Blueprint for Murder, A (1953) Movie Script
[Siren Wailing]
Where is Polly Cameron's room?
- I'm sorry, sir. No visitors are allowed.
- I'm her uncle.
[Girl] Don't touch my feet! Please!
She's in room 362.
[Girl Screams] Don't touch my feet!
[Whimpering, Sobbing]
- [Whimpering Continues]
- Cam!
- It's awful. She's in such terrible pain.
- What's wrong with her?
They don't know yet. Dr. Stevenson,
this is my brother-in-law, Whitney Cameron.
How do you do, Doctor?
I'm calling in a specialist, Mrs.
Cameron. It looks like tetany.
[Groaning]
Mrs. Cameron, I think our worries are over.
- Oh, thank heaven.
- She was a mighty sick girl.
We're very fortunate.
- You still don't know what was wrong?
- Not for sure.
The tetany test was negative.
You know how grateful I am, Doctor.
I've got to call Doug.
Better phone outside.
Besides, I need a smoke.
Cam, now that you're here, how
about spending a few days with us?
I'd really like to, Lynne,
but I should get back tomorrow.
We're opening a new field in Venezuela.
You're always roaming all over the world.
Did it ever occur to you that we
might like to see you once in a while?
It's important for the kids.
- I should spend more time with them.
- You should.
Especially Doug. He never quite
got over his father's death.
I know. Hit him pretty hard.
He's at an age now when a boy needs a father.
You're the closest answer to that.
Let me see what I can do. Maybe
I can stay over for a few days.
- I dropped everything to get down here.
- And I deeply appreciate it.
I didn't mean that. Here's your phone.
It's just that I must find a public
stenographer and get some letters off.
- All right. You run along,
and we'll expect you for dinner.
- Okay.
One, two, three, four, five,
six, seven, eight. Chance.
Eh... Uh... oh.
Go to jail.
[Laughs] That's too bad, Uncle Cam.
I know a young man who's got
to go hopping right off to bed.
- Can't we play a little longer?
- It's way past your bedtime now,
and tomorrow's a school day.
- But Uncle Cam's only going
to be here a few more days.
- We're going to have fun too.
- How about our taking in the ice show tomorrow?
- Oh, boy! That's super!
- I'll pick you up at school.
- Gosh, I wish Polly could go too.
It was awful last night, the way she
kept yelling, "Don't touch my feet!"
Yes, I know. I heard her.
But I think we should try
to get that out of our minds.
- Dad was just like that when he died.
- What do you mean?
I think Doug's letting his
imagination run away with him.
But his feet were turned in like hers,
and he was all stiff and funny too.
- He was?
- Sure, same as Polly.
Is that right?
Well, there was some similarity, I suppose.
But the doctors all agreed
Bill had virus encephalitis.
- Anyway, there must be a lot of things
with those same symptoms.
- I suppose so.
- Did you tell your Uncle Cam
about your baseball team?
- Boy, have we got a team.
I knocked two home runs so far.
Course, our field's not very big.
If we were only up in Boston, we could
see a lot of the Red Sox together.
- Say, how about letting Doug
spend the summer with me?
- Oh, would you, Lynne?
Why not? Sounds wonderful.
- Swell!
- Well, that's settled.
I've got an old sailboat. We could
have a lot of fun on weekends.
Lynne took us to Lake George last summer.
- I learned a lot about boats.
- He's quite a sailor.
- Seems to me Lynne's been mighty good to you.
- She sure has.
- Night, boy.
- Night, Uncle Cam.
- Night, Lynne.
- Good night, Doug.
You know, you've been wonderful, the way you
took on the job of bringing up those kids.
They're nice kids. It wasn't hard.
When their mother died, I thought no
one would ever be able to take her place.
They really love you, Lynne.
I don't see how they could help it.
I always thought Bill was a lucky man.
- Now I'm beginning to realize just how I...
- [Phone Rings]
Excuse me.
Hello?
Yes.
Yes. We'll be right there.
It's Polly. She's had a relapse.
[Doorbell Buzzes]
Cam! When did you hit town?
- Hello, Fred.
- We haven't seen you in ages.
Have you had breakfast?
Fred, Polly's dead.
Dead?
- Maggie? Maggie!
- Yeah? Yeah?
- Hi, Cam.
- Hello, Maggie.
- Polly Cameron died.
- She what?
I just can't believe it.
- Oh, the poor kid. When did it happen?
- About 3:00 this morning.
Oh, what a terrible shock for
little Doug. How's he taking it?
Well, they're both under sedatives.
Oh, please go ahead with your breakfast.
I'll get another cup.
What was wrong with Polly?
Well, the doctor seemed rather uncertain.
- He didn't know?
- I suppose it's sometimes hard to tell.
- But there's one thing about it that bothers me.
- What's that?
- Apparently, Polly and her father
had the same kind of convulsions.
- They did?
Polly kept screaming, "Don't touch my feet!"
- "Don't touch my feet"?
- Yes.
Why?
Just that it's a curious thing to say.
I'm afraid there might be something
hereditary in this thing that could hit Doug.
- Did you ask the doctor?
- Said it wasn't possible.
Just the same, it seems odd. Very odd.
- You weren't here when
your brother died, were you?
- No.
- What did the doctor say he died from?
- Virus encephalitis.
That's some sort of sleeping sickness.
And yet in Polly's case they don't know?
Somehow, back in my mind...
that "don't touch my feet" rings a bell.
Here we go again. Another wild goose chase.
Maggie still writes for the pulps,
and her imagination...
I was checking several years
ago, doing research on a story.
There was one case I re...
- What's the matter?
- Nothing. Forget it.
If you've got something
on your mind, spill it.
- I'm just a screwball, I guess.
- What were you going to say?
- Well...
- Well?
Okay. It was a murder case I looked up.
The victim had the same
kind of convulsions...
and kept screaming, "Don't touch my hands!"
- So?
- So, he died of strychnine poisoning.
Oh, man alive, Maggie.
Are you trying to say that Polly and
her father might have been poisoned?
This isn't one of your yarns.
You're dealing with real people.
Well, I only mean...
There is a similarity.
Don't try to tell us the doctors
wouldn't have recognized strychnine.
They didn't in the case I looked up.
And they apparently don't
know what killed Polly.
Let's see what the encyclopedia
says about convulsions.
- Why do you always have to dramatize everything?
- You are going off the deep end.
She sees a man take a pocketknife
out to sharpen a pencil...
and right away builds herself a murder case.
Don't both of you jump on me. I only mention
it as something that should be looked into.
Well, they list eight causes.
Tetanus would have required a cut.
Obviously it wasn't rabies.
- Epilepsy?
- No history of it in the family.
- How about tetany?
- Not according to Dr. Stevenson.
With all these others, like brain tumor,
there would've been early indications.
You know, there's one thing
it'd be pretty tough to rule out.
- What?
- Strychnine.
Strychnine? Are you serious, Mrs. Sargent?
Well, you do admit you don't
know what she died from...
and strychnine would
produce the same symptoms.
- Is this your idea too, Mr. Cameron?
- I don't know, Doctor.
There are so many confusing facts.
You told me it wasn't tetany, yet that's
what was put on the death certificate. Why?
Because that's what we were
treating the patient for.
She responded to the calcium
treatments, so we continued it.
As a matter of fact, I suggested an autopsy.
- Why didn't you have one?
- Because Lynne couldn't stand the idea.
- I see.
- I agreed with her.
Nothing could be gained by it.
Let me ask you one question. Just how
do you think the child got the poison?
Well, I don't know, but I don't see
how it could have been an accident.
I'm afraid I don't want any
part of this, Mr. Cameron.
All right. All right. I'm sorry
I brought it up. Shall we go?
It's preposterous to assume that anyone
would have wanted to poison the child.
- Oh, I don't know.
- Okay, then, who could have done it?
- Mmm, several people.
- For instance?
For instance, Lynne. Good day, Doctor.
Maggie!
What on earth got into you making
a crazy crack like that about Lynne?
- You can get into trouble.
- Now I'm getting mad.
I only said it was possible, and it is.
- Why don't you like Lynne?
- I can take her or leave her.
Aw, come on, Maggie.
You've got her all wrong.
She certainly made Bill a good
wife. He was very happy with her.
Maybe so.
- What time's the funeral tomorrow?
- 10:00.
- Do you plan to stay on afterwards?
- Till the end of the week.
Well, that'll at least give
me a few more days. Bye-bye.
## [Classical]
[Cameron Narrating] The
more I was with Lynne...
the more I realized what a fine,
wonderful person she really was.
Must you really leave tomorrow?
I've stretched it as long as I could.
It's been over a week, you know.
- Yes, I know.
- I'll be back as soon as I can.
- You can rely on that.
- Good.
Lynne's warmth and affection for Doug...
helped so much to soften the
blow ofhis sister's death.
Never did Maggie's absurd suspicions...
seem more fantastic than now.
Mr. Sargent wants you on the phone.
Tell him I'll call him back later, please.
- No, go on, Cam.
- I'll take it.
Excuse me.
- Fred?
- You still leaving tomorrow morning?
Yes, of course. 7:15 plane.
Can you possibly stay over?
There's something we ought to tell you.
Maggie's been pestering me about it.
- I don't see how I can, Fred.
- Go on!
- Well, I... I kinda hesitate
bringing it up on the phone.
- What is it?
- You know I handled your
brother's estate. - Mm-hmm.
Under the terms of the will,
Lynne's share was left in trust.
She receives merely the interest,
unless...
Unless?
- Now, I don't want you to think
we're jumping to conclusions.
- Well, unless what?
Unless both children were
to die. Both Polly and Doug.
- What the devil are you trying to say?
- It could prove a motive.
I'm amazed at you.
Why, the idea's ridiculous.
I know it sounds that way...
but I think you ought to stay over
another day so we can talk it over.
- For one reason...
- One reason?
Remember, for Lynne to get the money
it requires the deaths of both children.
All right.
I'll see you in the morning.
## [Continues]
Beautiful.
- That was lovely.
- Thank you.
By the way, uh, I've decided to stay over
another day or so, if it's all right with you.
- You know it is.
- That's great, Uncle Cam!
Well, now that your Uncle Cam is going to be
here tomorrow, how about you getting to bed?
Sleep late tomorrow too. You've
been looking a little peaked.
Oh, I'm all right. I'm feeling fine.
- Soon as you get in your pajamas,
I'll come up and say good night.
- Don't forget!
I've been worried about
Doug. He doesn't look well.
Naturally. Polly's death was a big shock.
No, I mean for some time.
- I'm thinking seriously of taking him to Europe.
- Why?
He needs a change.
Too many things here remind
him of his father and Polly.
- Be good for me too.
- How long will you be away?
- Oh, I don't know. Maybe a year or more.
- Oh.
That long?
I thought it'd be fun visiting all
the little out-of-the-way places...
just taking it easy.
I don't care how it adds up.
Absolutely nothing would ever convince me
that a woman like Lynne is capable of murder.
Relax, Cam, relax. We're
only talking among ourselves.
But we can't close our eyes to the
fact that she did have a motive.
- Over a million dollars' worth.
- Or that she's taking Doug to Europe.
And to
out-of-the-way places.
I've gone through every book
on poison cases I can find.
There were plenty of women just
like Lynne who were poison murderers.
There was Madeleine Smith, Mrs. Maybrick, Lydia
Trueblood and all these dozens of others...
many of whom were young,
beautiful, intelligent and cultured.
Maybe so, but if it were
strychnine that killed Polly...
why didn't the doctors recognize it?
Because they weren't looking for it.
Here's the dope on all
the famous poison cases.
Lamson, Crippen, Seddon, the works.
Not in one instance did
a doctor call the turn...
purely on his medical diagnosis.
- This is impressive.
- Let me see.
Look. Over 100 people killed by
an arsenic ring in Philadelphia...
before even one of the cases was suspected.
Yet that's the only case reported in
Philadelphia during the last 20 years.
How do you account for that?
Because there's so many diseases
that simulate poison symptoms.
And the idea of murder seems so
utterly incredible to the doctors...
that it doesn't even enter their heads.
But this just doesn't make sense.
If Lynne really were guilty, she'd
have had Polly's body cremated.
Lynne did want Polly cremated.
I talked her out of it.
Bill wouldn't have wanted it.
I don't see how we can avoid the
issue. Polly could have been poisoned.
There's no proof to the contrary,
and Lynne could've done it.
We can't dismiss this lightly, Cam.
If... And there is that if... Doug should
be murdered, we'd never forgive ourselves.
- Fred's right.
