Manslaughter
1
Unfortunately, for
LYDIA THORNE,
she has everything
in the world she wants
- except a Mother and Father.
Neither vicious nor criminal
- simply "speed-mad" and geared
too high - her proud boast is,
that Life has never stopped her.
LEATRICE JOY.
2
But the best laid
plans of Mice and
Men - are subject to
Speed Cops!
JIM DRUMMOND -
JACK MOWER.
3
"What d'ye think
this is - a
race track?"
4
"Did you
drop this?"
5
"It isn't mine
- so it must
be yours!"
6
Without a thought that
the little Bracelet of
Diamonds may, some-
day, turn into Hand-
cuffs of Steel - Lydia
and her excitement-eating
Friends, hold high Carnival,
at a famous Road-House,
on New Year's Eve.
7
Conspicuous among the "scalps"
hanging at Lydia's belt, are
BOBBY DORSET - who never
Wants what he Gets. And EX-
GOVERNOR STEPHEN ALBEE -
who always Gets what he Wants.
CASSON FERGUSON.
JOHN MILTERN.
8
But there is one "scalp"
missing from Lydia's
gay collection -
DANIEL J. O'BANNON,
District Attorney. Who
loves her for the Girl he
thinks she could be - but not
for the Girl she is.
THOMAS MEIGHAN.
9
"Make Dan keep an eye
on her, Eleanor. If she'll
slow up for anybody, she
will for him - but, as
her chaperon, I won't
stay and be a party to
such goings on!"
10
"Be careful, dear
- you know you
can't stand over
two glasses of
champagne!"
11
"Real Rose-Leaves!
Real Champagne!
Everything real -
but the Men and
Women!"
12
"Rather a moist party
for a little girl,
Lydia! Don't you
think you'd better put
on the brakes, before
Life does it for you?"
13
"Whose little 'gloom'
are you, Dan?
Modern Girls don't
sit by the fire
and knit!"
14
"Ladies and Gentlemen!
We are about to start
that delightful French
novelty, a POGO RACE
- for ladies only!
Contestants will step
forward for the Pogo
Sticks!"
15
"What next! Why, we're
no different today than
Rome at its worst! This
Dance - with its booze
and license - is little
better than a Feast of
Bacchus!"
16
"You see it's just the
same - Gladiators or
Prize Fights! Gambling
and Booze! The same
in a modern Road-
House, as it was in the
House of the Caesars!"
17
"Here's a new 'kick',
Lydia! Let's put
OURSELVES up as
stakes! If I lose -
you marry me! If you
lose - I marry you!"
18
"Fair enough!"
19
"Don't go, Dan -
take her out of
this! Underneath her
reckless bravado, I'm
sure she really loves
you!"
20
"You lose! Are you
game to marry
me TONIGHT?"
21
"Who - did he
say I was going
to marry?"
22
"Lydia, it's very late -
and you're in no
condition to go any-
where! Bid your
Friends goodnight, and
let me take you home!"
23
"Mr. Albee - Miss Thorne
is not going to be 'rail-
roaded' into marrying any-
body when she's not herself!
I'm going to take her home
- and then I'm coming
back to raid this 'boot-
legging' Gambling Joint!"
24
In a cheap little Flat,
far from the "Jazzy"
Road-House - Lydia's
maid, EVANS, has stolen
an hour, to watch by
her sick Boy's bed-
side.
LOIS WILSON.
25
"He can't fight this
hard Winter! A
warmer climate might
do the trick -
California possibly."
26
"I'm not going
to die - am I,
Mommy Dear?"
27
"His arms are
busted, Mommy
- please mend
him for me."
28
It's easy for a Doctor
to tell you to
send your sick
child to California -
but difficult to ask your
troubled young mistress
to lend you the money.
29
"I was wondering,
Miss - if I could
ask you to loan
me some money?"
30
"Not now, Evans
- I've had a
perfectly terrible
evening!"
31
In the morning -
when Lydia discovers
the Theft, she is less
worried over the loss
of the Ring - than
annoyed that her chaperon
has asked the District
Attorney to help find it.
32
"Evans always handles
my Jewels - but
she's been with me
for years!"
33
"May your maid
show me where
your Jewels are
kept?"
34
"I can't go, because
they're having a
tiresome investi-
gation about my
Ring!"
35
"I took the Ring
- because it
meant life itself
to my Boy."
