CORNISH MYSTERY.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLVII, Issue 14, 17 January 1913, Page 3

CORNISH MYSTERY.

A MISSING LADY.

SUICIDE OF A FRIEND

A HANDSOME LEGACY

LONDON, Nov. 29. JNewquav, the fashionable Cornish watering-piace, is now the cent-re of a mystery which at present shows no siims of being unravelled. Mrs jNowill. the wife of a SJ»«ffield merchant, has disappeared. Mr J. A. Delay, a retired Singapore solicitor, has committed suicide, and it was stated at the inquest that he had left Mrs Nowill £30.000. Briefly stated, the facts arfe: On s 9th November Mr Delay arrived at the Atlantic Hotel. On 13th November. Mrs Nowill and her mother arrived there. The parties were acquainted, and Mrs NowiU's husband was aware that Mr Delay was at the same hotel as his wife; Last Saturday, afternoon Mr Delay and Mrs Nowill wire out together. Tea had been ordered for the party j eon- - sisting of Mrs Nowill, her mother (Mrs Foster) and Mr Delay, Mrs Nowill did not appear, aiuTa, sserefcr Mvty, was organised, Mr Deky taking part in the search. This went on till late at night, but no trace of the missing lady "could be found. The search was renewed mi bunday, and on Sunday afternoon Mr Delay went to his room to rest. On Monday "morning, as he did not come down, his bedroom door,, which was lockud, was forced open^ and it was found that he had committed suicide oy hanging himself behiud the door. Meanwhile, Mrs Nowill is still missing. Some sensational evidenoe was Given at the inquest. It was elicited •n iMr P Bl **> hy a codicil to his will, dated as recently as last September, had left £30,000 to Mre Nowil] Jhen a witness told how during the search for the lady. Mr Delay seemed to go mad and tried to throw himself over the cliff; while a coastguardsman, who was watching Mr Delay tod Mrs Nowill through a telescope as ttiey were walking on the headland on featurday afternoon spoke to seeing Mrs Nowill pushing Mr Delay away from her, after hCfeid caught hold of her hands and loSked Into her ' face.

Mr Nowill has offered a reward for the recovery of his wife, dead or alive.

THE INQUEST.

The jury returned a verdict of felo do se, and the proceedings threw very Irttle light on the double mystery of the woman's disappearance and the man's death. How the friendship between Mr Delay and the missing lady began waa told by Mr. Sidney 'Nowill,-the lady's husband. He said he was a merchant, residing at Sheffield. He knew Mr Delay, who was a retired solicitor, residing at one time at' Singapore. He first met Mr Delay in a~|». and O. boat about two pears ago, when he iMr Nowill) was going to Egypt with his wife. Mr' Delay's two sisters were in Egypt. He had seen a good deal of Mr. Delay in Englandrecontly. 'They had been together at iiley and in London. It was arranged that his wife end her mother should visit Newquay, and he saw them off from Paddington, two weeks ago. They stayed, at the Atlantic Hotel, Newquay. He thought from what his wife told him that Mr Delay would be there, but !ie_ did not consider there was anything: strange in this circumstance. They were friendly and played eblf together. Mrs Nowill was fond of gaiety, but witness felt sulre there was nothing of an improjper nature. He had not the slightest suspicion of Mr Delay and his wife.

His wife and her mother were to leave Newquay on Monday last, but he did not know whether, Mr Delay was" leaving' with them. Mrs N<mHi wrote to witness arid asked him to set tickets for a hockey. dance at Sheffield. He next -heard that his wife was missing. She had not been found.

A dramatic incident followed.- The coroner handed to Mr Ncrwill ih& codicil of "a .'will, said to have beten found, among Mr Delay's papers, an 3 dated 9th. September, 1912, which proposed to leave .-to" "Mrs Nowfll a considerable sum of money (stated to be £30,000). Mr Nowill said he did not know of the'existence of such a document or why Mr Delay shanid -; leave Mrs Noavlll any money, as she had plenty of her own. It came as a surprise to him. STRUGGLE ON THE CLIFFS. Lieutenant West, commanding tib© coastguards for the Padstow Division, described a struggle with Mr Delay while searching for the niisang lady. On Saturday night ; heJ said, he heard that a lady was missing, and he took Mr Delay in his motor-ocr to iho railway station to ascertain if ft lady ■ had gono by the 5.20 train. They made inquiries, but were informed that no person answeriag Mrs No will's description had departed by that train. They then motored bifcck to the Atlantic Hotel, and inquired of other search parties whether there was any news of the lady. . Mr Delay seemed anxious, bat not distressed. They went together along tlie cliffs late at night, and on the way back, Mr Delay, who had baen growing more anxious, went almost mad. He caught the, offioer by the throat and cried: "Can't something be done? I will kill you." There was a desperate struggle between them, and the witness was only tared from being hurled down the aide-of the cliff by the fact that he had niils in his boots which gripped the ground. Suddenly Delay released his hold and apologised for his conduct. Some time later Mr Delay tried, to wriggle over the side of the clLf, and there was anther struggle. Later he .again apologised to witness.

The Coroner: narrow escape ?-

: You had m »«ry '—Yes.

John H. Stattpn, a- eoaatjgwtrd, said that he was on the look-emfc a» Saturday at 3.45 and gaw » lady and gentleman walking towards the» lifeboat house He put the gUse on them. The gentleman w««ld wtJk a few yards and then take hold ftf■ the lady's hand. She would p*sh him aw.ay, and appeared to kave teii altercation ■with hini.

Mr No will said that his wife on Saturday made eyery endeavor to leare Newquay. and asked the manageress several times regftrfliog the train services.

Mr Edell stated that he had iw*fed for .the Delay family for twwoty-4&ve years. The deceased was rery reserved and eccentric, but^tJiwi* was no insanity in the family."