Year: 1870

The following occurrence, reported
by the Detroit Free Press, has no lit
tie interest fer those fond of examin-
ing into the strange phenomena of
mental life:


"On Tuesday evening last, Bernard
Rolfe, a German farmer, residing alb
out nine miles from this city, on the
Pontiac road, had business with a
hardware firm on Woodward Avenue.
He had a German laborOr in his en-
ploy named Henry Artles, and him
Mr.. Rolfe left at home busy with the
team, and procured a passage in with
a neighbor. 1t was about five o'clock
in the afternoon when he left home,
and as it was understood that the
neighbor would not return before the
next day, the family, consisting of
wife and three small boys, knew that
they would be alone with the hired
man for the night. Artles was COM
parative stranger to them all, having
been at work for two weeks only
He was a quiet man, and spent bis
leisure hours by himself, never indul-
ging in conversation when not direct
ly appealed to. Still, neither Rolfe
nor his wife found fault, or ever had
occasion to suspect that the laborer
was other than what he seemed.


"On his arrival in the city, Mr..
Rolfe partially concluded his business
with the merchants. and engaged lodg-
ings at a hotel on Larned street.
About 8 o'clock in the evening, while
seated in the Office smoking, Mr.. Rolfe
says he began to tremble and feel
nervous shocks, which so increased
that in a short time he could scarcely
hold his pipe between his teeth. He
walked several times across the room,
went into the open air, but the feeling
did not pass away. His thoughts
/ kept recurring to the laborer at home,
and he called to mind the features Of
Artles, and the fact that he had sever
al times caught him peering about the
room where a bureau was standing
that contained money to 20 toward
putting an addition on the house
At ten o'clock Rolfe decided to 90
home. He was laughed at by his
ucighbor, who told him that the feel
ing was the first symptoms of chill ie-
yer; and that Rolte would 20 home
next day and fud everything had pass
ed Of peacefully. RoIfe hesitated lor
some time, but at last started for
home on foot, promising to return in
the morning on horseback, in time to
secure the balance Of his things be-
fore the neighbor should be wanting
TO return home.


He reached home about midnight,
awakened his wife. aud to her expires,
sions of astonishment could say moth
ing, only that he felt that be ought to
return. Inquiring as to Artles, the
wife replied that he had performed the
farm chores as usual, remained about
the house for a while, and then in
formed her that the night being warm
he would sleep in the barn. Role
passed through to the kitchen, where
he found window up that looked di-
reetly upon the barnyard His wife
was certain that she had shut all the
windows on retiriug. As they stood
for a moment looking out, they saw
the barn door swing open, and ArtIes
led out one Of the horses. AS they
watched he led the horse through the
gate, and, going to the front, they saw
that be had tied the animal to the
yard door gate. Rolfe Immediately
opened the door and walked down to
the gate. He was within ten feet o.
Artles when the latter eSpied him
and, giving utterance to an oath of
angry astouishment, Immediately fed
down the road.


Rolfe pursued him for some forty
or fifty rods, and then gave up the
chase. On returning TO the horse
block, the CLEAN Of steel caught hi:
eye, and he picked from it an ugly
looking sheath knife. The open win
dow, the pretense Of sleeping in the
barn, the horse and knife, all went tC
prove that Artles intended to rob the
house, even if he had to make use of
the knife. The facts are given exact
ly as narrated by Mr.. Rolfe himself
and the reader IS free to judge of The
truth or absurdity Of the presentiment


On Friday, Artlcs had not returned tC
the neighborhood, neither had tht
slightest clue to his whereabouts"