Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1896-03-26


running about, some toward my uncle's
Office and others toward the windows
that commanded o view of the court
into which it w8s at once supposed
that the murderer had lcaped.
heard the jnnitor call to some one
to summon a policeman from the street,
md also to ring an ambulance call.
Meanwhile the clerks from the Union
offices had poured out, and had gath
cred about the door of the room where
the body lay. stood on the threshold
and warned everybody to keep outside,
saying that nothing in the room must
be disturbed. Within few minutes
policeman arrived and took my place
at the door, repeating the orders had
given, and backing them by the display
of his authority.
There was only one person in the
crowd that made any trouble. lie was
q tall, dnrk-visaged fellow, whose APP
Italy ms his native land. ! could not
fully understand what he was saying,
hut ii seemed to contain an intimation
that the fate which had overtaken my
uncle was just. | thought the man
crank with anarchistic tendencies and
paid no further attention to him.
"There'll be n central Office man
down here pretty quick" said the po-
liceman. "I've told the jnntor to tele-
phone to headquarters. We must keep
the crowd out till then"
We succeeded without difficulty. No
body was admitted but the ambulance
surgeon, who had been summoned, and
Vice President Rodney, of the Union
lines, who was too important person
to he excluded.
Stalbridge, meanwhile. had remained
standing like statue beside my unce's
dead body, gazing down at it. He did
not move when the ambulance surgeon
ltnelt to make his examination. 1t was
| quickly done, and he disturbed rs little
as possible the position of the corpse.
"There are two wounds here" he
said, in response to my questions. "One
is upon the right side of the head. 1t
was made by glancing blow from some
teavy instrument having an edge, bur
not sharp like knife. The blow may
have stunned him, but H. would not
have killed him. The second wound
was a stab with small, round and
sharp pointed instrument, like stilet
to. 1t entered the right breast be-
| tween the seventh and eighth ribs, and
seems to have penetrated the heart. 1t
must have caused almost instant
death"
yet he was alive when we entered
cried in horror, glancing at Stalbridge.
| 1--WE had the murderer under our very
hands and we let him escape"
Stalhridge answered with groan
l looked at him. but he did not meet
my eyes; he was still staring at the
corpse. The thought came to me that
il this man had not stopped me in the
hall, | should have been with my uncle
and could have saved him. Unrenson-
able as it was, reproached him for
what he had done.
out looking Mt Ine. "Who could have
dreamed of this?"
at needed no prophet I rctorted
bitterly. "For years, under your di-
rection, willard Davis has made enemies
bitter enemies-for there is no strife
more desperate than this battle for
money. How many men have you
ruined with your schemes? Run them
over in your mind, and tell me. If you
can, which one of your victims struck
this blow. Then blame yourself for
| It'll"
This is hardly fair" whispered Rod
ney, laying his harN upon my shoulder
/ turned toward him, and cav tina,
there were tears in his eyes. lie was
hard-fisted man of business, seasoned
by thirty years of struggling in New
York. His emotion affected me. My
unreasonable anger abated; it gave way
to grief. / had felt sincere affection
Cor my uncle though his course of late
years had excited my strenuous opposi