Episode Eleven: "Cloak and Swagger"

Prison letters between William Clarke and Mary Branch tell a sordid story of love and hate. Clarke also wrote to several other people from his prison cell, including a U.S. Senator and one woman who proved to be pivotal regarding a solution to the case. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
I'm going to survive whatever it takes. If I got
to kill these people, if I got to give him
the dumping body, whether he may have just enough to
get her out where you could get her in a
position to kill, he could have had a sense of protection.
Knowing that I'm doing this to pay back this debt
to a corrupt official police officer. Push comes to shove.

(00:23):
I can take him with me. He's in jail. So
she does feel safe and secure in the relationship. Now
she knew too much. She knew everything. Welcome back to
Shattered Souls The car Barn Murders. I'm your host, Karen Smith.
This is episode eleven. This podcast may contain graphic language

(00:45):
and is not suitable for children. Previously on The Car
Barn Murders, William Clark, who became my primary suspect, made
a category klismic underestimation of his paramour, Mary Branch. In

(01:05):
the middle of the night on Clarke took Mary for
a ride to a desolate mill in Ilchester, Maryland. He
beat her to near unconsciousness with a blackjack before tossing
her body over a thirty five foot bridge into the
Patapsco River. He had to silence her, so he drove

(01:27):
all the way out to an old grist mill, a
place where very few people would ever set foot. William
Clark took Mary's debilitated body from the car and heaved
her over the bridge span. In less than two seconds.
Mary fell three and a half stories and splashed down
into the river, the equivalent of being struck by a

(01:49):
car going thirty five miles an hour. Jagged granite rocks
jutted out from the water, which was only four ft deep.
Mary's bleeding and battered body was jolt by the cold,
unforgiving surface. She had landed in a pocket between the
rocks that surely would have killed her. Down was up,

(02:09):
up was down, and Mary fought to get her bearings
in the frigid water. There was no light, only a
waning crescent moon, and as Mary surfaced into the blackness,
she screamed. Flows of red poured from the gashes in
her head. Gaining a foothold, she instinctively looked up at
the bridge span. Through the blood in haze, she saw

(02:32):
the dark silhouette of William Clark peering over the rail,
staring down at her. Instantaneously, she understood why he had
insisted she go with him at such a late hour,
and she quieted down. He wanted her dead, so she
played along. After a few seconds, she watched William Clark

(02:53):
turn and walk away. The car engine gunned. She saw
the headlights sweep across the tree tops and waited for
the sound to fade before she moved again. William Clark
drove back over the hills to the apartment on Gerard Street,
believing his mission had been accomplished, that Mary's body would

(03:14):
never be found, that his secrets were silenced. Mary Branch's
survival instincts kicked in a shot of adrenaline course through
her arteries, and the fighter flight mechanism sent all of
the remaining blood to her brain and vital organs. She
grabbed onto the rocks, struggling against the water flow and

(03:36):
heaviness of her dress. As she made her way to
the river bank. A neck deep hole in the river
bottom sent the water swirling above her head, and she
doggy paddled to the next rock, her feet underneath her again.
She took off one of her white gloves and covered
the gaping wounds on her head. She thought she was
bleeding to death. The rumble of water and distance. Skittering

(03:59):
in the woods were the only sounds. Nothing was familiar.
Where had Clark taken her? A large crumbling building sat
to her left, the vestiges of the old gristmill. She
stumbled out of the water and up the river bank.
Blood dripped from her head and felt warm against her

(04:20):
cold skin. She moved her glove from one wound to
the other to try and quell the flow. The adrenaline
rush was wearing off and pain started to take hold.
She needed help and quickly she followed the dirt path
and it led her to a small ramshackle house on
the river's edge. Mary banged on the front door and

(04:42):
pled with anyone to answer. After a moment, the homeowner,
Sylvester Kogle, appeared in the doorway. He saw the blood
covering Mary's face and her soaking wet clothes. Sylvester Kugel
didn't waste time asking her how she got there or
what happened. He guided Mary Branched through the woods to
his car and drove her to the police station in Catonsville.

(05:04):
An ambulance was called and she was taken to the
emergency hospital. Sylvester Coogle saved her life. Later that morning,
after William Clark got back to the apartment on Gerard Street,
he got a message from his cousin, Benny Johnson via
a taxi driver. When Clark answered the door, the taxi
driver told him that Mary Branch was in the emergency

(05:27):
hospital and had survived the beating and fall into the water.
William Clark asked the cabby if he was sure about that.
He was sure. Clark shipped his pants and ran out
of the apartment. A woman who was inside with him
at the time overheard the conversation and ran outside after him.

