The Penn's Grove record., 1884-10-25

my opinion"
"And no doubt the post-mortem viii
reveal how much poison was found in
the body" suggested Mr.. Binks, a local
draper.
LAS 10 that, choral doesn't always
leave a trace" responded Mr.. Pencuik,
with a shake of the head and a lower
ing of his voice.
The listeners were impressed, and
thickened into a closer circle while the
chemist continued to play Sir Oracle,
till some EXPLANATIONS in the crowd an
bounced that Edward Dermerell was
coming. He came, in effect, walking
up the street with his solicitor, a bar
rister, and a DR.. Bable, who was his
friend. Two policemen followed at a
short distance, with a lot of boys at
their heels. Mr.. Dermerell was a we'll
looking man of about thirty. with a
golden beard and large intelligent blue
ewes. He looked sad and worried, there
was a flush on his cheeks, but he did
not appear frightened. To give him
self a c~ountenance he talked contiden-
italy with his friends as he came along,
and glanced neither to right MOI left
of him. He was not so unobseryant,
however, but that he perceived the
bows which some made, and he returned
them with a kind of alaGrity which
proved that lie was on the lookout for
every token that might reveal how the
public thought about him. Nc boot
ing took place, the crowd fell back to
let him pass, and the general demeanor
of the people was ~cold-equally free
from qnimng or COMMISSION.
Just as Dermerell reached the town
hall, a landeau, which was recognized
as Sir Richard Levington's, came from
the opposite end of the street. The
artist heard the sound of the wheels,
and he turned oil the uppermost step of
the building in full view of the public
to wait for che carriage. This was
deemed a bold measure !; and the crowd
swayed forward with curiosity to see
whether Sir Richard would shake hands
with his late prOtege. The baronet WAS
a m~iddle-aged man, of spare figure,
gray whiskered, and specialized, about
twenty years older than his wife, and
more respected than popular in the
county, for he concerned himself nei-
Their about sports nor politics, but only
about art, archaeology, and scientific
agriculture. His equals thought him
rather a bore. AlightIng from his car
rage and giving his arm to his lovely
wife, Sir Richard walked pompously up
the steps of the town-hall, but at once
accosted Dermerell and gave him his
hand Lady Lexington also shook hands
with the artist. Those who had pressed
forward to catch the words that might
be exchanged heard Sir Richard express
his sympathy for Dermerell in an Inc
motiOnal way, as if he thought the ac-
cusations againsth him came from mere
public tattle that would easily be dis
proved 81 am sorry for all this trouble
that is put upon you, Dermerell, ?" he
said ~ suppose you are prepared with
evidence to show that your poor wife's
death was accidental"
SIT is my belief that she committed
suicide, answered Dermerell.
Intentionally do you mean ?"
SIN afraid So"
Dear me But were you at home
at the time Of the occurrence ?"
Eyes, Twas at home all the even
ing"
''Then you are not going to prove an
alibi."
MOO; | cannot set up an alibi."
Was it fancy but it seemed to some
of the people who overheard the artist
that he hesitated and glanced towards
Lady Lexington as he pronounced these
words. Her ladyship was pale as a
statue. Sir Richard ON his side had
slightly flushed /; and after gazing stead
tasty at Dermerell for an instant, nod
ded to him and passed on. But now a
small incident occurred, for Lady Lev
ington, by accident or design, dropped
her muff, and. quitting her husbands
arm to receive 1t from Dermerell's
hands. she appeared to exchange a
word with the latter. Nobody heard
what she said, and some doubted that
she had spoken at all /; but these were
mistaken. Lady Lexington had whis-
pered
81 trust to your honor"
And Edward Dermerell had replied {:
You may trust me.n
II.
What did he mean by that ? There
was a secret between Dermerell and the
baronet's wife, but it was confined to
their own breasts. During the inquest
1LdAg 1NCN II JOAl . INhAO q AASAA
toned, though the servants who de-
posed were more than once near to say
ing that Mrs. Dermerell had been mainly
jealous of her ladyship. The orone
checked them from uttering the name,
so that they were made simply to say
that she had been jealous ''of a lady"
The coroner himself and most of the
people In court-perhaps everybody in
deed, except Sir RIchard-knew what
this meant !; but the people pitied Lady
Devington for being mixed up i'll such
a case, without venturing to breathe a
word against her reputation ; and not
a soul suspected that by a single word
the Baronet's wife could have proved
Edward Dermerell's innocence.
she did not and could not speak that
word for in saving Dermerell's charac-
ter she would have destroyed her own.
tainted her husbands honor, put a
stigma on her two little children, and
caused herself to be driven forth as a
social outcast. So she sat through the
inquest with an icy weight at the heart,
yearning with an awful usefulness for
some new fact i'll the evidence which
might dispel the host of circumstanti-
alities which had accumulated against
Dermerell and when at last a verdict
of "Wilfal MURDER was returned
against the artist, and two policemen
stepped forward to handcuff him, she
rose, trembling In every limb, and so
weak that she could hardly stand. Her
husband had To lead her out hastily to
prevent her from sw0onlng.
That evening when Dermerell had
been lodged in a cell of the county
gaol, his friend DIR. Babe was sum
moned to Torwood Hall to attend upon
Lady Lexington, who had been taken
i'll. This doctor-a little pot-bellied
fellow-was the best nan alive so far
as good intentions went, but he was an
incorrlgible chatterbox, his mouth being
like a leak which let out all that en-
tered his head.
On arriving at the Hall, he found Sir
Richard pacing about his study defect
IL III --.o-& Lnl AAawfaonH NhA