Year: 1874

Murder had been done in Philadel.
phia-or, at least, so it was supposed
and the papers were full of it. The
journals were divided in opinion about
the matter, some maintaining that it
was case of simple suicide, others in
clining to the belief that there had
been foul play, and still others arguing
in favor of death from natural though
unknown causes. Indeed. it would ap-
pear, at first sight, as if the latter were
the true supposition, and the majority
of superficial readers and thinkers who
talked over the affair at home or in the
streets the next day, seemed to have
very little trouble in arriving at q like
conclusion.


All that was known was this an es-
teemed cltizen-a man of wealth and
high standing-had retired to rest the
night before apparently in sound health
and good spirits, and at two O'Clock the
following morning had been found dead
IN bed, without one visible mark of vio-
lence upon his person. His son, who
had returned home from pleasure
party at that hour, had entered his
fathers chamber to deposit the 'front.'
door key there, and had made the hor.
rlble discovery. This young man, q
steady, reliable and devout church
member and Sabbath school teacher.
had then aroused the house, and had
communicated the i'll tidings to the ter
ror-stricken family. p


At the coroner's inquest was pres
ent, and there the son, after repeating
substantially what has been said above
called the attention of the jury to the
following additional and important
facts: thaton entering the chamber he
had found everything undisturbed and
as usual, that the bed-clothes even were
not -rumpled, and that the position of
the deceased, as he lay, was so natural
and easy that it was not until he had
noticed the absence of the deep and
regular breathing of the sleeper that
ne suspected, for an instant, that any
thing was wrong. r ..,... IS


was not on the jury, but was there
at the request of the family, in my
official capacity of murder-detectiye
and it is needless to say that I subject
ed the body and its surroundings to the
closest scrutiny. could discover
nothing however, that appeared in the
least suspicious, or to warrant sup
position of foul play. The post-mortem
examination failed equally to satisfy,
and developed no indications of poison
in the system; but one thing it did de-
velop; and that was, that up to the
time OF death the internal organs of the
deceased had all been in state of
healthy and vigorous action.


For once in nav life I was at fault.
and must confess that did not know
how to proceed but still, for all the
absence of proof, and the seeming reg
ularity of things, felt in me deep
mistrust that murder had been done in
the premises andby no unskillful hand.


Whilst 1 was deliberating how to act,
the son came over, and began CONVEX
sation. He talked on the al-absorbing
topic of the moment, and was as
nervous, restless, and agitated as man
could be. We were walking rapidly up
and down the chamber where lay the
corpse, still fresh from the searching
hands of the coroner's physician, and
as we paused now and then to gaze in
its pale, inanimate face, I remarked
that my companion shook with slight
and well-defned tremor. I made q
mental note of this, but at the same
time did not attach much Importance
to it, as considered it but the natural
effect OF the trying and painful scenes
through which the son SO recently
passed, and whose recollection was re-
tEeshed by these momentary views Of