(05:49):
Could this woman have been Edith Small, the blonde woman
from Illinois Avenue that Clark had reportedly been seeing. The
story of the attempted murder of Mary re Branch hit
the newspapers later that day. In the evening edition. Mary
was questioned by Catonsville police detectives and she named William

(06:09):
Clark as her assailant. Catonsville contacted Washington d C. And
Clark was quickly taken into custody. The next day, on May,
armed with a warrant, Lieutenant Edward Pullman and Patrolman Earl
Smith drove down from Catonsville to the district to pick
Clark up and take him to the tows in jail.

(06:30):
The d C police wanted to do several show ups
with recent robbery victims while they had Clark in custody,
and they consented to allow the Catonsville police to take
him after Clark waved a hearing in d C. He
denied the charges of attempted murder, but agreed to go
voluntarily with the Catonsville officers. Once again, Clark thought he

(06:51):
could talk his way out of it, but this time
his alibi source was the victim. The Washington Evening Star
reported Clark was one of the first persons arrested for
investigation in connection with the Chevy Chase Maryland Carbarn double
murder and robbery several months ago, police said, and was
released after miss Branch told authorities he was with her

(07:15):
in the city at the time. Mary Branch had given
William Clark in alibi and five months had passed since
the Carbarn murders. What prompted William Clark to try to
kill Mary Branch now after all that time had passed,
And why was her attempted murder not mentioned anywhere in
the case file? Why did I have to dig and

(07:37):
just happen to find it in an old newspaper during
my research of yet another potentially connected crime, the murder
of Lizzie Jaynes. Why was any crime that involved William
Clark completely ignored in the detective's notes Recalling Mary Branch's
interview on January twenty two, the day after the murders,

(07:58):
she told d C Detective Frank Brass that William Clark
had moved his clothes out of her apartment two weeks
before the murders of Emery Smith and James Mitchell, so
it seemed to me like they weren't getting along. Clark
was back at her apartment on Saturday, January nine, and
according to Mary's statement, he stayed there until January one.

(08:20):
She had alibied him, even though the story disintegrated with
her own words that she and Clark slept in separate
rooms that night and that their friend James Weir went
home and there was more. Detective Brass had also spoken
to Francis Gregory. He said that Mary Branch had been
confiding in him and said that William Clark would sit

(08:42):
around and plan hold ups. She also told Gregory that
she heard Clark was going with a blonde girl on
Illinois Avenue and said that if she found that to
be true, she would tell everything she knew to the police.
A couple of days later, Clark beat her with a
blackjack and tossed her over the ridge. In a subsequent

(09:02):
Washington Post article, Mary Branch told a reporter that Clark
tried to kill her because she quote knew too much.
So not only did Mary Branch falsely alibi William Clark
on the Carborn case, she outright lied. During her interview,
Mary said that Clark's Capital Transit uniform was sold to

(09:24):
quote a car man, but I just can't remember his name.
She knew exactly who Francis Gregory was, and she was
with Clark and James Weir on the night they picked
Gregory up at the Jesse Theater to sell it to him.
That was too close for comfort since Francis Gregory still
worked at Chevy Chase Lake, So Mary Branch just chose

(09:46):
not to remember Gregory, the man to whom she had
been confiding about William Clark and his secrets. Speaking of
Francis Gregory, I read his interview statement from January over
and over again, trying to make sense out of it.
He had diarrhea of the mouth, and he remembered a
whole lot of unimportant details, but he left out information

(10:09):
that really mattered, like unlocking all of the doors to
the ticket office during the night of the murders. I
tried really hard to give Francis Gregory every benefit of
the doubt. But I recently found a piece of the
puzzle that flies in the face of all of his
assertions about what really happened that night. It was a
statement by John Stout, the evening clerk, in the newly

(10:32):
received type written Notes by Baltimore Detective Stewart Deal. Here's
what it says. Mr Stout states that Mr Mitchell came
on duty about eleven ff pm January and they talked
for a while. Emery Smith came over and rapped on
the door about two or two thirty am, and Mitchell said,
there's Smith at the door, and went and let him in.

