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About The Valentine Democrat. (Valentine, Cherry Co., Neb.) 1896-1898 | View Entire Issue (May 12, 1898)
1 I I It I If I II I i i ft - - Looking me straight in the eye and beginning at the very beginning -Franklin Jarvis told me his story I am a manufacturer of dress goods said he My business carries rae down into Barclay street and the lower quarters of the town and on that account I rise early every morning For many years my wife has not break fasted with me We were married fifteen years ago rand our story is an old one We mar ried in poverty and were happy We grew to wealth and were indifferent When fortune began to smile upon us -my wife became ambitious and longed to shine in the social set of which we rhad read only a little and in gilded paragraphs I opposed her and we quarreled rsometimes gently but more often bit terly Our words at times rose high and wlnn as on a recent occasion sue showed great extravagance in her at tempts to get into high circles I would leave the house and not return for a week at a time Thus it grew steadily on for the last five years getting worse and worse I will tell you now said he hesi tating and half apologetically that for the last live years since our trouble be gau I have been employing my spare - time in a little amusement whicn I I have very rigidly kept secret from my friends I have been writing stories I During these periods when my wife and I were estranged and neither of us would humble ourselves enough to make the first approaches I have with drawn from home and taking up my quarters in a hotel have amused myself evenings writing fiction This has been any pastime as other men drive horses or seek the billiard table My stories Hiave been in print and doubtless you I x ItT THE MURDER OF A WIFE 23 P2 F7y isSM fit fflSSSSffii night just as it -was growing ONE and the lengthening shad ows brought weird memories to me I was disturbed by the rattling of a cab which stopped at the door with a loud Whoa from the driver and a pull that brought the horse on its haunches A man sprung out of the cab and hastily running up the steps pulled frantically at the door bell Although it was nearly dark I had time to dis tinguish the features of one of the lead ing lawyers of the city As my servant showed him into the front parlor by the window of which I was sitting he came forward and grasping me by both hands said Mr Martluot we need no introduction we both know each other professionally so a personal acquaintance is unnecessary - I motioned mmte acliairIwill be seated said he but only long enough for you to get ready to go with me I want you to go to the Tombs juy cnent in whose behalf I have called to see you is there He is in the shadow of the gallows The noose is around his neck It is no unusual thing for me to be called by a professional man and there fore I gave no thought to the case as -we were rattling through the streets lut the impatience of the lawyer -was such that he would not allow the cab man to slacken even upon the slippery pavements We were nearly there be fore he mentioned the case He seemed enable to talk from nervousness When the shadow of the Tombs fell upon the cab he turned to me and said I can tell you only one thing about the case my client is innocent That Is -absolute In his confession to me he could explain nothing he only knows rthat he is innocent With this brief prelude I followed my -guide up the stairs leading to the Tombs and into the somber gallery that -runs along murderers row In the last -cell surrounded by not more than ten -square feet of space sat my man He occupied a wooden chair and when the turnkey unlocked the door he gave no sign excepting to bury bis head deeper In his hands and groan At a glance I saw that he was a gen tleman He was a man in the prime of life not over 40 well dressed clean tshaven and handsome This I saw in spite of the dark gloom upon his coun tenance for uever in my life had I seen such abject despair shown -in the face of a human being At the sound of the lawyers voice he Mifted up his head and at the mention -of my name a ray of hope seemed to Come across his countenance He rose shook hands with us both and beck oned us to seats on kis rude cot Now said the lawyer leaning back cand leaving us face to face together tell Mr Martinot everything that hap pened that night and conceal nothing from him Tell him just as you have -told me Mr Martinot have read many of them under an assumed name My wife knew of my little pastime and ridiculed it When I wrote at home I could only do it in the still hours of the night when she was asleep Last Wednesday morning at tlie breakfast table my wife who had been extravagant of late brought up the sub ject of a residence uptown She want ed to be opposite Central Park and to ride with the swells of Fifth avenue I opposed her and she retorted sharply You will regret this I said as I rose from the table Yoa inay regret it sooner than you think By God I cried as the memory of the things she had said swept over me anew 1 wisJi I could go away and never see your faceagais Of course I was sorry for the words as soon as I had said them and during the day I