Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1870-07-22

lar vein. As passed my hand over bis
breast, just above tho heart, it came in
contact with something hard and metallic,
and which was strongly imbedded in the
breast bone. [ drew it out carefully and
found 1t to be the broken blade of a knife.
l had dim recollection of having seen
such blade before; for moment and for
a moment only, was cropping in the dark,
when suddenly the whole scene was as
clear to my mind tho sun at noon day.
The sailor whose hand L had dressed; tho
knife he had dropped IL my Office and
which | still retained-the instrument and
the man were both revealed at once Ur-
on comparing piece of blade with the
knife, 1t fitted exactly, and / laid them
aside carefully, for / felt an inward con
viction that the villain, though concealed
for time from mortal eyes, would yet be
brought to light, and that his ''sin would
most surely find him ont.
L stood by Nolan's grave-strong men
were there and gentle hands, with flowers
prepared to deck it, and as the solemn
words, earth to earth, ashes to ashes,
dust to dust, fell upon his cold and life
less bosom, there was not an eye in that
large assemblaRe that was not moist. He
sleeps in the cid church yard OF st. James,
and for years little children would gather
around his grave and talk softly of the sad
fate of the poor young stranger who died
so far from homo.
I wrote to Nolan's father giving him al
account of all that had occurred, and also
to Cora, enclosing in my letter to her his
ring, Or keepsake as he called it. In due
course of mail / received O reply from tho
former thanking me for my attention, and
enclosing draft TO be applied to the pay
ment of any expenses that might have
been incurred on MS sons account. The
letter WAS cold, formal and precise, and l
rnt1, a 81 l.
first opportunity. Some weeks after wards
received q letter from Cora, SO sad 30
mournful, SO touchingly plaintive, that /
would have been more than man could
have witnessed such distress unmoved.-
She returned me the ring, and begged
that l would wear it for her and Edgar's
sake, which [ need not say / have always
done. She did not survive him long, but
wasted gradually away, until she sank to
rest.
About three years after the events mar
rated, as passed ono day along the wharf,
near Dock street, 1 observed q man enter
the doorway Of drinking shop few steps
in advance of me. There was something
about himsthat attracted my attention, and
as l passed the door / stopped for mo-
ment to observe him more closely. One
glance was sufficient I knew him instant
ly the sailor whose hand had dressed
the murderer of poor Edgar Nolan. With |
q loud cry I leaped upon him and bore |
him to the earth he struggled violently, |
but had the strength OF ten men at that !
and held him fast until assistance |
when he was securely bound and |
lodged in prison. His trial took place with |
in few weeks !; L was the only witness |
agalns5 him, but my evidence was conclu- |
aive. When the knife was produced in |
court, and the broken piece of blade which |
had been found in the body of the muir
dered man was shown to fit exactly, leav-
ing not the shadow of n doubt as to the |
fact that it was the actual instrument with |
which the horrid deed had been commit |
ted, CHASTITY change came over the face |
of the hardened criminal, and from that |
hope died within him.
The jury lost no time in making up their |
to be hung by the |
neck like a dog, until he was dead. The |
evening before his execution the misera-
BILE wretch sent for me and confessed the |
crime. He was one Of the men whom No |
Ian had bribed to avenge his place of con- |
cealment on board the ship had noticed |
that he had apparently large amount of |
money On his person, which excited his |
had dOgged bis footsteps when |
he left tho ship for my Office, and following |
him in his walk to the outskirts of the |
town, attacked him suddenly from behind. |
His first blow failed to be e11ectuaI, and q |
struggle ensued, fearful, but of short dura- |
ton, for the unfortunate youth was but |
child in the hands of a man of his strength |
and vigor. During She scu1fie Nolan |
wrenched the knife from him, inficting |
the wound upon his hand, which L after |
wards dressed. Recovering it again, he |
had struck him in the throat and again in
the breast-and the decd was done. He
had buried the body where it fell, and con-
cealed himself during the night and part |
of the next day. when, finding that the ship
had sailed, he left his hiding place aud
sought my assistance for his wounded
hand. He had but recently arrived in q
coasting vessel from 4 Northern port had
seen all account in the papers year or two
before of the finding of the body, but had
no idea Of any clew by which he could be
identified, or even suspected as the mur-
derer.
This was the substance of his confes-
sion, and left him to his fate; and whom
the morning sun broke upon the hill tops
that surround the town, IT shone upon an
excited multitude-she upright post, the
cross beam and the rope-the hi2eous ap-
partitions CT death.
Many years have passed since these
things occurred, aud many changes taken
place. The little village on the Cape Fear
has grown lntO city Of large and lncreas-
ing dimensions. Oli things have passed
away, and the ancient landmarks almost
entirely obliterated. Broad street, with
splendid edifces on each side, and temples
OF the Living Goa. with steeples pointing
to the skies. now occupy the space where
a few years since the night owl screeched
and the whippowil sung his nournful
song Notwithstanding the gears that
have passed, and the vast improvements
made, there is one spot that still remains
a strange memcnto, as it were, of tho past.
AS you walk up Third street from ST.
James Church, just beyond and very near
the residence Of one of our most esteemed
citiZens, who is distinguished not only for
great legal attainme uts, but for that purity
OF character, high sense of honor and ge-
NAL humCT, so characteristic o! the old
Cape Fear regime you will notice singu-
lar sink or hollow Ill the sidewalk. It was
here that the body Of Nolan was found;
and though the street has been graded
time and again, and the pavement laid and
relaid with the utmost care. still that hollow