The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1912-12-19

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"A lew mOulub
after he had been called to the bench
he went for an excursion In the Ce-
venues Mountains and spent the night
in q lonely inn. He fell asleep and
had a terrible nightmare. He saw
the innkeeper and his wife steal up
to his bed. and, while the woman
grasped both his arms, the husband
raised long, sharp knife, and stabbed
him In the throat. They then carried
him out of the room, threw him into
q deep hole behind the house, and Gov
cred him with refuse.
When M. Berard awolte, 1t took him
a long time to shake off the effects OF
dressed, he still seemed to feel the
cuts In his throat.
Before leaving the house where he
spent such an unpleasant night, he
gazed long at the host and hostess,
and could not help thinking they
looked villanous.
A year later NJ. Berard was ap-
pointed assistant judge in the very
district where his sleep had been SO
Unexpectedly disturbed, and the first
thing he learned was that the au
thorities there were investigating a
crime that had been committed some
months before. A notary, who had
collected a large sum OF money, had
mysteriously disappeared, and there
was no doubt that the unfortunate
man had been assassinated.
h. n ~ Or
rival the police had received an anony-
nous communication informing them
that this notary had entered a GER
tain tavern, and since that moment
had not been seen. The examining
magistrate had the innkeeper and his
wife brought before him, and asked
M. Berard to be present at this in
terView.
When they entered the room, II.
Berard could hardly suppress an ex-
clamation as he recognized his host
and hostess of the country inn. His
dream rose up before him, and he
asked the magistrate to be allowed to
say something to the man and woman,
who violently protested their inno-
cence.
You are the murderers," he said,
land I will even tell you how you
committed the crime. You, the man,
stabbed your victim with your large
knife, and, together, you carried the
body to a deep hole, covering 1t with
refuse. It must be there now"
The couple looked thunderstruck.
Then the wife was seized with a tit
of trembling, and before another mo-
ment had passed both confessed their
crime. The body of the unfortunate
man was found in the very spot
named by M. Berard.
It is not for me to explain this
strange incident, which at the time
created tremendous sensation. ALI
I know Is that but for an extraordinary
dream I, too, might possibly never
have discovered who committed the
murder at Vincennes.
In January, 1891, l was informed.
early in the morning, that an old
lady, a Madame Bazire, living in a
small apartment in the Rue de Ter
rier, Vincennes, had been found
strangled.
at once started for Vincennes
with M. Guillot, the magistrate, and
went straight to the house, where
everything had been left undisturbed.
In q poorly furnished bedroom, or
namented with banners, rosaries. and
pictures Of saints, lay the body Of the
old creature, face downward.
The murderer had strangled her,
and had placed on her back q curious
looking old trunk, covered with boar.
skins and provided with four rollers
Never before had seen such a trunk
Madame Bazire, we'll known In the
neighborhood, was a quiet, inoTensive
woman, most religious, who, during
the thirty years she had resided ct
Vincennes, had never missed either
morning mass or vespers. On the
morning Of the murder she had gone
to mass at nine, telling the concierge
that she would return soon, because
she wanted to put her room in order
At first, nobody in the house trou
bled about her, as 1t was thought that
she might have come back late with
out being noticed. The next day, how
ever, the neighbors began to feel un
easy.
Madame Bazire received every
morning LIE Messenger de Sainte Philo
meme, a little religious paper which
tells pious people what prayers they
have to say during the day. When i
was remarked that LIE Messenger d,
Sainte Philomene remained I'm
touched under the door, the neigh
bors rang her bell, and, receiving NJ
reply. sent for the police comm1ssary
My first impression was that rob
berry had been the motive OF tn,
crime. ALI the cupboards had beer
ransacked, and on the floor were sew
eral small bundles of linen ant
clothes-of which Madame Bazire hat
a large quantity-and which the as
sassin, for some reason or other, ha,
left behind. Only big clock tina