The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1886-07-15

OF the lady. the sudden rising of the gentle
man might well make the hand or the as
sassin snake aad spoil the aim. 1t was
plain TO me that must look for woman
some woman who felt herself injured by
the marriage, and who hated the girl who
mad won the place or position she coveted
The more pendered on this, the idea OF
beryIs innocence grew upon me. And
yet, l argued. on the other hand, what
| English woman would resort to such g
| revenge.
Imade inquiries, however, and discovered
| tnat Captain Mervyns character had been
strangely wild one. Belonging to a go ID
family. he lived in expectation of title
and a fortune, and this coupled with the
fact that he did the bulk of the Colonels
! duties led that gentleman to use oil the in
| fuence with his niece to bring about the
| marriage which was never to be conSum-
mated.
The name most connected with Captain
| Mervyn's was that of Miss Inez Harman,
! the niece of the stipendiary magistrate.
| The corOner's inquest took place one day,
and the prisoner was brought before Mr..
| Harman the next. Miss Harman sat at
| the solicitors table, and was certainly not
| IN her first youth. She had been very
beautiful, and her eyes and hair were still
black as night-the former large and
brilliant. l learned that her father, who
was the elder brother of the magistrate,
had been IN tae consular service, and had
married Spanish lady previous to being
transferred to Brazil. He died, and left his
only daughter to his brothers care. During
the magistrates examination l became
cogniZant of two things. The widowed
bride had persisted in b5ing present. and
early in the proceedings l saw her gaze
upon the prisoner in such way as proved
to me beyond doubt that she loved him with
her whole heart and soul. An hour later |
happened to glance at the magistrates
niece, and beheld her looking at Mrs.
Mervyn, the bride, with such an expression
of concentrated hate as | never saw before
or since on human face. That look was
a revelation to me, and that afternoon l
went secretly and made a cast OF the I'M
preston of the woman's shoes in the
ruined hut. | tried to trace them from the
old builting. but the soil was sandy, and
the rain had obliterated all recognizable
traces of any foot-marSs.
| communicated with headquarters, and
was ordered to remain at the disposal of
the local authorities, who had applied for
the continuation of my services. made
the acquaintance of Miss Harman'S maid,
and was not long before got an oppor
tunlty or comparing one of The LADIES'
shoes with the cast 1 had made. Having
formed a mold from the cast, fitted the
shoe in, and it was perfectly accurate.
Captain Clayton and Mr.. Bromley swore
positively to having seen mana sligat
one, probably-hy from the scene of the
murder, and that set me thinking again.
a fortnight passed over, and l was al
m oSt deSpaIring of making the discovery |
desired, when an advertisement appeared
in the Times for ooachman to be ''gener
ally useful as an indoor servant" al
most leapsd for joy when l read: "Apply
to Mr.. Harman, Milton House, Hilston
road, Midhampton." l wrote to the chief
TO provide me with frst-class references,
Il .iplr 70,
| applied for the situation, and. having got
it, disguised myself by donning a close-cut
red-brown wig and crepe hair Side-whisk-
erS glued 50 finely to my cheeks that |
could comb them with impunity. Next
day | arrived like a stranger i'll Midhamp
ton, and on reashing tue magistrates
house was, thanks TO the excellency of my
placed in a cOnfid ential posi-
tiOn at once Milton House was half
mile further on the road than the barracks,
and the route taken by the flying fugitive
on the night of the murder would lead
right to the back gate of the premises. | !
had provided myself with complete set
Of keys and ''pick-lock' instruments. 1t /
was my hope to be able to use them sue
ceSsfuly on the first Sunday. The day, !
howe yer, was wet, and had to drive the |
and his niece to church.
Next Sunday dawned beautifully. and |
uhe whole household, with the exception of |
the cook and myself, walked to church. |
rhe former was too busy to look after me, |
so | had ample time to ranSack every
corner of Miss Inez Harmans rooms. In I
off the Dire reSsing-room | found a
sailor suit of clothing, which |
afUarward discovered had belonged to her |
cousin the magistrates son, now, SUBJ
lieutenant in tae royal navy. The gar
nentS were cast off when he was mid
hipman. and had been locked up in his |
DOM to which lnez, as mistress of the |
house.. had access, of course A pair of |
hrivalad up shoes were rolled up in the
rouSers, and in one of the pockets of the
after | discovered the remainder of the
proof of the poem Farewell" The burned
fragment had been used as wadding for the
run, and this l found at the bottom of a
curious old box, which stood in dark
.orner of the dressing room. 1t was a short,
ornamental weapon of Spanish mGnufact-
ire and several bullets exactly matching
ne one taken from the dead mans wound
we're found in a case beside 1t. | carried
Ill the proofs of the womans guilt into her
itting and placed them upon the
able. Then l went upstairs to my own
BEDROOM, and, changing my disguise. waited
he return of the murderesS.
She came upstairs ightly, and entered
he apartment humming a hymn tune.
he next moment a terrible scream, or
ather Shrek, startled tue whole house. L
an down stairs and saw the uahlppy
VCillsin ~ Oh Gue luSSHS'Dte lH9
ervants came rushing up, but l stood at
he door and permitted no one to enter
Intil her uncle arrived.
You hera,'' he cried.
t'Send the servants away. SIR" | said.
He waved his hand in stupefied kind of
way, and the women gradually disap-
,eared Then | asked him to prepare for
great shock, aud ushered him into the
o0m He was Il man Of strong nerve and
ludOubted intellect. He graSped the de-
ails very briefly and then we raised the
nurleress uDon the sofa; she had burst
biooi-vess9l and the stamp of death was
Ipou her brcw,
"B and = ae said.
/ brought him some. He endeavored to
,0Ur some b,gveen her set teeth. Pres
ntly sac opened her great dark eyeS and
Ooked strangely and wiStfully round. II sT
yes fell upoH the gun and the mud stained
loties and shoes on the table.
''Ah." she Eloanei, in kind of hoarse
-hiSDer. Tlei, after a pause. she al led
18th an eff )rt He left me and married
mother! | did not moan to kill him.
lough. No; ! wished to remove her that
e mi ght return to his first, his only 10
the word was never completed. When
le prisoner was next brought up, an alibi
-aS truthfuliy proved, and he was dis
narged. BY tn public generally this was
Ia SSe1 among the crimes nsver cleared up;
mt Sydney Bervl and his wife-for he soon
fter married Filth Brooks, or Mervyn-
new, and one or two Others knew at the
me. the trua story OF the bridegroom shot
trough the heart.-CitciRnati Enquirer.