Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1903-07-21

the ring which proclaims you thief and
murderer would be discoveredY
Size paused, obviously with the inten-
ton of giving me time to reflect But
all power of logical thought had passed
from me. All could say was:
Il must know more. Have you with
you the copy of the private letter you
say you made?"
Il have it with me. l brought it for
you to read" and she handed me the
following document:
From Samuel Fleetwood, dead, to Rich-
ard Pardon, ESQ, diving.
When this reaches your hands snail
be dead, lying in dishonored grave By
man / shall be condemned, and in mans
eyes my name will be infamous; but the
Supreme, | hope and believe, will for
! give the sin it is my intention to commit
This contemplated sin will take the form
of confession, in which l shall declare
myself to be guilty Of the awful crime
you committed When you read these
lines, you alone, of all men living, will
know that am innocent.
1T was an hour past midnight when |
was awakened from my sleep by Mr..
Wilmots voice. l went into his room
and found him in deep slumber talking
to himself. He was talking of you and
my honored and beloved mistress and
daughter; and l heard enough to suspect
that, unless you bent yourself to Mr..
Wilmot's commands, it was his purpose
to ruin and beggar you. Sad at heart, l
returned to my room, and presently fell
ell rotr, L IL
two hours, when 1 started up in bed with
an impression that some person besides
himself was in Mr. Wilmot's apartments.
rose The door between his room and
mine was softly opened and you came
forth.
Il shrank out of sight, and could not
help seeing that your face was white
and convulsed, and that your limbs were
trembling violently. Stepping very quiet
ly, fearful of attracting notice, you left
my room. Waiting a little while to give
you time to get clear away, l once more
entered Mr.. Wilmot's apartment, and
discovered, to my horror, that he had
been murdered-by you'll
Overwhelmed, l devoted a few min
utes to thought. To all outward evil
dence | was the only witness of your
awful crime; my evidence, and only mine,
could convict you. What a frightful re-
payment for all the angelic kindness I
and my dead wife had received from my
beloved mistressl To condemn the man
she loved to the scaffold, and make all
her future life and that of the daughter
she loved so deeply a life of agonizing
shame and sorrow! | saw them pointed
at, stunned, or thrust aside in rags, beg
ging for crust. Could l not avert this
terrible fate? l could.
From symptoms which were unmis-
taxable | knew that l had myself but
a short time to live. l was, happily,
without relative in the world to whom
my death would bring pang of sorrow.
| could give up my life for yours.
could take your crime upon myself.
My resolution was made. All that
desired to avoid was shameful end up
on the scaffold. Flight would fasten
suspicion upon me. l might be able to
conceal myself till | was convinced the
end was near Then would | give my
self into the hands of justice. Even if l
were taken. | should in all probability
die in prison. After all. the sacrifice
would not be SO great; few days of suf-
ferng-that was all; and when we have
done with mortal life it is by God-not
by man-that we are judged. Doubtless
you would keep your fearful secret, and
my beloved mistress would never know
that the hands of the husband who held
her happiness and honor in his keeping
were stained with blood
Il fed, but l feel l am sinking fast.
1t is time for me to give myself up and
make my false confession. From news
papers which I managed to obtain l
learned all the surroundings of the crime.
l read of the money being missing from
the dispatch box, and of the stolen ring.
1t is by means of this information that
l shall be able to make the confession so
circumstantial that it cannot be doubted.
You are free; your secret is safely
hidden in my grave. What l have done
is for my beloved mistress and her child.
To you l say, repent, Endeavor by good
deeds to atone for the crime which must
weigh heavily upon your soul. Pray, and
humble yourself before the Divine
Throne; and not only for this deed of
blood, but for your friendship with Mile.
Rosalie, may heaven pardon you! De-
stroy the last visible traces of your crime,
and burn this paper Farewell"
Go be continued.l