The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-09-13


travels. Once, on a march, one of our
party had been shot at with an arrow
by one of the savage warriors who logged
our path through the forest. The wound
or rather scratch, was so slight that its
victim scarcely noted that he had been
struck; but, a very little later the wound
ed man had fallen to the ground with a
wild cry, and, after a few convulsive
struggles, became a corpse. We learned
afterwards that these African savages
know a secret whereby they can tip their
weapons with a poison so deadly that even
the slightest scratch of an instrument
thus treated will cause nearly immediate
death.
Had Clara Villiers' deaf occurred in At
RIGA 1 should unhesitatingly have said
that she was thus poisoned. Was thus
poisoned!-A terrible thought came into
my mind as looked at the once beautiful
but now disfigured countenance, and then
at the diamond ring still cleaning upon
the limp, nerveless hand. Very cautiously
did remove the jewel with my gloved
hands; noting as l did so that the sharp
edge OF one of the tigers claws had made
a very perceptible If small, wound upon
the taper finger. was glad that, at this
moment, the regular medical attendant of
| the family was announced, and that 1
could leave the dead girl in his hands, for
1 wished to be alone to make certain in
vestigations. At my request L was shown
into the library, and here, after locking
the door, l proceeded 40 examine most
carefully the ring. AS l had expected the
| setting was hollow The four. small points
| of the tigers claws We're so turned in
wards that it was impossible for any one
| putting on the ring to avoid making a
| slight scratch upon the finger and then
oh, fendish ingenuity!-the claws, as
ascertained by the insertion of a pin, each
| contained minute scrap of sponge soak
| ed in some liquid, doubtless a poison of
| equal Virulence to that used by the Afri-
can savages. The whole diabolical scheme
was plain enough now. The ring itself.
OF sixteenth century workmanship, was a
survival of the age of the Borgias and
Medicis-a relic of the time when rivals
| were removed by means of a box of snuff
! or pair of dainty gloves, as readily as
| by a poisoned draught. l understood now
| Delmont's detestable allusion to the use
| to which centuries ago, that very ring
/ might have been put by some earlier
criminal The poor, sweet. innocent girl
to be thus brutally murdered
| BUT the fellow shall swing for it, If
| there's law in England" 1 said hercely
to myself, with a flash of regret that 1
could not personally settle the matter,
and mete out that swift retribution which
would have been dealt to the ruffian in a
| less civilized cline.
| 'Selby, 1 want to speak to YOU" and 7
unlocked the door to admit poor Villiers
changed being from the rudy, good-hu-
| mored squire of a few hours before. He
| looked but a wreck of his former self: the
| agony of the past hour or so had aged
MIN more than the passage Of many years.
Or. Carton had taken up an extraordi-
nary idea about the cause of nv poor
darling's DEATH" said villiers. speaking
in a kind of hoarse whisper; "he cannot be
sure of the facts until he has examined
further, but he seems to think that she was
! poisoned"
"She was murdered said shortly; and
told him of the discovery 1 had made re-
| garding the contents of the ring.
These bits of sponge must be analyzed
OF course, but have no doubt that they
contained deadly poison, which took eff
feet in the slight cut made, and intended
| to be made, by the claws of the setting
AS the victim moved her hand the virus
was pressed into the wound. and death
soon resulted. l have seen poison take a
| similar effect before.
Villiers listened as one who does not full
ly comprehend what is said to him. and
mechanically shufied some papers on the
| table. AS he did so, a note addressed to
| himself fell to the ground; he picked ii up
and opened it, and then handed 1t silently
| to me.
1T is in Delmont's writing" he remark
ed. The letter was unsigned, and ran
| thus:
81 shall place this note where 1t is sure
to meet your eye in an hour or two. by
which time you will have learned that I
am not a man to submit tamely to be
robbed of the only woman whom l ever
loved, and that l have taken measures
TO ensure that If Clara is never to be
mine, at least no other man shall call her
wife. l viii save you the trouble of in
quiries and speculations by frankly stat
ing that in the setting of that antio7e
ring-which some wise Italian of three
centuries ago framed (and possibly used)
for a purpose like mine-I have placed a
poison which l have obtained, no matter
where or how, but which will effectuallv
balk Maj. Martindales matrimonial pro-
jects. You may ask why 1 thus sacrifice
the woman l love instead Of the ra1n
whom / hate; the reply Is very simnle
/ leave him legacy of grief and despair;
I do but cut short her existence before
she has known aught of life but fits pleas
antness. IT, as you and she believe a
heaven exists beyond the grave a crea-
ture so pure and sweet. will be sure of a
welcome there-if as hold, we return to
nothingness, / have but saved Clara some
years OF possible care and trouble in this
workaday world. BY the time this reaches
your hands l myself shall have solved the
great enigma; and l depart the more
cheerfully remembering what legacy of
bitter memories must leave to my rival
But for him Clara might still be al4ye:this
recollection will be pleasant one for him
to dwell upon in the years 10 come"
Another knock at the door. replied to
IT, for Villiers remained as II half-stupe-
fed. The old family butler held a whis-
pered colloquy with me In the passage.
and then / returned to my poor friend.
THE villain has escaped human tus-
tice" l said solemny; his dead body has
been found IN a pond by the roadside"
1t appeared that belmont Immediately
after presenting Clara with the fatal ring.
had quilted the hall, telling the servants
that as il was fine night he should walk
a little way towards his home, and that
his groom could drive after him along the
road and pick him up. The man accord
ingly started after his master and drove
slowly along, looking out for him. Pass
ing by a deep pond which skirted one side
OF the road, and which was divided from
II only by a broken railing, the man oh
served dark object floating thereon, and
on descending to examine II was Mortified
TO find 1t was his masters corpse. Being
nearer TO the Hall than to his own home
the groom had driven back with his
CHASTITY burden, but life had been extinct