Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1889-06-13


over, the husband would not have accepted
this departure with such incredible resig-
nation But the chief Of police put to him
the following dilemma:
Either your daughter went away will
ingiy; in this case shall send you to an M
spector, who viii put At your disposal some
OF his agents who are accustomed to make
these kind Of researches; it will cost you q
few hundred dollars; but doubt Of the
success in the absence OF the clew. Or else
there has been q crime committed, as you
seem to believe. ! have not sufficient
ground to order Immediately search to be
made; but you can address yourself to tho
district attorney, who, upon your afidavit,
viii put the wheels Of justice IN motion"
This was very grave, but the unhappy
father, after having consulted his wife and
. few intimate friends, after having sent
70 the family lawyer, who could obtain no
explanation, he thought he could not pass
In silence Leonora's disappearance. and he
decided to put the case in the hands Of judi
cial authorities.
The public prosecutor had the case ex-
planned to him. Mr.. and Mrs. Champion
were rich property owners. Leonora was
their only daughter. They had made the
acquaintance of Gustave Brownlow in the
country at the house Of a mutual friend.
Gustave belonged to an honorable family
who had owned a fortune, but had lost it
again Nothing wrong was known con-
corning him, it not that he was without
money and without a position. They had
not encouraged his attentions to Miss
Champion; but the girl had fallen deeply in
love with the handsome gentleman. The
parents refused to give their consent to the
marriage; the girl declared that she would
never take any man for her husband but
Gustave. They were obstinate on both
sides, and when she came of age she mar
ried her fav0rite sutton. Unfortunately,
Leonora, once she had attained her MAORI
ty, enjoyed the free disposal of large fort
ane which had been left her by an aunt,
and the young man must have been &C
quainted with this fact. The marriage had
taken place against the formally expressed
will OF the parents, and since that time all
relations between the two families had been
broken of.
1t was known through the servants and
the school friends of Leonora, who con-
tinued to visit her, that there was trouble
in the house, that there were often violent
storms between the husband and the wife.
The absolute silence in which Mr.. Brown
low shut himself up justified any kind of
supposition, for he had no interest in COW
ering up the wrong doings of his wife if
there had been any, or to hide the motives
OF her absence if he knew them. OF course
it was repugnant to lmpute murder to q
man whose education and bringing up
seemed to prevent such suspicion. But it
was not impossible that man of a secret
i've nature might have been carried away
by moment of anger and that once the
crime committed he had applied all the re-
sources of cultivated and intelligent mind
to wipe out all traces.
The district attorney could hardly be-
ieve that a man of position like Mr.. Brown
low could have committed SO frightful a
crime. He knew besides how difficult it is
to hide body. If the husband had come
back from journey one would suppose that
he had thrown his wife over precipice,
drowned her in river, or strangled her in
some wood. But he could not have left his
house until seven O'Clock; he had returned
at three o'clock in the morning. It was not
in eight hours that he could have found the
necessary time for the execution of the
crime. It was legitimate to exact from him
an explanation as to the employment of his
time and 70 discover what reasons he might
have given to himself for this apparently
unexplainable disappearance.
On the next morning Gustave Brownlow
received an invitation to present himself at
the Office of the public prosecutor. On see-
ing him enter this officer was struck by the
expression of gloomy determination winch
was stamped on his face; one could read
in it at the first glance cold resolution and
an entire self possession. He took seat
without saying word, looking attentively
at the prosecutor. The two men observed
each other before opening hostilities. The
peoples lawyer waited for a moment in the
hope that his adversary would by his first
words betray sentiments of some kind; but
the silence becoming prolonged he was
forced to open the conversation.
" have sent for you, SIT, to ask you for
some explanation of the disappearance of
Mrs. Brownlow. I warn you that q COM
plant has been lodged by your wife's fam
lily, and hope that you will not persist be-
fore me in the attitude that you held at the
time of the visit Of the chief of police. The
circumstances which accompanied this dis