The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1872-01-12
DISAPPEARED.

DISAPPEARED.
Yes, can tell you a story of my old
friend Bayle; no one better. Some OF
my friends here may have heard it be-
fore, out it will bear hearing again. !
can t say Pm proud to tell it, because
it's too sad an ending, as far as he was
concerned, poor fellow, though myself
had lucky escape.
James Bayle was very peculiar man.
l don't think any one understood him
except myself. He was certainly more
open with me than with any of his other
friends or acquaintance. 1t was three
years ago in November, when he came
up to London to stay with me in this
very house. He used to 90 out on long
walks by himself every day, and |
knew his object, for he had confeed to
me the fact that he WAS going TO marry
young girl somewhat below him in
station, and he was looking for house
in London, as he intended to work hard
on two or three journals, on the staff
of which he had long been attached.
The sort of house that he looked for
was, as you may believe, not very dear
one. He naturally wished for very
quiet situation; and as he was a man
who had always lived in the country,an
was very fond of flowers, he said he
would put up with any inconvenience so
long Us he could have piece of ground
to himself. He told me the sort of
house he required, and | told him the
districts in which he would most prob
ably find one. 1t was one Wednesday,
! gepIember, four days after he had been
with us, that he went out rather earlier
than usual. We never expected him to
return very early; but when the dinner
bell rang, and we found he had not come
In, we felt little uneasy. He was a
very shy man, as you know, and very
particular the last thing he would be
likely to do was to be purposely late for
dinner, without giving us any warning.
We waited twenty minutes, and then
sat down without him. He never came
back at all that night, nor the next day,
nor the day after that; in fact, as you
all know, he never came back at all.
We went to the police-office at once
and | was very much amused at the
theories set up by the excellent detec-
tiVes to account for his disappearance
| told them | believed it very likely
that he had been looking for house
or, if not, that he had gone to the
British Museum but they got it into
their heads that he had been decoyed
into the sums of St. Giles's or West
Minister, or had committed suicide; and
nothing would dissuade them at first
from these two ingenious theories.
They asked me if he was not a man
Of studious, solitary habits, rather eccen
trio.
answered, eyes, certainly
"Then depend upon il" said the ser
geant, "hes in the Regents Canal OF
the Thames"
This reasoning was so unanswerable
that did not attempt to answer it but
/ determined to test my own theory
first.
Hitherto we had been able to find no
body who had seen him. He knew very
few people in London, and he was MOI
the sort of man to attract attention.
began my endeavors to trace his move
ments in rather a novel manner.
| started every morning from my own
house at the same hour as he had done
| stood for about five minutes in the
street, and then / set out in whatever
direction chance suggested to me. Fol-
eight days | walked almost fifteen miles
a day, looking everywhere for any house
to let which would have been likely tc
attract Bayle's attention, but did not
get any clue. found several which he
had been to, but not on the day upon
which he had disappeared. On the
ninth day | started at the same hour
this day ! selected a district which
knew to contain one or two houses such
as he required. | walked on in the
same unprecedented manner, turning
down any street as chance led me.
was very much dispirited, so much sc
that had forgotten was hungry, when
found myself in a very quiet part Of
one of the western suburbs. ! was Just
going to try and find some place where
could lunch, which promised to be nc
easy matter, as there seemed 10 be nc
shops or public-houses near, when my
eye caught a very crazy-looking board
which was peering over the dingy corner
of dead.wall straight in front Of me-
walked up to il and read "This eligi
BILE villa to be let, unfinished, with
one acre of ground. Stabling, etc
Terms very moderate. Inquire with
i'm
could only see the top of the house
which seemed very low, and some little
way from the road. The front looked
on TO Duddon's Grove on one side was
Dissenting chapel, standing in a small
piece OF ground on the other, very
quiet, lonely lane; there was door
evidently leading to the stable-yard il