Indiana American. [volume] (Brookville, Ind.) 1833-1861, 1854-11-17
SeItttsb GaIs.
THE CROCK OF GOLD.
MARTIN FARQUHAR TUPPER,
AUTHOR OF
"PRovzRBIAL PHILOSOPHY"
CHAPTER v.
The .nouc.t.

L
| Just weeek before the barone
came Of age. and fortnight from The
present time, an awful and mysterioul
event had happened at the Hall: The
old house-keeper. Mrs. Quarlcs. hat
been found dead in her bed, under cir
cumstances, to say the very least, Of I
black and suspicious appearance. Th,
county Coroner had got a jury Of th,
neighbors impanelled together; who
after sitting patiently on the inquest
and hearing, as well as seeing, the.fol
lowing evidence. could arrive at nc
verdict more specific than the obvious
fact, that the poor old creature had
been "found dead" The great ques-
ton lay between apoplexy and mur'
der: and the evidence tended to well
matched conflict of opinion.
First, there lay the body, quietly in
bed. tucked in tidily and undisturbed,
with no marks Of struggling. none
whatever--the clothes lay smooth, and
the chamber orderly: yet the corpse's
face was of a purple hue, the tongue
swollen. the eyes starting from their
sockets: il might. indeed, possibly have
been an apoplectic seizure, which took
her in her sleep. and killed her as she
lay; but that the gripe of clutching
fingers. had leil their livid seals upon
the throat. and countenanced The
dreadful thought Of strangulationl
Secondly. surgeon one Mr.. Eager.
the Union doctor. avery young person
age, wrong withal and radically main.
tanned that this actual stra.. .gulation
might have been effected by the hands
Of the deceased herself, in the parox
ysm Of rush Of blood to the brain;
and he fortified his wise position by
the instance Of late Statesman. who.
he averred, cut his throat with pen
knife, to relieve himself Of pressure on
on the temples: whilst another surgeon
-(Stephen Cramp. he was farrier us
well, and had been. until lately, time
ont Of mind, the village Esculapius,
who looked with scorn on his pert ri
val. and opposed him tooth and nail
on all occasions) insisted that il was
not only physically impossible forpoor
Mrs. Quarles so to have strangled her
self, but moro particularly that, If she
had done so. she certainly could not
have laid herself out so decently after
wards; therefore, that as some one
else bad kindly done the latter Office
for her, why not the former too?
Thirdly, Sarah Stack. the still-room
maid, deposed. that Mrs. Quarles al
ways locked her door before she went
to bed, but that when she (deponent)
went 10 call her rs usual, on the fatal
morning. the door was just ajar; and
so she fousd her dead: while parallel
with this, tending to implicate some
domestic criminal, was TO be placed
the equally uncommon fact, that the
other door Of Mrs. Quarle's room, lead
ing 10 the lawn, was open too;-be il
known that Mrs. Quarles was a stout
woman, who couldn't abide to SLEEP
upstairs, for fear of fire; moreover,
that she was n nervous woman, who
took extraordinary precautions Cor hei
safety, in case Of thieves. Thus, un.
accountably enough, TIE murderer. Il
there was any, was as likely TO have
come from the outside, as from the in
Fourthly. the murderer in this way
is commonly thief, and does the deed
for mammon.sake; but the new house
keeper, lately installed. made her dep
osition, that, by inventories duly kept
and entered-for her honored prede.
cessor, rest her soul, had been a pat.
tern Of regularity-all Mrs. Quarle's
goods and personal chattels were found
TO be safe and rightin her room-some
silver spoons among them too, ay, and
a silver teapot; while. as to other
property in the house, with every
room full olvaluables. nothing what
ever was missing from the list, except
indeed, what was scarce worth men
ton (unless one must be very exact,
sundry crooks and gallipots of honey
not forthcoming; these, however, i
appeared probable Tint Mrs. Quarle,
had herself consumed in a certain mix
ture she nightly was accustomed to
of rum, horehound, and other matters
sweetened up with honey, for hel
hoarsncss. 1t seemed, therefore
clear she was not murdered for he
property. nor by any one intending :,
have robbed the house.
Against this il was contended
and really with some show of season
that as Mrs. Quarels was thought I,
have a hoard, always set her fac,
against banks. railway shares, specula
tons, and investments, and SCENE,
to have lefl nothing behind her bu
her clothes and so forth, il was still
possible that the murderer who too
the life, might have also been the THE
TO take the money.
Filthy. Simon Jennings (butler in
doors, bailiff out Of doors, and geners
factotum everywhere TO the vincint in
terest. for he had managed to monop
olize every place worth having. fror
the agents book 10 the cellar.man'
key the said Simon deposed. that o
the night in question. he heard III
house-dog barking furiously. and wer
out toquiet him; but found no thieve.
nor knew any reason why the do
should have barked so much.
Now, the awkward matters in thi
, deposition (if Mr. Jennings had nc
been entirely above suspicion-th
, idea was quite absurd-not to mentio
: that he was nephew to the deceased
a great favorite with her, and ma
altogether Of the very strictest charat
{ ter) the awkward matters were thes,