npedrazzini/19thc_murder_suicide_news huggingface dataset:
The Halifax Comet. — 1893-07-08 (Halifax, West Yorkshire, England)

CHAPTER IV.—contineed. Y dear uncle," said she in a very languid voice--" permit me, unworthy as I am, still to address you as in former years—you must exert yourself to the utmost, in order to save that unfortunate youth, whose innocence was always known to me, though I durst not speak openly on the subject. Now, however, I feel that the seal of mystery may be broken, and that I have at command proofs the most convincing and indisputable. In the first place, Herman Rose did rot commit the murder, but I know who was the real assassin, and shall give you his name. I must yet, ere I die, set at liberty that blamelesa victim, though the town, our sovereign, and all the world should blame my conduct. Rut with you at least I am safe, and you will not utter a word against me. Know, then, that the murderer of my husband was the Prince Gustave Benno I" "Good heavens!" cried I, cjuite horrorstruck; "and you mention this for the first time now—after an interval of many years, and when the Prince is dead ? " "Aye," said she; "but ere you pass judgment, listen to my wretched story; I have sinned; I have fallen like many other.; but my sufferings and punishment were such as have rarely been exampled. The first years of my marriage were indeed not unhappy. I was yet upaecrainted with any real or violent passion in others, or in myself, till at length Prince Gustave Benno came to be in the habit of visiting at our house. In a short time he began to torment me with expressions of his admiration and attachment, to which I could make him no return, and my husband also distressed me by his groundless jealousy. "The Prince's visits became every day more wearisome, and my husband's suspicions more troublesome and restless. This persecution made me feel a kind of loneliness, a blank to the world, which I had never before experienced, and my discontent was aggravated by numberless petty irritations, so that I could not help entertaining a wish to be revenged on my tormentors. Such was my state of mind when one day the Prince brought me that crystal dagger, which he had taken from his brother's museum, only to show it to me, because, in a conversation on old German weapons and armour, which had taken place a short time before, it had been described, and excited my curiosity. This was but one of his usual stratagems to obtain an interview, and the dagger was soon forgotten; but after the Prince had taken leave, I recollected that, if found in our house, it would afford my husband a new opportunity for his tormenting complaints. -I therefore locked it up in my secretaire, where there were also many of the Prince's letters, which he continually forced on me, nor could I refuse to take them without the risk of provoking him beyond measure, having, when his visits commenced, entered into a regular correspondence, wherein I supposed that he was actuated only by a spirit of idie badinage.  Have you over hwriod for curiosities in hollow tressT—  • 1 0
The Halifax Comet. — 1893-07-08 (Halifax, West Yorkshire, England)

FOLIC-LORE OF THE LILY.  BY N. HorrEß.  DE is the chosen flower of demons, goddesses, saints, and sinners; and Lb th, marriage. and death have known and been made holier by her presence. She has sprung up to mark the passage of the Madonna's feet, and wreathed the fair brows of the Magdalene. She has been heaped on the altars of Hera and Artemis, and has lent another grace to the evil beauty of Lilith, Adam's first and demon wife, whose evil reputation is still preserved in our word " lullaby." This is nothing more than a corruption of" Lille Abi" &vaunt!) and dates from remote times when Hebrew mothers went in nightly fear of Lifith strangling their children in their sleep. Lily-buds were laid on the knees of Osiris and in the temples of Egypt. Horns rose from an open lily-cup, while, doubtless, lilies bound the solemn brows of Isis behind her mysterious veil. Fit flowers for the mysterious goddess—white and pure and solemn, like her own hidden face, crowned with gold as she was, and exhaling some secret perfume that might remind her of old days when she sailed down the Nile seeking for her slain lord and planning some dire vengeance on the murderer Typhon. In this same land of Egypt the lily is regarded as a type of fertility—probably on account of its occult connection with the Nile, and possibly, also, for its connection with Isis, the Mighty  Mother. The lily is a type of fertility in India, too, and nearer home—in Germany, Italy, Spain, and France—the presence of the pure white cup of fragrance puts evil beings to flight. Holds, protectress of spinners and knitsters (to use a dear old Cornish word which is, to my great regret, falling into desuetude), Holds, of the many names and many legends, bears a white lily in her hand, when, as Ursel, she sails the midnight sky in I her silver boat; and the moon-white lilies are in the crown she wears, when as Bertha she comes to middle earth to claim the souls of =baptised children, and takes them to make merry in her wonderful gardens, and in her spacious crystal halls, and lilies spring up to make beautiful the happy spot where she stands when she leans to the midnight fields, and spreads her hands abroad, blessing the growing flax. A Spanish superstition gives to the lily a unique power—that of restoring the human form to unfortunate folk metamorphosed into animals by some evil-disposed witch or wizard. Gathered with prayer, saysa German writer, it is a safe against witchcraft—here, again, is surely some reference to the übiquitous Lady Holds. To the water-lily, Wallachians say, is granted this gift—that she shall be appointed warder of the gate of Paradise at the Last Day, and judge all her sister-flowers, whether they shall enter into bliss or be shut out. The white lily is the flower of Saint Swithin, of lachrymose memory. Besides being sacred to Mary Magdalene, and to one (if not more) of the three or four Saint  thro-igh all their triils and troubles.
