The Roswell daily record. [volume] (Roswell, N.M.) 1903-current, 1904-04-07
loriKinal.l

sll0H'-
BEG pardon. professor interrupted
the facetious student. "A shadow is
nothing"
@%Gle class Uttered. while the professor
cast a provoked glance at the facetious
student. Controlling himself. however.
he paused u moment to consider how
he should meet the interruption. Tech
nically the student was right. but he
was hypercritical. He had taken a like
course several times before, and the
interruptions.
You think that a shadow Is moth
ing. he said. addressing the class.
while looking at the fucetious student.
Il think | can demonstrate that a shad-
ow may be something fraught even
with life aud death. Some years ago
[ was travelling in the far west. where
things are not done as we do them
Aere. and strolling through the central
square of a small town | came upon
a gallows. A crowd was collecting.
and upon inquiry learned that a muir
derer to be hanged at oon l
did not remain TO witness the hanging.
but on going back to the hotel | asked
the landlord something about the cul-
prit and his crime. This is what he
told me:
Some months previous a house had
been entered. an old man who lived
there alone murdered. his tin box where
he kept his valuables rifed and his
money taken. There had evidently
been a struggle. and spots of blood ap-
peared here and there on the furniture.
A careful examination Of the marks on
the box was made. resulting in the dis
covery by the blood stains on it that
the index finger of the right hand of
the murderer was missing. But that
was all the Roadway made in the case
around knew that a murderer was at
large minus the index finger of his
right hand. and everybody was on the
watch for such a person.
zone night about 10 o'clock a woman
was sitting before embers on a fire.
place doing. Behind her on a table
was a bright light. before her a white
wall. Opening her eyes. she saw OF
the wall the shadow of a man. He
stood still for a moment; then. raising
his right hand, in which he held a
knife pointing downward. he began to
advance without noise. One thing was
nOticeable-there was something want
ing in the shadow Of the thumb and
forefinger. If you will make such a
shadow. you will see that in that posi-
ton it will show the forefinger a pro-
~tuberance. The oma noticed there
was no such protuberance. The han
die of the knife took its place. but did
not completely fill it. At any rate.
there was a difference. No more re-
markable instance of GOODNESS than
that of this wOman threatened with in
slant death is on record.
"tSarahv she called in a perfectly con
trOlled voice to q servan in the kitch-
EN-.
The shadow retreated. Probably the
man stepped into the hall. Sarah came
in. and her mistress said to her:
81 have some bills to pay tomorrow
morning and some purchases to make.
There's not a cent of money in the
house. ! wish you to take a note to
my brother and ask him to let me have
$50. which amount l will draw from
the bank tomorrow and sem it to his
Office. Stop; he will not give it with
out the order. l will write one. Hand
me my writing case
'"The servant did as she was directed.
and the woman wrote the note. reading
it Ove aloud carefully to make sure
that she had made herself plain and
was to do. Then the latter left the
house.
For five minutes by the clock OF the
mantel the woman sat perfectly still.
She could not be sure that her plan
would succeed. She must take her
chances on its succeeding without an
effort to determine whether it had or
not. After five minutes. not seeing the
shadow reappear, she got up and went
out the front loo to the next house.
where she sent a messenger to the POI
lice station with the following note:
''rhe three fingered murderer came just
now to my house to murder and rob me.
/ sent my servant with a note to my
-. ~ WV
The murderer heard me tell her what to
do. He will follow her and on her return
will rob her.
1.-The police were put at once. followed
the girl and saw her enter b house
where she vas to get the money. One
of their number entered. dressed him
self in the servants clothes and started
back as if to deliver the money. From
behind a bush a man sprang up and
called out. Your money or your lifer!
at the same time covering the supposed
servant with a revolver. Instead of
complying he sounded a sharp whistle.
1t vas needless. however. for the police
were In touch And in an instant had
the robber handcuffed. His right hand
wa found to be minus the index fin
ger. There was absolutely no other tes-
timony to convict him of the murder
committed some months before, but