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ALLAN    PINKERTON'S 

DETECTIVE  STORIES. 


VOL.     V. 

THE  SPIRITUALISTS  AND  DETECTIVES, 


ALLAN     PINKERTON'S 

GREAT  DETECTIVE  BOOKS 


1. — MOLLIE  MAGUIRES  AND  DETECTIVES. 

2. — STRIKERS,  COMMUNISTS,  AND  DETECTIVES. 

3. — CRIMINAL  REMINISCENCES  AND  DETECTIVES. 

4. — THE  MODEL  TOWN  AND  DETECTIVES. 

5. — SPIRITUALISTS  AND  DETECTIVES. 

6. — EXPRESSMEN  AND  DETECTIVES. 

7. — THE  SOMNAMBULIST  AND  DETECTIVES. 

8. — CLAUDE  MELNOTTE  AS  A  DETECTIVE. 

9. — MISSISSIPPI  OUTLAWS  AND  DETECTIVES. 
10. — GYPSIES  AND  DETECTIVES. 
11. — BUCHOLZ  AND  DETECTIVES. 
12. — THE  RAILROAD  FORGER  AND  DETECTIVES. 
13. — BANK  ROBBERS  AND  DETECTIVES. 
14. — BURGLAR'S  FATE  AND  DETECTIVES. 
15. — A  DOUBLE  LIFE  AND  DETECTIVES. 

These  wonderful  Detective  Stories  by  Allan  Pinkerton  are 

having   an   unprecedented   success.      Their  sale   far 

exceeding  one  hundred  thousand  copies.     "  The 

interest  which  the  reader  feels  from  the  outset 

is  intense  and  resistless  ;  he  is  swept  along 

by  the  narrative,  held  by  it,  whether 

he  will  or  no." 


All  beautifully  illustrated,  and  published  uniform  with  this 

volume.    Price  $1.50  each.    Sold  by  all  booksellers,  and 

sent  free  by  mail;  on  receipt  of  price,  by 

G.   W.   CAELETON    &    CO.,   Publishers, 
New  York. 


THE 


SPIRITUALISTS 


THE   DETECTIVES. 


AUTHOR   OF 

"THE  EXPRESSMAN  AND  THE  DETECTIVE,"  "CLAUDE  MELNOTTE  AS 

A  DETECTIVE,"  "THE  SOMNAMBULIST  AND  THE  DETECTIVE," 

"THE  MODEL  TOWN  AND  THE  DETECTIVES,"  ETC. 


NEW      YORK: 

G.    W.    Dillingham,   Publisher, 

SUCCESSOR  TO  G.  W.  CARLETON  &  Co. 

LONDON  :     S.    LOW,    SON   &   CO. 
MDCCCLXXXIX. 


ComacMTBo,  1876^  •* 
ALLAN  PINKERTOM 


TROW'S 
PRINTING  AND  BOOKBINDING  Go., 

PRINTERS   AND   STEREOTYPERS, 

205-213  East  i2tA  St., 

NEW  YORK. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

M  Kal'm'zoo  !  "—The  Home  of  the  Nettletons.— Lilly  Nettleton  —A 
wild  Heart  and  a  burning  Brain 13 

CHAPTER   II. 

The  "Circuit-Rider." — Mr.  Pinkerton  and  these  Gospel  Knights-Er- 
rant in  the  early  Days. — The  Rev.  Mr.  Bland  appears. — "  And 
Satan  came  also!" — A  "charge"  is  established. — A  Compact 
"where  the  golden  maple-leaves  falL" — Bland  departs. — "The 
scared  form  of  a  young  Woman  steals  away  from  her  Home  !  ". .  19 

CHAPTER  III. 

LU'.y  in  Detroit. — First  and.last  Remorse. — The  reverend  Villain  and  his 
Victim  enjoy  the  Hospitality  of  the  Michigan  Exchange  Hotel. — A 
Scene. — "  Bland,  am  I  to  go  to  your  Mother's,  as  you  promised  ?  " 
— The  Clergyman(?)  "crazed.." — Everything,  save  Respectability. 
— A  Woman's  Will — And  a  Man's  Cajolement 27 

CHAPTER   IV. 

Tells  how  the  Rev.  Mr.  Bland  preached  a  Funeral  Sermon. — Shows  a 
dainty  Cottage,  holding  more  than  the  Neighbors  knew. — Installs 
Lilly  as  a  Clergyman's  Mistress. — Reverts  to  a  Desolate  Home. — 
Introduces  Dick  Hosford,  a  returned  "  Forty-Niner,"  who  begins  a 
despairing  Search. — And  shows  that  unholy,  as  well  as  true  Love, 
does  not  always  run  smoothly 33 

CHAPTER  V. 

Reckless  Fancies. — The  "  Cursed  Church  Interests." — Eland's  "little 
Bird  "  becomes  a  busy  Bird. — Merges  into  a  great  Raven  of  the 
Night. — Gathers  together  Valuables. — And  while  a  folded  Hand- 
kerchief lies  across  the  Clergyman's  Face,  steals  away  into  the 
Storm  and  the  Night. — Gone! — "Are  ye  all  dead  in  there?" — 
Drifting  together. — "  Don't  give  the  Gal  that  Ticket!  " — A  great- 
hearted Man. — The  Rev.  Bland  officiates  at  a  Wedding. — Compe- 
tence and  Contentment 39 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Mr.  Pinkerton  is  called  upon. — Mr.  Harcout,  a  ministerial-looking 
Man,  with  an  After-dinner  Voice,  appears. — A  Case  with  a  Woman 
in  it,  as  is  usually  the  case. — Mr.  Pinkerton  hesitates. — Ananxicus 
Millionaire 47 


2026976 


VI  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  VII. 

In  Council. — Mr.  Lyon  the  Millionaire,  with  Mr.  Harcout  the  Adven 
turer  and  Adviser,  appear  together. — How  Mr.  Lyon  became  Mrs. 
Winslow's  Victim. — "Our  blessed  Faith"  and  the  Woman's 
strange  Power. — A  Tender  Subject. — Deep  Games. —  A  One 
Hundred  Thousand  Dollar  Suit  for  Breach  of  Promise  of  Mar- 
riage.— A  good  deal  of  Money. — All  li&bte  to  err.— A  racst 
magnificent  Woman. — The  "  Case  "  taken.  ...„„.  -.. 55 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

The  Case  begun. — Mr.  Pinkerton  makes  a  preliminary  Investigation  at 
Rochester. — Mrs.  Winslow,  Trance  Medium. — A  Ride  to  Port  Char- 
lotte.— Harcout  as  a  Barnacle. — Much  married. — Mr.  Pinkerton 
visits  the  Mediums. — Drops  in  at  a  Washington  Hall  Meeting.— 
Sees  the  naughty  Woman. — And  returns  to  New  York  convinced 
that  the  Spiritualistic  Adventuress  is  a  Woman  of  remarkable 
Ability 65 

CHAPTER  IX. 

•Our  Case." — Harcout's  Egotism  and  Interference. — The  strange 
Chain  of  Evidence. — A  Trail  of  Spiritualism,  Lust,  and  Licentious- 
ness.— Superintendent  Bangs  locates  the  Detectives. — A  pernicious 
System. — Three  Old  Maids  named  Grim. — Mr.  Bangs  baffled  by 
Mr.  Lyon,  who  won't  be  "worried." — One  Honest  Spiritualistic 
Doctor. —  The  Trail  secured. —  A  Tigress. —  Mr.  Bangs  "goes 
West" 75 

CHAPTER  X. 

Rochester. — A  Profitable  Field  for  Mrs.  Winslow. — Her  sumptuous 
Apartments. — The  Detectives  at  Work. — Mrs.  Winslow's  Cautious 
ness. — Child-Training. — Mysterious  Drives. — A  dapper  littla 
Blond  Gentleman. — Two  Birds  with  one  Stone. — A  French  Di- 
vinity.— Le  Compte 87 

CHAPTER  XI. 

The  Half-way  House. — A  jolly  German  Landlord. — Detective  Fox  runs 
down  Le  Compte. — A  "  Positive,  Prophetic,  Healing  and  Trance 
Medium." — Harcout  the  Adviser  reappears,  and  is  anxious  lest 
Mr.  Lyon  be  drawn  into  some  terrible  Confession. — Mr.  Pinkerton 
decides  to  know  more  about  Le  Compte. — And  with  the  harassed 
Mr.  Lyon  interviews  him. — Treachery  and  Blackmail. — "  A  much 
untractable  Man." — Light  shines  upon  Mrs.  Winslow. — Another 
Man. — Mr.  Pinkerton  mad . . ,  08 

«. 

CHAPTER   XII. 

The  Raven  of  the  Detroit  Cottage  in  another  Character.— Mrs.  Winslow 
yearns  for  a  retired  Montreal  Banker. — Love's  Rivalry. — A  myste- 
rious Note. — The  Response. — Another  Trip  to  Port  Charlotte  by 
four  Hearts  that  beat  as  one. — What  Mr.  Pinkerton,  as  one  of  the 
party,  sees  and  hears. — "  Jones  of  Rochester." — Le  Compte  and 
Mrs.  Winslow  resolve  to  fly  to  Paris,  "the  magnificent,  the  beau- 
tiful, the  sublime  1  "— "  My  God,  are  they  all  that  way  ?  " 114 


CONTENTS.  vii 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

Mr.  Pinkerton  again  interviews  Le  Compte. — And  veiy  much  desires 
to  wring  his  Neck — A  Bargain  and  Sale. — Le  Compte's  Story  •- 
"  Little  by  Little,.  Patience  by  Patience." — A  Toronto  Merchant  in 
Mrs.  Winslow's  Toils. — Detective  Bristol,  "  the  retired  Banker,'  in 
Clover. — Tabitha,  Amanda,  and  Hannah  individually  and  collect- 
ively woo  him. — Ancient  Maidens  full  of  Soul. — A  Signal 128 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Mr.  Bangs  on  the  Trail  in  the  West — Terre  Haute  and  its  Spiritualists. 
— Mrs.  Deck's  Boarding-house. — The  Nettleton  Family  broken  up. 
— Back  at  the  Michigan  Exchange. — Mother  Blake's  Recital.-— 
Through  Chicago  to  Wisconsin. — A  disheartening  Story. — The 
practical  result  of  Spiritualism 141 

CHAPTER  XV. 

A  Chicago  Divorce  "  Shyster." — Hosford  found. — His  pathetic  Narra- 
tive.— More  Facts 151 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

Mrs.  Winslow's  Signal  answered. — She  endeavors  to  win  Bristol,  and 
shows  that  they  are  "Affinities." — Detective  Fox  mystified. — An 
Evening  with  the  One  fair  Woman. — Closer  Intimacies. — A  Journey 
proposed. — Detective  Bristol  as  a  Lover. ioa 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

Careful  Work.— Bristol's  Trick  on  the  Bell-boy  at  Queen's  Hotel 
Toronto.— The  old  Merchant— In  the  Toils.— A  Face  at  the  Tran 
som. — A  cowardly  Puppet  .before  a  brazen  Adventuress. — The 
Horrors  of  Blackmail. — "  Furnished  Rooms  to  Rent." 175 

CHAPTER   XVIII. 

Harcout  again. — "  Things  going  slow." — A  Bit  of  personal  History. — 
Anew  Tenant. — Detective  Generalship. — Mrs.  Winslow  fears  she 
is  watched. — Mr.  Pinkerton  cogitates 186 

CHAPTER   XIX. 

Mrs.  Winslow  becomes  confidential — Some  of  her  Exploits. — Her 
Plans.— A  Sample  of  Legal  Pleading. — A  fishy  Story. — The  Adven- 
turess as  a  Somnambulist — Detective  Bristol  virtuously  indig- 
nant.—Failing  to  win  the  "  Retired  Banker,"  Mrs.  Winslow 
assails  Detective  Fox  with  her  Charms 197 

CHAPTER   XX. 

A  Female  Spiritualist's  Ideas  of-  Political  and  Social  Economy. — The 
Weaknesses  of  Judges. — Legal  Acumen  of  the  Adventuress. — An 
unfriendly  Move. — Harcout  attacked. — Lilly  Nettleton  and  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Bland  again  together. — A  Whirlwind 209 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

Mrs.  Winslow,  under  the  Influence  of  "  Spirits  "  of  an  earthly  Order, 
becomes  romantic,  religious,  and  poetical. — A  Trance. — Detective 
Briitol  also  proves  a  Poet — A  Drama  to  be  written. 229 


Vlil  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XXII. 

Mr.  Pinkerton  decides  to  favor  Mrs.  Winslow  with  a  Series  of  Annoy- 
ances.— The  mysterious  Package. — The  Detectives  labor  under 
well-merited  Suspicion. — ''  My  God  !  what's  that  ?  " — The  deadly 
Phial. — This  Time  a  Mysterious  Box. — Its  suggestive  Contents. — 
"  The  Thing  she  was. "— Tabitha,  Amanda,  and  Hannah  assaulted. 
—A  Punch  and  Judy  Show 230 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 

Cast  down. — "Trifles." — A  charitable  Offering. — Dreariness. — Going 
Crazy. — An  interrupted  Seance. — A  new  Form  of  the  Devil. — The 
Red-herring  Expedition  and  its  Result. — A  mad  Dutchman. — Deso- 
lation.— An  order  for  a  Coffin. — The  sympathizing  Undertaker,  Mr. 
Boxem 244 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

Breaking  up. — Doubts  and  Queries. — Suspected  Developments. — The 
Detectives  completely  outwitted. — On  the  Trail  again. — From 
Rochester  to  St.  Louis. — A  prophetic  Hotel  Clerk. — More  Detec- 
tives and  more  Need  for  them. — Lightning  Changes 269 

CHAPTER  XXV. 

Still  foiled. — Mr.  Pinkerton  perplexed  over  the  Character  of  the  Ad- 
venturess.— Her  wonderful  recuperative  Powers. — A  lively  Chase. 
— Another  unexpected  Move. — The  Detectives  beaten  at  every 
Point. — From  Town  to  Town. — Mrs.  Winslow's  Shrewdness. — 
Among  the  Spiritualists  at  Terre  Haute. — Plotting. — The  beautiful 
Belle  Ruggles. — A  wild  Night  in  a  ramshackle  old  Boarding- 
House. — Blood-curdling  "  Manifestations." — Moaning  and  weep- 
ing for  Day. — Outwitted  again. — Mr.  Pinkerton  makes  a  chance 
Discovery. — Success 285 

CHAPTER   XXVI. 

Shows  how  Mrs.  Winslow  makes  a  new  Move. — Also  introduces  the 
famous  Evalena  Gray,  Physical  Spiritual  Medium,  at  her  sump- 
tuous Apartments  on  West  Twenty-first  Street,  New  York. — Re- 
minds the  Reader  of  the  Aristocratic  Classes  deluded  by  Spirit- 
ualism.— Describes  a  Seance  and  explains  the  "  Rope-trick,"  and 
other  Spiritualistic  Sleight-of-hand  Performances 307 

CHAPTER  XXVII. 

After  the  Seance. — Daddy,  the  "  Accommodation  Husband." — The 
two  fascinating  Swindlers  in  Council. — Miss  Evalena's  European 
Career. — How  the  Millionaire  Brewer  was  baited  and  played  with. 
— A  Bit  of  Criminal  History. — A  choice  Pair. — Mrs.  Wirislov*  s  As- 
pirations and  Resolves 326 

CHAPTER   XXVIII. 

Mrs.  Winslow  demonstrates  her  Legal  Ability. — The  "  Breach  of 
Promise  Trial." — A  grand  Rally  of  the  Spiritualistic  Friends  of  the 
Adventuress. — The  Jury  disagree. — Mrs.  Winslow  convicted  at 
St  Louis  of  Common  Barratry. — An  honest  Judge's  Rebuke. — A 
new  Trial. — The  Sp'.jitualistic  Swindler  overthrown. — Remorsj  and 
Wretchedness. ,,  34! 


PREFACE. 


I  WISH  to  anticipate  any  adverse  criticism  that  may 
be  made  upon  the  following  pages,  by  being  as  frank 
with  the  public  as  I  trust  the  critics  will  be  fair  with  me. 

Therefore  I  must  say  at  the  beginning  that  I  expect 
many  well-meaning  people  to  differ  with  me  as  to  the  pro- 
priety of  giving  this  book  to  the  public  ;  but  I  am  exceed- 
ingly hopeful  that  that  difference  will  not  amount  to  a 
serious  condemnation.  Nor  can  I  think  it  will  when  I 
earnestly  assert  that  I  have  caused  its  publication  out  of 
as  honest  a  motive  as  I  ever  possessed ;  and  I  am  sure 
that  whatever  the  American  people  have  come  to  think 
of  me  in  other  respects,  they  are  pretty  certain  of  my 
honesty. 

The  incidents  related  are  true,  though,  out  of  a  proper 
regard  for  my  patrons  and  many  who  do  not  sustain  that 
relation,  but  who  unavoidably  become  identified  in  num- 
berless ways  with  my  operations  in  ferreting  out  crime 
and  criminals,  I  have  deemed  it  best  to  locate  the  story 
in  a  city  several  hundred  miles  from  the  place  where  the 
occurrences  really  transpired,  and,  for  the  same  reason, 

have  given  the  characters  fictitious  names  ;  but  the  inci 
I* 


X  PREFACE. 

dents  are  exact  parallels  of  the  original  facts,  and  in  many 
cases  are  literal  transcripts  of,  while  in  every  instance 
they  agree  with,  the  records  of  the  case  as  minutely 
reported  during  its  progress. 

B)  way  of  further  explanation,  I  desire  to  remind  my 
readers  how  very  difficult  it  is  for  those  not  familiar  with 
the  detective  business  to  realize  the  masses  of  iniquity  we 
are  often  obliged  to  unearth,  unpalatable  as  the  work  may 
be  and  is.  But  while,  from  the  nature  of  my  business, 
my  records  are  necessarily  so  exhaustive,  and  have  been 
made  so  thoroughly  minute,  as  to  contain  simply  every, 
thing,  good  or  bad,  regarding  an  operation,  and  are, 
therefore,  as  records,  reliable  and  true — though  they  thus 
become  repositories  of  much  that  is  vile — I  have  striven 
in  every  instance,  while  relating  the  truth  and  r  othing  but 
the  truth,  to  speak  of  unpleasant  things  in  as  delicate  a 
manner  as  possible,  and  in  a  way  which,  while  plain 
enough  to  convey  with  proper  force  and  directness  the 
moral  lessons  that  these  developments  cannot  fail  to  im- 
press upon  the  minds  of  all  readers,  might  still  leave  no 
unclean  thought  behind  them ;  and  the  only  sense  in 
which  a  charge  that  my  "  Detective  Stories  "  were  in  any 
respect  untrue  might  be  sustained,  would  be  in  the  fact 
that  I  have  in  numberless  instances,  for  the  very  good 
leason  mentioned,  told  immeasurably  less,  and  never 
more,  than  the  whole  truth. 

I  make  no  assumption  of  having  given  in  this  book  an 
exhaustive  expose  of  modern  spiritualism,  and  I  wish  it 
as  well  remembered  that  I  have  no  more  prejudice  against 


PREFACE.  Xi 

the  good  there  is  in  that  ism  than  I  have  against  the  good 
there  is  in  any  other  ism  ;  but  my  experience  with  these 
people,  which  has  been  large,  has  invariably  been  against 
their  honesty  or  social  purity. 

So  far  as  there  being  anything  about  Spiritualism  to 
compel  awe  or  attract  any  but  weak-minded  or  "  weak- 
laoraled "  people,  the  assumption  is  simply  absurd ;  for 
the  few  illustrations  given  in  the  following  pages  will  show 
how  utterly  preposterous  the  claim  of  supernatural  power 
»s,  as  applied  to  the  cause  of  these  "manifestations," 
«vhich  are  not,  in  themselves,  first-class  tricks,  but  which, 
when  made  mysterious  and  enshrouded  with  the  element 
of  superstitious  fear — which  all  of  us  in  some  measure 
possess — lead  crowds  of  inconsiderate  people  into  unu- 
sual eccentricities,  if  not  eventually  into  insane  asylums, 
as  in  some  painful  instances  of  which  the  public  are 
already  well  aware. 

In  my  exceptionally  strange  avocation  I  have  been 
enabled  to  view  this  entire  matter  from  the  side  which  the 
public  cannot  reach — the  side  where  the  fraud  of  it  all  is 
so  apparent  that  it  becomes  disgustingly  monotonous  and 
common  ;  and  as  a  matter  of  duty  to  those  who  are  half 
inclined  to  accept  Spiritualism  as  a  divine  revelation  and 
blessed  experience,  I  have  given  but  a  single  case — a 
sample  of  hundreds  of  others — which  illustrates  the  des- 
picable character  of  many,  if  not  a  majority,  of  Spiritual- 
ism's public  champions  and  private  disciples  ;  only  adding 
that  in  this  instance  the  picture  does  not  show  a  thou- 
sandth part  of  the  hideousness  of  the  original. 


Xii  PREFACE. 

The  Judge  Williams  mentioned  as  having  presided  at 
Batavia,  N.  Y.,  is  no  myth,  but  an  eminent  jurist  at  pres 
ent  sitting  upon  the  bench  of  one  of  the  most  important 
courts  in  the  country.  He  has  not  only  furnished  a  copy 
of  his  scathing  remarks  to  the  Winslow-Lyon  jury  upon 
their  disagreement,  as  related,  but  will  vouch  for  the  cor- 
rectness of  much  of  this  narrative,  as  most  of  the  facts 
mentioned  came  under  his  personal  observation. 

I  have  given  them  to  the  public  trusting  they  will  fill 
some  good  place  in  the  world,  and  assist  in  removing 
from  the  minds  of  those  who  are  occupying  the  debatable 
ground  regarding  the  question  of  the  genuineness  of 
Spiritualism  and  Spiritualistic  "manifestations"  the  super- 
stitious fear  and  the  sensuous  fascination  which  have  here 
tofore  bound  and  held  thei  i. 

A1XAN  PINKERTON. 

CHICAGO,  January,  1877. 


THE    SPIRITUALISTS 


AND 


THE    DETECTIVES. 


CHAPTER  I. 

"  Kal'm'zoo !  "—The  Home  of  the  Nettletons.— Lilly  Nettleton.— A 
wild  Heart  and  a  burning  Brain. 

MOST  commercial  and  uncommercial  travellers  filling 
the  swift  shuttles  of  transit  between  the  East  and 
the  West  will  remember  that  while  passing  through 
Michigan,  over  the  Central  road,  the  brakeman  has 
shrieked  the  legend  "  Kal'm'zoo ! "  at  them  as  the  train 
rushed  into  one  of  the  prettiest  little  cities  in  the  country. 
There  is  nothing  particularly  picturesque  about  Kalamazoo, 
unless  the  wondering  face  of  some  harmless  lunatic,  on 
p.urole  from  the  Asylum  which  stands  so  gloomily  among 
the  hills  beyond  the  town,  the  solemn  visage  of  some 
Baptist  University  student,  who  with  his  toast,  tea  and 
Thucydides,  has  become  grave  and  attenuated,  or  the 
plump  form  of  some  " seminary  girl"  who  will  look  at 


14  "KALWZOO/" 

the  incoming  trains,  and  flout  her  handkerchief  too,  ii 
spite  of  parents,  principals,  and  all  the  proprieties,  and-the 
oidinary  ebb  and  flow  of  the  life  of  a  stirring  provincial 
town,  may  be  so  considered.  Neither  is  there  anything 
particularly  interesting  about  Kalamazoo,  save  its  native, 
quiet  beauty.  It  meets  life  easily,  and,  like  a  happily- 
disposed  tradesman,  takes  its  full  measure  of  traffic  and 
enjoyment  with  undisturbed  tranquillity,  cultivating  neat 
fards  and  streets,  the  social  graces,  and  occasionally  the 
trts,  with  a  lazy  sort  of  satisfaction  that  is  pleasant  to  look 
apon  and  contemplate. 

Standing  at  any  street-corner  of  the  city,  you  will  see 
wide  avenues  of  fine  business  houses  or  elegant  residences, 
and,  where  the  latter,  a  wealth  of  neatly-trimmed  shrub- 
bery, and  long  lines  of  overarching  maple  trees  merging 
into  pretty  vistas  which  seem  to  invite  you  beyond  to  the 
beautiful  hills,  uplands  and  valleys,  with  their  murmuring 
streams,  sloping  farms  and  well-kept  homes,  where  both 
plenty  and  contentment  seem  to  be  waiting  to  give  >ou  a 
right  hearty  welcome. 

About  twenty-five  years  ago,  when  the  country  was 
much  newer,  and  the  sturdy  farmers  that  have  made  this 
great  West  blossom  so  magically  until  it  has  become 
the  whole  world's  storehouse,  were  held  closely  to  their 
arduous  work  by  the  hard  hand  of  necessity  and  toil,  a 
few  miles  up  the  river  from  the  then  little  village  of  Kala- 
inazoo  might  have  been  seen  a  comfortable  log  farm-house 
which  nestled  within  a  pretty  ravine  sloping  down  to  the 
banks  of  the  lazi'y-flowing  stream.  It  was  a  plain,  homely 


"  KALWZOO  /"  IS 

sort  of  a  place,  but  there  was  an  air  of  thrift  anj  cleanli- 
ness about  the  locality  that  told  of  earnest  toil  and  its 
sure  reward. 

The  farm  was  of  that  character  generally  described  as 
"  openings ; "  here  a  clump  of  oak,  beech,  and  maple 
trees,  there  a  rich  stretch  of  meadow-land ;  beyond,  a 
series  of  hills  extending  to  the  uplands,  the  bases  of  which 
were  girted  with  groves,  and  whose  summits  were  com- 
posed of  a  warm,  rich,  stony  loam,  where  the  golden  seas 
of  ripening  grain,  touched  by  passing  zephyrs,  waved  and 
shimmered  in  the  glowing  summer  sun  ;  while  where  the 
river  wound  along  towards  the  villages  below,  there  was 
a  dense  growth  of  elm,  maple,  and  beech  trees,  standing 
there  dark  and  sombre,  save  where  the  glintings  of  sun- 
light pierced  their  foliaged  armor,  like  grim  sentinels  of 
the  centuries. 

This  was  the  home  of  Robert  Nettleton,  a  plain  and 
uneducated  farmer,  who  had  several  years  before  removed 
from  the  East  with  his  family,  and  with  them  was  slowly 
accumulating  a  competence  for  his  declining  days. 

Robert  Nettleton' s  family  consisted  of  himself,  his  wife, 
and  their  three  children.  He  was  looked  upon  by  his 
neighbors  as  somewhat  erratic  and  strange,  being  repel- 
ling in  his  manner,  and  at  times  sullen  and  reticent.  He 
went  about  his  duties  in  a  severe  way,  and  at  all  times 
compelled  the  strictest  obedience  from  each  member  of 
his  family.  On  the  contrary,  his  wife  was  a  meek-eyed 
little  woman,  patient  and  long-suffering,  and  was  looked 
upon  in  the  neighborhood  as  a  nonentity  from  her  unre- 


1 6  "KAL'M'ZOOJ" 

sisting,  broken-down  demeanor,  save  in  times  of  sickness 
and  trouble,  when  she  was  immediately  in  great  demand, 
as  she  had  little  to  say.  but  much  to  do,  and  had  an  effec* 
tive  method  of  noiseless,  tender  watching  and  nursing  at 
command,  which  was  at  all  times  ungrudgingly  employed. 

The  children  consisted  of  one  boy  and  two  girls,  the 
eldest  of  whom,  now  in  her  eighteenth  year,  little  dreamed 
of  the  despicable  commotion  she  was  to  create  in  after- 
life, and  was  the  reigning  belle  of  the  community,  though 
she  always  kept  the  country  bumpkins  at  a  respectful  dis- 
tance and  was  feared  by  fully  as  many  as  she  was  admired, 
from  her  impetuous,  imperious  ways,  that  brooked  no 
opposition  or  hinderance.  One  would  have  to  travel  a 
long  distance  to  find  a  more  attractive  figure  and  face 
than  those  possessed  by  this  country  girl.  She  was  some- 
what above  the  medium  height,  a  living  model  for  a 
Venus,  supple  and  lithe  as  the  willows  that  grew  upon  the 
banks  of  the  winding  stream,  and  so  physically  powerful 
that  she  had  already  gained  some  notoriety  among  her 
acquaintances  through  having  soundly  shaken  the  peda- 
gogue of  the  district  school,  and  afterwards  pitched  him 
through  the  window  into  an  adjacent  snow-drift,  where  he 
had  remained  buried  to  his  middle,  his  legs  wildly  waving 
signals  of  distress,  until  she  had  just  as  impulsively  re- 
leased him. 

Although  somewhat  strange  and  unusual,  her  features, 
while  not  strikingly  beautiful,  were  still  singularly  attrac- 
tive. Her  head,  which  was  large  and  seemingly  well  pro- 
vided with  faculties  of  quick  perception,  was  covered  with 


"XAL'M'ZOO/"  17 

a  wondrous  wealth  of  black  hair,  so  heavy  and  luxurious 
as  to  be  almost  unmanageable,  and  which,  when  not  in 
restraint,  fell  about  her  form,  hiding  it  completely,  nearly 
to  her  feet.  Her  forehead  was  full  and  prominent,  while 
her  eyes,  large  and  rather  deeply  set,  and  fringed  with 
heavy  lashes,  were  of  that  peculiar  gray  color  which  at 
times  may  be  touched  by  all  shades,  while  a  trace  of  blue 
always  predominates.  There  was  nothing  worth  remark- 
ing about  other  portions  of  her  face,  save  that,  critically 
examined,  too  much  of  it  seemed  to  have  got  into  her 
chin,  and  her  upper  lip  had  a  strange  habit  of  hugging 
her  brilliantly  white  teeth  too  closely,  and  then  curling 
upward  before  meeting  the  lower  one,  where  sometimes 
crimson  and  ashy  paleness  played  like  quick  and  cruel 
lightning,  a  key  to  the  slumbering  devils  within  her.  At 
these  times,  too,  there  was  a  certain  light  in  her  eyes 
that  an  observing  person  would  feel  a  peculiar  dread  of 
awakening,  though  usually  her  face  showed  a  complete 
repose,  and  it  would  have  been  difficult  to  decide  whether 
she  was  a  very  ordinary  or  a  very  extraordinary  character. 
Still,  with  her  magnificent  figure  and  strangely  attractive 
face,  she  was  a  young  woman  to  strongly  draw  just  two 
classes  of  men  towards  her — students  of  character  and 
students  of  form.  The  first  she  invariably  disappointed 
and  repelled,  always  awakening  the  indefinable  dread  I 
have  mentioned,  while  her  presence  among  the  lattei 
class  as  swiftly  opened  the  floodgates  of  passion  to  swiftlj 
sweep  the  better  nature  and  all  good  resolves  before  it. 
So,  with  her  peculiarly  unfortunate  construction,  it  if 


18  "KAL'M'ZOO/" 

not  strange  that,  on  arriving  at  that  period  of  life  when 
the  almost  omnipotent  power  of  a  self-willed  woman  be- 
gins to  develop  and  hint  at  the  possibilities  beyond  the 
threshold  of  the  strange  life  her  inexperienced,  feet  had 
just  reached.  Lilly  Nettleton  should  have  felt  an  oppres- 
sive sense  of  littleness  in  the  quiet  community  in  which 
she  lived,  and  experienced  a  burning  desire  to  cast  these 
humble  associations  from  her,  to  compel  admiration  and 
conquer  whoever  and  whatever  she  might  mf  ;n  the 
wide,  wide  world  jeyonA 


CHAPTER  II. 

The  "Circuit-Rider."— Mr.  Pinkerton  and  those  Gospel  Knights-Er- 
rant in  the  early  Days. — The  Rev.  Mr.  Bland  appears. — "And 
Satan  came  also!" — A  "charge"  is  established. — A  Compacl 
"where  the  golden  maple-leaves  fall." — Bland  departs. — "  Th« 
scared  form  of  a  young  Woman  steals  away  from  her  Home  1  " 

DURING  the  summer  the  presiding  elder  of  the  Kal- 
amazoo  district  decided  to  bid  for  the  benighted! 
si>*:ls  that  dwelt  in  Mr.  Nettleton's  neighborhood,  and 
made  arrangements  to  "supply"  the  school-house  at  the 
corners  where  Lilly  had  distinguished  herself  in  giving  the 
schoolmaster  a  cold  bath  in  the  snow-bank,  with  circuit- 
riders,  or  with  young  clergymen  who  had  just  graduated 
and  were  supposed  to  be  in  training  for  more  extended 
fields  of  labor. 

At  that  time  the  system  of  salvation  as  carried  on  by 
the  Methodist  Church — which  must  certainly  be  credited 
with  a  vast  amount  of  push  and  energy  in  furthering  its 
peculiar  plan  of  redemption — outside  of  the  large  cities 
was  almost  exclusively  one  which  necessitated  the  emplc  y- 
ment  of  circuit-riders,  as  they  were  then  called,  and  are 
now  called  in  some  portions  of  the  extreme  west.  They 
were  usually  men  of  great  suavity  of  manner,  personal 
bravery,  unbounded  zeal,  and  remarkable  religious  en- 
thusiasm. Thej  trusted  principally  in  the  Lord,  but  also 


20  THE  "CIRCUIT-RIDER." 

placed  implicit  confidence  in  the  extraordinary  hospitality 
of  the  plain  pioneer  people  with  whom  they  came  in  con- 
tact, who,  if  not  prepared  to  accept  everything  told  them, 
responded  to  their  strenuous  efforts  for  their  sal  vatic  n  by 
an  unqualified  welcome ;  so  that  the  appearance  of  the 
cii cuit-rider,  or  "supply,"  was  not  only  cause  for  unusual 
Bible  catechism  and  hymn  reading,  but  also  a  signal  for 
culinary  preparations  on  a  grand  scale,  to  which,  as  a  rule, 
the  hen-roost  materially  contributed. 

