Newspapers / Hickory Democrat (Hickory, N.C.) / Oct. 25, 1888, edition 1 / Page 2
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2 i T«'« Stort Huo O : n >» JV THE MYSTERY -OF- A HANSOM CAE BY FKKIiI S U . Hi'MK. CI I U'TKR XV—C'Httin "> /. "She's ooked it." she wailed, drumming on the ground with hei feet. " ion' an' left '« r pore old gran an' joint- 1 t!. ♦- it) my, cu-s em. a-comin round an a spilin busi- Meanwhile the d tective was ta.k ili ' ia' i• 11 \ to Mi nit "i. O A "The only person w !io can prove Mr. I si / I( _ei;11' 1 wis hen' between 1 and -i odor';, lit- -aid quick.\. i- Sal Rawlings. as every one else sit em- c) liave been diunk or asleep. As -he ha- joined the Salvation Ar mv. I ll go to the barracks the first tiling m the morning and look for her." "1 hope you'd tind her," answered ('alt'.n. drawing a Ion;' breath. "A man's life lianas on her evidence. They turned to go, C'alton having lu st given Mother Guttersnipe some loose silver, which she seized on witli an avarious clutch. The sight «'f money had a genial effect on her nature for she held the candle at the head of the stairs as they went dowms** that ti e\ should not 1 »reak their heads. The street d«»or war- open. and, aft r groping their way along the dark passage, with it- pitfalls. they found tht mselves in the open street. "Thank'heaven," said Caiton. t;tk ii«" oil* his hat and drawing a lout; 11 p o ® breatli. " Thank heaven we are safe ly out of that den !" "At all events our journy has not been wasted," said the detective, as they walked along. "Wove found out where Mr. Fitzgerald was the ni'dit of the murder, so he will bo safe." "That depends upon Sal Rawl ings." answered ("alt on. gravely; • but come, let us have a gla-s of biandv, for I feel quite ill after my experi ence of low life. CHAITKR XVI missinu. I he next day Kilsip called at Cat ton's otlice late in the afternoon and found the lawyer eagerly expecting hun. Ihe d tective s face, however, looked lather dismal, and Caiton was n»t reassured by its expression. "Well: h• said, impatientiv. when Kilsip ha icom I the do' »r an 1 takt n his seat. "Where is she "That's ju-t wh it 1 want to know.' answered the detective, coollv: "J went to the Sanation Arm\ head quai ters and iu;idt inqiiii abou: hi r. it appears that -he had beei ii. ti.t aim) a- a i.a'.lelujah las-. bu got tii'id of it ii a week. ami wen ciT with a flit ud U S\dut v. Sin carried on ;. r* . i I: ft* t>{ d.ss;j at ,• i. 1 ut. ulim all ly. :» i fiieiul got sie. . f her. and the la-t thing the\ uean about lu r was that -he had taken ui with a Chinaman in i » of ti.t Svd ley -'un.s. I tea graph* 1 at one t S\ dm y. ai. Ig. t i- \ th : was no pel sou ut the nam* o! Sa PRESS AND CAROLINIAN, OCTOBER *2o. i Rawlings known to the Svdnev po- ! lice, but they said they would make in quiries. aD«i l p t ine know t l _e re-j suit." "Ah ! she has. no doubt, changed her name," said Caiton. thoughtfully, stroking his cLiu. "I wonder what for*" , -Wanted to get rid of the army. I *- • ii fcTrect," answered Kilsip. dryly. "The straying lamb did not care, about being hunted lack to the fold " "And w hen did she join the army "The very day aft« r the murder. "Rather -udden -conversion j "Ye- but she said the death of the woman on Thursday night had so startled her that she went -traight off* to the army to get her religion properly fixed up. "The elTet'ts of fright, no doubt. said ("alton, drvlv. "I've met a good nmnv example:- of these sudden conver ion-, but they never last long as a rule—it s a case of the devil was sick, the devil a monk would be. • more than anything else, (rood looking "So so. T believe, replied Kilsip. shrugging his shoulders. "\ ery ig-i j norant -could neither read nor ■ write." "That accounts for her not asking J for Fitzgerald when she called at j the club—she probablv did ik>l i know whom she had been sent for. 1 [t will resolve itself into a question . of identification, I expect. Howev er. if the police can't find her. we will put and advertisement in the, piper offering a reward, ami send j i out handbills to the same effect. * Sie must be found. Brian Fitzger ald - life haul's on a thread, and i that thiead is Sal Rawlinjjs. i „ ° 1 "\es! assented Kilsip. rubbing his hands together. "I'.veil if Mr. Fitzgerald acknowledges that lie was at Mother (iuttersnipe's on the night in question, she will have to prove that he was there, as no one else saw him." "Are you sure of that?" "As sure as anv can be in such a i c ise. It was a late hour when he came and every one seems to have been asleep except the dying woman and Sal : and as one is dead, the other is the only person that can . prove that he was there at the time when the murder was committed in the hansom. "And Mother Guttersnipe '" "Was drunk, as she acknowledged last night. She thought if a gentle man did call it must have been the I other one." "The other one ?" repeated Caiton in a puzzled voice. "\\ hat one ! "Oliver Wlivte." 