The Halifax Comet. — 1893-05-20 (Halifax, West Yorkshire, England)

MAT 20, 1893.  able to move it in front of me, and then rolling over on to my left side I managed to shift my right arm. It must have been another hour before I obtained sufficient control over them to bring my hands together, when I began to chafe and rub them gently until I was able to move them pretty freely. The bonds had been cut while I lay there insensible, and also the ropes which had bound my head and feet to the bed.  After a struggle I at up, and then saw on a table beside me a small bottle which I soon  found contained brandy. At first I feared to take it, but after a moment's consideration  I judged that they would not have gone out of their way to doctor this, when thy already had me in their power. Evidently theyd not wish to injure me, but only to gain time for themselves, and I must say I thought .for a moment or two that they were most good-natured rascals after all. But as I moved about, aching in every bone, and in every fibre, I did not feel so grateful, particularly when I thought of their tireatment of your client, Mr. Abel, and after all, I said to myself, "they think they can fasten the murder on their victim, and do not want to run any chance of being convicted themselves." It was fortunate for me that they were not in desperate straits, or else, no doubt, I should have suffered for it.  To my surprise the door was open, and, refreshed by a second dose of brmdy, I managed to stagger downstairs and feel my way to the street-door. The sound of my steps went echoing through the house in a way which told me it must be empty and untenanted. I opened the street-door and let in the light of the gas-lamp opposite, and then looked into the rooms on the ground floor. They were empty, and my birds had flown during my sleep. My watch had stopped, and so I asked the time of a gentleman passing by. "Nine o'clock," he replied curtly, looking at me suspicipusly, for, no doubt, I appeared dishevelled and dissipated enough. I went into a barber's close by and asked for a shave and wash-up. He, too, looked suspicious. "A pick-me-up would do you good," he observed drily. I thought that it would and gave him a shilling when he offered to send his boy for one. Evidently he thought that I had had a heavy drinking bout, and doubtless I looked like it. The pick-me-up and a shampoo did me a world of good, and I went into a restaurant in the High Street, and asked for a chop. I noticed the calendar on the wall was dated the 13th.  "Do you date your calendars a day ahead ? " I asked the waiter.  "Yes, sir; what, sir ;no, sir ;" replied that worthy in a breath, in the most contradictory fashion. "Don't you see you've put it for tomorrow," I said. "No, sir; to-day, sir," came the prompt reply. "Why to-day's Wednesday, isn't it ? " I asked.
