“Just like any mining camp in that respect,” remarked Trim.
“Undoubtedly, although I’ve never had experience in any other.
“Well, we were doing our best to shape things into some kind of order and we thought we were getting along pretty well, when there was a series of the most outrageous and terrifying crimes.
“It seemed as if a perfect fiend had broken loose and taken up his residence in Kimberley. You’ve heard about Jack the Ripper, I suppose?”
“Certainly!” answered Trim.
“This fellow was not a Jack the Ripper, but I speak of that famous criminal simply because our fiend and Jack were alike in two respects.
“Each was bloodthirsty, and each was wonderfully successful in escaping capture.
“The victims of our fiend were all men, however, so that there was no other resemblance to the savage who gave London such a scare a few years ago.
“I don’t suppose it is necessary for me to go into the details of the various crimes that startled, bewildered, and exasperated us.
“I will only say that murder was the object in every case and that the crime was committed by strangulation.”