Year: 1868

until he could reach his own home. His
mind, once set on this, soon found the plan.
He would at once send home the nurse
maid, and trust to finding some way to per-
suade his wife that it was necessary for
him, both to start the child off at once,
and to follow with her the next day.
The letters he had that morning received
might easily be made to warrant the ne
cessity for an instant return.


This was his account of himself, and
by many it was forthwith believed. He
declared himself willing to give the jury
every opportunity of testing the truth of
his statement, but the difficulty was to de-
wise any test. Inquiry had been made
about him in the town where he lived,
and not only his general worth, but es-
pecially his kindness of nature, were so
universally recognized, that it was thought
useless to take any special evidence on
those heads The only fact that seemed
proved was that the child had been MUIR
dered There were some of us upon the
the jury confess that was one of them
upon whom this attempt to smuggle
the body away, together with his demean-
or, both at the moment that his plan was
frustrated, and afterwards at the inquest,
had produced very strong conviction OF
his guilt. There was nothing left to us,
however, but to acquiesce in an open YER
dict, upon which he bowed gravely and
retired. As soon as his wife could be
moved he left our town, and, as we after
wards learnt, at once broke up his home,
and travelled.


"I didn't believe bis story bit"


"Yes, but" interrupted, "it is barely
possible, suppose, that his account may
have been true for all that 1 plainly see
that, even then, what you really must al
low me to call your inirmity had set in,
and that you were unable to do justice to
an outer barbarian"


"Quite possible" he answered, I" for it
is plain that barbarians (as you seem to
call yourselves) and are of two different
races, born to suspect each other. ] said
l didn't believe it."


az am sure" I broke in, "that could
frame plausible account of the matter,
which should bear out his story. Shall l
try now and make speech for the de-
fence? ?" rees


"I think would wait for the conclusion
of the speech for the prosecution. How
ever, as you please / undertake before
hand to be able to discredit your plausible
account. No account that you can invent
will I receive as the true one"


"Then I won't waste invention: but
would you mind taking me to the spot
before go tomorrow"


He agreed to do so, merely smiling Gu
riously at my rudeness. Accordingly we
went over the ground, saw the cottage, and
the spot where the poor lady had lain
asleep, and finally went down the cliff to
the rocks, down swiftly and up slowly,
with strange fantastic terror, as if were
carrying a murdered child back to its
mother.


"It is true" said, vehemently, he
came up there as he said; he couldn't have
forged that story; yours is prejudice in
vincible."


"I repeat" he said, slowly, that I didn't
believe it."


I then left the seaside, and went inland,
to the principal town of the county. As
l was staring, few days after, moodily
into the rain out Of the window of a cof
fee-room, my eye wandered to signboard
all but fronting me, bearing words which
I had no doubt seen before, but then for
the first time noticed, IheN0rthstire Herdld,
established 1924. The thought gradually
suggested itself that I might find in back
number the full contemporary account of
the events which were still in my mind
| sent over my card to the editor with q
request that might be allowed to refer to
an early file of his paper, and was soon
poring over the narrative in his back
Office found that had met with in my
Blackby friend a most faithful, if not an
impartial chronicler; but besides, learnt
from editorial comment and from cores
pondence shrewd and foolish, how intense
had been the interest excited at the time
I read the afternoon away, and was pass
ing out, when the editor himself walked
in With his courtesy to thank him for |
could hardly escape abruptly, and 'Iatural-
ly told him what had been the object of
my seal search. -, !, ., !, ,s


"No; was it ever cleared up?"


He answered by reaching down the file
of 1888, and turning rapidly over the
leaves, | read:


A MYSTERY SOLVED AT LAsT.-Most of our
readers will remember how fouryears ago, pub
lie interest and curiosity was thrilled by tragic
circumstance that occurred on our coast at the
thriving village of Blackby. We need hardly say
under circumstances of the greatest mystery. 1t
is gratifying to to be able to state on indubita-
BILE authority that events have, during the last
week, transpired that lift the cloud of suspicion
which, in the minds of some, had condensed upon
the fair name of gentleman by whom the sacred
ties of nature were enormously conjectured to
have been disregarded. To us it is doubly graft
flying to recollect that, although in the interest of
justice we opened our columns at the time, with
out fear or favor, to free discussion of all sides
of that painful question, yet we consistently"
(they really had gone dead in against the poor
MANI S 'avowed our belief that SANDER would yet
regret the envenomed darts which she then
launched against the party in question. The facts
which we have to announce are these"


Then followed a long narrative, the
graceful flowing periods of which shall
take leave to clip.


A poor woman had been received into
the hospital of that town, MANNED by a
falling weight having crushed her foot.
She suffered intense pain, which was at
length relieved by amputation. In the
weakness that followed, she believed her.
self to be dying, and declaring that she
had something weighty on her mind,
begged for clergyman to be sent to her.
The chaplain from her lips took down, in
the presence of another gentleman, con-
fession of which this was the substance:


"About six years back l was married
to a man who took to treating me ill, and
l was very miserable. But after my child
was born he began to use me better. He
played good deal with the little one, and
that seemed TO make him kinder to me.
-Four years back he went away from home
in the spring to look for work, and soon
after he was gone, the child was taken i'll
with convulsions. sat up with it a week
or more, and just as thoughtit was com
ing round, it had a very bad fit, which
frightened me so much, that, weak asI was,
l set off to carry it to the doctor. AsI was
going, it died just in my arms; but /
l., T