Round the Fire Stories

“Who’s there?” cried a voice, as she tapped at the door.

“I am here, sir—Mrs. Woods.”

“I beg that you will leave me in peace. Go back to your room thisinstant!” cried the voice, which was, to the best of her belief, that ofher master. The tone was so harsh and so unlike her master’s usualmanner, that she was surprised and hurt.

“I thought I heard you calling, sir,” she explained, but no answer wasgiven to her. Mrs. Woods looked at the clock as she returned to herroom, and it was then half-past eleven.

At some period between eleven and twelve (she could not be positive asto the exact hour) a patient called upon the doctor and was unable toget any reply from him. This late visitor was Mrs. Madding, the wife ofthe village grocer who was dangerously ill of typhoid fever. Dr. Lanahad asked her to look in the last thing and let him know how her husbandwas progressing. She observed that the light was burning in the study,but having knocked several times at the surgery door without response,she concluded that the doctor had been called out, and so returned home.

There is a short, winding drive with a lamp at the end of it leadingdown from the house to the road. As Mrs. Madding emerged from the gate aman was coming along the footpath. Thinking that it might be Dr. Lanareturning from some professional visit, she waited for him, and wassurprised to see that it was Mr. Arthur Morton, the young squire. In thelight of the lamp she observed that his manner was excited, and that hecarried in his hand a heavy hunting-crop. He was turning in a

t the gatewhen she addressed him.

“The doctor is not in, sir,” said she.

“How do you know that?” he asked, harshly.

“I have been to the surgery door, sir.”

“I see a light,” said the young squire, looking up the drive. “That isin his study, is it not?”

“Yes, sir; but I am sure that he is out.”

“Well, he must come in again,” said young Morton, and passed through thegate while Mrs. Madding went upon her homeward way.

At three o’clock that morning her husband suffered a sharp relapse, andshe was so alarmed by his symptoms that she determined to call thedoctor without delay. As she passed through the gate she was surprisedto see some one lurking among the laurel bushes. It was certainly a man,and to the best of her belief Mr. Arthur Morton. Preoccupied with herown troubles, she gave no particular attention to the incident, buthurried on upon her errand.

When she reached the house she perceived to her surprise that the lightwas still burning in the study. She therefore tapped at the surgerydoor. There was no answer. She repeated the knocking several timeswithout effect. It appeared to her to be unlikely that the doctor wouldeither go to bed or go out leaving so brilliant a light behind him, andit struck Mrs. Madding that it was possible that he might have droppedasleep in his chair. She tapped at the study window, therefore, butwithout result. Then, finding that there was an opening between thecurtain and the woodwork, she looked through.

The small room was brilliantly lighted from a large lamp on the centraltable, which was littered with the doctor’s books and instruments. Noone was visible, nor did she see anything unusual, except that in thefurther shadow thrown by the table a dingy white glove was lying uponthe carpet. And then suddenly, as her eyes became more accustomed to thelight, a boot emerged from the other end of the shadow, and sherealized, with a thrill of horror, that what she had taken to be a glovewas the hand of a man, who was prostrate upon the floor. Understandingthat something terrible had occurred, she rang at the front door, rousedMrs. Woods, the housekeeper, and the two women made their way into thestudy, having first dispatched the maidservant to the police-station.

At the side of the table, away from the window, Dr. Lana was discoveredstretched upon his back and quite dead. It was evident that he had beensubjected to violence, for one of his eyes was blackened, and there weremarks of bruises about his face and neck. A slight thickening andswelling of his features appeared to suggest that the cause of his deathhad been strangulation. He was dressed in his usual professionalclothes, but wore cloth slippers, the soles of which were perfectlyclean. The carpet was marked all over, especially on the side of thedoor, with traces of dirty boots, which were presumably left by themurderer. It was evident that some one had entered by the surgery door,had killed the doctor, and had then made his escape unseen. That theassailant was a man was certain, from the size of the footprints andfrom the nature of the injuries. But beyond that point the police foundit very difficult to go.