squared matters with my con science by sending a basket of flowers to her I even notified a real estate manager that I was in the market for an uptown residence r I was detained that night at my office and when I reached home I he church clock opposite was tolling the In the basement -went back down the basement stairs Bounding up the staircase I threw open the door of my room and stepped inside A moment later I was pulling the bell frantically and shout ing for help There upon the edge of the bed lay my wife with the blood dripping from her head and heart She was uncov ered with one arm hanging to the floor Her countenance was fearfully distorted She had been cruelly mur deredstabbed in the head and heart Stabbed to death by the hand of a mid night assassin In a moment the room was filled with frightened servants and I was sending them in every direction for physicians policemen neighbors But there was nothing to be done She was dead That much we all saw at a glance Her head was slashed al most beyond recognition and the hand that had done it was a desperate one I was too dazed that night to con sider But the next day when the In quest was held I saw the awkward position in which I was placed The coroner in his search of the premises came upon the manuscripts lying upon the little table in my writing room and there word for -word lay before him the act description of the murder of my wife just as it was in my manu script If I had killed her before wri ting I could not have written down a more accurate account of the details I must confess that when I came out of the Tombs that night I was puzzled The awfulness of the story and the cer tainty of conviction were all that I could bring to mind Drive me to the home of Franklin Jarvis I said to the lawyer Let me in the front door and leave me Come back for me in one hour I hardly knew what I intended to do although my mind was full of vague suggestions As the front door of the fated house closed between me and the street a shiver ran over me in spite of my many experiences and I walked softly the full length of the hall and seated myself In the little writing room Taking up pen and Ink I took the blank sheets of paper before me and began to write as though I were living the night of the murder over again As I wrote I turned and laid the sheets one by one upon a small Cairo stand back of me which had evidently been used for that purpose for there were hour of 11 I went sof tlv in at the front blotters unon It door and knowing that my wife would Scarcely had I written a page when I I HEARD A VOICE SAY FOR THE LOVE OF GOD CAN IT BE HE be asleep at that hour I walked through the long hall to a little study situated at the rear end of the hall Here stood a small writing desk and here I knew I could be alone for an hour to quiet my mind from the business events of the day and to indulge in my favorite recre ation of story writing A plot had come to my mind as I came uptown in the cars and I resolved to write it while it was fresh A flat tering letter from a publisher who had accepted my latest story made me re solve to supply him with another as soon as possible This time my wife shall know of my work and be proud of it I will enter society and court the litterati while she enjoys herself with the but terflies I said to myself smiling as I dipped my pen in the ink The plot of my story was a singular one It was the Murder of a Wife With accuracy I went into each startling detail and as I wrote down the bloodthirsty words I saw that my anger for my wife Was melting away even as the beauty of the story grew underneath my fingers When I had finished I saw that I had achieved what would be the greatest work of my life and that honors would come to me from the public who would read my story When I had laid down my pen I sighed a sigh of relief I could not do that again for Sl 000 I said aloud No I repeated as I walked through the hall still Intent with the plot no I could not do that again for 10000 Did you speak sir inquired a wo mans voice Who is that I asked It is I Ellen the cook I heard somebody walking around sir and I came to see who it was All right Ellen I said it is I Go back to bed And Ellen who sleeps hS1 mminnIHCl t thought I heard behind me a stealthy step On the second page I heard it again This time there were whispers I listened and heard a voice say For the love of God can it be he I sprang to my feet and turned around A loud shriek rose to the ceiling and out upon the hall floor there fell a heavy weight It was a man and over him bent a woman You scared him almost to death sir said she I told him that it was only one of them detectives that they are always sending here but the back of your head looked so much like mas ters that it scared him most to death Why should that scare him I ask ed Sure sir I dont know but lately he has been like like At this moment the man opened his eyes Forgive me forgive me he cried I have dreamed of it day and night forgive I will forgive you nothing said I until you confess how your curiosity made you creep up behind your master that night and read what he was writ ing Confess how you went upstairs and killed your mistress and robbed her of her