Time  and  time  again,  in  the  early  days,  have  I  jour- 
neyed with  these  Gospel  Knights-errant,  listening  to  their 
interesting  adventures,  almost  as  strange  as  my  own,  and 
their  simple  tales  of  blessed  experiences ;  often  tarrying 
with  them  at  their  "  stations,"  and  for  some  good  purpose, 
best  known  to  myself,  joining  in  their  efforts  to  sow  seed 
meet  unto  repentance  as  we  crossed  the  beautiful  streams 
and  broad  prairies  of  Illinois ;  and  as  we  journeyed  along 
so  pleasantly  together  the  thought  that  my  comrade  was 
giving  his  whole  life  to  the  work  of  saving  sin-sick  souls, 
while  mine  was  as  irrevocably  devoted  to  bringing  many 
of  them  to  summary  justice,  has  flashed  across  my  mind 
with  such  startling  force,  that  the  dramatic  nature  of  the 
life  we  live  was  presented  to  me  more  powerfully  than  I 
have  since  seen  it  shown  before  the  footlights  of  any  of 
the  grandest  theatres  of  the  world. 

As  the  Nettleton  family  had  belrnged  to  that  chuich  in 
the  East,  and  had  also  attended  service  at  the  village 
when  the  roads  and  weather  were  favorable,  they  were, 
of  course,  leaders  in  the  plan  to  secure  "  meetings 


THE  "CIRCUIT-RIDER."  21 

nearer  home ;  and  when  the  good  brother  made  his  ap- 
pearance one  pleasant  autumn  Saturday  afternoon,  as 
was  natural,  he  directed  his  faithful  Rozinante  to  the 
comfortable  log-house  by  the  river,  Avhere  both  it  and  its 
reverend  rider  were  given  a  genuine  welcome. 

The  new  preacher  was  none  of  your  soiled,  worked' 
out,  toiling  itinerants.  He  was  a  young  clergyman, 
scarcely  thirty  years  old,  and  just  from  college  ;  tall,  well- 
formed,  with  a  florid,  smoothy-shaven  face,  and  plenty  of 
hair  and  hallelujah  about  him.  He  could  tell  you  all 
about  the  stars,  and  just  as  easily  point  out  the  merits 
or  demerits  in  your  plate  of  mutton  or  porter-house  ;  and, 
being  of  this  tropical  nature,  if  there  were  two  things 
above  any  other  two  things  in  life  for  which  he  had  a 
penchant,  they  were  a  spirited  nag  and  a  spirited  woman. 
In  fact,  he  had  accepted  the  ministry  just  the  same  as  he 
would  have  accepted  any  other  profession,  merely  as  a 
makeshift,  and  had  submitted  to  being  ground  through 
the  theological  mill,  and  afterwards  to  this  backwoods 
breaking-in  process,  simply  because  his  widowed  mother, 
a  Detroit  lady,  was  immensely  pious  and  also  immensely 
wealthy;  and  if  he  should  become  a  noted  minister,  he 
would  get  all  her  property,  'which  otherwise  would  go  to 
the  good  cause  direct,  but  which,  once  in  his  hands, 
would  enable  him  to  gratify  his  elegant  tastes  and  do  as 
he  pleased  generally. 

So,  being  a  thorough  judge  of  women,  he  was  at  once 
more  interested  in  Lilly  Nettleton  than  in  the  welfare 
of  the  souls  of  the  Nettleton  neighborhood ;  and  after  a 


22  THE  "CIRCUIT-RIDER* 

bountiful  s:ipper  had  been  disposed  of,  and  the  familj 
were  gathered  upon  the  verandah  for  a  pleasant  chat  with 
the  minister  in  the  long,  hazy  September  sunset,  and  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Bland — for  that  was  the  young  clergyman's 
name — had  flattered  Mr.  Nettleton  on  the  merits  of  his 
pretty  farm,  Mrs.  Nettleton  upon  her  elegant  cooking, 
and  the  younger  children  upon  their  various  degrees  of 
perfection,  he  passed  directly  to  the  subject  which  most 
occupied  his  mind,  and  in  a  patronizing  way,  evidently 
with  a  view  of  attracting  Lilly's  attention  without  arousing 
the  suspicions  of  her  honest  parents,  said  : 

"  By  the  way,  Mr.  Nettleton,  your  beautiful  daughter 
here — ah,  what  may  I  call  her  ?  thank  you,  Lilly ;  and  a 
very  appropriate  name,  too — is  the  perfect  image  of  a 
very  dear  friend  of  ours — my  mother's  and  my  own — 
in  Detroit." 

There  was  certainly  a  flush  on  Lilly' B  face  deeper  than 
could  have  been  put  there  by  the  red  glow  of  the  setting 
sun.  Mr.  Bland  did  not  fail  to  notice  it  either  ;  and  as 
there  was  no  response  to  his  remark,  he  continued,  occa- 
sionally glancing  at  Lilly,  who,  though  apparently  only 
interested  in  her  needle-work,  drank  in  every  word  that 
fell  from  the  reverend  gentleman's  lips. 

"  In  fact,"  said  the  minister,  "  the  resemblance  is  quite 
striking,  though  I  really  think  your  daughter  Lilly  is  the 
finer-looking  of  the  two — indeed,  has  quite  an  intellectual 
face,  and  would,  I  am  sure,  make  a  thorough  student." 

"But  she  won't   go  to  school  here,"  interrupted  Mi 
Nettleton ;  while  the  strange  light  came  into  Lilly's  eye* 


THE  "CIRCUIT-RIDER."  23 

and  the  crimson  and  ashy  paleness  played  upon  the 
curled  lips. 

"  But,  Brother  NetC^^/n,  you  must  remember  that  we 
aie  not  all  similarly  created.  The  world  must  have  its 
hewers  of  wood  and  drawers  of  water,  but  it  must  also 
have  its  grand  minds  to  direct " 

"  I  can  do  all  the  directin'  necessary  here,"  bluntly 
persisted  Mr.  Nettleton. 

"Of  course,  of  course,"  pleasantly  continued  Mr. 
Bland,  talking  at  Lilly,  though  answering  her  father; 
"  but  I  hope  Lilly  can  some  time  have  those  advantages 
which  would  certainly  cause  her  to  shine  in  society " 

"  And  despise  her  home  ! "  said  Mr.  Nettleton,  bitterly. 

The  storm  was  still  playing  fiercely  over  Lilly's  face, 
and  her  heaving  bosom  told  how  hard  a  struggle  was 
necessary  to  restrain  her  from  then  and  there  5aying  or 
doing  some  reckless  thing,  and  then  rushing  away  into 
the  woods  and  the  night  to  escape  the  restraint  that  set 
so  heavily  upon  her  imperious  spirit. 

"  No,  I  think  not,"  replied  Mr.  Bland  soothingly.  rt  I 
am  a  pretty  good  judge  of  human  nature,  though  a  young 
man,  and  am  sure  that  Lilly  has  a  kind  heart  and  will 
prove  a  blessing  to  your  later  years.  Our  dear  Detroit 
friend  was  also  a  little  spirited,  but  she  is  now  one  of  the 
leaders  of  Sunday-school  and  church  society,  and  is  much 
sought  after — yes,  much  sought  after,"  repeated  Mr. 
Bland  slowly,  as  hs  saw  its  effect  upon  Lilly. 

The  clergyman's  good  opinion  of  their  daughter  made 
the  simple  parents  realty  happy ;  but  she  knew  as  well 


24  THE  "CIRCUIT-RIDER" 

as  he  what  it  was  all  said  for,  and  she  alreadj  hated  the 
flippant  Mr.  Bland,  for  her  quick  woman's  instinct — they 
never  reason — had  analyzed  him  thoroughly.  But  her 
heart  throbbed  at  the  idea  of  being  considered  "  fine-look 
ing,,"  and  her  brain  burned  with  the  desire  to  also  become 
"  sought  after.'  Y^s,  young  and  inexperienced  as  she  was, 
she  was  old  in  the  crime  of  impure  thought  and  unbridled 
ambition,  and  was  ready  to  lend  herself  to  any  scheme, 
however  questionable,  that  might  offer  release,  or  g:,ve  pro- 
mise of  the  gratification  of  her  passion  for  notoriety,  and 
ruling  or  ruining  anything  with  which  she  came  in  contact. 

After  this  the  evening  passed  pleasantly  to  the  old 
people,  who,  after  a  time,  went  into  the  house  to  attend 
to  their  several  duties ;  and  also  to  the  young  people,  Mr. 
Bland  and  Lilly,  who,  without  any  effort  on  the  part  of 
either,  had  arrived  at  a  thorough  understanding — so  much 
so,  indeed,  that  when  the  voice  of  Mr.  Nettleton  was  heard 
apprising  Mr.  Bland  that  he  would  show  him  to  his  room 
whenever  he  desired  to  retire,  he  quietly  stepped  near  tc 
where  Lilly  was  sitting  in  the  weird  moonlight,  and  taking 
her  pretty,  warm  hand  within  his  own,  said  rapidly,  but 
in  a  low  voice  : 

"  My  dear  Lilly,  I  have  a  deep  interest  in  you ;  yout 
people  cannot  understand  it,  and,  should  they  know  it, 
would  only  suspect  me,  and  watch  and  restrain  you. 
Make  an  opportunity  for  us  to  be  together  alone.  I  will 
remain  until  you  accomplish  it;  and — "  Mr.  Nettleron'f 
step  was  now  heard  in  the  hall — "  quick,  Lilly !  do  w« 
understand  each  other  ?  " 


THE  "CIRCUIT-RIDER."  2$ 

She  gave  him  a  look  that  would  have  withered  any  but 
a  lecherous  villain  as  he  was ;  but  he  met  it  in  kind,  as 
she  whispered  "  Yes  !  "  and  added,  disengaging  herself  as 
Bland  stealthily  stepped  back  and  carelessly  leaned  against 
the  door : 

"  What  book  did  you  say  ?  " 

"Ah,  yes — 'hem!  'Young's  Night  Thoughts.'  It  is  a 
pure  book,  and  would  not  only  cultivate  your  mind,  but 
aid  you  in  the  common  duties  of  life.  I  will  send  it  to 
you,  and  you  can  read  it  aloud  to  your  parents.  I  know 
they  will  enjoy  it  too  !  Ha !  Mr.  Nettleton,  excuse  rne 
Lilly,  of  course  you  will  join  us  at  prayers  ?  " 

She  had  been  taught  her  first  lesson,  was  an  apt  scholar, 
too ;  and  as  the  man  of  God  on  his  bended  knees  prayed 
that  all  blessings  might  descend  upon  this  happy  home, 
however  much  his  cursed  soul  might  have  been  stung  by 
the  devilish  hypocrisy  of  the  hour,  there  was  not  a  pang 
of  remorse  in  her  heart  for  the  bold  step  she  knew  she 
had  taken. 

Lilly  did  not  attend  service  at  the  school-house  on  Sab- 
bath, and  made  her  appearance  but  once  or  twice  during 
the  day,  feigning  illness ;  but  on  Monday  she  was  about 
the  house  fresh  and  rosy  as  ever,  and  the  first  opportunity 
that  offered  suggested  to  Eland  the  propriety  of  asking  her 
out  for  a  boat-ride  on  the  river,  which  he  did  in  the  after- 
noon during  Mr.  Nettleton's  absence,  his  meek  wife 
thinking  it  a  great  honor  to  the  family,  and  in  her 
poor  mother's  heart,  no  doubt,  praying  that  the  good 
man  might  so  soften  her  proud  daughter's  heart  that  she 


26  THE  "CIRCUIT-RIDER? 

might  be  bettered,  and  eventually  led  to  the  source  of  all 
good. 

Whether  he  did  or  not,  if  the  reader  of  this  book  could 
have  followed  the  couple  up  the  winding  river  to  a  seclu- 
ded spot  where  the  golden  maple-leaves  fell  upon  the 
stream  and  were  borne  away  in  silence,  whatever  of  mad 
passion  or  reckless  guilt  might  have  been  discovered, 
just  before  they  stepped  into  the  boat  to  float  with  the 
tide  back  to  the  dishonored  home,  a  certain  Rev.  Mr. 
Bland  might  have  been  seen  placing  in  Lilly  Nettleton's 
shameless  hand  a  roll  of  bills,  and  heard  to  say  to  the 
same  person  : 

"  Be  sure,  now — next  Sunday  night.  Row  down  to  Kal- 
amazoo  in  this  boat,  and  take  the  late  night  train  for 
Detroit.  Go  to  the  Michigan  Exchange  Hotel,  where  I 
will  meet  you  Monday  evening  ! " 

So  the  little  neighborhood  had  had  its  "religious  sup- 
ply," but  had  also  had  its  loss ;  for,  as  the  weird  moonlight 
of  the  next  Sunday  evening  fell  upon  the  quiet  log  farm- 
house, built  strange  forms  among  the  moaning,  almost 
leafless  trees,  and  pictured  upon  the  river's  bosom  a 
thousand  ghostly  figures,  the  scared  form  of  a  young 
woman  stole  away  from  her  home,  glided  to  the  murmur- 
ing stream,  sprang  into  the  little  boat,  and  was  borne 
away  to  the  hell  of  her  future  just  as  noiselessly  but  just 
as  resistlessly  as  the  river  itself  pushed  onward  to  the 
great  lakes,  and  was  swept  from  thence  to  the  ultimate^ 
all-absorbing  sea  1 


CHAPTER  III/ 

Lilly  in  Detroit — First  and  last  Remorse. — The  reverend  Vill:un  aid  bit 
Victim  enjoy  the  Hospitality  of  the  Michigan  Exchange  Hotel — A 
Scene. — "  Bland,  am  I  to  go  to  your  Mother's,  as  you  promised  ?  " 
— The  Clergyman(P)  "crazed." — Everything,  save  Respectability. 
— A  Woman's  Will — And  a  Man's  Cajolement 

TO  the  imagination  of  the  wayward  country  girl  De- 
troit was  a  great  city,  and  as  she  was  whirled  into 
the  depot,  where  she  saw  the  rushing  river  beyond,  and 
was  hustled  hither  and  thither  by  the  clamorous  cabmen, 
a  sense  of  giddiness  came  upon  her,  and  for  the  first,  and 
undoubtedly  last  time,  she  yearned  for  the  quiet  of  the  old 
log  farm-house  by  the  pleasant  river. 

Perhaps  the  old  forms  and  faces  called  to  her  implor- 
ingly, pleading  with  her,  as  only  the  simple  things  of 
home,  however  plain  and  commonplace,  can  plead  with 
the  wandering  one ;  and  in  a  swift,  agonized  longing  for 
the  restfulness  which  the  meanest  virtue  gives,  but  which 
had  forever  fled  from  her,  the  thought,  if  not  the  words : 

"  Of  all  sad  words  of  tongue  or  pen 
The  saddest  are  these  :  It  might  have  been  " — 

sped  through  her  mind  in  a  pitiful  way ;  but  just  as  she 
had  almost  resolved  to  return  to  her  parents,  ask  their  for- 
giveness, and  disclose  the  character  of  the  reverend  vil« 


28  LILLY  IN  DETROIT. 

lain,  a  man  approached  her,  who,  saying  he  was  "from 
Bland,"  conducted  her  to  a  carriage  in  waiting  and  con- 
veyed her  to  the  Michigan  Exchange  Hotel,  where  she 
was  fictitiously  registered,  and  the  clerk  informed  that  her 
brother  would  call  for  her  in  the  evening. 

She  had  been  assigned  a  very  pretty  room,  elegantly 
furnished,  and  the  windows  gave  her  a  view  of  the  river 
and  the  shipping,  with  Windsor  and  the  bluff  hills  of  Can- 
ada beyond.  It  was  all  beautiful  and  wonderful  to  her — 
the  hotel  a  palace,  the  river,  with  its  great  steamers,  ves- 
sels, and  ferries — a  fairy  scene ;  and  Windsor,  with  the 
broken  countiy  beyond,  all  covered  by  the  soft,  blue,  gos- 
samer veil  of  early  autumn — a  beautiful  dream  ! 

With  her  thoroughly  unprincipled  nature  there  was  a 
lazy  sort  of  enjoyment  in  all  this  ;  and  when  her  dinner 
was  brought  to  her  room,  as  had  been  previously  ordered 
by  the  hackman,  and  she  was  gingerly  served  by  an  ordi- 
narily nimble  waiter,  but  who  took  every  possible  occa- 
sion to  illustrate  the  fact  that  he  was  cultivated  and  she 
was  not,  she  received  the  attention  in  as  dignified  a  man- 
ner as  though  born  to  rule,  and  had  been  accustomed  to 
the  service  of  menials  from  infancy. 

The  afternoon  wore  away,  and  as  the  gas-lights  began 
to  flare  out  upon  the  city,  a  gentle  tap  was  heard  at  her 
door,  and  a  moment  after,  before  an  invitation  to  enter 
had  been  given,  the  oily  Bland  slid  into  Lilly's  apartment, 
closed  the  door  after  him,  and  turned  the  key  in  the  lock. 
Then  he  walked  right  over  to  where  Lilly  was  sitting  upon 
the  sofa,  and  took  her  in  his  arms,  saying : 


LILLY  IN  DETROIT.  29 

"Well,  I  see  my  dearest  Lilly  has  kept  her  word." 

She  allowed  him  to  fondle  her  just  long  enough  to  dare 
to  repel  him  gently,  and  answered  : 

"  After  what  passed  by  the  river,  I  could  not  do  other 
wise  than  keep  my  word.  Yes,  your  '  dearest  Lilly '  ha* 
kept  her  word.  And  what  now,  Mr.  Bland?  " 

Seeing  that  she  was  disposed  to  ask  leading  questions, 
he  changed  the  subject  laughingly. 

"  Why,  some  supper,  of  course,"  and  immediately 
rang  the  bell,  ordering  of  the  servant,  who  appeared 
directly,  a  sumptuous  spread,  not  forgetting  a  bottle  of 
wine. 

During  the  preparation  of  the  meal  Lilly  stepped  to  the 
window,  and  pressing  her  restless  face  against  the  panes, 
seemed  intently  regarding  the  dancing  lights  upon  the 
broad  river,  while  Bland  whistled  softly,  and  warmed  his 
delicate,  pliable  hands  at  the  coals  in  the  fireplace,  which 
gave  to  the  chilly  evening  a  pleasant,  cheery  glow.  Sud- 
denly she  stepped  close  to  him,  leaned  her  head  in  her 
left  hand,  hei  elbow  resting  upon  the  marble  mantel, 
while  with  her  right  hand  she  firmly  grasped  his  shoulder. 
She  then  said,  in  a  quiet,  determined  way : 

"  Bland,  am  I  to  go  to  your  mother's,  as  you  prom- 
ised ?  " 

She  said  this  in  such  a  resolute,  icy  way,  and  her  hand 
rested  upon  his  shoulder  so  heavily,  that,  for  the  first  time, 
he  looked  at  her  as  if  satisfied  that  he  had  a  beautiful 
tigress  in  keeping,  and  it  might  possibly  require  supreme 
will  force  to  control  her. 


30  LILLY  IN  DETROIT. 

1  No,  Lilly,  you  will  not  go  to  my  mother's. 

"  Then  I  will  go  home." 

"  You  will  not  go  home.     You  will  remain  here." 

"Bland,  no  person  on  God's  earth  shall  say  'will'  to 
me.  That  is  just  as  certain  as  the  course  of  that  river  !  " 
and  her  long,  trembling  forefinger  swept  towards  the  rush- 
ing stream. 

The  appearance  of  the  waiter  with  supper  quieted  the 
conversation,  which  was  becoming  stormy,  and  it  was  only 
resumed  when  Bland  saw  that  Lilly  was  mellowing  under 
the  influence  of  the  wine,  which  thrilled  through  her 
veins,  pushing  the  rich,  healthy  blood  to  her  cheeks,  and 
lighting  her  great  gray  eyes  with  a  wonderful  lustre.  It 
could  not  be  said  that  he  loved  the  girl,  but  he  had  a  mad 
passion  for  her  which  was  simply  overwhelming  at  these 
times  when,  untutored  and  uncultivated  as  she  was,  she 
became  truly  queenly  in  appearance. 

It  was  a  dainty  little  supper  served  upon  a  dainty  little 
table,  and  they  were  sitting  very  closely  together,  and 
Bland,  after  feasting  his  eyes  upon  her  magnificent  form 
for  a  time,  drew  her  into  his  arms  impulsively,  kissing  her 
again  and  again,  calling  her  endearing  names,  and  prom- 
ising her  everything  that  could  come  to  the  tongue  of  a 
talented  man  made  wild  by  wine  and  a  woman. 

"  Lilly,  you  have  crazed  me — ruined  me  ! "  he  said,  ex- 
citedly. "You  know  what  I  profess  to  be — a  Christian 
minister !  God  forgive  me  for  my  cursed  weakness,  but 
you  have  me  in  your  power  !  " 

Although    her   face  rested  against  his,  and  their  hot 


LILLY  IN  DETROIT.  31 

cheeks  burned  together,  the  old  wicked  light  gleamed  in 
her  eyes,  and  the  crimson  and  ashy  paleness  played  upon 
the  curled  lip.  If  it  all  could  have  been  seen  by  the  rev- 
erend gentleman,  it  would  have  sobered  him.  The  word;* 
'  in  )  our  power  "  had  flung  the  lightning  into  Lilly  Nettle- 
ton's  face.  Power,  power,  power  !  No  matter  how  se- 
cured ;  no  matter  what  the  result.  The  very  word  mad- 
dened her,  made  a  scheming  devil  of  her,  but  also  made 
her  ready  for  any  proposition  Bland  might  offer,  as  it 
swiftly  came  into  her  mind  that  the  deeper  she  sank  with 
him  the  greater  would  be  her  power  over  him. 

"  Well  ?  "  she  said,  reassuringly. 

J< '  Well  ? ' — I  am  at  your  mercy.  A  knowledge  of  what 
has  passed  between  us  would  be  my  ruin ;  your  ruin  also. 
We  have  done  what  cannot  be  undone  ;  yes,"  he  contin- 
aed  passionately,  and  drawing  her  closer  to  him,  "  what  I 
would  not  undo  !  '• 

"  Well  ?  "     It  was  tenderly  said,  and  gave  him  courage. 

"  I  am  rich,  or  will  be,  Lilly." 

"If  you  are  careful,"  she  added  with  a  light  laugh. 

"Exactly.  I  can  do  a  great  deal  for  you,  and 
will " 

"Conditionally?** 

"  Yes,  conditionally.  The  conditions  are  that  you  live 
quietly  at  an  elegant  place  to  which  we  will  shortly  be 
driven.  You  will  be  mistress  of  the  place ;  that  is,  you 
will  have  everything  you  can  desire " 

"  Save  respectability,  Mr.  Bland  ?  " 

She  was  shrewder  than  he — in  fact,  his  master  already  \ 


32  LILLY  IN  DETROIT. 

but  hinted  at  the  sale  of  her  soul  so  heartkssly  that  it 
shucked  even  him. 

"You  had  'respectability'  at  home,  Lily;  and,"  glanc- 
ing at  her  plain  garments,  which  were  a  burlesque  upon 
her  beautiful  figure,  "and  old  clothes,  and  surveillance, 
and  restraint,  and " 

"  Bland,"  she  said,  springing  to  her  feet  with  such  vio- 
lence as  to  send  him  sprawling  to  the  floor,  from  which  he 
stared  in  amazement  at  her  magnificent  form,  which  trem- 
bled like  a  leaf,  while  the  wicked  lightning  gleamed  from 
her  eyes,  and  swift  shuttles  of  color  flashed  back  and 
forth  upon  her  lips ;  "  Bland,  be  careful !  Never  speak 
to  me  again  of  the  meanness  of  my  home.  The  mean- 
ness of  your  black  heart  is  a  million  times  greater.  You 
have  something  more  than  a  country  girl  to  deal  with, 
sir  ;  you  have  a  woman  and  a  woman's  will.  It  is  enough 
that  I  have  sold  my  body  and  soul  for  what  you  can,  or 
might,  give  me.  I  bargained  for  no  contempt ;  and, 
Bland,"  she  continued,  advancing  towards  him  fiercely  as 
he  regained  his  feet  and  retreated  from  her  in  dismay, 
"  as  sure  as  there  is  a  heaven,  and  as  sure  as  there  ought 
to  be  a  hell  for  such  as  we,  if  you  begin  it,  I  will  kill  you  ! 
Yes,"  she  hissed,  "I  will  kill  you!"  and  then,  woman- 
like, having  passed  the  climax  of  feeling  and  expression, 
she  threw  herself  on  the  bed  for  a  good  cry,  while  Bland, 
with  wine  and  words  and  countless  caresses,  soothed  her 
\vild  spirit,  bringing  her  back  to  pliant  good  nature,  where 
she  was  as  putty  in  his  dexterous  hands. 


CHAPTER   IV. 

Tells  how  the  Rev.  Mr.  Bland  preached  a  Funeral  Sermon.— Shows  • 
dainty  Cottage,  holding  more  than  the  Neighbors  knew. — Installs 
Lilly  as  a  Clergyman's  Mistress. — Reverts  to  a  Desolate  Home.— 
Introduces  Dick  Hosford,  a  returned  "  Forty-Niner,"  who  begins  a 
despairing  Search. — And  shows  that  unholy,  as  well  as  true  Love, 
does  not  always  run  smoothly. 

S~  HORTLY  afterwards  a  clo»-fd  cabriolet  containing 
two  persons  was  rapidly  driven  from  the  Michigan 
Exchange  up  Wisconsin  street,  from  thence  into  Gris- 
wold,  and  out  towards  the  suburbs,  finally  drawing  up  be- 
fore a  neat  cottage-house,  where  the  lights,  peeping  around 
the  edges  of  the  drawn  curtains,  showed  the  place  to  be 
in  a  state  of  preparation. 

A  man  and  a  woman  quickly  alighted  from  the  carriage, 
and  as  the  woman,  apparently  a  young  one,  though 
closely  veiled,  stepped  to  the  gate,  opened  it  and  waited 
for  her  escort,  the  gentleman  said  in  a  low  tone  to  the 
coachman : 

"James,  drive  to  the  house  and  inform  mother  that 
while  down  town  this  evening  I  received  an  unexpected 
call  to  Ann  Arbor,  to  preach  a  funeral  sermon  over  the 
remains  of  an  old  student-friend  at  the  University,  and 

that  I  may  not  be  home  until  late  to-morrow  evening ; " 
2* 


34     REV.  MR.  ELAND'S  FUNERAL  SERMON. 

then,  after  handing  James  some  coin,  "you  understand, 
James?" 

James  thought  he  understood,  grinned  grimly,  put  the 
money  in  his  pocket  and  drove  away. 

"Remember,  Lilly,"  said  Bland,  stepping  to  the  gate 
and  taking  her  arm,  "you  are  Lilly  Mercer  here." 

"Yes,  Bland." 

"And  you  are  never  to  mention  anything  regarding 
yourself  to  the  lady  who  owns  this  place." 

"I  think  I  can  keep  my  own  counsel." 

"  And,  if  any  inquiries  are  made  here,  by  any  person 
whatever,  regarding  myself,  you  are  to  be  innocently  and 
utterly  ignorant." 

"  And  what  are  you  to  do  ?  "  asked  Lilly,  naively. 

"  I  ? — why  I  am  to  do  well  by  you." 

"  Just  so  long  as  you  do  that,  Bland,  you  are  perfectly 
safe !  " 

She  had  taken  to  dictating  also  ;  but  it  was  a  pretty 
little  cottage  and  grounds,  and  a  feeling  of  satisfaction  at 
being  their  mistress,  even  if  it  necessitated  being  his  mis- 
tress, came  over  her  that  made  her  affable  and  winning, 
if  she  did  occasionally  say  things  that  hinted  at  a  stormy 
future. 

They  strolled  up  the  broad  brick  walk,  he  thrilled  with 
his  magnificent  capture,  and  she  just  as  satisfied  with  the 
power  she  had  attained  over  one  so  high  socially,  and 
who  stood  in  such  near  prospect  of  obtaining  vast  wealth. 
Instead  of  entering  the  house  at  its  little  front  door  with 
its  highly  ornamented  porch,  they  opened  the  door  of  a 


REV.  MR.  ELAND'S  FUNERAL  SERMON.     35 

little  trellis-worked  addition  to  the  cottage,  which  was 
now  covered  by  an  almost  leafless  mass  of  vines,  and 
passed  to  a  side  entrance,  where  a  gentle  pull  of  the  bell 
caused  the  immediate  appearance  of  a  very  fat  and  very 
flabby  woman  of  middle  age,  who  at  once  conducted  {hem 
to  a  suite  of  rooms,  consisting  of  a  parlor  and  a  large 
sleeping-room,  between  which,  in  place  of  the  original 
folding-doors,  had  been  substituted  rich  hangings  suffi- 
ciently drawn  apart  to  admit  of  the  passage  of  one  per- 
son, and  which,  with  the  tastefully  draped  windows,  the 
deeply-framed  pictures,  the  vari-colored  marble  mantels 
and  fireplaces,  the  heavy,  yielding  carpet  giving  back  no 
sound  to  the  foot-fall,  and  the  great  easy-chairs  into  which 
one  sank  as  into  pillows  of  down,  gave  the  rooms  the 
hintings  of  such  luxuriousness  that  Lilly  was  completely 
dazzled  and  bewildered  with  the  unexpected  elegance, 
and  the,  to  her,  never  before  realized  splendor. 

"Mother  Blake,"  said  Bland,  "  this  is  Lilly  Mercer,  who 
is  my  friend,  and  whom  you  are  to  make  comfortable." 

Mother  Blake,  as  if  realizing  that  her  duties  began 
whenever  Bland  spoke,  majestically  crossed  the  room, 
sat  down  beside  Lilly  and  immediately  kissed  her  very 
affectionately,  merely  remarking,  "And  a  very  nice  girl 
she  is,  too,  Mr.  Bland." 

"That'll  do,  mother.  You  may  get  us  a  sma  1  bottle 
of  wine,  and  then  go  to  bed.  If  s  getting  late,  and  you 
know  you  need  a  good  deal  of  sleep." 

Mother  Blake  chuckled,  and  shook  from  it  as  though 
b*r  enjoyment  of  any  sort  of  pleasantry  came  to  the 


36    REV.  MR.  £  LAND'S  FUNERAL  SERMON. 

•iSurface  only  in  a  scries  of  ripples  over  her  great  fat  body, 
instead  of  in  echoes  of  enjoyment  from  her  grtat  fat 
throat.  But  it  might  have  been  merely  a  habit  with  its 
origin  in  the  necessities  of  her  quiet  mode  of  life  ;  and, 
doing  as  requested,  only  lingered  to  fasten  back  the 
curtain  so  that  the  low,  luxurious  bed  came  temptingly 
into  view,  after  which  she  beamingly  backed  out  of  the 
room,  wishing  the  couple  "  a  pleasant  night,  and  many  of 
'em  ! " 

If  shame  hovered  over  this  pretty  place,  it  did  not  pale 
the  amber  glow  of  the  sparkling  wine  ;  it  came  not  into 
the  ruddy  coals  upon  the  hearth,  which  gave  forth  their 
glowing  warmth  just  as  cheerily  as  from  any  other  hearth 
in  the  broad  land  ;  it  never  dimmed  the  light  from  the 
gilded  chandeliers ;  it  put  no  crimson  flush  upon  the 
faces  which  touched  each  other  with  an  even  flow  of 
blood,  nor  quickened  the  pulses  of  the  hands  that  as  often 
met ;  and  God  only  knows  whether,  when,  as  sleep  came 
down  upon  the  city,  and  the  man  and  woman  rested  in 
each  other's  arms  upon  the  bed  beyond  the  rich  curtains 
(which,  as  the  light  in  the  fireplaces  grew  or  waned,  never 
contained  one  ghostly  rustle  or  semblance),  there  was 
even  a  guilty  dream  to  mark  its  presence  ! 

But  what  of  the  inmates  of  the  old  log  farm-house  by 
the  pleasant  river  ? 

The  morning  came,  and  the  agonized  parents  found  that 
theii  daughter  had  gone.  Robert  Nettleton  set  his  teeth 
and  swore  that  he  would  never  search  for  her,  while  his 
poor  wife  was  completely  broken  and  crushed  as  much 


REV.  MR.  ELAND'S  FUNERAL  SERMON.     37 

from  the  agonized  fears  that  flooded  into  her  heart  as 
from  the  actual  loss  of  her  child. 

The  most  dejected  member  of  the  household,  however, 
was  a  nev-comer,  one  Dick  Hosford,  who  years  before 
had  drifted  into  the  Nettleton  family  and  had  been 
brought  up  by  them  until,  becoming  a  stout  young  man, 
he  was  borne  away  in  the  gold  excitement  with  the 
"  Forty-niners "  to  California,  where  by  hard  work  and 
no  luck  whatever,  being  an  honest,  simple  soul,  he  had 
got  together  a  few  thousand  dollars  ;  with  no  announce- 
ment of  his  proposed  return,  had  come  back  as  far  as 
Terre  Haute,  Indiana,  where  he  had  purchased  a  snug 
farm,  and  immediately  turned  his  footsteps  towards  Mr. 
Nettleton's,  arriving  there  the  very  morning  after  Lilly's 
departure,  as  he  said,  "  to  marry  the  gal,  but  couldn't 
find  her  shadder." 

He  was  simply  inconsolable,  and  it  took  off  the  keen 
edge  of  the  parents'  grief  somewhat  to  find  that  another 
shared  it  with  them,  and  even  seemed  to  feel  that  it  was 
all  his  own. 

