Pearl Robinson, the 16 year old sweetheart of Arthur Mullinax, appeared before Chief of Detectives Lanford this afternoon and firmly declared her belief in Mullinax’s complete innocence in the murder of Mary Phagan. She gave a clear account of his whereabouts from Saturday night, saying he had been with her from about 8 o’clock in the evening until nearly 11 o’clock and that they had gone together to the Bijou Theater.
Mrs Emma Rutherford, Mullinax’s landlady, arrived with her two sons, Thomas and James, and helped build what seemed to be a solid alibi. Mrs Rutherford had to correct an earlier statement she had given to police, in which she had said she did not know where Mullinax was from noon Saturday until Sunday morning. Now she insisted that those earlier words were based on confusion at the time and did not reflect the truth.
Miss Robinson described Mullinax as a good boy, saying he was kind, honest, and a perfect gentleman. She said he left her home around 10:30 p.m., walked toward his rooming house on Poplar Street, and that she heard him whistling as he went. The sound gradually grew fainter until it faded away, and she took that as proof he had reached his room.
Mrs Rutherford said that Mullinax returned to 60 Poplar Street shortly before eleven o’clock, went to his room, and was later found asleep by her son James. Thomas Rutherford added that Mullinax was still asleep at 11:30 p.m. and again at 5 a.m., which he believed ruled out any latenight trip downtown. Mrs Rutherford explained that her earlier statement had been shaped by the shock and excitement of the news and that it was not meant to be taken as the final word on his movements.
At the same time, detectives uncovered a secret compartment built into the basement wall of the National Pencil Company building. Inside they found a makeshift cot made from old boards and a blanket, along with a woman’s footprints nearby and signs of a struggle in the disturbed earth. The Coroner’s jury inspected the hidden space, and police began to consider whether it had been used as a concealed meeting place, possibly with the knowledge or even the permission of night watchman Newt Lee.
Two employees, J A White and Harry Denham, were also questioned about their Saturday routine. They said they had worked on the fourth floor from about 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and had not seen any girls in the building that day. Police remained interested, however, in White’s claim that one employee had reported the front doors of the factory open at 8:30 p.m. Saturday night, a detail that might help explain how someone could have entered after normal working hours.
Charles Hall, a chauffeur for the sanitary department, reported that he had seen a man forcing a girl toward the pencil factory around midnight Saturday.
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