The Pascagoula democrat-star. (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1878-1920, 1886-04-16
A FATAL MISTAKE.
Washington Critic.

arm OF lne seat, II uScN 10 run III
New York frequently, selling
canned meats for Chicago fran.
| made the acquaintance of jolly
young fellow, Jimmie Cross, who
was completing his medical educ;t-
tion by practical work in the hos.
pi ais there. THIS Cross WAS Il rare
fellow, and one of the boys. One
night he came up t. my room and
said Roots, are you i'll for queer
go?' OF course | was, and he told
me that it was this: An old man,
an inmate of one of the hospitals,
realizing that he was dying, want
ed to make statement, or cOnfes-
sion in the presence of two witness.
es. Cross had been attending him,
and he proposed to receive the
statement. We took cab and
drove down to the hospital. AS l
stepped into the long ward, where
lay SO many MANNED and dying peo-
pie, my heart almost failed me.
Here lay a man with a ghastly hole
in his forehead. "Plain suicide, )"
remarked Cross as we passed along.
Next man who had been run over
in the tunnel. A negro boy was
just carrying away one of the tei-
lows legs, which had been amputa-
ted. On little cot lay the man
who was to make the statement.
He had a noble face, and seemed
to be fan above the average man
met in such hospitals.
"Sit down." he said feebly. l
am sinking rapidly; it will soon be
over" We sat down; Cross took
one of the mans hands in his own.
The following was his strange tale ::
"My name is Grosvenor-P Percy
GroSvenor. In England | was
Count Malvern. When | went to
Italy on a pleasure trip in my yacht
| met Nlta. She was Madame
Lanini to others, but Nita to me.
Her husband died two months after
their marriage, and she was left at
twenty years of aye with noble
name and an income of 100000 lires
a year. We loved each other and
were happy. had as much money
as she, and am of as noble birth.
was TO me the most beauti-
fnl place in the world then every.
Thing around me WAS swimming in
Joy. In the spring we were mar.
lied aud took our wedding tour ia
my yacht, landing in Liverpool in
We went Immediately
to my house in London, which an
army of laborerS and artists had
been putting in repair.
"Tbat was gay season in Lon
don and my wife was the belles
She captivated everyone. One
night in the midst of u grand ball
At the Earl of Warsav's Nita drew
me into the corridor and said:
''My husband can yOu trust me ?"
"My husband, | will leave in two
hours for Italy. l will be gone
eight days. | cannot tell YOU what
calls me there. VIII you trust me y
$50 doubt her was impossible.
Those we're the days Of Garibaldl.
Some political Scrape a kiusman
has fallen intO, thought. She
left that night for Italy. Six days
after my friend Morton met me at
tue club and said:
"Percy, | saw your wife at the
Grand Palaise in Rome; she was
a tall, bearded Italian,
a fellow with peculiar scar on his
1t was in the ante-room
aud they thought they were not
observed"
"My friend Morton said that to
me. We fought the next dsy in
Hampton Fields, l shot him in
tue shoulder and he shattered my
right arm, or | would have killed
him. When my wife returned L
mentioned the matter to her.
"NO " said she.
"rhe matter passed off my MUD.
In two weeks from this | received
IN anonymous letter, which said,
Beware of the bearded Italian
with the scarr | burned the let
er. The next evening about twi-
ight l was standing with my wife !
near the window. Suddenly she |
started and turned very pale. l |
OOLed out the window. On the 1
pavement, looking up at the win
low, was "a tall, bearded fellow |
With livid scar across bis cheek.
l said nothing, but went out. /
That night | wondered all night \
What it meant. l did not for an
ustant doubt my wife. When /
vent down to breakfast next morn
ng / picked up piece of paper /
lear the front door. Ii read thus
"My Mia. At 4p.m., on the 2lst,
,e at No. 0 Moody Lane"
"This was the 2lst. / went 10 my I
Dom and cleaned my pistols, and 1
L 2 o'clock took a hired cab for |
iOOdy Lane. No. 8 was long,
onesOme-lOOking, gloomy house,
be shutters all closed and seem
ngly deserted. l tried the front
0or; it was unlocked. l walked
n aud passed through The ball to
he last room, where | heard some
ne moving about.
i tiptOed silently to the door aud
DOked ia. Before the Gre sat a
al fne looking fellow with black
card Across his face was a hvid
car. II was the man described by /
y friend Morton, the nan alluded I