- What do you suggest?
There's only one thing to do. We'll have
to try to get a court order for an autopsy.
Oh.
I know how you feel, but
we've just got to do it.
[Sighs] All right.
Go ahead. Get the court order.
Get it over with.
Bacardi tonight, Cam, or would
you rather have a highball?
- Bacardi's fine. Thank you.
- Ginger ale, Doug?
- Thank you.
- [Phone Rings]
- Anna will answer it.
- Of course.
I can't figure out where this piece goes.
- It doesn't seem to fit under there.
- Let's see.
Well, what do the plans say?
- Was that for me, Anna?
- Yes, Mr. Cameron.
Thank you. Excuse me.
- Hello.
- Here it is, Cam.
The kid had enough strychnine
in her to kill four people.
- Oh, no.
- The D.A.'s pretty sure
it must have been murder.
- I told Cole we'd meet him
in his office at 9:00 tomorrow.
- I see.
He's going to have the servants and
Lynne brought in for questioning.
- Lynne?
- Naturally.
Oh, sure, sure.
- Good-bye.
- Just a minute, Cam.
You'd better break it to Lynne tonight.
Good-bye.
Come on, Cam. What are you daydreaming about?
- What on earth's the matter?
- Nothing. Nothing.
What about this, Uncle Cam?
Oh, the driving rod?
Well, I suppose that hooks on
here with a couple of little pins.
But in the plans it says
it goes on with screws.
Well, let's find the screws.
- Dinner's served.
- Thank you, Anna.
- Lynne, I must talk to you.
- Can't it wait till after dinner?
No, I must talk to you right away. I'm
sorry, Doug. Why don't you go in and start.
This is very difficult for me.
Here. Please sit down.
I...
I don't know how to begin.
Lynne, I've just got word Polly was poisoned.
- What?
- It's true.
It just couldn't be.
There must be some mistake.
- I'm afraid not.
- But how?
How could it have happened?
- The police think it was murder.
- The police?
Yes.
It was their medical examiner
who performed the autopsy.
They want you and the servants down
for questioning tomorrow morning.
I'm bewildered by this whole thing.
What gave them the idea
of performing an autopsy?
Well, Dr. Stevenson wasn't certain
what caused Polly's death...
and there was a reason for
thinking it was strychnine...
and, well, the symptoms are identical.
You knew about this, Cam?
- Yes.
- And you didn't even mention it to me?
I didn't think they'd find anything wrong.
There was no purpose in upsetting you.
I know it's miserable being dragged down
to the police for a lot of stupid questions.
Can't be helped.
But there's one fact we can't get away from.
If Polly was poisoned, somebody did it.
It's up to us to find that somebody.
We're sorry we had to
cause you all this trouble.
I wish I could've been more helpful. I just
couldn't throw any light on this thing at all.
I know it's been very trying for you, Lynne.
Look, why don't we work together on this?
After all, I am in the best
position of anyone to help.
I'd be more than willing to hire private
investigators, anything you'd suggest.
- Thanks, Mrs. Cameron. We'll let you know.
- Please do.
- I want to see you and Mr. Sargent a minute.
- Oh.
I'll be along as soon as I can.
- This is Captain Pringle of Homicide.
- How do you do, Captain?
Fellas, this is Whitney Cameron,
his attorney, Fred Sargent.
They brought the case to our attention.
- We got nothing of any value from Mrs. Cameron.
- Nor the servants.
She apparently treated the children okay,
so there was nothing suspicious there.
- Send in Pierce.
- Didn't have any boyfriends.
Least they didn't know of any.
That, sometimes, is an angle in these cases.
Servants wouldn't buy any suggestion
Mrs. Cameron could be responsible.
That goes for the maid Anna. She
worked for the first Mrs. Cameron too.
Mr. Cole.
It seems to boil down to Mrs.
Cameron or one of the three servants.
Looks that way.
They were the only ones in the
house at the time the kid took sick.
They had dinner at 7:00.
Polly took sick about 11:30.
No one would admit giving her
anything to eat in the meantime.
Certainly, strychnine would have
started working in a half hour or so.
- Excuse me.
- That's about it.
- Does Cole mean this is where the case ends?
- No, we're going ahead.
But these poisoning jobs are always dillies.
I'm afraid it's gonna be plenty tough
to prove who gave that kid the poison.
So you don't have any false hopes...
there have only be two poisoning murder
convictions in New York in the last 50 years.
Both based on confessions.
- Maybe she got it accidentally.
- Strychnine?
Oh, Mr. Cameron, I think you ought to know
we're having your brother's body exhumed.
If they find he was poisoned too, it'll go a
long way toward pinpointing who the murderer is.
Mmm.
Do they have to go through
all that kind of mess?
You start on a case, you never
know where it's gonna lead.
- You wanna come along to court with me?
- Thanks, no.
Think I'll do a little sleuthing on my own.
Then how about meeting us at
the club tonight for dinner?
I'm Whitney Cameron. Where
can I find Fred Sargent?
- He left word for you to meet him in the bar.
- Thank you.
- There's a local crowd out there that...
- Where's Maggie?
- I've got to talk to you two.
- Just a minute, Cam.
Joe Cunningham, Whitney Cameron.
- How do you do? Where is she?
- She's around here someplace.
- Excuse me, Joe.
- Excuse me.
- What's up?
- I've just come from the library.
Oh, no. Not you too. It's catching.
I went through those books on toxicology.
I knew Lynne couldn't have
done it. Now I can prove it.
- How?
- The only way you can die
of strychnine is during a convulsion.
The victim dies of suffocation.
That's all very interesting, but what
does it prove? There she is over there.
It proves that somebody gave Polly
a second dose in the hospital.
- In the hospital?
- Exactly.
[Laughing]
- Hello.
- Hello.
- Maggie, Cam's here.
- Oh, Cam!
- I want you to meet some old friends of ours.
- Not right now, Maggie.
- Excuse me.
- Certainly.
- Something happen?
- Cam thinks Polly got a second dose
of poison in the hospital.
Well, the convulsions were all
over at 7:00 or 8:00 in the morning.
That means her system must have passed
off the effects of the poison by that time.
- Cam's got something.
- How could the convulsions start again
nearly 20 hours later?
- I never thought of that.
- Nor did the police, nor anyone else.
Besides, I called the medical
examiner, and he had to agree.
Sure. In the strychnine cases we looked up,
they either died in a few hours or got well.
This definitely proves one thing.
Lynne is absolutely innocent.
But how could the hospital have
given her strychnine? By mistake?
- That doesn't make sense either.
- That's what I intend to find out.
Well, there it is. The only medicines
administered were ordinary things.
They'd have been supplied
by the hospital pharmacy.
The important point is, what was
given Polly the night she died.
Well, let's see.
She took nothing at 9:00.
- At 10:00, an MFT-10 cap was given her.
- What's that?
Calcium chloride pepcin in capsule form.
We'd been giving her other
calcium preparations earlier...
but they have a disagreeable, chalky taste.
So, at, uh, 6:30 I
recommended switching to these.
At 10:30, she was given another capsule.
With no ill effects. That's right.
And there appear to be no
more entries until, uh, 11:30.
- And that's when she took the last capsule.
- Yes.
She apparently became nauseated,
but didn't lose the medicine.
Half hour later, the convulsions started.
At 2:30, she died.
Well, perhaps the strychnine
was in this last capsule.
- But it came direct from the hospital pharmacy.
- Hmm.
- This is very confusing.
- It certainly is.
I'm sorry, but I have an operation
scheduled. I'll check with you later.
- I appreciate your help.
- Frankly, though,
I don't know what more I can add.
Oh, uh, where is the hospital pharmacy?
- To the right of the entrance as you leave.
- Thank you.
May I have that chart, please?
- Sorry.
- Thank you.
I'd like to check on a prescription
filled for Polly Cameron on April 28.
Room, uh, 362.
- Which one do you want?
- The one issued about 6:30.
Mmm. I don't seem to see it.
Oh.
Bobbie. This man wants to see you.
Miss Brownell, I'm Whitney
Cameron, Polly Cameron's uncle.
Oh, yes. The little girl
who had the convulsions.
- According to the chart,
you were on duty the night she died.
- That's right.
Do you recall Dr. Stevenson asking
you to fill a prescription about 6:30?
- Hmm. Vaguely.
- Where did you get it filled?
- Well, the pharmacy...
- Oh, the pharmacy was closed at that time.
Oh. Well, I don't recall right off.
Now I remember. I was about to send for it
when Mrs. Cameron offered to get it filled.
- Mrs. Cameron?
- Yes, I remember it very clearly now.
- Is that all, sir?
- Yes, thanks.
Would you please see if you can identify
the woman who gave you the calcium capsules?
This is it. Mrs. Cameron. She's
the one I gave the prescription to.
- How did you happen to ask her
to get the medicine?
- I didn't.
The hospital pharmacy was closed, and she
offered to get the prescription filled herself.
- She offered?
- Yes.
- Did she bring the medicine down herself?
- She did.
- What time was that?
- Around 7:30.
- Notice if the wrapping had been tampered with?
- Looked all right to me.
- The capsules were in a bottle, of course?
- Yes, sir.
- The bottle was sealed?
- No, it was an ordinary cork.
Then it would have been
possible for somebody...
to have tampered with the capsules
without your knowing about it.
Well, yes, I suppose so.
I'd like you to take a look at the
photostatic copies of Polly Cameron's chart.
See if you can verify the notations
as to capsules administered.
- May I see the photostats
of Polly Cameron's chart?
- Mm-hmm.
Thank you.
Yes, this is right. These
are the capsules I gave her.
It was right after the third
one that she became ill.
- That's all. Thank you.
- Not at all.
Let's see how Russ is
coming with the chauffeur.
Mr. Wheeler claims he left the hospital
with Mrs. Cameron a little after 6:30...
and drove her to a drugstore.
She gave him a prescription
which he went in and had filled.
He then drove her to the
hospital. She went in with him.
- What time did you arrive back at the hospital?
- 7:30, or a few minutes earlier.
- Where was the drugstore?
- It was an Apex Pharmacy at Fifth and Grand.
Would you come into my office, please.
How long did it take for you
to get the prescription filled?
- I suppose about 10 minutes.
- Then you should have been back before 7:30.
- What held you up?
- Mrs. Cameron stopped off
at her apartment for a few minutes.
- Did she say why?
- No.
- How long was she in the apartment?
- Not very long.
Five minutes? Ten minutes? How long?
There was no parking place, so I
circled the block a couple of times.
Do you remember if Mrs. Cameron had the
bottle with her when she entered the apartment?
- I'm not sure, but she must have.
- Why? - Why?
- Because I saw her put it in her purse.
- You're positive?
- Why, yes.
- I see. Thank you. That's all.
Russ, did Ed question the cook?
- Yes.
- Send him in.
- Are you Anna?
- Yes. Anna Swenson.
Think carefully, Miss Swenson.
On the night Polly Cameron died, what time
did Mrs. Cameron return to the apartment?
Well, let me see.
Everything was so upset that
day. Nobody was on schedule.
- But I'm pretty sure it was before 7:00.
- What did she say to you?
She just told me Polly was coming on
fine and for me to fix the guest room.
- Mr. Whitney Cameron was coming.
- Did she say anything else?
- No, not that I can remember.
- Are you sure, Miss Swenson?
- Yes, sir.
- Do you know if she left again
within the next 15-20 minutes?
If she did, I didn't hear her.
I was in the guest room.
- You didn't hear her come back again either?
- No, sir.
I asked the cook the same question...
but she was in the kitchen
and had no way of knowing.
Okay, that'll be all for
the moment. Thank you.
- I think we're ready for Mrs. Cameron now.
- I want you in on this, Ed.
- We're ready for Mrs. Cameron.
- [Woman] In your office?
- Yes, in my office.
- Yes, sir.
Oh, and send in a
stenographer, please. Thank you.
- How do you do?
- Hello.
Mrs. Cameron, please be seated.
Gonna try to be as easy on
you as possible, Mrs. Cameron.
Thank you.
- A stenographer will take notes. Do you mind?
- Not at all.
- I want to cooperate as much as I can.
- Good.
At 6:30 on the night your stepdaughter died,
you offered to get her prescription filled.
That's quite correct.
Mr. Wheeler stated he drove you to the
drugstore where you had him fill the order.
- He then gave you the bottle,
which you placed in your purse.
- That's right.
- He then drove you to your apartment?
- Yes.
Just why did you return to your apartment?
- To pick up some things for Polly.
- What things?
