The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-11-03
BY The PAPER MILLS.
ev GEORGE 3. SINS.
i.i.9Il,, e p sims


ed DC from lbs grasp Ihe farmer shouted
to arouse tile other Inmates OF the house,
and then lhe th.et took deliberate aim
a. H-ili ana snot him dead When assls-
lance came tne gun was lying on the
Hlar, and The murder had escaped across
tIg A.1la.
4 descrl1t.on OF man who had been
seen Hy several people earlier iu the even
. lr- luatl- about and in the village ale
house, and VINO was suspected Of be
ing tAt murderer, was gwen 10 Inc local
police, and Dy them circulated all over
the country. II was on q reward bill stuck
up OUTSIDE ST. Peters police station that
ainer Jones had that evening seen the
descrlp don, ana had instantly declared
that us haQ found that very man IN his
barn that morning, and had that evening
seen the same man making his way along
the river Ouse in the direction of the paper
1t was not until he reached the turning
point Of the river where the mills stCOG
that Constable Adams began 10 appre-
ciatc the dangers and difficulties OF the
TASK he mad undertaken single-handcd.
f4eshming tie tramp was the murderer,
he would fight desperately to avoid cap
ture. There would be nobody about al
that time OF night 10 render assistance,
and the struggle might he an uneven
one. The water was handy, and a mur-
derer at hay would not be very particu-
lar as to the use he made Of il.
And then, as the thought came to him
that perhaps that night he might be COINS
70 his death. Constable ADAMS looked
the idea straight in the face, and asked
himself if it mattered very much to any
body what happened to him.
Three years ago he would have been
anxious, nervous; he would have thought
of the young wife whom he might never
see again. But now he had no home ana
no wife. The woman ne would have laid
down his life for had left him-left him
for another man-and was his wife no
longer.
Poor jenny he said to himself 81
wonder what's become of her / wonder
II she's happier with that scoundrel than
she was with me. She's never written 10
me all this time. never made a sign even
to let me know she's still alive. Wei,
perhaps it's best. Best to forget that
part OF my life for ever and her with
1t had been a crushing blow to jim the
night he came off duty, and found
cruel letter announcing his wife's elope-
ment with man who had been his COM
panion and trusted friend-a handsom-
bury Horkshireman. who was foreman
AT big building yard and lodged with
Jim and his wife In the pretty little coj-
tage near Huntington.
After that Jim couldn't stand the old
place and the old surroundings, and he
FOUND the openly expressed sympathy or
the ,townsfolk, who'd known him nearly
all his life, painful and irritating The
wound was constantly reopened. His shame
was ever present TO him. His chief at
Huntington behaved very kindly when he
saw how things were going, and got jim
shifted to St. Peters, a quiet little town
at the end of the county, where nothing
was known Of Jim's story. and where he
great misfortune of his life
But the past came back to him wildly
tonight, as he thought of what in short
time might be his fate, If he were called
upon single-handed to arrest a desperate
ruffian In a deserted spot by the river,
in the silence and loneliness of the night.
The clock was striking ten as he left
the shelter Of the last hedgeroW, and
came out into the open space near the
paper mills. A hundred yards below the
mills the river was spanned by a little
bridge. Turning toward the bridge he
saw the outline of a human form upon it.
II was a Woman-he could tell that by
the clothes-but it was too dark for him
10 see what sort Of a woman Il was. She
held something in her arms over the
bridge, as though she were going to drop
II into the water.
Jim instantly jumped to the conclusion
that the woman had something she wish
ed the waters TO hide, and his policeman's
instinct told him that IT was one of two
things. Either IL was a bundle of some
thing the woman was afraid to keep be-
cause X was clue to a crime committed,
or the bundle was child and the woman
was about TO fling IL into the river.
But before he could cry out or move,
the figure had disappeared There had
been no splash in the water Nothing had
fallen over the bridge, he was sure of
that. Perhaps the woman had been alarm
ed 10y a sound or had seen him in the dis
lance, or perhaps the moment of madness
had passed before she could commit the
CHASTITY deed.
jim Adams went on qdietly in the direc-
ton of the mills The clouds had grown
darker and the wind had risen and there
was every Indication of a sudden storm.
The moon, which had given sufficient light
from behind the edge of cloud to let him
see the figure of the woman on the bridge
was now completely hidden.
Suddenly there was a fash of lightning,
and then loud clap OF thunder and in
moment the rain began to fall heavily.
CndOing his waterproof, the consta-
BILE put it on his shoulders and went on
rapidly towards the place where the
barge was moored. He did not believe
for a moment that the man he was in
search of, even if he had gone to spend
the night there, would be anything but
an ordinary tramp but he put his hand
mechanically onto the handle of the revolt
yer he carried. 1t was just as well to be
prepared for an emergency.
He stepped on board the barge The
next flash of lightning lit it up from end to
end, and there was no one to be seen on
board. But there was one sheltered part
of it, the part in the stern, which had
been the cabin. but which, since il had
been used for freight had been partiallys
dismantled. 1t still, however, furnished
circumstance which had caused it to be
used for quiet nights lodging on more
than one occasion by tramps.
Constable Adams went cautiously to-
ward the stern Of the beat and peered into
wet night isn't it. mater" he said.
in order to ascertain if there was any one
there. 1t was much too dark to see.
There was no reply, so, advancing eau
tiously, the constable put out his hands
and when he had touched the timbers on
both sides he knew that he was alone
The tramp had evidently gone further on
or sought shelter elsewhere.
i guessed II was a wild goose chase"
he said to himself. well, I'll stop here
till the storm gives over. 1t can't last
long at this rate"
Presently, as the storm slightly abated.
Jim thought that he heard a sound of
some one moving along the bank of the
river close by where he lay. And sudden
" there rang over the noise of the wind
anu the drip Of the rain the Gound of a
/ child's cry.
jim nrst idea was to come out of his
nldlnS place and see for himself who was
out in such lonely place and on such a
night with child but before he could nut
MS idea into execution he heard a wo-
mans voice hushing the child. and a
moment afterwards he saw a
something that in the dim
light looked Ike a phantom step on
4 board the barge. 1t was the woman he
/ had seen on the bridge a short time pre-
/ Nlously. He hesitated TO call cut from
/ MS place of concealment lest he Should
/ terrlfy her. The woman stepped to the
side Of the barge near the water. leant
/ over 1t, and then to Jim's horror he saw
/ what she was going to do. He sprang up
and ran forward, but he was too late
4 Z ne woman had dropped her burden into