Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1893-02-23

u think he is" said the boy. "Will
you give me your name aud businessy'
At the same time he presented card
and pencil for the man to write with.
"No," said the man. II have been
sent to see Mr.. Fairlegh, and am not
to tell my business to any one else"
The boy looked doubtful, but said he
would see if the lawyer was in. He e.
tered an inner room and presently came
out and ushered the caller into Mr..
Fairlegh's private Office. It was fitted
up like parlor, excepting for a huge
library table in the center. Mr.. Fair
legh sat by this table reading briet.
He was handsome man, about fifty
years old, with broad, low forehead
and keen eyes.
The colored man produced letter,
saying, II was to get an answer to this" I"
Mr.. Fairlegh opened the envelope and
read:
MY DEAR SIR-l write to retain you as coun-
sci in a case demanding immediate attention.
have written u full statement of the circum-
stances, which hope you will read carefully
before accepting or declining the case. The
messenger will give you the manuscript to-
gether with n retainer, If you consent to con-
slider the case. IL for any reason you do not
wish to consider it, please do not mention the
fact of my having applied TO you. Yours truly
JOHN SAUNDERS.
"ls this from Mr.. Saunders, the news
paper manp' he asked, looking up.
Eyes, SIR"
Did you bring the manuscript he
speaks of"
II brought parcel, SIR" said the col
ored man, producing it, land this bill,
which Twas to give You if you asked for
the parcel, and he laid fifty dollar
note on the table.
Mr.. Fairlegh opened the parcel and
found in it a closely written manuscript
of some fifty pages. He laid it to one
side, and taking up a pen wrote:
My DEAR MIR. SAUNDERs-I will consider
your story tonight. Send your messenger to-
morrow for an answer, or, better yet call your
self AS for the retainer, let US wave that for
the present. am happy to be able to return
some Of the kind courtesy you have shown me
more than once. Sincerely yours,
- 70 P '-'-- HENRY p. FAIRLEGH.
Inclosing the bill with the letter in an
envelope, he handed it to the messenger
and was instantly buried in his brief
again.
After dinner that evening Mr.. Fair
legh went to his library, lighted good
cigar, put his feet to the fire and read the
manuscript. This is what he read:
JOHN SAUNDERS STORY.
It was long after midnight on the
morning of day before yesterday when
finished my regular work in the office
of the New York Daily Item and leaned
back in my chair, too tired to start i'm
mediately for home, and yet hungry
enough to know that must have some
supper before going to bed. was con.
sidering whether to go to the club,
where would meet friends, or to res
taurant, where l might eat alone, when
the Office boy brought me note.
This just came from police head
quarters" he said, with more excite
ment than he usually betrays, for he is
precocious, as newspaper Office boys are
likely to be, and is we'll used to the sud-
den sensations that are common in such
places.
"The messenger brought it down with
the late copy" he continued. "There's
been most unusual murder up town.
and we are to have an extra"
who's been murdered, Harry" ]
asked, with smile at his wording of the
news
Mrs. Gregory" said he briefly.
To say that ! was startled is only the
conventional way of expressingit. There
was only one lady in New York city, as
you know. who was spoken of as Mrs.
Gregory. ANY other Mrs. Gregory
would have been called by her full
name or designated more specifically in
some way, but this one needed no such
particularization. The reasons will pres
emily appear why |, a poor man, little
known to the world in any way and
scarcely known at all in society, should
be startled by the news Of the murder of
this leader of society.
Isprang from my chair, forgetting fa-
tigue and hunger, and went into the
night editors room to- learn the particu-
lars and incidentally to ask if could be
Of assistance in "getting out the extra
Mr.. Ferguson, the night editor, was
Sc the moment calling for me. "Here,
Saunders" he said as entered. "you
knew Mrs. Gregory, ! believe. Look
this over and write all you can for twen-
ty minutes. The story must be on the
press in thirty. By the way, is there
any news in that note the messenger
brought you?"
| Thought it strange, even at that time,
that he should know that | was ac-
quainted with Mrs. Gregory, and that |
had received note, but said nothing
until | had looked through the ''copy"
that had come from headquarters. It
was brief, for there had been no time to
write the long sensational account
which would have been sent in if the
murder had occurred earlier. thread as
follows:
The door Of Mrs Rebecca Gregory's Fifth
avenue mansion, near Thirtieth street, was !
hung violently open Just after one o'clock this
morning, and a loud cry of ''Murderi Policei'
rang out on the quiet -ir. Officer Regan was on
post near by and ran at once to the house, |
where he found Mrs. Gregory's maid on the
steps crying hysterically and wringing her
hands helplessly, while two or three other
servants who had been reused by her outcry |
were just coming to the door to learn what the |
matter was.
The maid was the only one who appeared to |
know anything about what had happened, and |
in reply to the officers questions she could only
say, my mistress Ia dead!" She led the
way to the drawing room, where Mrs. Gregory |
lay on the carpet with sinsis.stab wound just
over the heart. She was quite dead, as the Of
6cer discovered at cnoe. He returned to the