The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1879-03-28

! ishing rapidly, and there was q sharp,
, cracsling sound as the water expanding
In II caused strain upon the basin
(which pressed out the sides.
With 900 ONES, /" continued the Pro-
lessor, - I'can freeze 500 cubic feet Of
Ifwnter.'''f rfA ~
I left the house much impressed with
} the discovery made by the Professor,
and a few days afterward learned OF his
death. The public considered II case
Of suicide. made careful 'examina-
ton Of the premises, and came to diff
ferent conclusion. II was tho hand Ut
Alice Armstrong that killed Prof.
Croftly.
Let us 60 back little. After the
Professor realized what could he done
with his new appliance of electricity, he
determined to utilize it in the murder of
Dean. lie 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 the bath. lie retired
at midnight, and always took bath
just before. The bathroom Of Arm
strong's house was an exceptionally
good one. II was situated but short
distance from the suit occupied by the
Professor and Dean. The tank was Of
marble, feet wide, 10 feet long and 6
feet deep, capable Of holding 40 cubic
feet of water. Croftly connected the
bath with his own room by means of
wires. One entered the bath by the
waste-pipe. He reached this by digging
in the garden under the pretext Of plant
ing flowers. The wire ran down the
side of the house and into the ground.
II was concealed from observation by
lilac-bush. The other was connected
with the pipe which furnished the water.
He bored hole in the wall and found
the pipe, as he expected, running 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 4 stand near the wall, and /
the wires from Il connected with those !
leading TO the bath. When the appa- /
ratus was removed its wires could be ,
pulled away from the Others, and no
trace would be left Of previous connec-
ton.
On the night Of the Sd Of July all was
in readiness. Croftly laid his plans
with nicely and deliberation. Dean al
ways took bath before retiring, which
was about midnight. In the morning
Croftly had purchased two seats mt the
Metropolitan Theater and given themto
Armstrong, who took his daughter 10
the play. By O'Clock every thing was
quiet in the house. Croftly knew that
he was safe from interruption until ii
o'clock, and perhaps later.
He now began TO work in earnest. He
filed the tank with water, and then
tested his wires over and over again.
Every thing was in splendid working
order. He calculated that he could en-
bed his rival in ice about midnight, and
then turn on hot water. In the morn
ing there would be no trace left Of the
freezing. He rubbed his hands with
delight, and then poured in the chem
ical proportions, wherein lay the secret
Of his discovery. Having done this, he
went back to his room and laid the two
connecting wires Of his apparatus side
by side upon the instrument. 1t was
now 3 o'clock. He turned the gas up
to full blaze to disperse the shadows.
took an easy chair and determined TO
read until Deans return. The silence
OF the house became unbearable, and I
the sultriness ofthe apartment more and
mere oppressive. His excitement be- ,
gan to tell upon him and he was no |
longer cool. The man who is about to I
kill suffers more pangs than he who
knows be is about to die. Croftly paced |
up and down the apartment, and shen :
strange fascination drew him toward
the bath. He entered the room again
and stood gazing into the motionless
water in the tank, and murmured to
himself: {" Four hundred and eighty
cubic feet, five hundred omes.r
There was a gas-jet above the tank,
and its faint glow was reflected in the :
water. To Croftly the atmosphere !
seemed to have been generated in blast I
furnace. The water looked cool and
There was yet more than !
an hour. Croftly turned the catch OF (
the doorfrom force of habit,a and, throw |
ing off bis clothes, plunged In. He {
could discover no disagrecable trace of :
the chemicals, and once more he felt
the delightful sensation Of being cool.
Il was 50 agreeable that he began to re-
feet 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 I
pair had indeed returned, having left .
the theater because they did not care to (
be bored with Mrs. Bowers's hackneyed |
rendering Of "Qncen Elizabeth Pass (
ing along the hall they saw the Profess
sor's door open and the gas ia full I
blast. Armstrong hated to see any I
thing 90 20 waste, and told his dauvh-