The Halifax Comet. — 1893-03-11 (Halifax, West Yorkshire, England)

MARCH 11, 1893.  " Emmie, listen to me. If you struggl. shall send for Lord Falconer; he is close 1,1."Send for him? Do you know him .1., you know what he is P "cried Emilie, tr. no,. ling from head to foot, but not from t. '1 know now; yes, I know. Ho murderer! Ills hand is red—red 11., murdered him, the man who loved do you see the chasm, Vera ? Her voice rose to a shriek, and punting, .l„. pointed downwards. "lie hurled him oi,r there—into the black river; and he is dead _ dead; but he is beckoning from the 5ha.1.,%. land—and lum coming ! Let me go ! me go ! " The wild words smote on Vera's heart with a horrible impression of at least some ment of truth; but this was no tiuie tor thou ht. " • for him!" she said to Mrs. Rutland, and obeyed and then turned to help her with mime. Lord Falconer had been right. The mad girl's strength seemed out of all proportion to her physique; and she uttered no Nilo boast when she declared she could unistor both women; but ere the terrible strugglo had lasted half a minute, the door, which Mrs. Rutland had, of course, unlocked, wa, opened and Lord Falconer was in the room : and Vera never forgot the mad girl's fearful scream, as she wrenched herself from the grasp that now scarcely strove to hold her, but only to find herself enfolded in the strong arms of her guardian. "Vera !" she cried, frantically, "don't let him hold me ! He will murder me too ; he will hurl me into the black river. Look there—there, under the heights—he is flinging me down! Vera ! " Vera saw St. John Falconer's face turn ashen white to the very lips, but he spoke to his ward gently. "I would not harm a hair of your howl, Emmie, but you cannot leave this house tonight—another night; not now. It is use. less striving with me, for I am far stronger than you are. It is for your own good that we keep you, my child." "We !" repeated the girl. "Yes, you have made Vera cruel too, but I have told her what you are. She knows now, and she will let me go." She ceased struggling, and turned to Vera, who still by the bedside. "Look here!" she said, "you don't know all yet; Falconer wouldn't tell you. You wouldn't touch his hand if you knew ; would you—would you ? " " Hush ! Emmie. You must not talk so."  "Nay," said Falconer, under his breath, and in German. "Let her talk. It is a relief to her; and to me—what matter ! "  "Would you touch his hand if you knew it was red with blood ? " Emmie went on, her eyes shining with wild hatred; and it is— he may deny it, and call me mad; but I an' not mad. I was once, and he made me so. He loved me himself, you know, and he was jealous—that is why he followed us and murdered him. He had no mercy, none he dashed him down—over into the black river! It is true. I knew he had done me a great wrong; and you said he had not. Now I know, and you know; and I hate him—hate him! Let me go, Falconer, your hands are red with blood!" He had released her partially, but still held her hands, and he did not even glanu at Vera to see what effect the girl's raving., had on her mind.
The Halifax Comet. — 1903-12-26 (Halifax, West Yorkshire, England)

CHAPTER VII.  It would be impossible to picture, with any hope of success, the horror which accompanied the ghastly discovery described at the end of the previous chapter. Save for the cries of the ladies, who shrank from the box and covered their faces with their hands, and a muttered ejaculation from Godfrey, some seconds elapsed before anyone spoke. Fensden was the first to recover his presence of mind. Picking up the sheet of paper which had fallen to the ground, he covered the box with it, thus shutting out all sight of the dreadful things it contained.  "Perhaps it would be as well, ladies, if you were to leave the room," he said. "Godfrey and I must talk this matter over, and consider how we are to act."  "Come, mother," said Kitty, and she led the old lady in a semi-fainting condition from the room, closely followed by Molly. When the door had closed behind them, Godfrey spoke for the first time. "Good Heavens, Victor!" he said. "What does this mean? Am I mad or dreaming ? " "I fear it is no dream," replied the other. "Who could have done it? Is it a case of murder, or what? Did you recognise the—the —hands ? "  Godfrey crossed to the chimney-piece and covered his face. A suspicion, so terrible that he dared not put it into words, was fast taking possession of him. "Como, come." said Victor, crossing to hire, and placing his hands upon hio ohoiliders. "we must look this matter squarely in the face. Be a man, and help me. The upshot may be even more serious than we suppose. Once more I ask you, did you recognise what you saw ? " "I fear so," said Godfrey, very slowly, as if he were trying to force himself to speak. 'There was a little scar, the result of a burn, half-aninch or so above the knuckle of the second finger of the right hand." He had painted those beautiful hands too often not to remember that scar. Without a word, he crossed to the table in the middle of the room upon which the box stood, surrounded by the cases containing the other wedding presents, and once more removing the lid and the paper, carefully examined what he saw there. No, God help him there could be no sort of doubt about it; the hands were those of Teresina Cardi, his model and friend. When he had satisfied himself as to their identity, he closed the box and turned to Fensden once more.  "It is too horrible," he said; "but what does it mean? Why should the murderer have sent the hands to me in this dreadful way ? " "That is what I have been asking myself,' Fensden replied. "The man, whoever he was, must have borne you a fiendish grudge to have done such a thing. Is there anything about the box that will afford a clue as to the identity of the sender? Let us look."  He examined the box carefully, but, beyond the printed name of the firm who had originally used it, there was nothing that could serve as a clue. It had come by train from Euston, and had been sent off on the previous evening. That for the present was all there was to know about it.  "Once more, what are we tb do ?" inquired Fensden.  "Communicate with the police," said Godfrey.
