I heard the defendant's voice call out, "Joe, is that you?"" "And then she came down the stairs to the landing and I could see she was holding a revolver." "In other words, if it had been Mr. Bradford, she would've met him with a revolver." "Your Honour, I object to this unwarranted conclusion." "BURGER:" "I'll withdraw the last question." "I believe the conclusion is obvious." "What happened next?" "She dressed and left the house." " What time was it?" " Oh, about 10 a little after." "And then" " Then I remembered about Joe's boat, the Mary Belle." "You went out there?" "He was dead when I arrived." "Thank you." "Your witness, Mr. Mason." "Mrs. Bradford, do you recall a statement you made in the district-attorney's office in the presence of Mr. Burger and myself?" "What was that, Mr. Mason?" "You said, I believe, that you were aboard the Mary Belle at 11:00 on the night of the murder." "Yes." "Did you see Mr. Bradford?" "He was dead." "Slumped against the door at the front of the cabin." "Then the body was not lying face down?" "No, it was not." "Thank you, Mrs. Bradford, that's all." "You may step down, please." "Your Honour, at this time," "I had intended to call George Nikolides, whose testimony, I feel, is vital to my case." "However, Mr. Nikolides has mysteriously disappeared." "JUDGE:" "Do you think you can have him here by 10:00 tomorrow morning?" "I can certainly try, Your Honour." "Very well." "This court stands adjourned till 10:00 tomorrow morning." "And how's our friend?" "DELLA:" "He looks relaxed enough." "Why don't we follow his example?" "Here." " Duck." " Ooh." "Thank you." "[BOAT CREAKING]" "[THUDS]" "Not yet." "[BOAT CREAKING]" " You all right?" " Yeah." "My watch must've stopped." "What time is it?" "DELLA:" "Three-thirty." " Look." "Now, Mr. Harper, you're on record as saying that you prepared the Mary Belle for sailing and met Mr. Bradford there at 3:30 on the afternoon of the murder." " Is that correct?" " That's correct." "I show you two invoices on the Marine supply store." "Do these cover what you purchased and put onboard?" " Yes." " I noticed an item on this one:" ""One hurricane lamp." Would you explain that item, please?" "Well, Joe was going to sail down to San Diego." "We discovered that there was a short in the electrical system." "I tried to argue Joe out of going but he seemed to feel he could make it under sail." "You mean the engine didn't work?" "No, sir, neither did the lights." "That's why I had to rush back and buy the candles and the lamp." "Had candles ever been used on the boat before?" "Not that I know of." "Then Martha Bradford's fingerprints could not have been on that candle in evidence unless she was onboard the Mary Belle, the night of the murder." "Objection." "Counsel is leading the witness." "BURGER:" "I submit this is a hostile witness." "I have a right to ask leading questions." "Would you describe yourself as a hostile witness, Mr. Harper?" "I'm not sure I know what that means." "Well, did you come here against your will, merely to satisfy your legal obligation to appear?" "Yes, that's correct." "Then you may continue on that basis, Mr. Burger, but with due caution." "Thank you, Your Honour." "One more question, Mr. Harper." "Were you on terms of affection with the defendant, Martha Bradford?" "Do I have to answer that?" "Unless you feel it would tend to incriminate you." "JACK:" "I have the greatest affection and respect for her." "Mm-hm." "Does she reciprocate those feelings?" "I can't answer for her." "Well, isn't it true that her husband exhibited jealousy of you on a number of occasions?" "Well, he" "He was jealous by nature." "His fears were groundless." "Apparently, all his fears weren't groundless." "He was murdered." "Isn't it a fact that Martha Bradford wanted to get rid of him in order to marry you, and that his death was the only way this could be accomplished?" "You're twisting facts to make them mean something else." "Your witness, Mr. Mason." "Thank you." "Mr. Harper, did you ever urge Martha Bradford to seek a divorce?" "I did." "Joe was constantly mistreating her." "And what was her reaction to your advice?" "JACK:" "Well, she said she'd made a bargain." "She was gonna stick to it." "Now, Mr. Harper, did Martha Bradford ever intimate to you in any way that she would marry you in the event of her husband's death?" "Of course not." "I believe you testified that you bought a dozen candles like this for Mr. Bradford and brought them to his boat." "Yes, that's right." "I took a couple out of the box, put one in the lamp and the rest in the drawer." "The one you put in this lamp, was it straight?" "Yes, naturally." "Then wouldn't you say that your fingerprints as well as those of the defendant should've been on this candle?" "Yeah, I suppose so." "Thank you, Mr. Harper." "I believe that's all." "MASON:" "You are an expert on tides and navigation, Captain Noble?" "Well, since I swore to tell the truth," "I gotta admit I know more about these waters than anybody." "MASON:" "And where were you on the morning of the 15th around 2:00, the morning after the murder?" "Well, where I always am, looking out that ocean, which just might sound silly to you." "But to me, that's the most beautiful sight in the whole world." "As I see it, you know, a man, he could always lose some sleep." "Look out there in that water and see those beautiful sailing ships just" "Of course." "Now, speaking of sailing, did you see the Mary Belle that morning?" "Yeah, but of course she was grounded." "It always happens at low tide." "That old channel ain't been dredged in weeks." " Now, I told them fellas" " Captain, when you say she was grounded, you mean she had settled evenly in the mud?" "No, course not." "Course not." "The Mary Belle's got a keel, she couldn't settle evenly." "Oh, she was listing heavily to starboard." "MASON:" "Well, how much of a list would you say there