So  it  was  arranged  that  the  inquisitive  neighbors  should 
only  know  that  Lilly  had  "gone  to  town  for  a  week  or 
two,"  while  Dick  Hosford  should  go  to  Chicago,  and  then 
back  east  as  far  as  Detroit,  making  diligent  search  for 
something  even  more  tangible  than  the  "«hadder"  of  the 
lost  girl ;  and  as  he  said  good-by  to  the  Nettletons  with 
quivering  lips  and  suspiciously  dimmed  eyes,  \e  added : 

"  Bob  Nettleton,  and  mother — for  you've  always  been 
a  half-dozen  mothers  to  me — don't  ye  never  expect  to  see 


38     REV.  MR.  ELAND'S  FUNERAL  SERMON. 

me  back  to  these  yer  diggin's  'thout  I  bring  the  gal.  I've 
sot  my  heart  onto  her  ;  and  "  with  an  oath  that  the  Re- 
cording Angel  as  surely  blotted  out  as  Uncle  Toby's,  for 
it  was  only  the  clinching  of  a  brave  determination,  "  I'll 

have  her  if  I  find  her  in  a "  He  stopped   suddenly 

as  he  saw  the  pain  in  their  faces,  shook  their  hands  in  a 
way  that  told  them  more  than  his  simple  words  ever 
could  have  expressed,  and  trudged  away  with  as  little 
certainty  of  finding  whom  he  sought,  save  by  accident-— 
or,  if  found,  of  securing  the  prize  for  himself,  unless 
through  her  whim — as  of  ever  himself  becoming  anything 
save  the  honest,  faithful,  gullible  soul  that  he  was. 

At  Detroit,  Mother  Blake  had  orders  to  provide  Lily 
Mercer,  her  latest  charge,  with  a  suitable  wardrobe  and 
some  fine  pieces  of  jewelry,  which  was  accordingly  done; 
and  in  the  novelty  of  her  transformation,  which  really 
made  her  a  beautiful  young  woman,  her  ardor  of  fondness 
for  Bland  was  certainly  sufficient  to  gratify  both  his  vanity 
and  passion  to  the  fullest  extent.  But,  to  some  women, 
both  passion  and  finery  must  be  frequently  renewed  in 
order  to  insure  constancy ;  and  while  Bland  was  as  hope- 
lessly in  her  toils  as  ever,  as  she  had  always  despised  him 
and  now  despised  his  offerings,  which  were  neither  so 
numerous  or  costly  as  at  first,  she  became  almost  un- 
managable,  caused  Mother  Blake  great  perturbation  of 
Spirit,  and  led  Bland  a  deservedly  stormy  life. 


CHAPTER  V. 

Reckless  Fancies.— The  "  Cursed  Church  Interests, "— Bland's  "litba 
Bird  "  becomes  a  busy  Bird. — Merges  into  a  great  Raven  of  tte 
Night. — Gathers  together  Valuables. — And  while  a  folded  Han-i- 
kerchief  lies  across  the  Clergyman's  Face,  steals  away  into  the 
Storm  and  the  Night. — Gone! — "Are  ye  all  dead  in  there?" — 
Drifting  together.—"  Don't  give  the  Gal  that  Ticket !  "—A  great- 
hearted Man.— The  Rev.  Bland  officiates  at  a  Wedding. — Compe- 
tence and  Contentment 

A  FEW  weeks  later,  one  November  evening,  the  first 
snow-storm  of  the  year  came  hurrying  and  skurry- 
tng  down  upon  the  city.  The  streets  seemed  filled  with 
that  thrilling,  electric  life  which  comes  with  the  first  snow- 
flakes,  and  as  they  tapped  their  ghostly  knuckles  against 
the  panes  of  Lilly  Mercer's  boudoir,  the  weird  staccato 
passed  into  her  restless  spirit  and  filled  her  mind  with 
wild,  reckless  fancies.  The  storm  had  beaten  up  against 
the  cottage  but  a  little  time  until  it  brought  Bland  with  it. 

He  came  to  tell  his  Lilly,  he  said,  that  the  cursed  church 
interests  would  compel  him  to  go  to  the  West,  to  be  absent 
for  several  weeks.  In  mentioning  the  fact  he  sat  down 
by  the  fireplace  and  gave  her  some  money  for  use  while 
he  was  away,  and  also  counted  over  quite  an  amount 
which  he  had  provided  for  his  travelling  expenses. 

He  also  told  her  that  he  should  leave  the  next  evening, 


40  RECKLESS  FANCIES. 

and  would,  after  a  little  time,  of  course,  return  for  the 
night,  as  he  could  never  go  on  so  long  a  journey  without 
spending  the  parting  hours  with  his  little  bird,  as  he  had 
come  to  call  her. 

His  little  bird  had  sat  remarkably  passive  during  all 
this,  but  now  fluttered  about  him  with  cooings  and  regrets 
innumerable,  and  seemed  to  still  be  in  a  flutter  of  excite- 
ment when  he  had  gone  ;  for,  after  walking  up  and  down 
the  rooms  for  a  time,  she  flung  some  wrappings  about  her, 
and  quickly  glided  out  among  the  pelting  flakes  that  hid 
her  among  the  hurrying  thousands  upon  the  streets  and 
within  the  shops,  until  she  as  rapidly  returned. 

Within  the  warm  nest  again,  there  was  a  note  to  be 
written,  and  several  feathery  but  valuable  trifles  to  be 
got  together.  In  fact,  Eland's  little  bird  was  a  busy  bird, 
until  when,  at  a  late  hour,  he  came  back  to  its  unusually 
tender  ways  and  wooings,  and  was  soon  slumbering  be- 
side it. 

Then  the  little  bird  became  a  great  raven  of  the  night, 
and  stole  quietly  about  the  apartments,  gathering  together, 
quite  like  any  other  raven,  everything  that  pleased  its 
fancy,  including  even  the  money  that  was  to  have  been 
used  in  the  "  cursed  church  interests,"  and  the  gold  watch 
that  ticked  away  at  its  sleeping  owner's  head,  but  not 
loud  enough  to  awaken  him,  for  he  slept  with  a  peculiar 
heaviness,  and,  strangely  enough,  with  a  folded  handker- 
chief acrcss  his  face.  But  the  raven  of  the  cottage,  in  a 
quiet  way  that  ravens  have,  never  ceased  gathering  whai 
pleased  it,  until  the  early  hours  of  morning,  when,  kissing 


RECKLESS  FANCIES.  41 

its  beak  to  the  bed  and  the  sleeper,  and  flinging  upon  the 
bed  a  little  note  which  read  : 

A  double  expose  if  you  like. 

LILLY  "  MERCER." — 

took  itself  and  its  gathered  treasures  out  into  the  storm 
and  the  night. 

The  storm  was  gone  when  the  chloroformed  man 
awoke,  and  the  bright  sun  pushed  through  the  shutters 
upon  his  feverish  face.  Slowly  and  with  great  effort  he 
groped  his  way  back  to  consciousness,  and  with  a  thrill 
of  fear  reached  out  his  hand  for  his  little  bird,  and  to 
reassure  himself  that  what  was  flooding  furiously  into  his 
mind  was  untrue,  and  was  but  some  horrible  nightmare 
that  her  dear  touch  would  drive  away.  But  the  place 
where  she  had  lain  was  as  cold  and  empty  as  her  own 
heartless  heart;  and  as  he  faintly  called,  "Lilly!  oh, 
Lilly  ! "  the  very  realistic  voice  of  Mother  Blake  was  heard 
in  the  hall,  and  her  very  realistic  fists  banging  away  against 
the  door. 

"  Say,  Bland  !  are  ye  all  dead  in  there  ?  Lord  !  it's 
broad  noon  ! " 

All  dead  ?  No  ;  but  far  better  so,  as  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Bland  with  a  mighty  effort  sprang  from  the  bed  and  saw 
the  gas-light  struggling  with  the  sunlight,  the  dead  ashes 
in  the  fireplace,  and  himself  in  the  great  mirror,  a  dishon- 
ored, despoiled,  deserted  rou6,  drugged,  robbed  anj 
defied  by  the  simple  maiden  from  the  log  farm-house  b) 
the  pleasant  river. 


42  RECKLESS  FANCIES. 

The  same  evening  two  persons  on  wondei fully  different 
missions  drifted  into  the  depot  and  transfer-house  at 
Detroit,  and  mingled  with  the  great  throng  that  the  east 
and  the  west  continually  throw  together  at  this  point. 
One  was  a  handsome,  apparently  self-possessed  young 
lady,  who  attended  to  her  baggage  personally,  and  moved 
about  among  the  crowds  with  apparent  unconcern; 
though,  closely  watched,  her  face  would  have  shown  anx- 
iety and  restlessness.  The  other  was  a  gaunt,  though 
solidly  built  young  fellow,  whose  clothes,  although  of  good 
material,  had  the  appearance  of  having  been  thrown  at 
him  and  caught  with  considerable  uncertainty  upon  his 
bony  angles.  He  wandered  about  in  a  dejected  way, 
looking  hither  and  thither  as  if  forever  searching  for  some 
one  whose  discovery  had  become  improbable,  but  who 
should  lict  escape  if  an  honest  search  by  an  honest,  sim- 
ple fellow  as  he  seemed  to  be,  could  avail  anything.  By 
one  of  those  unexplainable  coincidences,  or  fatuities,  as 
some  are  pleased  to  term  them,  these  two  persons — the 
one  desirous  of  avoiding  a  crowd,  and  the  other  anxious 
to  ascertain  whom  every  throng  contained — approached 
the  ticket-office  from  different  directions  at  the  same 
moment. 

He  at  the  gent's  window  heard  her  at  the  ladies'  win- 
dow say  to  the  agent,  "  Yes,  to  Buffalo,  if  you  please ; " 
and  he  jumped  as  though  he  had  been  lifted  by  an  explo- 
sion. He  peered  through  the  window  and  saw  her  face 
at  the  other  window,  and  without  waiting  to  step  around 
to  her,  yelled  to  the  agent  like  a  madman  :  "  Say,  you, 


RECKLESS  FANCIES.  43 

mister  ! — don't  give  the  gal  that  ticket.  It's  a  mistake 
She's  going  'tother  way;"  and  shoving  his  gaunt  head 
and  shoulders  into  the  window  and  wildly  gesticulating 
to  the  young  lady,  as  the  agent  in  a  scared  way  saw  the 
muscular  intruder  hovering  over  his  tickets  and  money- 
box, he  continued  excitedly : 

"  Say,  Lil,  old  gal !  Lil  Nettleton  !— Dick— Dick 
Hosford,  ye  know  !  Ain't  I  tellin'  the  truth  ?  ain't  it  all 
a  mistake,  and  ain't  you  goin'  the  other  way — with  me, 
ye  know — yes,  'long  with  Dick  ?  " 

Lilly  Nettleton,  for  it  was  no  other,  nodded  to  the 
agent — who  returned  the  money — and  quickly  stepped 
around  to  help  Dick  disengage  himself  from  the  window, 
and  then  quickly  drew  him  away  from  the  crowd  which 
the  little  episode  had  collected,  sat  down  beside  him, 
and,  heartily  laughing  at  his  ludicrous  appearance,  said, 
"Why,  Dick,  where  under  heaven  did  you  come 
from  ?  " 

"  Lil,  gal,"  said  poor  Dick,  wiping  the  tears  of  joy 
out  of  his  eyes,  "  I  come  all  the  way  from  Californy  fur 
ye,  found  ye  gone  and  the  old  folks  all  bust  and  banged 
up  about  it.  Fur  six  weary  weeks  I've  been  huntin', 
huntin'  ye  up  and  down,  here  and  yon,  and  was  goin' 

back  to  Terre  Haute,  sell  the  d d  farm  I  bought  fut 

ye,  and  skip  back  to  the  Slope  to  kill  Injuns,  or  some- 
thin',  to  drown  my  sorrow,  fur  I  told  the  old  folks  I'd 
bring  ye  back,  or  never  set  foot  in  them  diggin's  agin' ! " 

Lilly  looked  at  the  great-hearted  man  beside  her  in  a 
strange,  calculating  kind  of  a  way,  never  touched  by  his 


44  RECKLESS  FANCIES. 

tenderness  and  simple  sacrifice,  but  moving  very  closely 
to  him  in  a  winsome  way  that  quite  overcame  him. 

"And  I  come  to  marry  ye,  Lil,"  persisted  Dick, 
anxiously. 

"  To  marry  me,  Dick  ?  " 

"  Yes,  and  bought  ye  a  purty  farm  at  Terre  Haute." 

"  A  farm,  Dick  ?  " 

"Yes,  Lil,  a  farm,  with  as  snug  a  little  house  as  ye 
ever  sot  eyes  on." 

"  But  where  did  you  get  so  much  money  ?  You  never 
wrote  anything  about  it." 

"  No,  I  wanted  to  kinder  surprise  ye ;  but  I  got  it 
honest — got  it  honest;  with  these  two  hands,  Lil,  that'll 
work  for  ye  all  yer  life  like  a  nigger,  if  ye'll  only  come 
long  with  me  and  never  go  gallavantin'  any  more." 

"  And  won't  you  ask  me  any  questions  or  allow  them 
— at  home,  Dick — to  ask  any,  and  take  me  just  as  I 
am  ?  " 

"  Just  as  ye  are  ;  fur  better,  or  fur  vvus,  Lil." 

"  And  marry  me  here,  now,  before  we  go  home  ?  " 

"  Marry  ye,  Lil  ?  I'd  marry  ye  if  I'd  a  found  ye  in  a 

;  I  won't  give  it  a  name,  Lil.  I  didn't  to  them, 

and  I  won't  to  you." 

She  gave  him  her  hand  as  firmly  and  frankly  as  though 
she  had  been  a  pure  woman,  and  said,  "  I'm  yours,  Dick. 
We'll  be  married  here,  to-morrow." 

She  took  charge  of  all  the  arrangements;  called  a  cab 
which  took  them  to  the  Michigan  Exchange  ;  sent  Dick 
off  to  his  room  with  orders  to  secure  a  license  the  first 


RECKLESS  FANCIES.  45 

thing  in  the  morning ;  wrote  two  notes  to  a  ceitain  per- 
son, one  addressed  to  Mother  Blake,  and  the  other  to  his 
post-office  box,  ordering  them  posted  that  night ;  and 
went  to  her  room  to  sleep  the  sleep  of  the  just,  which, 
conti  iry  to  general  belief,  also  often  comes  to  the 
unjust. 

Early  in  the  morning,  Dick  came  with  the  license  and 
suggested  securing  the  services  of  a  preacher ;  but  Lily 
said  that  she  had  arranged  that  matter  already,  and  had 
got  a  clergyman  who,  she  was  sure,  would  not  disappoint 
them  ;  and  promptly  at  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon 
courteously  admitted  the  Rev.  Mr.  Bland,  whom  she  had 
given  the  choice  of  officiating  or  an  exposure,  and  who 
performed  the  ceremony  in  a  pale,  trembling  way 
as  the  wicked  old  light  gleamed  in  her  great,  gray  eyes, 
and  the  swift  shuttles  of  color  played  over  her  curled 
lip. 

That  night  found  the  newly-wedded  couple  whirling 
back  to  Kalamazoo,  where  they  arrived  the  next  morning 
and  were  driven  out  to  the  farm-house,  where  they  were 
joyfully  welcomed,  and  where  Dick  Hosford  in  his  blunt 
way  announced  that  he  had  "  found  Lil  workin*  away 
like  a  good  girl,  had  married  her  and  took  a  little  bridal 

'  tower,'  and  had  come  back  to  have  no  d d  questions 

asked." 

So  in  a  few  days  the  young  couple  bade  the  Nettletons 
good-by  and  were  soon  after  installed  in  the  pleasant 
farm-house  near  Terre  Haute,  where  the  years  passed  on 
happily  enough  and  brought  them  competence  and  con 


46  RECKLESS  FANCIES. 

tentment  and  three  children,  who  for  a  long  time  never 
knew  the  meaning  of  the  strange  light  in  the  eyes,  or  the 
swift  colors  on  the  lips,  of  the  mother  who  cared  for  them 
with  an  apparent  full  measure  of  kindness  and  affection. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Mr.  Pinkerton  is  called  upon. — Mr.  Harcout,  a  ministerial-looking 
Man,  with  an  After-dinner  Voice,  appears. — A  Case  with  a  Woman 
in  it,  as  is  usually  the  case. — Mr.  Pinkerton  hesitates. — An  anxious 
Millionaire. 

ONE  hot  July  afternoon  in  186-,  I  was  sitting  in  my 
private  office  at  my  New  York  Agency,  located 
then,  and  now,  at  the  corner  of  New  Street  and  Exchange 
Place,  in  the  very  heart  of  the  money  and  stock  battles 
of  Gotham,  pretty  well  tired  out  from  a  busy  day's  work 
in  carrying  to  completion  some  of  the  vast  transactions 
•hat  had  accumulated  during  the  war,  and  which  were  in 
turn  waiting  for  my  professional  services  to  unravel. 

It  had  been  a  terribly  hot  day,  and  the  city  seemed  like 
a  vast  caldron  filled  with  a  million  boiling  victims  ;  and 
now  that  the  day's  labor  was  nearly  over,  I  was  prin- 
cipally employed  in  an  attempt  to  keep  cool,  but  finding 
it  impossible  with  everybody  about  me,  settled  myself  in 
my  easy-chair  at  the  window  to  watch  the  Babel  of 
brokers  below. 

From  such  an  altitude,  where  one  can  look  down 
soberly  upon  these  madmen  and  see  their  wild  antics, 
when  for  the  moment  they  are  absolutely  insane  in  their 
thirst  for  gold,  never  halting  at  the  most  extreme  reck 


48        MR.  PINKERTON  IS  CALLED   UPON. 

lessness  even  though  they  know  it  may  compel  whole- 
sale ruin,  it  is  easy  to  realize  how  isolated  cases  occuf 
where  the  whole  human  nature  yields  to  greed,  and 
sweeps  on  to  the  certain  accomplishment  of  crime  for  its 
satisfaction. 

Just  after  a  par.xularly  heavy  "rush  "  had  been  made, 
resulting  in  a  few  broken  limbs  and  numberless  tattered 
hats  and  demolished  garments,  and  the  bulls  and  bears 
were  gathered  about  in  knots  excitedly  talking  over  their 
profit  and  loss,  and  wiping  the  great  beads  of  perspiration, 
from  their  lobster-like  faces,  I  noticed  an  important- 
looking  gentleman  turn  into  New  Street  from  the  direc- 
tion of  Broadway,  and  after  edging  through  the  crowds, 
occa.'Honally  halting  to  ask  a  question  in  the  politest  pos- 
sible manner — the  replies  and  gestures  to  which  seemed 
to  indicate  that  he  was  seeking  my  agency,  which  after- 
wards proved  true — this  vision  of  precision  and  politeness 
passed  from  my  sight  into  Exchange  Place,  and  in  a  few 
moments  after  I  was  informed  that  a  gentleman  desired 
to  see  me  on  very  important  business. 

After  ascertaining  who  the  gentleman  was,  and  already 
knowing  him  to  be  a  harmless  sort  of  an  adventurer,  and 
under  the  particular  patronage  of  a  wealthy  Rochester 
gentleman,  I  admitted  him  and  he  was  introduced  as  Mr. 
Harcout,  of  Rochester  and  New  York. 

Mr.  Harcout  was  a  character  in  his  way,  and  deserving 
of  some  notice.  He  was  a  tall,  heavily-built,  obese  gen- 
tleman of  about  forty-five  y.  ars  of  age,  impressive,  impor- 
tant, and  supremely  polite.  His  face  was  a  strange  com* 


MR.  PINKERTON  IS  CALLED   UPON.        49 

bination  of  imbecility  and  assumption;  while  his  head, 
which  was  particularly  developed  in  the  back  part,  indi- 
cating low  instincts  that  were  evidently  only  repressed  as 
Occasion  required,  was  consistent  with  the  formation  of 
his  square,  flat  forehead,  which  sloped  back  at  a  suspi- 
ciously sharp  angle  from  a  pair  of  little,  gray,  expression- 
less eyes,  which  from  the  lack  of  intelligence  behind 
them  would  look  you  out  of  face  without  blinking.  His 
nose  was  straight  and  solidly  set  below,  like  some  sharp 
instrument,  to  assist  him  in  getting  on  in  the  world.  His 
lips,  though  not  unusually  gross  or  sensual,  had  a  way  of 
opening  and  closing,  during  the  pauses  of  conversation 
with  a  persistency  of  assertion  that  had  the  effect  of  keep- 
ing in  the  mind  of  the  average  listener  that  great  weight 
should  be  attached  to  what  Mr.  Harcout  had  said,  or  was 
about  to  say  ;  and  at  the  same  time,  as  also  when  he 
patronizingly  smiled,  which  was  almost  constantly,  dis- 
closed a  set  of  teeth  of  singular  regularity  and  dazzling 
whiteness.  A  pair  of  very  large  ears,  closely-cut  and 
neatly-trimmed  hair,  and  a  whitish-olive  complexion  that 
suggested  sluggish  blood  and  a  lack  of  fine  organization, 
complete  the  sketch  of  his  face,  but  could  never  give  the 
full  effect  of  the  grandeur  of  his  assumption  and  manners, 
which  were  a  huge  burlesque  on  ohivalric  courtliness. 
As  he  entered  the  room  his  gloved  hand  swept  to  the  rim 
of  his  faultless  silk  hat,  and  removed  it  with  an  inde- 
scribably graceful  gesture  that  actually  seemed  to  make 
the  hat  say,  "  Ah !  my  very  dear  sir,  while  I  belong  to  a 
gentleman  of  the  vastest  importance  imaginable,  be  as- 
3 


50        MR    PINKER  TON  IS  CALLED   UPON. 

sured  that  \ve  are  both  inexpressibly  honored  by  this 
interview ! "  Nor  were  these  all  of  his  strikingly  good 
points.  He  was  a  man  that  was  always  dressed  in  a  suit 
of  the  finest  procurable  cloth,  most  artistically  fitted  to 
his  commanding  figure,  and  never  a  day  passed  when 
there  was  not  an  exquisite  favor  in  the  neat  button-hole 
of  his  collar.  When  he  had  become  seated  in  a  most 
dignified  and  engaging  manner,  he  had  a  neat  habit  of 
showing  his  little  foot  encased  in  patent  leather  so  shining 
that,  at  a  pinch,  it  might  have  answered  for  a  mirror,  by 
carelessly  throwing  his  right  leg  over  his  left  knee,  so  that 
he  could  keep  up  an  incessant  tapping  upon  his  boot  with 
the  disengaged  glove  which  his  left  hand  contained  ;  and, 
with  his  head  thrown  slightly  back  and  to  one  side,  em- 
phasized his  remarks  in  a  graceful  and  convincing  way 
with  the  digit  finger  of  his  soft  white  right  hand.  Alto- 
gether he  would  have  passed  for  a  person  of  considerable 
importance  and  good  commercial  and  social  standing ; 
but  to  one  versed  in  character-reading  he  gave  the  im- 
pression that  he  might  at  one  time  have  been  an  easy- 
going clergyman,  who  had  lapsed  into  some  successful 
insurance  or  real  estate  agency  that  had  been  unex- 
pectedly profitable ;  or,  at  least,  was  a  man  who  had 
thoroughly  and  artistically  acquired  the  science  of  secur- 
ing an  elegant  livelihood  through  the  confidence  he  could 
readily  inspire  in  others. 

"  Ah  !  Mr.  Pinkerton,  I  am  very  glad  to  see  you — very 
glad  to  see  you ;  in  fact,  I  take  it  as  a  peculiar  honor, 
though  my  business  with  you  is  of  an  unpleasant  nature,' 


MR.   PINKER  TO  ft  IS  CALLED   UPON,        5 1 

said  Mr.  Harcout,  settling  into  his  chair  with  a  kind  of 
bland  and  amiable  dignity. 

I  saw  that  he  was  making  a  great  effort  to  please  me, 
and  told  him  pleasantly  that  it  was  quite  natural  for  peo- 
ple to  visit  me  on  unpleasant  business. 

"Thank  you,  thank  you,"  he  replied  in  his  rich,  after- 
dinner  voice,  that  seemed  to  come  with  his  winning  smile 
to  his  lips  through  a  vast  measure  of  good-fellowship  and 
great-heartedness.  "  I  feel  that  I  am  occupying  a  pecu- 
liar position,  both  painful  and  embarrassing  to  me  :  first, 
as  the  friend  and  agent  of  a  wealthy  man  who  is  also  an 
acquaintance  of  yours,  and  operates  on  the  Produce  Ex- 
change, here ;  and  second,  in  being  obliged  to  ascertain 
whether  you  will  take  our  case  without  your  becoming 
too  fully  aware  of  the  particulars,  in  the  event  of  your 
refusal." 

"Well,"  said  I  encouragingly,  highly  enjoying  his  em- 
barrassment and  assumed  importance,  "  if  you  will  give 
me  a  general  outline  of  the  matter,  I  will  take  it  into  con- 
sideration ;  and,  in  any  event,  you  can  rest  assured  that 
our  walls  have  no  ears  to  what  our  patrons  have  to  say 
within  them." 

"  Well,  then,"  replied  Harcout  with  a  winning  smik, 
"to  be  honest  with  you,  Mr.  Pinkerton,  there's  a  woman 
in  our  case ;  yes — though  I'm  very  sorry  to  say  it — the 
case  is  almost  entirely  a  woman  case." 

'  In  that  event,  Mr.  Harcout,  I  must  plainly  say  to 
you  that  I  don't  like  those  cases  at  all.  I  have  all  the 
business  that  I  can  attend  to,  and  even  more  than  ] 


$2        MR.  PINKERTON  IS  CALLED   UPON. 

sometimes  desire ;  and  I  really  think  you  had  better  sa 
cure  the  services  of  some  other  person." 

"Pray  don't  say  so  ;  pray  don't  say  so,  Mr.  Pinkertoi . 
Ah  !  what  could  induce  you  to  take  the  case  ?  " 

"  No  sum  of  money,"  I  replied,  "  unless  I  was  fully  as- 
sured that  it  was  all  right — that  is,  had  the  right  on  your 
side.  Almost  without  exception  these  cases  with  women 
in  them,  where  men  become  jealous  of  their  mistresses, 
mistresses  of  their  men,  wives  of  their  husbands,  husbands 
of  their  wives,  or  when  the  lively  and  vigorous  mother-in- 
law  lends  spice  to  life,  and,  indeed,  all  those  troubles 
arising  from  social  abuses,  are  a  disgrace  to  every  one  con- 
nected with  them." 

Harcout  seemed  quite  disappointed  that  I  did  not  ex- 
press more  avidity  to  transact  the  business  he  proffered, 
but  continued  in  his  blandest  manner  : 

"  Still,  supposing,  although  we  were  not  altogether  in 
the  right,  we  were  endeavoring  to  defend  ourselves 
against  a  vile  woman  who  had  manipulated  circumstances 
so  that  she  had  us  greatly  in  her  power  ?  " 

"  I  should  still  feel  a  great  reluctance  in  taking  the 
case.  All  my  life  I  have  had  one  steady  aim  before  me, 
and  that  has  been  to  purify  and  ennoble  the  detective 
service ;  and  I  am  sure  that  all  this  sort  of  business  is 
degrading  in  the  extreme  to  operatives  engaged  upon  it." 

"  Very  good,  very  good.  But,  Mr.  Pinkerton,  suppos- 
ing the  person  pursued  was  worth  two  or  three  millions 
of  dollars ;  that  after  the  parties  had  met  in  a  casual  way, 
and,  through  a  strange  and  unexplainable  feeling  of  ad 


MR.   PINKER  TON  IS  CALLED   UPON.        S3 

miration  mingled  with  awe  which  she  had  compelled  in 
him,  she  had  acquired  a  familiarity  with  his  habits,  busi- 
ness, and  vast  wealth,  and  had  from  that  time  schemiriglj1 
begun  a  plan  of  operations  to  entrap  him  into  marrying 
her.  working  upon  his  rather  susceptible  temperament 
through  his  peculiar  religious  belief,  in  order  to  gain 
power  over  him,  and  then,  failing  to  secure  him  as  a  hus- 
band, had  for  some  time  pursued  a  system  of  threats  and 

quiet,   persistent    robbery,    constantly    becoming    more 

jk 
brazen  and  impudent,  until  he  could  bear  it  no  longer, 

when  he  had  refused  to  see  her  or  submit  to  further 
blackmail,  whereupon  she  had  heartlessly  attempted  his 
social  and  financial  ruin,  by  bringing  a  suit  against  him  for 
$100,000  damages  for  breach  of  promise  of  marriage?" 

This  extended  conundrum  flushed  Harcout,  and  his 
magnificent  silk  handkerchief  came  gracefully  into  use  to 
very  gently  and  delicately  absorb  the  perspiration  that 
had  started  upon  his  porous  face. 

"Mr.  Harcout,"  I  still  insisted,  "I  should  then  requir* 
to  be  unqualifiedly  assured  that  the  woman  in  question 
was  not  a  young  woman  who  had  really  been  led  to  be 
lieve  the  promise  of  some  man  old  enough  to  be  he» 
father,  and  who  should  accept  the  consequences  of  his  ir>- 
discretion  philosophically." 

"  Exactly,  exactly,"  responded  Harcout,  quite  unea  *• 
ily,  though  with  an  evident  endeavor  at  pleasantry ;  anJ 
quite  noble  of  you,  too,  Mr.  Pinkerton !  Really,  I  had 
not  anticipated  finding  such  delicate  honor  among  de 
tectives  1 "  and  he  laughed  a  low,  musical  langl 


54        MR.  PINKERTON  IS  CALLED   UPON. 

which  seemed  to  come  gurgling  up  from  his  capacious 
middle. 

I  told  him  he  might  term  it  "  delicate  honor  "  or  what- 
ever he  liked  ;  that  I  had  made  thorough  justice  a  strict 
business  principle,  and  found  that  it  won,  too  ;  but  that, 
with  the  understanding  that  he  had  fairly  represented  the 
case,  I  would  give  it  my  consideration  and  apprise  him 
of  my  decision  the  next  day,  giving  him  an  appointment 
for  that  purpose  ;  after  which,  while  verbosely  expressing 
the  hope  that  I  would  assist  him,  he  bowed  himself  out  in 
a  very  impressive  manner,  passed  into  the  street,  which 
was  now  nearly  as  quiet  as  the  Trinity  Church-yard  close 
by,  and  immediately  went  to  the  St.  Nicholas,  where  he 
flourishingly  reported  the  interview  to  the  anxious  million- 
aire, who  thanked  fortune  for  such  a  powerful  and  ma* 
jestir  friend. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

in  C  ouncil.— Mr.  Lyon  the  Millionaire,  with  Mr.  Harcout  the  Adven- 
turer and  Adviser,  appear  together. — How  Mr.  Lyon  became  Mrs. 
Winslow's  Victim. — "Our  blessed  Faith"  and  the  Woman's 
strange  Power. — A  Tender  Subject. — Deep  Games. — A  One 
Hundred  Thousand  Dollar  Suit  for  Breach  of  Promise  of  Mar- 
riage.— A  good  deal  of  Money. — All  liable  to  err. — A  most 
magnificent  Woman. — The  "  Case  "  taken. 

IN  the  meantime  I  had  a  conversation  on  the  subject 
with  my  General  Superintendent,  Mr.  Bangs,  in 
which  we  weighed  the  case  thoroughly  in  all  its  bearings. 
I  held,  as  I  always  do  in  such  cases,  if  further  investiga- 
tion proved  that  the  woman  was  one  whose  youth,  or  even 
inexperience,  was  such  as  to  make  it  probable  that  she 
had  been  met  by  a  man  whose  position  had  dazzled  and 
bewildered  her,  and  who,  from  his  wealth  and  opportuni- 
ties for  exerting  the  immense  influence  of  wealth,  had 
led  her  to  believe  that  he  loved  her,  and  had  had  such  at- 
tention lavished  upon  her  as  had  awakened  in  her  heart 
Jin  affection  for  him  which  should  deserve  some  consid- 
eration, and  that  finally,  after  accomplishing  his  purpose, 
he  had  flung  her  from  him,  as  was  an  every-day  occur- 
rence, it  was  a  case  which  I  could  under  no  circumstances 
touch ;  its  justice  ought  only  to  be  determined  in  the 
courts. 


56  IN  COUNCIL. 

On  the  other  hand,  I  argued  that  if  this  troubi  isome 
woman  was  grown  in  years,  had  arrived  at  a  mature  age, 
and  had  deliberately  planned  to  secure  a  certain  poAver 
over  Harcout\s  friend  in  the  questionable  manner  as* 
cribed — had,  in  fact,  used  the  "  black  arts  "  upon  him, 
and  in  every  manner  possible  fascinated  him  irresistibly, 
and  wrung  from  him  promises  and  pledges  which  no  man 
in  his  sane  moments  would  give,  in  order  through  this  dis- 
honorably-gained power  to  secure  him  for  a  husband — or 
worse,  in  the  event  of  failing  in  this,  of  levying  upon  his 
wealth  for  the  dishonor  she  had  herself  compelled,  it  was 
a  case  where  I  had  a  right  to  interfere  in  the  best  inter- 
ests of  society,  as  the  professional  female  blackmailer  is 
below  pity,  ought  to  be  beyond  protection  of  any  sort 
whatever,  has  forfeited  all  the  actual  and  poetical  regard 
due  her  sex,  and  should  be  in  every  instance  remorselessly 
hunted  down. 

This  conclusion  was  easily  arrived  at ;  for  at  each  of 
my  agencies  all  that  is  necessary  for  a  decision  upon  a 
desired  investigation  is  that  my  local  superintendent  shall 
sift  the  matter,  to  prove  beyond  the  shadow  of  a  doubt 
that  the  vast  power  of  the  detective  service  under  my 
control  shall  not,  under  any  circumstances,  be  prostituted 
to  the  assistance  of  questionable  enterprises,  or  the  fur- 
therance of  dishonorable  schemes. 

Accordingly,  when  Mr.  Harcout  wafted  himself  into  my 
office  the  next  day,  like  a  fragrance-laden  zephyr  of  early 
summer,  I  informed  him  that  he  could  depend  on  my 
assistance  to  discover  the  history  and  antecedents  of  the 


IN  COUNCIL.  57 

woman ;  but  that  I  should  have  to  reserve  the  privilege 
of  discontinuing  the  service,  should  it  at  any  time  tran- 
spire that  my  operatives  were  being  employed  for  the  pur- 
pose of  discouraging  a  defenceless  woman  in  securing  the 
justice  due  her. 

It  was  arranged  that  Harcout  was  to  call  the  next  day 
with  his  patron,  the  persecuted  millionaire,  and  he  also 
expressed  a  desire  to  defe;  a  settlement  of  the  case  in 
detail  until  that  time,  which  was  quite  agreeable  to  me,  as 
I  wished  to  see  the  parties  together  and  closely  observe 
them,  as  well  as  their  statements. 

