The Grange advance. [volume] (Red Wing, Minn.) 1873-1877, 1877-07-04

purchased the blishiinent, 50 there was
no landlord to be looking after the rent
There was neglected and crumbling
look gradually settling down over the
stone house and its surroundings by the
following spring, but, then, that was the
owners business, and no one needsaffret
over the matter if it tumblcd to the
! ground. A sentiment'wlie the neigh
bors fully expressed. !, 80 r W i "
The isolated situation Of the houscSlpre
vented the fact Of itssremaining sosalong
shut up from being the cat1se Of much re-
mark, and the years from 1910, to 1850
were Aull q such stirring experiences in
and abou. Paris, that The Old stone house
ceased to be an object Of curiosity even to
! those IN the Immediate vicinity. $50
4 ] Ey and by came the preparations for
the Improvements in the Bois de Bou-
logne so long contemplated.
"~ One'ofthe first articles to be removed
Eproved to be the old stone house, (which
had lain empty these ten years. inquiry
was made as to the ownership; but the
action o. the French authorities, when
once commenced upon any given purpose,
is summary; no delay is permitted. for
che govergment is all powerful. So an
order was issued to tear down the house
without loss Of, time, and now that ,atten-
4 ton was directed to the building, the
authorities themselves were surprised that
the affairs of Madame Brienville had been
permitted to sleep quietly for So many
years without coming under their surveil-
lance.
Curiosity was aroused once more in the
neighborhood when it was proposed to
tear down the stone house. J.
The usual forms were observed, and a
suitable officer was detailed to oversee the
solving of this mystery. H. ( 9
The doors were broken in very easily,
for decay had weakened them, and ere
long, they would have fallen from the
eating of rust, damp and general decay.
Strange was the sight that met the eyes
of those that entered there. The dust and
mold were many inches deep upon ever.
thing. Articles lay about as they had
done in every day use, but coated, with
the deposit Of years. The close, damp
atmosphere was oppressive and the still
ness ominous! Nothing had been packed
away as if for departure or temporary
absence Of the occupants. " 81
| There stood table with the dccayed
food in the dishes, the cups and saucers,
knives and forks and spoons, lying about
as though left there to be clealed away
before the next meal should be prepared.
There was strange and mysterious sug-
gestlveness OF something to be discovered
in these signs which met the eye at every
turn. rs
Presently the officers went up the
dusty, creaking stairs, and into the first
room or chamber they came to.
All! what do they see that causes them
to start so, and to hurriedly address each
other? .#
These are men accustomed to all man
ner of exigencies, butthey almost tremble
with excitement now.
Upon the bed they beheld-one of them
having thrown open the barred windows
the skeleton Of a woman, helf clad in
a night-dress, the whole under coating
OF mold! The mystery was about to be
solved. Here was the evidence of MUIR
der, too plain to be mistaken.
Other rooms were hurriedly visited.
In that next to the one first examined,
they found another skeleton, half cloth ed
this one lying upon the floor near the
door, as if on the way to join the person
who had occupied the first room.
In the rear room, upon this floor, was
still found another skeleton lying cross
wise upon the bed, and partly clothed
like the Others.
These three skeletons were the onlv
occupants of the house. The officers
called in some of the neighbors. to- oues-
ton them, and at last one or two were
found who remembered about Madame
Brienville and her family, and part of the
mystery began to be unraveled.
Here in the first room was the mother
IN the second apartment were the bones
OF the daughter, the once lovely Loise
and in the third and rear room, there Law
across the bed the skeleton of the old
4 domestic, Nanette. Evidc ices were soon
found that showed the house had been
robbed, and these women murdered, some
ten or twelve years since.
| Further examination showed that the
robber or robbers must have entered the
house from the roof, as the only window
or place of ingress and egress found un-
barred was that of a rear one in the up-
per half-story of the building. After sat
lsfylng themselves upon this point, the
officials returned to the chambers where
the CHASTITY skeletons lay.
The bones alone were LETT!
The rats and other vermin had eaten
every particle of the flesh from the frames
years and years gone by.
I After proper official action had been