Comb, brush, toothpaste...
things like that.
The night before, we left in such a rush...
there wasn't time to think of anything
except getting the child to the hospital.
Why didn't you send your
chauffeur for them earlier?
I was too worried to think about them.
- How long did you remain in you apartment?
- Only a few minutes.
- Why did you go to you bedroom first?
- To get the traveling case.
- What exactly did you do while you
were in your room?
- I picked up the case and left.
- You're sure. You did nothing else?
- Yes. Nothing.
- Then what?
- I went to Polly's room and packed her things.
- Why didn't your maid help?
- She was getting the guest room
ready for my brother-in-law.
Packing the bag for Polly was
all you did? You're quite sure?
Quite sure.
- Did you open the bottle of capsules?
- No. Why should I?
- Did you at any time remove them
from your purse? - No.
Then you delivered the bag
and the medicine to the nurse.
- Is that correct?
- Correct?
- Then you admit giving the medicine
to the nurse. - Of course.
You realize the lethal dose was administered
at the hospital. That's been proven.
- So I understand.
- I don't think we can get away from it,
Mrs. Cameron.
Your stepdaughter must have been murdered.
And we have to find out who's responsible
for the child getting the poison.
The hospital attendants had no motive.
- You and Mr. Cameron were the only visitors.
- That's right.
You and the hospital attendants were
always present while he was there.
- I know.
- So that rules him out.
And there was always someone
present while I was there.
Nevertheless, the poison was
slipped into the calcium capsules...
and all the medicine came from the hospital,
except the bottle you gave the nurse.
- It was in your possession.
- This gave you the opportunity
to poison the capsules.
You're the one person with a motive.
The death of the two children would make you
a rich woman. You wanted the child cremated.
You opposed an autopsy, though there was
doubt as to the cause of the child's death...
and Dr. Stevenson particularly requested it.
It all adds up. You were the only one
with the motive and the opportunity.
You... You think I did this thing?
That I killed Polly?
It's beginning to look
that way, Mrs. Cameron.
But... I loved the child as if she
were my own. I couldn't have done it.
Believe me, Mrs. Cameron...
you'll be making it much easier on yourself
if you'll just tell us the truth now.
If you kept me here all night, all I could
say, over and over, is, I didn't do it.
I didn't do it!
That'll be all for now, Mrs. Cameron.
Just wait in the next room, please.
- They think I did it.
- I know.
It's hard to tell what sort
of turn this thing will take.
- If it should go against me, what about Doug?
- Doug?
I may be held over for trial or something.
- From the way they talked, it could happen.
- I suppose so.
Well, if it does, would
you take him till it's over?
Of course I will. Here.
I'll take good care of him.
Mr. Cameron, Mr. Cole wants to
see you in his office right away.
- Excuse me.
- And will you try not to let him
hear about this?
Looks like Mrs. Cameron's it.
She's a cool number. Plenty shrewd.
- D.A. busy?
- [Woman On Intercom] He's just coming in.
- Tell him I'm coming up. It's important.
- Yes, sir.
Lew, check the servants. See if Mrs.
Cameron kept her bag in the bedroom closet.
Tell Captain Pringle the results.
Supposing I check with the boys,
see if they came up with anything.
Wanna come along, Cameron? It's okay.
Sure.
- How you coming?
- So far, it's a bust.
- No strychnine?
- No strychnine.
These are the calcium capsules. We
retrieved them from the hospital.
There were nine left in the bottle. I've
already analyzed five. This is the sixth one.
If it turns cloudy when I add this
Myers reagent, it's strychnine.
- Clear.
- Possibly the strychnine
was only in one capsule.
It checks. There were 12 altogether.
Kid took the first two
all right. Third was it.
[Woman On P.A.] Captain Pringle, telephone.
Keep at it.
Captain Pringle speaking. Lew?
Oh? Thanks.
She kept the bag in her closet, all right.
Well, we've drawn nothing but blanks so far.
Here are 632 reports from the
drugstores. More are coming in.
If a smart dame like Mrs. Cameron did it,
she'd never buy the poison at a drugstore.
Well, widen the circle. Keep at it.
They found Mrs. Cameron's bookstore,
but it didn't give us a thing.
- What about the servants?
- Nothing.
We wanted to see if any of them
had been boning up on poisons.
- What about the libraries?
- They're being covered.
I just received this report from the Cameron
apartment. They checked for rodenticides.
Went all through the medicines.
No trace of strychnine.
You must remember, even if we bring the
woman up for preliminary examination...
I'm sure no judge will
hold her over for trial.
- But you do believe she's guilty, don't you?
- Certainly.
- Captain Pringle too.
- Who else could have done it?
There's no doubt about
it in any of our minds.
It's one thing to believe someone's guilty.
- It's quite another to prove it
beyond a reasonable doubt.
- That's a must for conviction.
You just heard Captain Pringle. You're the
district attorney. You think she's guilty.
Maybe the jury'll think she's guilty too.
Convictions are obtained
on facts, not opinions.
Mrs. Cameron is already planning
to take my nephew to Europe.
Ayear, five years from now, he'll
suddenly die in some obscure place.
That's an angle.
By the time we hear about it,
the kid'll have been cremated.
That's supposition, not
evidence. We need more evidence.
There's no chance of winning the case.
There's no sense bringing it into court.
You mean, you base your reputation
on winning cases, not on losing them.
- So you play only the sure bets.
- Now, Mr. Henderson meant nothing of the kind.
But if we don't come up with
some new evidence, we're dead.
So's the boy.
Don't think for a moment we're not fully
aware of the gravity of this situation.
That boy's life is in your hands.
- I don't appreciate you're putting it
quite that way.
- There's no other way to put it.
I suppose not.
[Phone Rings]
Anderson speaking.
Okay. Thank you.
That was the medical examiner.
There was no evidence of poison in
connection with your brother's death.
That, at least, would have
been some help to our case.
That still doesn't alter the
situation regarding my nephew.
That's right.
I've got a lot of misgivings
about doing this...
but under the circumstances
I suppose it has to be done.
Get a complaint and a warrant
for the arrest of Mrs. Cameron.
We'll have her brought up
for a preliminary hearing.
[Spectators Murmuring]
Remain seated. Come to order.
[Gavel Raps]
From the examination of the evidence...
I find some grounds for considering
Mrs. Cameron a likely suspect.
However, the State has failed to offer any
tangible proof to sustain its contention...
that Mrs. Cameron put
strychnine in a calcium capsule.
Undeniably, Mrs. Cameron had a
possible motive for such a crime.
But, as the defense pointed
out, she is not the only one.
Mr. Whitney Cameron...
also stood to inherit the fortune, should
both the children and Mrs. Cameron die.
The defense has proved...
that Mrs. Cameron is a woman ofhigh repute...
and innumerable witnesses have testified...
that she was an affectionate and
indulgent mother to the children.
I find that the prosecution has
failed to establish probable cause.
I hereby order the defendant
discharged forthwith.
[Spectators Chattering]
- Look this way, please.
- Mrs. Cameron? Hold it!
I have to get custody of that boy.
- We've only got 15 minutes to catch Judge Adams.
- Well, let's go.
Wait. You can't get out of
talking to Lynne. Don't take long.
And don't get her back up, or
she may never let you see Doug.
Mrs. Cameron, look this way! Hold it!
- I'm sorry you had to go through all of this.
- It's a relief to have it over.
- How's Doug?
- He's fine. I told him you were in Chicago.
- I'll bring him around in the morning.
- Fine.
Judge Adams will be leaving by 5:00.
- Can't you telephone him, make him stay later?
- Comes 5:00, they blow.
We've got to make it.
- Good night, Judge.
- Good night, Frank.
Judge Adams, just a minute, please.
We've got to talk to you on that
custody matter I spoke to you about.
I'm afraid you're late. I'm meeting my
wife. We're leaving town over the weekend.
- This'll only take a minute.
- I'm sorry. I just have time to catch my train.
- Couldn't we discuss it
on the way to the station?
- That'd be rather irregular.
She intends to murder the boy.
I can't consider the question of Mrs. Cameron's
guilt or her intentions toward your nephew.
That's a criminal matter, and the judge has
just thrown the case out for lack of evidence.
There must be something we can do.
Your brother's will specifically
requested the children be left in her care.
I have to abide by that, unless
you can prove she's unfit.
- [Bell Clanging]
- I'm sorry. I've got to hurry.
We'll keep the cab, Judge.
[Door Closes]
And I helped your brother with that will.
- It was a death warrant.
- Mmm.
Look, what would happen if I just
refused to give Doug back to Lynne?
She'd get a court order, and Doug
would be taken forcibly, if necessary.
All you'd end up doing would be to
make Lynne hopping mad for no purpose.
Well, we've got to think of something.
But fast. We've only got till tomorrow.
What if Doug and I changed our names
and went away to some foreign country...
where she'd never find us.
And spend the rest of
your life as a fugitive?
Besides, sooner or later
she'd catch up with you.
Okay, okay, so it was a crazy idea.
Do you have a better suggestion?
Well, there's one way out. As long as
I'm around, Lynne wouldn't dare harm Doug.
So I'm always around.
- Hello, boy!
- Hi! I'm helping Maggie make a cake.
- Come help us.
- I'm quite a cook myself.
This summer I'll show you how to
toss flapjacks over an open fire.
- Hi.
- Hello, Maggie.
[Exhales]
Just where would you get the money to go
bouncing all over the world after Lynne?
She'd move every day just to throw you off.
And each time she took a powder, how
would you find her again? Hire detectives?
- Cam, you're not making sense.
- Making sense?
What does make sense about this whole thing?
The police,
the district attorney's staff...
practically everybody agrees Lynne is guilty,
that she intends poisoning Doug.
Yet all they can do is throw up their hands
and offer us their profoundest sympathies.
Take it easy, Cam. Take it easy.
Why can't we think of some legal
loophole that'll give us an out?
Well, if there is one,
I just can't think of it.
- Think harder. You're the lawyer.
- Hey.
Just a minute. The only thing
that matters is little Doug.
This is no time to be
at each other's throats.
I'm sorry, Fred. I'm nearly
out of my mind over this thing.
We understand, Cam. I guess
we're all pretty jittery.
You two have really been wonderful.
I'm calling recess. How's about some coffee?
Later, perhaps. I'm not
very good company right now.
I don't like it, Fred. Looks to me
like he's on the verge of cracking up.
Yeah, and the worst of it
is, there's no solution.
- Doug! Hello, Cam.
- Good morning.
Oh, Doug, it's good to see you.
- Did you have a good time while I was away?
- Oh, sure!
Uncle Cam and I planned out everything
we're going to do this summer.
- I've got a surprise for you.
It's upstairs in your room.
- Bet I know what it is!
Cam, I'm afraid we're going to have
to postpone Doug's vacation with you.
- Why?
- Well, remember I told you
I was planning a trip to Europe?
- You're taking him to Europe?
- I've got to get away
from all this unpleasantness.
You can understand that, can't you?
- It's all been such a nightmare.
- Yeah.
- I figured now is as good a time
as any for the trip to Europe.
- When are you leaving?
- Tomorrow, on the Victoria.
- That soon?
We'll probably be gone for about a year.
I've got quite an itinerary planned.
I figure maybe we can spend
a week or so in England, and then...
It's got a little honey
in it to attract the ants.
- I warn folks with children to be careful of it.
- I'll take it.
Thanks. That'll be 85 cents.
Funny. We've got lots of insecticides
today that don't hurt humans.
- But people still mostly go
for these old standbys.
- You certainly carry a variety.
We got stuff strong enough to kill a tree.
Worst of it is, it remains in
the ground for 50 years or more.
- Suppose a kid or a dog gets
some of the dirt in its mouth.
- It'd kill 'em dead.
- What are these?
- Innocent lookin', aren't they?
Strongest stuff we carry. Rodenticide.
- Put out by a Midwestern concern.
- Strychnine?
Yeah. There's enough there to kill a horse.
- Hmm.
- Come back again.
## [Orchestra]
- Good evening. This way, please.
- Thank you.
There's Uncle Cam!
- Hello, Doug.
- What are you doing here, Uncle Cam?
I just decided to take a little
cruise myself. Have a seat.
Won't you join us?
Gee, Lynne, Uncle Cam's coming with us!
- Surprised?
- Surprised.
- I decided to come along.
- I gathered as much.
- Just one of those things.
- That explains everything.
I mean, I... sort of acted on impulse.
Spur of the moment sort of idea.
- You're making it very difficult.
- I'm so sorry.
- Well, the firm had me down
for a trip to Europe...
