The Hermit Of Turkey Hollow: The Story Of An Alibi, Being An Exploit Of Ephraim Tutt, Attorney & Counselor At Law by Arthur Cheney TrainMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
A wandering, sprawling and often amusing recounting of a trial for murder.
For the prosecution, the recently-appointed county prosecutor. What nobody knows is that in order to afford the bribe that got him the job, he has embezzled the trust fund that assists in the support of the accused, a harmless indigent known as Skinny the Tramp. He then had to borrow the money that was due to Skinny as his six-monthly interest payment.
For the defense, Ephraim Tutt, a series character of the author's. He's motivated by a love for justice and a belief that his client is innocent. He's been called in by the town lodge, of which Skinny was once a member; they also believe that he's innocent, even though the sheriff, who's the head of the lodge, is a key witness for the prosecution.
Central to the case are two facts. There are eight witnesses who swear Skinny was in the town three miles away at 4pm; and the lumberjack who found the victim, the hermit of the title, breathing his last noted that the hermit's clock was showing 4pm when he expired. A perfect alibi - if the clock was running at the time, and on this point the defense hinges.
There's an uncomfortable night-time expedition over bad roads in an unreliable car (this is 1920) to check this point with the lumberjack, who's left town for another job. This trip turns out to be for nothing; he can't be located.
There are some suspenseful courtroom moments, and some good reading of his opponent by Tutt. Overall, though, it's not a tight plot, and the prose is sometimes verbose (as you'd expect from a lawyer). There's some casual racism towards Roma people and black people, and a good deal of contempt directed at the "hicks" in the small town. It was entertaining in its way, but not outstanding, and from me it gets three stars.
View all my reviews
No comments:
Post a Comment