jewels confess how you hid after the others were called and pre tended to be asleep and confess how you have allowed an innocent man to suffer for your crime Truly frightened now the wretch told how he overheard the quarrel on the morning and how he had planned the murder of his mistress And how and by what dastardly means he had found the very description of the mur der before his eyes and had followed it out with awful correctness Chicago Chronicle Our best friends are apt to appear bad in amateur theatricals V -v-- at 3C JST AGEICULTUEAL NEWS THINGS PERTAINING TO FARM AND HOME THE Alfalfa a Drouth Resisting Plant Irrigation Coming to Every Farmer Clearing Up the Barnyard Best Branches of Farming A Drouth Resisting Plant The chief reason why alfalfa bay will grow in the short grass country is that it has long roots They have been known to strike twenty feet deep for moisture The plant will not thrive therefore in soil that is not open and deep An Ideal place for its growth is along the river bottoms in the western part of Kansas land under which great lakes of sheet water miles upon miles in extent are found from ten to twenty five feet below the sur face The roots of alfalfa readily push down to the water and drink when they need moisture and the result is that the plant blossoms and prospers and becomes a never failing source of revenue to the man who cultivates it On the rolling uplands where there is scarcely an average rainfall of twenty five inches a jcar the plant will live and produce hay nearly always it makes good pasturage under ordinary conditions there and is almost certain every year to produce a line crop of seed All the uplands re fertile enough the only trouble about making use of that fertility being the lack of moisture Irrigation has not yet suc ceeded in bringing water in abundance to the assistance of the tiller of the soil in this region and therefore only such a plant can live as has deep roots and a pertinacity that even the hot winds of Kansas can not shake Har pers Weekly Irrigation Irrigation in some form will come sooner or later and the farmer will then be independent of drouths In fact irrigation can be practiced on a majority of farms if the owners will go to the expense of arranging for a water supply The windmill hydraul ic ram and engine can be used to force water into a tank or reservoir from which it can be obtained for crops by gravity What farmers should consid er is not the expense but the prospect ive gain It has happened year after year that at critical stages during the growth of crops drouth appears and destroys the farmers hopes the loss during a single season being greater than the expense of an irrigating plant It is also possible that with an unlim ited supply of water the yields may be more than doubled and the profits greatly increased In this region the rains will assist the farmer the greater portion of the growing period the sup ply of water to be stored being only sufficient to tide the crops over a di spell With- the ability to apply water to crops at will and the liberal use of fertilizers the crops grown on land that has been used for experimental pur poses have been enormous as much as three times the average yield having been secured Clearing Up the Barnyard After the great bulk of winter made manure is drawn from the barnyard and spread upon the fields there al ways remains a considerable amount of scattering manure which if not gath ered up is sure to be in large part wast ed It should at least be always piled in heaps where it will be less liable to waste than if spread In most barn yards there are accumulations of finely rotted manure that have been left in previous years It does not pay to leave such rich manure to go to waste Two or three loads of such scrapings are easily worth a dozen from the piles of unfermented manure Much of this old manure is rich enough to be used as a hill dressing for corn to be drop ped in the hill with the seed grain It will make the corn come up a dark green and be more vigorous all the sea son Best Branches of Farming Dairying and poultry keeping are about the only branches of farming that afford a nearly continuous income The main and staple crops yield a har vest but once a year The profits of farming generally speaking come slowly and must be patiently waited for To some young men ambitious to get rich fast this seems to be a reason for choosing to engage in some other business But the returns of intelli gent farmers although slow are pret ty safe and sure The young live stock which a farmer raises must be fed and cared for a long time before any profit comes back but the profit comes in due time Their growth and increase In weight goes on silently and steadily as money at interest and in the end should amount to much more One im portant return of profit for labor be stowed and the cost of fertilizers ap plied comes to the skilled farmer in the course of years through the increased fertility and value of his farm Peas on Poor Land Land that is too poor for any other kind of crop may be profitably sown with peas putting in with the seed enough lime phosphate and potash to make the grain This on very poor land is a better first