Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-11-25
TRAGEDY DRAMA OF LOVE,
HATE, REVENGE, MURDER,
ELIMINATES IN SUICIDE

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ugly instrument of death, he shud-
dered. Mayhap he weakened and
slipped the drearm back int his
/ pocket. He was hidden from that
silent figure In tho chair and her
| back was toward him. lie RENTER
/ ed the room nolsslessly, AS his
eyes rested on her, thought of the
other man" leaped into his mind.
/ No! he should never have her'
Death would be infinitely more well
come. Yes, she must die! After
all, it was q simple, easy way out,
perhaps for them both. Grim re-
solve became fixed, and, redrawing
the weapon, he steRlthily approach
ed the silent, unsuspecting figure
/ in the chair. She mad removed
shoe and partially unlaced another,
then Strengthened, sitting erect. A
+ few feet to the rear he raised the
/ gun. His nerves seemed wonder
fully steady. Yes, it must be--she
must die. The head, that was the
place At the base Of the skull,
! Just where the hair began, he had
/ heard that was q fatal spot. He
must make sure, he thought-pOor
little girl. But the other man
/ he fired.
A gurgling cry and she pitched
forward, face down, upon the floor,
full length, head upon her right
arm, the blood squirting from a
{ Jagged hole where the bullet had
emerged, just under the left ear
/ only a tiny, red trickle indicated
/ the small, singed and blackened
hole where the ball had entered.
He hesitatod, smoking weapon in
hand, then stepped over her. He
must make sure-shs should live
+ for none other, shrieked his brain,
maddened at the sight of the red
/ stream oozing from the jagged
wound in her neck. Point blank,
! straight downward, aiming at the
same spot, he fired again. His aim
/ was true. But he must make sure.
/ Again he fired, but his highstrung
nerves had cracked, and he missed.
The bullet passed through the LOBE
I of the right ear and f1eshy part Of
the right arm, half doubled under
her head.
] Why had he done It? Black de-
/ spair engulfed his soul The bloody
sight siclkened him Perhaps came
/ a tWinge of pity and remOrse. At
any rate, he lifted her still warm
and twitching body and placed it
4 in the rocker. Her blood spatteTed
him, his hands and clothing. Prob
ably he shudde-ed. RE must fee;
/ but first he must excuse his deed u
an accusing and condemning world.
! Writes COnfessing Note.
| She was responsible and he must
/ tell her motEer- Yes, the gun was
/ in his pocket, and he was ready TO
leave the house and scene of his
/ deed-forever But he must write
a note, explaining. Going TO a
small writing table, with blood
stained fingers he wrote:
Please let Mrs George W. Muir
ray OF North Jefferson street, Peo-
ria, know-yes, her mother must
be toId-"and tell her that it was
/ all Roses fault that 1 did this" He
may have hesitated. perhaps, pom
/ dering what he did and why. Oh,
yes-he wrote on: she has broken
/ up my home. She has another man"
tab, that was it-but she was gone
7 forever now "on the staff" He
! signed his name, the name he pic
tuTed the newspapers headlining
that verv day-"Joe Dudley" The
clock in the kitchen struck the hour
II o'clock
He would get away and fool them
He would go TO the Rock Island
/ Southern station as though to take
a car-but he wouldn't He walked
/ the tracks, and on his way to Milan
| threw away his arsenal card. It
| was useless now and he did not
think it would be picked up by his
/ hunters. He thought of taking a
rain for Peoria at Milan-but, no,
/ on second thought they would be
! watching for him there and on the
I train-he would go on. Evidence
| seems to show that he proceeded TO
( Coal Valley. There, possessed by
! the criminals desire to revisit the
/ scene of his crime, he headed back
toward Moline. He probably sought
news of his deed, securing copies
| Of the papers. Thus he learned that
I escape was practically impossible.
He could not board a train: they
would be all watched and searched.
ALACA = was NO way, bui liitN SuUlll
never catch him alive. He made ID
his mind to that as he tramped
along the railroad tracks near
Twentieth street, Moline.
Yes, this was all right; It might
as well DO done here. He halted.
But he must make sure. Insistent-
ly his mind hammered this thought
home. lie must not live How
could he make death certain? A
white beam of light from behind
fiiCkered along the two shining
steel ribbons stretching into the
early evening dusk. A faint rum
bic and the hiss of brakes came to
his ears as a train ground to a stop
at the station two blocks behind
An, he knew! He would wait IN
til the steel monster was nearly
upon him, then he would step in
its path and shoot himself between
the eyes Death would be instant
and painless. An easy wayt In
the shadows near the tracks he
waited, pondering. Was there a
hereafter Somehow he felt that
there was and the cold sweat gath
cred upon his forehead Would ne
meet her there?
A warning toot told him that the