Sullivan republican. [volume] (Laporte, Pa.) 1883-1896, 1895-05-03

"hoA0 L Woo 1tNihS5, "hu LUZ i've Ut Six
weeks had scarcely seen anyone to
speak to.
So engrossed was I with my task
that had no time to read even the
newspapers, and was quite ignorant of
what was going on in the world. The
only relaxation allowed myself was
good brisk walk into the country
every afternoon. With this exception
I had hardly stirred from my house,
except to run up to London once or
twice for the purpose of visiting the
docks and making certain technical
Investigations concerning them. This
l did, as good portion of the novel
l was working at was about the life of
dock surroundings.
1t was little after o'clock one
evening in April that I finished the
second volume of my work. 1 put on
my hat and coat and started off for an
evening stroll. I had no sooner
stepped into the street than boy ac-
costed me with bundle of papers
under his arm with the request
"Buy an evening paper, sir?"
bought one, put it in my pocket and
resumed my walk.
1t was fine night and went some
little distance, reaching home little
after half-past 9.
had laid down the newspaper On
the table when entering the room, in
tending to read it during supper, but
my appetite had got the better of my
craving for intelligence, SO it was not
until I had lit a pipe and subsidized
into cosy armchair by the fire that
unfolded the sheet of printed matter.
opened my paper .ieisurely-nay,
lazily. I looked at the '1eader. "
Something about new "Greek loan. u
That didn't interest me. I skipped
through the little item of news and
hurried jottings and summaries pecu-
liar to our evening papers. Presently
my eye was caught with the following
paragraph heading: Impending Exc
cution."
There is morbid fascination for
most people in an execution, and, so,
yielding to this feeling, l proceeded
10 READ the paragraph.
''The murderer of the unfortunate
James Renfrew will be hanged to-
morrow morning ut 8 o'clock. The
wretched man, whose name Charles
Fenthurst = is now in everybody's
mouth, still insists in his plea of in
nocence."
Here I became deeply interested.
The name of Fenthurst was most fa-
miliar to me. I had formed deep
friendship with man of that name.
He was good fifteen years my senior
and had died two years previously.
knew he had a son named Charles, q
young fellow, who had emigrated to
South Africa early in life and who was
generally supposed to be working al
the diamond mines. Gould this be
the same man? I read on.
''It will be remembered that at the
trial the strongest circumstantial evi.
dence was brought to bear upon Fent.
hurst. The murder took place in @
house on the outskirts of the small
town of Clinfold. 1t was proved that
Fenthurt was in the habit of frequent.
ing Renfrew's premises, and that ap.
parently he was expected there on the
evening in question. He was seen neal
the place soon after the crime was
committed, and several other proofs
of strongly condemnatory character
were also laid against him. He has
persisted from the first. however, in
maintaining that he was absent from
Clinfold at the very time the murder
took place. This was about O'Clock
in the evening. At that hour, he says,
he was returning from London, where
he had been spending part of the day
Only one witness, he says, could prove
this. and that is an individual who
travelled with him us far as P an6
entered into conversation with him
Advertisements have been inserted il
all the papers by Fenthurst's legal adj
visers for the purpose of discovering
the individual in question, but as NJ
answer nas been forthcoming'it is gen
orally believed that the whole story il
myth. At any rate, there seems bu
small chance of the alibi being proved
at the lest moment. The murder wa
committed February 6. Since his con
Ganination the murderer has been ecu
fined in Silkminstcr jail, where his ex
ecuiion will take placs."
Astonishlnent and dismaY confront