Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1888-12-07
(Concluded.)
THE RUB MORGTE.
Edgar Allan Poe's Story of the
Murders There.
A FAMOUS STORY OF BLOOD.
1t Is Recalled by the Terrible Carnival of
Fiend In the slums of whitechapel,


women, although puzzling questions, are not be-
yond all conjecture.-Sir Thomas Browne.
question whether the old lady could have
first destroyed the daughter and after
wards have committed suicide SPEAK
of this point chiefly for the sake OF
method, for the strength of Nine LES
panaye would have been utterly unequal
to the task Of thrusting her daughters
corpse up the chimney as it was found
and the nature of the wounds upon he1
own person entirely preclude the idea OF
self destruction. Murder then, has been
committed by some third party; snd the
voices of this third party were those
heard in contention. Let me now advert
mot to the whole testimony respecting
these voces-but to what was peculiar in
that testimony Did you observe any.
thing peculiar about it2"
remarked that, while all the witnesses
agreed in supposing the gruff voice to be
that of Frenchman, there was much dis
agreement in regard to the shrill, or, as
one individual termed it, the harsh voice.
THAT was the evidence ITSELF" said
Dupin, but it was not the popularity
of the evidence. You have observed
nothing distinctive Yet there was some
thing to be observed The witnesses, as
you remark, agreed about the gruff voice;
they were here unanimous. But in regard
to the shrill voice, the popularity is-pot
that they disagreed-but that, while an
Italian, an Englishman, a Spaniard, a
Hollander and Frenchman attempted to
describe it, each one spoke of it as that Of
foreigner Each is sure that it was not
the voice of one of his own countrymen.
Each likens it-not to the voice of an in.
dividual of any nation with whose Ian
guage he is conversant-but the converse
The trenchman supposes it the voice
OF Spaniard and might have distin-
guished some words had he been &C.
quainted with the Spanish The Dutch
man maintains it to have been that of a
Frenchman, but we find it stated that
not understanding French, this witness
was examined through an interpreter
The Englishman thinks it the voice
of German, and does not understand
German. The Spaniard is sure that it
was that of an Englishman, but Judges
by the information altogether. as he has no
knowledge Of the English The Italian
believes it the voice of a Russian. but has
never conversed with native of Russia.
A second Frenchman differs, moreover,
with the first, and is positive that the voice
was that of an Italian, but, not being
cognizant of that tongue, Is, like the
Spaniard, convinced by the intonation
Now, how strangely unusual must that
voice have really been, about which such
testimony as this could have been elected;
In whose tones, even, denizens of the five
great divisions of Europe could recognize
nothing familiar. You will say that it
might have been the voice of an Asiatic
of an African. Neither Asatics nor
Africans abound in Paris, but without
denying the inference, | will now merely
of fnnf
voice Is termed by one witness harsh
rather than shrill..' 1t was represented
by two others to have been quick and un.
equal. No words-no sounds resembling
words-were by any witness mentioned
as distingushable.
81 know not" continued Dupin, what
impression may have made, so far upon
your own understanding; but | do not
hesitate to say that legitimate deductions
even from this portion of the testimony
the portion respecting the gruff and shrill
voices-are in themselves sufficient to en-
gender suspicion which should give di.
rection to all further progress in the in
vestigation of the mystery. | said
Legitimate deductions; but my meaning
Is not thus fully expressed. designed
to imply that the deductions are the sole
proper ones, and that the suspicion arises
inevitably from them as the single result.
What the suspicion is, however, | will
not say Just yet. | merely wish you to
bear In mind that, with myself, it was
sufficiently forcible to give definite form
"a certain tendency-to my inquiries in
the chamber
LET us now transport ourselves, in
fancy. to this chamber What shall we
first seek here? The means of egress en-
ployed by the murderers. 1t is not too
much to say that neither of us believe in
preternatural events. Nine. and Mile.
L'Espanaye were not destroyed by spirits.
The doors of the deed were material and
escaped materially. Then how? Fortu.
nately, there is but one mode of reason
ing upon the point, and that mode must
lead us to definite decision Let us ex-
anime, each by each, the possible means
OF egress. 1t is clear that the assassins
were in the room whc"e Mile. L'Espanaye
was found, or at least n the room adioin-
ing, when the party ,cended the stairs
1t Is then only from t.. csc two apartments
that we have to seek issues The police
have laid bare the floors, the ceilings, and
the masonry of the walls, in every direc-
ton. No secret issues could have es-
capped their vigilance. But, not trusting
to their eyes, | examined with my own
There were, then, no secret issues. Both
doors leading from the rooms into the
passage were securely locked. with the
keys inside. Let us turn to the chin
neys These, although of ordinary width
for some eight or ten feet above the
hearths, will not admit, throughout their
extent, the body of large cat The i'm
possibility of egress, by means already
stated being thus absolute, we are re.
duced to the windows. Through those of
or the front room no one could have es-
capped without notice from the crowd in
the street. The murderers must have
passed, then, through those of the back
room. Now, brought to this conclusion
In so unequivocal a manner as we are, it
Is not our part, as reasoners, to reject it
on account of apparent impossibilities. 1t
Is only left for us to prove that these APP
parent 'impossibilities' are, in reality. not
such.
There are two windows in the cham.
Der. One of them is unobstructed by fur
niture. and is wholly visible. The lower
portion of the other is hidden from view
ha % ha ;ol,