Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1886-05-21

dNu III HIS ASIONlSumenG ne WOuIU coz
tainly have allowed the man to escape
had not the police seized him just In
time. Trembling with excitement,
Mehul went to the police station to
make his declaration; he charged the
man with having tried to rob him. He
wished to charge him with something
else, but dared not. Was it possible to
accuse of murder . man whom one had
never een except in q dreamp
And notwithstanding the temptation
to do so became stronger and stronger.
Mehul returned home, greatly agitated
by the souvenirs. which this singular
incident had provoked. He went to
his bed, but without any inclination to
sleep; he lay thinking with his eyes
wide open, he argued with himself and
g violent struggle ragged in his mind.
Ought he, " ought he not, to tell the.
magistrate what had happened to himP
Dream or vision, was it not after all as
. warning from heaven that there had
appeared before him those ghastly
shadows-that double apparition Of
which he had never spoken to living
soule
Once again, exactly as she shone five
years before, the moon looked in be-
tween the half-closed shutters, and the
bells of the parish church chimed the
hour of two. just at that instant q
white shape made itself visible against
the luminous beam-itseemed to stand
before the window. And with its COM
ing came the sound Of q sepulchral
whisper, sAvenge met eyes, dear
friend, Iswear to thee I shall ayenge
thee!" cried Mehul, risingi in his bed.
Then all his hesitation passed away,
Next dayshe went early to the police
headquarters Of the Champs Elysees
and frankly told all the circumstances
of his strange vision to the commits
saire. The police officer would prob
ably have told any one else who visited
him upon the anne errand to 90 to
Jericho. But M. Mehul was the choir
master OF his Majesty, the Emperor,
and q musician Of acknowledged
genius, to whom the opera owed more
than one rare masterpiece. The police
official respectfully listenedto his story
and promised to consider the reyela-
ton So = serious way. To begin with,
had the hunchback submitted TO
most rigorous secret interrogation,
and 9 very astnte Juge d'instrucE0n
harassed him with every possible ques-
ton that could terrify . guilty con
science.
These maneuvers succeeded beyond
expectation. Before a week had elapsed
the hunchbacks had been made to con
Tess thatshe wasindeed the assassin 81
n. ---. IL appeared that the wretch
had, during the Reign Of Terror, been
. member Of the Tape-dur c.Hard-
hitters'')-those cut-throats whom the
Committee Of Public Safety had en-
ployed5 to excite riots. The. overthrow
Of that regime Of Fraternity or Death
had left.this estimable citizen without
employment, and rather than return to
his old trade of tailor, he sought to live
Independently Of work. The indis-.
cretion Of servant had enabled him to
discover that NJ was going 70
Melun to deposit in notary hands
the priceSof . country residence which
he had purchased. and in which he
hoped to end his days. Our Tape-dur
took advantage of this information to
engage q place in the same diligence
in which Nj started that evening
for Melun. Sitting face to face with
the unsuspectingg traveller, who showed
signs Of drowsiness atan early hour, lie
watched bis chance. Amid the dark
ness OF the Forest of SeMart-profting
BY the rumbling of the wheels and the
loud singing of the tenor-he suddenly
threwarope around the sleeper's neck
and strangled him without any one
hearing the least sound Of q struggle.
Then noiselessly opening the door 81
the diligence, he had thrown the dead
body into the road. leaped out himself,
and afterrobbing the corpse # apocket-
book stuffed with notes, concealed the
body among the %brnshwood. The next
night he had returned with a spade and
pick, and dug q grave in the place
which he designated in his confession
to the police. and where the skeleton
OF, the traveller was actually found. The
jurymen brought in verdict Of guilty,
sandathis wicked Qu6simodo died upon
the .scafEold Just three months after
yielding TO the unlucky impulse topick
N. Molun's pockets.
Such Is the trustworthy narrative
related to us the other day in the coziest
and prettiest Partisan bOudOirs by the
Wpanda0n 0f asMnraba1 NJ Cranoo a.