The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-05-13

l promise, was so Slar1nS, Tn the Iuil
 summer light, as to be pathetic. J Knots of people stood here and l there, within and without the gates. The treading of many feet had cut up | the gravel and made it untidy. There l was much whispering and conferring,
 and an underlying strain of excite
 ment; for the servant to whom the | bruises had been shown had spoken;
 and Dan was not popular with the
 crowd.
 The ladies from Carronlea were
 respectfully greeted. It was known
 that they had been on friendly terms
 with the dead woman. Seats were
 found for them, near the Coroner,
 who had known Mrs. Bardsley all
 her life, and greeted her with cordial
 respect.
 Almost all the men who sat upon the jury were known to her also.
 The proceedings were interesting and impressive to Vernon. The
 twelve trooped out to the house, to view the body, and returned with gloomy faces, one furtively wiping away a. tear. Vernon heard a mur- mur from behind that the deceased l woman looked like an angel, ana % young." Mrs. Bardsley and she had l brought a wreath of the loveliest blooms their gardens afforded; and | this fact was duly noted and approv- ed by the crowd.
 At the last moment Dan came stumbling in. walking as though | blind, held up by two of his men. He took no notice of any one present, sitting with his huge head sunk upon his chest, his pudgy hands dangling helplessly. A woman near the back of the court lifted her head for a moment above the level of the others near her, as though to get a good view. of him. And Vernon saw that is was Olive Fletcher There was a. very strange expression upon her pretty, knowing face.
 The evidence of the various wit l nesses was taken. The maid who | waited at table, and who called her | mistress in the morning, said that there was absolutely nothing unusual in her manner during the evening preceding her death. It transpired that she and her husband had quar- lrelled the previous night and that MT. Trent did not that evening re- turn to the house until past mid night. Mrs. Trent had then been in during the day given minute direc- tions for the morrow to her .chauf- feur, and herself superintended the | packing of the vegetables and fruit l intended for the show
 But-there was no doubt that quar- l rels between the pair had been in creasing in frequency: and there were the bruises
 Poor Dan, with sobs and wild 1 words, admitted the bruises. He ad- mitted that there had been disagree ments. "But if every time a. married couple had few words, the wife took and made away with herself, it would be a pretty state of things:" He loved the very ground she trod, as anybody who knew them could testify.
 The doctors evidence was to the effect that the deceased suffered from a weak heart. The particular drug which killed her had a great effect upon the heart. She had taken a double dose-a treble dose in fact. He thought that she might easily have done this without any suicidal intent, as people were in a general way completely ignorant of the ac- tion of drugs. She had been sleep less; she had said to the maid, as they had just heard, that she was anxious to rest we'll that night on account of the show the following day. Under the circumstances, it was very possible that she might have increased her dose reck1essly, or, as he had known happen in one case before, she had perhaps taken her drug, forgotten that she had done so, and repeated the dose ac- cidentally.
 Sir Miles Umfraville was then call- ed, as an intimate friend of the de- ceased, and one who had been a great deal with her of late. It was evident that the publicity given 10 these facts was not agreeable to Sir Miles, but there was no doubting the truth of his evidence, as he emphati- cally said that he was positively cer- tain that Mrs. Trent had no idea of suicide. She was too full of interest in life, too full of vitality to desire such a thing. Of any woman he had ever known he should consider her the least likely to kill herself.
 Mrs. Bardsley, when her time came gave her evidence concisely and with much dignity. She was most decid- ed upon the point that Mrs. Trent had no idea of self-destruction when she called upon her. She related what had passed between them as nearly as she could recollect it.
 The chemist gave evidence of her buying the drug in question at his