Norwich bulletin., 1914-09-25

"Of course you think like the rest that Professor Ripley died with apo plexy that day he was found in :he laboratory? That was before they sent me here We'll, he didn't die; he was murdered! When the detectives and professors got together they decided the murder must have been done by someone who expected to find jewels on the mummies. But let me tell you 1t was too supernatural for that. Can you keep a secret?"
 Pausing as if to consider my indig- nant assurances, while he whittled juicy chips of plug tobacco into his old pipe, Robbins looked me over from head to foot. From the characteristic squint of his eyes. Withered features spread in irregular spider-Web pattern and dropped around deep cut lines toward his chin. Loose fitting clothes lecture of his face added one more to the associations by which l pictured him among the dusty racks and cases of some little old museum.
 Don't look shocked now; l didn't do the killing, nor I and the professo $ ain't keeping quiet to protect them that did. The college wanted to, investi- gate without any newspaper talk to make notoriety.
 Just let me begin at the beginning hind end foremost, like a detective. It seems. to explain it, you've got to get back to old times in Egypt, along sev- eral thousand years B. c. A Jewish fellow was one of the slaves to fel- low near Cairo, and for all his troubles he was mighty conscientious; prayed toward Jerusalem. kept the fast days, and refused good victuals just because the heather Egyptians cooked them.
 But he wasn't satisfied to let well enough alone. He took the old woman and converted her. Might have tackled fhn r1d In hnr Egyptian priest and dangerous to fool with. Outside his family activities he was soon trying to teach the slaves, but was caught at that and given a fogging.
 Things came to a head when the mistress, wanting. to have him around to talk to. got him assigned to easy work in the gardens5 Her husband, the priest. was a stupid old codger, not suspecting the Jew of bothering his family. It was when the Jew was mortally injured by a stone falling on him that he f1nst learned about it. The Jew sent a message to the mistress by another slave. but the fellow was either mighty stupid or mighty wise and took it to the priest instead. By that time the Jew was dead, and past puniShing.
 Egyptian like having his family con- verted away from the national religion especially if the fellow that did it died and cheated him out of his revenge. The priest threw forty -eleveh fits when he had his wife's confession; but you'll have to admit he had resources. He calmly called in the nearest thing they had to embalmers, the fellows that made mummies, and told them that he
 wanted that Jew made into the next best mummy they could.
 And make me into the best he ordered, as he handed them a bunch ,o1 papyri with written instructions. The l old fellow had been locked up by him l self for some two hours drawing uI | those papers and making his plans 1 Then, 1t seems, after he had handed l them over, he stabbed himself dead The embalmers got right at them;
 cleaned them like you would clean fish l salted, spiced, dried, and perfumeG | them When they got through, tht
 Jews mummy was a first class one but 1t didn't quite come up to thu
 priests. They were both plenty goot l enough to last out the five thousand
 years to resurrection, according tC l their beliefs. You see, their idea wal l that at the end oft that time, unless
 man had his body along in fairly goot condition, his soul wouldn't have mucI
 hope of getting into eternity.
 l The priest sad in his direction. | that the two mummies were to b,
 placed in stone cases. !, He ordered tha the Jews case should fbe made to ope1 l rom the outside. He wanted his owl to open easily from the inside Then when you've done that says he, bur,
 us in the same sarcophagus' (Thatl the tomb they put the mummies in. UT course the folks carried it all out t.