The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-08-25
WILL MURDER OUTt
An Old Detective Tells "A story to
DisprOve the Ancient Maxim,
1--o,,. tho xHyashgpgtoo Star

An OLD Detective Tells a story tn
DisprOve the Ancient Maxim.
From the Washington Star.
" You may say what you please about
murder getting out in spite of ALL" re-
marked the old detective to a Star man.
but 1 don't believe that murder can get
out any easier than anything else if the
party who is trying to keep it in doesn't
lose his nerve"
That's it," interrupted the reporter in
tone of triumph. ''he always loses his
nerve"
Does he?" asserted the detective. "Lis-
ten till l tell you a story, and then you
can say what you think When l was
boy Of Is 1 had an old lady cousin who
had an adopted son OF about 20. The old
lady was perfect slave to this chap,
and he made her life a burden to her, but
she seemed to be just as fond of him as
if he were the best son in the world to
her. She was quite well to do, worth $780,
900 or more, l suppose, and all Of 1t was
TO go to her adopted son. The boy knew
this, and after a while it occurred to me
that he was anxious for her to get out of
the way so he could get the money 1
was about the only one who thought that
Of the young fellow though, for he had
fooled everybody else and he was quite
abouts. One day Charlie, that's what I'll
call him, asked me to go hunting with
him, and, as l liked the sport, 1 was
ready enough to accept the invitation, and
early in the morning went over to his
house We had finished breakfast and
everything was ready except his gun,
which he kept upstairs in a closet in his
room. In the same closet was a musket
that was kept loaded for chicken thieves,
and with which my cousin was almost as
handy as he was. AS Charlie was finish
ing his breakfast, he asked my cousin to
go. up and get his gun for him, but to be
careful, as the other gun was there load
ed, and loaded gun wasn't safe upder
any circumstances She laughed and
went along after Charles gun
In about three minutes there was a muf-
fled explosion upstairs and a smothered
scream, and we both jumped and ran
| Charlie in the lead as he knew the way
and did not. l reached the room through
a dark hall a half minute after Charlie did,
and when got the window open Charlie
had the old ladys head In his lap and ne
had thrown the musket clear over to the
other side OF the room. That was all that
presented itself then, except that my colIs-
in had received nearly the entire charge
of the musket in her neck and face and
was, of course, killed instantly. Charlie
! showed great grief, and the entire COM
munity was grievously shocked, but no
breath of suspicion ever rested upon Char
lie, for how could 1T? Had / not been with
him, and had 1 not heard him caution his
adopted mother about the gun with load
in it? In the closet was nothing except
Charles gun, nice and clean and ready
for a days shooting, with a lot of fishing
tackle and other traps lying on the floor
of the closet and hanging on pegs Well,
Charlie came into my Cousins money, as
was to be expected, and / ann free to con-
fess that the way he spSnt 1t and the man
ner of his life after her death changed the
mind of the community as to the kind of
a man this young man was, but still no
one suspected him of having a hand In the
old lady's dreadful taking off. In five
years Charlie had spent more than half
of the money left him. and he was learn
ing how to spend 1t faster every day, I'M
til one day in a horse race he was thrown
and badly hurt
He thought at first he would get over
IT, but in four or five days the doctors
told him that he would never get we'll
again, and that he would go off Suddenly
some day, it might be within the next
week and perhaps not for another year. He
lasted six months, growing paler and
gentler every day, and gaining the SYM
pathy of all who had ever known him
Then he Joined the church, and having
arranged to give the balance of the money
to the poor, he waited calmly for the
end. 1t came about Christmas time ana
a sealed letter was left with the pastor
who had received him into the church. to
be read at his funeral. And ii was read,
though some effort was made to prevent
that part of the services, for in the letter
Charlie told how he had sohened to kin
his adopted mother by having me come
to the house to go hunting; how he had
left the guns in the closet; how he had
set the musket in before the other gun,
and had fixed a string to the trigger, so
that when the old lady took it out IL
would 90 off and kill her Che hoped; how
he had been first to get to her and had
thrown the musket out and had concealed
the string and tack to which 1t was fast
ened before I got to him, and go on
through the entire devilish design and
wound it all up with a general expression
Of pleasure at having pulled the wool
over the eyes Of all his friends and even
his enemies"