(10:56):
Son of a bitch. This is how one little state
can alter an entire investigation. I spent the better part
of an earlier episode defending my great uncle Emory's possible
complicity in the robbery when I didn't need to. Emory
Smith knocked on the door of the ticket office for

(11:17):
James Mitchell to let him in. The key they found
in my uncle Emory's pocket didn't go to the door
of the ticket office, otherwise he just would have let
himself in. He couldn't have unlocked the front door because
he didn't have the key to it. The only other
person inside of that office who could have unlocked the
door before the robbery and murder was Francis Gregory. I

(11:39):
knew that Gregory was obfuskating when he talked with the detectives,
but I wasn't sure which parts of his statements were
true and which parts skirted the facts. But now it
was clear, and I'm going to let you hear it
all for yourself. This is Francis Gregory's full statement, given
the day after the murders. Francis Gregory, aged three, twelve fourteen,

(12:01):
ev Art Street, Northeast, Washington, d C. Has been employed
by the Capital Transit Company for ten months. Average salary
twenty eight to thirty dollars. Worked for the American Stores
in Washington, d C. For about nine months. Also worked
for Edgar Morris Sales Company in Washington for one year.
Reported for work about twelve twenty five PM January twenty,

(12:22):
nineteen thirty five, and made five trips and finished at
nine o nine pm, and Mr Stout sent me to
Georgetown to get a car at thirty six in M
Street and I got back to the barn at eleven
thirty pm. And then I took a car back to
thirty six in M Street and returned to the barn.
About one thirty a m. January twenty one, I rode
in with Dire he's due in at one nine am,

(12:45):
and we came into the office together and he turned
in and Dyer and Davis left to go home together.
I think Davis had his own car, which is a
forward coach. And at this time Mr Mitchell and Stout
were in the cage and I went in the trainman's
room and took a leak and took my coat and
laid it down on the bench and laid down. This
was about one forty a m. And I heard the
crew that's due in at one am. They usually get

(13:07):
in a little ahead of time because they don't have
so many to haul at that hour. They were in
about ten minutes and when they started out, the motorman
Batton is his name, and the conductor's name is John's blonde.
Batton told me I'd better pull off my overshoes because
in the morning my feet wouldn't be worth a damn,
and he asked me if I wanted him to pull
them off for me, So he pulled them off before

(13:27):
he left the room, and I went to sleep, and
sometime during the night I woke up. I was hot
because Mr Smith had fixed the fire, and at this
time I opened two windows on the Columbia Country Club side.
I think these windows have screens on the outside. I
think there's a window in the ventilator where a man
could get in, or they might could come in through
the roof. I'll tell you what I think about this murder.

(13:49):
I think they forced Mr Smith to get Mitchell to
open the door. But of course that don't sound right either,
because it looked like that Mr Mitchell was shot while
he was setting in his chair. Yesterday morning, the officer
and I saw footprints on the wall beside the office.
I used to sleep regular at the barn, but not
lately because I've made arrangements with a friend who has
a spare room and when it's late, I go to

(14:10):
his house. And the reason I didn't go there to
sleep that night was on account I forgot to tell him,
and I haven't got a key and I would have
to wake him up, so I had to be at
work at six am. That's why I decided to stay
at the barn. I've come out from the trainman's room
early in the morning and found Mr Mitchell asleep in
his chair. In fact, I thought he was asleep. I

(14:31):
feel like Clark was in on this job. I feel
like Clark was in on this job. Not only did
Francis Gregory drop William Clark's name, the detectives also suspected
Clark of being involved in the murders. So I'll ask
the obvious question again, If William Clark was such a

(14:52):
strong suspect, why was nothing ever done about it. I'll
revisit Francis Gregory's statement later for a full breakdown, but
I wanted you to hear his own words and couple
them with the fact that my uncle Emery Smith had
to knock to have James Mitchell let him in. Rumors
circulated about my uncle Emory's possible involvement the inside job

(15:15):
for years after the crime. Even within my own family.
They didn't want to believe that was a possibility, but
no one ever told them differently, the air needs to
be cleared once and for all. The Carbarn case may
have been an inside job like everyone thought, but as
sure as hell, had nothing to do with my great uncle.

(15:38):
Back to William Clark and Mary Branch. Clark was denied
bond on the attempted murder and he was held in
the tows in jail. He had a speedy trial and
apparently couldn't afford a private attorney because he represented himself
in court. It was a bench trial, with Judge Frank
Duncan deciding the facts of the case rather than a jury.

