The hands of God

As promised, a short tale. RBS asked first, and he for a mystery. It is one of sorts, although probably too short to be p[roperly mysterious, and the method isn't too obscure; Instead, it's more of a further experiment into an older style of writing - those of you who remember my last piece will recall that it was written in a 1920's style - here, I'm aiming for something about the 1860's-70's.
It's not my best work, I'm sure, and it feels a bit contrived, but overall, 3,500 words is not bad for two hours work on Sunday night. Let me know what you think.

Oh, I'll post the next when I get to 70-ish people on my friends list, and I'm indebted to dreamingchristi for helping me sort out some of the more unconvincing aspects of the story into something more likely.

( The hands of God )