Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1885-04-13


IN the collection OF curiOsltles preserved
II the arsenal Of Venice, there is key
Of which the following singular tradition
Is related About the year 800 one
81 those dangerous men, In whom extra
ordinary talent Is only the fearful source
Of crime and wfckedness beyond that Of
ordinary men, came TO establish himself
SIS q merchant OF trader il Venice. The
stranger. whose name was Tebaldo, be-
came enamored Of the daughferof 40 an
cienthouse. already affianced to another.
He demanded her hand in marriage, and
was, Of course, rejected Enraged at
this, he studied how TO be revenged.
Profoundly skilled in the mechanical
arts, he allowed himself no rest until he
had invented themost formidable weapon
which could be imagined This was q
key Of large size, the handle Of which
was so constructed that IL could
be turned round with little difd-
Guilty; when turned It discovered
spring. which, on pressure, launched
from the other end needle
or lancet Of such subtle lncness that 1t
entered into the flesh and buried itself
there without leaving external trace.
Tebaldo waited in disguise at the door
Of the church il which the maiden whom
he loved was about 10 receive the nuptial
benediction. The assassin sent the
slender steel unperceived into the breast
Of the bridegroom. The wounded man had
no suspicion Of injury, but seized with
sudden and sharp pain In the midst Of
the ceremony, he tainted, and was carried
70 his house, amid the lamentations Of
the bridal party Vain was all the skill
Of the physicians, who could not devise
the cause Of this strange illness; and In
q few days he died. Tebaldo again de-
manded the hand Of the maiden from her
parents, and received second refusal.
They, too, persisted miserably in few
days. The alarm which these deaths
which appeared almost miraculous occa-
stoned excited the utmost vigilance Of the
magistrates; and when, on close cxamin-
alton OF the bodies, the small instrument
was found in the gangrencd flesh,
terror was universal; every one feared
for his own life. Tic maiden thus cruel
ly orphaned had passed the first months Of
her mourning in convent wher Tebaldo,
hoping to bend her to his will, cntrcated
tospoak with her attic CRATE. The face of
the foreigner had been ever tsispleasing
to her, but since the death 81 all those
most dear to her ii lad bccona odious
(as though she had q presumpslek u his
guilt, and her reply was mast decisive
in tho negative. Tcbaldo, beyond him-
self with rage, attempted to wound her
through the CRATE, and succeeded; the
obscuFity Of the place prevented his
movement being observed. On her re-
turn to her room, the maiden felt pain
ID her breast, and uncovering il, she
found il spotted with q single drop Of
blood. Tho pain Increased, the surgeons
who FASTENED to her assistance taught
by the past wasted no time ia con-
lecture, but, cutting deep into the
wounded part, extracted the needle be-
FORE any mortal mischief had commenced,
and saved the life of the lady. The
State inquisition used every means TO
discover the hand which dealt these in
sidloua and irresistible blows. The visit
Of Tebaldo to the convent caused sus-
picion to fall heavily upon him. His
house was carefully searched, the infa-
nous invention discovered, and he per-
sshed on the qibbet. - Public Opinion.