 From Hollywood. It's time now for Bob Bailey as Johnny dollar Dave Borgher Johnny marine and maritime casually. Hi a day awful. I'm in mourning Johnny for Molly Kay Oh, sorry Dave. You have my sympathy save it. This is money not sentiment We had her insured for a cool half million you mean James come that high these days all but a rusty old tub of a freighter does What happened? She steamed out of San Francisco Bay bound for Yokohama 20 miles off the Golden Gate She upended and departed this world forever real sudden to sudden. I don't like sudden things Why don't you fly out there Johnny take a look at the remains sure as long as you're willing to pay for it You're hired, but be careful. Don't get yourself killed while I'm on an expense account Dave. You've got a lot to learn Tonight and every weekday night Bob Bailey in the transcribed adventures of the man with the action-packed expense account America's fabulous freelance insurance investigator. Yes, truly Johnny dollar Expense accounts submitted by special investigator Johnny dollar to the home office marine and maritime casually limited Hartford, Connecticut The following is an accounting of my expenditure is during the investigation of the Molly Kay matter Item one a hundred and sixty four fifty plane fare and ensign Eddles Hartford to San Francisco It was mid-morning when I landed in the city on the seven hills glittered under the bright Sun like a fabulous horde of jewels a Cool crisp breeze was driving the usual night's bank of fog out toward the open sea and the clear waters of the bay danced and sparkled from the touch of the wind it was a day in a place that felt lusty with life and the joy of living and Yet 36 hours before the freighter Molly Kay with a crew of 43 men had steamed out across this same bay passed under the high arch of the Golden Gate Bridge and Disappeared into the gray oblivion of the Pacific gone down to her death Item two a dollar fifty-five local Transportation limousine to my hotel where I barely had time to check in then a taxi down to the foot of market street where harbour master Tim O'Rourke a grizzled old veteran of the port was about to preside at a preliminary board of inquiry in the Ferry building All right, let's have it quiet all of us know what we're here for but just to make it official I have to announce that this is the preliminary hearing of a board of inquiry investigating the loss by sinking of the vessel Molly Kay Needless to say for you that know me the proceedings are going to be pretty informal All right now the bare facts seem to be go something like this The Molly Kay cleared her birth at pier 29 at 10 12 p.m. Night before last destination Yokohama primary cargo grain The Molly Kay was a steel hull classy freighter Oil fueled with a steam turbine drive She was under the command of her owner captain Edgar Brawley of San Francisco Now is His captain Brawley presents. I am but if you're expecting me to tell a lady captain later all right at 1038 the Molly Kay dropped her pilot and proceeded on out to sea Far conditions were reported at the time as medium to dense Then at 1249 a.m. The radio operator on duty at the point beneath a Coast Guard station picked up the first distress signal Now I'll call the first witness the officer in charge of the rescue operation Lieutenant commander Barton fields of the United States Coast Guard Will you take the witness chair commander? I'll raise your right hand commander You swear the testimony in very moved along the whole truth not much came out that wasn't already known The Coast Guard commander testified that five minutes after the first distress call the Molly Kay had sent a second sos stating she was sinking rapidly by the bow According to the message the vessel had struck a submerged derelict The captain and crew had taken to the lifeboats and two of these were picked up immediately A third boat missed in the heavy fog made shore and beached under its own efforts now According to this report two men William Mack machinist and benny wong stewart are still missing Our furthest search has now been abandoned and these men are presumed to be dead I think that's all commander Thank you Radio operator g.a. Beck take the witness chair While the testimony went on I studied the teletypes from the home office that I picked up at the hotel Again nothing much that wasn't already known with a few exceptions a stray factor two a couple of odd details nothing else But the seeds of suspicion are pretty small and if they're kept well watered sometimes they grow up into nice tall blooming hunch plants Then chairman o'rook called the witness. I was most interested in Will captain edgar brawley, please take the chair The man who stood to collect a half million dollars if the sinking was legitimate, but I was pretty sure it wasn't Raise your right hand captain You swear that the testimony you are about to give is the whole truth and nothing but the truth I do You can sit down He was a man about 50 maybe older, but he had the body of a young bull Hard stubborn belligerent He figured to be a tough lead to tangle within court or on the deck of a ship Now captain, will you tell us what happened in your own words? Starting where? From the time you dropped the pilot Uh unless something happened earlier that might have some bearing on this case There wasn't nothing happened earlier earlier that got any bearing on it. We hit a submerged derelict that's all Now what more do you want to know? Your story captain just for the record be no different from what you've already heard from all the rest of me here This is an official board of inquiry captain, whether you like it or not I'll be the judge of what's important and what isn't Yes, sir Well After we dropped the pilot I set a course north 77 west aimed to bring us into the main shipping lane by daybreak And I signed the watches had the deck gear stowed away Opened the trip log got ready to settle down for the night to run No, no procedure in other words. That's what I told you there wasn't nothing that was Why with