Year: 1867

'N "i"S "huoih5 onu cccu
ingly incredible narrative we e.
tract from a late French publication
1t is neatly told, and will be read wit
interest:


Three brothers, all humpbackcc
and all accurately alike in appearance,
lived at Besancon. One of them xii
cd q man in chance medley, but no
being taken on the moment, the prose
cutors could only swear that one of tn
three brothers had done the deed
Rather than put an innocent man I
death, the judge let guilty one escape
but to avoid further inconvenience o
the kind, he banished all from tn
province. One settled in Paris, be
came rich, and married the Others
after nearly starving in England, re
turned and paid visit 10 their for
tunate brother.


The master Of the house was abroa,
when they knocked and the poor wifi
was troubled more than little by tn
visit. "My husband is very Jealous,
said she to them while she was givinl
them something TO eat "You mus
go TO the farthest quarter ofthe town
and never come here again; but II
make your brother attend to YOU
wants" While she was speaking sh,
heard her husbands knock, and criec
out, "Follow me if you value YOU
lives"


She ordered the servant not to oper
the door till she should return, anC
then conveyed the brothers down the
stairs and locked them in the cellar
Her husband scolded for being kept
out so long, but good dinner restor
ed him TO good humor, and at night
he went out TO pay a visit.


The wife then went down to th,
cellar, and there found the two poor
brothers dead, one lying here, the 9th
er there. What was TO be done 7 She
sent for strong Auvergant, brought
him down stairs, showed him one
corpse which she had previously tax
en- out Of the cellar, and promised q
Louis dor on his return, after having
thrown it into the Seine. lie made
no scruple about the matter, but pop
ped the body into the sack, took II tc
the bridge, and shook it into the riv.
er. Returning for his reward, the wife
disputed his claim, as the body was
still lying outside the cellar door
Here the stupefied man saw what he
firmly believed TO be the corpse be
had thrown from the bridge, and re-
signing himself to destiny, he got il
into his sack and went through the
ceremony the second time. Coming
back, he was terrified and enraged by
finding the twico-drowned corpse
knocking at his own door. "Are
these your tricks, master I" said he.
"Ah, Monsieur Ghost! clever as you
are, I'll settle you the third trial"


So saying, be forced the poor hus-
band into the sack, carried him TO the
same spot and effected the third dis.
charge. This time he returned in
triumph, for the wife, ignorant Of her
husbands fate, and having no more
corpses TO remove, paid him twice
what she had covenanted, and gave
him a glass of wine into the bargain.


"Your good health, madame" said
he; "you are better than your prom
Use, but l earned it. Ifound the hump
backed rogue or his ghost knocking
at the door after / had thrown him in
the second time" Oh, wretch |" cried
the poor woman, "you have drowned
my husband ("


While she was screaming and he
standing in aTaEe, the gendarmes en-
tered, secured both, and sent them to
prison. Next day they were brought
before the magistrate of the quarter
and examined. The poor wife con-
cealed nothing; the Auvergnat was
not called on for an explanation and
while both were awaiting sentence Of
death the three brothers, in full life,
but with very pale faces, we're usher
cd into the room. Some fishermen
stationed near the bridge had saved
the three. The unmarried men had
only been dead drunk in the cellar,
and the submersion, and the conse-
quent pulling and hauling and eject
ment Of wine and water, had recover
ed them from their drunken lethargy
before the natural time. On their
first appearance before the magistrate
they could give no explanation OF
their visit TO the river, and the hus-
band had no idea of the cause of his
being seized on but his wife's ex.
PLANTATION made all clear.


The king hearing of the strange
adventure, settled pension on the
unmarried mon, but they were not to
dwell within fifty miles of Paris, and
the married man was not jealous for
a year and day after his seizure and
escape from the river