1 • Caiton arose from his seat with a blank nir of a-tonishment. "(>liver VN hyte I he said, as soon as he could tmd Ir.s voice "Was he in the hab it of going theie Kilsip curled himself up in his j se at lik» a -leek cat. and. pushing »orw&rd i.is head till bis nose looked t like the beak of a bir 1 of J-i'ey, looked keenly at Caiton. "la ok Lfit, sir. iit- said, in u it purring \ "ti -re - a go 1 v ileal in this case which don t seen; plain—m fact, the further we r, o in- J » t«_> :t the- m>i« i..ixt 1 u *> it seems t j r> Ck - l uk •'! -it M tLi r C'littei p sn:p« thi> i:. ri ;i._. and she toll m I t iiat \\ l.\ t h.i 1 v:-ired tin* "( 'u• t : ... eu ral ?.• • - u!;i' -) e l av ' ' 1 to ! : r v w- ; a ■ "But who the devil is this woman • they call the V " said Calton, ' 1 irritably. "She seems to be at th* 1 bottom of the whole affair—everv ] * path we take leads to her,"' "I know hardly anything about her,' replied Ktlsip. '"except that she was a good looking woman of about 4'.». She came out from England to Sydney a few months ago, then on i to here. How she to Mother Guttersnipe's I can't find out, though I've tried to puiup that* old woman, but she s as close as wax, it's mv belief she knows more about * this dead woman than she chooses to tell." • But what could she have told Fitzgerald to make him act in ihis sillv manner? A stranger who comes from England and dies in a Melbourne slum can't possibly know I , anything about Miss Frettlby. Kilsip looked puzzled. -» ... j ••J must confess that it is a riddle,'" 1 he said at length : "but it -Mr. i itz • gerald would only speak, it would ' clear everything up." "What, about v. ho murdered Winter i "Well.it mii»ht not go so far as i . t that, but it might supply the motive | for the crime." ••I dare say you are right," an 1* i i I swered Calton, thoughtfully, as the detective rose and put on his hat. I• , | •But it's no use. Fitzgerald, for some reason or another, has evident ' lv made up his mind not to speak, so our only hope in saving him lies in ' finding this girl." "If flic's anywhere in Australia ' you mav be sure she'll be found," answered Kil-ip. confidently, as he i took bis departure. "Australia isn't i so overcrowded as all that. CHAPTER XVII. THE TRIAL. ! i In spite oi the utmost vigilance on j the part of the police, and the ofier 1 ill of a large reward both by Calton, on behalf of the accused, and by Frettl- I by, the much desired !Sal llawlings still remained hidden. The million aire had maintained a most friend ly attitude towards Brian through out the whole affair. He refused to I believe him guilty, and when Calton , told him of the defense of proving an alibi by means of Sal Rawlings, he immediately offered a large re-, ward, which was enough in itself to i set every person with any time on their hands hunting for the missing witness. All Australia and New ' Zealand rang with the extremely plebeian name of Sal Rawlings, the papeis being full of notices offering rewards, and handbills of staring red letters were ported up in all railway t stations. Notwithstanding all this, Sal Rawling was still undiscovered, 1 and Calton. in despair, began to - think that she must be dead. But Madge, though at times her courage ~ gave way. was still hopeful. "God wi'l not permit such a judi ; dicia'. crime to be committed ;i> the • murder of innocent man," she de clared. • l Mr. CV.toi , to whom sh-a s-aid this. I si. ok l. s heal doubtfully. "God II has permitte 1 it to take place be ~ fore," he an-wered softly, "and we can only j i'l 0 n the future by the • past." • At last, the day of the long ex pected trial came and as Calton sat : i:: hi- c.'" 1 : '. Ling \-r i.i- brief, a tiers t .tc.T : i! ; t l L . MI . Frettlby ai I Lis. laughter wished to see him. When they came in the barrister saw the millionaire looked haggard and ill. and there was a O O look of worry on his face. "There is mv daughter, Calton. he said, after hurried greetings had been exchanged. "She wants to be present in court duiing Fitzgerald s 1 4 trial, and nothing I can say will dis s lade her." Calton turned, and looked at the girl in some surpiise. ] ! "Yes!" she answered, meeting his ° look steadilv, though her face was veiy pale; "I must be there. I shall go mad with anxiety unless I know how the trial goes on." "But think of the disagreeable amount of at tent i >n vcu will attract," * mired the lawyer. o • No one will recognize me," she said calmly; "1 am very plainly dressed, and I will wear this veil:*' and. drawing one from her pocket, she went over to a small looking r l:iss which was hanging on the wall 0 o o and tried it on her face. Calton looked in a perplexed man ner at Mr. Frettlby. "I'm afraid yon must consent," he said. "Very well, replied the other, almost sternly, while a look of an noyance passed over his face. "I will leave her in your charge." "And you ?" "I don't care rbout seeing a man I whom I have had at my dinner table in the prisoner's dock, much as I | sympathize