There were no signs of robbery, and the doctor’s gold watch was safe inhis pocket. He kept a heavy cash-box in the room, and this wasdiscovered to be locked but empty. Mrs. Woods had an impression that alarge sum was usually kept there, but the doctor had paid a heavy cornbill in cash only that very day, and it was conjectured that it was tothis and not to a robber that the emptiness of the box was due. Onething in the room was missing—but that one thing was suggestive. Theportrait of Miss Morton, which had always stood upon the side-table, hadbeen taken from its frame, and carried off. Mrs. Woods had observed itthere when she waited upon her employer that evening, and now it wasgone. On the other hand, there was picked up from the floor a greeneye-patch, which the housekeeper could not remember to have seen before.Such a patch might, however, be in the possession of a doctor, and therewas nothing to indicate that it was in any way connected with the crime.

Suspicion could only turn in one direction, and Arthur Morton, the youngsquire, was immediately arrested. The evidence against him wascircumstantial, but damning. He was devoted to his sister, and it wasshown that since the rupture between her and Dr. Lana he had been heardagain and again to express himself in the most vindictive terms towardsher former lover. He had, as stated, been seen somewhere about eleveno’clock entering the doctor’s drive with a hunting-crop in his hand. Hehad then, according to the theory of the police, broken in upon thedoctor, whose exclamation of fear or of anger had been loud enough toattract the attention of Mrs. Woods. When Mrs. Woods descended, Dr. Lanahad made up his mind to talk it over with his visitor, and had,therefore, sent his housekeeper back to her room. This conversation hadlasted a long time, had become more and more fiery, and had ended by apersonal struggle, in which the doctor lost his life. The fact, revealedby a _post-mortem_, that his heart was much diseased—an ailment quiteunsuspected during his life—would make it possible that death might inhis case ensue from injuries which would not be fatal to a healthy man.Arthur Morton had then removed his sister’s photograph, and had made hisway homeward, stepping aside into the laurel bushes to avoid Mrs.Madding at the gate. This was the theory of the prosecution, and thecase which they presented was a formidable one.

On the other hand, there were some strong points for the defence. Mortonwas high-spirited and impetuous, like his sister, but he was respectedand liked by everyone, and his frank and honest nature seemed to beincapable of such a crime. His own explanation was that he was anxiousto have a conversation with Dr. Lana about some urgent family matters(from first to last he refused even to mention the name of his sister).He did not attempt to deny that this conversation would probably havebeen of an unpleasant nature. He had heard from a patient that thedoctor was out, and he therefore waited until about three in the morningfor his return, but as he had seen nothing of him up to that hour, hehad given it up and had returned home. As to his death, he knew no moreabout it than the constable who arrested him. He had formerly been anintimate friend of the deceased man; but circumstances, which he wouldprefer not to mention, had brought about a change in his sentiments.

There were several facts which supported his innocence. It was certainthat Dr. Lana was alive and in his study at half-past eleven o’clock.Mrs. Woods was prepared to swear that it was at that hour that she hadheard his voice. The friends of the prisoner contended that it wasprobable that at that time Dr. Lana was not alone. The sound which hadoriginally attracted the attention of the housekeeper, and her master’sunusual impatience that she should leave him in peace, seemed to pointto that. If this were so, then it appeared to be probable that he hadmet his end between the moment when the housekeeper heard his voice andthe time when Mrs. Madding made her first call and found it impossibleto attract his attention. But if this were the time of his death, thenit was certain that Mr. Arthur Morton could not be guilty, as it was_after_ this that she had met the young squire at the gate.

If this hypothesis were correct, and someone was with Dr. Lana beforeMrs. Madding met Mr. Arthur Morton, then who was this someone, and whatmotives had he for wishing evil to the doctor? It was universallyadmitted that if the friends of the accused could throw light upon this,they would have gone a long way towards establishing his innocence. Butin the meanwhile it was open to the public to say—as they did say—thatthere was no proof that any one had been there at all except the youngsquire; while, on the other hand, there was ample proof that his motivesin going were of a sinister kind. When Mrs. Madding called, the doctormight have retired to his room, or he might, as she thought at the time,have gone out and returned afterwards to find Mr. Arthur Morton waitingfor him. Some of the supporters of the accused laid stress upon the factthat the photograph of his sister Frances, which had been removed fromthe doctor’s room, had not been found in her brother’s possession. Thisargument, however, did not count for much, as he had ample time beforehis arrest to burn it or to destroy it. As to the only positive evidencein the case—the muddy footmarks upon the floor—they were so blurred bythe softness of the carp

et that it was impossible to make anytrustworthy deduction from them. The most that could be said was thattheir appearance was not inconsistent with the theory that they weremade by the accused, and it was further shown that his boots were verymuddy upon that night. There had been a heavy shower in the afternoon,and all boots were probably in the same condition.