The  next  afternoon  Mr.  Harcout's  elegant  card  was 
delivered  to  me,  with  the  message  that  his  friend  was  also 
with  him.  I  ordered  that  they  should  be  at  once  admit- 
ted, and  in  a  moment  the  two  gentlemen  were  ushered 
into  my  private  office.  I  immediately  recognized  the 
elder  of  the  two  as  J.  H  Lyon,  one  of  the  wealthiest  ele- 
vator owners  and  millers  of  Rochester,  a  quiet,  shrewd, 
calculating  business  man,  who  had  amassed  vast  wealth, 
or  the  reputation  of  its  possession,  and  its  consequent 
commercial  respect  and  credit. 

He  was  a  short,  small-sized  man,  dressed  in  plain  but 
rich  garments,  and  wore  no  jewelry  save  a  massive  soli- 
taire diamond  ring.  His  head,  which  seemed  to  contain 
an  aveiage  brain,  was  solidly  set  on  a  great,  heavy  neck, 
that  actually  continued  to  the  top  of  the  back  of  his 
head  without  a  curve  or  depression.  His  hair,  and  beard 
— which  was  shaven  away  from  his  lower  lip  to  the  curve 
of  his  chin — had  a  shaggy  sort  of  look,  though  generally 
3* 


58  ,-ff  COUNCIL. 

well  kept,  and  were  considerably  tinged  with'gray ;  while 
his  eyebrows  wera  remarkably  long,  irregular,  and  forbid- 
ding. His  eyes  were  medium-sized,  of  a  grayish-brown 
color,  and  under  the  heavy  shade  of  the  brows  somewhat 
keen  and  restless.  His  cheek-bones  were  quite  promi- 
nent, and  below  them  his  cheeks  sank  away  noticeably, 
which  served  to  more  strikingly  show  the  upward  turn 
of  his  nose  and  his  full  lips  and  broad,  sensual  mouth, 
which,  with  its  half-shown,  irregular  teeth  and  ever-present 
tobacco-stains  (for  he  smoked  or  chewed  incessantly), 
gave  him  a  face  quite  unlike  those  ordinarily  supposed  to 
be  captivating  to  women.  With  his  broad,  bony  hands, 
large,  ill-shaped  feet,  and  retiring,  hesitating  way,  as  if 
never  exactly  certain  of  anything,  he  was  truly  a  great 
contrast  to  the  pompous,  elegant  gentleman  who  seemed 
to  have  taken  him  under  his  fatherly  protection. 

Lyon  slid  into  his  seat  in  a  nervous,  diffident  way ; 
while  Harcout,  who  had  just  drawn  his  chair  between  us, 
as  if  he  desired  it  understood  that  he  did  not  propose 
to  yield  his  office  of  general  manager  of  this  vitally  im- 
portant affair  under  any  circumstances,  beamed  on  his 
friend  reassuringly. 

After  a  few  remarks  on  the  current  topics  of  the  day, 
and  befoie  they  were  themselves  aware  of  it,  we  were 
getting  along  swimmingly  towards  an  understanding  of  the 
subject-matter — Lyon,  who  had  removed  his  cigar,  fairly 
eating  an  immense  amount  of  fine-cut  as  the  voluble 
Harcout  rattled  away  about  the  bold,  bad  woman  who 
had  entrapped  him. 


IN  COUNCIL.  59 

"  Why,  mj  dear  Mr.  Pinkerton,  it's  a  terrible  matter—' 
an  infamous  affair !  My  friend  here,  Mr.  Lyon,  is  quite 
nettled  about  it — I  might  say,  quite  cut  up.  You  can  see 
for  yourself,  sir,  that  it's  wearing  on  him."  This  with  a 
deprecating  wave  of  his  hand  towards  Lyon,  who  ner- 
vously gazed  out  of  the  window  from  under  his  shaggy 
bi  ows. 

I  merely  said  that  these  things  were  sometimes  a  little 
wearing. 

"  But  you  see,  Mr.  Pinkerton,  this  is  a  peculiarly  cruel 
case — a  peculiarly  cruel  case.  Hem  !  /  know  what  is 
cruel  in  this  respect,  as  I  was  once  victimized  by  very 
much  the  same  sort  of  a  female,  though  she  was  much 
younger.  Why,  do  you  know,  sir,"  and  here  the  sympa- 
thetic Harcout's  voice  fell  into  a  solemn  murmur,  "  that 
my  friend's  beloved  wife  was  scarcely  at  rest  beneath  the 
daisies  when  this  Mrs.  Winslow  began  worming  herself 
into  the  confidence  of  my  somewhat  impressible  friend 
here  ?  " 

I  made  no  answer,  and  only  took  a  memorandum  of 
the  facts  developed,  not  forgetting  Harcout's  statement 
that  he  had  once  been  victimized  by  very  much  the  same 
sort  of  a  female. 

"  She  came  to  Rochester  as  a  shining  light  among  the 
exponents  of  our  blessed  faith " 

"And  what  may  your  religion  be  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  We  believe  in  the  constant  communication  between 
mortals  and  the  occupants  of  the  beautiful  spirit  home 
beyond  the  river." 


60  IN  COUNCIL. 

"Exactly,"  said  I,  noticing  the  remarkable  develop 
went  at  the  back  of  their  heads  and  about  their  mouths. 

"And  our  friend  here,  Mr.  Lyon,"  continued  Harcout, 
with  his  eyes  devoutly  raised  to  the  ceiling,  "met  her  at 
one  of  our  pleasant  seances." 

I  made  another  note  at  this  point. 

"  To  be  frank — 'hem  !  it's  my  nature  to  be  frank — ' 
then  turning  his  face  to  me  and  raising  his  eyebrows 
inquiringly — "  I  suppose,  Mr.  Pinkerton,  it  is  quite  desir- 
able that  I  should  be  so  ?  "  To  which  I  responded, 
"  Necessarily  so,"  when  he  resumed  :  "  To  be  frank, 
then,  Mr.  Lyon  was  wonderfully  interested  in  her.  In 
fact,  the  woman  has  a  strange  power  of  compelling  admi- 
ration and  even  fear — shall  I  say  fear,  Mr.  Lyon.?" 

"  Guess  that's  about  right,"  said  Mr.  Lyon  tersely. 

"Admiration  and  fear,"  repeated  Mr.  Harcout,  as  if 
thinking  of  something  long  gone  by,  while  Lyon  chewed 
more  fiercely  than  ever.  "  Indeed,  Mr.  Pinkerton,  she's 
a  superb  woman — a  superb  woman ;  but  a  she-devil  for 
all  that ! " 

I  noticed  that  Harcout's  fervor  seemed  to  have  come 
from  some  similar  experience,  and  I  noted  both  it  and  his 
J-eated  estimate  of  Mrs.  Winslow,  although  he  remarked 
that  he  had  never  met  her. 

"  Well,  my  friend  here  was  irresistibly  drawn  to  her, 
and  he  has  told  me  that  for  a  time  it  seemed  that  he  had 
found  his  real  affinity.  You  felt  that  way,  didn't  you, 
Lyon?" 

Lyon  nodded  and  chewed  rapidly. 


IN  COUNCIL.  6l 

"  But  for  a  long  time  the  more  my  friend  endeavored 
to  secure  her  favor,  the  more  she  seemed  to  draw  away 
from  and  avoid  him,  though  constantly  making  opportuni- 
ties to  more  deeply  impress  him  with  her  most  splendid 
physical  and  mental  qualities.  My  friend  recollects  now, 
though  he  gave  it  no  attention  at  the  time,  that  she 
shrewdly  drew  from  him  much  information  regarding  his 
family  affairs,  habits,  business  relations,  and  wealth  ;  and 
as  she  was,  or  pretended  to  be,  a  medium  of  great  power, 
at  those  times  when  he  sought  her  professional  services 
she  worked  upon  his  feelings  in  such  a  peculiar  manner  as 
to  completely  upset  him." 

Here  Mr.  Lyon  offered  an  extended  remark  for  the  first 
time,  and  said:  "The  truth  is,  Mr.  Pinkerton,  this  is  a 
subject  that  I  am  particularly  tender  upon.  I  think 
under  certain  circumstances  I  could  really  have  made  the 
woman  my  wife  ; "  then  turning  to  his  agent,  he  said, 
"  Harcout,  cut  it  short." 

"  But,"  Harcout  protested,  "  we  can't  cut  it  short. 
Mr.  Pinkerton  wants  facts — he  must  have  facts.  Well, 
at  one  time  Mr.  Lyon  felt  a  real  affection  for  the  woman, 
which  does  him  honor — is  no  disgrace  to  him ;  but  after  a 
time  began  to  suspect,  and  eventually  to  feel  sure,  that 
Mrs.  Winslow  was  playing  a  deep  game  ;  indeed,  had 
originally  come  to  Rochester  for  that  purpose  ;  and  while 
he  still  regarded  her  highly  on  account  of  her  fine  quali- 
ties, refrained  from  seeking  her  society,  which  at  once 
seemed  to  awaken  a  violent  and  uncor  trollable  passion 
for  him  in  her  heart.  She  sought  him  everywhere  and 


62  IN  COUNCIL. 

compelled  him  to  visit  her  frequently,  lavishing  the  wildet 
affection  upon  him,  which  he  delicately  repelled — deli- 
cately repelled ;  and,  as  she  represented  herself  in 
straitened  circumstances,  charitably  assisted  her  just  as  he 
would  have  done  any  other  person  in  want — any  other 
person  in  want ;  but,  you  see,  Mrs.  Winslow  presumed 
upon  this,  accused  him  of  having  broken  her  heart,  and 
was  now  cruelly  deserting  her  after  he  had  taught  her  to 
worship  him." 

Mr.  Lyon's  nervous  face  presented  a  singular  combir 
nation  of  pride  at  his  own  powers,  chagrin  at  his  predica- 
ment, and  a  general  protest  that  the  tender  privacies  of  a 
millionaire  should  be  thus  disclosed. 

"  In  this  way,"  continued  Harcout,  "  she  so  worked 
upon  his  kindly  feelings  that  he  really  gave  her  large  sums 
of  money — large  sums  of  money." 

"  A  good  deal  of  money,"  interrupted  Mr.  Lyon. 

"  But  finally,"  pursued  Harcout,  "  my  friend  saw  that 
he  must  discontinue  his  charity  altogether,  and  through 
my  advice — hem !  through  my  advice,  he  did.  Mrs. 
Winslow  then  became  very  impudent  indeed,  and  annoyed 
my  friend  beyond  endurance,  until  he  was  forced  to 
refuse  to  recognize  her,  and  gave  orders  that  she  should 
be  denied  admission  to  his  office.  But,  being  a  very  tal- 
ented woman " 

*;  She  is  talented,"  said  Lyon,  with  a  start. 

"She  has  found  means  to  continue  her  operations 
•gainst  him  incessantly,  demanding  still  larger  sums  of 
money,  ard  has  engaged  counsel  to  act  for  her.  Hem  ! 


IN  COUNCIL.  63 

— undei  my  advice,  quite  recently  Mr.  Lyon,  by  paying 
her  five  thousand  dollars,  secured  from  her  a  relinquish- 
ment  of  all  claims  against  him,  rather  than  oblige  a  public 
scandal.  But  now  Mrs.  Winslow  claims  that  this  was 
secured  by  fraud,  and  after  making  another  fruitless 
demand  for  ten  thousand  dollars,  which — hem  !  Mr.  Lyon 
resisted  through  my  advice,  last  week  began  suit  against 
him  for  one  hundred  thousand  dollars  for  breach  of  prom- 
ise of  marriage.  And  a  hundred  thousand  dollars  is  a 
big  sum  of  money,  Mr.  Pinkerton." 

"A  big  sum  of  money,"  echoed  Lyon. 

"  But  of  course,"  continued  Harcout,  inserting  his 
thumbs  in  the  arm-holes  of  his  vest  and  looking  the  very 
picture  of  injured  virtue,  "Mr.  Lyon  cares  nothing  for 
that  amount.  It  is  the  principle  of  the  thing.  It  is  the 
stain  upon  his  good  name  that  he  desires  to  prevent — 
and  these  juries  are  confoundedly  unreliable." 

"  Confoundedly  unreliable,"  repeated  Lyon,  chewing 
nervously. 

"  Therefore,"  said  Harcout,  "  really  believing,  as  we 
do,  that  we — hem  !  that  is,  Mr.  Lyon,  of  course — is  the 
victim  of  a  designing  woman  who  really  means  to  wrong- 
fully compel  the  payment  of  a  large  sum  of  money  and 
ruin  my  friend  in  the  estimation  of  the  public,  we  are 
anxious  that  you  should  set  about  ascertainiug  everything 
concerning  her  for  use  as  evidence  in  the  case." 

After  asking  them  a  few  questions  touching  facts  I 
desired  to  ascertain,  the  interview  terminated  with  the 
understanding  that  Harcout  should  act  for  Mr.  Lyor 


64  IN  COUNCIL. 

unqualifiedly  :n  the  matter,  and  call  £.t  my  offi  ;e  as  often 
as  desirable  to  listen  to  reports  of  the  progress  of  my 
investigations  into  the  life  and  history  of  Mrs.  Winslow. 
I  was  satisfied  that  not  half  the  truth  had  been  given  me, 
and  I  was  more  than  ever  convinced  of  this  fact  when 
Lyon  called  me  to  one  side  as  the  lordly  Harcout  passed 
out,  and  said  to  me  hurriedly  : 

"  Don't  be  too  hard  upon  the  woman,  Mr.  Pinkerton. 
You  know  we  are  all  liable  to  err  ;  and — and,  by  Jupiter  ! 
Mrs.  Winslow  is  certainly  a  most  magnificent  woman — a 
most  magnificent  woman,"  and  then  chewed  himself  out 
after  his  courtly  henchman. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

rhe  Cas;  b  'gun. — Mi.  Pinkerton  makes  a  preliminary  Investigation  it 
Rochester. — Mrs.  Winslow,  Trance  Medium — A  Ride  to  Port  Char- 
lotte.— Harcout  as  a  Barnacle. — Much  married. — Mr.  Pinkerton 
visits  the  Mediums. — Drops  in  at  a  Washington  Hall  Meeting. — Sees 
the  naughty  Woman. — And  returns  to  New  York  convinced  that 
the  Spiritualistic  Adventuress  is  a  Woman  of  remarkable  Ability. 

AS  the  interview  related  in  the  previous  chapter 
occurred  on  Friday,  and  I  could  not  attend  to 
the  matter  at  once,  I  was  obliged  to  wait  until  the  fellow- 
ing  Sunday  evening,  when  I  quietly  took  the  western- 
bound  express,  which  brought  me  to  Rochester  the 
following  noon,  where  I  engaged  rooms  at  the  Brackett 
House  under  an  assumed  name,  and  immediately  began 
a  preliminary  examination  on  my  own  account,  having 
directed  my  New  York  Superintendent  to  inform  either 
Lyon  or  Harcout,  in  the  event  of  their  calling  at  the 
agency,  that  I  could  not  be  seen  regarding  their  matter 
for  a  few  days,  as  I  had  suddenly  been  called  South  on 
important  business. 

My  object  in  doing  this  was  to  look  over  the  ground 
at  Rochester  myself,  and  get  an  unbiased  idea  of  the 
whole  matter,  so  that  I  could  properly  proceed  with  the 
work,  being  satisfied  that  this  was  the  only  way  to  secure 
a  basis  to  operate  upon,  as  I  was  sure  that  I  had  not  go' 


66  THE   CASE  BEGUN. 

at  the  bottom  facts  in  the  late  interview.  I  invariably 
insist  on  having  all  the  facts,  and  always  take  measures 
to  secure  them  before  any  decided  move  is  made. 

As  a  rule,  however,  in  cases  of  this  kind,  it  is  almost 
impossible  to  secure  what  the  detective  absolutely  needs 
fiorr.  the  parties  from  whom  the  information  should 
come  ;  as  it  is  a  principle  of  human  nature  possessed 
by  us  all,  to  be  very  frank  about  our  merits,  and  quite 
careful  about  mentioning  anything  that  might  be  con- 
strued into  either  a  lack  of  judgment  or  principle. 

I  found  that  the  New  York  papers  were  already  pub- 
lishiv.g  specials  concerning  the  matter,  with  solemn  edito- 
rials regarding  the  perfidy  of  man,  the  constancy  of 
woman,  and  the  general  cussedness  of  both  ;  and  that  at 
Rochester  the  knowledge  of  the  commencement  of  the 
suit  had  just  got  into  the  papers,  and  consequently,  into 
everybody's  mouth  ;  and  was  creating  a  great  sensation, 
as  Lyon  was  known  to  the  whole  city  as  one  of  its  richest 
citizens,  "though  a  little  off  on  Spiritualism  lately,"  as 
the  talk  went ;  and  Mrs.  Winslow  had  also  become  quite 
notorious  from  her  magnificent  figure  and  winning  man- 
ner, her  equally  notorious  mediumistic  powers,  and 
through  her  prominent  connection  with  the  more  matt' 
rial  believers  in  spiritual  phenomena;  or,  to  be  plain, 
that  vast  majority  of  so-called  spiritualists  whose  only 
visible  means  of  support  are  in  excellently  humbugging 
their  brethren  or  sisters,  or  any  other  portion  of  the 
gullible  world  with  whom  they  come  in  contact. 

Nearly  every  Rochester  paper  contained  the  advertise 


THE  CASE  BEGUN.  6? 

ment  of  Mi  •.  Winslow,  trance  medium,  and  I  concluded 
that  either  the  lady  had  been  unusually  successful  in  her 
trance  business,  01  that  her  levies  upon  Lyon  had  been 
remunerative — perhaps  both — to  pay  for  such  extensive 
advertising. 

After  dinner  I  took  a  stroll  and  found  that  the  lady 
occupied  very  luxurious  apartments  on  South  St.  Paul 
street,  near  Meech's  Opera-house,  a  location  well  adapt- 
ed for  her  business.  I  also  ordered  a  carriage  and  drove 
out  to  Port  Charlotte — a  magnificent  drive  through  a 
lovely  country  dotted  with  fine  farm-houses  and  the 
splendid  suburban  residences  of  wealthy  Rochester  citi- 
zens— and,  as  a  casual  stranger,  inspected  Lyon's  ware- 
houses and  elevators,  the  largest  and  most  expensive  at 
the  Port,  returning  to  the  Brackett  House  in  time  to  eat 
a  hearty  supper. 

After  supper,  without  any  effort,  and  without  disclosing 
my  identity,  I  got  into  conversation  with  the  genial  land- 
lord of  the  house,  who  gave  me — as  a  part  of  my  enter- 
tainment, I  presume — a  rich  account  of  Lyon's  business 
relations,  and  particularly  of  his  personal  habits,  painted 
in  entirely  different  colors  than  by  the  blarneying  tongue 

of  Harcout ;  and  also  spoke  of  the  latter  as  "  a  d d 

barnacle,"  who  had  in  some  unexplainable  way  fastened 
himself  upon  Lyon  and  was  living  like  a  prince  off  the 
"old  fool,"  as  he  called  him.  He  also  told  me  ccnfi. 
dentially  that  he  believed  Mrs.  Winslow  to  be  a  woman 
of  questionable  character  ;  as,  when  she  first  came  to  the 
city,  she  had  stopped  at  his  hotel,  and  had  advertised  hei 


68  THE  CASE  BEGUN. 

mediumistic  powers  so  largely  that  it  had  brought  a  class 
of  men  there  whom  he  thought,  from  his  personal  knowl- 
edge of  their  habits,  to  be  more  interested  in  inquiries 
into  the  mysteries  of  the  present  than  of  the  hereafter, 
until  he  had  become  so  anxious  as  to  the  reputation  of 
his  house  that  he  had  informed  the  lady  of  the  preference 
of  her  absence  to  her  company  ;  wherupon  she  had  raised 
such  a  storm  about  his  ears  that  he  was  only  too  glad  to 
compromise  by  letting  her  go,  bag  and  baggage,  without 
paying  her  bill,  which  was  a  large  one  and  of  a  month's 
standing. 

I  also  gained  from  him  the  opinion  that  she  had  been 
married  a  half-dozen  times,  or  as  often  as  had  suited  her 
convenience ;  and  that  he  had  only  a  day  or  so  previous 
conversed  with  a  gentleman  from  some  part  of  the  West, 
who  had  told  him  that  somebody  in  Rochester  had  as- 
sisted her  in  procuring  her  a  divorce  from  her  husband. 
I  made  a  note  of  all  these  points  after  I  had  retired  to 
my  room,  and  felt  quite  satisfied  with  the  day's  work. 

The  next  day,  with  a  gentleman  at  the  hotel  with 
whom  I  had  become  acquainted,  representing  myself  as  a 
person  of  means  who  might  possibly  make  an  investment 
at  Rochester,  I  visited  Lyon's  mills,  and  incidentally 
became  quite  well  informed  as  to  his  financial  and  social 
standing. 

The  latter  was  a  little  peculiar.  His  wife,  a  most 
estimable  lady,  had  died  a  few  years  previous,  and  it 
appeared  that  during  her  life  the  Lyon  family  were 
among  the  aristocrats  of  the  city ;  but  at  her  death,  and 


THE  CASE  BEGUN.  6g 

Lyon's  subsequent  dabbling  in  Spiritualism,  the)  had 
been  gradually  dropped  from  the  visiting  lists,  and  noth- 
ing remained  of  the  former  home  circle  save  a  gaunt, 
grim  mother-in-law,  who  vainly  waged  war  against  the 
loose  habits,  laxity  of  morals,  and  general  degeneracy 
that  had  come  with  the  new  order  of  things. 

I  also  secured  the  addresses  of  all  the  professional 
mediums,  fortune-tellers,  and  astrologers  of  the  city,  and 
during  that  day  and  the  next  visited  their  rooms,  claiming 
to  be  a  devoted  believer  in  Spiritualism,  having  my  for- 
tune told  at  various  places,  and  picking  up  a  good  deal 
of  information  regarding  the  fascinating  Mrs.  Winslow, 
which  tended  to  prove  her  a  remarkably  talented  woman, 
capable  of  not  only  attending  to  her  mediumistic  duties, 
but  also  of  carrying  on  litigation  of  various  kinds  in 
different  parts  of  the  country.  My  investigations  also 
showed  that  these  different  "  doctors  "  and  "  doctresses," 
claiming  to  perform  almost  miraculous  cures  and  their 
ability  to  foretell  the  fates  of  others  through  the  aid  of 
this  supernatural  spirit-power,  were  quite  like  other  peo 
pie  in  their  bickerings  and  jealousies,  and,  as  a  rule,  they 
gave  each  other  quite  as  bad  names  as  the  public  gener- 
ally gave  them  ;  and  that  Mrs.  Winslow  could  not  have 
been  considered  exactly  the  pink  of  perfection  if  judged 
even  by  those  of  her  own  persuasion,  as  one  vaguely 
hinted  at  her  having  played  the  same  game  on  other 
parties.  Another  was  sure  she  had  been  a  camp-follower 
during  the  war.  Another  assured  me  that  she  had  f.imi- 
lai  suits  at  Louisville,  Cincinnati,  and  St.  Louis.  Still 


70  THE  CASE  BEGUN. 

another  was  quite  certain  that  she  was  only  a  common 
woman.  Altogether,  according  to  these  reports,  which 
were  easily  enough  secured,  as  her  case  against  Lyon  was 
the  engrossing  subject  of  the  hour  at  Rochester,  it 
appeared  that  the  ravishing  Mrs.  Winslow  held  her  place, 
such  as  it  was,  in  the  world  more  through  her  supreme 
will  power,  and  the  respect  through  fear  she  unconsciously 
inspired  in  others,  than  through  any  of  the  tenderer  graces 
or  a  superabundance  of  personal  purity. 

From  cautious  inquiries  and  the  wonderful  amount  of 
street,  saloon,  and  hotel  talk  which  the  affair  was  caus- 
ing, I  also  ascertained  that  Mrs.  Winslow  had  macle  hei 
appearance  in  Rochester  some  years  before  ;  some  said 
from  the  east,  and  some  from  the  West,  but  the  prepon- 
derance of  evidence  indicated  that  it  had  been  from  the 
West ;  that  she  had  at  once  allied  herself  with  the  spirit- 
ualists of  the  city,  and  Lyon  had  first  met  or  seen  her  at 
one  of  their  seances  or  lectures;  that  he  had  at  once 
yielded  to  her  charms,  and  begun  visiting  her  for  "  ad- 
vice," as  it  was  sarcastically  reported,  continuing  the 
visits  with  such  frequency  and  regularity  as  to  hasten  the 
death  of  his  wife,  after  which  event  he  had  given  his  new 
affinity  nearly  his  entire  attention  until  she  had  come  to 
be  commonly  considered  as  his  mistress  ;  that  she  had 
frequently  boasted  among  her  friends  that  she  was  to  be- 
come Lyon's  wife,  and  was  even  by  some  called  Mrs. 
Lyon,  to  which  pleasant  designation  she  made  no  mur 
mur ;  that  she  had  made  a  common  practice  of  visiting 
Lyon  at  his  offices  in  the  Arcade,  where  she  had  been 


THE  CASE  BEGUN.  7 1 

treated  with  considerable  deference  and  respect  by  his 
employees  ;  and  that  during  this  period  Mrs.  Win  slow  had 
made  several  trips  to  the  West,  evidently  at  Lyon's  insti- 
gation, and  through  his  financial  aid. 

I  fonnd  also  that  she  was  as  truly  a  believer  in  the 
farces  others  of  her  profession  enacted  for  her  benefit  as 
she  was  in  the  mediumistic  power  she  had  persuaded  her- 
self that  she  possessed,  and  was  consequently  a  regular 
attendant  at  all  the  meetings  and  seances  held  in  the 
city ;  and  as  there  was  one  to  be  held  that  evening  at 
Washington  Hall,  I  decided  to  attend  for  the  purpose  of 
getting  a  good  view  of  the  lady  with  whom,  for  a  time, 
we  should  be  obliged  to  keep  close  company.  Accord- 
ingly, at  half-past  seven  o'clock  I  found  the  hall,  which  is 
but  a  few  blocks  above  the  bridge  on  Main  Street,  and 
after  purchasing  a  ticket  of  a  sleek,  long-haired  individual 
with  deft  fingers  and  a  restless  eye,  passed  into  the  room, 
where  there  was  already  quite  a  number  of  the  faithful,  all 
bearing  unmistakable  evidences  of  either  their  peculiar 
faith,  or  the  character  of  their  business. 

As  the  exercises  of  the  evening  had  not  yet  begun, 
those  present  were  gathered  about  the  hall  excitedly  dis- 
cussing the  great  sensation  of  the  hour,  which  was  partic- 
ularly interesting  to  them,  as  the  parties  to  it  were  both  of 
their  number,  and  from  what  I  could  gather  they  were 
about  evenly  divided  in  their  opinion  as  to  the  merits 
of  the  case — the  male  portion  of  the  assemblage  warmly 
espousing  the  cause  of  Mrs.  Winslow,  and  the  femule 
poition  as  eagerly  sympathizing  with  "poor  dear  Hr 


72  THE   CASE  BEGUN. 

Lyon,"  and  roundly  condemning  the  naughty  woman  who 
had  ensnared  him  and  was  so  relentlessly  pursuing  him. 

I  was  sure  the  naughty  woman  had  now  arrived,  as 
thete  was  a  sudden  twisting  of  necks  and  buzzing  of 
"That's  her— that's  her!"  "There's  Mrs.  Winslow ! " 
and  "  Yes,  that's  Mrs.  Lyon  !  "  an.l  the  females  that  had 
given  Mrs.  Winslow  such  a  bad  reputation  a  few  mo- 
ments before,  now  pressed  around  her  with  sympathiz- 
ing inquiries  and  loud  protestations  of  regard,  quite  like 
other  ladies  under  similar  circumstances.  But  the  lady 
appeared  to  be  quite  unconcerned  as  to  their  good  or  ill 
feeling  towards  her,  and  swept  up  the  aisle  with  a  regal 
air,  taking  a  seat  so  near  me  and  in  such  a  position  that 
I  was  able  to  make  a  perfect  study  of  her  while  appar- 
ently only  absorbed  in  the  wonderful  revelation  that  fell 
from  the  trance-speaker's  lips. 

She  appeared  to  be  a  lady  of  about  thirty-five  years  of 
age,  and  of  a  very  commanding  appearance.  She  was 
not  a  beautiful  woman,  but  there  was  an  indescribable 
something  about  her  entire  face  and  figure  that  was 
strangely  attractive.  It  was  both  the  dignity  of  self-con- 
scious power  and  the  peculiar  attractiveness  of  a  majes- 
tically formed  woman.  It  could  not  be  said  that  there 
was  a  single  beautiful  feature  about  her  face,  though  it 
attracted  and  held  every  observer.  Her  head  was  large, 
well  formed,  and  covered  with  a  wavy  mass  of  black  hair 
marvelous  in  its  richness  of  color  and  luxuriance.  Her 
complexion  was  x  clear,  wax-like  white,  singularly  con 
trasting  with  he:  iair,  delicately  arching  eyebrows,  and 


THE   CASE  BEGUN.  73 

long,  dark  lashes,  which  heavily  shaded  great  gray  eyes 
that  were  sometimes  touched  with  a  shading  of  blue,  and 
occasionally  glowed  with  a  light  as  keen,  glittering,  and 
cold  as  might  flash  from  a  diamond  or  a  dagger's  point, 
which  seemed  to  work  in  sympathy  with  the  rapid  move- 
ment of  her  thin  nostrils,  and  the  swift  shuttles  of  crimson 
and  paleness  that  darted  over  her  curled  upper  lip, 
which,  notwithstanding  this  singularity,  touched  the  full, 
pouting  lower  one  with  a  hint  of  wild  and  riotous 
blood. 

Although  Mrs.  Winslow  was  a  woman  who,  being  met 
in  the  better  circles  of  society,  would  have  wonderfully 
interested  every  one  with  whom  she  came  in  contact,  in 
the  circle  within  which  she  moved,  and  which,  uncon- 
sciously, seemed  to  be  far  beneath  her,  she  surely  com- 
manded a  certain  kind  of  respect,  with  a  touch  of  fear, 
perhaps  ;  and  in  any  circle  of  life  was  undoubtedly  one 
in  whom  the  ambition  for  power  was  only  equalled  by  the 
remorseless  way  with  which  she  would  wield  it  after  it  had 
been  gained. 

Not  once  during  the  whole  evening  did  she  by  any 
movement  of  her  person  or  motion  of  her  features  give 
any  further  indication  of  her  character  ;  and  I  could  only 
leave  the  hall  and  return  to  my  hotel,  and  from  thence 
immediately  to  New  York,  with  the  thorough  conviction 
that  Mrs.  Winslow  was  a  remarkably  shrewd  woman  ;  had 
systematically  fastened  herself  upon  Lyon  with  the  view 
of  beccming  his  wife,  or  compelling  him  to  divide  his  im- 
mense wealth  with  her ;  would  give  us  plenty  to  attend  to, 
4 


74  THE   CASE  BEGUN. 

and  had  easily  gained  a  wonderful  power  over  Lyon ; 
which,  even  after  her  repeated  piracies  upon  him,  and  the 
evident  knowledge  he  possessed  of  her  villainous  char- 
acter,  was  yet  strong  upon  him. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

MOar  Case."— Harcout's  Egotism  and  Interference. — The  strau^e 
Chain  of  Evidence. — A  Trail  of  Spiritualism,  Lust,  and  Licentious- 
ness.— Superintendent  Bangs  locates  the  Detectives. — A  pernicious 
System. — Three  Old  Maids  named  Grim. — Mr.  Bangs  baffled  by 
Mr.  Lyon,  who  won't  be  "worried." — One  Honest  Spiritualistic 
Doctor. —  The  Trail  secured. —  A  Tigress. —  Mr.  Bangs  "goes 
West." 

ON  my  return  to  New  York  I  found  that  the  splendid 
Harcout  had  been  using  the  interim  in  a  suc- 
cession of  heated  rushes  from  the  St.  Nicholas  Hotel  to 
the  Agency,  where  he  had  given  my  superintendents  and 
clerks  voluminous  instructions  as  to  how  the  investigation 
should  be  conducted,  and,  in  explaining  his  idea  of  how 
detectives  should  work  up  any  case,  permeated  the  entire 
establishment  with  his  fragrant  pomposity.  He  was 
also  quite  impatient  that  nothing  had  been  done  in  "  our 
case,"  as  he  termed  it,  and  I  could  only  pacify  him  by 
assuring  him  that  it  should  be  given  my  immediate  atten- 
tion. 

As  soon  as  I  could  dispose  of  Harcout  I  held  anothei 
consultation  with  my  General  Superintendent,  during 
which  the  information  I  had  secured  at  Rochester  was 
analyzed  and  recorded,  and  which,  with  some  other  facts 
already  iu  possession  of  the  Agency  bearing  on  the  case, 


76  "OUR   CASE" 

we  decided  to  be  sufficient  to  warrant  a  conclusion  that 
Mrs.  Winslow  was  not  Mrs.  Winslow  at  all,  but  somebody 
else  altogether,  and  had  had  as  many  aliases  as  a  cat  is 
supposed  to  have  lives.  It  was  also  quite  evident,  the 
more  we  looked  into  the  matter  and  searched  the  records, 
that  certain  other  cities  of  the  country  had  suffered  from 
the  much-named  Mrs.  Winslow,  and  in  many  instances  in 
a  quite  similar  manner  to  that  of  the  Rochester  infliction. 

Running  through  all  the  strange  chain  of  evidence  that 
the  records  of  our  almost  numberless,  operations  gave, 
there  were  also  found  items  which  told  of  a  female  not  alto> 
gether  unlike  Mrs.  Winslow,  and  there  were  in  them  all 
traces  of  a  woman  absolutely  heartless,  cold,  calculating, 
cruel ;  now  here  under  one  name  and  in  one  guise,  now 
there  under  another  name  and  in  another  guise,  but  for- 
ever upon  that  unrelenting  search  for  power  and  with  that 
remorseless  greed  for  gold,  and  also  showing  as  truly  a 
trace  of  spiritualism,  of  lust,  and  of  licentiousness. 

