Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-07-06

received weekly gifts of money, tea. or
other little luxuries. She gave prizes in
the school; helped the parson with his choir;
and scarcely day passed without her figure
being seen in the streets of Carnestord.
| That she could be murdered seemed in
credible, and when the news first arrived. il
was received with absolute unbelief. When
such confirmation was received that doubt
was no longer possible, all work in Carnes-
| ford was suspended. Women stood at their
doors and talked to their neighbors and wept
freely. Men gathered in knots and talked
1t over and uttered threats of what they
would dc if they could but lay hands upon
the murderer Boys and girls walked up
the hill and stood at the edge of the wood,
talking in whispers and gazing on the house
| as if it presented some new and mysterious
attraction. Later in the day two or three
constables arrived and asked many ques-
| tions as to whether anyone had heard any
one passing through the street between 1
and in the morning, but Carnesford had
slept soundly, and no one was found who
had been awake between those hours.
The little conclave in the sanctum at the
| Carne's Arms met halt an hour earlier than
usual. They found on their arrival there {;
stranger chatting with the landlord, who in
troduced him to them as Mr.. Rentford, a
| detective officer from Plymouth.
"a said affair. gentlemen, sad affair,
Mr. Rentford said when they had taken
their seats and lit their rchurchwardens. Gas
sad an affair, I should say, as ever was
engaged in"
TT is that" Jacob Carey said. "Here's
Mr.. Claphurst here, who has been here, man
and boy. for nigh 80 years. He will tell
you that such as this has never happened in
f,io mart in his time
81 suppose, now," the detective said,
"there's none in the village has any theory
about it; ! mean, he went on, as none of
his hearers answered, mo one thinks it can
be anyone but some tramp or stranger to the
| district ?'
'Tt can't be no one else," Jacob Carey
said, "as / can see. What do you say,
Hiram Powlett ? I should say no one
| could make q nearer guess than you can,
found it OUT
81 haven't seen Ruth" Hiram said; 1.-THE
doctor told me. as he came down, as she was
quite upset with the sight, and that it would
be no good my going up to see her, as she
would have to keep still all day. So I
can't see farther into it than another; but
surely it must be some stranger"
''There was no one about here so far as
you have heard, Mr.. Powlett, who had any
"Not a soul, so far as / know" Hiram
replied. "She could speak up sharp, as I
have heard, could Miss Carne, to slat-
ternly housewife or a drunken husband;
but never heard as she made an enemy by
it, though, if she had, he would have kept
his tongue to himself, for there were not
many here IN Carnesford who would have
heard a word said against Miss Carne and
set quiet over it."
"No, indeed" Jacob Carey affirmed.
bringing down his fist with heavy thump
on his Knee. ''The Squire and his sister
were both well liked, and for one would
have helped duck anyone that spoke against
them, in the Dare. She was the most liked,
perhaps, because of her bright face and her
kind words, and being so much down here
among us; but the Squire is we'll liked, too;
he is not one tc laugh and talk as she was,
but he is good landlord, and will always
give quarters rent to man as gets be-
hindhand for no fault of his own, and if
there is any complaint about leaky roof
or any repairs that want doing, the thing is
done at once and no more talk about it.
No, they have got no enemies about here as
/ know OF, except maybe it's the poachers
down at Dareport, for though the Squire
don't shoot himself, he preserves strictly,
and if poacher's caught he gets sent to the
quarter sessions as sure as eggs is eggs"
"Besides," the old clerk put in, "they say
as Miss Carne's watch and things has been
stolen; that don't look as If it was done out
of revenge, do it?''
"Well, no." the detective said slowly,
but that's not always to be taken as a sign,
because you see if anyone did thing like
that, out OF revenge, they would naturally
take away anything that lay handy, SO as
to make it look as If it was done for theft"
The idea was a new one to his listeners,
and they smoked over it silently for some
minutes.
"Lord, what evil ways there are in the
world" Reuben Claphurst said at last
"Wickedness without end. Now what do
you make out of this, mister? or course
these things come natural to you"
The detective shook his head. "It's too
early to form an opinion yet, Mr.. Claphurst;
much too early. 1 dare say we shall put
two and two together and make four
presently, but at present you see we have
got to learn all the facts, and you who live
to be able to put us on the track to begin
with. You point me out clew, and will
follow il, but the best dogs can't hunt until
they take up the SCENT
"That's true enough" the blacksmith
said approvingly.
"Have there been any strangers stopping
in the village lateIy?" the detective asked.
''There have been few stopping off and
on here, or taking rooms in the village" the
landlord answered; but don't think there
has been anyone fishing on the stream for
the last few days"
81 don't mean that class; I mean
tramps."
''That can't tell you," the landlord re-
piled; 1--WE don't take tramps in here; they
in general 60 to Wilding's beer shop at the
other end of the village. He can put up
four or five for the night, and in summer he
is often full, for we are just about long
days tramp out from Plymouth, and they
often make this their first stopping place
out, or their last stopping place in, but it's
getting late for them now, though manv
come along after the harvest is we'll over.
Still, you know, there may have been one
there yesterday, for aught know.
81 will 60 round presently and ask. Any
one who was here the night before might
well have lain in the woods yesterday, and
gone up and done it.
81 don't believe as you will ever find any
thing about it. There's a curse on Carne's
Hold, as everyone knows, and curses will
work themselves out. If were the Squire
would pull the place down, every stick
and stone of it, and would build fresh
one bit away. / wouldn't use so much as
brick or rafter of the old place, for the
curse might stick to il. would have every
thing new from top to bottom"
"Yes, have heard of the curse on Carne's
Hold" the detective said. "a man who
worked with me, and comes from this part
of the country told me all about it as we
came over to-day. However, that has moth
ing to do with this case"
ITS partly the curse as that heather
woman as Sir Edgar brought home as his
wife laid on the place." the old clerk said.
positively; "and it will go on working as
long as Carne's Hold stands. That's what
I says, and don't think as anyone else here
will gainsay me-"
That's right enough" the blacksmith
agreed, 81 think we are all with you there,
Mr.. Claphurst. 1t ought to have been
pulled down long ago after what has hap
pened there. Why, it Mr.. Carne was to say
to me, Have the house and the garden and
all rent free, Jacob Carey, as long as you