River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1881-01-20
A SECRET CHAMBER.
The Terrible Secret an Architects
Measurements Disclosed.

The London correspondent of The
Ne1r York Times contributes the follow
ing medieval romance:
The owner Of the place, a ioyial olG
country gentleman, with large fam
lily, began to find his house somewhat
too small for the requirements Of the
countless guests with whom he delight
ed 10 fill IL. He sent for an eminent
architect, and consulted him as to the
possibility of adding a room or two
without injury to the appearance OF
the building. The architect went to
work at once, inspected the house
within and without, made sundry
measurements, and returned to his
host with the complacent air Of man
who has found ont something worth
knowing.
I'm fortunate enough, said he, with
a smile, ''to have come Just in time to
save you from a very useless labor
DO you know that while you are talk
ing Of adding new rooms to your house
you have a room in il al this moment
which you have never used YETI
What on earth do you mean?" asked
the bewildered squire II mean, an
swered the professional, with quite sci
entihc superiority, that the measure
ments ! have just been taking leave
several sqnare yards of the houses
area unaccounted for; in other words.
there Is somewhere within Its walls a
secret chamber of which YOU kroW
nothing" The squire laughed the
idea tC sc0rn, but his wife, captiyated
by the romantic suggestion Of a posi-
bic "Bluebeard's chamber" in her own
house, at once ranged herself on the
side OF the architect, and insisted Il t
the mysterious room should be search
ed for and found. "If it exists" put
in her husband 1t not only exists,
retorted the architect, somewhat nettled
by the implied doubt of his judgme nt,
but | am positive that | can point out
the very spot where it Is to be found
Pick hole in the wall that closes the
east end of the great corridor on the
third floor, and if you do not find the
secret chamber lying behind it, / will
gladly pay all the expenses Of the
search. ?" The proprietor, begin
ming to feel interested, in spite
Of himself, at once agreed to
to the proposal, and the workmen were
promptly called in. A few sturdy blows
suf1iced to bring down the wall, already
old and crumbing. Behind it, to the
great exultation of the architect and
the amazement OF The incredulous
squire, appeared a noldering oaken
door, which was speedily driven in, re-
vealing a dark recess, from which ex-
hailed a strange, sickening odor. The
architect, taking a lighted candle from
one Of the bystanders-fOr by this time
the whole household had assembled to
watch the progress Of the excavation
squeezed himself through the aperture.
but instantly sprang back with a cry Of
horror. The squire, more courageous
or less impossible, entered in his turn,
and this was what he saw
Hidden in the thickness OF the wall
lay a small oval chamber, once lighted
by a narrow, diamond PANIED window,
which had been completely bricked up
from the outside The furniture was
Of rich antique cast, the carved oak
table spread with costly dishes and sill
yer t1agons; but dust and cobwebs COW
cred all, and tn very hangings were
rotting upon the moldering walls. Rat,
were heard scraping and gnawing be-
hind the wainscot, and huge, Shiny
beetles were crawling about the damp
blotchy floor. The browning horror O;
this living tomb, however, lay else.
where On the widowed couch beside
the table a human skeleton WAS >hrunk
together in a posture Of hideOus distuT-
ton, while another sat CrouchIng in Is
corner. with It's bony fingers thrust be-
tween its yellow, rafting jaws. as if tbs
wretch had gnawed his own flesh from
his bones in the desperation Of the last
agony The news Of the ghastly reye-
lation flew abroad like wildfre. stimu-
lating the local antiquaries 10 solve. II
possible, the mystery of this horrible
secret. Their zeal al length ferretad
out the legend of death-bed confession
made by the hereditary owner Of the
place IL the days of James ]. In ven
geance for his wife's infideiity he had
decoyed her and her paramour into the
fatal chamber, where he built them up
alive with mis- own hands. As further
refinement of cruelty, he had previous
~ spread the table with splendid ban
quet, every morsel of which was pois-
oned, thus giving the poor wretches
only the choice OF starvation or suicide.
What horrors that lonely chamber Wit
messed before the end came none but
God can tell; but the distorted attitude
of the two victims sufficiently showed
in what fearful agonies they must have
died.