Morris tribune. [volume] (Morris, Minn.) 1880-2000, 1905-05-27

EN2M al year 1884 that all LOnuoI
EWH 81 4 was interested and the
&o9sA fashionable world dis
kS67s%NSSA mayed by the murder OF
NGs9W@gE the Hon. Ronald Adam
A--N'AA1A' under most unusual anG
lnexpHcable circumstances. The public
has already learned those particulars OF
the crime which came out in the police
Investigation, but a good deal was sup
pressed upon that occasion, since the
case for the prosecution was so over
whelmingly. strong that it was not nee
eSsary to bring forward all the facts.
Onlynow, at the end of nearly ten years,
an I allowed to supply those missing
links which make up the whole of that
remarkable chain. The crime was Of in
tereSt in itself, but that interest was
a nothing to me compared to the in
conceivable sequel, which afforded me
the greatest shock and surprise of any
event in my adventurous life. Even
now, after this long interval, | find my
sell thrilling as l think of it and feel
ing once more that sudden flood of joy,
Amusement and incredulity which ut
terly submerged my mind. Let me
say to that public, which has shown
some interest in those glimpses which
I have occasionally given them of the
thoughts and actions of a very remark
able man, that they are not to blame
me if | have not shared my knowledge
with them. for / should have consider
ed it my first duty to have done so had
II no 10y- n
biti0n from his own lips, which was
only withdrawn upon the Sd Of last
month
It can be imagined that my close in
fimaCy with Sherlock Holmes had in
terested me deeply in crime and that
after his disappearance I never failed
to read with care the various problems
(which came before the public. And I
even attempted more than once for my
own private satisfaction to employ his
methods in their solution. though with
indifferent success. There was none,
however, which appealed TO me like
this tragedy of Ronald Adair AS I
read the evidence at the inquest, which
led up to verdict of willful murder
against some person or persons un-
known, l realized more clearly than
had ever done the loss which the COM
munity had sustained by the death of
Sherlock Holiness
There We're points about this strange
business which would, I was sure, have
specially appealed to him, and the eff
forts Of the police would have been
supplemented or more probably antici-
pated by the trained observation and
the alert mind of the first criminal
agent in Europe. All day as [ drove
upon my round turned over the case
in my mind and found no explanation
(which appeared to me to be adequate.
AT the risk of telling a twice told tale
4 will recapitulate the facts as they
were known to the public at the con-
tclusion Of the inquest
The Hon. Ronald Adair was the Sec
ond son of the Earl of Maynooth, at
that time governor of one of the Aus
tralian colonies. Adair's mother had
returned from Australia to undergo the
operation for cataract and she, her son
Ronald and her daughter Hilda were
living together at 427 Park lane. The
youth moved in the best society-had
SO far as was known, no enemies and
no particular vices. He had been en-
gagged to Miss Edith Woodley of Car
stairs, but the engagement had been
broken off by mutual consent some
months before and there was no sign
that it had left any very profound feel
ing behind it. For the rest the mans
glife moved in a narrow and convention
al circle, for his habits were quiet and
his nature Unconditional. Yet it was up
on this easy going young aristocrat that
death came in most strange and uneX-
pected form between the hours of 10
and 1920 on the night of March 80,
1891.
Ronald Adair was fond of cards, play
ing continually, but never for such
stakes as would hurt him. He was
member Of the Baldwin, the Cavendish
and the Bagatelle card clubs. 1t was
shown that after dinner on the day of
ghis death he had played rubber of
whist at the latter club. He had also
played there in the afternoon. The
evidence Of those who had played with
aaim-Mr. Murray, Sir John Hardy and
Colonel Moran-showed that the game
was whist and that there was a fairly
equal fall of the cards. Adair might
have lost f5. but not more His for
Mune was a considerable one, and such
D loss could not in any way affect him.
He had played nearly every day at one
club or other, but he was a cautious
splayer and usually rose winner. 1t
acame out in evidence that in partner
ship with Colonel Moran he had actu-
ally won as much as f42O in a sitting
some weeks before from Godfrey Mil
Sner and Lord Balmoral So much for
his recent history as 1t came out at the
inquest.
On the evening of the crime he re-