Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-05-31
CHAPTER XXXII.
DAISY S DIARY.

1t is the eve of my wedding day, the eve of
St. Valentines day; Gilbert is to be my valen-
tine tomorrow and forever.
And now in this deep silence of after mid
night Will close the record of my life as an
unmarried woman. The life that will begin
tomorrow will mark the opening of a new vol
ume in my history; but the old book shall be
my friend and coniidant still, for 1 shall be
able to praise my husband IN these pages as
| should never dare to praise him to any iv-
ing listener, least of all to his modest, unpre-
tending self.
shall close the record of my grlish years.
and with t hope closes the tragedy OF my own
and my mothers life. God grant that blood
Shed and guilt and treachery may have no fur
| ther influence upon her life and mine, and
that the road that lies before us may pass
through peaceful and smiling land, where
crime and SIN will have no part in destiny
The interval between ms step fathers Jour
ney to Paris and the end of the wear was a
time of keenest anxiety for me and for Gilbert,
who shared and hghtened all my cares. We
watched the three principal Paris papers. which
Gilbert ordered to be sent to him daily, and
watched with intense expectation for any
notice of the murderer Morei. The actual
facts recorded were few beyond the particulars
OF the murder which had appeared in the first
instance. but there was a great deal of descrip-
tive writing bearing more or less upon the
crime. Something of this kind appeared i'll
one or other of the papers nearly every day
Sometimes there was paragraph about the
prisoner antecedents. the part he took in the
riots and brutalitles of the Commune, the man
ner of his escape when the Versailles troops got
possession of Paris, and many other facts or
fictions about his past life. Gilbert told me
that must not believe more than one-fourth
OF any such articles or paragraphs in a Partisan
newspaper.
One day there appeared long account Of
the villa which was the scene OF the murder
an article i'll which the luxury and splendor of
the house were miuutcly described. Another
article III the same paper gave a glowing de-
| scTlptlon of the prisoners cousin. beautiful
young woman, married to one of the richest
| men III Paris. Scandal about this Young woman
and her mother was freely published. cruel i'm
| putations against their charactc but there
was not one line in any of the papers which
| limited at Claude Morers identity with the muir
| derer of Denmark street
| The police know all about him." said Gill
| bert. but they are keeping dark A man can
| not be tried for two crimes at the same time
Were there any chance OF MOrePs acquttai he
could be arrested and brought 10 London to be
confronted with the witnesses who could iden-
tify the murderer of Denmark street"
My stcp-father remained III Paris for nearly
a month. during which time he wrote at least
twice week to my mother. She read portions
Of his letters TO me. lie had seen the police.
| and they had tod him that there was very little
doubt of the prisoners execution. The crime
4
Of even French jury. lie would he found
guilty without extenuating circumstances. lie
| would perhaps appeal TO the court of cassa-
ton, but his appeal would be rejected
Ia later letter my step-father wrote that he
had with great difficulty obtained all interview
with the prisoner. lie had taxed him with the
murder in Denmark street, but Morel had
! denied all knowledge of that crime. The letter
described him an obdurate villain.
The trial took place III the second week of
hoo llnaF lY Ill.
Perez, was the chief witness against him. She
described how he had appealed to her for
| money. for jewels to convert into money
within two hours of the murder; and how she
had refused to give him either money or
levels, upon which he left the house angry
| and menacing. She described how she was
startled from her sleep by the sound OF foot
steps i'll her room and on opening her ewes saw
the prisoner standing before her toilet table
deliberately filling hts pockets with her jewels
which she had worn in great profusion upon
that particular evening. She told the court
how she had sprung from her bed. intending
to ring for help, but before she could reach
the electric bell the accused struck her to the
ground. She remembered nothing after that
blow, which had inflicted permanent injury
upon the sight Of one eye. She had only Just
recovered from nervous fever which had fol-
| lowed upon her return TO consciousness.
The appearance of this witness in the court
| and her evidence excited a profound interest,
II
beautiful woman. Her evidence was given in
| some parts reluctantly, at other times with a
| rush OF indignant feeling. When asked by the
! prisoner If she Lad not once been his mistress,
she passionately repealed the accusation. She
/ admitted that she had once loved him, but
| that was before she knew the worthessuess of
| his character. She spoke IN the highest terms
| of the murdered Louise. She denied any
| knowledge of the fact that the brother and sis
1 ter had adopted names which were not their
| own. She had never heard the name of Morel
| in association with either of them.
| The evidence of the gendarme who ar
| rested the murderer red-handed was conclusive.
| The blood of his victim and the jewels which
he had stolen were found upon him. There was
| little need OF elaboration. The verdict was
| guilty, without extenuating circumstances. The
| sentence was death.
| l can never forget my mothers face when
| Gilbert told her the doom OF Claude Morel We
went together to the morning ROOM where she
| was sitting at work, her great basket of flannel
| and calico on the hearth rug iIf front of her
| chair her pale. anxious face intent upon her
| stitching. In all this time Of suspense she had
| employed herself chiefly in visiting the poor
| ana working for them. She told me that il
| Was ony by constant occupation, useful and
| mechanical work. that she could steady her
| nerves ana prevent herself from dwelling in
eessantly upon the tragedy of her life.
| She listened quietly while Gilbert read the
| verdict and the sentence and then with her
| head bent and her hands clasped she murmureS
| those awful words which she had spoken TO her
| husband IN her agitation when she frat read OF