Red Harvest · Chapter
XXIII: Mr. Charles Proctor Dawn explained
The narrator discovers the murdered body of lawyer Charles Proctor Dawn in a stairwell alcove, and takes a black book and papers from his pockets.
What happens
The narrator discovers the murdered body of lawyer Charles Proctor Dawn in a stairwell alcove, and takes a black book and papers from his pockets. Among the papers are love letters from Elihu Willsson to Dinah Brand. The narrator visits Helen Albury, sister of the man who confessed to killing Donald Willsson, and accuses her of murdering Dinah Brand with an ice pick, but she remains silent. He then learns that Dawn was a shady lawyer involved in a blackmail case, and that the police have taken Helen Albury in for questioning after she was seen at Dawn's office.
Themes in this chapter
Deception and Manipulation
The narrator deceives his colleagues about his knowledge of Dinah's murder and manipulates the investigation by taking evidence from Dawn's body.
Corruption and Power
Dawn is a shady lawyer who escaped a blackmail rap; Pete the Finn's crew are made special officers, showing the fusion of crime and official power.
Characters to notice
- The Narrator
Discovers Dawn's body, takes evidence, and interrogates Helen Albury.
- Dick Foley
Reports Bill Quint's departure and news of hijacking; tails Helen Albury.
- Mickey Linehan
Reports Dan Rolff's sighting; gathers information on Charles Proctor Dawn.
- Charles Proctor Dawn
Found murdered with a broken neck and a cut on his forehead; his pockets contain Elihu Willsson's love letters to Dinah Brand.
- Helen Albury
Sister of Robert Albury; lives across from Dinah Brand; remains silent when accused of the murder.
- Elihu Willsson
His love letters to Dinah Brand are found in Dawn's possession.
Key passages
“I found Mr. Charles Proctor Dawn huddled among two brooms, a mop and a bucket, in a little alcove formed by the back of the stairs and a corner of the wall. His Vandyke beard was red with blood from a cut that ran diagonally across his forehead. His head was twisted sidewise and backward at an angle that could only be managed with a broken neck.”
The narrator discovers Dawn's body in a stairwell alcove, with a bloody cut on his forehead and a broken neck.
Key discovery of the murder victim.
“The four letters were signed by Elihu Willsson.”
The letters found in Dawn's pocket were love letters from Elihu Willsson to Dinah Brand.
Reveals a connection between Elihu Willsson and Dinah Brand.
“I said: 'Dawn helped you, engineered it for you. He wanted Elihu Willsson's letters. Who was the man he sent to get them, the man who did the actual killing? Who was he?'”
The narrator accuses Helen Albury of murdering Dinah Brand with Dawn's help, and demands the name of the actual killer.
Shows the narrator's theory of the crime.