 New wonderful old Dutch cleanser, the only cleanser made with activated seismotite invites you to stand by for Nick Carter, master detective. Today's Nick Carter adventure starring Lon Clark, the case of the vanishing weapon. I Dorothy, take the wane to my lawful wedded husband to love, honor and cherish. Darling, please let's move back from the edge. High place has always frightened me and... Wait! No! I Emily, take the wane to my lawful wedded husband to love, honor and cherish. Don't keep swimming away from me, wane him! And the case of the vanishing weapon, brought to you by new wonderful old Dutch cleanser. It's 4.20 in the afternoon of an extremely warm day. Driving back to the city, Nick and Patsy meet a car rushing toward them at top speed on the left side of the road. It's a woman. She's gonna hit us. Oh, Nick! She ran right into us. I couldn't get out of her way because of that fence, but at least we avoided a head-on collision. She only struck the back end of the car. I wonder if she's hurt. Come on, let's see. Nick, she carried off your car right smack into that tree. She must have been ill. I saw her just before we crashed, slumped over the wheel. There she is. Oh, Nick, she was thrown to the windshield. Yeah, she's pretty bad shape. She seems to be conscious though. I can't. Can you hear me? I can't. You're not going to die. You're going to be all right. Till Mary again, he'll kill his next wife, too. What did you say? For the insurance. I know it. I found out too late. Nick, she wasn't delirious. She knew what she was saying. Do you think her husband really killed her? I don't know, Patsy, but I'm gonna make it my business to find out. In just a moment, we'll return to the case of the vanishing weapon. Today's adventure with Nick Carter. Thrilling new cleaning discovery. Yes, to give you faster, easier cleaning than any other cleanser, we've activated seismotide in old Dutch cleanser. When there's a sink to clean, a touch of old Dutch cleanser works dazzling magic. Just see new sudsing old Dutch cleanser go to work. It dissolves grease on contact. Quickly, easily, its sudsing action sweeps away dirt and stains. Snowy white old Dutch cleanser cleans fast, safe, sure. Leaves no gritty sediment, rinses away completely, doesn't clog drains. Get two cans of old Dutch cleanser. One for the kitchen, one for the bathroom. Old Dutch cleanser, the only cleanser made with activated seismotide. Now back to the case of the vanishing weapon. Today's adventure with Nick Carter. Brought to you by new wonderful old Dutch cleanser. It is a short time later. Nick and Patsy are talking with the chief of police of Elm City. The town the dead woman lived in. Well, that's a story, chief. I've given you her exact words. I've known Kay Bolton since she was little girl. Do you know her husband, too? Sure. He came here from out west some place, I understand. They've been married long? About a year, I guess. Kay was a widow with a good farm, a little money in the bank. I guess Bolton knew the good thing. When he seen it, he just swept her right off her feet. What did her family think about it? She don't have no family except her brother. He was away at the time. You see, he builds bridges. I see. That chief, did you notice that the windows in Mrs Bolton's car were all shut up tight? A day like this must have been sweltering in there. Yeah, it would be. Well, Kay had hay fever kind of bad. I heard her say many times she'd rather roast than sneeze her head off from the pollen in the air. Yes, but that's no reason to have the heater on. The heater? Yeah. When I examined the wreck, I noticed that the heater was on full blast. She jumped over the wheel as though she were unconscious just before the collision. Maybe she passed out from the heat. Well, now that don't make sense, Miss Bowen. If it was that bad, seems like even Kay would stop and cool off hay fever or no. I think she would. But suppose she were unconscious from carbon monoxide fumes or something. You mean Bolton might have done something to the exhaust pipe so them fumes go inside? Maybe. But she wasn't unconscious when you got to her? No, but the shock of the wreck could have snapped her out of it. Look, Chief, suppose we don't say anything about our suspicions until after we talk to her husband. Yeah. Yeah, and let him think he's put it over on us, huh? And I'll have the autopsy performed as soon as we get back to town. Yeah, but you'll need the husband's permission, won't you? And he'll never give it if he's guilty. Well, you've got something there, Miss