Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1871-07-19

We published some weeks ago a California
story to the effect that one Symmetrical, having
convinced a number of people in San Francisco
that he had discovered method by which he
could burn up all the water in the ocean, and
endeavored to extort one million of dollars un-
der a threat of putting his discovery into prac-
tiee, had been murdered by one of them, at the
instigation Of bishop, by being thrown from a
train on the Pacific railroad at place called
Cape Horn. The story was fair specimen of
that class of inventions to which Poe's "Gold
Bug" and Locke's "Moon Hoax" belonged, but
it seemed too extravagant TO gain even doubt
full credence. The inventor, however, seemed
TO find believers enough to encourage him in
his efforts to keep up the deception and silence
the incredulous by giving the names of all the
persons referred to in his narrative, with the
addresses in San Francisco of those who survive.
A short time after, he, or another writer,
put forth a supplementary narrative,
almost as romanticl 1.-THE first, telling how
two men set out to. find the body of Summer
field, hoping to obtain his dangerous secret.
They arrived at the place spontaneously and
met over the decaying remains. "A bottle con-
tanning the mysterious substance, which had
proved fatal instead of source of wealth and
fame to its posseSsor, was wrenched from the
hand Of the skeleton; some papers were also
seized, and the men departed with their booty.
A quarrel soon arose about the division Of the
spoils, and one, notorious ruffian, killed his
companion, who survived the fatal shot just
long enough TO tell his story. A reward has
ofra- @I,a oF h.
he Is still at large with the tremendous secret
in his possession. All Californians who are not
too obstinately skeptical to believe this strange
story are anxiously asking, 'What will he do
with it"
We expected to hear no more about this affair
unless the wretch, who SO unhandsomely OBJ
tanned the sole control of poor Summerields
secret, should be mad enough to use it, in which
case, as the combustion of the oceans would in
Volve the destruction of all life on this planet,
the particulars would have no journalistic in
terest But, to our surprise, the story turns up
again, this time in the columns Of the Pacific
Commercial Advertiser of Honolulu. Two per-
sons write to that paper, saying that they knew
Symmetrical, whose real name, as they agree
was Alfred W. Arlington. In early life, he
was a Methodist minister, of brilliant tai
ents and great ambition craving especially,
as all his friends knew, to make some wonderful
discovery that would immortalize his name He
afterward became lawyer and made brilliant
reputation in the southwest. He also wrote
some powerful sketches, using "Summerfield"
as his literary signature. Twenty years ago he
was Judge at Brownsville, Texas. The person
who supplies these facts is inclined TO accept
the California story, and says: of the state
ment be true, the great secret that persisted with
him will no doubt become known again in the
progress of human discovery, and earth's final
cataclysm Of fire may originate in the agency of
one man. The fate of Summarized will only
make some future dseoverer more cautious"
The other correspondent corroborates some
statements of the original narrative, as that a
man was killed by falling or jumping from the
platform of car at "Cape Horn" and that
Summarized OR Arlington, TO the writer
knowledge, professed to have the secret which
frightened the San franciscan bishop into adj
Vising his murder, and that he claimed TO have
demonstrated his power on a small scale; but
he adds that Summerfield isklin alive, and
cold age has found him still believing in the
greatness of the secret that he..alone possesses.
and confident in his belief that he can set the
ocean on fire." The original narrator, it seems.
is entitled 10 less credit for invention than we
had supposed. There was really man, in all
probability monomaniac, who claimed to hav,
such a secret. IL is only for Summerfeld'
death that the world is indebted to the journal
lists imagination.