Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-08-08
CHAPTER XXI.
Some Astounding Documents.
MwYoN LoK1p

That afternoon was gray and over
cast.
In small front sitting room in a
house in Scarsdale Villas, Kensington.
was seated with an elderly, bald
headed. rather understood man, named
Greaves, who had been recommended to
me by the keeper of medieval manu-
scripts at the British Museum as an ex-
pert photographic. With heavy, steel
trimmed spectacles on his nose he was
seated at his table near the window, in
tent in his examination of the three vel
low dusty parchments which / had sub
mitted to him. They were written in
brown, half-faded ink, in grabbed
hand. of which i could decipher scarce
ly~ a single word.
had been pouring over line after line,
apparently deeply interested in what he
had read
At last he turned to me. saying:
Il do mot know where you obtained
these from. but from both paleo-
graphic and historical view they are of
great value. All Of them have at some
time or other been distracted from the
italian state archives, in Venice. The
earliest is this" and he spread out be-
fore me the largest of the parchment
roils-a piece about five inches i'm width
and seven in length. square at the top,
II was headed
.DIE XIV. DECEMBRIs. 1877
Not without difficulty he succeeded In
declphering the whole document IT
was ;he actual recipe for making the
secret poison used by the Council ii Ten
"f Venice.
one passage ran: The powder if in
hailed from certain iowers-the tuberose
"SpecfalIy-or IL placed upon the lining
of the cap. will cause death Its first
Successful u.Ic IL tl,a
"f The council by one Babon de Naldo.
upon the Due de Bourbon. 1t was in
That case placed upon bunch of tube
roses handed 10 him by his little daugh-
So potent is ii that the greatest care
should he exercised by any one manu-
featuring ii or having it in his posses
sion
This" exclaimed Mr. Greaves. tap
ping the document with his skinny fore
finger. lis the first time that the
actual formula of the secret and
terrible poison OF the Council of Ten has
document. and certainly most dangerous
if in INSCRIPTIONS hands Wherever did
You obtain If? ] am most interested to
know.
ter said. II am not yet at liberty TO
inform you.'
He therefore turned to the second docu-
n"nt which. smaller than the first. was
II,
heavier and more ornate hand.
This, you will observe. pointed out
the old gentleman. lis an actual record
Of sitting of the Council of Ten on MAY
= in the year 1927 in reference to the
nfer of a certain person called Babon
de Naldo to poison the Duke of Bourbon
tine crime recorded ~ the previous docu-
ment. Most extraordinary" he exclaim-
cd. There is absolutely no doubt about
their genuineness. l made studies In the
state archives at Venice during two years
fot the history of the doges which / am
now writing; therefore. / am well ac-
auainted with their form and character
istics. They could never be initiated
Not by clever forgero'
Impossible! The ink. the handwriting
the contractions. the age of the parch-
ment and the gloss upon its back are all
TOO perfect My eye would detect a fraud
in an instant he declared No sir
these are most important, extraordinar nv
and hitherto unknown documents, wher-
ever you obtained them. | beg you will
allow me to take copies to include in my
history of the administration OF Andrea
Gritti who was dose from 1523 TO l5:sS
and some of whose original records are
now in our British Museum.
Il will give YOU an answer in few