The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1884-07-04
M CAP;
% R.
THE STORY OF A SIN.
BY HELEN B. MATHERs.

she had unclasped the diamonds. and
taken of her evening dress, but had not
replaced the stones in their cases, as
Mrs. Eyre had said she would do SO her
self presently, and meanwhile asked for
white wrapper, and sat down to read
at a little distance from the window,
which was open, the night being as
mild as September.
Her mistress had wished her good
night as usual when she left the room,
and seemed in good spirits-not SO
high, perhaps, as sometimes, for she
was . very happy-spirited lady; she
would play about, and laugh just like a
child, when nobody was looking land
bitterlyC and witness had never thought
that in less than an hour she would see
her poor lady bleeding in that very
chair.
She had heard the cry that aroused
the whole house, and hurried with the
other servants to the room, but never
thought about the diamonds until
Josephine had exclaimed that they were
gone, and before witness could recover
herself to look round in search for them,
the appearance of the gardener at the
window had diverted her attention; and
though she afterward made q careful
examination of the room, she could not
discover trace Of the precious stones.
After some cross-examination, in
which no fresh evidence was elected
Josephine Eenouf was called. Her
relation to the man Digges had attract
ed the popular attention, and her ap-
pearance fixed it, as faultlessly attired
of feature which in FrenchWoman
does duty for blush, she commenced
her evidence as follows
She had been hidden at about half
past six o'clock on the night of the MUIR
der to take the children to her mistress,
and had admired the diamonds with
which her lady was decked, but had
shortly taken the children back to the
nursery, and after putting them to bed,
had gone down to the kitchen to have a
chat with her fellow servants, and fetch
her supper. She was supposed to eat
this in the nursery, but partook of it
below stairs that night, and afterward
joined in game Of cards in the SER
wants. hall, the gardener coming in I'M
expectedly toward the end of it. They
had fallen to talking of the diamonds,
and she had said in joke that she would
marry him (Digges) when he could give
her as fine a necklace as the one her
mistress was wearing that night, and
being stupid fellow it had taken some
time to explain to him what diamonds
were, and how valuable. She had re-
NAMED behind after Sarah Bodkin had
answered her mistress's bell, and on re-
turning to the nursery had been start
led to find Lord Lovel there, for she
knew that the butler had gone up stairs
to shut up the house for the night, sup
posing him to be gone.
His lordship accounted for his APP
pearance there by saying that he was
certain he had seen Mrs. Clarke enter,
but on assuring him that such was not
the case, he had advanced TO the inner
room to search it, and was conversing
with her on the subject of Master
Dody's health, when the shrek was
heard from the opposite wing that
reused the house.
Witness then detailed the scene that
had met her eyes when she had rushed
to Mr.. Eyre's room, and in spite of a
severe cross-examination was firm in
her denial that she had removed the
diamonds in the confusion of the scene.
Cross-examined as to her intimacy
with Hester Clarke, she admitted it.,
but added that her mistress knew of,
and encouraged it, and had babe her let
Master Dody walk or play with the
prisoner whenever they should meet her
abroad.
At these words, look of agony was
observed to cross the prisoners fea-
lures, her head sank lower, and the
whole attitude of detected guilt became
more marked.
Her examination continued, Joseph
inc said that she had not been present
when Mrs. Clarke had returned to the
lied Hall. She had sat UP the preced-
ing night, and Lord Lowell had insisted
on her going to bed; and sharp cross
examination elected but little more
from the Frenchwoman than the fore
going, and it was with an air of con-
scious innocence that she left the box
to make room for the next witness, the
doctor who had been fetched by Frank,
and who had been with Mrs. Eyre till
within an hour Of her death.
He said that he had previously at
tended Mrs. Eyre in her illness, and
was called up at about twelve o'clock
on the night in question. He found her
living on the bed, pulseless, and appar-
emily dead, her white wrapper deeply
stained with blood, and on the left side,
Just below the heart, q small, incised
wound, likely to be produced by mar
row, long knife, such as the one now
produced in court. by the aid of vio-
lent remedies he had produced some
signs of life in her; but she was practic.
ally dying when he first saw her, and
would in all probability have succumb-
ed to the fatal blow at once, were it not
for the condition in which she was.
Cross-examined as to whether she
had not actually died in childbirth, or
of the violence of the remedies applied,
he said, that to live more that a few
hours after such an injury was impossi-
BILE; and when pressed rs to whether the
chloroform administered by Mr.. Eyre
had not been dangerous to her life, he
replied that though possibly she might
have been kept alive another hour or
two by skillful management, nothing
could have extended her life to the mid
die of the following day. Great force
must have been used in making the
blow, and it was impossible that she
could have inflicted 1t on herself-every-
thing pointed to its being struck while
she was asleep, as Mr.. Eyre's evidence,
taken from her own lips, would pres
emily show
The next witness called was Lord
Lovel. He was in deep mourning, and
in this respect offered q marked con-
a. IL