 Tonight your mystery playhouse invite you to listen to inner sanctum mysteries Come on out, mr. Hose Welcome you through the squeaking door shopping around for a nice case of murder you have And you've come to the right place because the characters on this program simply kill themselves to keep you in view Why only the other day we were accused of making murder our business But we wouldn't do that it said that those who hear him laugh mocking sound Same laugh I heard for the first time in the courtroom It never left during all the weeks of the trial Never even smiled this day When he came before me for sentencing you have been found guilty of murder in the first degree You wish to make a statement before sentence is imposed. I killed Hicks I'm willing to admit it now But he was no good. He got just what he deserved and everybody knows it I'm not a killer. I never committed a crime before No, I asked now is a chance John Spencer The jury took all that into consideration when it recommended life imprisonment However, I have the power to ignore that recommendation It is my firm conviction that to allow one man to take the law into his own hands is to encourage others to do likewise I Therefore overwrite the recommendation of the jury and sentence you to be hung by the neck until dead No Judd, please I've got a girl. We were going to be married All I asked is to live so I can see her once in a while should have thought of that before you committed murder It's easy for you to tell me what I should have done But you won't always be on top Maybe someday you'll be down here where I am When that happens, I hope they throw the book that you just like you're doing to me Hey, look remove the prisoner won't I be laughing when that happens wherever I'm I'll be laughing fit the Story prisoner, please innocence or guilty good cause Asks mercy Implemency is refused and never demand curses judge and hopes that judge will someday find himself in a similar fight Spencer's outbursts failed to move me in the slightest. I've heard it many times before I Went home to forget about the Spencer case I'll come in as soon as I've freshened up I've been waiting here all day Surely it's not too much to ask all right all right Laura. I'm coming Richard I want you to meet my new nurse Margaret Cummings. This is judge Thornton. That's Cummings. How do you do? It's Cummings Haven't we met before that's hardly likely It's probably my face It's so ordinary on the contrary miss Cummings. I should say your face is rather unusual Richard suppose you stop that silly chatter about faces and talk to miss Cummings about her duty very well Come into my study miss Cummings. We can talk better there I sit down please There's not much to say really In the first place my wife's heart condition isn't really dangerous. Yes. I gathered that from dr. Fletcher Oh, we told you about my wife, huh? Oh, yes You're a professional person nurse and I believe in frankness it makes things easier My wife is 11 years my senior getting on past middle age she Is a bit worried Not that I give her any grounds for it jealous You understand perfectly She's not an easy person to get along with You'll have to humor. I'll do my best and Miss Cummings yes, I Was just wondering where it was that I saw you before escapes me You know miss Cummings Your face is rather Haunting That was how it began We played a game during those first few weeks. I Would ask miss Cummings Where was it that I first saw you don't you remember yet? No, I don't well I do and Someday if you're nice I'll tell you We would laugh together Having the girl in the house made me feel young again Didn't last it ended one evening in Laura's room Richard yes, put down that newspaper. I want to talk to you I'm listening. Don't you think you're going a bit too far, Richard? Too far. What do you mean? I mean miss Cummings. I Won't stand for it I won't allow you to disgrace me in my own home for the woman who's little more than a Serpent all Laura for heaven's sake. I may be a bedridden in blood, but there is a limit You're jumping to a ridiculous conclusions large ridiculous am I I suppose you'll deny you're in love with miss Cummings That you've been carrying on with her right under my nose certainly I'll deny I've got eyes Richard I've seen you two whispering together. I've watched how you look or you're talking about a nonsense There's nothing between me and miss Cummings nothing nothing absolutely nothing well then I'll give you a chance to prove what you say. I don't want miss Cummings here Dismissor you want me to dismiss her? Yes Richard. I do I Miss Cummings I This is going to be rather unpleasant you see my wife. Yes, I know She wants me to leave Yes, how did you know I couldn't help over hearing the conversation? Well, then you also know why she wants you to leave