- I thought it was Venezuela.
I felt now was as good
a time as any to take it.
And that this ship was as good
as any to take it on. How cozy.
And now the real reason.
You don't believe me, do you?
- No.
- [Waiter] Cocktail, sir?
Bacardis?
Bacardis.
Maybe if we play our cards right, they'll
let us look at the radar stuff up there too.
- Night, boy.
- Hurry up, darling.
Get into your pajamas. It's late.
- Night, Uncle Cam. See you tomorrow.
- Good night.
- Good night, Cam.
- How about once around the deck?
Fine, but come in and wait
till I get Doug tucked in.
Now the real reason, hmm?
- I guess you're entitled to it.
- I think so.
Standing by while you went
through this horrible ordeal...
was as miserable for me as it was for you.
I wanted you to know that.
You came on this trip just to tell me that?
It wasn't one of those things
you could say in one night...
while someone was packing trunks...
not if you wanted to sound convincing.
Still not convinced?
You're a hard woman.
When did you first get
the notion to come along?
When you first told me
you were going to Europe.
Why then?
Because that was the moment when
I realized how much I'd miss you.
How very much.
[Laughing]
[Sobs]
[Cameron Narrating] Lynne
played right into my hands.
My plan couldn't have
been working more smoothly.
The one who came nearest to guessing
the ship's mileage each day won a prize.
I got a kick out of Doug's
excitement when he found he'd won.
Yes, it could have been a wonderful trip...
if only the circumstances had been different.
But there were moments when I was
horrified by the enormity of my plan.
Cold fear would come over me.
There were those fearful moments of doubt
when I would speculate on the possibilities...
of Lynne not being guilty at all.
But always my mind would come back to the
irreconcilable fact: Polly was murdered.
Somebody did it, and all the evidence
pointed to that somebody being Lynne.
Tonight was my last night at sea.
My time had finally run out.
- At last.
- Sorry I'm late. Am I forgiven?
Forgiven. But let's hurry.
- You look wonderful tonight.
- Thank you.
For heaven sakes, will you go
in and say good night to Doug?
He refuses to go to sleep until you do.
[Cameron Narrating] This was
the moment I'd planned on.
There might not be another.
How about cocktails before we go?
Oh, but we don't want to be too late.
The captain's ball is so much fun.
- I could phone the bar.
They could have them here...
- Never mind.
- I'll do it to save time.
- Yes.
- I didn't think you were ever coming, Uncle Cam.
- I wouldn't desert you, Doug.
- Can't you stay with us in England?
- I'd like to.
- I'm afraid I can't.
- When will I see you again?
Well, I don't know.
Maybe I'll get a chance to fly
over in the next couple of months.
- Doesn't take long on a plane, you know.
- Will you?
Sure. You'll have a wonderful time in Europe.
Lynne tells me she's taking you to Paris...
and Switzerland this winter for the skiing.
- You'll like that, won't you?
- If only you could come too, Uncle Cam.
Don't you worry about that. I'll see
you in the morning before we dock.
- Good night, Uncle Cam.
- Yeah.
I'll see you before we dock.
- Night, boy.
- Night, Uncle Cam.
[Cameron Narrating]
The moment had arrived...
the moment I dreaded.
But I had to appear at ease,
though my mind was numb.
- [Knocking]
- Come in.
Ah. Set them right down here.
I'd rehearsed this scene a
thousand times in my mind.
But now that it was a reality...
the idea of taking the
life of a human being...
seemed like a hideous nightmare.
Thank you, sir.
Lynne, uh...
remember our first meeting?
- It was at a cocktail party, wasn't it?
- Yes, given for my brother.
It was a couple of days
before you two were married.
I wished I'd met you first.
I thought you were the most
beautiful woman I'd ever seen.
- Oh!
- Sorry.
- It's all right.
- Excuse me.
I can get it off in a jiffy.
[Cameron Narrating] I tried to pour
the bottle, but my hand wouldn't move.
It were as if it belonged to someone else.
I'd have to find another chance later...
later tonight.
Well, that was simple.
It doesn't even show.
Good.
It's stuffy in here.
[Cameron Narrating]
Suppose by some freak chance I was wrong?
But Fred agreed, Maggie, the D.A.,
the police... All of them agreed.
Only she could have done it.
If I couldjust be certain.
## [Orchestra]
- Oh, no.
- "No" what?
- Can't you hear?
- Hear?
"Auld Lang Syne," silly. It
means the end of the dance.
And the end of the voyage.
It's been a wonderful voyage.
What if I didn't have the nerve to
go through with it and Doug died...
died because Lynne had murdered him?
I'd exhausted every other out.
I knew it had to be done tonight.
But I had to stall for time...
time to get up my courage.
- Mmm.
- ## [Ends]
How 'bout a turn around the deck?
Oh, nice, except it's
getting a little chilly.
That's easy. Give me your
key. I'll get your coat.
Be right back.
[Cameron Narrating] Somehow or
other I sensed a vague association...
between these bottles...
and the fact that I had used my shaving...
lotion bottle...
as a place to hide my poison.
What if Lynne had reasoned the same way?
I couldn't help but notice the striking
similarity between the aspirin...
and those rodenticide pills
I'd seen in the nursery.
Then I found it...
one different from the others.
A "W"... A "W", the same marking
that was on the strychnine tablet...
enough to kill a horse.
There were three in all.
This was the proof I needed.
Now more than ever, I knew I
had to go through with my plan.
Well, I think it's time we called it a night.
This is the last night we'll
be alone for a long time.
- How about a good-night drink?
- Why not?
Hello. Give me the bar, please.
Hello. This is cabin 92-A.
May we have two Bacardi cocktails, please?
Thank you.
Cam.
You've been so sweet to us on this
trip. It's been a wonderful crossing.
- I'm sorry it's over.
- Are you really?
Mm-hmm.
Tell me something, and I want the truth now.
- Why did you really come on this trip?
- You know why.
I know the reason you gave me.
It was all very flattering,
but rather difficult to believe.
You don't believe it?
I don't know.
But you are the sort of man who
might do crazy, impulsive things.
You mean, like taking this ship so I
could be with you for five more days?
Yes.
[Knocking]
Oh, I'll...
I'll take these.
- There you are.
- Thank you, sir.
[Cameron Narrating] This was
my last, my very last chance.
Here.
Thanks.
Mmm.
- Your hand's trembling.
- Oh.
What's the matter with you, Cam?
[Cameron] It's a little warm in here.
Why don't you open the porthole?
- Do you mind?
- No.
- Oh, that's much better.
- Yes.
Yes, it is, isn't it?
Cam, something is wrong.
No, no. I'm all right.
It's bitter.
Mine too, but... I suppose we're lucky
to get anything at all at this hour.
- Lynne.
- Yes?
- I found a bottle of aspirin in your stateroom.
- So?
Three of the tablets were different
from the others. They had a "W" on them...
trademark of a tablet containing strychnine.
Oh, for heaven's sakes, Cam, not that again.
They also happen to be aspirin pills.
Why were they different from the others?
Because they were another brand. But
I refuse to go through all this again.
- Yet they were in the same bottle?
- Well, why not?
I'd been taking another type of
aspirin. I had a few left over.
I put them in the new bottle to
save some room. Is that so peculiar?
Lynne, the "W" is the trademark of an insecticide
manufacturer, not a pharmaceutical house.
So that's the real reason
you came on this trip.
You were behind this ridiculous
persecution from the first.
- You say they were harmless aspirin pills.
- Of course.
- You absolutely sure?
- Absolutely.
That's good. I'm relieved.
- I'm very relieved.
- Why?
Because one of the "W" pills was dissolved
in your drink. You've just taken it.
I don't think you and
I have anything more to discuss... ever.
Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to bed.
Who are you?
I'm Frank Connelly, ship's
detective. Mr. Cameron sent for me.
As a witness.
A witness?
So that's what you expected...
an hysterical admission that
the pill contained strychnine.
You never give up, do you, Cam?
But this time I'm afraid
you drew another blank.
The tablet was harmless.
There seems to have been
an unfortunate mistake.
I suggest we forget the whole thing.
I'll go along. Will you excuse me?
Of course. I'm sorry about it too.
But this sort of thing is getting
to be a habit with Mr. Cameron.
- [Door Opens]
- Wait a minute.
Come back, please.
Look.
It's been over five minutes
since you took that drink.
Right now your life can be saved...
even in another five minutes.
But beyond that you're
getting into a dangerous zone.
You're well versed on the subject
of strychnine, aren't you, Cam?
Oh, Lynne, please, please!
If there was strychnine in that tablet,
call the doctor now before it's too late!
On the other hand, if the tablet with
the "W" on it was merely an aspirin...
there wouldn't be much sense in
calling a doctor, would there?
And if I were to admit that
it did contain strychnine...
there still wouldn't be any
sense in my phoning for a doctor.
Sort of an even stephen trade...
death by strychnine
or death by the electric chair.
Take your choice.
Look at this clock.
It's five minutes past 1:00.
Every time it ticks it brings you a second
nearer a horrible death right here and now!
You're being a fool, Lynne, an absolute fool!
Strange, isn't it? You seem to
be the one who's unnerved, not I.
You know, it just occurred to me, if
there was strychnine in that tablet...
and I should die, you're the one
who'll be facing the electric chair.
Or hadn't you thought of that?
You're all confused, aren't you, Cam?
You don't know, not for sure,
whether I'm lying or not.
And if I am, you yourself will be a murderer.
Hmm, you don't like the idea of that, do you?
It takes nerve to kill someone...
sit by and watch them die.
How would you like to have a death
on your conscience...
My death?
Oh, yes, it was five after 1:00, wasn't it?
Nearly a minute's gone by since then.
This is too much for me. Did you or
did you not give this woman strychnine?
I gave her a pill marked with a "W"
that I took from her aspirin bottle.
Then it was completely harmless, and you
have nothing to worry about, either of you.
Here.
- Tell me, Mr... Mr...
- Connelly.
Oh, yes, Mr. Connelly.
What are your impressions of
the man there in that chair?
From his looks, would
you say he had character?
Honor? Integrity?
Well, I'm sure you would.
But I'm afraid he's quite deceiving.
Let me tell you about him, Mr. Connelly.
He lived in my apartment as a guest...
as a relative, as a warm friend.
But all the while he was accepting
my hospitality, Mr. Connelly...
what do you think he
was doing behind my back?
He was taking everything I said,
every incident that occurred...
and was conniving to build a case against me.
But his betrayal didn't end there.
Even after the court laughed
at his ridiculous charges...
he kept on and on with his persecution!
But this last attempt...
This is the most contemptible of all!
Tonight...
Tonight you must really be proud of...
Even while we were dancing
in each other's arms...
even while you were making love to me...
you were all the while
plotting to take my life.
How treacherous...
How despicably treacherous is
it possible for a man to get?
Look at the clock, Whitney Cameron.
The five minute deadline
you gave me has passed...
and nothing's happened to me.
How about that, Cam?
Even you ought to be convinced by now.
You're being an idiot...
a complete idiot!
You were there with me when
Polly died. You heard her screams.
You saw the horrible convulsions
and the agony she went through.
Do you think that I, that
anyone who had seen that...
would take a chance of dying
in the same horrible way?
Do you?
I've been a bigger fool than you.
You took me in completely.
I was even falling in love with you.
This farce has gone on long enough.
Now get out of here, both of you! Get out!
Get out, or I'll call the purser!
I assure you, Mr. Cameron will leave at once.
[Door Closes]
This is the most outrageous
thing I've ever witnessed.
- You realize I'll have to make
a full report of this.
- I suppose so.
[Cameron Narrating]
I must have been insane...
Stupidly, blindly insane.
How could I have been so wrong?
Apparently, Polly's death was due to
one of those impossible accidents...
that couldn't happen but did.
A million-to-one shot.
A mistake by a careless drug clerk.
I was horror-stricken at the thought that...
it was only by the merest chance
that I hadn't murdered her.
What a mess. What a complete,
miserable mess I'd made of everything.
Mr. Cameron. You're wanted in
the surgeon's office right away.
Mr. Cameron is here.
It's Mrs. Cameron. We were
just able to save her life.
Another minute and it would've been too late.
She phoned here as soon as we left.
[Cameron Narrating]
On October 10, 1952...
Lynne Cameron was convicted
of murder in the first degree.
Her sentence: life imprisonment.
And so to the names of Madeleine
Smith, Florence Maybrick...
Lydia Trueblood and all those
other young, beautiful...
but evil poison murderers...
was added that of Lynne Cameron.