was on that particular morning?" "About 18, 20 degrees." "I see." "With Your Honour's permission, I should like to ask the witness to step down to the prosecutor's table so that he might examine this model more clearly." " Very well, Mr. Mason." " Thank you." " May I?" " Of course." "Captain?" "Now, captain, you were testifying about the Mary Belle being grounded." "In other words, as the water receded, she tilted in this manner, 18 or 20 degrees." "Is that correct?" "Aye." "Now, if the body were leaning against here, what would happen if she listed?" "It would wind up on the starboard side." " Like this?" "NOBLE:" "Sure, with an 18-degree list, it couldn't keep from rolling." "Now, my client's fingerprints were found on this candle, so we must assume that the district attorney is right when he maintained that Martha Bradford had handled it on the night of the murder and that she was aboard the Mary Belle." " Aye." " The question is:" "When was she aboard?" "The prosecution contends, she was there around 5:00 in the evening, the time established for Bradford's murder." " Well, you couldn't prove that by me." " Perhaps I can, captain." "Now, how much would you say this candle is tilted?" "About 18 degrees." "About the same amount the Mary Belle was tilted at low tide?" "Aye." "From your experience with sailing craft, could you give us any reason for someone lighting and extinguishing a candle in this position?" "Well, I would say whoever lit that candle set it up crooked, and then put it out." "And he did it while the vessel was listing at low tide." "That's the only way they could get it to burn straight." "When was low tide on that particular day?" "Hmm." "The first low tide was at 1:17 in the morning." "More than eight hours after the murder." "Now, can you imagine anyone being cooped up in a small cabin with a corpse for more than eight hours?" "Does that make sense to you?" "Oh, come now, Mason." "You're not gonna ask this court to believe that the captain is also an expert on abnormal psychology." "Mr. Burger, this hardly calls for an expert psychologist." "Common sense can give us the answer." "However, I'll withdraw the question." "Thank you, captain, that's all." "You're excused, captain." "Mr. Sands, were you ever aboard Bradford's yacht?" "Just once." "That was the night you talked with Jack Harper," " the night you came to my office?" " Yes, sir, that's right." "What was the subject of your conversation with Mr. Harper?" "Well..." "Martha." "How to clear her of the murder." "MASON:" "Did Mr. Harper offer any suggestions?" "No." "So you decided to confess to protect the woman you loved?" "Yes, but it didn't work out that way." "MASON:" "Why?" "Because I made several mistakes." "All that had been released to the newspapers was that Bradford had been killed by a blow on the head." "So when Mr. Burger started pressing me for details," "I ran into a little trouble." "Isn't that exactly what you planned?" "Wait, I don't understand." "When you talked to Jack Harper that night you learned two things:" "One, he had an alibi." "Two, Martha Bradford was in love with him." "As a matter of fact, she admitted as much to you when you saw her at the jail." " She admitted a lot more." " Yes, she did." "That's was why you thought up that phoney confession." "It made Mrs. Bradford look even more guilty." "That wasn't my fault." "Didn't you volunteer that you lit that candle yourself and placed it in the hurricane lamp?" "It proves I was trying to help." "I had no way of knowing the candle was crooked." "MASON:" "Mr. Sands, you had no way of knowing there was a candle, crooked or otherwise." "What?" "That information was never released to the press or anyone else." "Mr. Harper testified he brought those candles aboard the afternoon of the murder." "But you knew all about them." "Now, how?" "It was just a guess." "And your description of the hurricane lamp, was that just a guess too?" "Would you have us believe that you gave a perfect description of that lamp without ever having seen it?" "Well, it was like this:" "Like what, Mr. Sands?" " Well, I" " Go on, tell us, Mr. Sands." "Tell us how you went out to the Mary Belle." "Tell us about your quarrel with Joe Bradford over the defendant." "Tell us how you grabbed the fire axe and hit him." "Hit him in such a manner that he slumped down against the forward compartment." "Go on, Mr. Sands, tell us." "All right." "All right, Mr. Mason." "I killed him." "I did it because I loved Martha." "I" "It's a laugh." "This is funny." "I loved Martha and she loved Harper." "[LARRY CHUCKLES]" "You know" " You know that's" "That's one of the funniest things ever." "I" "[CRYING]" "I know, Mrs. Bradford, but couldn't you come in tonight?" "Well, if you're not leaving town until Thursday" "All right, I'll tell him." "She's putting her cheque in the mail." "But she won't come in to see me." "Too bad." "I had a 30-minute lecture all prepared on the evils of lying to your lawyer." "I think that's what she was afraid of." "You know, you expect the opposition from the district attorney, but a good part of the time your own clients are throwing up the roadblocks." "Oh, in a way you can't blame her, Perry." "She was panicky." "She felt she didn't dare admit" " she was on the Mary Belle." " I know" "[KNOCKING ON DOOR]" "Must be Paul." "What's he doing around here at this hour?" "Well, will you look?" "I can't, get my sunglasses." "Perry." "Perry, I've gotta make this fast." "I forgot to cash a cheque." "Could you let me have 50?" "Why, sure." "You better make it 75." "Who's the lucky girl?" "Rita Bradford." "I mean, Rita Wassell." "The divorce held up." "Well, she came to my office to consult me professionally this afternoon." "There's a year and a half in her life she wants to find out." "And if you can't help her recapture her past?" "The least I can do is brighten up her future." "Thank you."