Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1883-11-08
CHE Story Teller.

Que story Wfllef.
THETORN GLOVE,
It was almost II o'clock as l left my friend
Alport's law Office, and hurried up town.
had delayed longer than l knew, inter
ested deeply in his account. OF an intricate
engaged. AS I now remember, property
of Some two millions, held by a residuary
legatee, had suddenly been claimed by one
who announced himself as the direct heir
and devisee, nephew of the testator, who
had not been heard from for several years.
Abort deemed the fellow an impostor,
and although his story had been we'll told.
and his plan of action we'll laid throughout,
my friend thought he had secured proofs
of its falsity. In fact, he had bundle OF
papers containing the positive proof That
Neil Harcourt was not Neil Harcourt,
nephew of old Duncan Harcourt, testator ;
and it was his explanation of this case that
rendered me so late on my up town Journey.
AS I hurried onward, mechanically, my
hand sought my pocket for cigar, and find
ing none-a most unusual condition OF
things-I glanced about for a place where L
could purchase some.
Just, down a side street, light struck my
eye, and moving toward it, found small
but neat cigar store, waited upon by girl;
I entered, threw down my money, and
called for cigars. The waitress, or shop
girl, was evidently on the point OF closing,
for one light was already out, and she wore
her hat and shawl; more than that, as she
placed handful of regalias before me, I
noticed that she had also drawn on her
gloves, and that one, upon her left hand,
had been partly torn across the palm, and
neatly mended by the insertion of another
piece Of kid.
This trifing incident would doubtless
have escaped me- had it not been that the
glove was pale orange in color, whereas
the inserted kid was black.
I selected my cigars, lit one, and walk
ed out An hour later, was at home and
in bed.
The next morning after, I read at my
breakfast table, that Lawyer Alport had
been murdered the night before.
To say that l was shocked would but
feebly express my horror. Airport was a
warm, personal friend, my attorney, and a
man without stain.
His death, in most natural way, would
have been sad loss to me; to hear of his
end by murder, simply paralyzed me.
Leaving the table as soon as could collect
my thoughts sufficiently to do so, at once
threw on hat and overcOat, aud hurried
down town.
Nv friends Office was in Blank Street, a
little off from the main current OF travel
but this morning, found number of per-
sons gathered about it-neighbors, store
keepers, brother lawyers and police-pass-
ing whom confronted an officer standing
guard at the Office door.
He would have stayed my entrance, but
as l handed him my card his face changed.
"Major Minton of the detectives?" he
said inquiringly.
bowed.
The man at once opened the door.
"You'n find Captain Ross and another
gentleman inside. presume they will be
glad to see you"
entered.
AS the police had said, / found two
detectives-men whom l knew-within.
Their story was soon mine.
It seemed that Airport had been in his
office late; that lady had called in the
evening and remained an hour or more !;
that after she had left, his light continued
to burn long time-until morning proba-
ably-and that it was not until some i'm
portant client opened the unlocked door,
about 8 a. M, that the death of the attorney
was known.
He lay dead in his office chair, when
found; thin, foreign-lO0king knife was
sticking in his heart. Evidently he had
been struck unaWareS; there had been no
struggle, but little blood, and no robbery
that the officers could discover.
Nor was there any clue remaining. Evi-
IDENTIFY the woman had killed him, though
why, was as yet unanswered. No one
knew the woman.
''But the reason-the motive?" said l.
I,x hnnr "a
can find that, we may have a clue to the
criminal. Without it, everything is in the
dark
''True," replied Ross; ''but the motive
is Just what puzzles us. 1t evidently was
not robbery, as his watch and money were
on his person when found"
"Hold!" said I with sudden thought.
"Might not he have been robbed of pa
pers?"
eyes; but what ones? How do we know
what document he had:"
A new idea had come to me. began at
once to search for the papers which Airport
had read to me two days before-the proofs
in the Harcourt case.
They were gone, but | found in their
stead, lying among letters and legal litter
in his waste basket, q torn glove, bloody,
and mended across the palm with bit OF
black kid.
I drew it out with shout.
''He was robbed of some important papers
that he showed me only night before last"
said l, eXcitedly, ''and the person who kill
ed him wore this glove"
ga ciue!!,,' cried Captain Ross, as he
reached for it.
"Nd, my friendw said |. This is my
case now. Airport was my attorney; and
now that have one end of the thread in
this case, propose to follow it out. The
honor shall be yours, but the revenge must
be mine. Leave the matter with me three
days. At the end of that time, I'll either
give YOU the criminal, or turn you over
all my proofs, and give it up"
Ross at once agreed to this plan, and my
friends body having been removed, and d
coroner's jury having rendered decision
of "death by the hands of some party OF
parties unknown" the case was for three
days in my sole care.
| naturally felt certain that | had the
right clue-the missing papers and the tori
glOve-but knew my business sufficiently
we'll to understand that / could neither
walk into the cigar store where my sup
posed murderess was and arrest her, no.
was it at all likely that I could bluff o.
frighten her into confession. Moreover,
wished to know first why she would have
cared for those missing papers.
Tbot offnrnOOn I StrOllpd TO the ciga