The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1897-09-25


and developed them at once. 1t win
pass the TING nicely"
The first plate developed was fail
ure. Why, 1 don't know, for I inn
mediately threw it away and COM
menced another. "Ahl" l thought,
"this one is Something like a photo
graph" Truly, it was most wonder
full photo. of lightning; the wavy lines
of fire-there were four, springing
A:-,n one stem-streaming down from
The dark and angry heavens right on
to- the earth, where the trees Of the New
Forest in the background were sharp
~ si1houetted against the tongues Of
fire. from which little Fside-stfeams
spread out in all directiops. felA and
still feel, proud of that photograph, for
lit caused no LITTLE. excitement ip-thesci-
Fehtific world The. next plate WAS q bit
of a mystery to me, for it was a negative
of the landscape in front of dur kouse,
and wondered when 1t was taken,
until I remembered that Donald had
asked me to take it as a fash-light land
scape view with the last plate on that
memorable evening CT the storm. As
development proceeded and the OBJ
jects became more and more distinct
was surprised to see several h uman fig
ures portrayed in it. With magnify
ing glass gave it closer examination,
the result Of which made, me tremble
with excitement. sags,ry tssss .a;s-s..s .s.-',.s
Good heavens!" Exclaimed; "this
is a photo. of the murder of.Solenski!"
and indeed it was; taken at the iden-
teal moment thai the crime was conn
mitted. There was the whole scene un-
erringly depicted on the plate by that
brilliant fash Of lightning! Iexamined
the plate more infinitely, and the result
was startling in the extreme. there was
the murderer in the very act of plung.
ing the knife into Solenski's breast!
The faces of both men were plainly
distinguishable, and-that of the MUIR
derer was not Gerald Merrilees, but
of a short, thick-set man with heavy
beard; and there, farther in the back
ground, was an inanimate form, with
upturned face, lying upon the earth.
Good heavens!" ] again exclaimed.
$50 Merrilees is innocent, after ALL
How wonderful thatswe should have
taken this photograph, and thus be able
to prove his innocenee!s Tomorrow l
will go to Winchester with 1t, and pro-
cure his release" i's -'sissf see.
Suddenly / reeled as If, shot. "'To-
morrow did say? Why, tomorrow
is the day of his executioni 1t is to-
morrow now, for it is after three
o'clock! In five hours all will be over:
another victim sacrificed to miscarriage
of Justice" What was I to do?c Twen-
ty miles from Winchester; with no
means Of communicating with the au-
thorities. to avert the tragedy which
would soon be enacted-herew was with
evidence that would save an innocent
mans life; and that man a dear friend,
too! 49,. ss Ala ss
What could l do? Igroaned aloud in
my anguish, and great beads of pers-
piration dropped from my brow ~
Just then my wife and son returned,
and were alarmed to see my agitated !
state, but upon explaining matters, my
wife's ready wit suggested that Ishould |
ride to Winchester on my bicycle. The
very thing! jumped with Joy, and
soon after started on my dark and
dreary, but Hateful ride, with the price
less negative, carefully packed to avoid
the risk of breaking. and its terrible |
- ssHss. 90 , tisfs =
l will not go into details Of that ride,
for only those who have ridden over
strange crossroads on pitch-dark |
night, when frierd's life depends upon |
their speed and dispatch, can sympa-
'hlze witH me. mpa alt NJ 7asiti /
At GAS that same morning rode up
% Winchester gaol, and demanded to
o see the governor Immediately; and
upon being admitted to. his presence
showed him the Heaven-sent witness,
which he deemed of such Importance
hat he autographed at once to the home
secretary, giving him. details of my
marvellous photograph, with the result
hat in this eleventh hour Gerald Mer-
'ilees was reprieved--he was savedi
The nature of the evidence that es-
ablished Merrilees' innocence, and all
PARTICULARS concerning it, were kept
trictly secret by the police, who had
ny negative enlarged, and sent copies
II the observation-disclosures the
satures of the murderer were clearly
'ortrayed-to all the police stations in
he kingdom, with the result that with
n ten days the real culprit was arrested
n the foreign quarter of Soho, and upon
'eing charged with the murder con-.
essed his guilt, stating that Solenski
Tas an absconding nihilist, who had
ed to England to avoid carrying out
horrible task imposed on him by the
'articular rules of that dreaded So
iety. ,r 80
By so doing his life became forfeited,
nd to the murderer was allotted the