The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1869-11-23

three = sATscfd Jesse AID i ie fouFz
teen years ago to-day th3s oar little
Jsssle wns stolen from "a
I remember q. ssi,' the doctor soft-
III Tot saighi che oct havt been lost
Nf Predict she seat cot 70 play ID
The garden. Il remember rightly, and
wAs never soaa by you again. SIZE
might have rirnyed away
S. ss thought lor whole rear, doc
tor. interrupted The banker We new
Or dreamed that shs had been stolen
We searched erory ~hsrs for her. aud
offered immenss rewards for her re-
eoTsry employed detectives. bat 81
- 10 purpose When our little Jessie
ran 1o~n the steps into that flower
garden. and be pointed 10 the front 81
the housc, ~ 4 the earth bad opened
aud swallowed her us We never sas
her again.
She mus, have iouaa the gate open.
and wandered ont, suggested DR. Hut
ten She might have sir0lled down 70
tic waters and been drowned.
Tie banker 6xod hls burning eyes
upon the physicians face, aud whisper
-
said We never saw tie poor child
again. / did not say we bad not heard
oi her She WAS lost on the 9th Of An
gust 1854. For = year we thought her
dead But on the anniversary OF onr
loss we received q written meassage
concerning her.
A message cried DR.. Hutton. start
ing
A mere scrawl--a single line IN a
hand evidently disguised, said tue bank
or. Here il ia
Hs produced dingy scrap Of paper
from drawer in the table, and held il
up 10 the view VI tue physician, who
read ~ follows:
Augur . 1855. Jsssie a. Ia Jessis.
DIR Hutton looked, with a puzzled
air, from ths scrap Of paper, which he
turned over and over, to the counte-
nance Of the banker.
can make nothing Of this, he de-
elared II is merely date, with the
name OF your loaf daughter. 1t tells
me nothing
Nor did il us, at FIRST, said Mr.. Pre-
BILE Then that name and that date,
with the lemon laugh connecting them,
set us to thinking. A whole year we
agoniEed oven the dreadful problem,
and then we received another message,
which you shall SEQ,
He thrust second slip OF paper,
identical in shape and appearance with
tho frat, before the gaze OF DIR. Hut
ton, who read II aloud:
August 3, 1850 l0,u- Jessie stu tires
All! tins is something definite -
something decisive, be muttered. II
convinced you that your daughter was
still living
Yes, doctor, said Mr., PEBBLE, and ev-
cry anniversary Of that day has bro't
us some message. The disappearance
| Of the child, mysterious as ii is, does
not seem TO mo half so strange as that
| the villain who took her away could
| contrive to communicate with us every
| year since, and always on a particular
dDy the anniversary of that on which
she was stolen-w without our being able
| 10 discover who he is And still
| greater VIC nder what eau be his motive
II seems incredible. II it was stated
in novel many people would not be.
! lieve it, But truth is stranger than
I fiction.
Mrs. Preble drew from her husbands
breast pocket his note book, opened il
to the proper page, and presented it t.
the physician
DIR. Hutton adjusted his spectacles
glanced over the page, and then slowly
read the group Of entries aloud. The
! entry the first year is as follows,
Ar0usr 9. 1855. Jessie, IA, Ia! Jessie
And the next year 1t is
Auousr 3, 1856, Your Jessie sill Ices
Aud the next
Arousr 9, 1851 she Is u, good hands
/ Aud the next
AUausT 8, 1855 She istce7 as erer
And the next
Auarsr ., 1852 Isae her yesterdqyy
Aud The next
Auousr ., 1890. She's grvscing rdyidiyi
/ Aud the next
AUdusr D. 1854. Sic continues 70 DO rel
And the next
Auqvr ., 1862. RE seen he- again
And the next
Aravsr , 1903. She's becoming q conan
And the next
Auousr 2, 1864. Tour ol,ad Is thirteen
And the noxt
AUousI 9, 1855. She's loubsr ban ersy
Aud the next
ArGusr o, 1896. Sa9s really char1atag
And the next
4 Auousr 3, 1907. NJ retnard Is at hand
And Whist shall we get to-day?
The physician looked up and fixed
his thoughtful gaze upon the bereayet
husband aud whe.
How did these messages come L
you ho demanded.
! Invariably by post, replied Mr. Pre-
bic. Usually TO the house, but some
lines 10 tue office
And YOU have never seen their au
thorf
Never
The last d them is dated, see, . yeal
ago to-day
Yes. yes, faltered tue banker, and
the time has come for another mess
age. THIS is the 9Th Of August, 1868
see, said DR. Hutton. Aud this ii
the secret Of your terrible excitement
I Yon are expecting 70 receive to-day an
other Of these strange messages.
There was brief silence. MrK Pre-
bles hand fuitered ia It's task, and bel
face grew very pale. The bankeI
breaihed gaspingly The plysieiAnre
gardsd them both in iriendly sytnpa
thy.
We shall hear OF Der again. to-day
said Mr.. Prehls and What will th'
message bei
4 The mother aEsrted her face. He