Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1881-04-30
WHOLE NUMBER, SOL.
Il was punctual to my appointment.
We drove together to the asylum"

"There is no need for me to trouble
you with narrative of what 1 saw-fa-
vored by Doctor Wybrow's introduction
at the French boys bedside. 1t was
simply repetition of what I had al
ready heard. There he lay at the
height of the fever asking, in the inter-
walls of relief, intelligent questions rela-
tive to the medicines administered to
him, and perfectly understanding the
answers. He was irritable when We
asked him to take his memory back to
the time before his illness, and then
he answered in French: "I haven't got
memory
But have something else to tell
you, which is deserving of your best
attention. The envelope and its inclo-
sures addressed to Bernard Winter
field, Esq.), are in my possession. The
Christian name sufficiently identifies
the inscription with the Winterfeld
whom know.
"The circumstances under which the
discovery was made were related to me
by the proprietor of the asylum.
"When the boy was brought to the
house, two French ladies (his mother
and sister, accompanied him, and men,
toned what had been their own domes-
tic experience of the case. They de-
scribed the wandering propensities
which took the lad away from home,
and the odd concealment of his waist
coat on the last occasion when he had
returned from one of his vagrant OUT
breaks.
Son his first night at the asylum he
became excited by finding himself in a
strange place. 1t was necessary TO give
him composing draught. On going to
bed he was purposely not prevented
from hiding his waistcoat under the pill
low as usual.
"When the sedative had produced
its effect the attendant easily possessed
himself of the hidden garment. 1t was
the plain duty of the master of the
house to make sure that nothing likely
to be turned to evil uses were concealed
by patient. The seal which had
secured the envelope was found on ex-
animation to have been broken.
"'I would not have broken the seal
myself, our host added. But, as things
were, 1 thought it my duty to look at
the Enclosures, They refer to private
affairs of Mr. Winterfield in which he
is deeply interested, and they ought to
have been long since placed in his pos
session. I need scarcely say that con-
slider myself bound to preserve the
strictest silence as to what 1 have read.
An envelope containing some blank
sheets of paper was put back in the
boys waiscoat, so that he might feel it
in its place under the lining when he
woke. The original envelope and in
closures with statement of circum-
stances signed by my assistant and my
self have been secured under another
cover, sealed with my own seal. l have
done my best to discover Mr.. Bernard
Winterfield. He appears not to live in
London. At least, | failed to find his
name in the directory. l wrote next,
mentioning what had happened, to the
English gentleman to whom L send re-
ports of the lads health. He couldn't
help me. A second letter to the French
ladies only produced the same result.
1 own should be glad to get rid of my
responsibility on honorable terms
"All this was said in the boys pres
ence. He lay listening to it as if it had
been story told of some one else. I
could not resist the useless desire to
question him. Not speaking French
myself-although 1 can read the Ian
guage-I asked Doctor Wybrow and his
friend to interpret for me.
my questions led to nothing. The
French boy knew no more about the
letter than I did.
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