crop than clover as the pea grain is large and will produce a strong enough stalk to live while the young clover is so small that it may easily be killed out before it gets root hold in the soil It is hard to get a clover catch on poor soil while peas will grow no matter how poor the soil may be Mutton for Farmers Tables There is no meat quite so convenient for farm use as mutton as the carcass of an average sheep can be easily kept In most families until it can be eaten It is very easy to kill and dress a sheep Not even poultry can be prepared for the table with so little trouble What is better the mutton killed on the farm Is of superior quality It lacks the woolly taste which so often comes to mutton from sheep that have been long driven to market or that have had to endure long journeys by railroad often without food or drink for twenty four to thirty six hours It is one of the ad vantages of better prices for wool that more farmers will be able to keep sheep If mutton could more generally supersede fat greasy pork on farmers tables they and their families would be much more healthy than they are under present conditions Sweet Potatoes Some of the varieties of sweet pota toes that are most popular in the South will not succeed with Northern grow ers The sweet potato requires a long season to grow in and only the early kind will succeed in the Northern States It is usually a mistake to send South for sweet potatoes to plant The Northern varieties propagated in slips for planting by seedsmen are much better as well as cheaper than trying to winter the sweet potato and cut it into sets for planting as Is done with the ordinary white potato It is a great advantage in growing sweet potatoes to have well rooted plants ready to set out v hcn the soil and air are warm enough to insure rapid growth Most of the successful Southern varieties of sweet potatoes are watery and poor when grown North Horticultural Hints Give the orchard all the potash that it needs Coarse raw manure is not fit for the garden Toads frogs and lizards are useful in the garden The gem melon is the best seller in the market Prune the quince tree and train it to a single stem Extra work in getting a good seed bed pays in garden work Cut off all the bruised roots when planting a tree but do not mutilate the top A neglected orchard encumbers land that might be used profitably for other purposes A late crop of cabbage is easily grown for the seed can be planted in the open ground Five acres in cucumbers for pickles will ordinarily pay as much as all the rest of the farm Seedling Peach Tree3 In every peach orchard free from the yellows there will be more or less seed ling peach trees springing up every year from pits dropped after the peach was eaten the previous fall It requires freezing to open these pits and the germ usually comes forth with the first warm weather of spring These seed lings will usually be of poor quality as they are only natural fruit But if they are set out in rich soil as soon as the shoots start they will grow rapidly and be plenty large enough to be budded in July next It is a comparatively easy thing to learn to bud In this way a stock of peach trees can easily be se cured if one plants peach stones fron healthy fruit In the fall and takes care to use only buds from healthy stock for bndding purposes Location for Bees Many people fail of success with beea because they do not place the hives right If too shaded the bees are like ly to be attacked by the moth miller which breeds those worms that destroy the honej It is well to have the bees up early so the hives should front tc the east so as to catch the first rays of the morning sun Either a well roofed j low building should be put up as a bee stand or the hives should be set on a bench under a tree all through the summer In winter it is not best that bees should see sunlight If an under ground cellar out of doors can be fitted up where the temperature may be kepi below freezing all the time it will be much better than the warmer house cellar Guessing v Knowing Weights Wnen the farmer sells one of his ani mals to the butcher to kill and market the latter has every advantage He is used every day to estimating weights and his business makes it necessary to guess closely So in most such sales by guess the farmer is apt to be cheated often by fifty or a hundred weight Every farmer who has occasion to sell anything by weight should procure a pair of farm scales They will save their cost often In a single year Notes for Shepherds Sheep fertilize the pastures Sheep are death to wild mustard Eastern Australia has 100000000 sheep Dont keep a flock In unventilated quarters The Merino matures too slowly for a profitable mutton sheep The demand for stock sheep has been very strong this season Second growth clover is highly rec ommended for lambs after weaning Once in a while the stables should have an extra and thorough cleaning Dry feed and nothing else will likely cause sick sheep before spring Oil meal is a remedy The ram is by no means a coward and we have seen one put up a success ful fight against a dog To compel the ewe to raise a lamb and grow a big fleece the same year is too much work for her