The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1875-07-16
TIE W1YS OF I,ROTIDENCE.

About the middle of the seventeenth CEN
tury, Nicholas Zambelli, a citizen of Lucca,
visited England on business, ard, pleased
with the country, settled there. His.affairs
prospered, and by the time he was fifty
years of age he had accumulated a hand
some fortune, and felt desire to end his
days at Lucca, where brother of his still
resided. He wrote to his family announcing
his intention, and soon after sent them
another letter, dated at Rouen, stating that
he had advanced thus far on his journey !:
that he had some business to attend 20 at
Paris, and might be expected to reach
Lucca in about two months. Nearly half
a year elapsed, however, and nothing was
heard OF him. His brother, extremely
anxious as to his fate, set ont for Paris i'm
search of him. lie visited every place
where the missing man was likely to have
presented himself in the course of his bus
iness, and in his search seemed, at first, to
meet with success. Many of those lie en-
coun.ered stated that they had seen and
conversed with the missing man he had
ci6tfDeu diu cpllCCtcu ZIG amount Quc on
various securities to a considerable amount
When, however, the receipts signed Gam
belli'' were exhibited the brother exclaim-
ed at once that they were forgeries, and it
was plain that there had been foul play of
some sort--robbery at least, if not murder
No clue could be obtained however. to the
guilty parties none of those who had paid
their money to the false Zambeli would
undertake to describe an individual they
had seen six months before, and but for a
few minutes. Investigations at Rouen
revealed the fact that Zambelli had arrived
by valet. The latter, however, had been
but little noticed, and as so long a time had
elapsed since his departure, no one could
undertake to identify this single domestic
of the many who in that time had passed
through this hotel, the most frequentcd in
Rouen.
Cornelius Zambelli thereupon brought
the matter before the lieutenant of police,
but even his acumen, sharpened by long
experience, was at fault. Undoubtedly a
crime had been committed somewhere be-
tween Rouen and Paris but where, when.
the lieutenant was brilliant example of
the Darwinian theory of the acquisition of
instincts. Long years of contact with
crime, innumerable searches for criminals
had engcntered in him sixth sense, which
enabled him to detect the presence of AN
offender against the law where there was
no palpable evidence of his existence. Six
or seven months before, a goldsmith named
Martel had opened a shop at Rouen, where
he was entirely unknown. There was
something strange, awkward, and embar-
rassed in his appearance and manner he
was very reticent as to his antecedents; in
quisitive neigh3ors, who ventured to ask
him any questions about himself were put
off with evasive answers, while his manner
when thus interrogatcd became painfully
embarrassed. These circumstances, joined
TO the fact that his business was the same
as Zambelli's, and his appearance at Rouen
synchronous with the latter's disappear
ance, awakened a suspicion in the lieuten-
ants mind that lie was the man of whom
they were in search, and that official at
once set to work to obtain confederation OF
his hypothesis.
With those artful preparations to cntrap
the unwary which are the characteristics
of French criminal law and police, he sent
an individual to Marters store, who, under
pretence of purchasing some trinkets, en-
tered into conversation with the goldsmith
and incidentally mentioned the name OF
Zambelli. At this Martel grew pale and
showed signs Of disquietude, looked earn
estly at his questioner, who, however, Civ.
ing no sign Of any ultcrior motive in his
remark, finished his purchase and left tho
shop. The lieutenant now felt sure he was
on the right track. His next step was al
| ingenious one. He counterfeited Martel's
signature to a bond, and sent sergeant o
police to the suspected man to demand
payment of it. Martel, of course, replied
that it was a forgery, and refused to pay
bat the officer insisted that he must take