Lexington gazette. [volume] (Lexington, Va.) 1871-1962, 1907-05-22
A Unique Method
of Proof.
[Original.1

r.
[Original.1
The microscope has been used IN EVIL
dence to detect human blood corpus
cles. chemistry has been called upon
TO pronounce upon poisons In q deae
body, but the senses are not considered
ADEQUATE to give reliable testimony In
cases recurring such delicate tests.
Nevertheless there are individuals IN
whom a certain sense is very acute-in
some instances nearly as acute as In
the lower animals.
The Earl of Pinton had three sons
and two daughters. The estate being
entailed, 1t was necessary for the TWO
Junior sons to shift for themselves and
for the daughters to be married. The
youngest son, Edgar Crafts, realizing
that with two brothers ahead Of him
there was little or no chance Of his
coming into the title. left for Australia.
For a time he corresponded with his
family and with Lucy Harmon, to
whom he was attached and who was
attached to him, but since fortune did
not attend his efforts the correspond
ance was finally dropped By reluctant
mutual consent
The earl died about ten years after
Edgar's departure. His Oldest son sue
ceeded him, married, but had no chill
dren. The second son died before the
first while still a bachelor. Then the
oldest son-the earl-died. Meanwhile
Edgar had not been heard from In
many years. He was forty years old
when the title fell to him If he were
alive. Advertisements for him were
nut In the Australian papers, but
elected no response. After two
years fruitless hunt the title was CIV
en- to another branch of the family.
One day a man purporting to be
Edgar Crafts appeared and claimed
the title and the estates. He said he
was forty-three, but looked fifty. de
was swarthy and gray and bald. Arch
ibald Crafts, the incumbent, at once
took the ground that he was an I'M
nostor. One of the claimants sisters,
who was still living did not believe
him to be her brother. The quick eye
Of love saw what others could not or
would not see. Lucy Harmon, who
had not married, at once recognized
him as her lover. If she had not done
so. he would have soon convinced ner.
There was no way for Edgar Crafts
TO come into his rights except by suit
In a court Of law. But he had no mon
az. He claimed that he had gone from
Australia to Brazil, where he had made
O fortune and lost it.. There did not
seem to be q ghost Of chance for his
winning q case, but Lucy Harmon,
who had come into a small fortune
during his absence, offered to risk II
for his sake. He declined, but they
finally determined to be married, and
then suit was begun.
One would suppose that there would
be many ways Of proving mans iden'
tity. SO there are. But unfortunately
there are as many ways OF proving
that he Is not the man he claims to De-
There was but one likeness Of Edgar
Crafts extant, taken when he was eight
cen years old, and that looked very
little like him. He and the likeness
were brought before disinterested per
sons. who declared that they could not
he one and the same. His handwrit
ing was compared with letters of Ed
gar Crafts written soon after his de
parture. but they were not alike. Out
of three experts only one pronounced
the two to have been written by the
same person. The preponderance OF
evidence was against the claimant,
Donald Reardslee, the barrister who
had charge Of the claimants case was
much interested in 1t. He believed the
man to be what he purported to be
largely because Lucy Harmon believed
| In him. Beardslee had been working
hard on the case one day without sue
cess and was sitting In his smoking
room at home after dinner racking MS
ingenuity for the morrow when man
was announced. who gave his name az
Patrick Noonan. He was shown Into
the smoking room.
"Wen. who are your" asked the bar
rister. "And what can ! do for your
"I'm an old servant In the service OF
the PintOn family, sir"
The barrister pricked up his ears.
"And | want to tell you about Mr.
Edgar. sir. The man as has come back
is him."
How do you know"
81 can smell him"
Smell him? What do you mean
You're not dog"
81 know the smell Of all the late
earl's family"
The next morning Noonan visited
the barrister ut his office. few days
later Beardslee, who had ransacked
the scientific libraries, summoned Moo
nan for a witness, but before taking
his testimony read the following to the
jury from a German Archive of physi'
Ology:
Every human being has a specific odor
of his own by which he can be recognized
| by persons of sensitive smell. The case
is mentioned Of man who blindfolded
could pick out each individual in COM
pany Of twenty by his odor. The smell
is not born with US. but develops grad
ually till about the age OF fourteen after
| which 1t remains unchanged. Members
of q family have a kind Of common odor
which exists even when they have lived
apart for a long time.
Beardslee with this preface blind
folded Noonan and brought people to