The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1897-01-22


nation handed by him to his employer
on the afternoon preceding the murder,
and by third singular coincidence the
wallet inclosing those bills in Chester
Sevall's pocket has been identified as
Richard Willmarth's wallet"
"Then, you deem him.
''The murderer of Richard Will
marth.
John Latham felt as if this fearful
thing must be unreal, a nightmare or
madness Instinctively he strove to
combat ii, to wake himself from it by
reason.
''But no, mol 1t is impossiblep' he
argued in q low intense voice. "He
could never have done it. Hell Why, he
was visitor at Willmarth's house;
had taken him by the hand; was en-
gagged in marriage to his daughter. -
The big gray eyes of the inspector
flashed with sudden light. His awful
triumph as man hunter was complete.
That chance utterance had forged the
last link in the chain to hold the I'M
happy wretch, knotted the moose await
ing his neck. Seldom indeed could the
probable generalization of crime be so
clearly established as in Chester Sew
all's case, under this new light, for of
course in such social intimacy he had
found it easy to know when it would
pay to murder his prospective father-in-
law, and had upon that knowledge de-
hberately planned the decd.
How John Latham get away from the
web Of that terrible spider without him
self being in some incomprehensible
way involved in its meshes and how he
reached his home after the awful revela-
tion that had been made to him, he new
nr clearly knew. No doubt he and the
Inspector Smiled at J;lcn other, bowed,
perhaps shook hands and said "good
day." and he had gone out in quite or
binary, everyday fashion, as men Oft
times do when their mentality is tenn
porarily completely numbed. But the
last thing he remembered in the inter-
view was that he asked if he might not
be allowed to sec the unhappy young
man already practically doomed, to
which the inspector gravely replied:
Tomorrow perhaps, but 1 must re-
fuse at present. He will have to remain
today alone with his thoughts. Tonight
l shall probably get full confession
from him."
The confession was made but hardly
in the way the inspector anticipated.
About o'clock that evening he visited
the prisoner in his cell. The young
man was by that time in nervous and
highly agitated condition. AS yet he
had not been permitted to know why
the petty offense for which he was ar
rested had not already been passed upon
in a police court, why he had been trans
ferred from the stitd.on house in which
he was first incarcerated to the cell at
police headquarters, why he could not
open communication with anybody or
see any one but his jailers, who seemed
to be mutes when he questioned them.
Whatever tortures he suffered from the
stabs Of his guilty conscience he man.
aged to conceal well, maintaining a
courageous and even placid exterior, and
doubtless he did gain some confidence in
his inexperiepce from the length Of time
which had passed without any indica-
ton appearing to him that he was sus-
pected of any graver crime than that for
which he had been arrested.
When the inspector visited him, he
protested energetically against his treat
ment, likening himself to the martyrs
of the inquisition, the victims Of the
council of ten and the human prey of
the car. His nervous excitation urged
him to volubility, but the calm, stern
detective listened to him patiently, i'm
perturbably, without interruption. FL
nally he demanded:
eff / had committed q technical Of
Tense, why did they not at once fine me
and be done with it?''
Sudden as lightning the gray eyes
hurled into his bolt of sight that SEEM
ed to dart down into his heart and cleave
way for the appalling question.
"Would you have paid it out of the
price of Richard Willmarth's blood?"
Chester Sewall staggered backward,
and supporting himself by an outspread
hand against the whitewashed wall be-
hind him stood silent, painting with
the terror stricken look of hunted
creature in his wide dilated eyes, TAX
en- thus unawares, with his nerves al
ready all unsAung, he had 10 time to
think of assimilation, if even the
strength for il was still in him, and his
guilt was blazoned upon his counte-
nance.
"You had better make clean breast
of it, my lad. The proof against you is
perfect, and escape impossible. Confess,