Virginia gazette. [volume] (Williamsburg, Va.) 1893-192?, 1905-09-09

other things and admired the guns.
Nevertheless. I noticed three loaded
revolvcrs on the pieces OF furniture. as
I IL this man lived In constant dread o.
attack.
Il went 20 see Sir John Rowell
many times after that: then for some
time I did not ~. We had become &C
customed 20 hiS presence: he had be
come Indifferent to Us.
Killed IN the Night.
a whole year slipped away. Then.
one morning. toward the end OF No
vembcr. my servant awokc me with
the announcement that Sir John ROwell
bad been assaSsinatcd in the night
a half hour later I entered the
\ Enciishmau's house. with the central
commisSary and the captain OF police.
7 The servant. LIST IA despair. was weep
I ing az the door I suspected him az
I FIRST. bat aftcrward found that he was
Innocent.
"Ile guilty one was never found.
Upon entering Sir Johns drawing
room. l perceived his herculean body
stretched out upon It's back-dcad-
the middle OF the room. Ills waist
coat was torn, a sleeve was hanging,
and Il was evident that 4 terrible
struggle had taken place.
The Englishman had been stran-
gledi His frightfully black and
swollen face seemed 10 express an aw-
ful fear; he held something between
his set teeth; and his neck pierced
with five holes. apparently with a
pointed iron, was covered with blood
"a doctor Joined us. Tie examined
closely the prints OF fingers fin the
flesh. and pronounced these strange
words:
zone would think he had been
strangled hy a skeleton
~ shiver ran down my spine and |
) east my eyes % the place ON the wall
where 1 had seen the horrible torn-oa
hand. IL was gone. The chain was
broken and dangling.
Then I bent over the dead man and
found in his mouth a piece OF one oi
the fingers OF the missing hand. cat
of. or rather sawed of ly the English.
. mans teeth. exactly at the second joint
Then they tried 20 collect evidence
, They could lind nothing No door bad
been forced. no window opened. or
piece OF furpiture moved The two
b watch-dogs on tie premises had not
been aroused
"Here. in few words. IS the dcpo
I sltion OF the servant.
! "Ior moutl lis master had seemed
I agitated. Ilc had received many letter.
. which he had burned Immediately
: often. taking a whip. be had struci
h In fury. this dried hand. fastened @,
: the wall
e "IIe had retired late and shut him
: self in with care. lie always carrie,
q ! arms. often I'm she night he talkc,
1 out loudly, rs though fighting witt
D some one. ON that night. however
( ! there had been no noise. and IL wa.
only on coming 20 open the window.
| that the servant had found Sir John
r assas sinatcd
zone night three months after IN,
3 ! crime. / had frightful nightmare.
D | seemed o. nae that 1 saw that hand
p that horrible hand. running like .
{ scorpion along my curtains and nay
{ walls. Three times / awoke in af
| fright; three times I fell asleep aul
b again saw that hideous relic gallopin.
e about my room, moving its fingers la,
4 paws
{ 1.-THE next day they brought 10 Q,
$ me- found in the cemetery upon th,
= tomb where Sir John Roweu WAS in
+ terred-for they had not been able q
-ad his family. Tie index nLSCr wa
n missing.
"This, ladies' Is my story. 1 know
IA no more about It,"
Tie ladies were terrified. pale an,
n shivCr,ug. One of them cried.
j "But that is not the enl for thor
was no eNplanatiori We can not slee,
= IL you 10 not tell Us what was you
idea or the reason OF it all.'
e The magistrate smiled with severity
and answered:
A: "Oh. certainly ladies': but il vii
n spoil all your terrible dreams. / sim
lply think that the legitimate pro
1 prietOr Of the hand was not dead an,
L that be came for il with the one tina
remained TO him. But / was neve
l. able 10 find out how he did it. IL Wa
f one kind Of revenge"