The Halifax Comet. — 1903-10-10 (Halifax, West Yorkshire, England)

SCRATCHERD & COMPANYS LIMITED 9 BULL GREEN, HALIFAX.  suppose they will be produced, and apart from the Labour Party they would never be mentioned. Meanwhile, the Electrical Engineer has devised a system of lighting in Ward's End and part of Commercial Street superior to anything we have found in any other town, but by the tardy action of the Gas Committee, Old Market is still enshrouded in a canopy of violet and green coloured semidarkness, whilst half the leading streets are only half lit by reason of the gas mantles being overworn. We have received The Strand, The Sunday Strand, The Captain, and The Wide World Magazines. That Sherlock Holmes, whom the world as well as his biographer, Dr. Watson, believed to be dead should be alive, and in the full possession of those extraordinary powers of what may be called " deductive detectiveness " and for a long time will be, a matter of supreme delight to the whole English speaking world of contemporary literature in which he has so long been a dominant figure. Loud were the expressions of regret at his supposed death. Indeed, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, as his biographer in chief, received many recriminatory letters when be recorded his death. One actually began with so violent an expression as "You Beast 1 " The circumstances which led to the belief of his death, as well as those which explain his escape from the murderous attack of Professor Moriarty are fully told in the October number of The Strand Magazine, which will, therefore, have a more than ordinarily absorbing interest for its readers. That Sherlock should have been living for three years with hardly anybody aware of the fact is remarkable. Still more remarkable is his first appearance to his admirers in general, and to Dr. Watson in particular, in the story which tells of his return to London, and the pursuit of his self-imposed calling as the greatest detective of his time ; for incredible though it may seem, Dr. Watson actually sees and converses with him without being aware of his identity. Many of our regular readers, when they  receive their copy of the COMET this week, will find, not without regret, that it is no longer delivered by Mr. William Ross, who, after a long and honourable career in the army, followed by a dozen years as a vendor of the COMET, has at length entered upon a well-deserved retirement. Mr. Ross is now residing with his daughter, who keeps a pleasure resort near the picturesque Lancashire town of Whalley. The full address is Mrs. H. Ormerod, Dean Bottoms, Hurst Green, Whalley, and there Mr. Ross will be delighted to see any of his former patrons who may wish to be acquainted with the beautiful vale of the Ribble. It may also be interesting to our readers to know that Mr. Ross's successor is Mr. William Allen, another old soldier, who has seen 38 years' active service, and is the possessor of five medals and several clasps.  A
The Halifax Comet. — 1894-07-28 (Halifax, West Yorkshire, England)

CURIOSITIES OF JUSTIGI.  DURING the whole of the eighteenth century the gallows bore profuse crops of awful' fruit, and the hangman had incessant occupation. Nowadays one can hardly realize the fact that within the memory of many yet living' six, ten, fifteen, and even more men were hanged at one time and at one place! In a .book printed only about fifty years ago, we have an engraving—" an exact representation," it is called--of the "new scaffold" at Newgate, with ten men hanging at once. On the 23rd of April, 1785, nineteen men were executed together, and not one for murder! Most were hanged for robberies, and burglaries, and tto less than three for returning from transportation before their time had expired. On the 10th of November, the same year, eighteen were hanged in front of Newgate, and not one for murder; and on December Ist nine more were hanged, all for robberies and burglaries: The bodies of murderers, we may remark, were almost invariably given to the surgeons for dissection —unless ordered to hang in chains—and they were publicly exposed to the gaze of young and old on the dissecting-table of the Surgeon's Hall, Old Bailey. It was a very ancient custom for the bellman of the parish of St. Sepulchre's to go beneath the walls of Newgate on the night prior to the execution of condemned convicts, and, ringing his bell, to