Bowen. Well, nevertheless, let's try it anyway. Maybe we can learn something from his reaction when we suggest that autopsy. And I'll have seen nothing doing until he's suffered enough already. Just a minute, Bolton. Kay was my sister as well as your wife. And if the chief thinks an autopsy would serve any useful purpose, I'm in favor of it. That's what useful purpose? An autopsy would, sure, whether there was anything in her system that would make her unconscious. What difference does it make? She's dead. The autopsy won't bring her back. Did she have any insurance, Mr. Bolton? Yes, we had a joint policy for $20,000 payable to the survivor. I never discussed it. Well, you get it, Bolton. Kay wrote me she'd made a new will after she married you, leading you everything. I didn't know. Well, there won't be any autopsy, and that's final. As Kay's brother, I have something to say about that. And if there's any suspicion that her death wasn't accidental, do you have any reason to think that, Mr. McEwen? Well, why else would you want an autopsy? And why would you want to know who benefits by your death? If there's any doubt, I want it cleared up. And you should, too, Bolton. Well, then just sign this paper, given your consent. I... Very well. Give it here. There you are. Mr. Bolton, I don't like to butt in, but I can't find the housekeeper. She went to her room, Sam. She's all upset. Oh. Well, Mr. Mc, that five gallons of ice cream Mr. Bolton got for the party tomorrow, she didn't put in the deep freeze, and it's all melted. I was wondering... Throw it out. Do anything you want with it. Only get out of here and go back to your work. Who's that, chief? That's Sam Webb, the hired hand. What you doing here, chief? Ain't nothing wrong, is it? Yes, Sam. It's Mrs. Bolton. She's dead. No. Rake the car, did she? What makes you think that? Well, I... Just the first thing that popped into my head, I guess. Besides, I... I thought she wasn't in no condition to drive when she came out to the barn and drove off. What? You mean she was ill? Oh, no, ma'am. She was mad. If you ask me, folks can't keep their mind on their driving when they're like that. What were you doing in the barn? I thought I told you to mend that fence at the bottom of the West Pasture. Well, I finished up early, Mr. Bolton. So I thought I'd clean out the stalls and do some repairing. I was there when you come in. Sam, did Mrs. Bolton tell you what she was angry about? No, sir, but she was good and mad. Oh, it wasn't anything, Mr. Carter. Bolton was late getting back with the car and she had an appointment in Elm City. She was mad because she was going to be late. I couldn't help being late. I was delayed. Was there a quarrel, Mr. Bolton? Of course not. Kay was always flying off the handle, but it didn't mean anything. I sent Mack out to the car for the rest of the supplies I'd bought back while I tried to talk her out of it, but I couldn't. I see. Well, thanks for giving her consent to the autopsy, Mr. Bolton. May I answer some very important questions? Carter, Miss Boyd. Oh, gosh, what a night. I was down at the Blaine Garage till six o'clock this morning. Oh, did the mechanic find anything suspicious? Well, the car was smashed up pretty bad, but he swears the wreck didn't affect nothing that could have caused the accident. Did he check the steering gear, the brakes? Yeah, in the muffler too. Nothing had been tampered with. And the autopsy showed absolutely no trace of carbon monoxide in her lungs or blood. No other poisonous gas for that matter. I don't know if you're wrong about Bolton doing it. Maybe she did fall asleep at the wheel. No, I doubt that, chief. Anyone who was as upset and angry as Sam said Mrs. Bolton was just wouldn't doze off. Are you still trying to make out it was more than an accident, are you? Oh, we're sure it was. Well, now, if Bolton caused that wreck without tampering with the car and without drugging her in any way, he's committed a perfect crime, a murder without a single clue. I wouldn't say that, chief. In this case? Such as what? Well, why was Sam so sure she'd been killed in an auto wreck? Why should her dying words have been about murder for insurance? And why was she driving with the heater turned off? Okay, if you're looking for unexplained facts, what about the ice cream? Well, what about it? Well, now Bolton brought that back from town at four o'clock. Uh-huh. And when we was there at 7.30, it was all melted according to Sam. Well, that's only natural. The housekeeper forgot to put it in a deep freeze. Miss Bolton, we