THE DEVIL MUST

Told by young, brooding Sandy Martin, always aware that he is not among his town's acceptables, this fans backward to fill in the picture that brought about the murder of Carl Rogers, keeps pace with the revelations that come about when an innocent colored man is jailed for the killing and underlines the motives that drive Sandy's boss, Harris, and his old friend, Street Kirby, the county solicitor, to find the real killer. A reporter, Sandy triggers the excitement in his newspaper insinuation that Mrs. Rogers has been more than friendly with a local political power and Harris has to stand up to threats from that source while Sandy comes under the strange power of the widow and Kirby determines to live up to his father's name in fighting for justice. When they are convinced that Mrs. Rogers deals in black magic, they try a surprise move and trap her in a ring of fire which drives her to kill her daughter and be killed herself. The case is backgrounded by Sandy's love for Honey which is finally killed when he learns of her affair with Harris and he leaves his home town for his military service with all ties cut. A southern setting for a story which makes use of the lurid for its local happenings. Not for conservatives.