Juliet signal. [volume] (Juliet [i.e. Joliet], Ill.) 1844-1???, 1863-06-09
THE MYSTERIOUS 1IyaDEa.


| I was aroused one morning from sound
I sleep by quick, loud rap upon my door.
had been on drlv late in the morning,
and hence kept my he'd longer than usual.
/ BY the tine my wife had reached nv room
l wa- NJ and hat dressed. She told me
that Inspector Startling, one Of my broth
er detectives, wished to see me. hurried
down aud found him pacing 10 aud fro IL
cross the ROOM in a state o. considerable
excitement.
All, G fl we've got some work in our
hands" lie cried, the moment lie saw me.
THERE'S teen murdcr-a very strange
Une-by Newgate Market. But c,me
along, and II! tell you rs l 20"
As :ocu as We gained The street, Start.
ing resumed:
Last evening one Of the butchers mack
al q buy OF meat TO 90 off to-day, hut this
morning tie changed his mind and con
cluded - uuyack it. as there was some
doubt about the stutf's keeping. When he
removed the cover he found the body Of p
/ man cut mp, and slowed suugy away in
place of his meat and this latter article
was afterwards found IN neighboriug
cellar"
asked If the butcher was not suspect
Ell.
Ne" replied my companion. "We
( know it could not have been lie. for his
time is all accounted for; and besides, his
character Is above suspicion. No-sumc
one who knew that the box was packed to
g of this morning must have taken al
vantage Of the circumstance. and thus hop
ed TO gain time for escape, or perhaps to
have thrown the blame ucOn another 1t
was al old man who was murdered, aud it
was evidently done for revenge"
why do you think SO ?" / asked.
because fragments Of clothing we're
upon the limbs, and watch and srne
money were found 10 tue pockets. Strange,
isn't III"
! acknowledged that it was.
We overlook party Of men at this
juncIure, and ere we had opportunity to
converse much more we had reached New
gate. The bCx was in a small Cffice. aud n
commissioner had arrived. The parts of
( The body had been taken out and placed to-
/ eether, thus forming u whole frame with
the exception Of the head, this latter part
being absent. The victim bad been not
far from three score; a tall, weli-formed
man, and, as far as we could Judge from
the fragments of clothing and the appear
ance OF the hands, mem Der of the better
class of society.
Our first object was to fad if the remains
could be identified I; but in this We failed
entirely. Two days passed without the
least new light upon the subject, but on
the evening Of the second day we received
notice that human head bad been found
in a small pond, or pool, in Epping-and
was in the possession of the officers of that
place.
Here might be clue, and was finally
set upon the track. | chose to 90 alone
| for on such an errand too many cooks most
emphaucally spoil the broth. 1 felt sure
that II could once get my eye upon the
| murderer, should know him. There is
something in the very look and bearing of
man who has done a murder, as ualpa.
bic to me as the color of the Ethiope. |
can see it written on his face. though how
| cannot tell. 1t may be an intuitve per
ception, or it may be from long habit in
hunting rOgues.
1t was late in the evening when start
ed. taking the saddle for my scat, and
reaching Epping at midnight. l found
the coroner, and with him found the hui
man head. 1t was the very one. knew
it by the grey hair, and by the manner in
which it had been cut off, the neck having
been divided close to the shoulders. ! re-
quested my host to keep my visit secret,
as 1t might be necessary that my coming
should not be known. He assured me that
no one save himself and messenge knew
that word had been sent to London of the
finding of the head. In the morning we
went out to the place where the terrible
proof Of crime had been found, and l ex~
amined the sandy shore of the pond
thoroughly. There were too many tracks,
however, for me to make anything of them
OF one thing | was sure; that the head had
been thrown in at night, for it had rested
In shoal water, with two bricks tied to 1t,
whereas, had it been thrown in by day.
light, the villain would have selected
deeper spot. The coroner suggested that
the murderer had kept on by the great
stage road through Essex, but felt differ
emily. | believed he had struck across to-
wards Waltham Abbey, and upon this sup
petition determined to act.
My first movement after this was to OBJ
tain suit of laboring mems clothes, which
my host procured of fellow who was at