Yes But you warned me when I first came here that she was jealous it's been Very pleasant having you here Thank you I'm going to miss you and miss Cummings. Could I have your home address? Of course Why do you want it? I hope you won't think me presumptuous, but Well Perhaps we might be able to see each other Would that be wise? No, it wouldn't be wise But I might as well face it. I couldn't hide it from Laura and No, I can't hide it from myself. I love you miss Cummings Not a hurt Spencer's laugh for the first time since the day in the court room I said it sounds like the imagination born out of a feeling of guilt you and my disloyalty to Laura. I Put it out of my mind. I had other things to think about This is the paper with Margaret Cummings address on it was in my pocket a dozen times during the next week I picked telephone to call her but Something held me back here. I guess fear that if I saw her again, I Would be taking a final irrevocable step, but then I couldn't stand it any longer without seeing I dialed her number Is that you Margaret? This is Richard Judge Thornton. Oh Hello, how are you? There's little chance of that Could I see you tonight Margaret? I dressed carefully Examining myself in the mirror. I saw a tall man still on the right side of 50 still trim and figure and distinguished in appearance When I got to Margaret's apartment my heart was beating fast like a boy on his first date Somehow I don't know quite how it happened She was in my arms. I Was kissing her. Oh We're being foolish sit down darling Would you marry me Mary you can't be serious I was never more earnest in my life Aren't you forgetting a little detail? No, I'm not forgetting about Laura. She has a weak heart She may die And if she doesn't I wouldn't count on it your wife takes very good care of herself She may live to be a hundred, but if she should die Would you marry me? I don't know It's not fair to ask me now not while your wife is still alive Ask me later You have a pleasant evening at the club. I didn't go to the club Laura. No No, I lied to you. I Spent the evening with Margaret Cummings Richard you were right I'm in love with her. I never knew what love meant before I Can't live without mad. You don't know what you're saying. I wanted the boss Laura the ball. No, I wanted immediately You can't do this to me. Oh Oh See what you've done Laura Give them to me I knew she was pretending the heart attack hoping to play on my sympathy Laura's favorite It always worked before Not this time This time I was trained until I was ready to act. I Gave her the pills watch to take them and sink back in the pillow. Oh Thank you Richard feel better now. That's dear much better. I Don't know what I have done without you here. I would have died oh Richard say you didn't mean Richard's head before Don't you see I couldn't go on living without you. You won't have to Laura then you won't leave me for that girl I'll take care of you Yeah, let me make you more comfortable Pillow needs rearranging. Yes Fixing the pillow I still stop twisting around Oh This different from a heart attack my wife has had a Heart attack. It was nothing important doctor Just a domestic quarrel Suddenly she had the attacker. I gave her the pills before that. Well by that time it was too late But only known that a condition had become so dangerous. I'll judge you nothing to reproach yourself for these things happen Will you take care of the formalities down there? Oh, yes, of course the death certificate I list the cause as failure of the heart I Was no need to act the part of the stricken husband had to dr. Fletcher left I stood looking down at Laura's body and dr. Fletcher certificate would clear me of any suspicion of murder. I Was free to marry Margaret. I walked to Margaret's apartment that night Street was dark Empty I had the uncomfortable feeling that I was being watched Then I heard footsteps behind me. I heard my face The man behind me did likewise Frightened as I was I decided to stop and confront the follower He came taught me his face and figure shadowy in the dark What do you want? Why are you following me? You ought to know judge Thornton. Who are you? Come closer so I can It can't be You're dead. Yeah, they're my Well, you ought to know judge Just tell me what happened I was being followed officer, so I turned around to see who it was Did you see who it was? Yes, and that's why I painted the man following me was a dead man What's that the man following me is dead? I know he's dead officer. I asked her and you wait you're crazy I had intended to tell Margaret that Laura was dead I meant to ask her to marry me Look in counter on the street Go for those thoughts out of my mind Riding at her apartment. I went directly to the window and looked out there Across the street living against the wall. I thought