Of  course  the  result  of  it  all  was  only  a  question  of 
time ;  only  a  question  of  duration  in  villainy  and  shrewd 
human  deviltry  ;  a  mere  question  of  how  long  supreme 
depravity  would  wear  in  a  constant  war  upon  fairness, 
purity,  and  the  conscience  of  society.  It  never  wins — it 
always  loses,  and,  as  certain  as  life  or  death,  good  or 
evil,  reaches  its  sure  punishment  here,  whatever  may  be 
the  result  in  that  undiscovered  territory  of  the  future 
which  the  preachers  find  happiness  and  good  incomes  in 
quarrelling  over.  But  as  my  long  experience  with  crima 
and  criminals  had  proven  to  me  the  fact  that  one  desper- 


"  OUR   CASE."  77 

ately  bad  woman  brings  upon  society  vastly  more  misery 
than  a  hundred  equally  as  bad  men,  and  being  equally 
as  certain  that  Mrs.  Winslo\v  was  an  exceptionally  bad 
woman,  I  felt  no  regret  whatever  in  becoming  her  Neme- 
sis, and  even  experienced  a  peculiar  degree  of  satisfaction 
in  inaugurating  a  crusade  against  her  as  a  pitiless,  heart- 
less, dangerous  woman,  utterly  devoid  of  conscience,  and 
without  a  single  redeeming  trait  of  character. 

I  accordingly  detailed  two  of  my  operatives,  Fox  and 
Bristol,  to  proceed  to  Rochester  in  charge  of  Superinten- 
dent Bangs,  whom  I  gave  instructions  to  locate  the  men 
so  that  they  could  keep  Mrs.  Winslow  under  the  strictest 
surveillance,  and  make  daily  reports  in  writing  to  me  con- 
cerning her  habits  and  associates,  and  operations  of  any 
character  whatever,  using  the  telegraph  freely  if  occasion 
required.  I  also  instructed  him,  after  the  men  were  loca- 
ted in  Rochester,  and  he  had  followed  up  the  clue  I  had 
got  for  him  as  to  Mrs.  Winslow' s  western  exploits,  to  pro- 
ceed to  the  West,  taking  all  the  time  necessary,  and  ascer- 
tain everything  possible  favorable  or  unfavorable  to  the 
woman ;  as  I  held  it  to  be  not  only  a  matter  of  utmost 
importance  to  thorough  detective  work,  but  also  a  princi- 
ple of  common  justice,  that  any  suspected  person  should 
receive  the  benefit  of  whatever  good  there  is  in  them. 

For  these  reasons  I  have  always  fought  against  the  sys- 
tem of  rewards  for  the  capture  and  conviction  of  supposed 
criminals.  There  could  be  nothing  more  absolutely 
unjust.  Under  that  system,  through  a  combination  of 
circumstances,  an  innocent  party  is  often  deemed  guilrj 


78  "OUR  CASE? 

of  crime,  and  the  detective,  anxious  to  secure  professional 
honor  and  large  remuneration  for  small  work,  begins  with 
the  presumption  of  guilt,  and  industriously  piles  up  a 
mountain  of  presumptive  and  circumstantial  evidence 
that  times  without  number  has  sent  innocent  persons  to 
the  felon's  cell  or  the  hangman's  noose. 

On  arriving  at  Rochester  the  following  Monday,  Bangs 
took  rooms  at  the  National  Hotel,  opposite  the  court- 
house— a  house  more  a  resort  for  persons  in  attendance 
at  the  courts,  and  people  visiting  Rochester  from  neigh- 
boring towns,  than  for  fashionable  people  or  commercial 
travellers ;  while  Fox  settled  himself  at  a  little  hotel 
nearly  opposite  Mrs.  Winslow's  rooms  on  South  St.  Paul 
street,  and  Bristol  found  a  home  at  a  little  saloon,  res- 
taurant and  boarding-house,  kept  by  three  old  maids 
named  Grim,  who  were  firm  believers  in  Spiritualism — 
probably  from  never  having  got  any  satisfaction  out  of 
life  from  any  other  religion — under  Washington  Hall,  on 
East  Main  street,  a  place  given  up  to  variety  shows, 
masked  balls,  sleight-of-hand  performances,  seances,  and 
other  questionable  entertainments  ;  so  that  they  were  all 
within  easy  communication,  and  could  work  to  advantage. 
It  was  also  arranged  that  the  reports  of  Fox  and  Bristol 
should  be  put  in  Mr.  Bang's  hands,  by  a  mode  of  commu- 
nication which  would  prevent  their  being  seen  together, 
before  being  forwarded  to  me,  so  that  their  observations 
might  be  of  assistance  in  his  securing  necessary  informa^ 
tion  for  his  western  tour. 

While  Bristol  and  Fox  were  watching  the  movement* 


"OUR   CASE."  79 

of  the  gay  madam,  familiarizing  themselves  with  the  city, 
and  getting  on  an  easy  footing  at  their  boarding-houses, 
Mr.  Bangs  set  to  work  to  ascertain  if  possible  in  what 
part  of  the  West  Mrs.  Winslow  had  operated. 

He  first  visited  Mr.  Lyon  at  his  office  in  the  Arcade, 
introducing  himself  as  Mr.  Clement,  one  of  my  operatives, 
not  giving  his  correct  name,  as  the  newspaper  reporters 
were  flying  around  at  a  great  rate  for  items,  and  the 
appearance  of  a  man  so  well  known  by  reputation  as  Mr. 
Bangs  would  have  given  their  overcharged  imaginations 
an  opportunity  to  flood  over  several  columns  of  their 
respective  papers.  After  being  seated  in  Lyon's  private 
office  Mr.  Bangs,  as  Mr.  Clement,  began  the  conversa- 
tion : 

"  Mr  Lyon,  I  am  directed  by  Mr.  Pinkerton  to  ascer- 
tain if  possible  from  you  whether  Mrs.  Winslow  has  evef 
informed  you  of  having  at  any  previous  time  resided  in 
the  West  ?  " 

Lyon  gave  Bangs  a  cigar,  lighted  one  for  himself,  and 
after  puffing  away  vigorously  for  a  little  time,  replied : 
"Mr.  Clement,  I  think  she  has  done  so,  but  I  can't  recol- 
lect what  the  information  was." 

"  Couldn't  you  call  to  mind  anything  that  would  be  of 
some  little  assistance  to  us,  Mr.  Lyon  ?  " 

"  No,"  he  nervously  answered ;  "  no,  I  think  not 
I  have  put  this  whole  matter  away  from  me  as  much  as 
possible." 

"We  have  positively  ascertained,"  continued  Bangs, 
looking  searchingly  into  Lyon's  face,  "that  she  recentlj 


80  "  OUR   CASE." 

•secured  a  divorce  from  a  former  husband.  We  also  know 
that  some  one  here  in  Rochester  rendered  her  substantial 
assistance.  That  person  found,  tracing  her  history  would 
be  comparatively  an  easy  matter." 

Lyon  moved  about  uneasily,  and  finally  through  the 
clnuds  of  smoke  about  his  head  puffed  out,  "  Indeed  !  " 

"Yes,"  replied  Bangs,  "and,  Mr.  Lyon,  if  we  could 
get  at  the  exact  truth  about  this  part  of  it,  I  am  sure  it 
would  not  only  greatly  facilitate  our  work,  but  also  greatly 
lessen  the  expense  of  the  operation." 

Lyon  sat  for  a  little  time  twisting  his  shaggy  gray  whis- 
kers, and  finally  said  :  "  Mr.  Clement,  I  insist  on  not 
being  worried  about  this  business;  perhaps  Harcout 
didn't  make  that  point  quite  clear.  Harcout  is  a  little 
flighty,  but  a  noble  fellow  though,  after  all.  I  don't 
hardly  know  what  I  would  do  without  Harcout,  Mr. 
Clement ;  he  takes  the  whole  thing  off  my  shoulders,  as 
it  were." 

Bangs  saw  that  Lyon  could  have  given  him  just  what 
information  he  needed,  and  also  saw  with  equal  certainty 
that  he  had  fully  decided  to  throw  the  matter  off  his  mind 
entirely,  and  compel  us  to  gain  whatever  necessary  by 
hard  work.  He  was  also  now  satisfied  of  the  truth  of  my 
conviction,  that  Lyon  had  assisted  Mrs.  Winslow  in  this 
divorce  matter,  and  had  been  very  much  more  intimate 
with  her  than  he  even  desired  us  to  know.  So  he  bade 
him  good-day,  returned  to  his  hotel,  and  telegraphed  for 
instructions.  I  directed  him  to  go  ahead  and  use  his 
own  judgment  altogether;  also  suggesting  that  he  should 


"  OUR   CASE"  8 1 

visit  the  different  clairvoyants  and  mediums,  with  4.  view 
of  getting  further  information  which  might  be  secured 
from  their  almost  ceaseless  chatter  upon  the  subject. 

As  Rochester  is  as  full  of  mediums  as  a  thistle  of 
thorns,  this  was  a  kind  of  investigation  which  necessitated 
the  expenditure  of  considerable  time,  and  three  days  had 
elapsed  before  any  information  of  a  satisfactory  nature 
was  secured.  He  had  expended  quite  a  little  fortune  in 
having  his  "  horoscope  cast,"  his  fortune  told,  and  his  fate 
pointed  out  with  such  unerring  certainty  by  male  and 
female  seers  of  every  name,  appearance  and  nature,  that 
if  any  two  of  these  predictions  had  borne  the  slightest 
possible  resemblance  to  each  other,  he  would  have  been 
horrified  enough  to  have  taken  a  last  leap  into  the  surg- 
ing Genesee  like  poor  Sam  Patch.  But  he  persisted  in 
the  face  of  these  terrible  revelations  until  he  had  found  a 
certain  Dr.  Hubbard,  who  proved  to  be  one  of  the  jolliest 
of  the  profession  he  had  ever  met.  The  Doctor  was  a 
pleasant  gentleman,  and  proved  more  pleasant  than  ever 
when  Mr.  Bangs  informed  him  that  he  did  not  desire  any 
fortune-telling,  predictions  or  horoscopes,  but  was  in- 
terested in  the  subject  of  Spiritualism,  and  had  been 
directed  to  him  as  one  likely  to  give  some  information 
that  could  be  relied  on,  for  which  he  would  liberally 
remunerate  him. 

As  Mr.  Bangs  had  some  choice  cigars,  which  he  divided 

with  the  Doctor,  and  the  Doctor  had  some  choice  brandy, 

which  he  divided  with  Mr.  Bangs,  they  at  once  became 

easy  together,  and  taking  seats  at  the  window  overlooking 

4* 


82  "  OUR  CASE  " 

Main  street,  while  watching  the  crowds  below,  were  soon 
chatting  away  quite  unlike  two  people  very  badly  affected 
with  spiritualistic  tendencies. 

After  a  little  time,  however,  the  Doctor  looked  pretty 
sharply  at  Bangs,  and  suddenly  asked:  "Well,  who  are 
yru,  anyhow?" 

"Who  am  I?"  returned  Bangs  smilingly,  "well,  to 
be  frank,  I  am  Professor  Owen,  of  the  Indiana  State  Uni- 
versity." Bangs  never  blushed  at  the  libel  on  the  kind 
old  man  bearing  that  name  and  title,  and  continued,  "  It 
is  our  vacation  now,  and  I  am  travelling  a  little  in  the 
East  investigating  this  subject.  My  brother  is  an  enthusi- 
astic believer  in  it,  but  I  wished  other  testimony." 

The  Doctor  seemed  to  think  that  the  Professor  took  to 
the  brandy  and  cigars  quite  too  familiarly  for  an  educator, 
but  the  explanation  satisfied  him,  and  he  asked :  ' '  Pro- 
fessor, you  want  the  whole  truth,  don't  you?" 

"  Nothing  but  the  truth,"  responded  Bangs. 

Doctor  Hubbard  blew  out  a  long  series  of  rings  and 
expressively  followed  it  with  "  Humbug ! " 

"  It  can't  be  possible,"  persisted  Bangs. 

"It  oughtn't  to  be  possible,"  urged  the  Doctor,  "for  a 
man  of  your  probable  talent  and  position  to  be  engaged 
in  investigating  what  one  visit  to  any  one  of  us  should 
'show  to  be  the  most  infernal  fraud  ever  practised  upon 
the  public  ! "  said  the  Doctor  heatedly. 

Bangs  expressed  himself  as  surprised  beyond  measure. 

"  Well,"  continued  the  Doctor  earnestly,  "  you  came  to 
me  like  a  man,  didn't  you  ?" 


"OUR   CASE"  83 

Bangs  assured  him  that  he  was  quite  right. 

"And  you  came  fair  and  square,  without  any  ifs  and 
ands,  didn't  you  ?" 

"All  of  that,"  responded  Bangs. 

"And,"  continued  the  Doctor  helping  himself  to  the 
brandy,  then  excusing  himself  and  pushing  it  towards 
Bangs,  who  partook  sparingly,  "you  didn't  want  any  for« 
tune  told,  or  predictions,  or  horoscopes,  or  any  other 
nonsense  ?  " 

"  Exactly,"  said  Bangs. 

"And  you  said  you'd  pay  me  liberally  for  information, 
didn't  you?" 

"Yes,  and  I'll  be  as  good  as  my  word,"  replied  the 
assumed  professor. 

"Well,  then,"  continued  the  Doctor  in  a  burst  of  good 
feeling,  brandy  and  honesty,  "you  see  in  me  an  unsuc- 
cessful physician,  a  disciple  of  ^Esculapius  without 
followers.  I  graduated  with  high  honors,  hung  out  my 
sign,  sharpened  my  tools,  moulded  my  pills,  drank  a  toast 
to  disease,  but  waited  in  vain  for  patronage.  As  this  be- 
came monotonous,"  continued  the  Doctor,  taking  another 
pull  at  the  brandy  bottle,  then  wiping  the  mouth  and  pass- 
ing it  to  Mr.  Bangs,  who  excused  himself,  "  I  glided  into  a 
'specialist.'  It  required  too  much  money  to  advertise, 
and  the  papers  slashed  me  villainously  besides.  Then  I 
became  a  Spiiitualist — it's  the  record  of  every  one  of  us. 
You  can  see,"  and  the  Doctor  waved  his  hand  towards 
the  cosy  appointments  in  a  satisfied  way,  "  I  am  f  retty 
comfortable  now." 


84  "  OUR   CASE." 

"  Yes,  quite  comfortable,"  said  Bangs;  wondering  what 
the  Doctor  was  driving  at. 

"  So  I  am  an  enthusiastic  Spiritualist,"  resumed  the 
happy  physician,  "for  its  profession  has  provided  me 
with  necessities,  comforts,  and  even  luxuries." 

"  Do  you  really  effect  any  of  the  marvellous  cures  you 
advertise  ?  " 

"  Most  assuredly,"  he  replied. 

"  And  may  I  ask  how  ?  "  interrogated  Mr.  Bangs. 

"  In  the  good  old-fashioned  way — salts,  senna,  calomel, 
and  the  blue-pill,"  said  the  Doctor,  laughing  heartily. 

"And  is  not  the  aid  of  the  spirits  essential  to  your 
cures  ?" 

"A  belief,  or  faith,  that  such  an  agency  is  used,  does 
the  whole  thing,  Professor." 

"  And  is  there  no  such  thing  ?"  persisted  Bangs. 

"  Just  as  much  of  it  as  there  is  faith  in  it ;  no  more  and 
no  less." 

'*Then  the  whole  thing's  a  humbug,  as  you  say?" 

"  Just  as  thoroughly  as  is  that  woman,"  said  the  Doctor 
stoutly,  pointing  to  Mrs.  Winslow,  who  at  that  moment 
was  seen  in  the  street  below,  being  driven  towards  the 
suburbs  in  a  neat  phaeton. 

Bangs,  becoming  suddenly  interested,  though  repressing 
himself,  carelessly  asked,  "  Who  is  she  ?  " 

Here  the  Doctor  executed  a  grimace  which  might  mean 
a  good  deal,  or  nothing  at  all,  and  said  tersely:  "She's 
a  bouncer  ;  d?n  t  you  know  her  ?  " 

44  No." 


"OUR  CASE."  85 

"Why,  that's  Mrs.  "Winslow,  old  Lyons'  soothing 
syrup;  and  old  Lyon's  one  of  the  children — 'teething,'" 
added  the  Doctor  with  a  hearty  laugh.  "  But  she's  a 
tigress  ! " 

Mr.  Bangs  leaned  out  of  the  window,  took  a  good  look 
at  the  tigress,  and  then,  as  if  endeavoring  to  recollect 
some  former  occurrence,  said  :  "  I  believe  I  have  seen 
her  somewhere  before." 

"  Quite  so,  quite  so  ;  undoubtedly  you  have." 

"And  I  think  in  the  West,  too,"  replied  Mr.  Bangs, 
trying  hard  to  remember,  and  handing  the  doctor  a  fresh 
cigar. 

"  Exactly — Chicago,  St.  Louis,  Cincinnati,  Louisville — 
everywhere,  in  fact.  One  might  call  her  a  social  floater, 
and  not  be  far  out  of  the  way  either.  She  used  to  live 
at  Terre  Haute." 

"  Terre  Haute  ?  Why,  of  course  !  I  knew  I  had  seen 
her  somewhere." 

"  Yes,  she  lived  a  few  miles  out,  up  the  Wabash  river, 
for  years.  Her  husband's  name  was  Oxford,  or  Hosford, 
or  something  of  the  kind." 

"  Yes  ?  "  said  Bangs. 

"Yes,"  replied  the  Doctor;  "I  didn't  know  her  per- 
sonally,  but  I  knew  of  her  there.  That's  where  she  first 
went  off  the  hook — and — and  became  one  of  us." 

"Is  she  a  remarkable  character  ?  "  asked  Mr.  Bangs. 

"A  remarkable  character?  Why,  sir,  she's  a  wonder- 
ful woman — a  perfect  Satan.  I  wouldn't  have  her  get 
after  me,"  said  the  Doctor,  shakirg  his  head  protestingly 


86  "OUR   CASE." 

"  for  ten  thousand  dollars !  Why,  sir,  that  woman  hai 
ruined  more  men  and  broken  up  more  families  than  you 
could  count." 

"  And  is  she,  too,  a  spiritualist  ?  "  asked  Mr.  Bangs. 

"  A  spiritualist  ?  Why,  of  course  she  is  ;  and,  what  is 
more,  I  sometimes  think  she  really  believes  in  her  own 
mummeries." 

"  What  has  become  of  her  family  ?  "  asked  Bangs. 

"  Oh,  gone  to  the  devil,  I  presume,  just  like  everybody 
she  has  had  anything  to  do  with — just  as  old  Lyon  is  cer- 
tain to  do,  too." 

"  Then  this  Oxford  or  Hosford  is  not  living  at  Terre 
Haute  now  ?  " 

"  Couldn't  tell  you  that,"  replied  the  Doctor  ;  and  then, 
suddenly  returning  to  the  subject  and  putting  the  brandy- 
bottle  into  a  little  closet  with  a  slam  as  footsteps  were 
heard  coming  up  the  stairs,  "  can  I  be  of  any  further 
service  to  you  ?  " 

Mr.  Bangs  thought  not,  handed  the  good  Doctor  a  five- 
dollar  bill  while  remarking  that  he  would  call  again,  both 
of  which  evidences  of  good  feeling  pleased  the  latter 
immensely,  and  took  his  departure  quite  well  pleased 
with  the  result  of  his  inquiries  intj  the  wonderful  subject 
of  modern  Spiritualism. 


CHAPTER  X. 

Roch;ster.— A  Profitable  Field  for  Mrs.  Winslow. — Her  sumptaotfl 
Apartments. — The  Detectives  at  Work. — Mrs.  Winslow's  Cautious- 
ness.— Child-Training. — Mysterious  Drives. — A  dapper  little 
Blond  Gentleman. — Two  Birds  with  one  Stone. — A  French  Di- 
vinity.— Le  Compte. 

WHILE    Superintendent  Bangs  is   on  his  hunting 
expedition  in  the  West,  we  will  follow  the  for- 
tunes of  Mrs.  Winslow  in  the  beautiful  city  of  Rochester. 

There  is  hardly  a  city  in  the  country  better  adapted  for 
either  the  pursuit  of  pleasure  or  wealth  than  Rochester. 
Everything  combines  to  make  it  so.  It  nestles  in  one  of 
the  most  beautiful  valleys  in  the  world,  like  the  nest  of  a 
busy  bird  in  a  luxuriant  meadow.  There  is  the  sound  of 
pleasant  waters,  the  roar  of  a  mighty  cataract,  the  din  of 
two  score  busy  mills,  the  music  of  the  spindles,  the  cogs 
and  the  reels,  the  clash  and  the  clangor  of  the  factories, 
the  thunderings  of  the  forges,  and  the  footfalls  of  a  hun- 
dred thousand  happy,  contented  people  who  have  wrung 
competence  and  even  luxury  from  the  hard  hand  of 
necessity  and  toil. 

From  the  summit  of  Mount  Hope  Observatory,  an  el» 
vation  of  nearly  five  hundred  feet  above  the  lake,  there  is 
a  grand  picture  whereon  the  eye  may  rest.  At  your  feet, 


88  ROCHESTER. 

and  to  the  north,  lies  the  busy  city  with  the  noble  Gene- 
see  winding  rapidly  through  it,  lending  its  half-million 
horse-power  force  to  the  needs  of  labor,  then  plunging  a 
hundred  feet  downwards,  eddying  and  rushing  onward, 
plunging  and  eddying  again  and  again,  until  it  sobers  into 
a  steady  current  northward  towards  Ontario  through  a 
deep,  dark  gorge,  looking  like  an  ugly  serpent  trailing  to 
the  lower  inland  sea  where  can  be  seen  the  city  of  Char- 
lotte, formerly  called  Port  Genesee,  the  port  of  Rochester, 
beyond  which,  on  a  clear  day,  may  be  seen  countless 
dreamy  sails,  and  steamers  with  their  trailing  plumes  of 
smoke,  and  still  beyond  appears  the  dim  outlines  of  the 
far-off  Canadian  shore.  To  the  east,  as  far  as  can  be  dis- 
cerned, lies  a  country  of  the  nature  of  "  openings  " — 
beautiful  groves  of  trees,  magnificent  farms,  with  the 
almost  palatial  homes  of  the  owners,  who  have  become 
rich  from  the  legacies  of  their  ancestors  with  the  added 
thrift  of  scores  of  fruitful  years.  Southward  for  a  half 
hundred  miles,  stretches  the  beautiful  valley  of  the  Gen- 
esee, dimpled  by  lesser  valleys  and  a  hundred  sparkling 
brooks,  and  dotted  by  field  and  forest  and  numberless 
groups  of  half-hidden  houses,  with  outbuildings  full  to 
bursting  with  the  fruitage  of  the  fields  ;  while  to  the  west 
along  the  lake  are  low  ranges  of  sand-hills,  and  south  of 
these  extending  nearly  to  Lake  Erie  is  a  beautiful  prairie 
country,  while  with  a  glass  can  be  traced  the  ghostly  mist 
perpetually  hovering  above  Niagara. 

If  this  scene  be  inspiring  to  the  looker-on,  the  intrinsic 
beauty  of  the  city,  its  unusual  life,  its  fine  public  build 


ROCHESTER.  89 

ings,  business  houses,  and  splendid  private  residences ;  its 
clean  macadamized  streets  and  broad,  brick  walks,  shaded 
with  the  trees  of  half  a  century's  growth  as  in  many  of  the 
famous  Southern  cities ;  its  numberless  little  parks  or 
"places,"  owned  in  common  by  the  proprietors  of  the 
handsome  residences  which  surround  them,  and  filled 
with  rare  shrubs,  flowers,  beautiful  fountain?  and  costly 
statuary ;  the  vast  parterres  of  flowers  in  the  suburbs, 
sending  in  upon  every  summer  wind  an  Arabian  wealth 
of  exquisite  fragrance  ;  the  large  summer  gardens,  where 
beer  and  Gambrinus  reign  supreme  ;  the  enticing  prome- 
nades, and  the  splendid  drives  in  every  direction  from  the 
city — would  give  any  one  not  completely  at  war  with 
every  pleasant  thing  in  life  a  genuine  inspiration  of  plea- 
sure and  a  more  than  ordinary  thrill  of  enjoyment. 

It  is  little  wonder,  then,  that  Mrs.  Winslow  found  Roch- 
ester a  profitable  field  for'  operating  in  her  peculiar 
double  capacity  of  a  dashing  adventuress  and  a-  trance 
medium.  She  found  there  not  only  men  of  vast  wealth, 
but  of  vast  immorality,  as  is  quite  common  all  over  the 
world,  and  hundreds  of  firm  believers  in  spiritualism, 
which  was  a  special  peculiarity  to  Rochester.  Among 
the  first  number  there  were  many  who  sought  her  for  her 
charms  of  figure  and  manners,  which  were  certainly 
powerfully  attractive,  and  which  yielded  her  an  ele- 
gant income  without  positive  public  degradation,  as 
no  man  of  wealth  and  position  feels  called  upon  to  make 
known  his  own  peccadilloes  for  the  sake  of  exposing  the 
sharer  of  them,  even  though  she  be  a  dangerous  woman  • 


90  ROCHESTER. 

and  consequently  there  was  only  that  universal  verdict  of 
evil  against  her  which  society  quite  generally,  and  also 
quite  correctly,  pronounces  on  forcibly  circumstantial 
evidence. 

Her  apartments  were  elegant,  and  even  sumptuous ; 
and  though  there  was  a  quite  general  understanding  of 
her  character  among  the  epicurean  gentlemen  of  the  city, 
she  held  them  aloof  with  such  freezing  dignity  that  they 
seldom  presumed  upon  her  acquaintance,  and  were  even 
possessed  of  a  certain  respect  for  her  unusually  rare 
shrewdness  in  preserving  her  reputation,  such  as  it  was  \ 
so  that  her  rooms,  so  far  as  the  public  were  able  to  ascer- 
tain, were  only  frequented  by  those  who  believed  her  to 
be  able  to  allay  their  sufferings,  or  open  the  gates  of  the 
undiscovered  country  to  their  anxious,  yearning  eyes. 

A  large  amount  of  money  had  been  paid  her  by  Lyon 
to  prevent  a  scandal.  The  last  sum  was  known  to  have 
been  five  thousand  dollars,  and  it  was  quite  probable 
that  if  there  had  been  an  intimacy  so  ripe  as  to  have  war- 
ranted the  payment  of  this  amount,  still  larger  sums  had 
doubtless  been  expended  in  maturing  so  tender  a  rela- 
tion. In  any  event  it  was  ascertained  by  Bristol  and  Fox 
that  Mrs.  Winslow  had  for  some  time  been  living  in  ele- 
gance, though  at  the  same  time  carefully,  being  g  ven  to 
no  particular  excesses,  and  it  was  a  matter  for  consider- 
able speculation  whether  she  was  now  in  the  possession 
of  much  money  or  not. 

Fox  affected  the  quiet,  well-bred  gentleman,  expended 
sufficient  money  among  the  boarders  to  make  them  talk 


ROCHESTER.  91 

ative,  and  even  confidential,  and  in  this  way  learned  a 
great  deal  about  the  madam's  habits  and  peculiarities 
that  was  afterwards  useful,  though  of  no  particular  mo- 
ment at  that  time ;  while  Bristol,  who  was  a  florid,  well- 
kept  Canadian  gentleman  of  about  forty-five  years  of  age, 
of  a  literary  and  poetical  turn,  and  with  an  easy  habit  of 
falling  into  the  manner  and  brogue  of  an  Englishman, 
Scotchman,  or  Irishman,  made  himself  immensely  popu- 
lar with  the  old  maids  under  Washington  Hall,  who  in 
turn  were  enamored  with  his  good  physical  parts  and 
blarneying  tongue,  and  were  at  any  time  ready  to  confide 
to  him  all  they  knew,  and,  in  fact,  a  great  deal  more  ;  so 
that,  as  he  professed  to  be  an  ardent  Spiritualist,  he  was 
enabled  to  become  well  informed  concerning  the  leading 
persons  of  that  persuasion  in  the  city,  of  whom  he  for- 
warded a  complete  list,  with  something  of  a  history  of 
each  ;  and  while  not  becoming  known  to  or  personally 
familiar  with  any  one  of  them — which  would  have  de- 
stroyed his  usefulness,  he  was  yet  able  to  keep  track  of 
nearly  all  that  was  said  or  done  within  the  charmed  cir- 
cle ;  as  after  each  lecture,  or  seance,  the  economically- 
built  and  antiquated  maidens  would  retire  to  a  little  snug- 
gery behind  the  restaurant,  to  which  they  would  invite 
the  sympathetic  Bristol,  who  was  old  enough  to  protect 
them  from  scandal,  and  then  and  there,  while  easing  the;i 
by  no  means  ravishing  forms  of  portions  of  their  garments 
preparatory  to  the  night's  virtuous  repose,  over  strong 
toast  and  weak  tea  would  rattle  on  in  such  a  bewildering 
t»ay  about  the  events  of  the  evening  and  the  good  or  bad 


92  ROCHESTER. 

characteristics  of  the  faithful,  that  Bristol  figuratively,  if 
not  in  fact,  sat  at  the  feet  of  a  trinity  of  oracles. 

His  reports  showed  that  while  Mrs.  Winslow  was  ac- 
cepted among  their  number  without  question,  still  there 
was  but  little  known  about  her  previous  history.  I  felt 
satisfied  that  this  was  true,  and  had  only  stationed  Bristol 
and  Fox  at  Rochester  for  the  purpose  of  keeping  me  in- 
formed of  her  every  movement,  knowing  well  enough 
that  after  Bangs  had  got  a  good  start  he  would  follow  up 
her  trail  in  the  West  as  remorselessly  as  I  myself  would 
have  done. 

Mrs.  Winslow  seemed  to  be  absolutely  without  asso- 
ciates, either  from  a  confirmed  habit  of  suspicion  of  every- 
body which  she  seemed  to  possess,  or  from  a  resolve  to 
maintain  as  good  a  character  as  possible  until  the  Win- 
slow-Lyon  case  should  be  heard  in  court,  so  that  her  evi- 
dence, and  particularly  her  reputation,  might  not  be  im- 
peached or  broken  down  ;  and  it  required  the  constant 
attention  of  both  Bristol  and  Fox  to  discover  in  her  any- 
thing of  even  a  suspicious  character,  as  the  nature  of  hei 
mediumistic  business — allowing  as  it  did  scores  of  visitors 
daily  access  to  her  rooms,  only  one  being  admitted  to  the 
trance-room  of  her  apartments  at  a  time — gave  her  a  vast 
advantage  over  them. 

It  was  evident  that  she  had  in  a  measure  persuaded 
herself  that  she  had  a  genuine  cause  of  action  against 
Lyon  ;  or,  that  if  she  had  not,  she  had  fully  determined 
to  make  a  big  fight  under  any  circumstances,  as  both  the 
piestige  secured  by  the  presumption  of  some  shadow  of 


ROCHESTER.  93 

a  claim  which  the  mere  pressing  of  it  in  court  would  give, 
and  the  assistance  to  her  which  even  a  tithe  of  the  dam- 
ages  she  claimed  would  be,  would  not  only  give  her  a 
degree  of  importance  and  respectability  which  would 
greatly  assist  her  in  future  operations,  but  would  also 
yield  her  the  means  for  future  comfort,  without  this  terri- 
ble continued  struggle  for  gold  and  the  happiness  it  is 
supposed  to  command. 

How  vain  such  a  hope  !  and  how  strange  that,  with  the 
bitter  reminder  of  countless  never-realized  ambitions  be- 
fore them,  the  adventurer  and  the  criminal  will  go  on  and 
on,  still  clinging  to  the  shadow  of  a  hope  that  by  some 
exceptional  freak  of  fortune  in  their  favor  they  may  gain 
the  peace  and  quietness  they  so  agonizedly  long  for,  but 
which  is  just  as  irrevocably  decreed  to  be  forever  beyond 
their  reach  as  were  the  luscious  fruits  to  escape  the  touch 
and  taste  of  the  condemned  and  tortured  Phrygian 
king. 

And  right  here,  were  I  a  preacher — being  only  a  doer, 
however — I  would  show  the  criminal  neglect  of  parents, 
teachers  and  preachers  in  forever  warring  for  reforma- 
tion, and  never  battling  against  the  numberless  packs  of 
little  foxes  of  pride  and  covetousness  of  society,  which 
drive  weak  natures  into  a  constant  struggle  to  excel  in 
power  and  display,  eating  away  at  the  vines  until  the 
life,  like  the  fields,  is  left  barren  and  desolate,  or  is  only 
a  vast  waste  of  thorns  and  noxious  weeds.  My  records 
are  full  of  lives  wrecked  upon  the  glittering  rocks  built  by 
false  pride  and  vanity  and  the  greed  for  gold  which 


94  ROCHESTER. 

society,  and  even  the  aristocratic  systems  of  modem 
religion  compel.  Whatever  may  be  preached,  all  this 
cursed  assumption  of  what  is  not  possessed  without  years 
of  honest,  sturdy  toil,  is  practised  in  the  pulpit,  the  pew, 
the  palace,  and  the  povety-stricken  hovel,  permeating 
every  stratum  of  business,  society  and  religion,  until 
honorable  action  is  at  discount,  dishonesty  commands 
a  premium  of  gain  and  lachrymose  sympathy,  and  the 
whole  world  is  being  swiftly  driven  into  a  surging  chan- 
nel of  fraud,  crime  and  debauchery  that  will  require  gen- 
erations of  something  besides  splendid  hypocrisy  and 
luxurious  cant  to  restrain  and  purify. 

With  this  digression,  which  I  cannot  well  avoid,  as  it 
contains  the  convictions  based  upon  long  years  of  close 
observation  and  peculiar  experience,  I  will  return  to  the 
woman  whom  my  operatives  found  so  difficult  to  analyze 
and  trace  out. 

