The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1907-02-13

the bride had screamed and faller
Whether the second shot was Anne
at her, and intended to complete th
deadly work or whether the asaassi
intended to kill both the bride an
her sister.in.la law Is still in doubt.
1t now appsars that this d~istressin4
affair was the result of plot quit
beyond the mental cunning OF
farmers boy like Andrew Farrell.
Early in December, Charles Gil
more, the prospective bridegroom
found . letter one morning pinned u
the front door of his fathers house.
Opening it hs read the single sen
tence wrinten In red:
II shall be with you on your wed
ding night" Instead Of Z signature
theee was the CHASTITY emblem Of
skull and cross.bones.
Young Gilmore laughed at first
thinking it was the joke Of soml
friend. In New England country
towns . certain class of fellows made
Z bridegroom the butt Of al sorts Of
jokes.
Charles Gilmore tried to think that
this sibylline letter was the fret Of
Z series Of mild hazlng tricks that he
would have to stand good. naturally.
But, nevertheless, Z cold shiver ran
over him as he looked again and again
at tho glazing skull.
Then, to rid his mind Of the name
less horror 1t suggested, he tore up
the note and threw 1t to the wind.
The following week he called on his
intended bride one evening. When
he loft tho house about II O'Clock and
went to take bis horse and buggy out
of the barn to drive home, he found
IN envelope stuck In the wire screen.
ing of bis lantern.
A suspicious fear shot through him
ss he tore 1t open, and even before he
read the lines he surmised what the
message was,
II shall DO with you on your wed.
ding night" and below was the same
ominous signature, . skull and Cross.
bones-all done in red.
Charles Gilmore read and reread the
note in q state of dazed. ine1plicable
fear. It was not 30 much the contents
Of the letter this time that alarmed
him % the manner In which 1t had
been left.
While he had been looking into the
lovelit eyes Of bis bride. to.
DO, some stealthy form had been
prowling outside, perhaps seeing his
through the h~alf-clossd
shutters-and. preparing to blast that
sweet emotion on biz home going.
The message now conveyed . maItg.
nant jealousy. Young Gilmore studied
it carefully, for 1t no longer seemed .
Joke. he tried to think whose hand
writing it was. 1t did not seem like
any ho had aver seen before. Then
despsiring Of making anything Of IT,
in Z fash Of indignation he tore up
the note.
Now no would give anything for
that precious bit of evidence that
might Re used against the assassin.
At times during the next fortnight,
that Hateful sentence occurred tn him,
and bis blood alternately boiled and
froze 1T its blind meaning. But other
and happier thoughts mostly filed bis
mind and he mentioned tho two mys'
FERROUS letters to no one.
After tho tragedy, when he and the
friends whe had been the wedding
guests were discussing tho shooting
and trying to think Of some clue to
tho assassin, Gilmore told about the
two leoters.
why, that is q quotation from
Mrs. ShelleY's novel about the Frank.
enstein monster" said one Of the
young men who Is particularly well
read, Amusement spread over the
faces of the group. They started to
laugh-but frowned instead, for they
then remembered that this was the
parting threat of tho Ffankenstein
monster, made to the ill.fated bride.
groom-a threat that was fulfilled on
the wedding night by strangling the
bride In hor bod.
This deepened tho mystery. The
assassin, whoever he WAS, must have
been IN intelligent, well-read man,
he must be . resident Of the village
or some nearly town. Tho only mo-
tive for such Z crime. under such cir
cumstsnceB, was jaalousy-l vindic
tive rival or . repuleed lover-whichi
Love affairs sn Z village like Ira ar
open secrets. Tho whole town know
lust how the ocurtship Of every font
pair is progressing.
There had never been any secrecy
about the romance of pretty MARY
Parker and young Charles Gilmore
They had bean lovers from childhood
ali through their school days-ant
no Jealous rivals hal interfered II
their pretty, simple, loyal love-msk
Ing.
That 80 foul Z plot should DO wover
about their wedding aeemed incredi
BILE. That young Andrew Farrell, th'
man who had been arrested. was {
jealous, disappointed lover, no one TO-
. moment believed. It seemed NOR
like the deed of IN overwrough1
maniac than like the act Of . health!
minded merchant, farmer or villager
The only substantial clue which tn
authorities have Is tho bullet which