(15:58):
He pleaded not guilty and statly denied the accusations, and
as was his custom, he provided an alibi defense, saying
he wasn't in the area at the time Mary was
beaten and thrown over the bridge. Mary Branch took the
stand and told the entire story, which newspaper reporters detailed
for the next day's edition. On June seventeenth, nineteen thirty five,

(16:22):
less than a month after the attempted murder, Judge Duncan
found Clark guilty and sentenced him to eight years in
the Maryland penitentiary. He would share his prison time with
Robert Janney in the fall after his sentence for armed robbery.
Finding this story and figuring out the reasons why William
Clark wanted Mary Branch dead sent him straight to primary

(16:44):
suspect status for the Carborn case. As I was finding
more articles about the attempted murder, there was a photograph
in the Portsmouth Times from June second, nineteen thirty five,
while Clark's trial was ongoing. The photo caption reads says
she was hurled off bridge swathed in bandages. Missus Mary

(17:05):
Branch twenty five is shown with a friend after naming
to police the man she asserts struck her twice over
the head and then threw her from the Patapsco River
Bridge at Ilchester. It's a picture of Mary Branch and
I could clearly see the gauze wrapped around her head.
She's wearing a dark coat with a fur collar, heels,

(17:26):
and she seems to be preening a man who's dressed
in a three piece suit and a straw boater hat.
He's a little heavy set and he's looking almost straight
down the barrel of the camera lens with this stupefied
look on his face? Could this man identified in the
photo as a friend be William Clark? Would Mary Branch

(17:48):
go anywhere near the man who just a couple of
weeks before had tried to kill her? Yeah? She would.
This is where their story goes off the rails, but
of the evidence to explain their crazy love hate relationship
was inside of the case file. William Clark went to
the Slammer for eight years, but he didn't waste any

(18:11):
time trying to get back out. Just like Robert Janny,
he spent the majority of his time writing letters. The
detectives started intercepting Clark's mail as well. Most of his
letters were to Marry Branch, but there were plenty of
others to family members and influential people who Clark thought
could help him get sprung from the lock up. The

(18:32):
first intercepted letter is dated January thirty one, nineteen thirty six,
and it's too William Clark from Mary Branch, Friday morning,
January thirty one, ninety six. My dearest Darling, I received
your letter just a few minutes ago, and answer it
right away, Darling. I got up out of my bed
and went down and called Mr Hedelman to have him

(18:52):
come over and talk to you, Darling. I'm hoping it
won't put me back in bed, Sweetheart. If I'm able,
I'm coming to see you Monday. I have to meet
mister Hedelman at twelve o'clock. I have no car to
get around, and I think it's best to get him
to straighten things with Viola and all other things. Darling.
I don't see how you can think that I'm interested
in anyone else. But you can't. No one say I've
been out with a man since you've been gone. There's

(19:14):
no one in the world that can take your place, Darling.
Just please let weather get a little better so I
can get well of this cold, and I'll show you
what I'm going to do for you. If any chance
of getting my baby home, I'll show you that. You'll
be here, Darling. I told Thomas and all of them
that I was writing to you if they did want
to help me, it was okay. He did something very
nice for me so I could help you, Darling. So no,

(19:35):
there's only one thing that holds Thomas back from helping us.
And you know what that is. That news that Thomas
told me. I will tell you when I come over, Darling.
I'm sick, and then on top of that, I'm worried. See, Darling,
that was all a lie about that letter. That was
not my people, Sweetheart. I didn't close my eyes last night.
I just waited until morning to get to the janitor's
apartment so I could call Mr Hedelman so he could

(19:58):
go over and talk to you. Well, sweetheart, will clothes.
I'm going straight and get janitor to mailvis and I
hope you'll get it by tomorrow. Close with all love
to you, by bye, darling, Mary B. The next two
letters were also from Mary to Clark. My dear darling,
I received your letter just a little while ago, and

(20:18):
sorry to hear such bad news. Of course it hurt
me to hear that, and being sick and so weak,
but I'm glad to say I'm feeling much better to day.
But that upset my nerves. Thomas and them had to
make up their mind to help me, and he told
them all Thursday night that that was all of my
sick and to go ahead and help me. And trying
to get you out, Darling. Don't you think that anyone
can just go up and ask and they'll let you out.

