The Mystery of the Clasped Hands: A NovelBoothby, Guy
General
The Mystery of the Clasped Hands: A Novel
Boothby, Guy
Detective and mystery stories; Fiction
Never, if he lives to be a hundred, will Godfrey Henderson forget the
scene that met his eyes when he entered the Court--the judge and the
sheriffs upon the Bench, the jurymen seated in their box, the rows of
counsel, and the line upon line of eager-eyed spectators. When Godfrey
made his appearance in the dock a sudden silence fell upon the Court.
The Clerk of Arraigns rose and read over the charge preferred against
him, namely, of murdering one Teresina Cardi, and this done he was
called upon in the usual manner to plead. Advancing to the front of the
dock Godfrey looked straight before him and said, in a calm, strong
voice: “Not guilty, my lord.” The jury were then sworn, and as soon as
this important business had been completed the counsel for the
prosecution rose and told the story of the crime. He described the
engagement of the dead woman by the prisoner, his employment of her for
some considerable time, and then his hasty departure for the Continent.
It would be shown that he had received a letter from her while in Egypt,
and that almost immediately afterward he had returned to Naples. In the
latter city he had invited her to dine with him, and had taken her to
the Opera afterward. He commented upon the fact that the prisoner had
voluntarily admitted to the police authorities that he had endeavoured
to induce her to return to England. At that time, however, it must be
borne in mind that he had not met the lady he now desired to make his
wife. Whether he had seen anything of the deceased, prior to their
meeting in the Strand, it was as yet impossible to say. The fact,
however, remained that his engagement to the lady in the country was
ultimately announced. Despite that fact, only ten days before the
wedding was to take place, he was known to have met the deceased woman
at midnight, and had taken her to her home in Burford Street, leading
out of the Tottenham Court Road. By the medical evidence he would
presently call, he would prove that less than half-an-hour afterward she
was brutally murdered. Before half-past twelve, that is to say, within
an hour of the cabman picking them up in the Strand, he would prove that
the prisoner returned to his Hotel in Piccadilly, very white and
agitated, and had called for brandy. Since his arrest, an exhaustive
search had been made at his residence, with the result that a
blood-stained knife, which had been identified as having been purchased
by the prisoner in Cairo, had been discovered hidden behind a bookcase
in his studio. As for the motive of the crime he would point out that
the deceased woman wore a wedding ring, that she was known to entertain
a great affection for the prisoner, and that the latter was about to be
married to another lady. What was more probable than that he should wish
to have the other woman out of the way before he could do so? That was
certainly only a conjecture, but it was one that carried a large amount
of probability with it. He would now proceed to call his witnesses.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account