Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-02-11

the Hon Ronald Adair under most unu-
sual and inexplcable circumstances. The
uublic has already learned those particu-
lars Of the crime which came out in the
police investigation, but good deal was
suppressed upon that occasion, since the
case for the prosecution was so overWhein'-
ingIy strong that it was not necessary 10
bring forward all the facts. Only now al
the end OF nearly ten years. am above"
to supply those missing links which make
M tie whole of that remarkable cham
Tie crime was Of interest in itself, but that
interest was as nothing to me compared 10
the incoucciv4ble sequel. which aHofuea
I'M. fine greatest shoc6 and surprise of any
event i'm my adventurous life. Even now
after this long interval. I frd myself thrill
ina, as l think of it and feeling once more
that sudden mood of JOY, amdzemeht anu
iErredulity which utterly submerged M
mind. Let me say to that public which
has shown some interest in those glmpSes
wEfch / have occasionally given them VI t ti
thoughts and actions OF very reuar kaniG
man that they are not to blame me II
have not shared my know edge win theui,
for | should have considered II my III ~
duty 10 have done 50 had NOT oeeh "a ii- 60
nv a positive prohibition from ms own hp9,
which was only withdrawn upon the lhilu
II cam bc IMAGINED that my close mt
macy with Sherlock Holmes had ihtere7Ieu
M, deeDIv in crime. and that after MS u.S
,,tearaucc I never failed to READ WIN
ere the various problems which came pe-
fore tie public. And / even att1'ip.Gr'
moe than once. for my own p!iN+tS 30 70
faction to employ MS methouS m 'hei 81
If,tt,n though with Indifferent success;
Their. was none. however. "AicH aPi,
To- me like this tragedy OF ttpha1u 80, -,
A. I read Tie evidence Al tI!e liilGe1'' " -
1el mn TO a verdict of Will Ill Wuidti "Saili9SS
80. r,arso1 OF. persons unknown. i Tta!!Zeu
more clearly than / had ever GONE ~, - 20
which the community mad sustained 10y ~
death OF Sherlock HOLMES. 49, .rf.L
,,..t,,rs about tUis strange BUSINESS ~ y
li,''1a l WAS sure. have specially app. t-vI
:, riro and the efforts OF ire ponce "D ~
have been supplemented. OF i'"'e -
au-icpated. Icy the trained V,zS - ssnt
~ ai.rt mind of the first clithi''.'' ,'7.t
=, f-',rl-,s All day IS l drove upon my
r,,nr5 / turned over the case IN my h4irl mn
and found me- explanation MhlEu aIi IN, -
t. me 10 Joe adequate. ~ lLe . - tho
f,, a tv,fce-told tale / Will recapltulaI - tlt
- as they were known to the pupAc d.
~. conclusion of the inquest. 7
ri IIor Ronald AdaiT was the secohu
son of the Earl of Maynooth' az Sio,,ias
sy,,,.rnor of one Of the Australian coAoi ~
S5,ir,s mother had returned from <Aus
traIia TO undergo the operation IoI ber
ract. and she, her son RolL"! tLc,atbar at
daughter Hilda were nNlns 5oved in
- park lane The youth 1hoNe0 -
he hest society-had, so faf as ~
known. no enemies. ana nv "a TO
lar vices He had been ehs@Se +te
Miss Edith Woodley OF cars aef ~, r1,,tHIaI
e+e,7genent had been broken OH py lIlu 80 80.
cr.T7-snr some. months before, ana thei W.
no sign that it had left any very PI a,,.S
faaIing behind 1t. For the rest me nc
life moved in narrow anu IN - his ma
mole for mis- habits were quiet ana ms ~ NJ
trIra unconditional Yet ii was upon tiit 1
easv-coing young aristocrat tnat ore. "a "a
one i'm most strange and une%ptCteu
81 a
form between the hours OF ~ anu II -- "
the night of March 80. 1871. .,,,;,e,
RonsId Adair was fond of cards-PiaylhS
continually. but never for such STAKES az
would hurt him. He was mempeI oL M
Baldwin. the Cavendlsh anu me Pa7 din-
card clubs 1t was shown that alteI I'm UNI
,,.r an the day Of his death he had playtu
a rubber of whist at the latter cIuo' ~ 80
had also played there in the AFTERNOON. In, ne
evidence of those who had played WIN
Iim-Mr. Murray, Sir John Hardy and Col
Noran-showed that the game was WiIst.
and that there was a falrly equ3I IAN ~ W
the cards Adair might have losI hNe
mounds but not more. His fortune was
considerable one, and such loss couia ho5
in any way affect him. He had played
nearly every day at one cIuo or otHer' put
he was a cautious player, and usuaIly rose
a winner 1t came out in evidence llat ia
nartnership with Col Moran he had
actually won as much as four hundred ana
twenty pounds in sitting some weeks De
fore from Godfrey Miner and Lord Balmo-
came out at the inquest
on the evening of the crime he returned
from the club exactly at 10 his mother
and sister were out spending the evening
with a relation. The servant depoSed that
she heard him enter the front room on the
second floor. generally used as his sitting
room. She had lit fire there and as 1T
smoked she had opened the WINDOW. NO
sound was heard from the room until IL :2o,
the hour of the return of Lady Maynoot
and her daughter. Desiring to say good
night, she attempted TO enter her sons
room. The door was locked on the inside,
and no answer could be got TO their cries
and knocking Help was obtained and the
door forced. The unfortunate young man
was found lying near the table. His head
had been horribly mutilated by an expand
ing revolver bullet, but no weapon of any
sort was to be found in the room. On the
table lay two bank notes for ten pounds
each and seventeen pounds ten In silver
and gold. the money arranged in little piles
OF varying amount. There were some fig
ures also upon a sheet of paper with the
names of some club friends opposite to
them, from which IL was conjectured that
before his death he was endeavoring TO
make out his losses or winnings al cards.
\ minute examination OF the circum-
stances served only to make the case more
In the first place. no reason could
be given why the young man should have
fastened the door upon the inside. There
was the possibility that the murderer had
done this. and had afterward escaped by
the window. The drop was at least twenty
feet, however. and a bed of crocuses in full
bloom lay beneath. Neither the flowers nor
the earth showed any sign of having been
disturbed nor were there any marks upon
the narrow strip of grass which separated
the house from the road. Apparently, there
fore, II was the young man himself who
had fastened the door. But how did he
come by his death? No one could have
climbed up to the window without leavina,
traces. Suppose a man had fired through
the window, he would indeed be a remark
able shot who could with revolver inflict
so deadly wound. Again. Park lane is a
frequented thoroughfare; there is a cab
stand within hundred yards of the house.
No one had heard a shot. And yet there
was the dead man, and there the revolver
outlet, which had mushroomed out as soft
nosed bullets WILL and so inflicted a wound
which must have caused instantaneous
death. Such We're the circumstances of the
Park Lane mystery, which were further
by entire absence of motive
since, as / have said young Adair was not
known to have any enemy, and no attempt
had been made 10 remove the money or VAL
uables in the room.
All day l turned these facts over in nv
mind, endeavoring to hit upon some theory
which could reconcile them ALL and to
find that line of least resistance which nv
poor friend had declared to be the starting
point OF every investigation. confess that
made little progress. In the evening |
stroiled across the park and found myself
about o'clock at the oxford street end