Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1869-05-14
9rlecteo Alistellonp.
WHO WAS THE MURDERER 2
FROM THE GERMAN.

years ago, the residents of the Rue Nor
que, IN the quarter st. Roche, at Paris,
were ro,1sed from their slumbers by a ter
rible cry of distress. The whole of the
little street was soon astir. It was
three o'clock in the morning as the
startled neighbors hurried together
in front of a narrow four-storied house,
from the second floor of which the awful
cries were still issuing. With the shrek
or yell of apparent agony there were
sounds as if from the feet of several per-
sons engaged in desperate struggle.
Two voices could also be now distinguish
ed-one harsh, and yet piercing in its wild
screaming tones the other deeper and
heavier, and occasionally calculating the
words, "Cursed devil !" and "My God |"
The excited neighbors vainly endeavor-
cd to force an entrance into the house
The doors and windows were all fast on
the inside. The whole lower part of the
building seemed deserted. No one
stirred there; not CLEAN of light was
visible.
"Who lives here2" inquired passer,
attracted by the disturbance.
ooh, no one but Madame pEsparaye
and her daughter" answered the nimble
. tongue of Pierre Moreau, the tobacconist.
"I have known the ladies this long time.
er is fortune-teller, and has some fine
customers, can tell you. She must have
saved pretty sum by this time. The
ladies have no acquaintances at all, as l
know of, except business ones and they
live in the house entirely alone. They
would rather let their rooms lie empty
than have them ruined by tenants. We
have had sad experience with tenants,
dear Monsieur Moreau, said madame to
me only yesterday, as she was buying a
francs worth of my best rappee. The
lower story, and the third and fourth, are
not so much as furnished; and all the
window shutters are kept constantly
closed, with the exception of those of the
back room on the second floor there the
ladies have their living apartment. They
have never kept servant, and it Is very
seldom any one goes into the house."
Meanwhile, some twenty persons were
trying to force an entrance. But the
doors and window. shutters were shaken
and pounded in vain. Some ten minutes
had already passed, yet still from that up
per room rang out upon the early morn
ing air the same horrible cry that had first
startled the deep repose of the street. and
the heavy sounds of stamping and strug-
Cling had not yet ceased. ...l. -
"Thank God! Here comes Monsieur
Muset, the gendarme," cried Henri Duval,
the silver worker; "he will find a way in,
I'll be bound"
The gendsrme was ready and prompt.
Thrusting his bayonet into the crack of
this door, he gave it sudden wrench, and
the lock was sprung. Followed by the
crowd, the brave Muset, his bsyonet at
the charge, rushed in and stsrmed his way
up the staircase.
Aa vat 20 t1ok
thrill and piercing shrek Of terror OF
agony, so strange and unearthly in its tone
And they still heard, as if in fierce conten
ton with it, the deep and heavy voice
with its angry "cursed" and "devilp
There were no French accents in that
shriek-this was certain. Some thought
they could distinguish Italian, others
Spanish and English words. But no one
could say with certainty whether the shril
Ter voice belonged to man or to woman
This much, however, there could be nC
doubt about-neither of the voices had
the slightest resemblance to those o
Madame rEsparaye and her daughter.
Suddenly, just as the crowd reached the
head of the stairs, the wild outcry ceased
The hoarse, smothered tones of two voices
were now heard in a back chamber-tht
bedroom of the two women. Muset rat
lent as death. Finding the door lockeC
and the key inside, the gendarme agaiI
had recourse to his bayonet with the sam
result. But, to the astonishment OF ever
one, the room was empty. Not soul Il
be seen no mangled corpse on the foo
none on the bed. And yet the sight tina
presented itself was fearfully significant
Everything in the chamber was in tn
widest disorder. Broken furniture, shat
tered looking-glasses, fragments of picture
and torn bed-clothes and wearing appare
lay scattered over the floor Along wit
these evidences of some frightful struggle
they found four bright Napoleons-d'or,
blood-stained earring set with topazei
several silver spoons and two bags cor
tanning some four thousand francs in golC
The money appeared to have been take
from small iron cash-box that stood ope
on the bed.
On chair lay an open razor cOvere
with blood, and in the crate were foun
three long, blood-mstted locks Of huma
hair.
There had evidently been both robber
and murder. But where were the VII
tims-where the perpetrators Of th
double crime? The fastenings Of III
doors and windows were apparently il
tact. Certainly no one could have q
capped through these. For a moment a
were beWildered-confounded. But Ii
hair found in the crate suggested 70 Nj
set that perhaps the murderer might hAv
fed by the chimney. Examining Il
CRATE once more, he found on the heartl
plate a heap Of newly-fallen SCOT. 3
crawled into the fireplace and felt up II
chimney.
"Ahf' he exclaimed, "here is som
thing soft IL is hsir-the long hair of
woman, and my hands are wet with som
thing. Oh, poor woman feel her face
ii is wet too. My God I 1t must be blsod
Her neck and shoulders are still warm