(20:40):
It takes money and an attorney in your case. I
call Hedelman yesterday and talked to him. He told me
he was going to see you yesterday and wrote me
a letter yesterday, but I didn't hear from him, and
also make an appointment at twelve o'clock Monday in Baltimore
and talk to you. I have to give him twenty
five dollars to start the case. I can't stand it
any longer alone, Darling. Thomas is going to open up

(21:01):
a whiskey store. I wish you were here so you
could help him. He told me last night, don't cry.
When Bill comes home, he'll have a home with you
and I. But Darling, he didn't know anything about the other.
I'm not going to tell him anything until I hear
from you. And it's no use of me to come
to Baltimore until I hear from you. Darling. You know
there's no one in the world I love but you.
I don't care what no one tells me about you.

(21:21):
I don't care. I know it's a story, Darling. I
got a letter from my job this morning saying they
want me to come to work as soon as I
was able, and that made me feel some good. Now
my darling can have anything he wants when I go
to work. I'm looking for an answer at once so
I can see Mr Hedelman. Bye bye, with all love
to my baby, Mary B. Monday morning, February sCOD My

(21:44):
dear Darling, I received your letter this morning and was
so glad to hear from you. I'm glad to say
my cold is a little better, and I walked a
drug store yesterday, but I can't get out today on
account of the weather. But Darling, as soon as the
weather breaks, I'll be over to see you, and that
will be one day this week. But if IOLA go
down there, it's only going to hurt you, not me, Darling.
You know they're not going to put no money out.

(22:05):
All they do is talk, and what you need is
an attorney. I'm not going to do anything to hurt
you until they get smart. Then I'm going to show
them a few little things. I want to talk to
you before they do anything, Darling. I feel sorry for you.
I'm going to move next week, but I don't know
where because apartments are so hard to find. Well, Darling,
I'll close waiting for an answer from yesterday. Bye bye

(22:26):
with love, Mary B. William Clark finally wrote her back
on February three. My dear darling, I've just received two
very sweet letters of yours. One was mailed Friday evening
at one pm, the other one Saturday night at nine pm. Yes, darling,
Mr Hedelman was to see me Saturday noon. He told
me he was going to Washington Sunday and he was

(22:47):
going to call you by phone. He also told me
he was going to meet you Monday at twelve thirty
and then was coming with you to talk to me.
But he told me you told him three or four
times that you were going to do this, and that
you still never kept your word, so he was tired
of lies. So you'd better call him and explain things
to him. Because he told me he wasn't going to
do anything else until you came over and gave him
some money. So you see, darling, he's through now because

(23:10):
you didn't come over today. Now, Darling, I want you
to come over here Thursday and talk to me. I
can't explain everything by letter, but Joe will tell you
what I told them Sunday if you call them. I
told them I wouldn't give you up until I talked
to you, but they said you were making a fool
of me and you had enough charges, but I told
them I would like to have a chance to prove myself,
and I was going to give you a chance. So, darling,

(23:32):
please don't lie to me about coming over. Now, Darling,
when you come, call Mr Hedelman and tell him you're here,
and for him to come over while you're talking to me, sweets,
why not bring Tom with you so he can have
a talk with me and see for his self. So please, darling,
don't worry your sweet self sick, because I'm not going
to let them do anything for me until I have
a talk with my darling. So don't worry, dear, because

(23:54):
I love you and always will. If you were to
leave me, no one would ever take your place. So
please keep me sweet letters as these were today, because
it makes me feel much better when I received sweet ones. Well, Dear,
as there's no news to write about, I shall bring
these few lines to a close by saying good night, sweetheart, always,
sincerely and respectfully, yours forever. Bill p s. Don't say

(24:17):
you're coming over and then don't come, because that's our trouble. Now, Okay,
what the hell was going on with these two? I've
read these correspondences dozens of times researching all of the
people they mentioned and their relationships. It seemed to me
that William Clark was over a huge barrel where Mary

(24:37):
Branch was concerned after she survived as attack at the bridge,
and now he was being forced to keep Mary close
and under control, telling her what she wanted to hear
so she would keep her mouth shut. I don't have
a psychology background to try and break down the nuances
found in their words to each other, but it's really
important for this case to figure out just what was

(24:57):
going on. So I folk with Dr Jorry Crossing. Dr
Jeorry Crosses among faculty with St. Leo University here at Florida.
I've been at police work for fifty years. I've been
in psychologist for five fifty years. I'm a police psychologist
with Women of the departments here in Florida, Springfield, Florida.