recite these admonitory lines :  All you that in the condemned hold do lie, Prepare you, for to-morrow you shall die. Watch all, and pray; the hour is drawiLg near That you before th' Almighty must appear. Examine well yourselves, in time repent, That y u may not t' eternal filmes be s-it; And when St. Sepulchre's bell to-morrow tolls, The Lord above have mercy on your souls! Past twelve o'clock  St. Sepulchre's bell tolled on the morning ol the execution, and the cart used to stop before the church, whilst the bellman again did his office by ringing his bell and repeating certain lines. It is startling to read of mere boys being hanged for offences which, nowadays, would probably be punished by a fow months' imprisonment, or by seclusion in a reformatory. Peter M'Cloud, aged sixteen, was hanged at Tyburn, May 27th, 1772, for housebreaking. Another boy, not sixteen, was hanged for murder at Wisbeach, July 13th, 1807. A robber named Hartley, who was convicted, with _a comrade, of robbing, in .the open fields, a poor tailor of twopence and his clothes—which they stripped off and bound him to a tree—adopted a most extraordinary expedient with a view to save his neck. He procured six young women dressed in white to go to St. James's and present a petition in his behalf. The singularity of their appearance gained them admission, when they told the king that if he extended. the royal mercy to the offender they would cast lots which should be his wife; but His Majesty said he was more deserving of the gallows than a wife, and accordingly refused their request. He was hanged at Tyburn, May 4th, 1722.
The Halifax Comet. — 1894-12-29 (Halifax, West Yorkshire, England)

TWO OF A KIND,  BY ROBERT PARR. OMMERS, Jam in trouble," said Bremner, " and I want you to help me out." "Financial ' a s ked Sommers, with a slight contracting of the eyebrows. "Oh, no, worse than  that, a good deal." "I didn't know anything could be worse in these panicky times. What is it?" "I have a friend," said Bremner, "or a man who thinks himself my friend, and whom, for certain reasons, I wish to shake off, but he refuses to be shaken. Now, you are a resourceful man, and may be able to ,give me a hint. I have tried everything with Snaggi—everything short of positive insult—and all to no purpose."  "What is the mhtier with him ? " asked Sommers.  "The matter is this. He has a boy seven years old, or thereabouts and he always persists in talking about the lad; in fact, he can't talk of anything else, and imagines everyone is as deeply interested as himself. I have nothing at all against the boy; he is a good enough commonplace little fellow, like all the rest of them. I never see any differ ence in boys myself, they all seem equally objectionable. But Snaggs comes to our house, sits down, and talks about his boy, what he does, and what he says, until I am nearly driven crazy. I hope you can suggest something for my relief." " I suggest," said Sommers, "that you take Snaggs to the state of Michigan, U.S.A., and kill him."  "Why to Michigan?" queried Bremner. "Oh, simply because they don't hang for murder there; and any penalty short of hanging should be cheerfully borne to get rid of a man like Snaggs." "I didn't know you were acquainted with him," said Bremner excitedly. ." I'm not, but I am afflicted in the same way myself." "Nonsense " cried Bremner, "I never even heard you mention your children," "I mean that I am afflicted with a friend like Snaggs. It's a daughter in this case. His name is Gregsby. I am even worse off than you are, for his only daughter is but five years old. You are two years ahead of me. By and by the boy will reach years of discretion, and he will get there quicker than Gregsby's girl." "I don't know about that," Bremner answered gloomily ; "girls grow up so much faster than boys do." "But they never reach years of discretion, you know." "I don't believe any son of Snaggs will either. The boy's father hasn't, at any rate. But I say, Summers, an idea strikes me. Why not introduce Snaggs and Gregsby to each other? "  "That wouldn't be a bad plan," replied Summer 4, cheerfully, "and then we might bet on them. I'll back my man to be the greater bore." "There wouldn't be any use in betting," said Bremner, "for if your man is as bad as mine, it could only end in a draw."  "Bring your man around and we'll test the case.  V".lC—t riSfi t'' 44 I'r V. • ' 41 "V/Jdok:. 401' I