[No Audible Dialogue]
Where is Polly Cameron's room?
- I'm sorry, sir. No visitors are allowed.
- I'm her uncle.
[Girl] Don't touch my feet! Please!
She's in room 362.
[Girl Screams] Don't touch my feet!
[Whimpering, Sobbing]
- [Whimpering Continues]
- Cam!
- It's awful. She's in such terrible pain.
- What's wrong with her?
They don't know yet. Dr. Stevenson,
this is my brother-in-law, Whitney Cameron.
How do you do, Doctor?
I'm calling in a specialist, Mrs.
Cameron. It looks like tetany.
[Groaning]
Mrs. Cameron, I think our worries are over.
- Oh, thank heaven.
- She was a mighty sick girl.
We're very fortunate.
- You still don't know what was wrong?
- Not for sure.
The tetany test was negative.
You know how grateful I am, Doctor.
I've got to call Doug.
Better phone outside.
Besides, I need a smoke.
Cam, now that you're here, how
about spending a few days with us?
I'd really like to, Lynne,
but I should get back tomorrow.
We're opening a new field in Venezuela.
You're always roaming all over the world.
Did it ever occur to you that we
might like to see you once in a while?
It's important for the kids.
- I should spend more time with them.
- You should.
Especially Doug. He never quite
got over his father's death.
I know. Hit him pretty hard.
He's at an age now when a boy needs a father.
You're the closest answer to that.
Let me see what I can do. Maybe
I can stay over for a few days.
- I dropped everything to get down here.
- And I deeply appreciate it.
I didn't mean that. Here's your phone.
It's just that I must find a public
stenographer and get some letters off.
- All right. You run along,
and we'll expect you for dinner.
- Okay.
One, two, three, four, five,
six, seven, eight. Chance.
Eh... Uh... oh.
Go to jail.
[Laughs] That's too bad, Uncle Cam.
I know a young man who's got
to go hopping right off to bed.
- Can't we play a little longer?
- It's way past your bedtime now,
and tomorrow's a school day.
- But Uncle Cam's only going
to be here a few more days.
- We're going to have fun too.
- How about our taking in the ice show tomorrow?
- Oh, boy! That's super!
- I'll pick you up at school.
- Gosh, I wish Polly could go too.
It was awful last night, the way she
kept yelling, "Don't touch my feet!"
Yes, I know. I heard her.
But I think we should try
to get that out of our minds.
- Dad was just like that when he died.
- What do you mean?
I think Doug's letting his
imagination run away with him.
But his feet were turned in like hers,
and he was all stiff and funny too.
- He was?
- Sure, same as Polly.
Is that right?
Well, there was some similarity, I suppose.
But the doctors all agreed
Bill had virus encephalitis.
- Anyway, there must be a lot of things
with those same symptoms.
- I suppose so.
- Did you tell your Uncle Cam
about your baseball team?
- Boy, have we got a team.
I knocked two home runs so far.
Course, our field's not very big.
If we were only up in Boston, we could
see a lot of the Red Sox together.
- Say, how about letting Doug
spend the summer with me?
- Oh, would you, Lynne?
Why not? Sounds wonderful.
- Swell!
- Well, that's settled.
I've got an old sailboat. We could
have a lot of fun on weekends.
Lynne took us to Lake George last summer.
- I learned a lot about boats.
- He's quite a sailor.
- Seems to me Lynne's been mighty good to you.
- She sure has.
- Night, boy.
- Night, Uncle Cam.
- Night, Lynne.
- Good night, Doug.
You know, you've been wonderful, the way you
took on the job of bringing up those kids.
They're nice kids. It wasn't hard.
When their mother died, I thought no
one would ever be able to take her place.
They really love you, Lynne.
I don't see how they could help it.
I always thought Bill was a lucky man.
- Now I'm beginning to realize just how I...
- [Phone Rings]
Excuse me.
Hello?
Yes.
Yes. We'll be right there.
It's Polly. She's had a relapse.
[Doorbell Buzzes]
Cam! When did you hit town?
- Hello, Fred.
- We haven't seen you in ages.
Have you had breakfast?
Fred, Polly's dead.
Dead?
- Maggie? Maggie!
- Yeah? Yeah?
- Hi, Cam.
- Hello, Maggie.
- Polly Cameron died.
- She what?
I just can't believe it.
- Oh, the poor kid. When did it happen?
- About 3:00 this morning.
Oh, what a terrible shock for
little Doug. How's he taking it?
Well, they're both under sedatives.
Oh, please go ahead with your breakfast.
I'll get another cup.
What was wrong with Polly?
Well, the doctor seemed rather uncertain.
- He didn't know?
- I suppose it's sometimes hard to tell.
- But there's one thing about it that bothers me.
- What's that?
- Apparently, Polly and her father
had the same kind of convulsions.
- They did?
Polly kept screaming, "Don't touch my feet!"
- "Don't touch my feet"?
- Yes.
Why?
Just that it's a curious thing to say.
I'm afraid there might be something
hereditary in this thing that could hit Doug.
- Did you ask the doctor?
- Said it wasn't possible.
Just the same, it seems odd. Very odd.
- You weren't here when
your brother died, were you?
- No.
- What did the doctor say he died from?
- Virus encephalitis.
That's some sort of sleeping sickness.
And yet in Polly's case they don't know?
Somehow, back in my mind...
that "don't touch my feet" rings a bell.
Here we go again. Another wild goose chase.
Maggie still writes for the pulps,
and her imagination...
I was checking several years
ago, doing research on a story.
There was one case I re...
- What's the matter?
- Nothing. Forget it.
If you've got something
on your mind, spill it.
- I'm just a screwball, I guess.
- What were you going to say?
- Well...
- Well?
Okay. It was a murder case I looked up.
The victim had the same
kind of convulsions...
and kept screaming, "Don't touch my hands!"
- So?
- So, he died of strychnine poisoning.
Oh, man alive, Maggie.
Are you trying to say that Polly and
her father might have been poisoned?
This isn't one of your yarns.
You're dealing with real people.
Well, I only mean...
There is a similarity.
Don't try to tell us the doctors
wouldn't have recognized strychnine.
They didn't in the case I looked up.
And they apparently don't
know what killed Polly.
Let's see what the encyclopedia
says about convulsions.
- Why do you always have to dramatize everything?
- You are going off the deep end.
She sees a man take a pocketknife
out to sharpen a pencil...
and right away builds herself a murder case.
Don't both of you jump on me. I only mention
it as something that should be looked into.
Well, they list eight causes.
Tetanus would have required a cut.
Obviously it wasn't rabies.
- Epilepsy?
- No history of it in the family.
- How about tetany?
- Not according to Dr. Stevenson.
With all these others, like brain tumor,
there would've been early indications.
You know, there's one thing
it'd be pretty tough to rule out.
- What?
- Strychnine.
Strychnine? Are you serious, Mrs. Sargent?
Well, you do admit you don't
know what she died from...
and strychnine would
produce the same symptoms.
- Is this your idea too, Mr. Cameron?
- I don't know, Doctor.
There are so many confusing facts.
You told me it wasn't tetany, yet that's
what was put on the death certificate. Why?
Because that's what we were
treating the patient for.
She responded to the calcium
treatments, so we continued it.
As a matter of fact, I suggested an autopsy.
- Why didn't you have one?
- Because Lynne couldn't stand the idea.
- I see.
- I agreed with her.
Nothing could be gained by it.
Let me ask you one question. Just how
do you think the child got the poison?
Well, I don't know, but I don't see
how it could have been an accident.
I'm afraid I don't want any
part of this, Mr. Cameron.
All right. All right. I'm sorry
I brought it up. Shall we go?
It's preposterous to assume that anyone
would have wanted to poison the child.
- Oh, I don't know.
- Okay, then, who could have done it?
- Mmm, several people.
- For instance?
For instance, Lynne. Good day, Doctor.
Maggie!
What on earth got into you making
a crazy crack like that about Lynne?
- You can get into trouble.
- Now I'm getting mad.
I only said it was possible, and it is.
- Why don't you like Lynne?
- I can take her or leave her.
Aw, come on, Maggie.
You've got her all wrong.
She certainly made Bill a good
wife. He was very happy with her.
Maybe so.
- What time's the funeral tomorrow?
- 10:00.
- Do you plan to stay on afterwards?
- Till the end of the week.
Well, that'll at least give
me a few more days. Bye-bye.
## [Classical]
[Cameron Narrating] The
more I was with Lynne...
the more I realized what a fine,
wonderful person she really was.
Must you really leave tomorrow?
I've stretched it as long as I could.
It's been over a week, you know.
- Yes, I know.
- I'll be back as soon as I can.
- You can rely on that.
- Good.
Lynne's warmth and affection for Doug...
helped so much to soften the
blow ofhis sister's death.
Never did Maggie's absurd suspicions...
seem more fantastic than now.
Mr. Sargent wants you on the phone.
Tell him I'll call him back later, please.
- No, go on, Cam.
- I'll take it.
Excuse me.
- Fred?
- You still leaving tomorrow morning?
Yes, of course. 7:15 plane.
Can you possibly stay over?
There's something we ought to tell you.
Maggie's been pestering me about it.
- I don't see how I can, Fred.
- Go on!
- Well, I... I kinda hesitate
bringing it up on the phone.
- What is it?
- You know I handled your
brother's estate. - Mm-hmm.
Under the terms of the will,
Lynne's share was left in trust.
She receives merely the interest,
unless...
Unless?
- Now, I don't want you to think
we're jumping to conclusions.
- Well, unless what?
Unless both children were
to die. Both Polly and Doug.
- What the devil are you trying to say?
- It could prove a motive.
I'm amazed at you.
Why, the idea's ridiculous.
I know it sounds that way...
but I think you ought to stay over
another day so we can talk it over.
- For one reason...
- One reason?
Remember, for Lynne to get the money
it requires the deaths of both children.
All right.
I'll see you in the morning.
## [Continues]
Beautiful.
- That was lovely.
- Thank you.
By the way, uh, I've decided to stay over
another day or so, if it's all right with you.
- You know it is.
- That's great, Uncle Cam!
Well, now that your Uncle Cam is going to be
here tomorrow, how about you getting to bed?
Sleep late tomorrow too. You've
been looking a little peaked.
Oh, I'm all right. I'm feeling fine.
- Soon as you get in your pajamas,
I'll come up and say good night.
- Don't forget!
I've been worried about
Doug. He doesn't look well.
Naturally. Polly's death was a big shock.
No, I mean for some time.
- I'm thinking seriously of taking him to Europe.
- Why?
He needs a change.
Too many things here remind
him of his father and Polly.
- Be good for me too.
- How long will you be away?
- Oh, I don't know. Maybe a year or more.
- Oh.
That long?
I thought it'd be fun visiting all
the little out-of-the-way places...
just taking it easy.
I don't care how it adds up.
Absolutely nothing would ever convince me
that a woman like Lynne is capable of murder.
Relax, Cam, relax. We're
only talking among ourselves.
But we can't close our eyes to the
fact that she did have a motive.
- Over a million dollars' worth.
- Or that she's taking Doug to Europe.
And to
out-of-the-way places.
I've gone through every book
on poison cases I can find.
There were plenty of women just
like Lynne who were poison murderers.
There was Madeleine Smith, Mrs. Maybrick, Lydia
Trueblood and all these dozens of others...
many of whom were young,
beautiful, intelligent and cultured.
Maybe so, but if it were
strychnine that killed Polly...
why didn't the doctors recognize it?
Because they weren't looking for it.
Here's the dope on all
the famous poison cases.
Lamson, Crippen, Seddon, the works.
Not in one instance did
a doctor call the turn...
purely on his medical diagnosis.
- This is impressive.
- Let me see.
Look. Over 100 people killed by
an arsenic ring in Philadelphia...
before even one of the cases was suspected.
Yet that's the only case reported in
Philadelphia during the last 20 years.
How do you account for that?
Because there's so many diseases
that simulate poison symptoms.
And the idea of murder seems so
utterly incredible to the doctors...
that it doesn't even enter their heads.
But this just doesn't make sense.
If Lynne really were guilty, she'd
have had Polly's body cremated.
Lynne did want Polly cremated.
I talked her out of it.
Bill wouldn't have wanted it.
I don't see how we can avoid the
issue. Polly could have been poisoned.
There's no proof to the contrary,
and Lynne could've done it.
We can't dismiss this lightly, Cam.
If... And there is that if... Doug should
be murdered, we'd never forgive ourselves.
- Fred's right.
- What do you suggest?
