The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1895-05-23


engagement. My blood boiled when
poor Kate Gavin answered, and her
voice told me how frightened and Inn
pressed she was OF course It sounds
strange to you, gentlemen, that
sensible young lady could be alarmed
by such threat, but you must remem-
Der that the experiment Of the morn
ing had created tremendous impress
sion, and that there was scarcely q per-
son on board but believed that Prof.
Lyas had the power to kill a man by
willing 1t. That Miss Gavin believed
It thoroughly was proved by her tone,
and by the fact that she allowed the
fellow tospeak to her ut all. She tried
TO argue with him.
"'You dare not,' she said 80 flercely
that could hear plainly; you dare
not commit murder
"'Pardon me- replied the villain in
his clear, distinct voice, I dare do any
thing that is not punishable. And my
way of killing renders it impossible
for the death to be brought home to
me-
''I found 1t hard to keep still in my
hiding place under the deep shadow Of
the deckhouse, while my brothers
fancee seemed to argue and plead in
turn with him. Her voice was not
clear enough for me to hear many Of
her sentences, but was pleased to
gather from his replies that she abso-
lutely refused the rupture he proposed
with her husband-elect- At last he
turned away.
"'All right, as you will, Miss Gavin
he said impressively, remember that
his death will be upon your own head
''She did not reply, but from the way
her hands clasped and unclasped over
the taffraii could tell how deeply the
threat affected her. l was in doubt
whether to go to her, and set her mind
at rest as far as I could, or to stop
Lyas, and carry him off to be inter-
viewed by her lover.
"As It was, was saved the trouble
Of deciding by being obliged to take q
third course. Although had no idea
Of the fact, Mrs Maple, who had recov-
cred sufficiently to come on deck, had
been standing almost close to my side
in the deep shadow. She attracted my
attention now by fainting again, as she
had done during the experiment In the
morning. For the next ten minutes all
my thoughts were taken up by attend
ing to her. The stewardess had luck-
lily passed at the moment found the
lady swooning, and we got her below
without anybody on deck being the
wiser. left her in the stewardess'
charge as soon as consciousness re-
turned, and hurried off to the cabin,
where had left Robin. He was still
there, wondering what had happened,
and we remained for little while con-
sidering what course we ought to pur-
sue, whether to put the matter IN the
hands Of the captain, or to content our
selves by warning the professor what
would happen If he continued to annoy
Miss Gavin. When we had decided on
the former course, we opened the cabin
door to carry 1t into execution at once.
But at the very doorway we met Katie
herself coming to us, her eyes start
ing with terror, her beautiful face
blanched.
81 have killed himl I have killed
him, to save your lifer she cried, hys-
| terically, as she threw herself into
Robins arms, and without waiting to
hear more hurried on deck, oppressed
| by terrible fear. could understand
so plainly how the poor girl could have
been driven into what was scarcely q
crime by the panic for which her VIC
tim himself was responsible. If she
had indeed killed Prof. Lyas it was
clearly case Of justifable homicide,
but what jury could understand the
case sufficiently to view 1t as such? ]
was sick with fear, and when reached
the deck, only to find that the professor
had really been killed, ;foresaw moth
ing but tragedy ard horror in store for
the couple who hId seemed the hap.
piest in the world. The rest Of the
case suppose you will remember read
ing in the papers ut the time, ten years
ago"
We could none of us claim a memory
80 long for newspaper reports, and
Maj. bennett asked eagerly whethe,
Miss Gavin was acquitted.
''She was never tried" said Mac
pherson, with his quiet smile. "The
murderess got of with Imprisonment
for life."
"The murderess?" we all exclaimed
in one wondering breath, and the doc
tor nodded.
"Yes, Mrs. Maple, as she called her
SELF She was, as you will have guessed
an accomplice of Prof. Lyas, and trav
eled separately for the benefit of thei,
schemes. They were well-known swim
dlers, and the will-killing was prob
ably part of their stock in trade; Il
must have proved rather useful ir
wringing money from nervous people
afraid of the man exerting his power
against them. His mistake was to ust
it to the detriment of his partner II
crime. 1t was his pursuit of Mis-.
Gavin, or Mrs. Robin Macpherson, al
she is now, which raised the Jealousy
of an Unbalanced mind, and made the
woman go to his cabin and stab hin
Immediately she recovered from tn,
swoon into which she had been thrown
by hearing the conversation to which
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