The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-03-17
THE MORNING NEWS: SUNDAY. MARCH IL, 1895


seemed TO me TO be pregnant with terrible
meaning The Independent, state OF AndOr-
IA is. roughly speaking. about as large as
the Isle OF Wight, with a relatively sparse
population On the French and Spanish
I frontiers are custom-house posts, and
It would be almost impossible for a stran-
ger to cross into either country without
its being known If Fenwick, after awak
ing from his sleep. had had any serious
intention of deserving his wife, he would
/ hardly have left all his belongings be
hind him. When he went forth from the
house he was, according to the mayors
/ testimony, clad in ordinary walking cos
| tune. Gould there ID any reasonable
1 doubt that the note left for him by his
wife had been read by him, and having
fallen to the floor. il had been kicked
inadvertently under the bed. Found
there when the visitors had gone. It had
been kept for more than a year in an
old cigar box by the mayor, and was now
! presented to me as an important factor
| in the problem ! was trying to solve. In
/ such a small place how was it Mrs. Fen
/ wick and her maid had failed to meet
Fenwick? Could there be any answer TO
this other than that they did not want to
meet him. He, in compliance with the
request made by his wife, had gone to the
gloomy and lonely valley. Did he ever
come forth again from it? I was prepared
10 stake my existence on the answer that
]
| mo"
I questioned the mayor very closely as
to what he had done in his endeavors to
trace the missing man, and 1 inferred
from what he told me that whatever had
been done, had been done IN a very per-
functory way, and he did not, or pretend
/ ed not, to regard the matter at all in a
serious light But I impressed upon him
that its seriousness could not be over
rated, and I asked if he was prepared to
make strenuous efforts to arrive al the
| truth. He assured me that he was, for he
said that he saw now the reputation of the
little republic was at stake. 1 may men,
ton here that the Andorrians are stepped
to the lips in superstition, and 1 endeav-
ored to trade upon this in my efforts
to read the riddle and to fall back upon
a simple and well known device.
The Val Urlino was inhabited by
few charcoal burners and woodcutters.
Isolated and ignorant. as they were. they
were little better than barbarians. asked
the mayor to summons these people to as
semble in the town ham of Andorra on
certain day He was then to tell them
that there were grounds for supposing
that the Englishman Fenwick had been
murdered in their valley, and
that they must know some
thing about it. But in order
to put their innocence to the test. they
would be required to pass before the
mayor, and as they did so every man
would have to dip his hand in a basin of
new milk. If they were all innocent the
milk would undergo no change. But if
a man, guilty of having shed the Eng
lishman's blood. dipped his hand in the
milk it would turn red.
To this scheme the mayor was at first
strongly opposed. But after a time he
yielded to my arguments and having taken
counsel with the chief priest, 1t was de-
cided that the ceremony should be carried
out with due solemnity. All unawares of
what was required Of them the inhabitants
of the valley duly appeared in answer to
the mayors summons. a semi
religious and military character
was given to the affair by
the presence of several priests and half
the local force of gendarmes. The in
habitants, including women and children,
numbered thirty, eleven of them being
men-low-brOwed swarthy, beady-eyed
looking fellows, dressed in a semi-bar-
barous but picturesque costumes. At
tired in his robes of office, and seated on
his dais, the mayor made known to them
what was required. At first they expressed
strong indignation, and it seemed as if
they were disposed to resent the imputa-
ton that the ordeal implied. But the
show of force around awed them into
subsection. Besides" exclaimed the may
or, IF you are innocent what need you
fear. The ordeal is certain. Innocence
cannot effect the milk, and when you
have submitted to the test this mon
sieur (meaning mel will depart and tell
his countrymen that we are honest here,
and that the lives of strangers are sacred
amongst us"
The argument told. The priest offered
up prayer and blest the milk in the pres
ence of the assembly. Then the men be-
gan to file past slowly, and as each man
passed the bowl. which was set on a pedes-
tai in front of the dais, he dipped his hand
into the milk. All did this but two-an
. old man and his son. Wherefore do you
hold back, Guicino?" demanded the may
or, sternly, addressing the old man, whose
parchment like face wore a dark, fierce
scowl. Then Guicino glanced nerVously
, round, and stepping forward pace or two
, he began to denounce the proceedings in
, violent language, averring that the whole
, thing was an insult to him and his neigh
bors and with an oath he vowed that Meth
er he nor his son would submit to it. AT
a sign from the mayor these two men were
| seized, amidst the shrieks and screams OF
the women, a general scene of confusion
, and uproar. The two men were at once
marched off to gaol, and the hall was
cleared.
The prisoners were told that if they sub
: mitted to the test and the milk did not
turn red they would at once be set free
: But neither father nor son would con-
. sent and they both called down the ven
, gance of heaven on those who dared tc
accuse them of shedding the foreigner
: blood. This, of course, did not deter the
, authorities from doing their duty, and nc
T time was lost in searching Guicino's house
in the Val d'Urdino. The search resulted
in finding a pair of gold-rimmed eye
: glasses, three or four gold rings, some
! ! gold shirt studs, and valuable gold
, chronometer watch, on the inner case OF
, which was an inscription setting forth
: that the watch had been Presented &c
Martin Fenwick, Esq, by a number OF
friends and well-wishers on the occasion
of his marriage with Miss Gwendolint
: WILSON, This was a damaging piece OF
: evidence against the Guicinos, but they
both preserved a sullen silence at first
though afterwards they swOre that they
found the watch and other things in the
valley.
, Legal procedure in such cases in Andora
: is very different to what it is with us
! A prisoner had to submit to all sorts OF
judicial examination, and if he is guilty
he must be very clever indeed if he fails
! to incriminate himself. Moreover, any
one who may in the faintest possible de
gree being suspected of having any