John spent Richard I'm in You didn't kiss me you haven't even said hello. I'm sorry dear That man across the street It can't be real And yet if he isn't what man Don't you see him? No, there's no one across the street Who's there a moment ago? I turned my head to talk to you Oh, he's gone You must be sick don't look at me like that Richard. What's the matter? I Guess I am sick I'd better go and have a talk with dr. Fletcher That's a case very well dr. Snowton You could have spared Spencer's life, but didn't And now are you imagine that he follows you? Yes, but the man is dead and it was his ghost that followed me Ghost I spoke to his ghost that blasts. There are no ghosts judge Thornton with one exception The ghosts we carry about insiders. What do you mean? Well, these things you hear and see These are hallucinations brought on by feelings of guilt Spencer's been dead for weeks. So the question is Why should you experience guilt feelings at this late date? I don't know psychiatry has an explanation quite often in such cases one refuses to face the guilt object and Transfers his guilt feelings to some other person. What are you driving? I'm suggesting that your guilt feelings are not caused by the Spencer incident And I'm going to ask you a blunt question Did you murder your wife while you're bald? Yeah, just a moment judge I've been rather uneasy about the circumstances of Mrs. Thornton's death Well to yourself diagnosed it as a heart attack. I accepted what you told me that night The superficial examinations the body did indicate such a conclusion. Yes, but your wife's cardiac condition was mild Now your guilt feelings lead me to suspect this murder talk is ridiculous Were there any signs of struggle any marks of violence? Of course not Mrs. Thornton might have been Suffocating oh nonsense perhaps At any rate I intend to recommend to the coroner that an autopsy be performed not. Yes It would determine whether or not death was due to suffocation You should have no objection if I am mistaken you meddling fool Just want to put down that they do us so clever. Stay away from me I've gone too far now to stop with another I'd lost my head. I Should have agreed to the autopsy That would have given me a dare to in which to plan my escape But now as things were it would be only matter of ours before Fletcher's body was discovered My thoughts twisted and turned and panic Brown like a frightened child I needed help and there was no one to turn to Margaret She loved me. She'd helped me. I Went to Margaret and told her what had happened. You killed your wife for you So we could be married and then Dr. Fleck I had to kill a Margaret He was going to recommend an autopsy. Why did you come? We've got to run away We still have an hour or two, but we could charter a plane to Canada or Mexico. What makes you think I'd run away with you I thought you love me. Don't be stupid. I'm going to turn you over to the police. Margaret you can't mean Can I just watch me? Margaret listen before you pick up that phone even if you don't love me Even if you won't go away with me. Give me a chance. Have mercy. You make me laugh Judge Thornton who never gave anybody else a break pleading for mercy Well, turn around and ask the man behind you for mercy That's right John Spencer take another look judge No, you're not John Smith as a resemblance, but you're not John Spencer. I'm his brother No, the man that was following me. That's right. I was tricked They're done by Margaret to kill my wife and force by you to betray myself to dr. Fletcher, but why why Margaret? Why did you do this for revenge revenge? Yes? The first day I came to your house. You thought my face was for me Well, now I'll tell you where it was that you first saw me. It was in the courtroom at John Spencer's trial Yes, yes, yes, remember how he begged for mercy He told you we had a girl that he was engaged to be married and you could have given him his life But you sentenced him to his death for For you the girl. Yes Spencer Did he know about this all this was his plan his revenge? Headquarters, I want to report a murder Yes, that's right a murder Tell them it's very important to get here as soon as they can. I'm waiting now for the police to come For the trial For the sentence, which I know will be death As I wait My thoughts go back to the court from you Margaret Cummings Which was a grave mistake? Well, he didn't have the ghost of a chance with her She double-crossed him right into the graveyard or a word of caution If you must commit a murder be sure to select the proper weapon I suggest a sharp-edged axe because it provides you with a handy alibi Well, the police want to know why you did it you can sit down Thank you poison for us for your inner sanctum story tonight's performance in the mystery playhouse Until next time sleep tight