get them five gallon containers for picnics and such. We get them early in the morning. And they're still as hard as a rock when we eat supper. All right, George, that's it. Huh? What's what? That's what killed Mrs. Bolton. The weapon that vanished into thin air. Vanished? Literally and completely, without leaving a trace. What? Well, then there's no way of proving it is there. Unless we can get a confession and anybody smart enough to think of a scheme like that won't be easily bluffed. Now, Locato, where would you get a weapon that would vanish that way? At your local creamery, just as Bolton did. Oh, Nick, you're not saying that Mrs. Bolton was murdered with five gallons of ice cream? No. But if it wasn't for that ice cream, she'd be alive right now. Oh, Nick. Come on, let's drive out to the farm. Now I've got something to work on. I know, Carter. I carried that container of ice cream into the house from the car without opening it. But Bolton... Yes, McEwen? Were you going to say something? Well, uh, only that when I went through the kitchen to get the other things out of the car, I noticed that the seal on the container was broken. Well, I didn't break it. Perhaps the hotkeeper... Uh, no, Mr. Bolton, I asked her. She was upstairs at the time. Well, what's the ice cream got to do with it anyway, Mr. Carter? Plenty, McEwen. Those five gallon containers are in two sections. One for the ice cream itself and one that holds dry ice to keep it from melting. So what? Did you ever notice how drowsy you get in the crowded room with the air stale? Oh, sure. That's because the oxygen in the air has been used up. And replaced with carbon dioxide, which people have exhaled. That's what happens when we breathe. Are you into the point, Carter? All right, I will. When I examined your car just after the wreck, Mr. Bolton, I found a few small pieces of dry ice in the heater. Dry ice is nothing but carbon dioxide in a solid form. In the heater of your wife's car, it melted fast and flooded the car with carbon dioxide. And with all the windows closed, it must have been ten times as bad as the most crowded, stuffy room you ever saw. And that's why she went to sleep at the wheel. That's fantastic. You think somebody took the dry ice out in the container and put it in the heater of the car to... To make her wreck the car and kill herself. Yeah, Mr. Bolton, that's exactly what we think. Then it must have been Mac. Why, that's a lie. You went through the kitchen when I left the ice cream and then went out to the car for the rest of the things. You must have opened the package and... Are you accusing me of murdering my own sister? It had to be you. Nobody else could have done it. No. Well, who got her to take out that insurance policy? Who inherits this farm and everything else she owns? That doesn't mean... I don't get anything out of her death, and I don't want to. But you get plenty. Now, calm down, Mac. Calm down. She was all I had. And he killed her. He killed her. He did not! You did it yourself! And now you're trying to... All right, all right. Hold it. Hold it. I know how we can find out who put that dry ice in the heater. How? Ask Sam, your hired man. Sam? What would he know about it? He was in the barn from the time you drove in with the ice cream, Mr. Bolton, until your wife left about 10 minutes later. Dry ice melts fast, very fast. To be effective, it'd have to be put in something during the 10 minutes. Sure. You're right, Mr. Carter. Sam must have seen him putting that stuff in the heater. That's why he figured Kay was killed in a wreck. Yeah, maybe he didn't think nothing of it at the time, but afterwards he realized what he saw. And then maybe he figured he could get paid for not talking. Well, he'll talk now. He'll talk or I'll break him in two. All right, no, no, Mac. You and Bolton will stay here with the chief. Patsy and I will go talk with Sam. And after we do, chief, I think you'll have a new border with the county jail. Nick, you didn't really find any dry ice in the heater of that car, did you? Why, of course not, Patsy. I told you I'd have to bluff. Yeah, but if Sam did see something, it won't be a bluff any longer. Oh, yes it will. You may have seen something, but he couldn't tell what was actually going on inside the car from back in the stalls where he was working. No, no, I guess not. Well, maybe we can use Sam's testimony to frighten the killer when they're giving himself away. Oh, here, this must be Sam's check. Uh-huh. He must be here. We know he's nowhere else on the farm. Yeah. Well, let's