36
"No wonder she has
confessed! You District
Attorneys use very
modern methods with
women - don't you?"
37
"After all my
kindness to
you - "
38
"Lydia, don't you
think this is a
case for Mercy
- rather than
Justice?"
39
"I've no sympathy for
thieves - a Crime's
a Crime! But, in her
case, the Law seems to
be not only merciful
- but affectionate!"
40
"I'm sorry, but I've no
choice - I must take
you to Court. But I'm
sure, when she's less
angry, I can make Miss
Thorne understand!"
41
O'Bannon did make
Lydia understand, and
she promised to ask
the Judge for clemency.
But unfortunately - the
morning Evans comes up
for sentence - follows
a particularly "Jazzy" night
for Lydia.
42
"Won't you wait just
five minutes more,
Sir? Miss Thorne will
surely be here to ask
clemency for her
maid!"
43
"As there is no one in
Court to present any
extenuating circumstances
on your behalf - the Court
does hereby sentence you
to Auburn Prison - for a
term of not less than Three
and a half, nor more than
Seven, years."
44
"They've just phoned that
Evans has been sentenced
to State's Prison! It seems
she stole the Ring in
order to send her sick
child to California -
isn't it terrible!"
45
"I should have been in
Court this morning! But
I'll go right over, and see
that the child has every-
thing it needs - and
is sent to California in
a private car!"
46
"O'Bannon got me
this promotion,
for savin' those
Kids at Death
Crossing!"
47
"She wouldn't take it
back - and I don't
dare turn it in now
to the Department.
But it's been on my
heart, heavier than
lead, ever since!"
48
"Jim - these Chevrons
mean you're a Hero
- the Bracelet
means you're a Cheat!
Which are you going
to give back?"
49
"Arrest Miss Thorne to-
day, dear - and give
back her bracelet!
Then I'll pin these
chevrons on the arm
of a real hero!"
50
And now the
Great Auditor
begins to balance
Lydia's account.
51
"No more brace-
lets, my Friend
- this time!"
52
"Nearly one Telegraph
pole to a Second!
She's doin' Sixty
- if she's doin'
a mile!"
53
To shake off her
Pursuer, Lydia
skids into the Cross
Road - knowing that
the Motor Cycle
cannot make so
sharp a turn.
54
An Hour later
- Jim Drummond
pays in full.
55
"She was doin' Sixty-one
- and I tried to
arrest her - but she
got me! I'll be gone
in a minute, dear - do
I get - the Chevrons?"
56
"See my Attorneys
- they will
attend to every-
thing!"
57
"You're under arrest
for the killing of
officer Drummond
- and you'll have
to go with me!"
58
During the following
Weeks - in which
an expensive and
efficient Lawyer has
arranged for bail - Lydia's
friends, led by Albee, move
heaven and earth to save
her from a Trial.
59
"Give up this needless
persecution of a mother-
less girl, O'Bannon. You
line could save her if you
would - and she has
several friends who might
prove very grateful!"
60
"You're not going
to let a scrap
of paper ruin
your whole career,
are you?"
61
"Since I have nothing
to offer that interests
you, possibly the
victim herself may
be more persuasive!"
62
"I know how relentlessly
you are persecuting
me, Mr. O'Bannon. But,
very foolishly - I seem
to remember a night
when you were not so
stern!"
63
"You think you can buy
me, Lydia, with the shine
of your Eyes - and the
touch of your Hands!
But you can't! You're
going to get your punish-
ment - just as that Boy
got his!"
64
"My punishment is
that I have KILLED
a man - not the pay-
ment of a fine of
two or three thousand
dollars!"
65
"What do you
mean fine?
You're going to
PRISON!"
66
"I'm going to put you
behind bars, Lydia!
You're heading straight
for Hell! And I'm
going to save you -
because I love you!"
67
"If this is a sample
of your Love -
I'd rather have
your Hate!"
68
But even her great
Wealth, and
shrewd Lawyer,
are powerless against
a Man who puts - above
his Heart - the Thing he
believes to be Right.
So Lydia stands trial
for "Manslaughter".
69
"The learned District
Attorney takes the
attitude that I tried
to kill that man!"
70
"We intend to show that
the defendant deliberately
skidded her car, with a
traffic officer known to
be following her - thus
causing the hideous injuries
of which he died within
an hour!"