(25:21):
I've done a lot of consulting work as a private
contractor overseas with Department of Justice, Department State, and Department
of Defense. I gave you my really quick assessment of
William Clark and of Mary Branch. William Clark, my assessment
was he was a very instant gratification type person. He
was very quick to anger. He was very manipulative in

(25:43):
a very basic and uneducated way. I think he was
writing to Mary Branch to keep her close and under control.
You're very accurate, okay. And some of the things that
would back that up, of course, are the letters. You know.
One of the other things I looked at was what
is she doing having any contact with this guy? And

(26:03):
you know, that kind of opened me up to what's
her personality like. And even in the letters, you can
see that she has a very dependent personality. You know,
she's always talking about her health, and I think a
lot of this was from the dependent personality. You know,
she may not have been intentionally do it, but that's

(26:24):
the way these personalities are. Wanting to go back to work,
having to move, having to find a new apartment, a
new job, trying to get money for the lawyer, and
he is feeding into the dependent personality of her to
the point of where he's making himself dependent upon her,
you know, asking her to go see the lawyer, to

(26:45):
get money to go see this versus that person. She's
pretty compliant. I don't think so much manipulation as to
keep her quiet. I kind of think that once he
attempted to kill her, was in prison, and then had
this contact back with her. He's pretty good at reading people,
and especially I mean, you know, he's been with this woman,

(27:07):
he knows her. You know, he's been able to pretty
much manipulate her throughout the relationship. And he's got a family,
he's got a girlfriend, he's got her, and she's still
with him. What would make someone like Mary Branch stay
with someone who tried to kill her? What would make
her go back to him? Well, you know, it goes

(27:30):
into the theories on domestic violence, and he's almost like
prisoner or war mentality and some people that drives a relationship,
you know, this thing of fighting, interaction, makeup romance. You know,
it is very common and it's more steady theoretically today
than it was back there. But it's the same behavior. Yeah,

(27:52):
And and think about that safe and secure he's in jail, Okay,
So she does feel safe and secure in the relationship now,
So that could be one of the moating factors there too.
You know, keep in contact with him and carry on
this relationship. She's in the secure safety of dependency on
him that she is somewhat in control of. Look at

(28:15):
the very end of the starting letter where you know
this other woman comes back in that she's accusing him
of writing too and stuff, yet you know she's sticking
right with him through these letters. Many thanks to Dr
Crosin for helping me sort through this weird push pull
relationship between William Clark and Mary Branch. It was clear

(28:38):
that she knew everything and was using that information as
a parlay to manipulate him well at the same time
still being dependent on him. Clark pushed the envelope with
her just so far before he repeated his love and
devotion to her. But there was still the issue of
Clark's new girlfriend, Edith Small. Where was she during his

(29:00):
prison time? Edith Small was alive and well, doing her
level headed best to try to drive a wedge between
Clark and Mary. Mary Branch accused Clark of writing to
Edith Small using an alias George McNeil so it wouldn't
come back to bite him in the ass. But Mary

(29:20):
was street savvy and she caught on and found out,
and she called Clark on the carpet. Monday night, February
sevent nineteen thirty six. My dear darling, I just got
home from Baltimore. I stay in there three hours waiting
to see you. Say no one could see you, Darling.
It surely did hurt me when they told me I

(29:40):
couldn't see you. When I got back, I received your letter.
After all. I saw two letters that Edith wrote Mr
George McNeil. Darling might think you're smart by putting things
over on me. I don't care how many lies she
tells on me. I saw in her letter she was
telling you I was running around to dances and did
quit my job, and she wanted you to stop writing
to me and hope you would soon get your release

(30:02):
so you and she could carry out your plans. Darling,
didn't you tell me that you didn't hear from Edith?
But I want to know if you're still going to
receive letters from Edith now, Darling, is no use saying
it's not true. I saw the letters with my own eyes. Darling.
You say you want somebody to help you. How can
three help you? At one time I called Miss Edith

(30:22):
and asked her if she wanted you to stay in
there your full time. I told her she was the
cause of your being there, and I was over there
today to help you. I called Mr Hedelman, but he
was out. Now, Darling, please make up your mind which
one you want, Edith or me? Darling, I didn't move.
I'm going to stay with Helen a few days. Well,
Darling will close, but I'm all upset. Bye bye with

(30:45):
love and kisses, Mary. Hoping to hear from you as
soon as you receive this. Tuesday morning, February ninety six,
My dear Darling, I drop you a few lines this
bad morning, Sweetheart. I didn't eve no letter from you
this morning, Darling. What in the world is wrong with you?
I want to know, Darling. I guess you was a