Bangs' s  visit  to  Dr.  Hubbard  showed  that  she  had 
a  habit  of  driving  out.  Bristol  and  Fox  became  ac- 
quainted with  this  fact  at  once  and  transmitted  it  in  their 
reports.  It  appeared  that  the  carriage  and  driver  were 
secured  at  a  livery  stable  near  the  opera  house,  a  short 
distance  from  her  rooms  and  Fox's  boarding-house.  I 
instructed  Fox  to  ascertain  to  what  points  these  trips 
were  made,  and  if  any  one  ever  accompanied  her.  Care- 
ful inquiries  at  this  stable  elicited  nothing,  as  Mrs.  Win 
slew's  custom  was  valuable,  and  even  her  driver  proved 
close-mouthed  upon  the  subject.  Accordingly,  after  Fox 
had  discovered  the  general  direction  taken  by  Mrs.  Win- 


ROCHESTER.  95 

•low  and  the  Usual  streets  frequented  at  starting,  he 
strolled  out  State  Street  and  from  thence  into  Lake 
View  Avenue,  which  is  but  a  continuation  of  State 
Street.  After  he  had  walked  some  little  distance  he  was 
pleased  to  find  that  he  had  company  in  the  perscr.  of 
a  dapper  little  blond  gentleman  who  was  somewhat  in 
advance  of  him,  but  who,  though  apparently  enjoying  the 
morning  air,  seemed  both  apprehensive  of  being  followed, 
and  desirous  of  the  appearance  of  some  one  for  whom  he 
was  waiting.  His  make-up  gave  him  something  of  a 
foreign  air,  and  was  the  most  exquisite  imaginable.  He 
was  a  slender,  tender  nymph  of  the  male  order  of  fairies, 
with  a  face  as  delicate  as  a  woman's,  with  large,  blue, 
expressive  eyes,  long,  luxuriant  hair,  and  as  neat  a  little 
moustache  as  was  ever  waxed  to  keep  it  from  melting 
away  altogether.  If  his  face  and  figure  were  neat 
enough  for  a  millinery  window,  his  clothing  was  a  model 
even  for  a  Poole.  His  lustrous  silk  hat  scarcely  outshone 
iii  richness  his  faultless  dress-coat,  which  was  buttoned 
low,  exposing  a  perfect  duck  vest,  a  spotless  shirt-front 
and  a  low,  rolling  Byron  collar,  with  a  delicate  flowing 
tie ;  while  his  pantaloons,  which  were  of  a  mellow  laven- 
der color,  seemed  only  to  increase  the  effect  of  his  shapely 
legs,  and  by  their  graceful  swell  at  the  instep  only  to  stop 
to  disclose  a  foot  perfect  enough  for  a  model.  His 
jewelry  consisted  of  a  modest  solitaire  diamond  pin,  and 
a  large  seal  ring  which  he  wore  upon  the  little  fingei  of 
his  left  hand. 

For  some  reason  Fox  felt  interested  in  him,  and  re« 


9/5  ROCHESTER. 

solved,  though  looking  for  a  quite  different  person,  to 
watch  him  closely.  So  he  passed  him  without  giving  him 
an  opportunity  of  seeing  his  face,  and,  taking  a  position 
in  the  bar-room  of  a  s»iall  beer-garden  a  little  way 
beyond,  where  he  had  a  good  view  of  the  avenue,  waited 
for  developments  which  were  not  long  in  taking  place, 
as  the  neat  little  fellow  arrived  at  the  garden  a  few 
minutes  after  Fox,  and  shortly  after  Mrs.  Winslow's  car- 
riage was  seen  coming  from  the  direction  of  the  city. 
Fox  saw  that  he  was  bringing  two  birds  down  with  one 
stone,  and  anxiously  watched  Mrs.  Winslow  and  the  little 
fop,  feeling  satisfied  that  their  meeting  at  the  garden  was 
pre-arranged,  for  as  soon  as  her  carriage  came  in  sight, 
he  had  noticed  a  look  of  satisfaction  come  over  the  man's 
face,  and  when  it  was  driven  up  to  the  door  he  stepped 
out  nimbly,  smiling  and  bowing  like  a  brisk  wax  figure  at 
a  show. 

The  driver  was  at  once  discharged,  and  after  watering 
the  horse,  immediately  started  towards  town  on  foot, 
occasionally  looking  over  his  shoulder  with  a  sardonic 
smile  on  his  face,  as  if  pleased  at  the  loving  meeting  at 
the  garden,  as  that  sort  of  thing  probably  brought  him 
many  an  honest  penny  ;  but  no  sooner  had  the  driver 
turned  his  back  on  the  place  than  Mrs.  Winslow  said : 
"  Come,  Le  Compte,  get  me  a  glass  of  brandy." 
Fox  thought  that  pretty  strong  for  a  lady  who  had  been 
damaged  a  hundred  thousand  dollars  by  breach  of  prom- 
ise of  marriage,  but  held  his  peace,  and  a  paper  before 
his  face,  while  her  admirer  danced  into  the  bar  and  pro 


ROCHESTER.  97 

cured  two  glasses  of  brandy,  which  he  took  to  the  carriage 
upon  a  little  tray. 

"  My  dear,  you  were  a  little  late,  eh  ? "  said  Le 
Compte. 

"  Ah,  a  French  divinity,"  thought  Fox. 

"  Le  Compte,"  replied  Mrs.  Winslow,  handing  him  a 
bill  with  which  to  pay  for  the  refreshment,  and  paying  no 

attention  to  the  little  fellow's  remark,  "  tell  that  d d 

Dutchman  that  if  he  don't  get  some  better  brandy,  I'll 
never  pay  him  another  penny  ! " 

Fox  also  thought  this  pretty  strong  for  the  pure, 
broken-hearted  maiden  Mrs.  Winslow' s  bill  of  complaint 
against  Lyon  showed  her  to  be,  and  he  accordingly  made 
a  note  of  the  same,  as  her  friend  returned  to  the  bar- 
room and  paid  for  the  liquor,  while  saying  to  the  land- 
lord that  the  madam  desired  him  to  say  that  the  brandy 
was  perfectly  exquisite  in  flavor. 

Presently  Mrs.  Winslow  called  out,  "  Come,  Le 
Compte,  get  in  here ! "  when  he  ran  out  with  the  alacrity 
of  a  carriage  spaniel,  sprang  into  the  carriage,  took  the 
reins,  and  drove  away  towards  the  country,  looking  like  a 
pretty  daisy  in  the  shade  of  a  gigantic  sunflower. 

5 


CHAPTER  XI. 

The  Half-way  Hat.se. — A  jolly  German  Landloid. — Detective  Fox  ring 
down  Le  Compte. — A  "  Positive,  Prophetic,  Healing  and  Trance 
Medium." — Harcout  the  Adviser  reappears,  and  is  anxious  lest 
Mr.  Lyon  be  drawn  into  some  terrible  Confession. — Mr.  Pinkerton 
decides  to  know  more  about  Le  Compte. — And  with  the  harassed 
Mr.  Lyon  interviews  him. — Treachery  and  Blackmail. — "  A  much 
untractable  Man." — Light  shines  upon  Mrs.  Winslow. — Another 
Man — Mr.  Pinkerton  mad. 

MANY  other  conveyances  were  passing  to  and  fro, 
and  Fox's  first  impulse  was  to  secure  a  seat  in 
some  one  of  them  and  follow  the  couple  in  the  direction 
they  had  taken.  But  he  recollected  that  it  might  cause 
either  Mrs.  Winslow,  or  the  little  fellow  at  her  side  to 
know  him  again,  which  would  prove  disastrous,  and  he 
was  consequently  obliged  to  apply  his  pump  to  the 
important  little  Dutchman  who  owned  the  half-way  house, 
and  who  was  busying  himself  around  the  cool,  pleasant 
bar-room,  making  the  place  as  attractive  as  possible,  and 
singing  lustily  in  his  own  mother-tongue. 

"  Good  morning  to  you  !  "  said  Fox  cheerily,  stepping 
to  the  bar  in  a  way  that  indicated  his  desire  to  imbibe. 

"  Good  mornings  mit  yourself,"  answered  the  lively 
proprietor,  getting  behind  the  bar  nimbly  ;  "  Beer  ?  " 


THE  HALF-WAY  HOUSE.  99 

"Yes,  thank  you,"  replied  Fox,  .'  a  schnit,  if  you 
please.  Won't  you  drink  with  me?  " 

"  Oh,  ya,  ya ;  I  dank  you  ;  I  dank  you  ; "  and  there 
were  as  many  smiles  on  his  honest  face  as  bubbles  upon 
his  good  beer. 

The  glasses  touched,  Fox  said,  "  Here's  luck ! "  and 
the  landlord  met  it  with  "Best  resbects,  mister  !  " 

In  good  time  two  more  schnits  followed,  and  as  the 
landlord  was  each  time  requested  to  join  with  Fox,  he 
was  so  pleased  with  his  liberality  and  apparent  good 
feeling  that  he  beamed  all  over  like  a  sunny  day  in 
June. 

"  You  have  a  beautiful  place  here,"  said  Fox. 

"  Oh,  so,  so  ! "  answered  the  landlord  with  a  quick, 
deprecatory  shrug  which  meant  that  he  was  very  well 
satisfied  with  it. 

"  I  was  never  here  before.'' 

"No? — So?  I  guess  mebby  I  don't  ever  have  seen 
you.  Don't  you  leef  py  Rochester  ? — no  ?" 

"  No,  I  live  in  Buffalo,  and  I  just  came  over  to 
Rochester  on  a  little  business.  Having  plenty  of  time,  I 
thought  I  would  stroll  out  a  bit  this  morning." 

"  Ya,  I  get  a  good  many  strollers  dot  same  way. 
Eferypody  goes  out  by  der  Bort." 

"  The  Bort  ?  " 

"  Ya,  ya,  der  Bort — Bort  Charlotte." 

"  Is  this  the  way  to  Charlotte  ?  " 

"  To  be  certainly.  When  you  come  five  miles  auf,  den 
you  stand  by  der  Bort,  sure." 


IOO  THE  HALF-WAY  HOUSE. 

"  And  so  that  is  where  the  big  woman  and  the  little 
man  were  going  ?  "  asked  Fox  carelessly. 

"  Sure,  sure,"  said  the  landlord  with  a  knowing  wink ; 
an>!  then  taking  a  very  large  pinch  of  snuff,  and  laying 
his  forefinger  the  whole  length  of  his  rosy  nose,  added 
with  an  air  of  great  importance  and  mystery,  "  I  tell  you, 
py  Jupiter,  I  don't  let  somebody  got  rooms  here  J" 

"  That's  right,  old  fellow ! "  said  Fox,  slapping  the 
honest  beer-vender  on  the  shoulder.  "  Be  unhappy  and 
you  will  be  virtuous  ! " 

"  Veil,"  continued  the  Teuton,  excitedly  lapsing  into 
nis  own  vernacular,  "es  macht  keinen  ttnter schied ;  I 
don't  got  mein  leefing  dot  way.  I — I  vould  pe  a  boli- 
tician  first ! " 

Fox  expressed  his  admiration  for  such  heroism,  and 
purchased  a  cigar  to  assist  the  landlord  in  his  efforts  to 
avoid  the  necessity  of  either  renting  rooms  to  ladies  and 
gentlemen  of  Mrs.  Winslow's  and  Le  Compte's  standing, 
or  of  accepting  the  more  unfortunate  emergency  of  be- 
coming a  "  bolitician." 

Then  they  both  seated  themselves  outside  the  house, 
underneath  the  shaded  porch,  and  chatted  away  about 
current  events,  Fox  all  the  time  directing  the  conversa- 
tion in  a  manner  so  as  to  draw  out  the  genial  Teuton  on 
the  subject  which  most  interested  him,  and  was  success- 
ful to  the  extent  of  learning  that  Le  Compte  was  what 
the  landlord  termed  a  "luffer,"  evidently  meaning  a 
loafer  j  that  several  months  before,  they  came  there  to- 
gether desiring  a  room,  which  had  been  refused ;  but  he 


THE  HALF-WAY  HOUSE.  IOI 

had  directed  them  to  the  Port,  where  they  had  evidently 
been  accommodated,  as  they  had  after  that,  until  this 
time,  regularly  went  in  that  direction,  always  stopping  at 
his  place  for  a  glass  of  his  best  brandy  ;  and  that  they  haj 
also  always  came  there  together  until  within  a  few  weeks^ 
since  when,  for  some  reason,  this  Le  Compte  had  walked 
out  to  the  hotel,  where  she  had  overtaken  him  with  her 
carriage  and  driver,  when  the  driver  would  be  sent  back 
to  the  city,  and  Le  Compte  taken  in  for  the  drive  to 
Charlotte,  as  Fox  had  seen.  He  also  learned  that  on 
their  return,  which  was  generally  towards  evening,  the 
driver  met  them  at  the  same  place,  when  the  latter  took 
the  reins,  and  Le  Compte,  somewhat  soiled  from  his 
trip,  walked  into  the  city. 

Fox  concluded  that  there  would  be  no  better  time  than 
the  present  to  learn  something  further  concerning  La 
Compte,  and  after  enjoying  himself  in  the  vicinity  for 
a  short  time,  came  back  to  the  hotel,  took  a  hearty  Ger- 
man dinner,  and  after  another  stroll  secured  a  room  for  a 
short  nap,  as  he  told  the  landlord,  but  really  for  the  pur- 
pose of  observation.  About  six  o'clock  he  saw  the 
driver  coming  to  the  hotel  from  towards  Rochester,  and 
in  about  a  half  an  hour  afterwards  noticed  the  carriage 
containing  Mrs.  Winslow  and  Le  Compte  coming  down 
the  road  from  Charlotte.  The  couple  seemed  very  gay 
and  lively,  and  drove  up  to  the  hotel  with  considerable 
dash  and  spirit.  They  both  drank,  as  in  the  morning, 
while  the  driver  resumed  his  old  place  by  the  side  of  Mrs. 
Winslow ;  and  as  they  were  about  to  depart,  Fox  heard 


102  THE  HALF-WAY  HOUSE. 

the  woman  say  to  Le  Compte  :  "  No,  not  again  until 
Saturday;  I'll  try  to  be  a  little  earlier."  Then  the 
carriage  went  away,  Le  Compte  loitering  about  for  a  fe  n 
minutes,  after  which  he  started  off  on  a  brisk  walk  to- 
wards town. 

As  the  evening  was  drawing  on,  Fox  hurried  down  to 
the  bar-room,  paid  his  bill,  and  bidding  his  host  good-by, 
trudged  on  after  the  little  fellow,  keeping  him  well  in 
sight,  though  remaining  some  distance  behind  to  escape 
observation,  but  gradually  closing  in  upon  him,  until, 
when  they  had  arrived  within  the  thickly  settled  portion 
of  the  city,  they  were  trudging  along  quite  convenient  to 
each  other. 

The  lamps  now  began  to  flare  out  upon  the  town,  and 
the  gay  shops  were  lighted  as  Fox  followed  his  man  in 
and  out,  up  and  down  the  streets.  Le  Compte  first  went 
to  a  restaurant  just  beyond  the  Arcade  in  Mill  street, 
where  he  got  his  supper,  and  afterwards  promenaded  about 
the  streets  in  an  aimless  sort  of  a  way  for  some  little  time, 
after  which  he  returned  to  the  Arcade  and  seemingly  anx- 
iously inquired  for  letters  at  the  post-office.  He  got  sev- 
eral, but  was  evidently  either  disappointed  at  what  he  had 
received,  or  at  not  receiving  what  he  had  expected.  In 
any  event  he  cautiously  peered  into  Lyon's  closed  offices, 
as  if  hoping  to  find  some  one  there.  Disappointed  in  this 
also,  he  went  directly  to  State  Street,  near  Main,  where, 
after  looking  about  for  a  moment,  he  suddenly  disap- 
peared up  a  stairway  leading  to  the  upper  stories  of  a 
large  brick  block.  Fox  quickly  followed,  and  was  able  to 


THE  HALF-WAY  HOUSE.  IOJ 

catch  sight  of  the  little  fellow  just  as  he  was  entering  a 
room  at  the  side  of  the  hall.  He  waited  until  everything 
was  quiet,  and  then  approached  the  door.  The  light  from 
Ihe  single  jet  in  the  hallway  was  not  sufficient  for  the  pur- 
pose, but  with  the  aid  of  a  lighted  match  he  was  able  to 
trace  upon  a  neat  card  tacked  to  the  door  the  inscription  : 

B.    JEROME   LE   COMPTE, 

tOSITIVE,    PROPHETIC,    HEALING  AND  TRANCE   MEDIUM. 
Psychrometrist,  Clairvoyant,  and  Mineral  Locater. 

As  Fox  had  succeeded  in  "locating"  his  man,  he  re 
turned  to  his  boarding-house,  wrote  out  his  report  and 
posted  it,  and  after  carelessly  dropping  into  the  restaurant 
under  Washington  Hall,  where  he  took  a  dish  of  ice-cream 
and  found  means  to  inform  Bristol  of  the  latest  develop- 
ment, he  returned  and  retired  for  the  night  well  satisfied 
with  his  day's  work,  and  fully  resolved  to  be  on  hand  for 
Saturday's  sport  at  Charlotte. 

I  received  Fox's  report  the  ne'xt  noon,  and  not  a  half- 
hour  afterwards  the  splendid  Harcout  cam/?  rushing  in. 

"Pinkerton,  Pinkerton,"  he  exclaimed  excitedly, 
"here's  something  which  we  must  attend  to  at  once — at 
once,  mind  you,  or — bless  my  soul !  I'm  afraid  I  left  it 
at  the  St.  Nicholas.  How  could  I  be  so  careless  ! " 

Harcou't  grew  red  in  the  face  and  plunged  into  all  his 
pockets  wildly,  utterly  regardless  of  his  exquisite  make- 
up, until  quite  exhausted. 

"  Why,  Harcout,  you're  excited.  Tell  me  what's  the 
matter,  my  man,"  said  I,  reassuringly. 


104  THE  HALF-WAY  HOUSE. 

"Matter?  matter?  everything's  the  matter.  Here's 
something  which  should  be  acted  upon  at  once,  and  like 
an  ass  I've  left  it  at  the  hotel.  I'll  go  back  and  get  it  im 
mediately." 

"  Get  what  ?  "  I  asked  him. 

"Get  a  letter  that  I  just  received  from  Lyon.  He's 
there  all  by  himself,  and  they  will  draw  him  into  some 
terrible  confession.  But  I — I  must  get  the  letter,"  and 
Harcout  grabbed  his  hat  and  gloves  and  started. 

"Hold  on,  Harcout,"  I  called  to  him,  "what  is  that 
you  have,  in  your  hand  ?  " 

"  In  my  hand  ?  Oh,  just  a  private  note  I  got  in  the 
same  mail." 

"Just  look  at  it  before  you  go,"  I  suggested. 

Harcout  stopped  in  the  door,  examined  the  letter, 
pulled  another  from  the  inside  of  the  envelope,  and 
blurted  out  sheepishly  :  "Ah,  bless  my  soul ! — Pinkerton, 
this  is  just  what  I  wanted.  Here,  quick,  read  them 
both." 

I  took  the  letters  as  Harcout  sat  down  and  fanned 
himself  with  his  glove,  and  saw  that  they  were  dated  from 
Rochester  on  the  previous  day.  The  first  one  was  from 
Lyon,  in  which  he  stated  that  he  had  received  the  enclosed 
letter  in  the  morning,  probably  shortly  after  Fox  had 
strolled  out  Lake  View  Avenue,  also  expressing  a  desire 
that  Harcout  should  submit  it  to  me  for  advice  as  to  the 
best  course  to  be  pursued,  and  have  the  reply  telegraphed. 
The  enclosed  letter  was  from  Le  Compte  to  Lyon,  insist- 
ing that  he  should  immediately  come  to  his  rooms  to  re' 


THE  HALF-WAY  HOUSE.  IOS 

ceive  information  of  the  greatest  importance,  t  did  not 
let  Harcout  know  that  I  had  any  information  concerning 
Le  Compte,  but  I  saw  that  that  portion  of  Fox's  report 
which  stated  that  he  had  followed  Le  Compte  to  the 
Arcade  the  previous  evening,  where  the  latter  had  anx- 
iously inquired  for  mail,  and  after  that  had  taken  a  peep 
into  Lyon's  offices,  agreed  with  Lyon's  letter  as  to  the  time 
when  Le  Compte  probably  expected  an  answer  from  him. 

T  was  at  loss  to  know  what  the  dapper  little  fellow  was 
driving  at — whether  he  and  Mrs.  Winslow  were  after 
further  blackmail,  or  whether  he  had  secured  some  con- 
fession from  her  while  she  was  lavishing  her  favors  and 
money  upon  him,  which  the  treacherous  little  villain  was 
endeavoring  to  make  bring  a  good  price  through  Lyon's 
superstitious  faith  in  the  power  of  those  who  claimed  su- 
pernatural powers  and  a  profession  of  Spiritualism. 

I  at  once  decided  to  go  to  Rochester  and  interview 
this  new  apparition  in  the  field  in  company  with  Lyon, 
and  accordingly  told  Harcout  that  I  would  do  so,  an<* 
would  immediately  telegraph  to  Lyon  to  that  effect ;  upon 
which  he  trotted  away,  announcing  his  determination  to 
also  telegraph,  so  that  Lyon  might  see  that  he  was  "  at- 
tending closely  to  our  case,"  as  he  termed  it. 

As  soon  as  he  had  left,  I  indicted  a  dispatch  to  Lyor, 
asking  him  to  make  an  appointment  with  Le  Compte  for 
an  interview  on  the  next  afternoon,  when  I  would  be 
there  to  accompany  him ;  and  after  getting  my  suppe c, 
took  the  evening  train  and  arrived  at  Rochester  t'le  ne.«J 
noon. 

5* 


106  THE  HALF-WAY  HOUSE. 

After  taking  dinner  at  the  Waverly,  I  immediately  pro- 
ceeded to  Lyon's  offices.  He  seemed  worried  and  anx- 
ious to  see  me,  and  felt  extremely  alarmed  about  the 
whole  matter,  having  as  yet  kept  it  from  his  attorney.  I 
had  him  send  a  message  for  him  at  once,  and  in  a  few 
minutes  we  were  all  three  in  consultation.  His  attorney, 
a  Mr.  Balingal,  thought  we  were  doing  just  right,  and,  on 
leaving,  privately  informed  me  that  in  no  event  should  J 
allow  any  person  that  professed  mediumistic  powers  to 
remain  with  Lyon  alone,  as  he  would  be  certain  to  do 
something  which  would  in  some  way  compromise  the 
case. 

A  few  minutes  after  Lyon's  attorney  had  left,  we  took 
different  routes,  arriving  at  the  hallway  leading  to  Le 
Compte's  rooms  on  State  street  at  about  the  same  time, 
ascending  the  staircase  together.  A  negro,  who  had  borne 
a  second  and  a  more  imperative  message  to  Lyon,  was  in 
waiting  at  the  top,  and  smilingly  showed  us  along  the  hall 
in  the  direction  of  Number  28,  which  afterwards  proved 
to  be  Le  Compte's  seance-room.  The  little  fellow  him- 
self here  stepped  out  of  an  adjoining  room  with  a  very 
insinuating  smile  upon  his  face,  which  suddenly  changed 
to  a  look  of  disappointment  as  he  saw  that  Mr.  Lyon  had 
rather  solidly-built  company. 

As  Mr.  Lyon  entered  the  room,  this  Monsieur  Le 
Compte  undertook  to  close  the  door  in  my  face  ;  but  I 
snoved  myself  into  the  room,  and  told  the  mineral  locater, 
etc.,  that  I  was  a  friend  of  Mr.  Lyon's,  and  insisted  OB 
being  one  of  the  party 


THE  HALF-WAY  HOUSE.  IO7 

Lyon  began  timidly  looking  around  the  gas  lighted 
room — though  it  was  not  after  three  o'clock — which  was 
filled  with  the  ordinary  paraphernalia  for  compelling  awe 
and  fear  :  "  I  understand  you  have  some  business  with  me. 
My  name  is  Lyon." 

"  Yes,  yes,"  he  replied,  "  I  have  great  business  with 
you.  But  I  can  only  make  you  my  one  confidant,  Mr. 
Lyon." 

"Oh,  well,  well,  now,"  I  interrupted,  with  some  as- 
sumed bravado,  "  this  sort  of  thing  better  play  out  before 
it  begins.  I  am  Mr.  Lyon's  friend,  and  whatever  you 
have  to  say  to  him  will  have  to  be  said  before  me.  Isn't 
that  so,  Mr.  Lyon  ?  " 

Lyon  assented  feebly,  and  Le  Compte  asked  :  "  Will 
you  make  me  the  pleasure  of  your  friend's  name  ?" 

"  No  matter,  no  matter,"  said  I  quickly,  for  I  knew 
how  weak  Lyon  was.  "  I  am  here  as  my  friend's  friend. 
He  has  nothing  to  say  in  this  matter.  You  will  have  to 
inform  me  of  your  business  with  Mr.  Lyon." 

Le  Compte  suddenly  arose  from  his  chair,  locked  the 
door  and  put  the  key  in  his  pocket.  He  then  went  to  the 
windows,  which  were  slightly  raised  on  account  of  the 
heat,  closed  them,  and  lowered  the  curtains  so  as  to  shut 
out  the  light  completely.  Just  as  he  had  completed  the 
work,  which  took  him  but  a  moment,  I  said  to  him 
sharply  :  "  See  here,  sir,  you  will  make  this  room  uncom- 
fortably warm  for  yourself  as  well  as  us,  if  you  are  not 
careful.  Don't  send  us  to  perdition  before  our  time,  L« 
Compte." 


108  THE  HALF-  WA  Y  HO  USE. 

He  made  no  answer,  and  looked  exceedingly  meek  j 
but  I  saw  that  he  was  determined  to  endeavor  to  p!ay 
upon  Lyon's  feelings  for  future  profit,  even  if  the  present 
interview  offered  none.  He  immediately  seated  himself 
at  a  table  opposite  us,  and  said  to  Lyon  :  "  The  clairvoy- 
ant state  I  will  go  into  before  anything  I  can  reveal." 

"  Mr.  Le  Compte,"  I  interrupted,  noticing  that  Lyon 
was  already  weakening  before  the  scoundrel's  assumption, 
"  if  you  have  got  anything  to  say  to  Mr.  Lyon,  go  on  and 
say  it  with  your  eyes  open,  like  a  man.  We  won't  be 
humbugged  by  you  or  any  one  else  !  " 

He  did  go  on  now,  and  with  his  eyes  open,  and  said : 
"  Well,  gentlemen,  I  know  of  this  lady  who  troubles  Mr. 
Lyon,  and  learn  of  much  witnesses  for  his  help.  But  the 
clairvoyant  state  gave  it  to  me." 

"  No,  no,  my  young  fellow,"  said  I,  "  we  don't  pay  for 
that  kind  of  evidence.  If  you  have  any  evidence  in  your 
possession  which  will  be  of  benefit  to  Mr.  Lyon,  I  am 
prepared  to  receive  and  pay  for  it ;  but  clairvoyant  evi- 
dence isn't  worth  a  cent!" 

"  Well,"  he  replied,  somewhat  ruffled,  "  I  can  go  on  the 
jury  and  swear  clearly  of  this  !  " 

I  then  told  him  I  was  satisfied  that  he  did  not  know 
the  first  principles  of  law  and  evidence,  and  that  the  prob- 
ability was  that  he  had  no  evidence  in  his  possession  at 
all.  I  spoke  in  a  very  loud  tone  of  voice,  and  evidently 
frightened  the  little  fellow  considerably. 

"  You  are  much  intractable — a  much  intractable  man," 
be  responded.  "I  could  tell  about  you  g:  tatly  to  coa 


THE  HALF-WAY  HOUSE.  log 

vince  you  of  my  power ;  but  it  is  impossib  e  in  double 
presence." 

"  All  right,"  said  I.  "  Mr.  Lyon,  I  don't  see  as  you 
have  anything  to  do  with  this  interview,  and  I  want  you 
to  go  right  back  to  your  office  and  remain  there  until  I 
come ! " 

Lyon  got  up  in  a  scared  kind  of  way,  and  started  hesi- 
tatingly towards  the  door,  looking  appealingly  at  me  ;  but 
I  paid  no  attention  to  it,  and  the  little  Frenchman  in- 
stantly arose  and  politely  showed  him  out,  saying  in  a  low 
voice  :  "  My  dear  Mr.  Lyon,  it  will  be  for  your  great  in- 
terest to  make  appointment  without  the  boor." 

"  Lyon  will  do  nothing  of  the  kind,  you  little  villain," 
I  said,  as  I  saw  he  was  shrewdly  arranging  for  future  busi- 
ness. "  The  '  boor,'  as  you  are  pleased  to  term  me,  has 
the  whole  charge  of  this  business,  and  you  will  transact  it 
with  him  or  nobody." 

Le  Compte  flushed,  closed  the  door  without  another 
word,  locked  it,  and  put  the  key  in  his  pocket. 

I  turned  on  him  savagely  with  :  "  My  friend,  what  do 
you  mean  ?  If  you  make  a  single  treacherous  motion, 
you'll  never  get  out  of  this  room  alive  ! " 

I  was  now  thoroughly  mad,  and  am  sure  that  the  little 
jackanapes  saw  it  and  felt  that  I  might  possibly  serve  him 
as  he  deserved,  for  he  quickly  and  tremblingly  said, 
"  Oh,  if  that  is  the  case,  I  have  no  objection  if  you  the 
key  hold ;  but  in  clairvoyant  state  we  shal  I  be  alone  and 
locked." 

There  was  a  bed  in  the  room,  and  I  suggested  that  he 


1 10  THE  HALF-WAY  HOUSE. 

looked  flurried  and  had  better  take  a  rest  upon  it  while 
going  on  with  his  story ;  but  he  seated  himself  at  the  oppo- 
site side  of  the  table,  and  began  putting  his  hands  upon  his 
eyes  and  drawing  them  away  with  an  indescribably  grace- 
ful, though  rapid  gesture.  This  he  continued  for  some 
little  time,  when  he  brought  his  hands  down  upon  the  table 
with  considerable  force.  Then  he  began  the  old  humbug 
about  my  having  had  trouble  with  some  one,  somewhere 
in  the  United  States,  at  some  time  or  other  about  some- 
thing; that  there  was  another  man  of  uncertain  size, 
peculiar  complexion,  unusual  hair,  singular  face,  and  a 
strange,  general  appearance  ;  and  that  this  difficulty  was 
about  money,  he  thought  it  would  amount  to  from  five 
hundred  to  one  thousand  dollars,  and  that  I  would  re- 
ceive this  sum  within  a  few  weeks.  As  I  said  that  this 
was  absolutely  true,  he  was  greatly  encouraged,  and  went 
on  for  some  time  in  an  equally  silly  and  foolish  manner. 
I  stood  it  as  long  as  I  could,  and  finally  said : 

"  See  here,  my  friend,  you  and  I  must  talk  business  !  " 
upon  which  he  was  wide  awake  and  quite  ready  to  enter 
into  earthly  conversation. 

"  Well,  sir,  what  could  you  want  ?  " 

"  I  want  this  nonsense  stopped,"  I  replied  rising,  at 
which  he  also  jumped  up  nimbly. 

"Well,"  he  said,  "this  woman" — evidently  referring  to 
Mrs.  Winslow,  though  no  name  had  been  mentioned — 
"  once  lived  in  Iowa  with  wrong  names  !  " 

"  Oh,  nonsense  ! "  I  replied,  "  I  know  that  already." 

"  But,"  he  continued  quickly,     I  can  furnish  you  the 


THE  HALF-  WA  Y  HO  USE.  1 1 1 

name  of  another  man — very  rich,  very  rich  he  is,  too—- 
who should  be  by  law  more  her  husband." 

"  Well,"  said  I  angrily,  though  now  fully  believing  the 
little  fellow  for  the  first  time,  "  write  this  out  fully ;  give 
me  the  man's  name,  business  or  occupation ;  his  place  of 
residence,  his  standing,  etc. ;  how  he  became  acquainted 
with  this  woman  and  under  what  circumstances  they  lived 
together,  and  when  and  where  ;  and  when  you  give  me 
the  information,  if  I  find  it  reliable,  I  will  pay  liberally 
for  it.  If  not,  I  won't  pay  you  a  cent.  Now,  do  we 
understand  each  other  ?  " 

"  I  think  we  do,"  he  answered  timidly. 

"  Le  Compte,"  said  I  sternly,  "  there's  no  use  of  your 
practising  this  clairvoyant  game  any  longer.  You  won't 
get  a  dollar  out  of  it ;  not  a  dollar.  I  understand  all 
about  it  as  well  as  you  do.  Now,  have  a  care  about 
yourself,  sir,  or  one  of  these  bright  days  you'll  be  coming 
up  with  a  sudden  turn." 

I  now  started  towards  the  door ;  but  the  persistent 
scamp  seemed  anxious  to  still  keep  me,  on  some  manner 
of  pretext,  and  stood  holding  the  key  in  a  confused, 
undecided  way. 

"  Open  that  door,  you  villain  !  "  I  demanded ;  "  open 
it  at  once,  or  you'll  get  into  trouble." 

He  started  suddenly,  put  the  key  in  the  lock,  and  then 
turned  to  me  and  asked  :  "Won't  you  give  me  opportu- 
nity to  show  you  I  do  not  swindle.  Just  let  me  make 
some  few  little  passes  over  your  head.  I  will  sure  pnt 
you  to  sleep  quickly  1 " 


1 1 2  THE  HALF-  WA  Y  HO  USE. 

