238 The Clarion Call
expanding his chest. "I'll show you what I think of newspapers in general, and your Morning Mars in particular."
Three feet from their table was the tele- phone booth. Kernan went inside and sat at the instrument, leaving the door open. He found a number in the book, took down the receiver and made his demand upon Cen- tral. Woods sat still, looking at the sneering, cold, vigilant face waiting close to the trans- mitter, and listened to the words that came from the thin, truculent lips curved into a con- temptuous smile.
"That the Morning Mars? . . . I want to speak to the managing editor . Why, tell him it's some one who wants to talk to him about the Norcross murder.
"You the editor? . . . All right. . . . I am the man who killed old Norcross . . . Wait! Hold the wire; I'm not the usual crank . . . Oh, there isn't the slightest danger. I've just been discussing it with a detective friend of mine. I killed the old man at 2:30 A. M. two weeks ago to-morrow . . . Have a drink with you? Now, hadn't you better leave that kind of talk to your funny man? Can't you tell whether a man's
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