The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-06-26


the main stream of the Thames just be-
low Cliveden Woods, confess was more
than half inclined, on the first blush of it,,
to treat the whole affair as cock-and-
bull story.
had been high constable of the county
for fifteen years, and as my own place
at Bray slopes down with its lawn TO the
rivers edge. / know perfectly well how
crowded this part of the Thames is with
punts and rowing boats during the whole
summer season. Moreover. the particular
spot chosen for the extraordinary attempt
seemed so very unlikely. Cliyeden reach
is the most frequented stretch of water on
the whole river; hundreds of holiday MAX
ers pour down from London every day 10
Taplow or Maidenhead; so that the chan
mel is alive with scullers and steam
launches for some five miles up stream
till a late hour in the evening. l pooh
poohed the policeman who first told me the
tale
Nonsense" / said; ''the gentleman must
have been dining at some riverside hotel,
perhaps with casual or undesirable ac-
quaintances, and having had his pocket
picked by them. or been diddled out of his
money, he has invented this extremely i'm
probable story 70 allay his wifes we'll
grounded suspicious"
For, 1 am sorry to say one cannot be
high constable of a riverside county for
fifteen years and yet retain a childlike
trust in the perfect goodness of human
nature.
But when the Right Honorable Edward
Symington himself, the respected member
for the Plympton Boroughs, appeared be-
fore me ana told his tale, ! confess l was
staggered.
MIR. Symington was moi the sort of man,
/ took 1t, TO be the victim of a deiusion;
nor did he look particularly gullibie. Tan
thiciS-set, stoutly-built, a typical, hard
headed English squire a good rider to
hounds, a conservative country member,
he had the soidiIy and credibility which
we always attribute to the honest,
straightforward unimaginative John Bull
He told his story with perfect franknes
He had been out On the river with a party
of friends-intimate friends, and had din
ed-he did not attempt to deny the fact of
dning-at that well-conducted house, the
Ferry inn,a Cookham. After dinner, about
at night, on a fine early summer even
ing, he started in a Canadian canoe for
Maidenhead. He was accustomed 70 man
age a boat. and was a good sculler and
paddler. Where the stream divides he took
the inner channel, under the Cliveden
Woods, ana there, just behind the island
he was surprised, as he passed, to see an
other canoe glide rapidly out in the gloom
ana man accost him threateningly.
Fork out whatever you have in your
purse! Quick; hand it over, this minute,
l shoot your
What sort of MANI" 1 asked, cycling
my informant hard.
Syminston answered like a truthful per-
son:
Il could hardly make out, as it was
growing dusk; but he seemed to me tan,
with much black hair about his face
beard, mousfache and whiskers."
"Armed?"
Certainly; armed with a revolver He
pointed il full at and eried,a No hes.
taton, or l fire. He was bland, but per-
emptory'
He dared not have fired" l said He
would have aroused the neighborhood."
I'm not so sure of that; it is lonely
behind the islands and the hour was late.
I passed only one other boat AN the way
from Cookham. The river is crowded /
admit, Colonel, TIL $50; but as soon
as it grows dark not a soul is left on it"
And YOU gave him your purse?"
We'll. it was cowardly of me- | own:
but what you'd you have? He was COW
ering me with his revolver; | was quite
unarmed. And, remember too, in a Ca
madam canoe; which is not the sort of
place one would choose for a tussle-the
least thing upsets one. Besides, | don't
swim; it's the sole manly accomplishment
l never acquired, having been brought IN
inland, far away from any river. When
l went up to oxford l was either too Old
or too ashamed TO learn, and have never
learned; so the rogue had me at his
mercy"
How much money did your purse con-
tain"
ooh. nothing to speak of - about
Fl. But that's not what | mind It's
the principle of the thing-that a pirate
shoule he permitted to go about unchecked
on the Upper Thames with Your money
or your hfeH in this nineteenth century
/ paused and reflected.
Things of the sort VIII crop up"
said, in spite Of all the pains one NAV
take to prevent them. But nothing like
this shall crop up again, 1 promise YOU.
1 will have the river properly patrolled
and guarded
You must he said, warmly. such an
outrage is disgrace to our boosted civih-
zdtion. You must catch the rogue. TIN
he IS imprisoned, Col. Venabies- Hughes
you have not fulfilled your duty to the
Community"
AS soon as he had gone / asked NV chief
detective, who had been present during
our interview, what he thought of Nj
symington's story He stroked his smooth
chin warily-a chief detectives chin is al
ways SiAtOtL as he mas 10 get himself i'm
IN SO many disgulses-and answered wifn
great elaboration:
His account has ring of truth in If
sir. | should say, myself he was nrob-
ably robbed. OF course, gentleman NAV
give away money, aud then desire 10 or-
count for il; but MI. Syminston is MOI a
very young gentleman, nor a very fool
ish one; and it's the young ones and tbe
foolish ones that tramp up stories of snch
adventures My impression is. we mipb.
watch the reach carefully from the bor,t
for a week or two"
Atkins" ! said. we shall watch II
nat not from the bank. You're the mar
20 do 1t. You know the river wen ana
YOU can manage a boat We must frht
the fellow with has own weapons-if theirs
is any fellow, which is far from certain
He uses Canadian canoe. He's right
OF course no boat is so noiseless. wis
none other can you see so well ahead ex
actlY where you are going and guide
yourself so perfectly. You must have
canadian canoe; pervade Cliveden reach
ana see whether any such outrage IL at
tempted again"
1t viii ne attempted again, sir" AT
kins said. decisvely. "You may count
upon that If the story's true, the fe.-