There's only one thing to do. We'll have
to try to get a court order for an autopsy.
Oh.
I know how you feel, but
we've just got to do it.
[Sighs] All right.
Go ahead. Get the court order.
Get it over with.
Bacardi tonight, Cam, or would
you rather have a highball?
- Bacardi's fine. Thank you.
- Ginger ale, Doug?
- Thank you.
- [Phone Rings]
- Anna will answer it.
- Of course.
I can't figure out where this piece goes.
- It doesn't seem to fit under there.
- Let's see.
Well, what do the plans say?
- Was that for me, Anna?
- Yes, Mr. Cameron.
Thank you. Excuse me.
- Hello.
- Here it is, Cam.
The kid had enough strychnine
in her to kill four people.
- Oh, no.
- The D.A.'s pretty sure
it must have been murder.
- I told Cole we'd meet him
in his office at 9:00 tomorrow.
- I see.
He's going to have the servants and
Lynne brought in for questioning.
- Lynne?
- Naturally.
Oh, sure, sure.
- Good-bye.
- Just a minute, Cam.
You'd better break it to Lynne tonight.
Good-bye.
Come on, Cam. What are you daydreaming about?
- What on earth's the matter?
- Nothing. Nothing.
What about this, Uncle Cam?
Oh, the driving rod?
Well, I suppose that hooks on
here with a couple of little pins.
But in the plans it says
it goes on with screws.
Well, let's find the screws.
- Dinner's served.
- Thank you, Anna.
- Lynne, I must talk to you.
- Can't it wait till after dinner?
No, I must talk to you right away. I'm
sorry, Doug. Why don't you go in and start.
This is very difficult for me.
Here. Please sit down.
I...
I don't know how to begin.
Lynne, I've just got word Polly was poisoned.
- What?
- It's true.
It just couldn't be.
There must be some mistake.
- I'm afraid not.
- But how?
How could it have happened?
- The police think it was murder.
- The police?
Yes.
It was their medical examiner
who performed the autopsy.
They want you and the servants down
for questioning tomorrow morning.
I'm bewildered by this whole thing.
What gave them the idea
of performing an autopsy?
Well, Dr. Stevenson wasn't certain
what caused Polly's death...
and there was a reason for
thinking it was strychnine...
and, well, the symptoms are identical.
You knew about this, Cam?
- Yes.
- And you didn't even mention it to me?
I didn't think they'd find anything wrong.
There was no purpose in upsetting you.
I know it's miserable being dragged down
to the police for a lot of stupid questions.
Can't be helped.
But there's one fact we can't get away from.
If Polly was poisoned, somebody did it.
It's up to us to find that somebody.
We're sorry we had to
cause you all this trouble.
I wish I could've been more helpful. I just
couldn't throw any light on this thing at all.
I know it's been very trying for you, Lynne.
Look, why don't we work together on this?
After all, I am in the best
position of anyone to help.
I'd be more than willing to hire private
investigators, anything you'd suggest.
- Thanks, Mrs. Cameron. We'll let you know.
- Please do.
- I want to see you and Mr. Sargent a minute.
- Oh.
I'll be along as soon as I can.
- This is Captain Pringle of Homicide.
- How do you do, Captain?
Fellas, this is Whitney Cameron,
his attorney, Fred Sargent.
They brought the case to our attention.
- We got nothing of any value from Mrs. Cameron.
- Nor the servants.
She apparently treated the children okay,
so there was nothing suspicious there.
- Send in Pierce.
- Didn't have any boyfriends.
Least they didn't know of any.
That, sometimes, is an angle in these cases.
Servants wouldn't buy any suggestion
Mrs. Cameron could be responsible.
That goes for the maid Anna. She
worked for the first Mrs. Cameron too.
Mr. Cole.
It seems to boil down to Mrs.
Cameron or one of the three servants.
Looks that way.
They were the only ones in the
house at the time the kid took sick.
They had dinner at 7:00.
Polly took sick about 11:30.
No one would admit giving her
anything to eat in the meantime.
Certainly, strychnine would have
started working in a half hour or so.
- Excuse me.
- That's about it.
- Does Cole mean this is where the case ends?
- No, we're going ahead.
But these poisoning jobs are always dillies.
I'm afraid it's gonna be plenty tough
to prove who gave that kid the poison.
So you don't have any false hopes...
there have only be two poisoning murder
convictions in New York in the last 50 years.
Both based on confessions.
- Maybe she got it accidentally.
- Strychnine?
Oh, Mr. Cameron, I think you ought to know
we're having your brother's body exhumed.
If they find he was poisoned too, it'll go a
long way toward pinpointing who the murderer is.
Mmm.
Do they have to go through
all that kind of mess?
You start on a case, you never
know where it's gonna lead.
- You wanna come along to court with me?
- Thanks, no.
Think I'll do a little sleuthing on my own.
Then how about meeting us at
the club tonight for dinner?
I'm Whitney Cameron. Where
can I find Fred Sargent?
- He left word for you to meet him in the bar.
- Thank you.
- There's a local crowd out there that...
- Where's Maggie?
- I've got to talk to you two.
- Just a minute, Cam.
Joe Cunningham, Whitney Cameron.
- How do you do? Where is she?
- She's around here someplace.
- Excuse me, Joe.
- Excuse me.
- What's up?
- I've just come from the library.
Oh, no. Not you too. It's catching.
I went through those books on toxicology.
I knew Lynne couldn't have
done it. Now I can prove it.
- How?
- The only way you can die
of strychnine is during a convulsion.
The victim dies of suffocation.
That's all very interesting, but what
does it prove? There she is over there.
It proves that somebody gave Polly
a second dose in the hospital.
- In the hospital?
- Exactly.
[Laughing]
- Hello.
- Hello.
- Maggie, Cam's here.
- Oh, Cam!
- I want you to meet some old friends of ours.
- Not right now, Maggie.
- Excuse me.
- Certainly.
- Something happen?
- Cam thinks Polly got a second dose
of poison in the hospital.
Well, the convulsions were all
over at 7:00 or 8:00 in the morning.
That means her system must have passed
off the effects of the poison by that time.
- Cam's got something.
- How could the convulsions start again
nearly 20 hours later?
- I never thought of that.
- Nor did the police, nor anyone else.
Besides, I called the medical
examiner, and he had to agree.
Sure. In the strychnine cases we looked up,
they either died in a few hours or got well.
This definitely proves one thing.
Lynne is absolutely innocent.
But how could the hospital have
given her strychnine? By mistake?
- That doesn't make sense either.
- That's what I intend to find out.
Well, there it is. The only medicines
administered were ordinary things.
They'd have been supplied
by the hospital pharmacy.
The important point is, what was
given Polly the night she died.
Well, let's see.
She took nothing at 9:00.
- At 10:00, an MFT-10 cap was given her.
- What's that?
Calcium chloride pepcin in capsule form.
We'd been giving her other
calcium preparations earlier...
but they have a disagreeable, chalky taste.
So, at, uh, 6:30 I
recommended switching to these.
At 10:30, she was given another capsule.
With no ill effects. That's right.
And there appear to be no
more entries until, uh, 11:30.
- And that's when she took the last capsule.
- Yes.
She apparently became nauseated,
but didn't lose the medicine.
Half hour later, the convulsions started.
At 2:30, she died.
Well, perhaps the strychnine
was in this last capsule.
- But it came direct from the hospital pharmacy.
- Hmm.
- This is very confusing.
- It certainly is.
I'm sorry, but I have an operation
scheduled. I'll check with you later.
- I appreciate your help.
- Frankly, though,
I don't know what more I can add.
Oh, uh, where is the hospital pharmacy?
- To the right of the entrance as you leave.
- Thank you.
May I have that chart, please?
- Sorry.
- Thank you.
I'd like to check on a prescription
filled for Polly Cameron on April 28.
Room, uh, 362.
- Which one do you want?
- The one issued about 6:30.
Mmm. I don't seem to see it.
Oh.
Bobbie. This man wants to see you.
Miss Brownell, I'm Whitney
Cameron, Polly Cameron's uncle.
Oh, yes. The little girl
who had the convulsions.
- According to the chart,
you were on duty the night she died.
- That's right.
Do you recall Dr. Stevenson asking
you to fill a prescription about 6:30?
- Hmm. Vaguely.
- Where did you get it filled?
- Well, the pharmacy...
- Oh, the pharmacy was closed at that time.
Oh. Well, I don't recall right off.
Now I remember. I was about to send for it
when Mrs. Cameron offered to get it filled.
- Mrs. Cameron?
- Yes, I remember it very clearly now.
- Is that all, sir?
- Yes, thanks.
Would you please see if you can identify
the woman who gave you the calcium capsules?
This is it. Mrs. Cameron. She's
the one I gave the prescription to.
- How did you happen to ask her
to get the medicine?
- I didn't.
The hospital pharmacy was closed, and she
offered to get the prescription filled herself.
- She offered?
- Yes.
- Did she bring the medicine down herself?
- She did.
- What time was that?
- Around 7:30.
- Notice if the wrapping had been tampered with?
- Looked all right to me.
- The capsules were in a bottle, of course?
- Yes, sir.
- The bottle was sealed?
- No, it was an ordinary cork.
Then it would have been
possible for somebody...
to have tampered with the capsules
without your knowing about it.
Well, yes, I suppose so.
I'd like you to take a look at the
photostatic copies of Polly Cameron's chart.
See if you can verify the notations
as to capsules administered.
- May I see the photostats
of Polly Cameron's chart?
- Mm-hmm.
Thank you.
Yes, this is right. These
are the capsules I gave her.
It was right after the third
one that she became ill.
- That's all. Thank you.
- Not at all.
Let's see how Russ is
coming with the chauffeur.
Mr. Wheeler claims he left the hospital
with Mrs. Cameron a little after 6:30...
and drove her to a drugstore.
She gave him a prescription
which he went in and had filled.
He then drove her to the
hospital. She went in with him.
- What time did you arrive back at the hospital?
- 7:30, or a few minutes earlier.
- Where was the drugstore?
- It was an Apex Pharmacy at Fifth and Grand.
Would you come into my office, please.
How long did it take for you
to get the prescription filled?
- I suppose about 10 minutes.
- Then you should have been back before 7:30.
- What held you up?
- Mrs. Cameron stopped off
at her apartment for a few minutes.
- Did she say why?
- No.
- How long was she in the apartment?
- Not very long.
Five minutes? Ten minutes? How long?
There was no parking place, so I
circled the block a couple of times.
Do you remember if Mrs. Cameron had the
bottle with her when she entered the apartment?
- I'm not sure, but she must have.
- Why? - Why?
- Because I saw her put it in her purse.
- You're positive?
- Why, yes.
- I see. Thank you. That's all.
Russ, did Ed question the cook?
- Yes.
- Send him in.
- Are you Anna?
- Yes. Anna Swenson.
Think carefully, Miss Swenson.
On the night Polly Cameron died, what time
did Mrs. Cameron return to the apartment?
Well, let me see.
Everything was so upset that
day. Nobody was on schedule.
- But I'm pretty sure it was before 7:00.
- What did she say to you?
She just told me Polly was coming on
fine and for me to fix the guest room.
- Mr. Whitney Cameron was coming.
- Did she say anything else?
- No, not that I can remember.
- Are you sure, Miss Swenson?
- Yes, sir.
- Do you know if she left again
within the next 15-20 minutes?
If she did, I didn't hear her.
I was in the guest room.
- You didn't hear her come back again either?
- No, sir.
I asked the cook the same question...
but she was in the kitchen
and had no way of knowing.
Okay, that'll be all for
the moment. Thank you.
- I think we're ready for Mrs. Cameron now.
- I want you in on this, Ed.
- We're ready for Mrs. Cameron.
- [Woman] In your office?
- Yes, in my office.
- Yes, sir.
Oh, and send in a
stenographer, please. Thank you.
- How do you do?
- Hello.
Mrs. Cameron, please be seated.
Gonna try to be as easy on
you as possible, Mrs. Cameron.
Thank you.
- A stenographer will take notes. Do you mind?
- Not at all.
- I want to cooperate as much as I can.
- Good.
At 6:30 on the night your stepdaughter died,
you offered to get her prescription filled.
That's quite correct.
Mr. Wheeler stated he drove you to the
drugstore where you had him fill the order.
- He then gave you the bottle,
which you placed in your purse.
- That's right.
- He then drove you to your apartment?
- Yes.
Just why did you return to your apartment?
- To pick up some things for Polly.
- What things?
Comb, brush, toothpaste...
things like that.
