Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1878-09-13

A little odd answered the agent.
81 wonder if he heard us talking
about the specieP" queried.
He seems honest enough"
Eyes" said L; 4" but I'm sure he was
listening to our talk when l first saw
him."
care you certain of it?" the agent
asked eagerly.
"Well-no," replied; "not alto
gether certain beyond all mistake, but
it looked nightly like it, can tell
you"
Suppose you 90 to the telegraph
Office and see what kind of a message
he SENDS" suggested the agent
No sooner said than done. | has
tened around to the telegraph office,
and as / went in the man came out.
He didn't seem to recognize meat
least he didn't look at me-and |
thought it prudent not to notice him.
"Did that preacher-looliing fellow
send message to G-P' l asked OF
the operator, when / had gone in and
closed the door after me.
"Yes. Why do you askP"
80, only out of curiosity" l replied.
"Was it anything of Importance? The
man said that his brother and brother
in-law were both killed this afternoon. "
The operator took the copy of the
message from the file on the table and
laid it before me. 1t was addressed to
Mrs. G. II. Griggs, c., and signed
Isaac G.. Van Scooter. 1t read:
Henry and Charles are both dead.
They will be sent home Thursday.
Everything seemed consistent, and
any doubts | had entertained of the
good intentions of the stranger were
speedily dissolved. l didn't 90 back to
the office, but turned my steps toward
my boarding place, thinking as !
walked along that Thursday would be
an uncommon day with me, with two
corpses and SS0,000 in specie in my
car.
The money was safely deposited in the
car an hour before the time for the train
to leave, Thursday morning. 1t was
securely locked in two strong, iron.
bound chests, and then they were
slowed away in the large safe, and the
heavy doors made fast | thought
everything was pretty well fixed. A
few minutes before we pulled out two
wagons passed by the car, one of them
containing two officers and the other
six men, who were evidently acting AS
pall-bearers. Hooked around for the
bereaved brother with the peculiar eye,
but he was nowhere to be seen.
thought it little strange that he
should be absent at such time, but ]
forgot all about it in a moment.
The collins were placed in one end OF
the car, and after it had been arranged
that one of the men should come into
the car and take look at the bodies
when we arrived at Redwood, he shook
hands with the others and entered one
of the coaches. As the doors closed on
him the bell rang and we went steam
ing away.
l was pretty busy for an hour OF
more, and we had passed two or three
stations before had time to cast more
than casual glance toward the quiet
passengers at the end of the car. But
after little, when had leisure, an un-
controllable wish took possession of me
To look ut the faces of the two dead
men. 1t wasn't mere morbid curiosity,
and | can't describe it in any way bet
ter than to say it was sort of vague
desire which l could not quiet without
satisfying it.
1 noticed that the lids were not fast
ened down. My next discovery was
that the screws were gone. This struck
me as strange, for | was sure | had no.
ticed them when the coflins were lifted
into the car. remembered that | had
given the attendants permission to ar
range the caskets to their own satisfac-
ton, and that they had been a long
time doing it. If they had removed the
screws unObserved at the time, what
possible object could they have had in
doing so? With this question in my
mind l raised the upper portion of the
collin nearest me and took look at
the face of the occupant. He was a
young man, with full face and square
features. His cheeks were not sunken,
and he had a decidedly fresh appear
ance for young man who had been
dead nearly two days, thought.
Replacing the lid l passed away to
the other coffin. Here anew and start
ling surprise met me. The man in the
coffin was the man whom had seen in
the express office! That red eye was
staring straight at me; and / was not
For moment my conster-
nation was too great for words. |
could not have uttered a sound had my
life depended on it.
This man, who was alive after the
accident, which the paper said caused
tie death of Van Scooter and Gripps,
and who had made arrangements for
the transportation of their remains, was
now here in this coffin, to all appear
ance dead! Then l remembered that
the bereaved stranger had said that his
dead brother resembled him very close
Iy. But two brothers are not apt to have
red glass eyes! Such a coincidence as
his was beyond the pale of reasonable
While yet l gazed at the supposed
corpse, the other eye. opened little,
and | was sure that it was looking at
ne. was convinced that there was
raud here, but to show that | had dis
covered 1t might cost me my life. Sol
very quietly replaced the lid of the cof-
IN, and took a moments time to think
he matter over
/ remembered my conversation with
he express agent, which we feared had
'een overheard by the clerical-looking
tranger, and could only come to the
conclusion that the whole thing was
deliberate plan TO murder me and gain
possession Of the $50, 900 in my charge.
there was no denying that the man
With the red eye was alive, and had
10 doubt that the other man was also.
lneeling down, placed my ear close
o the side of the coffin, and could hear
i'm breath quite distinctly. / remem-
,ered the attendant who had boarded |
he train intended TO enter the car at