Such is a bald statement of the singular and romantic series of eventswhich centred public attention upon this Lancashire tragedy. The unknownorigin of the doctor, his curious and distinguished personality, theposition of the man who was accused of the murder, and the love affairwhich had preceded the crime, all combined to make the affair one ofthose dramas which absorb the whole interest of a nation. Throughout thethree kingdoms men discussed the case of the Black Doctor of Bishop’sCrossing, and many were the theories put forward to explain the facts;but it may safely be said that among them all there was not one whichprepared the minds of the public for the extraordinary sequel, whichcaused so much excitement upon the first day of the trial, and came to aclimax upon the second. The long files of the _Lancaster Weekly_ withtheir report of the case lie before me as I write, but I must contentmyself with a synopsis of the case up to the point when, upon theevening of the first day, the evidence of Miss Frances Morton threw asingular light upon the case.

Mr. Porlock Carr, the counsel for the prosecution, had marshalled hisfacts with his usual skill, and as the day wore on, it became more andmore evident how difficult was the task which Mr. Humphrey, who had beenretained for the defence, had before him. Several witnesses were put upto swear to the intemperate expressions which the young squire had beenheard to utter about the doctor, and the fiery manner in which heresented the alleged ill-treatment of his sister. Mrs. Madding repeatedher evidence as to the visit which had been paid late at night by theprisoner to the deceased, and it was shown by another witness that theprisoner was aware that the doctor was in the habit of sitting up alonein this isolated wing of the house, and that he had chosen this verylate hour to call because he knew that his victim would then be at hismercy. A servant at the squire’s house was compelled to admit that hehad heard his master return about three that morning, which corroboratedMrs. Madding’s statement that she had seen him among the laurel bushesnear the gate upon the occasion of her second visit. The muddy boots andan alleged similarity in the footprints were duly dwelt upon, and it wasfelt when the case for the prosecution had been presented that, howevercircumstantial it might be, it was none the less so complete and soconvincing, that the fate of the prisoner was sealed, unless somethingquite unexpected should be disclosed by the defence. It was threeo’clock when the prosecution closed. At half-past four, when the Courtrose, a new and unlooked for development had occurred. I extract theincident, or part of it, from the journal which I have alreadymentioned, omitting the preliminary observations of the counsel.

Considerable sensation was caused in the crowded court when the firstwitness called for the defence proved to be Miss Frances Morton, thesister of the prisoner. Our readers will remember that the young ladyhad been engaged to Dr. Lana, and that it was his anger over the suddentermination of this engagement which was thought to have driven herbrother to the perpetration of this crime. Miss Morton had not, however,been directly implicated in the case in any way, either at the inquestor at the police-court proceedings, and her appearance as the leadingwitness for the defence came as a surprise upon the public.

Miss Frances Morton, who was a tall and handsome brunette, gave herevidence in a low but clear voice, though it was evident throughout thatshe was suffering from extreme emotion. She alluded to her engagement tothe doctor, touched briefly upon its termination, which was due, shesaid, to personal matters connected with his family, and surprised theCourt by asserting that she had always considered her brother’sresentment to be unreasonable and intemperate. In answer to a directquestion from her counsel, she replied that she did not feel that shehad any grievance whatever against Dr. Lana, and that in her opinion hehad acted in a perfectly honourable manner. Her brother, on aninsufficient knowledge of the facts, had taken another view, and she wascompelled to acknowledge that, in spite of her entreaties, he haduttered threats of personal violence against the doctor, and had, uponthe evening of the tragedy, announced his intention of “having it outwith him.” She had done her best to bring him to a more reasonable frameof mind, but he was very headstrong where his emotions or prejudiceswere concerned.

Up to this point the young lady’s evidence had appeared to make againstthe prisoner rather than in his favour. The questions of her counsel,however, soon put a very different light upon the matter, and disclosedan unexpected line of defence.

Mr. Humphrey: Do you believe your brother to be guilty of this crime?

The Judge: I cannot permit that question, Mr. Humphrey. We are here todecide upon questions of fact—not of belief.