The night before, we left in such a rush...
there wasn't time to think of anything
except getting the child to the hospital.
Why didn't you send your
chauffeur for them earlier?
I was too worried to think about them.
- How long did you remain in you apartment?
- Only a few minutes.
- Why did you go to you bedroom first?
- To get the traveling case.
- What exactly did you do while you
were in your room?
- I picked up the case and left.
- You're sure. You did nothing else?
- Yes. Nothing.
- Then what?
- I went to Polly's room and packed her things.
- Why didn't your maid help?
- She was getting the guest room
ready for my brother-in-law.
Packing the bag for Polly was
all you did? You're quite sure?
Quite sure.
- Did you open the bottle of capsules?
- No. Why should I?
- Did you at any time remove them
from your purse? - No.
Then you delivered the bag
and the medicine to the nurse.
- Is that correct?
- Correct?
- Then you admit giving the medicine
to the nurse. - Of course.
You realize the lethal dose was administered
at the hospital. That's been proven.
- So I understand.
- I don't think we can get away from it,
Mrs. Cameron.
Your stepdaughter must have been murdered.
And we have to find out who's responsible
for the child getting the poison.
The hospital attendants had no motive.
- You and Mr. Cameron were the only visitors.
- That's right.
You and the hospital attendants were
always present while he was there.
- I know.
- So that rules him out.
And there was always someone
present while I was there.
Nevertheless, the poison was
slipped into the calcium capsules...
and all the medicine came from the hospital,
except the bottle you gave the nurse.
- It was in your possession.
- This gave you the opportunity
to poison the capsules.
You're the one person with a motive.
The death of the two children would make you
a rich woman. You wanted the child cremated.
You opposed an autopsy, though there was
doubt as to the cause of the child's death...
and Dr. Stevenson particularly requested it.
It all adds up. You were the only one
with the motive and the opportunity.
You... You think I did this thing?
That I killed Polly?
It's beginning to look
that way, Mrs. Cameron.
But... I loved the child as if she
were my own. I couldn't have done it.
Believe me, Mrs. Cameron...
you'll be making it much easier on yourself
if you'll just tell us the truth now.
If you kept me here all night, all I could
say, over and over, is, I didn't do it.
I didn't do it!
That'll be all for now, Mrs. Cameron.
Just wait in the next room, please.
- They think I did it.
- I know.
It's hard to tell what sort
of turn this thing will take.
- If it should go against me, what about Doug?
- Doug?
I may be held over for trial or something.
- From the way they talked, it could happen.
- I suppose so.
Well, if it does, would
you take him till it's over?
Of course I will. Here.
I'll take good care of him.
Mr. Cameron, Mr. Cole wants to
see you in his office right away.
- Excuse me.
- And will you try not to let him
hear about this?
Looks like Mrs. Cameron's it.
She's a cool number. Plenty shrewd.
- D.A. busy?
- [Woman On Intercom] He's just coming in.
- Tell him I'm coming up. It's important.
- Yes, sir.
Lew, check the servants. See if Mrs.
Cameron kept her bag in the bedroom closet.
Tell Captain Pringle the results.
Supposing I check with the boys,
see if they came up with anything.
Wanna come along, Cameron? It's okay.
Sure.
- How you coming?
- So far, it's a bust.
- No strychnine?
- No strychnine.
These are the calcium capsules. We
retrieved them from the hospital.
There were nine left in the bottle. I've
already analyzed five. This is the sixth one.
If it turns cloudy when I add this
Myers reagent, it's strychnine.
- Clear.
- Possibly the strychnine
was only in one capsule.
It checks. There were 12 altogether.
Kid took the first two
all right. Third was it.
[Woman On P.A.] Captain Pringle, telephone.
Keep at it.
Captain Pringle speaking. Lew?
Oh? Thanks.
She kept the bag in her closet, all right.
Well, we've drawn nothing but blanks so far.
Here are 632 reports from the
drugstores. More are coming in.
If a smart dame like Mrs. Cameron did it,
she'd never buy the poison at a drugstore.
Well, widen the circle. Keep at it.
They found Mrs. Cameron's bookstore,
but it didn't give us a thing.
- What about the servants?
- Nothing.
We wanted to see if any of them
had been boning up on poisons.
- What about the libraries?
- They're being covered.
I just received this report from the Cameron
apartment. They checked for rodenticides.
Went all through the medicines.
No trace of strychnine.
You must remember, even if we bring the
woman up for preliminary examination...
I'm sure no judge will
hold her over for trial.
- But you do believe she's guilty, don't you?
- Certainly.
- Captain Pringle too.
- Who else could have done it?
There's no doubt about
it in any of our minds.
It's one thing to believe someone's guilty.
- It's quite another to prove it
beyond a reasonable doubt.
- That's a must for conviction.
You just heard Captain Pringle. You're the
district attorney. You think she's guilty.
Maybe the jury'll think she's guilty too.
Convictions are obtained
on facts, not opinions.
Mrs. Cameron is already planning
to take my nephew to Europe.
Ayear, five years from now, he'll
suddenly die in some obscure place.
That's an angle.
By the time we hear about it,
the kid'll have been cremated.
That's supposition, not
evidence. We need more evidence.
There's no chance of winning the case.
There's no sense bringing it into court.
You mean, you base your reputation
on winning cases, not on losing them.
- So you play only the sure bets.
- Now, Mr. Henderson meant nothing of the kind.
But if we don't come up with
some new evidence, we're dead.
So's the boy.
Don't think for a moment we're not fully
aware of the gravity of this situation.
That boy's life is in your hands.
- I don't appreciate you're putting it
quite that way.
- There's no other way to put it.
I suppose not.
[Phone Rings]
Anderson speaking.
Okay. Thank you.
That was the medical examiner.
There was no evidence of poison in
connection with your brother's death.
That, at least, would have
been some help to our case.
That still doesn't alter the
situation regarding my nephew.
That's right.
I've got a lot of misgivings
about doing this...
but under the circumstances
I suppose it has to be done.
Get a complaint and a warrant
for the arrest of Mrs. Cameron.
We'll have her brought up
for a preliminary hearing.
[Spectators Murmuring]
Remain seated. Come to order.
[Gavel Raps]
From the examination of the evidence...
I find some grounds for considering
Mrs. Cameron a likely suspect.
However, the State has failed to offer any
tangible proof to sustain its contention...
that Mrs. Cameron put
strychnine in a calcium capsule.
Undeniably, Mrs. Cameron had a
possible motive for such a crime.
But, as the defense pointed
out, she is not the only one.
Mr. Whitney Cameron...
also stood to inherit the fortune, should
both the children and Mrs. Cameron die.
The defense has proved...
that Mrs. Cameron is a woman ofhigh repute...
and innumerable witnesses have testified...
that she was an affectionate and
indulgent mother to the children.
I find that the prosecution has
failed to establish probable cause.
I hereby order the defendant
discharged forthwith.
[Spectators Chattering]
- Look this way, please.
- Mrs. Cameron? Hold it!
I have to get custody of that boy.
- We've only got 15 minutes to catch Judge Adams.
- Well, let's go.
Wait. You can't get out of
talking to Lynne. Don't take long.
And don't get her back up, or
she may never let you see Doug.
Mrs. Cameron, look this way! Hold it!
- I'm sorry you had to go through all of this.
- It's a relief to have it over.
- How's Doug?
- He's fine. I told him you were in Chicago.
- I'll bring him around in the morning.
- Fine.
Judge Adams will be leaving by 5:00.
- Can't you telephone him, make him stay later?
- Comes 5:00, they blow.
We've got to make it.
- Good night, Judge.
- Good night, Frank.
Judge Adams, just a minute, please.
We've got to talk to you on that
custody matter I spoke to you about.
I'm afraid you're late. I'm meeting my
wife. We're leaving town over the weekend.
- This'll only take a minute.
- I'm sorry. I just have time to catch my train.
- Couldn't we discuss it
on the way to the station?
- That'd be rather irregular.
She intends to murder the boy.
I can't consider the question of Mrs. Cameron's
guilt or her intentions toward your nephew.
That's a criminal matter, and the judge has
just thrown the case out for lack of evidence.
There must be something we can do.
Your brother's will specifically
requested the children be left in her care.
I have to abide by that, unless
you can prove she's unfit.
- [Bell Clanging]
- I'm sorry. I've got to hurry.
We'll keep the cab, Judge.
[Door Closes]
And I helped your brother with that will.
- It was a death warrant.
- Mmm.
Look, what would happen if I just
refused to give Doug back to Lynne?
She'd get a court order, and Doug
would be taken forcibly, if necessary.
All you'd end up doing would be to
make Lynne hopping mad for no purpose.
Well, we've got to think of something.
But fast. We've only got till tomorrow.
What if Doug and I changed our names
and went away to some foreign country...
where she'd never find us.
And spend the rest of
your life as a fugitive?
Besides, sooner or later
she'd catch up with you.
Okay, okay, so it was a crazy idea.
Do you have a better suggestion?
Well, there's one way out. As long as
I'm around, Lynne wouldn't dare harm Doug.
So I'm always around.
- Hello, boy!
- Hi! I'm helping Maggie make a cake.
- Come help us.
- I'm quite a cook myself.
This summer I'll show you how to
toss flapjacks over an open fire.
- Hi.
- Hello, Maggie.
[Exhales]
Just where would you get the money to go
bouncing all over the world after Lynne?
She'd move every day just to throw you off.
And each time she took a powder, how
would you find her again? Hire detectives?
- Cam, you're not making sense.
- Making sense?
What does make sense about this whole thing?
The police,
the district attorney's staff...
practically everybody agrees Lynne is guilty,
that she intends poisoning Doug.
Yet all they can do is throw up their hands
and offer us their profoundest sympathies.
Take it easy, Cam. Take it easy.
Why can't we think of some legal
loophole that'll give us an out?
Well, if there is one,
I just can't think of it.
- Think harder. You're the lawyer.
- Hey.
Just a minute. The only thing
that matters is little Doug.
This is no time to be
at each other's throats.
I'm sorry, Fred. I'm nearly
out of my mind over this thing.
We understand, Cam. I guess
we're all pretty jittery.
You two have really been wonderful.
I'm calling recess. How's about some coffee?
Later, perhaps. I'm not
very good company right now.
I don't like it, Fred. Looks to me
like he's on the verge of cracking up.
Yeah, and the worst of it
is, there's no solution.
- Doug! Hello, Cam.
- Good morning.
Oh, Doug, it's good to see you.
- Did you have a good time while I was away?
- Oh, sure!
Uncle Cam and I planned out everything
we're going to do this summer.
- I've got a surprise for you.
It's upstairs in your room.
- Bet I know what it is!
Cam, I'm afraid we're going to have
to postpone Doug's vacation with you.
- Why?
- Well, remember I told you
I was planning a trip to Europe?
- You're taking him to Europe?
- I've got to get away
from all this unpleasantness.
You can understand that, can't you?
- It's all been such a nightmare.
- Yeah.
- I figured now is as good a time
as any for the trip to Europe.
- When are you leaving?
- Tomorrow, on the Victoria.
- That soon?
We'll probably be gone for about a year.
I've got quite an itinerary planned.
I figure maybe we can spend
a week or so in England, and then...
It's got a little honey
in it to attract the ants.
- I warn folks with children to be careful of it.
- I'll take it.
Thanks. That'll be 85 cents.
Funny. We've got lots of insecticides
today that don't hurt humans.
- But people still mostly go
for these old standbys.
- You certainly carry a variety.
We got stuff strong enough to kill a tree.
Worst of it is, it remains in
the ground for 50 years or more.
- Suppose a kid or a dog gets
some of the dirt in its mouth.
- It'd kill 'em dead.
- What are these?
- Innocent lookin', aren't they?
Strongest stuff we carry. Rodenticide.
- Put out by a Midwestern concern.
- Strychnine?
Yeah. There's enough there to kill a horse.
- Hmm.
- Come back again.
## [Orchestra]
- Good evening. This way, please.
- Thank you.
There's Uncle Cam!
- Hello, Doug.
- What are you doing here, Uncle Cam?
I just decided to take a little
cruise myself. Have a seat.
Won't you join us?
Gee, Lynne, Uncle Cam's coming with us!
- Surprised?
- Surprised.
- I decided to come along.
- I gathered as much.
- Just one of those things.
- That explains everything.
I mean, I... sort of acted on impulse.
Spur of the moment sort of idea.
- You're making it very difficult.
- I'm so sorry.
- Well, the firm had me down
for a trip to Europe...
- I thought it was Venezuela.
