New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1889-09-11

surance man what he had seen dur.
ing the storm, and then a warrant
was issued and Fergus was taken in
to custody. By this time the towns
people had begun to think it a queer
case. Fergus had gone over the
house and declared that nothing had
been taken. No suspicious characters
had been noticed in the neighbor-
hood. Jewellery and money had
been left lying on the bureau, show
ing that the object could not have
been plumber Did the woman have
an enemy? No, not one, as far as we
could learn Who could profit by
her death? No one but Fergus, and
yet this was one OF the strong points
he brought forward. It was known
to a score of people that she had
made her will in his favor. Would
not everything be his at her death?
70 clinch our case and make cir
cumstantial evidence good we must
show a motive. This seemed hope
less, but / went at the task, hoping
evidence might aid me if Fergus was
guilty. Iexamined his personal eff
fects over and over again in search
of a hint, but for two weeks after he
had been sent to Jail discovered
nothing. Then I got the clue where
/ ought to have secured it before. In
a drawer in his desk found several
advertisements plainly in the inter
est Ct swindlers. One of them read:
"a steady young man with $4,000 cash
capital can double it in one year in legiti-
mute enterprise. For particulars address
Box s91, !" etc.
Another read:
IF you have nerve and 5000 in cash we
will make you millionaire in one year. We
permit the fullest investigation before in.
vestment. Write for particulars.
A third just hit the case:
Are you young and ambitious man,
feeling that you could get ahead if properly
backed and encouraged? Have you any
money? Canyon get from 81 900 to So 900?
II SO we will positively guarantee you $10O
in return for every dollar, and inside of a
year."
/ felt sure he had written some of
these parties, but as could not find
any letters from them / set out to
hunt them up in person. They were
bold-faced swindlers, and they both
cred me some, but in the end I got
five letters written by Fergus In one
of them he stated that he would
soon have money to invest, and ex-
pressed his satisfaction at the parti-
culars of the speculation as far as
given him. The greed of gain, then,
was his incentive. The woman who
had been mother and sister to him
came of a long-lived race, and was in
good health. and month before
her death was told by a doctor in
the hearing Of Fergus that she was
likely to liveto be ninety or one hun
dred years old. Until her death the
young man could hope for little
or nothing, as she was obliged to
make the Interstate of her capital
Support her.
Murderer or not, the boy was the
legal heir; and he employed the best
ACSe0t uCI4cuU III Ullc WeSU W uclCuu ullll
The lawyers might take every dollar
If they could but clear him. 1t was
veritable fight for life with all the
money and most of the talent on one
side, but that web of circumstantial
evidence kept drawing closer and
closer, and it could neither be broken
nor explained away. Had Fergus
been innocent a frank reply to each
question would have explained it.
Being guilty, his evasions only made
matters worse. The jury were out
fourteen hours before finding YER
dict ofguilty, but within an hour he
had made a full confession. He told
me that he had been planning, for
two months, and that he believed
he had arranged details until his
case could withstand the most min
ute investigation of the highest de.
tective talent.-N. Y. Sun.