The breeding of lamb rams is a seri ous mistake to both the breeder and customer says a flockmaster Western Plowman A man is always looking for letters but he never answers them -- MULES FROM THE MINES Antics of Those that Are Brought Up to Daylight The superintendent of the Sweet Springs mine undertook a thorough xenovation of the mine the day after the miners went out on the strike and the first step preparatory to a general cleaning up was to remove the mules from the -underground stables and put them out on pasture Some of them bad not been out of the mine for months a number bad heen below the surface for two or three years and one had not seen the sun shine for seven years as long as Jacob served for Leah They were led from the mine twenty-seven patient creatures and turned loose in Morrisons pasture field They stood about close together knee deep in the lush green grass and sweet red clover with drooping heads and eyes half closed as though dazed by their sudden change of circumstances At last as the sun dropped down behind Bowmans hill one gray old veteran threw up his head and sniffed at the fine fragrant air blowing down the val lej and in a moment a little movement went through the whole group The old leader wheeled about sharp ly took a long look at the clear sky above the brawling little brook chat tering over the stones the grass and the trees then he threw up his held stiffened lias tail i vu forth a pro longed penetrating strident which woke the echoes over on Maple ridge and with an awkward lumbering bound he started down the long slope In an instant the whole mass had separated and was In inotionjT Such running racing kicking and jumping were never before seen Stiff knees dim eyes and spavined joints were all forgotten in the pure enjoy ment of out of doors They brayed and bellowed ran and kicked stopped for breath then began again The whole village gathered at the fence to see the fun The men and boys laughed and shouted the babies crowed and one or two women cried a little for there were sores and lame ness and weakness in plenty When night fell they were still roll ing about and racing forgetful of the hunger and thirst that might be fied by the running stream and the grass Old Mrs Bascom who lives at the edge of the pasture field was Avakened in the dark hours toward morning by the rapid rush of hoofs thundering down the hillside and turning over on her pillow she murmured drowsily Dear Lord who would a thought that any livin critter would be so glad and thankful for no thin but air and free domsNew Lexington Tribune Unruly Sledge Dogs Carlo a big retriever opened the ball by killing one of the Ostiak dogslle swaggered about among the pack and exhibited all the supposed characteris tics of the Britisher abroad To check his homicidal or ratner canicitiai pru clivities I tied the dead dog round his neck This however he evidently viewed as an excellent arrangement especially devised for the arctic where the food supply is defective and at once proceeded to make a cold lunch of his late adversary looking up at me with grateful eyes evidently think ing that it was very considerate of Jackson thus to provide him with a larder right at hand After this the dead dog was removed and Carlo was always decorated with a muzzle I afterward made a good sledge dog of hini but he could not stand the severe climate and although the doctor made a blanket coat for him the poor old chap died sledging during the first fort night in spite of it The rest of the pack were hardly less bellicose but conducted their battles on lines hardly in accordance with civil ized warfare With the exception of two or three dogs I always had the en tire pack chained up having taken out a large supply of English chains but I found these quite inadequate to i strain these comparatively small dogs One dog would break loose and then commence a fight with another The whole pack would become wildly ex cited and all would then fall upon the losing combatant The result would be another dead dog F G Jackson in the Geographical Journal They Were Wed Pretty Miss Polly declared shed not wed Shed rather yes rather far rather be dead Twere better to lie in the cold cold grave Than be some horrid mans humble slave For what is a wife but a slave she said A slave when once she is wed Handsome young Harry too said hed not wed For a wife mast be petted and pampered and fed Twere better to live your life all alone That yonr nose may escape the pro verbial grindstone For a husband is naught bat a slave1 he said A slave when once he is ved As might be expected this perverse young pair Fell in love at first sight and did straight way declare Twere better far better they twain should be one Than lonely to sigh and true happiness shun aFor Love is a slave yes a slave so they said Forever a slave and they wed Chicago Times Herald Hobnail Shoes In many parts of Lancashire and Yorkshire shoes for the working class es of both sexes are sold with heavy square hobnails whose clatter in the streets in the morning as the wearere go to work is almost intolerable A favorite trick of a scoundrel is to place good men in such a position that that are compelled to stand by hirk in I JJ
