THE SEVENOAKS TRAGEDY

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 328, 21 January 1909, Page 4

THE SEVENOAKS TRAGEDY

UE.UAKKABLE EXPLANATION. A HINDOO YENDETTA. An explanation is given iu the New York American of the mysterious Scuiioaks tragedy, it is, as tile paper admits, almost incredible, but it is very circumstantial. Headers of our cable news will remember that first Airs. Luai'd was murdered, and then the Ccneral, weighed down by the suspicions cast upon him, committed suicide. This is the story of the London correspondent of the American:— .Y remarkable and almost incredible •story of love, revenge, and Indian vengeance lies behind the Luard mystery, which embraced the double tragedv of the murder of Airs. Oeneral Luard" and the suicide of the General. Only to a few outside Government officials and detective circles is the real solution of the strange shooting iu a lonely wood at Sevenoaks of Airs Liutnl known, and extra precautions have been taken by these to keep the facts a secret. Clues have beea abandoned and sources of information blocked, notwithstanding the fact that public opinion was strongly against Uencrar Luard when the murder of his wife was discovered.

X*o crime, for years lias excited so much discussion and public interest. London newspapers devoted pages to| ■the. case. Mrs. Lnaril was found shot in the lonely woods adjoining their country mansion at Sovonoaks. Robbery was not the motive, but among' the few articles of jewellery missing when the crime was discovered was a peculiar r'.ng of Oriental workmanship, and of very unusual design. ft was a mailer of much comment at the lime that many days elapsed before Scotland 'Yard was called in to assist, in unravelling the .mystery. It' was intimated in the papers that, the General was fully conversant with the perpetrator of the crime, but was withholding thai information from the police. Hundreds of aiionnuous letters in i ilii-- strain were scut, to liini. aiid the I impression prevailed in many quarters that when he took his own life, by' throwing himself under an express train, this opinion was jtvstiliod. The true story of the double tragedy is now said to be this:-' '; Forty years ago a British ollieer was stationed at liawal l'indi, India. He was a dashing, dare-devil young man, engaging in all the pursuits inseparably associated ivilh an Indian frontier station. This was Lieutenant Luard. He had iiilliiential connections in high circles, and could looic forward to certain advancement. One day at some military sports lie met a.' beautiful native girl. She was Ihe daughter of an old Indian money-lender, and throughout the district was famed for her beauty and fascinating figure. .Young Lu'aid soon succumbed to Hie witchery uf the girl, and before long had persuaded her to join him. A ring said to possess mysterious charms was given to the lieutenant bv the girl as a love token. The affair was common talk in the garrison, but as the girl never went near the ollieers' quarters, there ,vas no ollieiul interference. Some of hoard's brother ollieers made repeated attempts lo induct! him to break oil' the liason, hut without avail. lie compromised, however, by sending the girl awav to n bungalow in the hills, and gradually il was thought the two had dissolved partnership. One day I here was an addition to the household in the bungalow—an unwelcome addition-anil after .several troublous meetings. Hie young ollieer 101 l the girl-mother and her son tu their fate. The years went by, and Lieutenant l.u.ird became a General. In 1K77 Gen- j oral Luard was in command at liawal l'indi. ami announcement was made of his engagement to a ladv of his own race. Shortly after the date of marriage was officially given, and preparations made for grand festivities in honour of the event. At a garrison ball, an an- j happy scene occurred wiwn the function was in full swing. A commotion was heard in the hall, and a native woman was seen struggling with the sentries in an endeavour to gain admission. Her cries stopped the dancing. When he caught s-iirht of Hie intruder, General Lnard turned deathly white, and hurriedly escorted his wife from the scene. "What are you going to do with our boy?" cried the woman to the retreating General, and then the scandal was out. The native woman was ejected, bill as .she wont she swore that she- would be. revenged if she had to wait a thousand years. Time went on, General Luard lose rapidly in his country's service, a son was bom who entered the army, ami then ul'lor eight or (en vears the General retired to his estate at Sevenoaks, a pretty spot about twenty miles from London. About six months ago a strange story was reported from Southhampton. A grey-haired Hindoo woman, accompanied by a swarthy man, made application to a magistrate for assistance. A story of abandonment was told, and a famous general's nniiie was mentioned. The magistrate declined to go into the matter, and the two Hindus were next- traced to the I'rnnco-Britisli Exhibition ia London, where they were taking part in one of the native village performances. X'exf General Luard received periodical loiters at Sevononks nf a threatening nature, and more than one story got abroad of domestic differences in consequences. Then came (ho murder of lira. Luard. and the discovery that the Oriental ring of peculiar workmanship which the General had given her years ago had been stripped from the dead woman's hand. ft is a. .signilicnnt fact that since the day of the murder the two Hindus of the l'"raneo-llritish Exhibition have disappeared. In the light of this remarkable story, which was given to the writer bv a high ollicial, it is equally remarkable why the romance was not revealed, proper precautions taken, and the stigma of reproach lifted from the unhappy General. ■ This is the story, of which 'it must be said, however, not a word appears in the English papers.