The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1879-06-25

I" AAtN .
hadn't the remotcst idea of chemistry.
He forgot that he was somewhat old,
and that some women dislike to cast
their bridal wreaths upon the snow. He
finally determined to put his rival out
OF the way, and set about laying his
plans.
One day I was in his room-being IN
occasional visitor-and observed him
busily engaged in chemical experiments
Said he: did you wei realize that
the conditions which result in congela'
ton might be produced chcmicallyp"
| confessed that ! had never given the
subject much thought.
"OfcourSc you understand that sudden
evaporation causes cold9"
| knew nothing of the kind mt the
time but nodded assent rather than
acknowledge my ignorance.
Il can produce ice instantaneously,'
he continued. This is my assistant
pointing to IN electric battery. "Witl
Il current of say one hundred ONES oil
electricity, l can accelerate enough
evaporation to freeze instantly one hun.
dred gallons of water"
Here the professor took II basin OF
water, and poured in i small quantity
of colorless liquid. "This is amonia,'
said he. But this"-hcrc he added
about as much of some other liquid
lis something else"
What is it?"
"No one knows but myself"
| deemed it impertinent to question
him further. He then attached tho
wires of his battery t" the water.
| watched, much interested, and nc
laid his hand on Il piece of metal which
was part of the apparatus, and the turn
ing of which caused tile currents to con-
meet. He turned the brass piece, and
instantly Il cloud of vapor rose from tina
surface of the water. Crystals shot
from the sides of the basin with aston
ishing rapidity, and there was Il sharp,
cracking sound rs the water expanded
in it caused y strain upon the basin,
which pressed out the sides.
With five hundred ONES" continued
the professor. Il can freeze five hundred
cubic feet of water"
| left the house much impressed with
the discovery made by the professor, and
Il few days afterward learned of his
death. The public considered it a case
VI SulIluC. i lllstuC al lllNlul
ton of the premises, and came to a diff.
fcrent conclusion. 1t was the hand OF
Alice Armstrong that killed Professor
Crofty.
Let US go back Il little. After the pro-
fessor realized what could be done with
his new appliance of electricity, he deter
mined to utilize it in the murder OF
Dean. He hit upon the grand idea of
freezing him in the bath.
"She will not love him cold" he said,
and began to arrange his plans. Dean
was fond of Il bath. He retired ut mid
night, and always took Il bath just be-
fore. The bathroom of Armstrong;
house was m exceptionally good one.
1t was situated but a short distance from
the suite occupied by the professor and
Dean. The tank was of marble, large in
size, capable of holding $50 cubic feet of
water. Crofty connected the bath with
his own room by means of wires. One
entered the bath by the waste-pipc. He
reached this under the preteXt of planting
flowers. 1t was concealed from ohser-
vation by 4 lilac bush. The other was
connected with the pipe which furnishes
the water. He bored Il hole in the wall
and found the pipe us he expected, run
ming in the rear of the room close to the
floor. He then increased the jars of his
battery, and raised its strength to 500
ONES:
No suspicion was excited by this, as
he had been for months before making
electrical experiments His apparatus
was fixed on a stand near the wall, and
the wires from it connected with those
leading to the hath. When the apparatus
was removed its wires would be pulled
away from the others, and no trace
would be left of previous connection.
On the night Of the 18th of July s;all
was in readiness. Crofty laid his plans
Armstrong, who took his daughter to the
play. By eight o'clock ever thing was
quiet in the house. Crofty knew he
was safe from interruption unit leleven
o'clock, and perhaps later.
He now began to work in earnest. He
filled the tank with water, and then
tested his wires over and over again.
Everything was in splendid working
order. He calculated that he had en-
bedded his rival in ice about midnight,
and then would turn on hot water. In
the morning there would be no trace of
freezing. He rubbed his hands with de-
light, and then poured in the chemical
proportions, wherein lay the secret of
his discovery.
He then went to his room and laid
the two connecting wires of his appara-
tus side by side upon the instrument. 1t
was now nine o'clock. He turned the
gas up to q full blaze to dispense the
Shadows, took an easy chair, and de-
termined to read until Deans return.
The silence of the house became unbear-
able, and the sultriness of the apartment
more and more oppressive. His excite
ment began to tell on him. and he was
no longer cool.
The man who is about to kill suffers
more pangs than he who is about to die.
Crofty paced up and down the apart
ment, and then Il strange fascination drew
him toward the bath. He entered the
room again and stood gazing into the
motionless water in the tank, and muir
INJURED to himself: -Four hundred and
eighty cubic feet and five hundred
ONES"
There was 4 gas jet above the tank,
and it's faint glow was reflected in the
water. To Crofty the atmosphere
seemed to have been generated in a
blast-furnace. The water looked cool
and refreshing. There was yet o
than an hour. Crofty turned the catch
of the door from force Of l.abit, and
throwing off his clothes plunged in. He
could discover no d~isagreeable trace OF
the chemicals and once more he felt
the delightful sensation ofbeing cool. 1t
was so delightful that he began to re-
fleet in his mind whether he would not
continue to enjoy the bath and postpone
the murder.
Suddenly the hall door was slammed
and he heard the voice of Miss Arm
strong talking with her father. The
pair had indeed returned, having left the
theater because they did not wish to be
bored with Mrs. Bowers hackneyed
rendering of "Queen Elizabeth" Pass
ing along the hall, they saw the profess
sor's door open, and the gas in full blast.
Armstrong hated to see anything go
to waste, and told his daughter to 60 in
and lower the gas, rs the room was I'M
occupied. Miss Armstrong went in rs
directed, and her father passed up stairs.
While alone the girl could not resist the
temptation to pull Il little note from her
bosom and read it again. She had al
ready perused it about twenty times. 1t
read:
"DEAR ALcE:-Will you be my wife?
"Yours.
edward DEAN"