see if the door's locked. No, it isn't drawn in. Right. Oh, Nick, look. They're on the floor. Oh, that's Sam. Nick, he's dead, isn't he? Yeah, shot through the head. Probably sometime last night. Look around the floor, see if you can find an empty cartridge. Right. If he was killed with an automatic, there's a chance the empty shell's on the floor somewhere. Well, if it is, I'll find it. Here. Here's something. What is it? Somebody knelt down beside the body. There's a perfect knee print in this smear of blood. You can even see the weave of the material the trousers were made of. Some sort of coarse tweed. Nick, I found it. The cartridge shell? Yes, it was under the table. Here. Now we can really get down to business. Yes, this time we've got a weapon that can't vanish into thin air. An empty cartridge case. The first bit of concrete evidence the wife killer has left in a series of five murders. But Nick still faces the problem of proving his guilt. We'll see what happens in just a moment. An important announcement. Coming next week on Nick Carter, Old Dutch Cleanser's big new contest. Listen so you can get an early start in this easy, fascinating contest that pays off with loads of valuable prizes. And remember, we've activated Seismatite in Old Dutch Cleanser. It's amazing. Sudzing action sweeps away dirt and stains, cuts grease on contact, cleans fast, save sure, leaves no gritty sediment, rinses away completely, saves you time and work, helps you keep your house at its shining best. New Sudzing Old Dutch Cleanser is at your grocers now in the same familiar package. Get two cans tomorrow. One for the kitchen, one for the bathroom. Old Dutch Cleanser, the only cleanser made with activated Seismatite. Now back to the case of the vanishing weapon. Today's adventure with Nick Carter brought to you by Old Dutch Cleanser. At the farmhouse, Nick and the chief are trying to find the automatic with which Sam webbed the boltons hired hand was killed. Mac has admitted owning such a gun and they've gone to his room to get it. There you are, Mr. Carter. But I swear I haven't touched that gun since I came back two weeks ago. Did Bolton know where you kept it, Mac? Well, I don't know, chief, but it wouldn't have been hard to find. I didn't even know he had a gun. Well, this is a .38. Sam was killed with a .32. A .32? Then Bolton must have used Kay's gun. What are you talking about? Kay didn't know the gun. Why, you're a liar. She had a .32 automatic for years. She kept it at her bedside table and you know it. Yeah, it's not true. You can come and look for yourself, chief. Our room is right across the hall, but she won't find any gun there. No, don't expect to, not now. Oh, well, here's your gun, Mac. Oh, thanks, Mr. Carter. But Kay did have a gun. Charlie must have seen it hundreds of times. Don't worry, don't worry. We'll get at the truth. There, look for yourself. Do you see a gun in that drawer? Kay wouldn't have a gun in the house. All right, let's forget about that for a minute. Who owns a Tweed suit? A Tweed suit, Mr. Carter. Why? We found evidence proving that Sam's killer was wearing a suit, of course, Tweed at the time of the murder. You have one? Oh, I know. Neither do I. Well, you shouldn't have said that, Bolton. I've seen you wearing a Tweed suit a hundred times. Well, I... I did have a Tweed suit, but Kay gave it away last week. It was worn out. Oh, she gave it, too. I don't know. She didn't say that. Why, Bolton, I saw that suit hanging in your closet only yesterday. I'll bet it's there right now. What's gone? Naturally. Of course it is. Any fool would know enough to get rid of a piece of evidence like that. I tell you, I haven't had it for over a week. Wait a minute. You went down in the cellar carrying a bundle this morning, Bolton. That was the garbage. Mrs. Lawrence always puts the garbage in a paper bag. The bundle you had was wrapped in newspaper. It was not. It was the paper bag. And then I heard the furnace door. I always burn the garbage in the furnace. You know that. Bolton, suppose we take a look in that furnace and see what else you was burning. Here's another scrap of Tweed that didn't burn. That's part of your suit, ain't it, Bolton? Yes, but I didn't put it there. Mac did it. He's spraving me. Oh, sure, sure. He is, I tell you. Everything you found could have been done by him, couldn't it? He could have put that dry ice in the car heater as well as me. He could have shot Sam and put that suit in the furnace. I'd rather suit to kill Sam, too, I guess, while you blame fool anybody can