I felt now was as good
a time as any to take it.
And that this ship was as good
as any to take it on. How cozy.
And now the real reason.
You don't believe me, do you?
- No.
- [Waiter] Cocktail, sir?
Bacardis?
Bacardis.
Maybe if we play our cards right, they'll
let us look at the radar stuff up there too.
- Night, boy.
- Hurry up, darling.
Get into your pajamas. It's late.
- Night, Uncle Cam. See you tomorrow.
- Good night.
- Good night, Cam.
- How about once around the deck?
Fine, but come in and wait
till I get Doug tucked in.
Now the real reason, hmm?
- I guess you're entitled to it.
- I think so.
Standing by while you went
through this horrible ordeal...
was as miserable for me as it was for you.
I wanted you to know that.
You came on this trip just to tell me that?
It wasn't one of those things
you could say in one night...
while someone was packing trunks...
not if you wanted to sound convincing.
Still not convinced?
You're a hard woman.
When did you first get
the notion to come along?
When you first told me
you were going to Europe.
Why then?
Because that was the moment when
I realized how much I'd miss you.
How very much.
[Laughing]
[Sobs]
[Cameron Narrating] Lynne
played right into my hands.
My plan couldn't have
been working more smoothly.
The one who came nearest to guessing
the ship's mileage each day won a prize.
I got a kick out of Doug's
excitement when he found he'd won.
Yes, it could have been a wonderful trip...
if only the circumstances had been different.
But there were moments when I was
horrified by the enormity of my plan.
Cold fear would come over me.
There were those fearful moments of doubt
when I would speculate on the possibilities...
of Lynne not being guilty at all.
But always my mind would come back to the
irreconcilable fact: Polly was murdered.
Somebody did it, and all the evidence
pointed to that somebody being Lynne.
Tonight was my last night at sea.
My time had finally run out.
- At last.
- Sorry I'm late. Am I forgiven?
Forgiven. But let's hurry.
- You look wonderful tonight.
- Thank you.
For heaven sakes, will you go
in and say good night to Doug?
He refuses to go to sleep until you do.
[Cameron Narrating] This was
the moment I'd planned on.
There might not be another.
How about cocktails before we go?
Oh, but we don't want to be too late.
The captain's ball is so much fun.
- I could phone the bar.
They could have them here...
- Never mind.
- I'll do it to save time.
- Yes.
- I didn't think you were ever coming, Uncle Cam.
- I wouldn't desert you, Doug.
- Can't you stay with us in England?
- I'd like to.
- I'm afraid I can't.
- When will I see you again?
Well, I don't know.
Maybe I'll get a chance to fly
over in the next couple of months.
- Doesn't take long on a plane, you know.
- Will you?
Sure. You'll have a wonderful time in Europe.
Lynne tells me she's taking you to Paris...
and Switzerland this winter for the skiing.
- You'll like that, won't you?
- If only you could come too, Uncle Cam.
Don't you worry about that. I'll see
you in the morning before we dock.
- Good night, Uncle Cam.
- Yeah.
I'll see you before we dock.
- Night, boy.
- Night, Uncle Cam.
[Cameron Narrating]
The moment had arrived...
the moment I dreaded.
But I had to appear at ease,
though my mind was numb.
- [Knocking]
- Come in.
Ah. Set them right down here.
I'd rehearsed this scene a
thousand times in my mind.
But now that it was a reality...
the idea of taking the
life of a human being...
seemed like a hideous nightmare.
Thank you, sir.
Lynne, uh...
remember our first meeting?
- It was at a cocktail party, wasn't it?
- Yes, given for my brother.
It was a couple of days
before you two were married.
I wished I'd met you first.
I thought you were the most
beautiful woman I'd ever seen.
- Oh!
- Sorry.
- It's all right.
- Excuse me.
I can get it off in a jiffy.
[Cameron Narrating] I tried to pour
the bottle, but my hand wouldn't move.
It were as if it belonged to someone else.
I'd have to find another chance later...
later tonight.
Well, that was simple.
It doesn't even show.
Good.
It's stuffy in here.
[Cameron Narrating]
Suppose by some freak chance I was wrong?
But Fred agreed, Maggie, the D.A.,
the police... All of them agreed.
Only she could have done it.
If I couldjust be certain.
## [Orchestra]
- Oh, no.
- "No" what?
- Can't you hear?
- Hear?
"Auld Lang Syne," silly. It
means the end of the dance.
And the end of the voyage.
It's been a wonderful voyage.
What if I didn't have the nerve to
go through with it and Doug died...
died because Lynne had murdered him?
I'd exhausted every other out.
I knew it had to be done tonight.
But I had to stall for time...
time to get up my courage.
- Mmm.
- ## [Ends]
How 'bout a turn around the deck?
Oh, nice, except it's
getting a little chilly.
That's easy. Give me your
key. I'll get your coat.
Be right back.
[Cameron Narrating] Somehow or
other I sensed a vague association...
between these bottles...
and the fact that I had used my shaving...
lotion bottle...
as a place to hide my poison.
What if Lynne had reasoned the same way?
I couldn't help but notice the striking
similarity between the aspirin...
and those rodenticide pills
I'd seen in the nursery.
Then I found it...
one different from the others.
A "W"... A "W", the same marking
that was on the strychnine tablet...
enough to kill a horse.
There were three in all.
This was the proof I needed.
Now more than ever, I knew I
had to go through with my plan.
Well, I think it's time we called it a night.
This is the last night we'll
be alone for a long time.
- How about a good-night drink?
- Why not?
Hello. Give me the bar, please.
Hello. This is cabin 92-A.
May we have two Bacardi cocktails, please?
Thank you.
Cam.
You've been so sweet to us on this
trip. It's been a wonderful crossing.
- I'm sorry it's over.
- Are you really?
Mm-hmm.
Tell me something, and I want the truth now.
- Why did you really come on this trip?
- You know why.
I know the reason you gave me.
It was all very flattering,
but rather difficult to believe.
You don't believe it?
I don't know.
But you are the sort of man who
might do crazy, impulsive things.
You mean, like taking this ship so I
could be with you for five more days?
Yes.
[Knocking]
Oh, I'll...
I'll take these.
- There you are.
- Thank you, sir.
[Cameron Narrating] This was
my last, my very last chance.
Here.
Thanks.
Mmm.
- Your hand's trembling.
- Oh.
What's the matter with you, Cam?
[Cameron] It's a little warm in here.
Why don't you open the porthole?
- Do you mind?
- No.
- Oh, that's much better.
- Yes.
Yes, it is, isn't it?
Cam, something is wrong.
No, no. I'm all right.
It's bitter.
Mine too, but... I suppose we're lucky
to get anything at all at this hour.
- Lynne.
- Yes?
- I found a bottle of aspirin in your stateroom.
- So?
Three of the tablets were different
from the others. They had a "W" on them...
trademark of a tablet containing strychnine.
Oh, for heaven's sakes, Cam, not that again.
They also happen to be aspirin pills.
Why were they different from the others?
Because they were another brand. But
I refuse to go through all this again.
- Yet they were in the same bottle?
- Well, why not?
I'd been taking another type of
aspirin. I had a few left over.
I put them in the new bottle to
save some room. Is that so peculiar?
Lynne, the "W" is the trademark of an insecticide
manufacturer, not a pharmaceutical house.
So that's the real reason
you came on this trip.
You were behind this ridiculous
persecution from the first.
- You say they were harmless aspirin pills.
- Of course.
- You absolutely sure?
- Absolutely.
That's good. I'm relieved.
- I'm very relieved.
- Why?
Because one of the "W" pills was dissolved
in your drink. You've just taken it.
I don't think you and
I have anything more to discuss... ever.
Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to bed.
Who are you?
I'm Frank Connelly, ship's
detective. Mr. Cameron sent for me.
As a witness.
A witness?
So that's what you expected...
an hysterical admission that
the pill contained strychnine.
You never give up, do you, Cam?
But this time I'm afraid
you drew another blank.
The tablet was harmless.
There seems to have been
an unfortunate mistake.
I suggest we forget the whole thing.
I'll go along. Will you excuse me?
Of course. I'm sorry about it too.
But this sort of thing is getting
to be a habit with Mr. Cameron.
- [Door Opens]
- Wait a minute.
Come back, please.
Look.
It's been over five minutes
since you took that drink.
Right now your life can be saved...
even in another five minutes.
But beyond that you're
getting into a dangerous zone.
You're well versed on the subject
of strychnine, aren't you, Cam?
Oh, Lynne, please, please!
If there was strychnine in that tablet,
call the doctor now before it's too late!
On the other hand, if the tablet with
the "W" on it was merely an aspirin...
there wouldn't be much sense in
calling a doctor, would there?
And if I were to admit that
it did contain strychnine...
there still wouldn't be any
sense in my phoning for a doctor.
Sort of an even stephen trade...
death by strychnine
or death by the electric chair.
Take your choice.
Look at this clock.
It's five minutes past 1:00.
Every time it ticks it brings you a second
nearer a horrible death right here and now!
You're being a fool, Lynne, an absolute fool!
Strange, isn't it? You seem to
be the one who's unnerved, not I.
You know, it just occurred to me, if
there was strychnine in that tablet...
and I should die, you're the one
who'll be facing the electric chair.
Or hadn't you thought of that?
You're all confused, aren't you, Cam?
You don't know, not for sure,
whether I'm lying or not.
And if I am, you yourself will be a murderer.
Hmm, you don't like the idea of that, do you?
It takes nerve to kill someone...
sit by and watch them die.
How would you like to have a death
on your conscience...
My death?
Oh, yes, it was five after 1:00, wasn't it?
Nearly a minute's gone by since then.
This is too much for me. Did you or
did you not give this woman strychnine?
I gave her a pill marked with a "W"
that I took from her aspirin bottle.
Then it was completely harmless, and you
have nothing to worry about, either of you.
Here.
- Tell me, Mr... Mr...
- Connelly.
Oh, yes, Mr. Connelly.
What are your impressions of
the man there in that chair?
From his looks, would
you say he had character?
Honor? Integrity?
Well, I'm sure you would.
But I'm afraid he's quite deceiving.
Let me tell you about him, Mr. Connelly.
He lived in my apartment as a guest...
as a relative, as a warm friend.
But all the while he was accepting
my hospitality, Mr. Connelly...
what do you think he
was doing behind my back?
He was taking everything I said,
every incident that occurred...
and was conniving to build a case against me.
But his betrayal didn't end there.
Even after the court laughed
at his ridiculous charges...
he kept on and on with his persecution!
But this last attempt...
This is the most contemptible of all!
Tonight...
Tonight you must really be proud of...
Even while we were dancing
in each other's arms...
even while you were making love to me...
you were all the while
plotting to take my life.
How treacherous...
How despicably treacherous is
it possible for a man to get?
Look at the clock, Whitney Cameron.
The five minute deadline
you gave me has passed...
and nothing's happened to me.
How about that, Cam?
Even you ought to be convinced by now.
You're being an idiot...
a complete idiot!
You were there with me when
Polly died. You heard her screams.
You saw the horrible convulsions
and the agony she went through.
Do you think that I, that
anyone who had seen that...
would take a chance of dying
in the same horrible way?
Do you?
I've been a bigger fool than you.
You took me in completely.
I was even falling in love with you.
This farce has gone on long enough.
Now get out of here, both of you! Get out!
Get out, or I'll call the purser!
I assure you, Mr. Cameron will leave at once.
[Door Closes]
This is the most outrageous
thing I've ever witnessed.
- You realize I'll have to make
a full report of this.
- I suppose so.
[Cameron Narrating]
I must have been insane...
Stupidly, blindly insane.
How could I have been so wrong?
Apparently, Polly's death was due to
one of those impossible accidents...
that couldn't happen but did.
A million-to-one shot.
A mistake by a careless drug clerk.
I was horror-stricken at the thought that...
it was only by the merest chance
that I hadn't murdered her.
What a mess. What a complete,
miserable mess I'd made of everything.
Mr. Cameron. You're wanted in
the surgeon's office right away.
Mr. Cameron is here.
It's Mrs. Cameron. We were
just able to save her life.
Another minute and it would've been too late.
She phoned here as soon as we left.
[Cameron Narrating]
On October 10, 1952...
Lynne Cameron was convicted
of murder in the first degree.
Her sentence: life imprisonment.
And so to the names of Madeleine
Smith, Florence Maybrick...
Lydia Trueblood and all those
other young, beautiful...
but evil poison murderers...
was added that of Lynne Cameron.
[No Audible Dialogue]