(31:06):
bad boy. That's why they wouldn't let me see you yesterday. Darling.
I don't see why you don't leave Edith alone or me.
You try that when you was outside and you couldn't
get by with that. Didn't I tell you that Joe
was carrying news to Edith for you. I thought you
told me that Edith caused you enough trouble when you
were out and you were through with her. So many

(31:26):
told me you were hearing from Edith under another name,
and I just laughed. I read those letters myself, and
now I know it's true. I went down to the
store to see miss Edith first, and she was sick
in bed, and I talked to her sister, and I
told her a plenty something would have been done for
you yesterday if it hadn't have been for those letters.
Why I did write to you Sunday. I made plans

(31:48):
to come over to see you on Monday. You just
wait until she gets back to the store. When I
get through with her, she'll be glad enough to leave
me alone. She's caused me enough trouble telling you to
stop writing to me. Well, Darling, that's all up to you.
When I read those letters, I didn't get angry, but
it hurt me and I sat down and cried. Well,
I will close for this time. Please answer and let

(32:09):
me know what you want me to do. Bye, bye, Darling.
I wish you luck. Close with love and kisses. Mary
be over the next week or so, they exchanged words
about Edith small Mary Branch pushed back on Clark's denials,
which he stuck to like a fly to a glue trap,
evidenced in his reply to her February nineteenth, nineteen thirty six.

(32:33):
My dear Darling received your letter to day and was
glad to hear from you, but not concerning Edith because
she doesn't concern me in the least. Furthermore, if I
had anything to say to her any other woman, Joe
would be the last person in the world to do
anything like that for me. Darling, you could throw me
up tomorrow, but I would never write Edith and ask
her to help me after doing her the way I
did for you. So you can do as you please,

(32:55):
because you've just about drove me crazy with lies. You
know I'm pulling my time very hard, but still you'll
tell me things that are untrue. I don't believe you
saw any letters of that sort. You may have, but
it's hard to believe, Darling. I don't believe she's writing
those letters. I think someone over here is trying to
cause me trouble with you because I've done nothing at all.

(33:15):
So I don't know why they wouldn't let you see me.
The only reason I know is because I've had two
visits this month. I'm very sorry you couldn't see me
because I had some very very important things to talk
over with you concerning that friend. Because I have got
to get some money to get a lawyer. I wrote
a letter to another lawyer this morning and asked him
to come over and see me. Now, he may call you.

(33:36):
His name is Brown, but you have to go see
me first. So I can tell you to see my
friend because he will help me to pay for a lawyer.
He may pay all for me, but I've got to
see you so I can tell you what to tell him. Darling,
I wrote you two letters at m Streets, so go
around and get them. In one of those, I told
you to call cousin Phil and he would take you
to see Mr Code or Gamble because he knows them well.

(33:58):
I wrote him and told him you'd call him, sweetheart.
Please believe me. I'm not writing to anyone other than
you because I really love you with all my heart
and soul. So please don't let people tell you lies
about me writing to her, because it's a lie. And
each and every one of my letters are read in
the front office before leaving here. Furthermore, I'm only allowed
to write to you, my darling, and my own people,
which they've told you here, so please don't let anyone

(34:21):
tell you such lies. Well, Darling, is there's nothing more
than I have to tell you. Tonight, I shall bring
these few lines to a close with all my love
to my darling one always, sincerely and respectfully yours forever
Bill PS, please send some smokes and stamps. They both
eventually moved on to more pressing matters, like getting Clark
more cigars, cigarettes, and coffee. Clark also wrote to his

(34:45):
sister Deretha Bowls and his cousin Phil Clark, using the
same soft soap language he used with people he thought
could help him get out of his prison predicament. William
Clark cashed in his chips and wrote to both of
them for one reason. His sister Deretha's husband, Bevis Bowles,
was a Secret Service agent at the White House and

(35:07):
his cousin Phil Clark was a DC Police officer at
the Harbor Patrol. There's no response from Deretha, her husband,
Bevis Bowls, or his cousin Phil Clark in the file.
Bevis Bowls and cousin Phil weren't about to put their
careers on the line for William Clark or help him
get out of prison after an attempted murder conviction. On

