Bullhampton tragedy.

Vicarage, Monday, Sept. 1, 186--.

DEAREST MARY,

I suppose you will have heard before you get this of the
dreadful murder that has taken place here, and which has
so startled and horrified us, that we hardly know what we
are doing even yet. It is hard to say why a thing should
be worse because it is close, but it certainly is so. Had
it been in the next parish, or even further off in this
parish, I do not think that I should feel it so much, and
then we knew the old man so well; and then, again,--which
makes it worst of all,--we all of us are unable to get rid
of a suspicion that one whom we knew, and was liked, has
been a participator in the crime.

It seems that it must have been about two o'clock on
Sunday morning that Mr. Trumbull was killed. It was, at
any rate, between one and three. As far as they can judge,
they think that there must have been three men concerned.
You remember how we used to joke about poor Mr. Trumbull's
dog. Well, he was poisoned first,--probably an hour before
the men got into the house. It has been discovered that
the foolish old man kept a large sum of money by him in a
box, and that he always took this box into bed with him.
The woman, who lived in the house with him, used to see it
there. No doubt the thieves had heard of this, and both
Frank and Mr. Gilmore think that the girl, Agnes Pope,
whom you will remember in the choir, told about it. She
lived with Mr. Trumbull, and we all thought her a very
good girl,--though she was too fond of that young man, Sam
Brattle.

They think that the men did not mean to do the murder, but
that the old man fought so hard for his money that they
were driven to it. His body was not in the room, but on
the top of the stairs, and his temple had been split open
with a blow of a hammer. The hammer lay beside him, and
was one belonging to the house. Mr. Gilmore says that
there was great craft in their using a weapon which they
did not bring with them. Of course they cannot be traced
by the hammer.

They got off with L150 in the box, and did not touch
anything else. Everybody feels quite sure that they knew
all about the money, and that when Mr. Gilmore saw them
that night down at the churchyard corner, they were
prowling about with a view of seeing how they could get
into the farmer's house, a