Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1862-08-29
Tho Key Of Death

In the collection of curiossties pre-
served in the arsenal at Venice, there il
key, of which the following singular
tradition is related:
About the year 1900, one of those
dangerous men, in whom extraordinary
talent is only the fearful source OF crime
and wieketness beyond that of ordinary
men, came to establish himself as Il mcr-
chant or trader in Venice The stranger,
whose name was TcbaIdo, became cramor-
ed of the daughter of an ancient house,
already affianccd to another. He de-
manded her hand in marriage, and was
of course rejected Enragcd at this, he
studied how to be reycneed.
Profoundly skilled in the mechanical
arts, he allowed himself no rest until he
had invented the most formidable weapon
which could be imagined. This was a
key Of large size, the handle of which
was so constructed that it could be turned
round with little difficulty When turned,
it discovered spring, which, on pressure,
launched from the other end needle or
lancet of such subtle firmness that it en-
tered into the flesh and buried itself there
without leaving external trace.
Tebaldo waited in disguise at the door
of the church, in which the maiden whom
he loved was about to receive the nuptial
bcnediction. The assassin sent the slen-
der steel, unpcrccived, into the breast OF
the bridegroom. The wounded man had
no suspicion of injury, but, seized with
sudden and sharp pain in the midst of
the ceremony, he tainted, and was carried
to his house amid the lamentations of the
bridal party Vain WAS all the skill of
the physicians, who could not divine the
cause Of this strange illness, and in few
days he died
Tcbaldo again demanded the hand of
the maiden from her parents, and received
second refusal. They, too, perishcd
miscrably in a few days. The alarm
which those deaths, which appeared al
most miraculous, occasoncd, excited the
utmost vigilance Of the magistrates and
when, on close examination OF the bodies,
the small instrument was found i'll the
nIll9fentt lltSI, ttTTbr WIS UNIV VI Sbi--
every one feared for his life.
The maiden thus cruelty orphaned, had
passed the first months OF her mourning
in a convent. when Tchaldo, hoping to
bend her to his Will, entrcated to speak to
her at the rratc. The face of the for
eigncr had been ever diSpleasing to her,
but since the death Of all those most dear
to her, it had become odious, las though
she had prcsentiment of the guilt and
her reply was most decisive III the mega
tive.
Tcbaldo, beyond himself with rage, at
tempted to wound her through the CRATE,
and succeeded ; the obscurity Of the place
prevented his movement from being OBJ
served. On her return to her room, the
maiden felt pain in her breast, and un-
covering it, she found it spotted with
single drop of blood. The pain increased;
the surgeons who hastencd to her assist
ancc, taught by the past, wasted no time
in conjecture, but cutting deep into the
wounded part, extracted the needle before
any mortal mischief had commenced, and
saved the life of the lady.
The State InquiSition used every means
to discover the hand that dealt these in
sidious and irresistible blows The visit
of Tebaldo to the convent caused suspic-
ion to fall heavily upon him. His house
was carefully searched, the infamous in
yeution discovered, and he perished on
the gibbct,