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"Answer the question," Mason said.
"My notes show that a man entered at eight and was out at eight-fifteen; that another man entered at eight-twenty and was out at eight-thirty-five; that a woman entered at eight-thirty-six and was out at eight-forty-five; that a man in dark glasses entered at eight-forty-six and was out at eight-fifty; that the defendant entered at nine and was out at nine-twelve."
"When was the last time you saw the decedent?" Mason asked.
"When he entered Unit 10."
"You didn't see him personally come to the door to admit any of these people whom you have mentioned in your notes?"
"No… Now, wait a minute. I did see the decedent go out to the parking lot where my car was parked and look at the registration. That was shortly after we had checked in at the motel, sometime before he had any visitors."
"I'm not asking about that at this time," Mason said, "I notice that your notes show nothing after nine-twelve."
"That's when the defendant went out."
"And your notes show nothing else?"
"That was when I quit taking notes."
"Why did you quit taking notes? Did you know the man was dead?" Mason asked.
"Oh, Your Honor, I object to that," Leland said. "That question is absurd."
"There must have been some reason the man stopped taking notes," Judge Talent said. "I think counsel is entitled to cross-examine him about his notes. The objection is overruled."
"Well, I quit taking notes when the defendant left because..
"Because what?" Mason asked.
"Because you and my boss were there personally and you could see for yourself what went on."
"Oh, I see," Mason said. "Then you quit taking notes when I came to the cabin. Is that right?"
"Yes."
"And you want us to understand that your notes are accurate up to that time?"
"Yes."
"But," Mason said, "your notes don't show the arrival of the police officers. Your notes don't show the arrival of the ambulance."
"Well, I told you about them."
"But you didn't know we were going to come."
"I expected you."
"So you quit taking notes when you expected we would come."
"Well, I didn't think it was necessary to take notes on those. That wasn't why I was shadowing the man."
"And," Mason said, "your notes don't show the time the manager of the motel entered that unit, how long she was in there, or when she came out."
"Well, she just looked in and out and I didn't think that was important."
"Oh," Mason said, "you want us then to understand that your notes only show the matters that you considered important. In other words, if anyone entered the unit and you didn't think that person was important, it doesn't show in your notes."
"Well, I- All right," Dillard blurted, "I overlooked a bit there. I didn't put down the time the manager came in."
"Or the time she went out?"
"She came in and went out all at the same time."
"Came and went in the same instant?" Mason asked, feigning incredulity.
"Well, you know what I mean. She went in and-she was only in there a second and then she came ru
"There was a teiphone in the unit which you occupied?"
"Yes."
"And you mentioned that you had a boss there in Riverside?"
"A man who was above me in the organization for which I am working, yes."
"You are referring to Sidney Nye?"
"Yes."
"And you called Sidney Nye?"
"Yes."
"When?"
"Right after the manager of the motel came ru
"Let's see if I can understand the floor plan of the room which you occupied. There was a bed in that room?"
"Yes."
"A chair?"
"Yes."
"There was a window looking out on the parking place, and by sitting at that window you could look across and see the entrance to Unit to?"
"Yes."
"And there was a telephone?"
"Yes."
"Where was the telephone?"
"By the bed."
"Now, after you saw the manager come ru
"Well, I didn't report but I gave him the signal something was wrong."
"And what did you say?"
"I got him on the phone and said, "Hey Rube."
"You had previously worked in a circus?"
"Yes."
"And "Hey Rube" is a rallying cry for the circus people to unite in a fight against the outsiders?"
"Something to that effect, yes."
"Did you have any trouble in getting Sid Nye?"
"No, he answered the phone as soon as it rang."
"I asked you," Mason said, "if you had any trouble in getting Sid Nye."
"Well, yes. The manager, of course, was busy notifying the police and-"
"You don't know what the manager was doing," Mason said. "You couldn't see her, could you?"
"No."
"Then you don't know what she was doing."
"Well, I surmised what she was doing because I had to sit at the phone for such a long time before anyone answered."
"You knew that the calls went through a switchboard there in the office?"
"Yes."
"And she had to co
"I had to give her the number and she would call it."
"Now, while you were at the phone, you had your back to the window, didn't you?"
"I couldn't be in two places at the same time."
"Exactly," Mason said. "You had previously called Sid Nye, earlier in the evening, hadn't you?"
"No, I- Yes, wait a minute, I did. I told him I had been made."
"What did you mean by that?"
"I meant that the subject had become suspicious and had gone out and had looked at the registration certificate on my car."
"That was the last time you saw him?"
"Yes."
"And while he was doing that you telephoned Sid Nye?"
"No, I waited until after he'd turned his back and gone into the motel unit that he occupied."
"That was Unit Number 10?"
"Yes."
"And then you telephoned Sid Nye and told him you had been made?"
"Yes."
"Any other conversation?"
"That was about it."
"Didn't you tell him you were hungry?"
"Well, that's right. I asked him if I should go out to di
"And what did he say?"
"No. He told me to sit tight. He-I think he was in your room at the time and was talking with you and relaying your instructions."
"And during that time you were at the telephone?"
"Of course I was at the phone."
"And had your back turned toward the window?"
"Yes."
"So," Mason said, "as far as your notes are concerned they are inaccurate and incomplete in that they don't show anything that happened after the defendant left the unit."
"There wasn't anything else that happened, except that the police came."
"And the manager of the motel?"
"And the manager of the motel."
"And, during the time you had your back turned while you were telephoning or trying to get a co
"Well-Like I told you, Mr. Mason, I couldn't be in two places at the same time."
"So," Mason said, "as far as you know, Boring wasn't in Unit to at all during the time the defendant was there."
"How do you mean?"
"The decedent could have left that unit while you were telephoning Nye to tell him that you had been made, as you expressed it, and the decedent could have again entered the unit after the manager had entered the unit and then left in a hurry, and while you were telephoning Sid Nye to say Hey Rube."
"All right," Dillard said, "I kept the place under surveillance but I can't be everyplace at once. Naturally when I was at the telephone I couldn't be there at the window, and when I went to the bathroom I wasn't there."
"Oh," Mason said, "then you weren't at the window all of the time."
"No. I did a reasonable job of surveillance and that's all you can expect."