Maryland independent. [volume] (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1874-current, 1885-07-10

lect was thrown into relief. 1t was a
hand-a human hand. Not a skeleton
nand' white and clean, but dried and
Oackenei hand. with yellow nails,
naked muscles, and traces Of blood H.
old clotlei blood, where the bones
were cut short off as If with the blow
oi an aN, about midway up the fore
arm. An enormous iron chain, rivet-
ed at the wrist, soldered to this un-
slightly member, attached it to the wall
oya ring strong enough to hold an
elephant in leash
What is that?" asked.
"That is my worst enemy" replied
the Engishman. calmly. ole came
from America 1t was cut off with a
saber skinned and dried in the sun
for week. 1t was a pretty good
piece Of work for me
l touched that human fragment,
which must have belonged to a giant
The fingers, disproportionately long,
were attached by enormous tendoHs,
to which shrcds of skin still clung.
Scorched as it was, it was a frightful
thing to behold suggesting irresistibly
some savage revenge
"He must have been very strong
man." said l.
"0h, yes" said the Engllshman,
gently "But | was stronger than he.
l had that chain put on to hold him"
l Thought he was testing. and said:
"The chain is wholly useless now;
the hand Will not run away"
But he grayely replied:
"The chain was necessary. 1t was
always trying to get away"
With rapid glance questioned his
countenance, asking myself
as he lunatic or an ugly jester 2"
But his face remained impenetrable,
calm, and benevolent. talked of other
things, and admired his guns. no
ticed that three loaded revolvers lay on
the tables, as if this man lived in con e
slant fear Of an attack.
| visited him several times and then
went there no more. People had be
come accustomed to his presence and
grown indifferent.
a whole year passed. Then one
morning. toward the end of Novcm
ber. my servant awoke me with tn
~-psee&e1.oat that Sir JGhr. Rowe
had been assassinated in the night.
Half an hour later, with the centra
commissary and Il captain of the sol
diery, | entered the Englisbman'i
house His servant, bewildered anC
despairing, was weeping before tn,
door. suspected him at first, but h,
was innocent. The guilty man never
could be found.
AS | entered Sir Johns sitting room
l saw at the first glance his body
stretched out on its back in the middle
of the floor. His waistcoat was torn.
one torn sleeve of his coat was hang
ing; all told that a terrible struggle
had taken place.
He had died of strangulation His
terrible countenance, black and swol-
len, seemed to express an abominable
fear ; he held something between his
set teeth, and his neck, pierced in a
hundred spots, as if with iron points,
was covered with blood.
A physician joined US. lie examined
long and closely the marks of fingers
in The flesh of the dead mans throat,
and spoke these strange words:
cone would say that he had been
strangled by a skeleton"
A shudder crept over my back, and
| raised my eyes to the wall to the
place where had formerly seen the
horrible, shriveled hand 1t was no
longer there. The chain hung broken.
Then leaned over the dead man,
and found in his distorted mouth one
OF the fingers of that missing hand.
cut, or rather sawed, off by his teeth
close to the second joint.
They proceeded to make investiQa-
dons, but discovered nothing. No
door or window had been forced, no
article of furniture moved. The two
watchdogs had not been awakened.
The testimony of the servant could
he summed up in few words.
His master had seemed agitated for
a monthpast. He had received and
burned many letters. Often Selling a
horseNhip, with fury that resembled
madness, he had lashed that dried hand
chained to the wall, which had been
removed, no one knew how, at the
very hour of the crime.
lt was his habit to retire early at
night and to lock himself in with care.
lie always had weapons within his
reach. He often talked very loud in
'he night, as if quarrelling with some
body.
That night it CHANGED that he had
made no sound, and it was only on
coming to open the windows in the
morning that the servant had found
Sir John assassinated. He suspected
nobody.
reported to the magistrates and
public officers all | knew about the
DEATH and a minute inquiry was pros
ecuted over the whole island. Moth
ing was discovered.
One night, about three months af-
yer The crime, | had a fearful night
mare seemed to see that hand.
lunnlng like a scorpion or spider