see that Mac couldn't get into your clothes. The shoehorn. He's twice big as you are. And I never owned a Tweed suit in my life. Anyway, the knee print by Sam's body had exactly the same weave as this Tweed that was burned in the furnace. Wait a minute. Uh, did you find something else, Nick? I'll say I did down among the ashes. Look, that's it. That's Kay's gun. I never saw that gun before in all my life. Any fingerprints on it, Carter? Afraid not, Chief. The hole outside is burned clean. Yes, but a ballistic test will show if it's the gun that Sam was killed with. Won't it, Nick? Without a doubt. Even if it's the same gun, that doesn't prove anything. Well, here's something that does, Bolton. A perfect set of fingerprints. Prints? Well, I thought you said the gun was burned clean. The outside was, yes. But there's a fine set here on the cartridge clip. I thought they might have been overlooked. That's smart thinking, Carter. How come the cartridges didn't explode in the fire, Nick? The clip's empty, Patsy. But the prints are nice and clear. They're not my prints. I never saw that gun. Yeah, well, now I'll just take that clip over to the county seat and let the fingerprint man there have a look at him. Oh, uh, if you don't mind, Chief, I'd rather take this to the fingerprint lab in the city. Huh? What's the matter with Joe Parker over at the county seat? Well, he may be perfectly all right, but... Well, look, let me have my own way. Will you please? I'll stay at the hotel in Elm City tonight, drive into the city tomorrow, and have a report you can depend on before tomorrow evening. Oh! Now, okay, keep the blame clip. And you, Bolton, come on. I'm locking you up where you can't get out to commit no more murders. They're a fine target under that bed lamp. MacEwan? What are you doing here? I came to get something that belongs to me. That clip with the fingerprints on it. What? And those are your prints. Bolton was telling the truth. You killed Sam. Sure, I did. I couldn't let him tell about seeing me put that dry ice in a heater of Kay's car, could I? And he said he had been in the barn at the time, and I had to get rid of him. And all the evidence against Bolton. You planted it yourself. Why not? Somebody had to be the patsy. I could see you suspected him already. Nobody knew I had that 32. So I said it belonged to Kay. And who can prove that it didn't? And you planted it in the furnace for us to find, together with a tweed suit. Sure. That suit was the smartest part of the whole frame-up. Kay gave it to Sam. He was hanging right there in front of me when I shot him. But you couldn't have worn it. It was too small for you. No. But I could wrap it around my knee and then make a print in that blood stain, couldn't I? Didn't tell you I saw Bolton trying to burn it. You thought of everything, didn't you? Everything but that cartridge clip with my fingerprints on it. Where is it, Carter? Or do I put a bullet in your head? All right, you win. It's in the left-hand top dresser drawer. Wrapped in a handkerchief. Yeah? Thanks for making it easy. First, we'll wipe these plants out. And then, Mr. Carter, I'm afraid I'll have to get rid of you. Now, hold on, McEw, and you've destroyed the proof against you, and I'll let it go to that. I can't let you talk about this little visit. Look, McEw, and don't do that. Shut up! I said I was going to get rid of you, and I am. So... As McPointe has gone at Nick's head and pulls the trigger, he stands only a few feet away, too close to miss. We'll see what happens in just a moment. Here's a wash-day tip. Keep your washer sparkling clean inside and out with wonderful new sudsing old Dutch cleanser. Yes, a touch of old Dutch cleanser cuts grease on contact, sweeps away dirt and stains almost like magic. You'll be amazed at the new sudsing action of old Dutch cleanser. Snowy white, leaves no gritty sediment, rinses away completely. It's been granted the good housekeeping seal. Yes, ladies, for faster, easier cleaning than you've dreamed possible, switch to new sudsing old Dutch cleanser, the only cleanser made with activated seismotite. And next week, old Dutch cleanser's wonderful new contest starts. Easy to enter, easy to win. It's loads of fun with loads of valuable prizes. Hear all about this sensational new contest you may win next week on Nick Carter. Now for the conclusion of the case of the vanishing weapon. Today's adventure with Nick Carter brought to you by new wonderful old Dutch cleanser. In Nick's hotel room, he faces a killer with a gun who says, I said I was going to