The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1867-03-13


room saw few drops of blood creep
ing slowly from beneath the door,
knocked, and, receiving no answer,
burst open the door and entered. DR..
G. was found sitting in a rocking
chair, with his throat cut with a
pocket-knife, though not so deeply
but that with great care and pains
the surgeon. who was among the
first to entcr the room, succeeded in
saving his life. But when some
weeks after he left his room, his
raven black hair was us white rs YOU
have seen it to-day, and his voice
affected as YOU know it to be.
''.And Helen?"
''When her lover left her, as /
have described. She became nearly
Misunderstanding upon following him
and refusing to return home with her
father. At last q whispered word from
him caused her 20 sink down like
q lifeless person. IN this state she
was borne into D house close by.
where for three weeks she lay in
brain fever. When she recovered, her
mind was gone. She recognized no
one, took al interest in nothing,
seemed to have no recollection of her
lover OF Of past events, except that
she would occasionally become frantic
with q sort Of vague fear of some one
behind her or IN the dark, about to
strike her a blow on the heart, which
she lsaid would kill her. She was
taken to private insane asylum, and
there she died some years since"
"But, Mrs. -, was it never
known, did you never know the
cause of this misery? Oh what was that
terrible mysterious whispered word?"
Yes, my dear, I knew at len 9Th,
and from Doctor Fourche hims elf.
1t was in his last illness, when my
husband and myself, who were, per-
haps, his most trusted friends, were
spending an hour by his bedside,
whence most of his acquaintance
were excluded-he, for the first time
since his daughters very unfortunate
elopement, spoke of her and young c.
''lou have blamed me-" said he;
''many have blamed me, not knowing
OF the reasons for my conducr. l
wish you, my friends, to understand
1T now, once for all, and then let the
subject be forever buried between US.
Unlock the top drawer of my escri-
tore; now the little drawer to the left;
touch the spring at the back. and
give me the small parcel YOU will End
there. " My husband obeyed these
directions. The parcel he unfolded
with trembling hand and pale
but tirmly-compressed lip. 1t evil
IDENTIFY cost him.a great mental effort.
He laid aside two worn yellow letters,
and O bit of transparent paper,
through which caught the faint
CLEAN Of tress of golden hair.
Then he took out three small minia-
ture cases. One he laid gently apart,
with the letters and the hair. The
others placed side by side before us.
One OF these was his own portrait
when q young mantle other, the
portrait of Herbert c.. taken ap-
parently but q short time since.
''Do you see the likeness?" said he.
ut was indeed very striking, and I
said so.'
Father and son." said he: and
without another word, placed them
with the letters. Then he took from
the third miniature case a slip of
printed paper, evidently cut from
newspaper column. He handed it to
me, and l read:
''FoUND DRowSED. At pier No.
= in the East River dock, the BODY
of an unknown woman, apparently
about twentyfour years of age, long
golden hair, dress of fine materials,
and bearing traces of great beauty.
Deceased had valuable ring on her
finger and sum of money in the
pocket of her dress, and evidently
belonged to q respectable class of
society. No clue to her Identity"
''Hhere was date appended, and
afterwards recollected that it was
about the time when Doctor Fourche
brought home the little orphan boy.
And nov," said he, s:.let these
things die with me. Put them into
the fire, there"
II obeyed. He watched them for
O moment until the flames took hold
of. one of the portraits, and the top
of the case curling back, he saw, as
did ], the fair, sad face of a woman
looking out from amid the flames.
Then he turned his own face on his
pillow and groaned, and for an instant
his frame shook with a strong shud-
der. I knew, then, more than words
could have told me, the agony which
had for years been preying upon the
heart of this man-the Nemesis