your story captain? My first officer took over the bridge like he already told you didn't I went to my quarters What was the weather like at the time same as it'd been all evening so foggy you couldn't see a hundred feet from the bridge And you took all the usual precautions prescribed for such a condition course Go on Well, it was a while before midnight I was still in my quarters awake in my bunk when she hit Was a big crash like a torpedo had took us and the lights went out We started losing the headway in a couple of minutes later the engineer cut the engines and pulled his fires Water had busted right through number one and number two bulkheads and was rising fast in the boiler room I must have ripped half the bottom out of her. What did you do next? I called the engine room gang on deck and Well, then I Give the order to abandon ship. She sank less than 10 minutes after we got the boats on All right Well, I I guess that's about the size of it Submerged derelict in the shipping lane It was an accident pure and simple All right captain. I guess there's nothing more Mr. Dollar, I wonder if I could have your permission to ask the captain a few questions Well, it's kind of unusual but like I said, this is an informal hearing so, um Captain brawley mr. Dollar is a special investigator for the insurance company that holds the policy on your ship His position here is unofficial of course and you're under no obligation It's up to you. Well, I've told you all I know about it. I got nothing to hide if that's what you're talking about Not one single thing Better mask till he's blue in the face Go ahead mr. Dollar. Thank you Captain brawley We've heard quite a lot about your last sailing for Yokohama night before last But there hasn't been any mention of the first time you started to leave a little over a week ago Had no bearing on this maybe not but let's talk about it. Anyway According to my report, you were six hours out of san francisco when you radioed the coast guard to stand by You had a cargo fire a number two hole That's right A little while later you told them you had the fire under control, but you were returning to port I wanted to check the damage make sure the ship was sound Yeah So you laid up in harbour for a week you filed a claim with our home office in hartford for estimated damages of $6,300 Come to more But when the company appraiser called at your office on pier 29 you refused him admittance to the ship and an hour later You wired hartford and canceled your claim. That's right A $6,300 loss fully covered by insurance and you suddenly decided not to make any claim for it I'd have lost more if I had claimed it How do you figure that because I had found out that I'd have to lay up here for another two weeks while that sneaking company years Check the facts as they call it I had a cargo on board. I had a delivery date ahead of me couldn't afford to waste two weeks What caused the fire? I don't know Who uh, who found it and reported it? uh Man named bill mack All right. All right. He was one of the two men that drowned when the ship went down. What of it? What are you trying to make out of it? All right, let's quiet down now Let's have order in here Now at the time of the accident captain the sinking we're led to believe that it was a little foggy out that night You doubt it. No, not at the least That's why I can't quite understand how you managed to see that uh, that submerged derelict I didn't see it then who did nobody as far as I know That fog you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. There was no fog the next day The coast guard searched the area for hours and they didn't see it either That probably sunk when we hit it it Just what are you getting that dollar? How do you know there was any submerged derelict captain? What do you mean? You said there was a big crash all the crew members described the accident as a sudden hard shock In fact, one of them, mr. Hawkins there who was up for it on bow look out said it felt like a blast like something Oh, no, you don't mr. Hawkins I didn't say it was no blast What I said was it just kind of felt like one You ain't gonna go putting no words like that in my mouth mr. Dollar You ain't going to get me mixed up in this Mixed up in what mr. Hawkins in this here whatever's going on or whatever you're trying to claim is going on I just don't know nothing about it about anything And I I just don't want anybody putting words in my mouth. That's all claimant. I said something I didn't I well Just what exactly is it you're hitting at mr. Dollar not hitting captain. I'm saying it I don't think there was a derelict. I think the molly k was sunk by an explosive charge placed in a hole Are you accusing me of that? I'm not accusing anybody not yet. All right, all right. Let's settle down. Are you playing I'd stink my own ship just to collect a few lousy bucks worth of insurance I don't know who did it captain brawley, but I'm gonna find out and whoever it was they're in it up to their neck Two men died when the molly k went down So this thing's a whole lot worse than just a crooked insurance racket It's a case of cold-blooded murder Outside after the hearing adjourned. I turned west and walked along the embarked Darrell I looked at the crowds and the sunshine and the seagulls out over the bay It was all brisk and bright and cheerful But I felt cold on the pit of my stomach They were scared in there all of them scared to death The smell of fear in that hearing room was so thick you could cut it with a knife And I meant to find out why Here's our star bob bailey to tell you about tomorrow's episode of this story Thanks tomorrow night a strange girl and a strange threat and a promise that's stranger than both Join us. Won't you yours truly johnny dollar Yours truly johnny dollar is transcribed in hollywood Written by less crutchfield the entire production is under the direction of jack john stone Be sure to join us tomorrow night same time in station for the next exciting episode of yours truly johnny dollar Roy Rowan speaking