Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1895-07-25
THE BLIND WITNESS.

''Yes; have been in many remark
able criminal trials. Probably the
most remarkable was the Gorton muir
der case. The murder itself was, so far
as motive and the mode in which it was
perpetrated are concerned, of a charac-
ter common enough, unhappily, in our
criminal courts-a young girl shot by
rejected lover, mad with jealousy.
But what gave to this particular case
its exceptional character was the agen-
cy by which the murderer was brought
to justice in very curious and most
unexpected manner"
We were in the chambers of my
friend Mr.. Grimshaw, Q. C.-the emil
nent criminal lawyer-in the Temple,
and over a cigar, after luncheon, my
host was giving me some "reminiscences
OF his long and brilliant career at the
bar,
''Gorton is small village, about
twenty miles from Barchester, the
we1l-known manufacturing town in
the Midlands," continued Mr.. Grim
shaw. Zone September evening, some
fifteen years ago, the normal peace and
.quietude of the place was disturbed by
the news that the dead body of young
lady had been found in Burton grove,
a short distance outside the village,
under circumS tances which left no
doubt that she had been murdered.
The police of the village had received
information of the crime from blind
man-one of those wandering must
clans who perambulate the country
from village to village, led by a dog.
His story was that he had walked
from St OlaveS-a village about seven
miles from Gorton u that afternoon;
and as the evening was sultry he de-
-cided to save the sixpence he would be
charged for a nights lodging in Gorton
by sleeping in Burton grove. The
grove is thick plantation of trees and
shrubs, midway between the mile of
road which connects the railway sta
ton and the village, and as it lay at an
angle of the road, footpath through
it afforded a short cut from one point
to the other.
THE blind man further stated that,
as he lay under the shelter of bush, a
few yards from the footpath, with his
dog close beside him, tired after his
tramp, and composing himself to sleep.
he heard footsteps coming along the
pathway, apparently going toward the
village, and the voices of man and
woman, as if they were having an
angry alteration. A few minutes
after the parties passed where he lay
concealed from view, he heard shot,
then a woman's shrill, agonizing
scream, followed by another shot He
scrambled to his feet, terror-stricken,
his dog barking loudly, and shouted:
What is that? No answer was
given to his cutlery, but he heard the
trampling of the underground, if
some one were rushing wildly from the
spot The blind man Immediately pro-
ceeded to Gorton, and gave information
of what he had heard to the police,
who, when they arrived at the grove,
found the body of a young lady named
Emily Dicey, with two bullet wounds
IN her head and close at hand D dis
charged revolver.
''Miss Dicey was the only child of a
shopkeeper of considerable business at
Barchester. 1t appeared that very
ardent attachment existed between
her and a young man named Griffiths
Turner, clerk in her fathers employ
ment;sthat her parents were opposed
to a marriage that; they had done
everything to try to break off the
that finally they dispensed with the
daughter to her aunt at Gorton.
ION the body of the unfortunate
young lady was found brief note
from Turner, written in Barchester
which stated that on the evening OF
the 9th of September (the evening OF
the murder he wouls: run down &c
Gorton to see her. Perhaps be
added, mysteriously, 1T will be the last
time we shall see each other
He paid his promised visit to Cor
ton that evening; and, indeed, had
been seen by two or three of the vii
layers with Miss Dacey in the grove
A warrant was issued for Turner's ar
rest; but when the police went to hi:
lodgings at Rarchester next morning
to take him into custody, it was found
that he had left for Liverpool en- route
for Canada. This. of course, increased
the suspicion A telegram to the au