(35:29):
the same day he wrote to his sister Deretha, Clark
also wrote to his father, it was pathetic. Hello, Dad,
just a few lines at this time to let you
hear from me, which I hope they find you and
mother all. Well. I'm feeling right well at present, but
not so happy well Dad, Mary was here today and
had a talk with me, which I believe things are

(35:51):
going to work out for me before long, let's hope.
So anyway, because I want to come home, Dad, I've
not heard from any of you to know whether they
arrived the Sunday safe or not. They said they were
going to send me some money, but as yet I've
not received it. So I'm going to ask you, as
my father, to please send me two dollars because I
really need it. I hope I'll be able to repay
you someday. Dad, Why is it you never come to

(36:14):
see me. I would love to see you and have
a talk with you, So please answer this letter and
tell me you'll be to see me soon. You'll never
know how happy I would be to receive a letter
from you telling me you was coming over, So please come, Dad. Well,
as there's no news to tell you, I shall bring
these few lines to a close by saying good night
to all always, sincerely and respectfully, your son Bill P. S.

(36:36):
Please give my best regards to mother and all tell
Billy I say hello. Five days later, William Clark's mother
wrote him back. Her words were superficial and terse. It
was clear that the family had other important issues to
deal with, but his mother did take the time to
send him a quick note and one dollar. Dear Frank,

(36:58):
guess you think it's strange not hearing from me last week.
I've had so much to do while Margaret was in
the hospital. She came home Thursday, has to go back tomorrow.
I don't know she'll have to stay or not. Your
father says to tell you he can't come over there
this bad weather, and he hasn't a penny just now,
so you'll hear from him later. Viola has moved on
G Street northeast, just at the foot of Pickford Street.

(37:21):
Came up this morning after sending the children to school.
Here she comes now at eight o'clock. I'm glad to
hear you. Think things are working out nicely for you,
Viola says she's going to collect that money for you.
I'm sending you one dollar in this letter. All I have.
Times are very hard and my the weather is something
awful here. Well, the kids are making so much noise,
I don't know what I'm writing. With love from all

(37:43):
at home. Mother. PS, Hello Frank from pal. PS. Let
me know if you receive the paper. Pal was Clark's wife, Viola.
She and their three children had moved out of his
parents house and into her own place, but they were
still visiting his parents on a regular basis. In her
police interview, Mary Branch said that William Clark had been

(38:07):
in trouble for failing to pay alimony. If Clark wasn't
going to support his own wife and kids, his parents would.
In another letter, Clarke wrote to Mrs A. T. Schroth.
The Shroths were wealthy owners of a meat packing business,
and they took pity on Clark, sending him a few
packs of cigarettes. He thanked them with the same flourishing

(38:29):
language he was perfectly capable of using when he wanted
something from someone, a true manipulator. On the same day
he wrote to the Shroths, William Clark also sent a
letter to a friend named Niva Bard. Welly, dear Neva,
just a few lines to let you know I'm still
thinking of you all. Hoping this note finds you all

(38:49):
very well. Please give my regards to Sally, Neddie and
Miss Susie. I hope you're getting along fine in your
new business and that success will always be yours. I
understand that you've opened up a school of beauty culture
for Sally and Nettie. I think that was mighty fine
of you, and I hope that success will be There's
also Miss Susie wrote me and asked if I could
receive cigarettes, etcetera. I answered and told her that I could,

(39:11):
but she's never answered my letter, so I suppose she
didn't receive it. You see, I have no money with
which to buy smokes, and I would certainly appreciate it
if she or you could please send me some. You've
always been good to me and I shall never forget you.
Tell Bard I think of him too quite often, and
that I hope his business is prospering too, and tell
him to think of me when he takes his next shot.

(39:33):
Ha ha. And now with regards to you, with hopes
of hearing from you soon, I remain as ever sincerely,
Bill Clark, Niva Bard, Welly, Nettie, Sally, Miss Susie, a
school of beauty culture. I had to do some deep
digging to find out who Neiva bard Welly was. When

(39:54):
I found out, my theories started to make a lot
more sense and solidified my thought about what happened, who
did it, and why this case was shelved and never solved.
Her name wasn't Neva Bardwelling. William Clark misspelled her last name.

(40:14):
It was Niva gerardin Elli. She was James Weir's sister.
If you have information about the car Barn murders, go
to the Shattered Souls Facebook page and leave me a message.
Opening music by Sam Johnson at Sam Johnson live dot com.

(40:36):
Shattered Souls The car Barn Murders as produced by Karen
Smith and Angel Hart Productions