'*  I  am  not  sleepy,  nor  do  I  need  sleep  now,  thank 
you.  I  had  a  good  nap  about  an  hour  since,"  I  an 
swered,  laughing  at  the  little  fellow's  annoyance.  "  Now 
open  that  door  !  " 

Le  Compte  shrugged  his  handsome  shoulders  despair- 
ingly, unlocked  the  door,  and  as  I  passed  out  of  the  no 
less  than  robber's  den — though  under  the  guise  of  a  medi- 
umistic  and  spiritualistic  blackmailing  headquarters-  -he 
said  :  "  Well,  sir,  I  will  think  of  this  statement  a  great 
deal ;  but  you  are  a  very  untractable  man ;  a  very  un- 
tractable  man — what  might  I  call  your  name  ?  " 

"  Oh,  anything  you  like,  my  little  man  !  "  I  replied 
pleasantly ;  "  but  mind,  we  won't  have  any  more  of  this 
silly  business.  It  won't  pay,  and  you  will  certainly  get 
into  trouble  from  it.  You  may  send  the  statement  to 
George  H.  Bangs,  at  the  post-office,  by  Monday  noon, 
and  if  it  is  what  you  represent  it  to  be,  and  reliable,  you 
will  be  paid  for  it ;  but  you  may  be  very,  very  certain, 
Le  Compte,  that  it  will  prove  extremely  unprofitable  to 
you  if  you  attempt  any  more  of  this  humbuggery  upon 
Mr.  Lyon  !  " 

With  this  admonition  I  left  Le  Compte' s,  and  soon 
found  Lyon  in  his  office.  We  arranged  that  he  should 
pay  no  further  attention  to  either  Le  Compte' s  or  any 
other  person's  communications  concerning  this  case,  but 
should  at  once  turn  them  over  to  his  attorneys,  who 
should  immediately  forward  them  to  me  after  reading 
them,  as  I  was  satisfied  that  if  Le  Compte  had  any  evi- 
dence he  would  never  swear  to  it  when  the  case  was 


THE  HALF-  WA  Y  HO  USE.  1 1 3 

tried,  and  only  desired  to  blackmail  Lyon  on  his  own 
account,  while  playing  the  necessary  male  friend  and  con- 
fidant to  Mrs.  Winslow,  who  for  some  reason  seemed  to 
have  a  strange  and  unexplainable  liking  for  the  little 
Monsieur,  although  exercising  great  care  that  her  passion 
for  him  should  not  become  a  matter  for  public  knowl> 
edge  and  comment 


CHAPTER  XII 

The  Haven  of  the  Detroit  Cottage  in  another  Character. — Mis  Winston 
yearns  for  a  retired  Montreal  Banker. — Love's  Rivalry. — A  myste- 
rious Note.— The  Response.— Another  Trip  to  Port  Charlotte  by 
four  Hearts  that  beat  as  one. — What  Mr.  Pinkerton,  as  one  of  the 
party,  sees  and  hears. — "  Jones  of  Rochester." — Le  Compte  and 
Mrs.  Winslow  resolve  to  fly  to  Paris,  "the  magnificent,  the  beau- 
tiful, the  sublime  !  " — "  My  God,  are  they  all  that  way  ?  " 

AT  last  the  promised  Saturday  came,  and  there  were 
at  least  three  people  in  Rochester  who  looked 
forward  to  a  pleasant  day,  and  were  up  betimes  that  they 
might  get  an  early  start.  Mrs.  Winslow,  from  her  sump- 
tuous apartments,  looked  out  upon  the  streets  and  the 
glorious  morning  as  if  it  had  come  too  soon — as  it  always 
does  to  those  who  have  not  clean  hearts  and  clean  lives — 
and,  en  deshabille,  gazed  down  through  her  rich  lace  cur- 
tains upon  the  early  passers  stepping  off  with  a  brisk 
tread  to  their  separate  labors,  with  a  look  of  contempt. 

Nature  had  been  wantonly  generous  with  Mrs.  Winslow, 
and  as  she  stood  there  in  her  loose  morning  robes,  the 
first  soft  breaths  that  come  with  the  sun  from  the  far-off 
Orient  playing  hide-and-seek  among  the  sumptuous  hang« 
ings  of  her  room,  and  giving  just  the  least  possible  motion 
to  her  matchlessly  luxuriant  black  hair,  while  the  mellow 
and  golden  rays  of  the  sun,  which  was  just  peeping  ovei 


THE  RA  YEN  IN  A  NEW  CHAR  A  CTER.     1 1 5 

the  roofs  and  the  chimneys,  shimmered  upon  her  through 
the  curtains,  lighting  her  great  gray  eyes  with  a  wondrous 
lustrousness,  heightening  the  fine  color  of  her  face,  and 
giving  to  her  voluptuous  form  an  added  grace — this  uttei 
ly  lone  woman  had  not  in  her  heart  an  iota  of  tenderness 
for,  or  sympathy  with,  the  glories  without,  and  was  as 
dead  to  every  good  thing  in  life  as  though  carved  from 
marble  by  some  sculptor,  as  she  really  had  been  carved 
from  stone,  or  ice,  by  nature.  As  she  stood  there  by  the 
window,  regarding  the  passers  with  such  a  wise  and  ogre- 
ish  air  that  Fox,  behind  the  blinds  in  his  window  opposite, 
could  not  but  couple  her  in  his  thoughts  with  some 
pplendid  beast  of  prey — if  Mother  Blake  or  the  voluble 
Rev.  Bland  could  have  seen  her,  the  years  that  had  passed 
would  have  been  swept  away,  and  in  the  mature  woman 
and  the  conscienceless  adventuress  would  have  been 
recognized  the  raven  of  the  Detroit  cottage,  that,  as  Lilly 
Nettleton,  in  a  habit  that  ravens  have,  glided  noiselessly 
about  the  other  sumptuous  apartments,  gathering  together 
what  pleased  its  fancy — not  forgetting  the  money  which 
was  to  have  been  used  in  the  cursed  church  interests,  and 
a  gold  watch,  which  the  raven  wore  to  this  day — and  then, 
kissing  its  beak  to  the  heavily  sleeping  man,  for  all  the 
world  like  a  raven,  had  passed  out  into  the  storm  and  the 
night. 

In  a  few  moments  she  retired  from  the  window,  and 
after  dressing  passed  out  upon  the  street,  and  went  to  the 
falls  for  a  short  walk  and  an  appetite,  and  then  wer.t  to 
the  Washington  Hall  restaurant,  where  she  had  quite  fre 


1 1 6     THE  RA  YEN  IN  A  NEW  CHAR  A  CTER. 

quently  taken  her  meals  since  she  had  incidentally 
learned  that  Bristol  was  a  retired  Montreal  banker,  as 
gossip  had  it  now  among  the  Spiritualists  ;  and  it  was  evi- 
dent that  persons  of  that  grade  of  recommendation  weie 
of  peculiar  interest  to  Mrs.  Winslow.  For  hours  of  dal- 
liance, the  aristocratic  though  impecunious  popinjay,  Le 
Compte,  would  more  than  answer ;  but  when  it  came  to  a 
matter  of  serious  work,  and  when  a  new  source  of  income 
was  to  be  sought,  Mrs.  Winslow,  being  a  shrewd  and  able 
professor  of  the  art  of  fascination  which  secured  her  an 
independent  and  elegant  livelihood,  in  connection  with 
her  ability  to  compel  a  large  number  of  people  to  pay  her 
for  guessing  at  what  had  befallen  them  and  what  might 
befall  them,  she  invariably  sought  gentlemen  on  the 
shady  side  of  life,  with  judgment  and  discretion,  who  knew 
a  good  thing  when  they  saw  it,  and  who  were  both  able 
and  willing  to  carry  their  bank  accounts  into  their  aged 
knight-errantry. 

Lyon  was  not  a  handsome  man,  but  he  had  vast  wealth. 
His  weazen  face,  his  grizzly  hair,  his  repulsive,  tobacco- 
stained  mouth,  were  naught  against  him.  His  passion  foi 
her  had  brought  her  thousands  upon  thousands  of  dollars — 
would  bring  her,  she  hoped,  as  much  more.  Here  was 
Bristol.  He  was  not  handsome,  he  was  not  a  Canadian 
Adonis,  he  incessantly  smoked  a  very  ugly  pipe  fully  as 
old  as  himself.  But  he  had  some  way  got  the  reputation 
of  being  "  a  retired  Canadian  banker "  among  these 
people,  and  Mrs.  Winslow' s  heart  warmed  towards  him 
the  way  it  had  towards  a  hundred  others  when  she  had 


THE  RA  YEN  IN  A  NEW  CHAR  A  CTER.     1 1 7 

wanted  them  to  walk  into  her  parlor  as  the  ancient  spider 
had  desired  of  the  fly. 

So  she  had  begun  weaving  a  shining  web  of  loving 
looks,  of  tender  glances,  of  dreamy  sighs,  and  of  graceful 
manoeuvres  of  a  general  character  about  the  unsuspecting 
Bristol,  that  resulted  in  pecuniary  profit  to  the  old  maids, 
who,  nevertheless,  with  the  quick  instinct  of  three  jealous 
women  of  economical  build  and  mature  years,  had 
already  begun  to  hate  her  as  a  rival,  and  pour  into  Bris- 
tol's alert  ears  sad  tales  about  the  splendid  charmer,  all 
i>f  which  were  properly  reported  to  me  by  the  "  retired 
Montreal  banker,"  who  had  suddenly  found  himself  a  prize 
worthy  to  be  sought  for,  and  fought  for,  if  necessary,  by 
four  determined  women,  one  of  whom  hungered  for  hig 
supposed  wealth,  and  three  of  whom  possessed  the  more 
desperate,  life-long  hunger  whose  appeasing  is  worth  a 
severe  struggle. 

After  her  breakfast,  which,  unfortunately,  had  not  given 
her  an  opportunity  for  bestowing  a  graceful  nod  or  a  win- 
ning smile  upon  Bristol,  whom  the  old  maids  had  furnished 
a  superb  breakfast  in  his  own  apartment,  Mrs.  Winslow 
returned  to  her  rooms  and  seated  herself  at  her  windows^ 
where  she  read  the  morning  paper  for  a  little  time.  She 
then  disappeared  from  Fox  s  sight  for  a  half-hour  or  so, 
when,  just  as  he  was  about  leaving  his  watch  at  his  win- 
dow he  noticed  her  descend  the  stairs,  and.  after  looking 
cautiously  about  for  a  moment,  deposit  a  card  behind 
her  own  sign,  which  was  attached  to  the  frame  of  the  outer 
doorway  leading  to  her  rooms.  As  soon  as  she  had 


1 1 8     THE  RA  YEN  IN  A  NEW  CHAR  A  CTER. 

retired,  and  before  she  could  have  returned  to  her  win 
dows,  Fox  slipped  down  and  out  across  the  street,  and 
removing  the  card  from  its  novel  depository,  saw  writtea 
upon  it : 

"  Le  Compte  : — Will  be  at  the  Garden  with  carriage  at 

ten,  prompt. 

"  MRS.  W." 

Fox  had  no  more  than  time  to  return  the  card  to  its 
place  when  he  saw  the  person  to  whom  it  was  addressed 
turn  into  St.  Paul  street  from  East  Main.  He  according- 
ly got  back  to  his  old  post  as  rapidly  as  possible,  and 
watched  the  young  Frenchman  saunter  along  towards  the 
hallway  as  if  carelessly  taking  his  morning  walk.  He  was 
irreproachably  dressed,  as  usual,  and  was  daintily  siuoking 
a  cigarette  with  that  inimitable  grace  with  only  which  a 
Frenchman  or  a  Spaniard  can  smoke.  After  arriving  at 
the  hallway,  as  if  undecided  whether  he  would  go  farther 
up  the  street  or  not,  he  leaned  carelessly  against  the  sign, 
and  in  a  moment  had  deftly  whipped  the  card  out  of  its 
hiding-place.  He  then  started  up  the  street  saunteringly, 
and  when  about  a  half-block  distant,  read  the  card,  which 
seemed  to  give  him  much  pleasure,  as  he  smilingly  wrote 
something  upon  it,  and  after  walking  a  short  distance, 
turned  suddenly  and  walked  rapidly  back,  dexterously  de- 
positing the  card  in  its  strange  receptacle,  without 
scarcely  varying  his  pace  or  direction,  and  quickly  passed 
on  to  Main  street,  turning  down  that  thoroughfare. 

Fox  noticed  that  Mrs.  Winslow  had  witnessed  tl  is  inci- 


THE  RA  VEN  IN  A  NEW  CHAR  A  CTER.     1 19 

dent  from  her  windows,  and  at  the  moment  when  her  form 
had  disappeared,  he  swiftly  stepped  across  the  street  and 
read  the  reply,  which  ran  thus  : 

"Your  announcement  makes  pleasure  in  your  lover's 
soul,  and  your  name  is  saluted  by  the  lips  of 

"LE    COMPTE." 

Fox  had  just  time  to  slip  into  a  tobacconist's  for  a  cigar 
when  Mrs.  Winslow  came  down  stairs,  took  the  card  out 
of  its  resting-place,  and  after  going  down  the  street  for 
some  slight  purchase,  returned  to  her  rooms  and  prepared 
for  the  drive  to  Charlotte. 

At  half-past  nine  Mrs.  Winslow' s  carriage  arrived  and 
in  a  few  minutes  after  she  was  leisurely  riding  down  Main 
street,  and  from  thence  out  through  State  street  and  Lake 
View  Avenue  towards  the  Port.  As  I  had  nothing  to  do 
until  Monday's  interview  with  Le  Compte,  and  time  hung 
heavily  upon  my  hands,  I  had  decided  to  make  one  of  the 
party. 

I  knew  the  direction  Mrs.  Winslow  would  take,  and  so 
securing  a  position  on  the  corner  of  Main  and  State 
streets,  I  had  but  a  little  time  to  wait  before  I  saw  the 
gay  madam  pass,  and  also  noticed  Fox  at  an  opposite  cor- 
ner evidently  making  sure  of  her  direction ;  for,  as  soon 
as  he  saw  her  carriage  turn  down  State  street,  he  imme- 
diately started  for  the  depot,  from  which  a  train  left  for 
Charlotte  at  ten  o'clock,  so  that  he  could  be  at  that  place, 
under  any  circumstances,  some  time  before  the  happy 
and  unsuspecting  couple  should  have  arrived. 


120     THE  RAVEN  IN  A  NEW  CHARACTER. 

At  about  train-time  Fox  bought  a  cigar  and  took  a  seat 
in  the  smoking-car,  while  I  purchased  a  cheap  edition  of 
one  of  Dicker s's  stories  and  settled  myself  down  in  a 
ladies'  car. 

The  trip  to  Charlotte  was  soon  made  through  a  beauti- 
ful country  where  the  farmers  were  busy  stacking  their 
grain,  threshing,  and,  in  some  instances,  turning  the  black 
Loam  to  the  sun  that  it  might  early  mellow  for  the  next 
year's  seed-time,  and  in  a  half-hour  we  were  at  Charlotte, 
where  the  beautiful  lake  is  seen  at  one's  feet,  with  its  rip- 
pling waves  dotted  here  and  there  by  a  hundred  dreamy 
sails  and  lazy  steamers  from  as  many  waiting  ports. 

Fox  immediately  made  inquiries  of  the  villagers  where 
he  could  find  the  road  leading  into  Charlotte  from  Roch- 
ester, and  started  out  towards  it  from  the  depot  at  a  brisk 
walk,  while  I  waited  until  he  had  got  well  under  way, 
when  I  took  a  short  stroll  among  the  warehouses  and 
shipping  of  the  harbor,  and  then  went  to  the  only  hotel  of 
any  importance  the  place  contained,  where  I  knew  Mrs. 
Winslow  and  Le  Compte  would  be  likely  to  stop,  and  en- 
gaged a  room  in  the  front  part  of  the  house,  where  I  re- 
sumed my  story  and  waited,  like  Micawber,  for  "  some- 
thing to  turn  up." 

I  had  been  engaged  at  my  book  but  a  short  time  when 
I  saw  Fox  come  up  the  street  towards  the  hotel  at  a 
rapid  pace,  flushed  and  perspiring  freely  as  from  a  very 
long  and  rapid  walk,  and  but  a  moment  afterwards  also 
saw  the  dashing  Rochester  turnout  whirling  up  to  the 
hotel 


THE  RA  VEN  IN  A  NEW  CHAR  A  CTER.     1 2 1 

The  arrival  at  the  hotel  of  the  couple  bore  out  the 
truth  of  the  statement  of  the  little  Dutchman,  contained 
in  Fox's  report  of  his  trip  to  the  half-way  house,  as  the 
habitues  of  the  house  seemed  quite  accustomed  to  their 
presence  and  the  employees  stepped  about  nimbly,  as 
they  generally  do  at  hotels  as  a  greeting  to  good  custom 
ers,  and  they  generally  do  not  when  persons  of  common 
appearance  arrive. 

As  good  luck  would  have  it,  after  a  few  moments  had 
elapsed,  "  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Jones,  of  Rochester,"  as  Fox  saw 
they  had  registered,  were  ushered  into  a  room  adjoining 
my  own,  and  between  which,  as  is  quite  common  at  hotels, 
there  was  a  door,  which  might  be  opened  for  the  purpose 
of  throwing  the  rooms  en  suite,  as  occasion  required. 

Although  I  was  prevented  from  seeing  the  couple,  their 
voices,  which  were  both  familiar  to  me,  could  not  be  mis- 
taken ;  and  I  could  not  restrain  a  smile  as  I  listened  to 
the  little  Frenchman's  voluble  and  peculiarly-constructed 
expressions  of  endearment,  and  the  coarser,  but  none  the 
less  tender,  responses  of  the  virtuous  Mrs.  Winslow,  whose 
life  had  been  shattered,  heart  smashed  to  atoms,  and 
good  name  defamed,  by  the  tyrant  man  in  the  person  of 
the  weak  but  wealthy  Lyon,  and  to  think  how  much 
nearer  I  was  to  th°  quarry  than  Fox  himself,  who  in  this 
instance  was  making  noble  efforts  to  bring  down  his  game 
without  "  flushing  "  it. 

For  the  sake  of  the  public  whose  servant  I  have  been 
for  the  last  thirty  years,  I  would  blush  to  put  on  paper 

what  I  know  to  have  occurred  in  the  adjoining  room,  and 
6 


1 22     THE  RA  YEN  IN  A  NEW  CHAR  A  CTER. 

which  only  served  to  further  convince  me  of  the  depths 
of  infamy  to  which  she  had  sunk ;  and  I  will  pass  on  to 
those  things  only  necessary  to  acquaint  the  reader  with 
my  plan  of  operation  to  bring  her  into  the  public  notori- 
ety and  scorn  which  she  had  years  before  only  too  richly 
deserved. 

But  a  short  time  had  elapsed  after  Mrs.  Winslow  and 
Lc  Compte  had  been  given  their  room  when  I  heard  Fox's 
footsteps  coming  along  the  hall.  He  passed  their  room 
slowly,  evidently  locating  it,  and  after  a  few  moments 
stealthily  returned  and  listened  at  the  door.  He  then 
stole  away,  but  returned  again  with  a  bold,  firm  step,  as 
though  conscious  of  being  on  legitimate  business,  walked 
right  up  to  the  door  and  gave  the  knob  a  quick  turn,  as  if 
he  had  intended  to  at  once  walk  into  the  room. 

The  door  did  net  open,  however,  and  Fox  stepped 
back  as  if  surprised,  saying  :  "  Why,  I  can't  be  mistaken ; 
the  register  surely  said  Room  30  !  "  while  within  there  were 
quick,  though  smothered  exclamations  of  surprise,  fright, 
and  rage  of  an  unusually  profane  nature. 

Fox  immediately  returned  to  the  attack  as  if  certain 
that  he  was  in  the  right,  and  knocked  at  the  door  sharply. 

There  was  no  response  but  the  quick  hustlings  about 
the  room,  from  which  I,  as  an  attentive  listener  with  my 
ear  close  to  the  key-hole,  learned  that  the  inmates  were 
preparing  for  discovery. 

Fox  knocked  again,  this  time  louder  and  more  persist- 
•ntly  than  at  first. 

J  now  plainly  heard  Mrs.  Winslow  ordering  Le  Compt? 


THE  RAVEN  IN  A  NEW  CHARACTER.    12$ 

under  the  bed  among  the  dust,  bandboxes,  and  unmention 
ables,  at  which  he  protested  with  innumerable  "  Sacr'es  I  " 
But  she  was  relentless,  and  finally,  seeing  that  he  would 
go  no  other  way,  took  him  up  like  a  recalcitrant  cur  and 
flung  him  under  bodily. 

Again  Fox  attacked  the  door,  shook  the  knob  furiously, 
and  knocked  loud  enough  to  raise  the  dead,  following  it 
up  with  :  "  Say  you  ? — Jones  ?  Why  in  thunder  don't 
you  open  the  door  ?  " 

At  this  Mrs.  Winslow  plucked  up  the  courage  of  des- 
peration, and  asked  in  a  loud  and  injured  voice,  "  Who's 
there  ?  " 

"Why,  me,  of  course;  Barker,  Jones's  partner.  I 
want  to  see  Jones !  " 

"  What  Jones  do  you  want  ?  "  asked  Mrs.  Winslow,  to 
get  time  to  think  further  what  to  do. 

"Jones,  of  Rochester,  of  course,"  yelled  Fox.  "  Two 
ship-loads  of  spoiled  grain's  just  come  in  ;  don't  know 
what  to  do  with  "em." 

"  Sink  'em  ! "  responded  Mrs.  Winslow,  breathing 
freer. 

"  Where's  Jones  ?  "  persisted  Fox,  banging  away  at  the 
door  again. 

"There's  no  Jones  here,  you  fool!"  answered  the 
woman  hotly. 

"Yes  there  is,  too,"  insisted  Fox.  "Landlord  told  me  so." 

"Well,"  parried  the  female,  raising  her  voice  agaiii, 
''Jones  ain't  in  the  wheat  trade  at  all;  he's  a  professor  of 
music ;  and  besides  that,  he  ain't  in  here,  either." 


124     THE  RA  YEN  IN  A  NEW  CHARACTER. 

"Oh,  beg  pardon,  ma'am,"  said  Fox  apologetically, 
"  It  isn't  your  Jones  I  want  this  time,  then.  Hope 
I  haven't  disturbed  you,  madam,"  and  he  walked 
away,  having  clinched  the  matter  quite  thoroughly 
enough  for  any  twelve  honest  and  true  men  under  :he 
Bun. 

Mrs.  Winslow  stuck  her  head  out  of  the  door,  launched 
a  threat,  coupled  with  a  well-defined  oath,  against  Fox, 
who  was  leisurely  strolling  along  the  hall,  to  the  effect  that 
he  ought  to  be  ashamed  of  himself  for  "  insulting  a 
defenceless  woman  in  that  way,  and  that  if  he  came  there 
again  she  would  have  him  arrested."  To  which  he  cheerily 
responded,  "  No  offence  meant,  ma'am  ;  'fraid  the  wheat 'd 
spoil,  ye  see  ; "  and  as  he  went  whistling  down  the  stairs, 
she  slammed  the  door,  locked  it,  drew  the  trembling  Lei 
Compte  from  under  the  bed,  and  amid  a  chime  of  crock-) 
ery  set  him  upon  his  feet  again  with  a  snap  to  it,  and  then 
threw  herself  into  a  rocking-chair  and  burst  into  tears, 
insisting  that  she  was  the  most  abused  woman  on  the  face 
of  earth,  and  that  Le  Compte,  with  his  "Sacres/" 
and  "  Diables  /"  hadn't  the  sense  of  a  moth  or  the  muscle 
of  an  oyster,  or  he  would  have  followed  the  brute  and 
given  him  a  sound  beating  ! 

Not  desiring  to  be  seen  by  Fox,  I  ordered  my  dinner 
sent  to  my  loom,  as  did  the  unhappy  couple  in  the 
adjoining  apartment,  who  seemed  to  be  greatly  put  out 
by  the  intrusion,  and  who  were  for  an  hour  after  specu- 
lating as  to  the  cause  of  the  interruption,  and  as  to 
whether  it  was  accidental  or  not 


THE  RA  YEN  IN  A  NEW  CHAR  A  CTER.     1 2  5 

"  We  mustn't  come  here  any  more,  Le  Compte,"  said 
the  woman  dolefully. 

"  And  for  why,  my  angel  precious  ?  "  anxiously  asked 
the  man. 

"Why,  do  you  know,"  replied  Mrs.  Winslow  with 
earnestness,  "I  somethiies  really  believe  I  am  Deing 
watched  ! " 

"  No,  that  was  impossible  ! "  said  Le  Compte,  with  a 
start. 

"  And  sometimes,"  she  continued,  paying  no  attention 
to  him,  "  it  seems  as  though  I  could  not  stand  this  terri- 
ble keeping  up  appearances  any  longer." 

"You  should  have  pleasure  in  the  appearance,"  re- 
sponded Le  Compte  insinuatingly,  "  it  breaks  him  down 
already.  He  is  now  like  one  weak  infant." 

"  That's  so,  that's  so,"  she  answered  quickly,  in  a  tone 
of  vengeful  joyousness.  "  I'll  bring  the  old  devil  to  my 
feet  yot.  I'll  crush  him  out  and  ruin  his  fortune,  if  it  takes 
me  all  my  life.  I'll  get  the  biggest  part  of  it,  too  ;  and 
then,  Le  Compte,  we'll  get  out  of  this  cursed  country  and 
enjoy  ourselves  the  rest  of  our  lives." 

"Yes,  in  Paris,  the  magnificent,  the  beautiful,  the 
sublime !  Then  we  will  live  in  one  heaven  of  love. 
Oh,  beautiful,  beautiful ! "  cried  the  little  Frenchman 
excitedly. 

"  There,  Le  Compte,"  said  his  companion,  suddenly 
becoming  practical  again,  "  don't  make  a  fool  of  your 
self!  Take  this  bill  and  go  down  and  get  a  bottle  of 
wine  ;  and  mind  you,  don't  keep  the  change  either." 


126     THE  RA  VEN  IN  A  NEW  CHARACTER. 

As  the  train  returned  at  two,  and  I  had  but  little  time 
to  reach  it,  as  soon  as  Le  Compte  had  come  back  with 
the  wine  and  they  had  become  sufficiently  noisy  to  admit 
of  it,  I  quietly  left  my  room,  paid  my  bill,  went  to  the 
train,  avoiding  Fox  entirely,  and,  with  him,  was  soon 
again  in  Rochester,  leaving  the  roystering  couple  at  the 
little  hotel  at  Charlotte  building  their  vain  dreams  and  air- 
castles  about  crushing  out  Lyon — which  would  have  been 
an  easy  matter  if  left  to  himself — their  beautiful,  magni- 
ficent, and  sublime  Paris,  and  their  "  one  heaven  of  love  " 
within  it. 

As  soon  as  Fox  stepped  from  the  train  I  quietly 
handed  him  a  slip  of  paper  directing  him  to  make  his 
report  to  me  at  the  Waverley  House,  where  I  was  stop- 
ping under  an  assumed  name,  which  he  assured  me  he 
would  do,  without  a  word  being  spoken  or  even  a  look  of 
recognition  being  passed. 

Although  the  public  may  not  be  aware  of  it,  this  is 
an  absolute  necessity  in  detective  service.  Though  I 
employ  hundreds  of  persons  as  detectives,  preventive 
police,  and  in  clerical  duties,  at  my  different  agencies,  on 
no  occasion  and  under  no  circumstances  is  there  ever  on 
the  street,  or  in  any  public  place  whatever,  the  slightest 
token  by  which  the  stranger  might  know  that  there  had 
ever  been  any  previous  communication  between  any  of 
my  people. 

On  the  next  day,  Sunday,  Lyon  called  to  see  me  at  the 
hotel  and  brought  with  him  two  notes  from  Le  Compte — 
one  having  been  received  late  Saturday  afternoon,  and 


THE  RAVEN  IN  A  NEW  CHARACTER.    12? 

the  other  delivered  at  his  house  that  morning — both  im- 
peratively insisting  that  Lyon  should  come  to  his  rooms 
and  leave  that  "  untractabie  man  "  behind. 

I  complimented  him  extensively  on  his  having  re* 
framed  from  visiting  the  winsome  little  villain  \vh<J 
seemed  determined  to  get  Lyon  within  his  power.  He 
solemnly  pledged  his  word  that  he  would  have  nothing 
whatever  to  do  with  the  man,  and  would  bluff  him  in 
every  advance  that  he  made  ;  and  in  order  to  clinch  it,  I 
read  him  choice  extracts  from  Fox's  report  regarding  the 
Charlotte  party  of  the  day  before,  interspering  it  with  a 
few  of  the  still  choicer  items  that  had  come  under  my 
own  observation. 

"  My  God  ! "  exclaimed  Lyon,  as  I  concluded,  "  are 
they  all  that  way  ?  " 

"Your  experience  and  mine,"  I  smilingly  replied, 
"would  almost  point  to  the  fact  that  a  very  decided 
majority  of  them  are." 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

Mr  Pinker  .on  again  interviews  Le  Compte.-  And  very  much  desire* 
to  wring  his  Neck. — A  Bargain  and  Sale. — Le  Compte's  Story.— • 
"  Little  by  Little,  Patience  by  Patience." — A  Toronto  Merchant  in 
Mrs.  Winslow's  Toils. — Detective  Bristol,  "  the  retired  Banker,"  in 
Clover. — Tabitha,  Amanda,  and  Hannah  individually  and  collect- 
ively woo  him. — Ancient  Maidens  full  of  Soul. — A  Signal. 

NO  jury  in  the  land  would  render  a  verdict  against  a 
man  on  the  unsupported  evidence  of  a  woman 
whose  character  was  so  vile  as  we  had  already  found 
Mrs.  Winslow's  to  be ;  and  I  would  have  paid  no  further 
attention  to  the  little  Frenchman,  had  I  not  suspected 
from  his  expensive  style  of  living,  and  from  Mrs.  Win- 
slow's injunctions  to  him  regarding  not  swindling  her  in 
so  small  a  matter  as  a  bottle  of  wine,  that  his  necessities 
and  cupidity  might  cause  him  to  make  some  tangible  dis- 
closure regarding  her,  that  would  give  us  a  clue  to  other 
information  against  her  further  than  that  which  Bangs 
would  probably  secure  in  the  West,  as  I-  never  use  detec. 
tive  evidence  when  it  can  be  avoided,  and  knew  that 
a  perfect  mountain  of  criminal  transactions  could  be  even, 
tually  heaped  up  against  her  which  could  be  secured  from 
reliable  parties,  who  could  have  no  other  possible  interest 


A  GAIN  INTER  VIE  WS  LE  COMPTE.         1 29 

in  her  downfall  than  a  desire  to  promote  the  personal 
good  of  society. 

Le  Compte  did  not  desire  to  see  me  again,  and  had 
made  strenuous  efforts  to  prevent  it  and  secure  a  surrep- 
titious interview  with  Lyon  instead.  Failing  in  this,  at 
the  last  moment,  I  had  received  a  very  terse  note  from 
him  to  the  effect  that  he  did  not  desire  to  transmit  any 
statement  by  mail,  but  would  take  it  as  an  honor,  etc.,  if 
I  would  call  at  his  place  at  ten  o'clock,  Monday  morning, 
which  I  did,  finding  the  little  fellow  in  a  gorgeous  dress- 
ing-gown, freshly  shaved,  and  in  a  neat  and  orderly  state 
generally. 

"  Well,  my  young  friend,"  said  I,  "  I  suppose  you 
have  decided  to  give  me  some  information  this  morning." 

"  Do  I  get  good  pay  ?  "   he  asked  in  response. 

"  You  will  get  good  pay  if  you  have  a  good  article  for 
sale,"  I  replied. 

"  Humph  ! "  he  responded,  with  a  soft  shrug  of  his 
delicate  shoulders. 

"  Are  you  ready  to  make  such  a  sale  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  But  where  comes  my  money  ?  "  inquired  Le  Compte, 
suspiciously. 

"  It  is  right  here,"  I  answered,  slapping  my  pocket  in 
a  hearty  way. 

"But  suppose  it  shall  stay  there,  then  where  is  Le 
Compte  ? "  he  persisted  with  a  doleful  look  which  was 
irresistibly  funny. 

"  It  will  stay  there,"  I  replied,  "  in  case  you  attempt  to 

play  any  of  your  tricks,  my  little  fellow." 
6* 


1 30       A  GAIN  INTER  VIE  WS  LE  COMPTE. 

" How  shall  I  then  know  I  am  to  be  paid?" 

"  You  will  have  to  take  my  word  for  it." 

*'  But  I  have  not  pleasure  in  your  acquaintance ;  how 
can  I  be  sure  ?  "  he  continued  anxiously. 

"  Le  Compte,  swindler  as  you  are,  you  know  that  I  am 
an  honest  man.  This  quibbling  is  utterly  foolish  and  sim- 
ple. I  am  acting  entirely  for  Mr.  Lyon  in  this  matter, 
and  should  you  write  to  him  or  call  upon  him  a  hundred 
times,  you  would  get  nothing  from  him  but  a  bluff.  Here 
are  your  two  notes,"  I  continued,  producing  them,  "  one 
written  Saturday,  the  other  yesterday.  The  only  response 
you  got  to  them  was,  silence — and  this  interview.  I 
thought  we  understood  each  other  already." 

I  saw  that  he  was  still  undecided  about  saying  what- 
ever he  might  have  to  say,  and  tenacious  of  sustaining  his 
professional  reputation  as  a  clairvoyant.  I  might  have 
easily  frightened  him  into  submission  by  the  slightest  ref- 
erence to  the  occurrences  of  the  previous  day,  but  knew 
that  this  would  have  the  effect  of  putting  Mrs.  Winslow 
on  her  guard,  as  she  was  already  becoming  suspicious  and 
anxious,  and  preferred  getting  at  his  communication  in 
the  ordinary  way.  After  he  had  sat  musing  for  a  time  he 
suddenly  asked : 

"  How  great  will  be  my  pay  ?  " 

"  What  do  you  think  the  information  is  worth  ?  "  I  said. 

He  looked  at  me  as  if  fixing  a  price  in  his  mind  that  I 
would  stand,  and  replied : 

"  Certain,  a  thousand  dollars." 

"That  is  a  good  deal  of  money,  Le  Comptej"  I  said 


AGAIN  INTER  VIEWS  LE  COMPTE.        1 3 1 

pleasantly.  "  I  hardly  think  you  can  divulge  a  thousand 
dollars'  worth.  But  if  you  can  give  me  reliable  informa- 
tion of  a  satisfactory  character,  I  think  I  could  pay  you 
three  hundred  dollars. 

"  Now  ?  "  he  inquired,  suddenly. 

