Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1896-04-24


able In fiction, but which In reality d.
rect the destinies Of our lives. Suddenly
started back as short paragraph met
my gaze;
1T is expected that the trial will
take place about the nth prox., at the
central criminal court Of Clement Grim
ston. now under arrest for the murder
Of Mr.. Lesson at Rotherhithe about
three years ago."
Oh. God This was what dreaded.
| An innocent man was about to suffer for
my crime. and that man the very one
who had saved me-who had screened
me from justice
without moments pause quilted
my Alpine retreat. l had plenty OF
money still.
Oh, that horrible journey through the
continent Of Europe. The rattling. roar
ing of the trains sounded like the voices
Of demons rushing through my brain.
So slow, 10 slowi Should / ever reach
theref
All Paris at last. the gay city that
| had once 30 dearly loved, but the looks
Of all things were changed to me now.
wan bDoouluB Oh-tO uouthl
The channel. Dover. London; bus
Ting. noisy. smoky Oharing Cross. an
other spot fraught with pleasant mem
cries
Eyes. cabman, the Old Bailey Drive
like wildfire, and you shall have SOW
ereign r.
l rush wildly into the gloomy, sol
emn old court, where the sensation low
ing crowd are gazing at the prisoner,
whom they think the guilty one, And
now that have come to the end of my
fearful journey 1 feel sick, dizzy the
place, the sea Of faces swim round about
me.
What shall dor What shall sayl II
come forward and tell my strange
story, shall surely be put down az "a
mailman, but 1t must be done. Sudden
ly my attention is arrested by the man
in the witness box. He Ia short. thick,
set fellow, with cunning face fancy
l remember dimly to have seen him
somewhere before. He is answering
questions, making u statement. and his
evidence Is creating profound sensa
ton. OF so much am conscious
my name is Ebenezer Startup" no
is saying. II was publican by trade
and kept the Fighting Cocks at Rother
hithe. l have known the prisoner for
some time. and he knowed my 'ist'ry
remember Mr.. Lesson too. He were
young gent In some sorter trouble His
right name was Clayton. l started.
This was my wife's maiden name
Prisoner came one night with another
gent, Mr.. Lestrango. who was mad
drunk. They was in the olubroom. Then
Mr. Ieeson comes. and there was Ugh
words tween i'm and Mr.. Lestrange---
leastways Mr.. Lestrange did most o. the
talk T'other one seemed surprised like.
They locked themselves In, but there
was ole in the door for Buff meetin'a,
and saw all that passed Prisoner knows
did aud paid me to keep quiet. but oof
became irregular, and my conscience
prompted me to turn queen 8 evidence.
| was "A heyewitness o. the crime. Pris-
oner KEEP In the background and 'ardly
opened his mouth, but he showed barker
into Lestrange's and, and Lestrange
didn't use 1t. | lieve . were too drunk
and too wild with passion to notice, and
Grimston fired it over his shoulder and
shot Lesson dead p
What happened after this l cannot
toll was innocent, thank God, limo
cent. and 10 overwhelming was the Joy
that swooned
When l returned to consciousness,
found myself in strange room, being
watched over by-my own wife, who
Razed down anxiously and tenderly into
my face. 1t was as though the last three
years had never been and that we had
simply taken up again the broken
threads of our lives
There were yet more discoveries In
store for me. My suspicious Of my wife
had been utterly groundless. The hap
less Lesson, or Clayton. was her own
brother, who. fleeing from Justice for
forgery, believe, had sought for help
from his sister.
Clement Grimston had been an arch
enemy from the first under the guise of
friendship. There had been some old
family quarrel between him and CLAY
ton and while numbering him he had
made me the victim Of his crime.
"Oh, Adela, said, chow l have
wroDged you'll Will you ever forgive
mef Toward you am guilty"
But knew / was already forgiven.
My wrongs and sufYerings had pleaded
for me, and the past was wiped out. -
Buffalo Times.
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