Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1884-03-06
rae STORY OF A CRIME.

ago. Inc factS are lnuS cOnuenSeu
from the Court records by Paris
paper:
At the beginning of the last cen
tury there was seen in the town
of Lille very quiet house. TWAS
large building, but it contained
only small family-a husband
and wife and one servant. The
married couple were advanced in
years, lived quietly on their in.
come, saw very few visitors, and
admitted none to the house, except
the people who furnished them
with provisions, or otherwise adj
ministered to their wants. One
night this couple, man and wife,
were both robbed and murdered
in their bed.
The servant girlaad heard moth
ing of all this and knew not what
was going on. The night was hot,
the air dense and oppressively
sultry, SO much so that she had
taken refuge in her room, and, for
the sake of GOODNESS, Invested her
self of her garments before a large
mirror. While there, catching
sight of herself, she suddenly
cried:
"How hateful one looks when
undressed ~
Having said this, she. retired
and slept till morning, and rose as
usual without suspecting what had
happened.
She prepared breakfast as usual
for her master and mistress, but
they did not come down. She was
amazed and waited for some time.
They did not appear.
Tired of waiting, she sought
their room. A horrible sight met
her eyes. Blood was smeared
everywhere, and ON thu bed lay
the poor old couple, cruelty, hor
ribly butchered-lnangled only as
a beast or fiend could find it in his
heart to mutilate victims after
numbering them.
The girl raised an alarm, and
the multitude came rushing in.
OF course justice came rushing
after in tho shape of the police,
with a judicial investigation. The
criminal was sought for, and as
none other could be found, susM-
cion fell on the unfortunate ser
want.
In those days they had a horri-
BILE way of trying to get the truth.
They called it questioning. The
questions were put with racks and
thumb-screws.
The Lillois servant maid was in.
tamously tortured, even to extreme
agony. Yet, Notwithstanding her
weakness and her sex, she en-
dured the internal torture without
confessing.
This was most remarkable, as
she was entirely Innocent and was
in consequence kept much longer
under the torment to make her
confess. As there were no proofs
of her having done anything, they
finally let her 20 as soon as she
was healed. Unfortunately the
torture had made her a wrecked
cripple. She could only hobble
along, and her arms We're terribly
withered.
And being no longer able to sew
or work, she dragged her helpless
form through the streets OF Lille
for sixteen years. This is histori
cally true--nay, more than histori
cally, for history often lies, while
these accounts are drawn from thu
dry and accurate records of a court
The worst part OF her suffering
was that many people beheves
her guilty and stunned her accord
ingly.
1t appears from the record tina
during these long years, while sh
went about with her withere,
arms and bent back, her Who'll
frame suffering from the torture
begging a sou to buy her bread
that she was always resigned, mil,
and exemplary in her conduct.
One day, after sixteen years c
misery, she stopped at the door c
a baker. She held out throug
her rags her naked and mutilate,
arm toward the baker, who stoo
at his doorsill. AS she did so, h
exclaimed, in a hooking tone
while observing her garments:
"Well, Marie Anne. how hate
full one looks when undressed ha
ha n
Now, ii is remarkable that in a
the sixteen years which had pas.
ed, Marie Anne had not forgotte
those words which she had spoke
when alone on the night of til
murder. IL flashes upon her min
that the real murderer might hay
heard them, and that he stood b.
fore her. In brief, the journe,
man baker. when arrested. col
fessed the truth. He had regula
ly supplied the old couple, an
knew the ways of the house. Il
was hidden there on the night
the murder, and heard the 81
when she made the remark q
nakedness. And as the crimin
is often, by the will Of Providence