The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1907-02-13
Who SHOT HER?
A Murder Mystery at a Country
Wedding Serenade. As

SeaAh& -
. THE PRETTY BRIDE
Opened the Door to Bow to the Sere'
naders Somebody Fired q Shot From
the Darkness That Robbed the
Waiting Bridegroom of
His Lovely Bride.
Since Christmas Eve the quiet New
England village Of Ira, Vermont, has
been terrorizsd 1s though . Franken-
stein monster were stalking tho ooun.
try roads:
For over Z month two young wo-
men haYe lain Ut deaths door, stricken
down by the diabolical hand of IN Tn.
known fend.
One was q bride, snatohed from hsr
husbands arms In the first hour Of bis
welded bliss.
This singular crime occurred on
Christmas Eve. On that evening
pretty, winsome Mary Parker, the
nineteen-ysar.ol old daughter Of Farmer
John O. Parker, WAS married to Onss.
Gilmore, tho son OF . neighboring
farmer.
The Parker farm house was full of
happy visitors, showering congratu.
lstions and good wishes on bride and
groom. At length, amid tho laughter
and chatter, singing and music, there
was heard q noisy blowing OF horns
and banging Of tin pans in the road
outside.
"A horning party" cried somebody,
and there was q rush for the door to
give the boisterous Berenaders q vel.
come in hospitable country style.
Charles Gilmore, tho groom with
tho dainty bride of IN hour, advanced
toward tho door to acknowledge tho
salute and to give the seren1dgrs IN
invitation to como inside.
Al the pretty bride opened tho door
to bow to the BerenaderS and tho light
flooded her figure, Z fNh and . shot
came out of the darkness.
With Q scream the bride fell into
her husbands arms. The right sleeve
Of her wedding gown had suddenly
turned red. The warm blood spatter.
cd her bodice and the bunch Of pure
white roses at her corsage.
It triokled down her white skirt 10
the floor in Q sickening food. It even
splsshed upon the shirt front and
upon the face Of tho horror-stricken
husband.
There was momentary hush, Is
the company stood trans61sd With
awe. Then . second slot rang out,
ana Mrs. Henry Gllmo:e Q, sister.in.law
of the bride, fell 10 the floor, with
blood streaming from her arm and
shoulder.
A yell of race riot rose from tho men
guests, while tho girls and women
screamed and tainted. Tho men rush.
ed out doors after the dendish assas.
sin or assassins, who had parsdsd un.
der tho guiae Of friendly serenaders.
But ia the darkness Of the winter
night they had vanished like ghosts.
The lover.huBband, crazed and fran.
tic with grief, at first thought only
of his belol ed, anatched from him In
the hour of his supreme happiness.
In his arms he carried her to what
was to have been her bridal bed. Her
life blood was fast ebbinZ away. The
stupor of death seemed upon her.
A physician, hurriedly summoned,
stopped the flow Of blood for the mo.
ment and gave some hopes Of her re-
covery. But 1t Was . terribly cruel
wound. The girls fair, round arm
had been almost shot away, the bone
fractured between the arm and shout.
der. Only her corset side.steel had
detected the bullet from its fatal
course toward her heart.
When the young husband, almost
demented with grief and rage, had
time to regain bis elf.posSession, and
after the vain pursuit Of the sere.
j naders. he tried to think who could
have had q motive for the inhuman
deed.
: Jealousy was the first thought that
came into bis mi d. he suspected,
at first, q neighbor and . supposed
friend, Andrew Farrell, Z young man
OF twenty. bis own ago. he made a
complaint to the town officers and
Farrell was arrested on the charge Of
J assault with intent to kill. he was
taken to tho House Of Correction ct
Rutland.
When the enormity Of tho orime
came TO be considered, it seemed al.
most uncomfortable that young Far
rell could be guilty Of it. He IL q
7 frank, honeat-looking young man,
popular among bis fellows and of good
reputation.
t Taking these things into account,
! and also the growing Impression ir
, the community that some other, more
. vilainous hand had str uck down tht
y young bride, State Attorney R. A
Lawrence changed the charge agains,
t Farrell TO one Of simple assault, ant
put him under $1,000 bond to appea,
before the March torn Of the grant
Jury.
, The principal evidence against Far
T Yell is that he was recognised by Ohas