The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1873-03-22

nv, d iiioii'N avn i'' '''N' ''' $1,000 ''
and"
MY dear Pxlcy, hadn't you better leave it
all to me? Don't keep dog and bark your
self I'll attend to it. I'm going TO the tu-
neral on the 9th"
you are? Then I've nothing more to say;
only keep me informed of everything going
on"
"Of everything. And mind you do the same
towards me"
That night Mr. Mcrdock left London.
| On the morning of the 27th Of November
Il carriage from Lupton Manor was waiting
at the AndOvcr station to meet the early tram
from London. Mr. MerdOck, however, stood
on the platform Of the station some time be-
fore the arrival of the train. He was dressed
in dcep black, and looked worn and anxious.
Among the passengers brought down from
town was Mr. Pixley. Mr.. Merdock FASTENED
towards him, and drew him aside.
"You rot my letter, of course? No. be
very careful, Pixcy. Don't say word more
than YOU can help. There's II carriage wait
inc to take us to LuptOn, pleasant drive over
the HAMPSHIRE downs. The drivers been
resting at the Andoycr Arms; he only drew
Inn TO the station when the train was in sight.
lie supposcs that we both came down by the
train. You're understood to be my clerk.
You would come, and you must accept that
position. But be very careful what you say.
| Not word more now, You're from Lupton,
coachmang TO meet IA gentleman from Lon
don? Quite right
They entered the carriage and were driven
from the station.
Pull up thatNindow, PiXlcy. That fellow
mustn't hear us This is delicate matter,
and we must proceed very cautiously"
"Wcll? And what's been done?"
III hut I,,t
poor case as yet. | can't get much beyond
suspicion. / cannot arrive at proof, Still,
I've set two or three at work, and something
may come out at any moment. | couldnta APP
pear actively in the matter myself for many
reasons We must lull suspicion as much as
possible The criminal, if there is one-and,
mind, | won't say that there is One-will then
grow boder, imprudcnt perhaps, and then we
! have II chance"
"Thc funeral will proceed?'
Not so loud. Yes. You know, or perhaps
YOU don't know what country cOroners are
| And we've scarcely preteXt for demanding
an inquest The doctor, a local practitioner,
sticks to his aneurismal hypertrophy What
can we do in the face of his certificate? The
servants have been got at, not by me- did
not dare 90 near the house-and questioned
skillful enough without awakening their suS-
picions. Something has been gathered that
may be of importance. a pint Of physic bot
ties destroyed Immediately after the death OF
Mr. Dclpratt. But it's nothing like clear
enough at present, and there may be nothing
in it,"
"But if the tuneral'-
"The funeral doesn't matter. If we've any
evidence to go upon, we can obtain from the
Home Office an order for disnterment, Never
mind about the funeral. Get that over quiet
"; il may be all the better for us"
But the other doctor, who gave hint to
the Office
i've seen him, and it only comes to this
he suspects He was dismissed from attend
ancc upon the deceased three weeks ago; so,
you know, he couldn't have seen poor Del.
pratt during his last fortnight of life Still, he
mentioned some facts that were worth noting,
At the same time, you know, he may be
charged with being actuated by professional
jealousy doctor dismissed for incompe-
tcncy; that's how it would be put to a jury"
But what does he suspect"
"Suspicions, mind, amount to nothing, UNI
less you can support them with evidence off
facts, and that we can't do at present. But he |
suspccts-bend your head" Mr.. Merdock |
clutChcd his companion by the forearm, and
whispered in his ear-"he suspects that the
medicines were tempered with, and that death
resulted from the administration of-poison
probably arsenic, in small but frequent
doses That could only have been done by |
some one in constant attendance upon the de- |
ceased"
"And we know that Ernest Delpratt had
of that kind"
Yes; that we know. He sat up some nights
with the deceased, was with him, indeed, con
except on the day of his death; then
he was absent, out all day-hunting, he told
me. He lied. I've ascertained that. He did
90 to the meeting. But there was poor days
sport, IL short run with young fox, and a kill
in Darlington Plantations only Il few miles
from Lupton. He might have been home by
two O'Clock. But he stayed drinking in a
little public house on the Purham road So
you see, he lied. That doesn't surprise me ;
he was always liar, as his father was before
him. 1t looks like administering the last IA
tai dose, and then keeping out of the way of
the closing scene, to avoid suspicion. On the
other hand, an innocent man might have put Il
up at the public, and afterwards, being
of himsclf have given Il false aC.
count of himself for the sake Of deCency."
"IIc was on good terms with the deceased? :"
YES. Not SO good as he'd make out, but
still on good terms. He'd been forgiven, and
Delpratt, take it, was trying to like him,
and, on the whole, the young man had be
havcd pretty well of late 1t had been differ
rnt formerly. In truth, Ernest was as bad as
Delamere had been. Dismissed from the
army before he was twenty for disgraceiul
conduct-cheating at cards-then guilty of
what's called in plain terms, at the Old
Bailey, forgery. But the thing was hushed
up, and the young man was packed of To
australia. Poor Dclpratt, always feeling
lcutely his own position, and doing his best
to serve the Legitimate members of the family, l.
gave him up then as bad job. But he prob
ably sottened towards him of late years, be-
lievcd in his reform, and viewed him even
Who was with him at the time of his
death:
NO one. There we're weak He had GER
tainv heart disease of considerable standing
sufficient perhaps, to account for his death
There's only this to add. He is known to
have complained of the strange taste of his
medicines and of thp great informal po;,, or1