Lady Doyle, Sir Arthur, Mrs. Houdini and myself went out motoring in the morning and when we returned to the hotel Sir Arthur excused himself. About two hours later on my way to the Orpheum Theatre, Sir Arthur came dashing through the lobby of the hotel excitedly looking around for someone. I walked up to him saying, “Anything I can do for you?” He put his arm around me and said, “Houdini, there is a challenge of $5,000 in this paper which I am purported to have issued. I want you to know that I would never dream of doing such a thing, to you above everyone else.”
I replied, “Sir Arthur, this is just another case, where you have been misquoted. No doubt you are thinking that I am going to believe it, for I know that if conditions were reversed you would have believed it; therefore, you see it is best to investigate before giving credence to anything as being a fact. I am not even upset about it—things happen that way. Will you please remember this incident the next time you read an interview supposedly issued by me?” Sir Arthur left for Salt Lake City the next morning.
I walked into the Editorial Department of the Denver Express, saw Mr. Sydney B. Whipple, the Managing Editor, and told him that I had met Sir Arthur the night before and that he was very indignant at the challenge which the paper reported he issued. I said, “You see, Mr. Whipple, Sir Arthur, Lady Doyle, Mrs. Houdini and myself were out motoring all yesterday afternoon, and when Sir Arthur returned he saw the “scare head-line” to the effect that he had challenged me for $5,000! Whipple asked, “You mean to say that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle denies having challenged you?” I replied, “Most emphatically,—he said that it was not true and he never made such a statement and added he had written to the Editor to let him know what he thought of him for misrepresenting and misquoting what he said.” Mr. Whipple asked me to wait a moment until he got to the bottom of the matter.
Whipple called over Mr. Sam Jackson and said, “Regarding this challenge of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, did he or did he not challenge Houdini during your interview?” Jackson answered, “Why he positively did. You do not think, Mr. Whipple, that I would come in with a story which is not true? Sir Arthur distinctly made his statement in terms positive, that he was willing to challenge Houdini for $5,000. Miss Jeanette Thornton was there at the time interviewing Lady Doyle, and she overheard the conversation. Will you please call her and have her confirm my statement.”
Miss Thornton came over and upon being questioned, answered, “Most assuredly I heard Sir Arthur’s challenge yesterday. I thought it was a very interesting incident so I paid particular attention. I am surprised that Sir Arthur now denies having made it.”
Whipple turned to me saying, “There you are—any further proof you want, is there anything we can do for you to contradict this? Do you wish us to make a statement?” To which I replied, “No, just let it go, we will let it pass.”
The following letters which I received from Mr. Whipple are self-explanatory:
“THE ‘DENVER EXPRESS’
“THE TRUTH—QUICK.
“May 11, 1923.
“Dear Mr. Houdini:—