with him. Good day ; and with a curt nod he took hi -1 leave. When the door closed on her fath er, Madge placed her hand on Ca ton's arm. "Any hope ; she whispered, look ing at him through the black veil. ••The merest chance." answered Calton, putting his brief into his bag. "We have done everything in our power to discover this girl, but without effect. If she does not come at the eleventh hour I'm afraid ' Brian Fitzgerald is a doomed man. Madge fell on her knees with a , stilled cry. "Oh, God of mercy," she cried, raising her hands as if in pray* r, ! "save aim. Save my darling, and let him not die for the crime c f another." God" She dropped her face in her hands 1 and wept convulsively, as the law- I yer touched her lightly on the shoul der. ! "Come!" he said, kindlv. "Be the brave girl you were, and we may save him yet. 'Joe hour is darkest before the dawn, you know. Madge dried her tears and fol lowed the lawyer to the cab. whicl was waiting f>r them at the door They drove quickly up to the court, and Calton put her in a quiet place 1 where she could see the dock an 1 vet be unobserved by the people ii the body of tlie court. Just a* lu . was leading her she touched his arm "Tell him. she whispered, in : . trembling voice, "tell my darling 1 am herw." Calton nodded and hurried awai i to put on his wig and gown, whih . Madge looked hurrie 1 y round th« . court from her point of vantage . It was crowded with fashionabli Melbourne of both >exes. an 1 tLej were H\\ tu'kil.g I in - ii' 1 ie i whimpers. The popular character o the j rw !;• r. his good-look* at. 1 en gag» mei.t ! lge Frettlby. f yetht: W.th the i Xt! uor lsn.ry .;I cumstances of tbo c&s\ u*id I public curiosity to the highest pitch and. consequently, everybody wbo could possibly manage to gain ad mission was there. When the prisoner was brought in there was a great flutter among the ladies, and some of them even bad the bad taste to produce opera Brian noticed this, and he flushed up to the the roots of his fair hair, for he felt his degradation acutelv. He was an intensely proud man. and to be placed in the crimi nal dock, with a lot of frivolous peo ple. who had called themselves his friend-, looking at him a* though he were a new actor or a wild animal, was galling in the extreme. He was dressed in black, and looked pale and wan. but all tlie ladies declared that he was as good looking as ever, and they were sure lie was inno * cent. The jurv was sworn in, and the crown prosecutor arose to deliver his opening address. lie gave a rapid sketch of the crime, which was merely a repetition iof what had been published in the newspapers, and then proceeded to enumerate the witnesses who could prove the prisoner guilty. He would c til the landlady of the deceased to S'IOW that ill blood existed between the prisoner and the murdered mar, and that the accused had called on j the deceased a week piior to the , commital of the crime and threatened i his life. (There was great excite ment at this, and several ladies de cided, on the spur of the moment, that the horrid man was guilty, bat '; the majority of the female specta tors still refused to believe in tho j guilt of such i good looking young fellow.) He would call a wituess who could prove that Wiiyte was ; drunk on the night of the murder, ami went along Russell Street, In the direction of Collins street : the ; , cabman Roy-ton could swear to the fact that the prisoner had hailed the . I cab, and after going away for a 1 short time returned and entered the ! ■ cab with the deceased. He would • also prove that the prisoner left the • cab at the grammar school in the ' St. Kilda road, and on the ariival of the cab at the junction he discovered | the deceased had been murdered. ■ I The cabman Rankin would prove " that he drove the prisoner from the St. Kilda road to Powlett street in East Melbourne, where he got out, ' and he would call the prisoner's landlady to prove that the prisoner " resided in Powlett street, and that 'on the nijjht of the murder he had 1 ° - ' ii it reached home till shortly after - o'clock. He would also call the de tective who had charge of the ca-e. • t » prove the tin ling of a glove be longing to the deceased in the pock •j • et of the coat which the pri-»one: u wore on the night of the murder . • and the doctor who had examined '• ?!.»• body >f the deceased would :t »vi 1 !jc that the death \va- cais. 1 J by inhalation of chlorof rm. A- h 'had now fully shown the chain of } *■ viii♦ nee which he proposed to j rove ' he would call the tir-t witness Mi. ' colm Roy - ton. •• TO lih roSTIM Fl'. I e - - I in rt-iiHf In ltu*liii»H /, The Raleigh Spirit of the -A;--- ( 'There were 141 arrests by the } ■ ice in thi.-. city list month, a tie:i lou- increase over tie -afue montb ' - »>t j • ar. \\. .. ' :.»} : : r- tion
Hickory Democrat (Hickory, N.C.)
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Oct. 25, 1888, edition 1
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