The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1914-10-16
Mysterious Disap-
Solved
Bv WILLIAM CHANDLER


the kind about big enough for one t.
stand in upright came upon a humaE
head. There was hair on it. but not
much. 1t was more than u skull. yet
not exactly Il head. AS the men went
on lowering the walls they revealed s.
female figure in the clothing of "a uan,
which crumbIed as they proceeded
downward.
The figure faced an iron door behind
wainscOating. \ panel was made OF.
rather. had been made, to slide side
ward, and the door behind it opened
inward. leaving sufficient room for the
figure to get into the closet and shut
the door. There WaS Il latch on the
outside. The panel had originally beez
moved by weights and locked with {
secret spring But both door and paues
had been walled mp a long while be-
fore. and their existence had become
unknown.
The master workman sent word o.
the find to the owner of the building
asking for instructions as to what to
do in the matter. The owner came ac-
%companied by u gentleman wearing the
button Of the Legion of Honor, and the
latter examined both the body and tts
incaSement carefully lie was a pro-
fessiOnal antiquarian. He advised thae
the body be buried and began Il search
for the reason OF its having occupied
for so long the position in which Il
was found. In time lie published in e.
Paris magazine the result of his inyes-
LEGATIONS. the following being an ab-
breviation Of u long story:
The building in which the body was
found dated back to the reign Of Louis
ri. In this reign the king Increased
his power at the expense OF the no.
bles. and the royal authority became
absolute. His successors maintainct
what he had gained. and from that
time down to the beginning OF the
reign Of Louis XVl the government
was one of tyranny and intrigue.
In the reign of Louis XIII. plot an6
counterpart reached their height. The
king was a weakling. and Cardinal
Richclicu governed virtually In his
stead. There We're conSpiracies against
the king. the cardinal and every Que
connected with the court. At this time
the building was occupied by the Mar.
quis de FOntayne, q nobleman who was
mixed up with these feuds and Joined
a coalition consisting Of the kings
brother and other persons to seize the
government Mile. Louise de F0n-
taync. the marquis daughter. was In
love with Rissioli. one of those favor
ties Catherine de- Medici had brought
with her from Italy,
Now, this Rissioli WAS Us black heart
Ell Il villain as eve lived. Being tm-
plicated in that conspiracy which was
the most formidable Of all the plots
against the king. when it was discover
ed his name was given to the prime
minister as one who must be taken at
all hazards Knowing his influence
with Mile. de Fontayne. he 6ed to her
house and begged her to conceal him
Louise. who was a noble character,
proposed that they exchange clothing.
While she was being taken away in
bis stead he might escape as herself,
and upon her identity being discovered
she could rely on the influence Of her
father to save her from punishment
for aiding and ;lbetting the escape Of
one Of the Kings enemies. Rissioli ac-
coded to this. and the exchange was
made.
1t was not long after this that the
main door of the chateau was thrown
open and a party of armed men burst
in, seeking the Italian. 1t was plain
that If they found him they would kill
him on sight. He had expected this
and had realized that whatsoever they
found p%ersonating him would be stab
bed to death. but was too contempti-
ble to decline to permit Louise taking
this risk. Hearing the clalnOr below
for his blood. he darted away. leaving
Louise to her fate.
Louise. reaIiZing that if found in ltis-
sioli'S clothes and mistaken for him
she would be killed. ran to n secret
closet of which she Knew and intended
for q place Of cOncealment In case Of
danger. Having removed the panel
and opened the door. she stepped into
the closet, shutting both behind her
RissioIi escaped to Italy and was
never again seen in Paris He being
the only person with Mile. de Fontayne
when the party came for him and not
knowing where she had one there
was nobody In the secret Of her hiding
place. After the commotion she was
missed. Day after day passed and she
did not appear. Indeed, though every
effort was made IL find her it was III.
successful.
The antiquary found records OF this
disappearance Of Louise de Fontayne
occurring at the time OF the discovery
Of. the conspiracy against the king. He
also found a statement made by Rts-
sioli giving an account Of his being
with Louise up to the time the mel
broke into the house and he and she
darted away In different directions.
This enabled the searcher OF the story
ia tell II up to that moment
A careful investigation vas made Of
the apparatus for opening the doors
Of the closet with q view to determin-
ing why the Imprisoned girl could not