71
"She passed my garage
doin' Sixty-One, and the
cop was chasin' her!
I timed her - countin'
Telegraph Poles, and the
Second Hand on my
watch!"
72
"I said to my Husband -
'Oh my Dear, what did
they do to you?'
And he said -
'She was doing Sixty-
One, and I tried to
arrest her - but she
got me!'"
73
"It's fine, isn't it, for you
to hide yourself from
Justice behind that Veil
- but what about this
Veil that you've made me
wear? Your money can't
give back my Boy!"
74
"Gentlemen of the
Jury, you are in-
structed to entirely
disregard this scene
- proceed, Gentlemen!"
75
"In deference to
Mrs. Drummond's
grief - we waive
cross-examination!"
76
"The People rest!"
77
After an hour of
Direct Examination
- O'Bannon finds
himself face to
face with the hardest task
of his life - convicting
the Girl he Loves.
78
"Look at the
Jury, please -
not at me!"
79
"You have testified, I
believe, Miss Thorne
- that you have
never been arrested
for speeding - is
that true?"
80
"Have you ever
seen this before?"
81
"It is our purpose to
impeach this witness by
proving that she was
arrested for speeding -
and with this Bracelet,
BRIBED the officer to
release her!"
82
"Objection sustained!"
83
In the "Summing Up"
- Lydia begins
to dread O'Bannon's
terrible SINCERITY.
84
"The over-civilized, mad young
set of wasters - to which
this defendant belongs - must
be STOPPED! Or they will
destroy the Nation - as Rome
was destroyed, when Drunkenness
and Pleasure drugged the
Conscience of its Young!"
85
"Thus must the Day
of Reckoning come
to those who drug
themselves with
Wine and Pleasure!"
86
"Loot, Plunder
and Kill! No
man deserves
his treasure who
defends it not!"
87
"I object!"
"I object!"
"I object!"
88
"I object your Honor!
We are not present
to hear the District
Attorney quote Ancient
History! This is a
Court of Law - not
a Schoolroom!"
89
"I'm not only considering
the debauches of Ancient
Rome, but 1922 - with
its debauches of Speed,
and carelessness of Human
Life - of which this
Defendant's actions are
a daily example!"
90
O'BANNON'S VICTORY.
91
"How say you?
Guilty - or
not Guilty?"
92
"Guilty of Manslaughter
- in the 2nd
Degree!"
93
After tedious delays -
the Court of Appeals
sustains the Verdict
of the Lower Court.
And Lydia comes once more
before the Bar of Justice -
quite confident of being
let off with a Fine.
94
"Your Honor, I would like
to ask that a fine be
imposed on the Prisoner
- because, to a woman of
her sheltered upbringing, a
prison sentence is a more
severe punishment than
the Law contemplated!"
95
"To impose a fine would
constitute for this Defendant
no punishment whatsoever!
I therefore sentence this
Prisoner to not less than
three - nor more than
seven - years in State's
Prison!"
96
"The Bailiff will
take the Prisoner
into custody!"
97
"We, who are
about to die
- salute thee,
Caesar!"
98
It's one thing to be
measured by
REVILLON for an
Ermine Wrap - and
quite another to be
measured by BERTILLON
for State's Prison.
99
"People in here
wait on themselves,
Lydia - or shall I
call you 'NO. 149'?"
100
"You are whining because
you're going to give up
a few French Dresses,
and Limousines! But
suppose you had to leave
an old Mother and a
sick Child - as I did!"
101
"The Disinfectant Bath
will be ready for you
in ten minutes. And
when we've scrubbed
some of the high and mighty
notions out of you -
we'll put you to WORK!"
102
In Prison - there is little
need for a good Dancer,
a good Golfer, or a
good Bridge-Player.
Nor have all the expensive
machines Lydia has driven
- helped her in the
least with a Washing
Machine.
103
"Since the only thing
you are able to do is
to SPEND money - and
as there is no department
for that in this Prison -
you will have to start at
the bottom - emptying
the Garbage pails!"
104
"There's a visitor
to see you in
the office."
105
"I suppose you've come to
gloat over my humiliation
- to see a Woman
turned into an Animal!
Well, someday - some-
where - somehow, I'll
square accounts!"
106
"I did what I thought
was RIGHT! Right to
my Oath - and right
to you!