get rid of you and I am. So... Oh! You had a gun all the time. Under the bed close. Sorry, Mac, I tried to warn you. I'm okay, Patsy. But our friend here is a bullet in his arm. Come on in. I think you're all down a shorthand. Nick, the microphone picked up every morning said. You mean this was a trap? You bet it was. See, I expected you to come for that cartridge clip. If my gun hadn't jammed... It didn't jam. I took all the bullets out of it when I examined it out at the farmhouse today. But I couldn't be sure you hadn't discovered that and reloaded it, so I had to shoot first. What's the matter there? Who fired that gun? What's going on? Everything's under control. Call the chief of police, will you? Sure, Mr. Carter, sure. I'll get him here in two shakes. Where's your proof, Carter? My fingerprints aren't on the cartridge clip anymore. Your confession before two witnesses has proven not, McEwen. And as for those fingerprints, I was bluffing you. Why, you... So far as I know, there weren't any prints on that clip. How did you know Wayne McEwen killed his sister and Sam Webb? Well, I was pretty sure of it. From the moment we found out how McEwen's sister was killed. Done that? Mm-hmm. Furthermore, every bit of evidence we had against Bolton came directly from McEwen. Uh, chief, did you find out why he killed his sister? Yeah, he told us all about it at the jailhouse. It seems his bridge-building business ain't been so good these last few years, so McEwen drummed up a sideline of getting married and then killing off his wives for their insurance. Oh, then he was the one Mrs. Bolton was talking about just before she died. Right, Patsy. Yeah, but how'd she ever find out about this? McEwen says she was cleaning up his room the day before she was killed, and she came across some of his private papers that he'd forgotten to put away. She didn't know he'd been married at all, so when she found her marriage certificate, she got curious. Oh. And what she found in the rest of the stuff gave her a pretty good idea of what had been going on. Then that night she accused him of killing the two girls, and he admitted it. When he asked her what she was going to do about it, she said she hadn't made up her mind. But if I'd been in her place, I'd have turned him over to the police. Oh, she wanted to, Miss Bolton, but he was her only brother, and she couldn't quite make up her mind to do it. But McEwen didn't have to take any chances. So he killed it. Yeah, he was pretty clever about it, too. He almost got away with it. Yeah. But when he killed Sam, he outsmarted himself. Well, you know the old saying, Nick. Give a killer enough rope and he'll hang himself. So he will, Patsy. So he will. Every time. Okay, Patsy, that's all for now. You better go home and change. Remember, we're meeting Bill and his wife at 7.30 for dinner. Well, how about after dinner? I want to know how to dress. Well, Bill said something about taking in an amusement park and ending up with a boat ride on the river in the morning. Oh, hold on. Take it easy, Carter. Hey, for heaven's sake, Patsy. I'm using an amusement park boat ride. Redhead's penicillin. Okay, I get it. I don't want to end up at the bottom of the river just because the ticket seller was a beautiful redhead who posed as a man. Hey, hold on, Patsy. Let's tell about that adventure next week. We'll call it the case of the Perloin penicillin. Ladies, have you discovered del rich margarine? Delicious rich del rich makes friends at first taste. Full flavored. It's the perfect spread for bread rolls toast. Try del rich in your cooking and baking, too. Good, mighty economical. Only del rich gives you the original easy color pack, the easy modern way to color margarine. And where state laws permit, ask for del rich in golden yellow quarters. Del rich, America's new favorite. Del for delicious, rich for rich full flavor. Get del rich margarine tomorrow for del rich makes friends at first taste. Nick Carter, master detective, is presented each week at this same time with a kuddehy packing company. It is produced and directed by Jock McGregor and is copyrighted by Street and Smith Publications Incorporated. Lawn Clark is starred as Nick and Charlotte Manson is featured as Patsy. Today's script was written by Jim Parsons with original music played by Henry Silverne. This program is fictional and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is purely coincidental. This is Michael Fitzmorris saying, when minutes count, use new wonderful old Dutch cleanser. This is the Mutual Broadcasting System.