But I paid a big price,
Lydia - for I sent my
heart to Prison!"
107
"Is your Heart scrubbing
Prison floors and carrying
filthy Prison garbage -
as I am? Is it locked
behind iron bars - as I
am? Is it filled with
Hate - as mine is?"
108
"Oh, God! Why did
I have to crush
the Thing that is
dearest to me in
all the World?"
109
The Price of Hate
is that it destroys,
not the hated one,
but the Hater.
And the tempest surging
in Lydia's Soul, brings
her, delirious, to the Prison
Hospital.
110
"I tried to save
you from yourself,
Lydia - because
I loved you!"
111
"Oh, if I could
only live my life
over - if I could
only BEGIN again!"
112
"Oh, if I could
only live my life
over - if I could
only BEGIN again!"
113
"I didn't kill
him - did I?"
114
"It's all been a dream
of Hate! And we are
both going to learn,
dear - that 'Love is
the fulfilling of the
Law'!"
115
"Quick Boys!
It's the District
Attorney!"
116
"Don't worry - I'm no
longer the District
Attorney! And I
want just one thing
- WHISKY!"
117
After Two long
Years - under
the warmth of Evans'
patient kindness - Lydia
comes to learn, that the
worth-while things in Life,
are Love and Service.
118
"Doesn't this Doughnut
remind you of a Life-
Preserver? That's just
what Prison has meant
to most of us - a
Life-Preserver!"
119
"What do you think, Girls!
The Pardon Board has
granted a parole for
good behavior, to Lydia
and me - and we can
leave prison tomorrow!"
120
"I had to come to Prison,
to learn the meaning of
Freedom! To be locked
in a cell, to know that I
had a Soul!
And now my Time, and
my Effort, and my Money,
are all going to help those
who taught me!"
121
"I may have put you
behind the bars -
but what have you
done to me?"
122
After fruitlessly search-
ing for O'Bannon,
to ask his forgive-
ness - New Year's Eve
finds Lydia at work
in the City's Slums -
bringing cheer to the
Hungry and Discouraged.
123
"I haven't
any money!"
124
"Hungry - Kid?"
125
"Let someone else dish
the doughnuts. We've
come to take you up
to the Roof - to
see the New Year
in!"
126
"In Prison - I learned
that keeping time to
human heart-beats, is
far more important
than keeping time to
a Saxaphone!"
127
"You don't know
how much I've
wanted to see
you!"
128
"You, more than any
other human being in
the world, have given
me a SOUL - and
I'm going to pay you
back, by saving yours!"
129
"Our Society needs a lawyer,
Dan."
130
"Won't you take the
position? For I
remember that you
have never lost a
case!"
131
"I have a terrible fight
ahead of me, Lydia!
With your love I
may win. If I do,
I'll come back. If
not - just forget!"
132
All Battle-Grounds are not
bristling with Bayonets
- nor booming with mighty
Guns! Some are DRAB,
and CHEAP and SILENT -
where Man, and his Destroyer
play out a lonely hand.
133
"Your little pet
Bootlegger, brought
you a little New
Year's cheer!"
134
"Aw, go on!
Just one won't
hurt you!"
135
During the next Three
Years, Dan O'Bannon,
rising like a Phoenix
from the Fires of Fate - wins
back his old prestige. Till, at
last, the Primary Election finds
him running neck and neck
with Stephen Albee - as the
People's choice for Governor.
136
"This is Radio
W-B-Y."
137
"There is little
doubt of O'Bannon's
victory tomorrow
- even Albee
practically concedes
the Election."
138
"I'm sorry to intrude
- but I really must
have a moment
with our future
Governor!"
139
"O'Bannon, you're going to
beat me in tomorrow's
Primaries! But I think
you've overlooked one point
- an EX-CONVICT cannot
preside over the Executive
Mansion at Albany!"
140
"Albee is right, dear!
It would ruin you to
marry 'Convict 149'!
You must go on with
your work, and I'll go back
to mine. For I love you
enough - to give you up!"
141
"I've got a jolt
for you, Boys -
but I expect you
to stand by me!"
142
"This is Daniel O'Bannon
speaking!
I wish to announce to
the Public and my Friends
- that I am, today, resign-
ing my candidacy for
Governor!"
143
"Lydia dear - the
Governorship is a
cheap price to pay
for winning You -
and Happiness!"
THE END
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