"Oh,  no,  oh,  no,"  I  replied  as  quickly;  "no,  sir,  not 
until  we  find  the  information  you  give  is  reliable." 

This  dampened  the  little  fellow  wonderfully,  but  he 
finally  said :  "  Well,  the  evidence  is  certain,  but  I  must 
offer  it  to  you  by  clairvoyance,"  and  he  immediately 
arose  and  began  darkening  the  room  as  on  the  previous 
interview,  which  act  I  interrupted  by  stepping  to  the  win- 
dow he  had  just  darkened,  and  jerking  the  curtain  as  high 
as  it  would  roll,  opening  the  window,  and  flinging  the 
blinds  open  with  a  slam. 

"  You  little  villain ! "  1  shouted,  advancing  upon  him 
threateningly,  "  I  will  wring  your  neck  if  you  don't  stop 
this  contemptible  nonsense  !  "  while  he  slunk  into  the 
corner,  like  the  mean  coward  that  he  was.  I  could 
scarcely  keep  my  hands  off  the  little  puppy ;  but  recol- 
lecting that  I  was  there  for  quite  another  purpose,  I 
said : 

"  Le  Compte,  this  is  the  last  time  I  shall  come  here, 
and  it  is  the  last  time  you  will  have  an  opportunity  of 
making  a  dollar  out  of  any  information  you  may  possess. 
Now,  sir,"  I  said,  savagely,  starting  towards  the  door,  "  you 
will  give  ft  to  me,  trusting  entirely  to  my  honcr  to  pay 
you  for  it,  or  you  will  never  get  a  cent  for  it  on  earth." 

The  little  fellow  turned  towards  me  imploringly,  with  i 


132         A  GAIN  INTER  VIE  WS  LE  COMPTE. 

"  Please  don't  go.    My  dear  sir,  you  are  so  greatly  abiupt 
We  have  no  men  like  you  in  La  Belle  France." 

"  Heaven  knows,  I  hope  but  few  like  you"  I  responded. 
"  Now,  which  is  it,  yes.  or  no  ?  I  will  give  you  just  thirty 
seconds  in  which  to  answer,"  and  I  timed  him,  thoroughly 
resolved  to  do  as  I  had  said. 

Before  the  expiration  of  the  time  mentioned,  Le 
Compte  sat  down,  and  with  a  despairing  shrug  of  the 
shoulders,  said  "  Yes." 

I  immediately  returned,  sat  down  in  front  of  him,  and 
said,  "  Well,  Le  Compte,  now  go  ahead  with  your  story 
like  a  man." 

"What  must  it  be  like  ?  "  he  asked  innocently. 

"What  must  it  be  like?"  I  repeated,  aghast.  "Why, 
you  don't  intend  to  manufacture  a  story  for  me  against 
this  woman,  do  you  ?  " 

"  Oh,  no,  no,  never.  But  I  must  know  first  how  bad 
it  must  be,  when  it  is  worth  three  hundred  dollars,  which 
}ou  call  such  great  money?" 

"Well,"  said  I,  all  out  of  patience,  "if  you  know  of 
any  occasion  when  this  woman  has  been  with  any  man  as 
his  wife,  or  his  mistress,  and  can  give  names,  dates,  and 
places,  and  under  what  circumstances,  and  this  informa- 
tion on  examination  proves  so  reliable  that  we  can  get 
other  witnesses  besides  yourself — persons  of  credibility 
and  reputatior. — to  testify  to  it,  I  will  pay  you  thrc  e  him 
dred  dollars.  Isn't  that  plain  enough?" 

"  Will  you  put  it  to  paper  ?  " 

"  No,  sir,  you  have  my  word  for  it,  that's  all." 


A  GAIN  INTER  VIE  WS  LE  COMPTE.        1 3  3 

Le  Compte  tapped  the  floor  with  his  delicate  foot  a 
moment,  and  I  saw  the  impostor  was  in  real  misery.  He 
had  a  sort  of  affection  for  the  woman,  which  she  had  more 
than  reciprocated.  He  could  lean  on  the  strong,  daring 
nature  she  possessed,  and  go  to  her  with  all  his  troubles 
and  disappointments  and  get  help.  She  had  promised 
him  that,  as  soon  as  she  had  mulcted  Lyon  of  the  hun- 
dred thousand  dollars,  he  should  share  it  with  her  in  his 
own  beautiful  Paris.  All  his  self-interest  laid  in  and  with 
the  woman  ;  but  need  for  money  was  pressing,  and  there 
were  a  million  other  women  as  impressible  to  his  charms 
as  she  had  been.  Here  was  an  opportunity  to  make  a 
few  hundred  dollars  by  betraying  her ;  but  in  doing  so  he 
still  might  not  get  the  money,  and  she  might  at  once  dis- 
cover from  what  source  the  information  had  come,  and 
he  knew  enough  about  Mrs.  Winslow  to  be  sure  that  she 
dared  any  mode  of  revenge  that  best  suited  her  fancy, 
and  he  had  a  wholesome  fear  of  her.  I  could  see  that 
all  these  things  were  flitting  through  his  mind,  as  plainly 
as  the  reader  can  see  them  upon  this  printed  page,  and 
to  some  extent  pitied  his  weakness  and  indecision. 

"  Or,"  said  I  encouragingly,  "  as  you  undoubtedly  know 
Mrs.  Winslow  intimately,  and  are  very  much  in  her  com- 
pany, if  you  know  of  any  occasion  when  she  had,  while 
here  in  Rochester  or  in  the  vicinity,  say  Batavia,  Syra- 
cuse, or  Port  Charlotte,  for  instance,  gone  with  some  one 
of  her  many  favorites,  and  under  an  assumed  name — 
Brown,  Jones,  or  anything  of  the  kind — to  a  hotel  where 
they  had  been  assigned  a  room,  and  had  occupied  it  to 


134        A  GAIN  INTER  VIE  WS  LE  COMPTE. 

gether  for  several  hours,  and  you  could  put  us  on  track 
of  persons  of  reliability  who  would  be  willing  to  come  into 
court  and  swear  to  such  facts — I  presume  there  are  many 
persons  who  could  and  would  with  whom  you  are  acquain- 
ted— I  would  pay  you  the  amount  named  at  once." 

This  was  cutting  pretty  close  to  a  tender  subject,  and 
before  I  had  half  finished  my  remarks  he  started,  and 
looked  me  in  the  face  in  a  suspicious,  apprehensive  man- 
ner, eyeing  me  closely  until  I  had  finished.  But  my  man- 
ner and  looks  betraying  no  knowledge  on  my  part  of  any 
such  facts  hinted  at,  he  relapsed  into  a  puzzled,  non- 
plussed look  that  was  really  ridiculous. 

"  No,  no,"  he  said  slowly  and  cautiously.  "  I  have  no 
such  valuable  evidence.  That  would  be  much  more 
worth  than  a  thousand  dollars — much  more  worth.  But  I 
can  do  what  you  first  say,  and  rest  me  on  the  honor 
of  your  word." 

"  Go  on,  then,"  said  I. 

"  Well,  we  shall  go  back  almost  a  year.  I  met  first  Mrs. 
Winslow  at  Port  Charlotte,  when  she  was  from  Canada 
returning." 

"  Did  she  formerly  live  in  Canada  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  No,  not  for  a  great  time  ;  but  has  had  much  travel 
and  friends  there.  I  first  see  her  at  Charlotte.  I  go 
there  to  take  a  boat.  She  comes  from  the  boat  there. 
Lyon  meets  her,  and  I  think  her  his  wife,  he  is  so  much 
happy.  I  like  her  so  much  that  I  do  not  take  the  boat. 
I  follow  her  back  to  the  city  here,  and  find  her  beautiful 
rooms,  when  I  discover  she  is  not  Lyon's  wife,  but  hii 


A  GAIN  INTER  VIE  WS  LE  COMPTE,         1 3  5 

mistress  ;  but  I  still  have  for  her  admiration,  and  one  day 
she  comes  to  me  for  her  future  in  clairvoyance." 

"  And  then  she  became  your  mistress  ? "  I  inquired, 
smiling  at  his  earnestness. 

"  No,  no,  no — never  !  "  he  replied  quickly,  growing  red 
as  a  rose ;  "  I  became  her  friend !  " 

Le  Compte  did  not  know  how  near  he  came  to  express- 
ing the  truth  while  endeavoring  to  avoid  it,  but  con- 
tinued : 

"  I  became  her  friend,  and  we  came  to  each  other  for 
advice.  She  has  great  faith — great  faith,"  repeated  Le 
Compte,  with  much  emphasis  on  the  expression,  which 
seemed  to  please  him,  "  in  my  clairvoyance  powers.  I 
give  her  much  comfort.  She  gives  me  great  confidence 
of  her  affairs,  and  shows  me  how  rich  Lyon  makes  her. 
I  see  her  often — very  often,  at  the  Hall  and  here  in  my 
apartments.  She  gives  me  much  confidence  of  her  affairs 
still,  and  1  am  informed  when  she  makes  Canada  some 
visits.  She  goes  much  to  Canada,  and  I  ask  her  why  ? 
She  does  not  tell  me,  but  laughs  in  my  face,  and  shows 
me  much  money,  which  she  ever  brings  back.  I  shake 
my  finger  at  her  so  (illustrating),  and  say  to  her  :  '  You 
cannot  hide  from  Le  Compte,'  which  she  answers  :  '  No, 
I  will  not.  I  go  for  money.  See  ! ' — when  she  would 
shake  many  bills  in  my  face — '  I  make  him  come  down, 
too  ! '" 

"  Did  she  give  you  the  man's  name  ?  " 

"  I  got  it,"  continued  Le  Cc-mpte  proudly,  "  with  much 
wine — and  clairvoyance  1 " 


AGAIN  INTERVIEWS  LE  COMPTE. 

"Oh,  confound  your  eternal  clairvoyance!"  said  L 
"  I  want  the  facts." 

"  But  I  got  facts  with  clairvoyance,"  persisted  the  im- 
perturbable Le  Compte.  "  Little  by  little,  patience  b} 
patience,  at  the  end  I  got  confession  from  her " 

"  Which  was  ?  " 

"  Which  was,"  continued  Le  Compte,  taking  his  time, 
"  that  Mrs.  Winslow  had  got  great  power  over  a  Toronto 
merchant  with  much  wealth  and  great  family,  by  name 
Devereaux." 

"  How  long  had  she  known  him  ?  " 

"  I  know  not  that — five,  four,  three  years,  I  will  think." 

"  Did  you  ever  see  this  Devereaux  ?  " 

"  Oh,  no,  no — never  ;  but  it  is  all  certain  that  I  speak. 
Here,"  continued  Le  Compte,  stepping  nimbly  to  a  sec- 
retary and  producing  a  photograph,  which  he  handed  to 
me,  "  here  you  will  find  the  face  of  Devereaux.  Many, 
many  times  I  have  seen  the  color  of  his  money." 

"  And  does  Mrs.  Winslow  visit  Canada  for  the  purpose 
of  meeting  this  man  still  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  Certain,"  he  answered  promptly ;  then,  after  a  little 
pause,  as  if  doubtful  of  the  propriety  of  what  he  was 
about  to  say,  but  finally  resolving  to  earn  his  money,  if 
possible,  "  and  she  shall  go  there  once  more  in  the  next 
week." 

I  began  to  think  that  the  little  Frenchman  had  really  a 
good  article  for  sale,  and  made  full  memoranda  of  all  the 
main  points.  I  asked  him  some  further  questions,  the  an- 
swers to  which  showed  conclusively  that  Mrs.  Winslow 


AGAIN  INTERVIEWS  LE  COMPTE.         137 

had  made  a  full  confidant  of  him  concerning  the  Cana- 
dian affair,  at  least;  that  she  had  secured  a  vast  amount 
of  money  from  Devereaux  at  the  same  time  that  Lyon 
was  breaking  her  heart ;  and  that,  whether  Devereaux 
was  fated  to  go  through  the  same  final  experience. as  Lyon, 
or  not,  that  he  had  undergone  and  was  undergoing  the 
came  preliminary  experience. 

At  the  close  of  the  interview  I  informed  Le  Compte 
that  his  information  was  quite  satisfactory,  and  that  it  only 
remained  for  me  to  prove  its  correctness  in  order  to  per- 
mit the  payment  of  the  money,  which,  however,  should 
necessarily  be  on  the  additional  condition  that  he  at  once 
secured  for  us  information  as  to  the  date  on  which  the 
madam  was  to  make  her  profitable  little  pleasure-trip  to 
Toronto. 

This  he  agreed  to  do,  and  I  left  him ;  not,  howevei, 
until  he  had  anxiously  requested  to  know  more  about  me, 
and  where  and  when  he  was  to  receive  his  money.  I  told 
him  that  I  was  a  travelling  man ;  that  I  had  no  permanent 
residence,  was  here  and  there  all  over  the  country ;  but 
that  the  moment  we  ascertained  the  truth  of  his  state- 
ments, which  would  be  very  soon,  he  should  be  compen- 
sated. 

I  communicated  to  Lyon  the  facts  elicited  during  this 
interview,  which  completely  overwhelmed  him  with  the 
perfidy  of  hximan  nature  in  general,  and  woman  in  par- 
ticular ;  but  gave  him  considerable  encouragement  con- 
cerning the  progress  of  our  work  ;  and  after  directing 
Bristol,  through  the  post,  to  continue  playing  the  role  of 


138         AGAIN  INTERVIEWS  LE  COMPTE. 

the  banker,  and  to  keep  himself  in  preparation  for  tele- 
graphic instructions,  returned  to  New  York. 

All  this  time  Bristol  was  in  clover.  The  three  old 
maids,  Tabitha,  Amanda,  and  Hannah,  had  looked  him 
over  and  saw  that  he  was  a  good  man  to  tie  to.  Here 
was  a  man,  they  agreed,  who  had  come  in  among  them  a 
perfect  stranger,  and  yet  so  possessed  was  he  of  a  frank, 
winsome  way,  and  such  a  reliable,  honorable  demeanor 
had  he  exhibited  towards  them,  three  lone  and  defenceless 
women  as  they  were,  that  they  had  instinctively  felt  that 
they  could  trust  him ;  nay,  even  more,  they  were  sure 
that  they  could  lean  upon  him,  as  it  were  ;  take  him  into 
their  confidence  ;  share  their  joys  with  him,  rely  on  him 
to  sympathize  with  them  in  all  their  sorrows — in  fact, 
make  of  him  a  sort  of  an  affectionate  Handy  Andy — a 
good-natured  and  attractive  attach^  to  their  affections, 
and  a  profitable  sign-post  to  their  business. 

Neither  had  any  man  ever  before  received  such  signs 
and  tokens  of  a  deep-seated  and  ineradicable  affection. 

Every  morning  he  was  awakened  from  his  virtuous 
slumbers  by  the  delicious  music  of  a  bird -training  organ, 
which  was  wound  in  turn  by  the  maidens  and  set  inside 
his  door,  where,  "in  linked  sweetness  long  drawn  out,"  it 
galloped  over  the  harmonies  with  :  "Then  you'll  remem- 
ber me,"  "  Don't  be  angry  with  me,  Darling,"  "  Who  will 
care  for  Mother  Now  ? "  "  Bonnie  Charlie's  Noo  Awa'," 
"  Annie  Laurie,"  and  like  tender  airs,  until  the  poor  man 
cursed  the  Three  Graces  of  Washington  Hall  restaurant, 
and  the  detective  service,  threadbare. 


AGAIN  INTERVIEWS  LE  COMPTE.         139 

After  this  delicious  reminder  of  languishing  love  he  was 
served  with  a  breakfast  fit  for  a  king,  at  which  Tabitha, 
Amanda,  and  Hannah  in  turn  presided,  and  which  was 
always  graced  by  a  large  bouquet  of  flowers  whose  Ian 
guage  and  fragrance  only  breathed  of  love. 

On  these  occasions  the  conversation  never  failed  to 
turn  upon  Bristol's  merits,  the  old  maids'  loneliness,  and 
the  superiority  of  women  without  physical  beauties,  but 
full  of  soul,  over  those  more  fortunate  in  flesh  but  want- 
ing in  spirituality.  This  was  an  advertisement  for  their 
own  establishment,  and  a  drive  at  Mrs.  Winslow;  and 
Bristol  always  acknowledged  the  force  of  the  argument. 

Whenever  Mrs.  Winslow  took  a  meal  at  the  restaurant, 
which  had  now  become  a  frequent  occurrence,  just  so 
certain  was  Bristol's  corresponding  meal  served  in  the 
little  snuggery,  where,  however  busy  they  might  be,  one 
of  the  ancient  ladies  kept  him  good  company  and  quick- 
ened his  digestion  with  sparkling  humor  and  witty  jest, 
such  only  as  can  course  through  the  flowery  avenues  of 
an  aged  spinster's  mind,  made  fresh  and  blooming  by  the 
wild  fancy  of  the  second  childhood  of  love's  young 
dream ;  and  at  night,  when  the  busy  day  was  over  and  the 
vulgar  public  shut  out  by  the  well-bolted  front  door,  the 
little  snuggery  always  held  the  same  wise  old  company, 
where  Bristol,  ripe  in  age  and  experience,  passed  an  hour 
with  the  ladies  over  tea  and  sweetmeats,  or  wine  and 
waffles,  surrounded  by  the  thrilled  and  blushing  trio,  who, 
preparatory  to  retiring,  discovered  to  him  as  many  ol 
theii  combined  charms  as  modesty  would  allow,  and  in 


140        AGAIN  INTERVIEWS  LE  COMPTE. 

their  tender  hearts  built  plans  for  the  future  when  they 
would  bodily  possess  Bristol — at  least  one  of  them,  if  the 
laws  of  society  did  prevent  his  making  a  sort  of  blessed 
trinity  of  himself  for  their  benefit. 

This  course  of  procedure  angered  Mrs.  Winslow.  ffff 
heart  also  yearned  for  the  retired  banker,  and  when  she 
saw  how  securely  he  was  being  kept  from  her  grasp  by 
the  wily  old  maids,  she  immediately  began  preparing 
a  plan  the  execution  of  which  would  foil  them,  and 
eventually  give  her  the  coveted  game  all  to  herself.  To 
this  end  she  walked  to  and  fro  past  the  restaurant,  and 
finally  attracted  the  attention  of  Bristol  while  the  old 
ladies  were  busily  engaged  elsewhere,  and  motioned  to 
him  in  so  imperative  a  way  and  with  such  earnestness, 
that  he  slipped  out  of  the  place,  and  at  a  careful  distance 
followed  her  in  the  direction  of  the  Falls  Field  Garden, 
where  lovers  oftsn  met  and  where  there  v/as  no  danger  of 
interruption. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

Mr.  Bangs  en  the  Trail  in  the  West,— Terre  Haute  and  its  Spit  itualis'a, 
— Mrs.  Dock's  Boarding-house. — The  Nettleton  Family  broken  tp. 
— Back  at  the  Michigan  Exchange. — Mother  Blake's  Recital.— 
Through  Chicago  to  Wisconsin. — A  disheartening  Story. — Tha 
practical  result  of  Spiritualism. 

QUPERINTENDENT  BANGS  arrived  at  Terre 
*— '  Haute  in  good  time,  and  found  himself  in  one  of 
the  greatest  centres  of  Spiritualism  in  the  world. 

The  very  air  seemed  charged  and  surcharged  with  the 
permeating  power.  People  watching  incoming  trains 
had  a  listless,  far-away  look,  as  though  watching  for  the 
dim  spirits  which  were  constantly  expected  from  the  other 
land,  but  which  never  came.  The  clamorous  cabmen 
raised  their  sing-song  voices  as  if  only  expecting,  though 
more  than  desiring,  only  shadowy  freight.  The  regular 
loiterers  had  long  hair,  cadaverous  faces,  and  large,  lus- 
trous eyes,  and  where  females  appeared,  they  were  gener- 
ally in  pinched  faces,  flowing  hair,  long  pantaloons  and 
short  gowns,  as  if  ready  for  a  grand  Amazon-march  upon 
the  gullible  public. 

On  the  way  to  the  hotel  every  other  stairway  held  the 
sign  of  one  or  more  clairvoyants,  mediums,  or  astrologists, 
and  every  manner  of  business  seemed  to  have  the  ghostly 


142     BANGS  ON  THE  TRAIL  IN  THE  WEST. 

trail  upon  it.  The  pedestrians  upon  the  streets,  the 
men  at  their  counters,  the  workmen  at  their  trades,  the 
women  at  their  various  employments,  the  common  labor- 
ers at  their  most  menial  toil,  each  and  every,  from  the 
highest  to  the  lowest,  seemed  to  have  a  weary,  listless  air, 
as  if  constant  wrestling  with  communicating  spirits  health- 
ier and  more  robust  than  themselves,  had  left  a  chronic 
exhaustion  upon  and  with  them. 

At  the  hotel  the  register  was  thin  and  ghostly,  the  office 
was  deserted  and  dreary,  the  meals  were  served  in  a  list- 
less, dreamy  way,  as  if  the  guests  were  ghosts  and  the 
waiters  not  so  good.  In  fact,  the  whole  place  and  every- 
thing in  it  was  tinctured  with  the  common  craziness,  and 
gave  the  healthy,  wide-awake  stranger  the  impression  of 
having  suddenly  come  upon  a  community  of  mild  lunatics, 
who  were  quite  happy  in  the  conviction  that  the'y  were 
directing  the  affairs  of  both  earth  and  heaven,  and  estab- 
lishing pleasant,  intramural  relations  between  their  chosen 
Hoosier  City  and  the  beautiful  City  beyond  the  River  ;  all 
of  which  would  be  very  pleasant  and  profitable  if  anybody 
had  ever  come  back  from  the  undiscovered  country  to 
give  us  its  geographical  outlines,  define  its  limits,  or 
explain  any  profit  that  has  accrued  from  becoming  a 
monomaniac  on  a  subject  that  has  no  relation  whatever 
to  the  common  needs  and  duties  of  life,  and  has  never 
been  known  to  give  to  the  world  or  its  society  a  single 
healthful,  helpful  nature  or  intellect. 

Mr.  Bangs  was  neither  pleased  with  the  hotel,  or  able 
to  get  much  information  while  there,  and  consequently 


BANGS  ON  THE  TRAIL  IN  THE  WEST.      143 

changed  his  quarters  to  Mrs.  Deck's  boarding-hoi  se,  a 
long,  rambling  brick  building,  that  at  one  time  had  been 
a  fine  residence  after  the  Southern  style.  It  was  covered 
with  moss  and  vines,  and  had  a  snug,  pleasant  appearance, 
fchile  everything  about  the  house  had  an  air  of  quaint, 
attractive  restfulness.  Every  person  who  has  ever  been 
in  Terre  Haute  for  a  few  days'  stay,  as  Bangs  was,  will 
remember  the  genial  old  soul  who  presided  over  the  des- 
tinies of  this  particular  boarding-house — the  fat,  garrulous, 
whimpering,  but  kind-hearted  Mrs.  Deck ;  her  charming 
daughter,  the  blooming  Belle  Ruggles,  by  a  former  and 
more  fortunate  marriage,  with  her  fair  face  and  wealth  of 
golden  hair,  flitting  about  the  house — which  was  also  the 
abode  of  spirits,  mysterious  materializations  and  unex. 
plainable  rappings — like  a  good,  sensible  spirit  that  she 
was,  and  letting  her  good  sense  and  kind  ways  into  the 
cobwebbed  rooms  and  dark  places,  like  an  ever-changing 
though  constant  flood  of  sunlight ;  and  "  Old  Deck,"  as  the 
boys  called  him,  who  believed  in  another  kind  ol  spirits 
still,  and,  when  opportunity  offered,  became  so  full  of 
them  that  he  held  a  grand  and  extended  "  seance"  on  his 
own  account. 

People  not  only  sought  Mrs.  Deck  for  good  board,  but 
for  reliable  neighborhood  gossip  ;  and  Mr.  Bangs,  learning 
of  her  reputation  as  a  repository  of  news  as  well  as  a  lib- 
eral dispenser  of  creature  comforts,  changed  his  quarters 
from  the  hotel  to  her  place,  and  found  from  a  few  days  in 
her  company  that  she  was  a  sort  of  historian,  having  at 
her  tongue's  end  numberless  incidents  connected  with 


144     BANGS  ON  THE  TRAIL  IN  THE  WEST. 

the  growth  of  the  city  and  the  family  relations  of  every 
class  of  people  in  or  near  it. 

He  learned  from  her  where  the  Hosfords  had  lived, 
b"Jt  could  get  nothing  particular  regarding  the  woman 
herself,  as  Mrs.  Deck  had  never  seen  her,  and  only  knew 
of  het  by  reputation,  which  she  was  sure  had  been  good. 

Mr.  Bangs  at  once  went  into  the  country  neighborhood 
where  the  Hosfords  had  lived,  and  found  that  they  had 
removed  to  some  point  in  Wisconsin,  near  Sheboygan 
Falls,  the  neighbors  had  heard,  but  he  could  not  find  that 
there  had  been  a  single  trace  of  trouble  at  Terre  Haute. 
All  those  who  had  known  them  spoke  of  them  both  in  the 
highest  terms.  They  had  both  been  staunch  members  of 
the  Methodist  Church,  and  though  plain,  quiet  farmers, 
had  been  considered  prominent  people  in  the  neighbor- 
hood. 

Hosford  was  remembered  as  a  slow-going,  easy-condi- 
tioned, good-natured  fellow,  but  as  honest  as  the  day  was 
long ;  and  no  one  had  ever  known  aught  against  his  wife, 
save  that  some  of  the  old  gossips  thought  that  she  had 
brought  too  much  jewelry  and  fine  clothing  into  the 
neighborhood  with  her.  This,  however,  she  had  judi- 
ciously kept  out  of  sight  as  much  as  possible,  and,  as  far 
as  could  be  learned,  had  led  in  every  respect  an  exem- 
plary life. 

From  this  point  Mr.  Bangs  proceeded  to  Kalamazoo. 
The  Nettleton  family  were  gone,  no  one  knew  where  ; 
but  here  he  was  told  of  the  escapade  to  Detroit  of  Lilly 
Nettleton  years  before,  enough  of  which  had  floated  bach 


3ANGS  OA'  Chi  r.hsitL  /W  THE  WEST. 

to  V,ei  native  p?ace — coupled  wi:h  the  old  people's  later 
sorrows,  which  were  largely  dilated  upon — to  account  for 
the  breaking  up  of  the  family  and  its  meiube/s  being  scat- 
tered broadcast. 

Accidentally  at  Kalamazoo,  in  conversation,  with  the 
clerk  at  the  Kalamazoo  House,  who  had  formerly  been 
employed  at  Detroit,  and  who  was  "up  to  snuff, '  as  he 
termed  it,  Bangs  learned  of  Mother  Blake,  who  had  in- 
formed the  clerk  of  Eland's  unfortunate  experience  with 
one  Lilly  Mercer.  He  also  got  from  the  clerk  a  descrip- 
tion of  Mother  Blake  sufficiently  comprehensive  to  enable 
him  to  find  her  if  she  were  still  at  Detroit,  where  h<:  at 
once  proceeded. 

On  arriving  in  that  city  he  went  to  the  Michigan  Ex- 
change Hotel,  and,  through  the  courtesy  of  the  proprie- 
tors, was  allowed  to  look  up  the  records  of  the  house. 

It  was  fifteen  years  previous  that  the  man  who  said  he 
was  "from  Bland"  met  Lilly  Nettleton  at  the  depot  and 
had  taken  her  to  the  Michigan  Exchange  to  meet  the 
reverend  circuit-rider  ;  but  after  he  had  got  at  the  dusty 
records  he  found  on  the  register,  evidently  in  the  hand- 
writing of  a  clerk :  "  Lilly  Mercer,  Buffalo,,  Room  34," 
under  date  of  August  15,  1856,  and  also  the  names  of 
"  R.  J.  Hosford,  Terre  Haute,  Room  98,"  and  "  Lilly 
Nettleton,  Kalamazoo,  Room  34,"  in  a  cramped  and  al- 
niDst  illegible  hand  under  date  of  November  28th  of  the 
same  year  ;  and  on  the  next  day's  page,  in  the  same 
hand  :  "  R.  J.  Hosford  and  wife,  Terre  Haute,  Room  34." 

The  next  step  was  to  hunt  up  Mother  Blake,  which  was 
7 


146     BANGS  ON  THE  TRAIL  IN  THE  WEST. 

not  a  very  hard  matter,  as  women  of  her  character  gener- 
ally run  in  the  same  noisome  rut,  until  they  are  swept 
from  the  great  highway  with  other  pestilences  of  life,  and 
pass  from  bitter  existence  and  infamous  memory ;  and 
after  one  or  two  evenings  running  about  among  the 
demi-monde  he  found  the  woman — quite  an  old  lady  now, 
but  nearly  as  well-kept  and  quite  as  jolly  as  ever,  presid- 
ing over  a  group  of  soiled  divinities  at  a  neat  retreat  on 
Griswold  Street. 

Through  the  purchase  of  a  vile  bottle  of  wine  the  old 
lady's  lips  were  opened,  and  her  tongue  began  a  perfect 
gallop  about  Bland  and  Lilly  Mercer. 

She  gave  the  latter  the  reputation  of  being  one  of  the 
shrewdest  women  she  had  ever  met,  and  laughed  until  the 
tears  came  into  her  eyes  over  the  way  in  which  she  had 
"  played  it "  on  Bland,  who  had  picked  her  up  for  a  fool, 
and  had  himself  been  terribly  sold.  Then  she  launched 
into  vituperations  towards  the  young  minister,  who  had  ac- 
cused her  of  "  standing  in  "  with  the  girl  in  the  robbery, 
when  she  had  been  as  badly  fooled  as  himself.  Whatever 
she  had  been  and  was,  she  said,  there  wasn't  a  dishonest 
hair  in  her  head ;  which  assertion  Bangs  had  reason  to 
believe  to  be  literally  true,  as  he  noticed  that  she  wore  a 
wig. 

She  then  in  great  glee  told  him  how  she  had  "  got 
even"  with  Bland  by  "giving  him  away"  to  the  papers, 
which  had  soon  taken  the  feathers  out  of  his  cap,  she  re- 
marked with  much  satisfaction,  broken  his  mother's  heart, 
who  died  and  willed  all  her  property  to  the  good  cause  of 


BANGS  ON  THE  TRAIL  IN  THE  WEST.      147 

furnishing  the  heathen  with  an  occasional  fat  missionary 
steak,  and  finally  drove  Bland  out  of  Detroit,  when  he 
had  gone  to  some  Eastern  city  and,  under  another  name, 
with  his  fine  manners,  airy  ways,  and  good  clothes,  was 
playing  it  fine  on  some  old  Spiritualist  millionaire  out 
our  way. 

When  the  vision  of  the  magnificent  Harcout — which  was 
almost  a  constant  one,  as  he  rushed  into  my  office  on  the 
slightest  pretext  whatever,  big  with  his  own  importance 
and  unusually  full  of  enthusiasm  over  "  our  case " — 
flitted  before  my  eyes,  it  gave  to  me.  additional  ro- 
mance in  the  work,  in  the  sense  that  here,  after  many 
years,  the  man  whom  Mrs.  Winslow  in  her  early  career 
had  so  magnificently  duped,  had  unconsciously  become 
one  of  her  most  relentless  pursuers. 

But  it  was  a  matter  for  speculation  whether  Harcout 
knew  her  to  be  the  person  who  had  so  neatly  taken  him 
in,  or  whether  he  had  risen  to  this  condition  of  fervor  in 
his  work  merely  to  impress  Lyon  with  his  useful  friend 
ship.  I  inclined  to  the  latter  opinion,  however,  as  I  was 
satisfied  that  if  he  had  known  with  whom  he  was  dealing 
he  would  have  given  up  all  expectations  of  continued  favor 
and  patronage  from  Lyon,  and  left  Rochester  as  hastily 
as  he  had,  as  Bland,  departed  from  Detroit. 

Bangs  also  asked  her  if  she  had  ever  seen  Lilly  Mercer 
since  that  time. 

Of  course  she  had  seen  her,  just  at  the  close  of  t.he 
war.  One  day  as  she  was  crossing  the  river  in  the  ferry, 
coming  back  from  Windsor,  she  had  met  her  face  to  face. 


148     BANGS  ON  THE  TRAIL  IN  THE  WEST. 

Mother  Blake  said  that  she  seemed  wonderfully  glad  to 
meet  her,  and  wanted  to  borrow  some  money,  which  she 
had  refused.  She  then  gave  hei  her  card,  upon  which  she 
was  called  some  Madam  or  other,  a  clairvoyant,  and  she 
had  some*  shabby  rooms  on  Wisconsin  Street,  near  the 
theatres.  She  was  still  young  and  pretty,  Mother  Blake 
said,  and  she  easily  persuaded  her  to  come  and  live  with 
her,  which  she  did,  "and,"  continued  the  old  woman, 
with  a  withering  look  at  the  girls,  "  low  down  as  she  was, 
she  made  more  money  in  a  day  than  any  half-dozen 
women  I  ever  had."  The  old  lady  further  said  that  she 
had  only  remained  with  her  long  enough  to  get  some  fine 
clothing  and  money  together,  when  she  started  for  the 
East. 

She  had  never  seen  her  since,  but  she  had  heard  that 
she  had  several  times  passed  through  the  city  towards 
Chicago,  always  returning  to  the  East,  however,  and  also 
always  richly  dressed,  and  having  every  appearance  of 
living  in  clover.  "  Let  her  alone  to  get  along,"  concluded 
the  old  lady ;  "  she'll  live  like  a  queen  where  another,  a 
million  times  better  than  she,  would  starve." 

From  Detroit,  Bangs  proceeded  to  Chicago,  and  from 
thence  to  Sheboygan  Falls.  Wisconsin,  where  it  required 
but  a  few  minutes'  inquiries  to  put  him  on  track  of  the 
Hosfords. 

Hosford  had  come  there  from  Terre  Haute  several 
years  ago,  bought  a  fine  farm  a  few  miles  out,  and  had,  as 
far  as  could  be  ascertained,  lived  a  comfortatle  sort  of  life 
for  about  a  year,  when  trouble  began. 


BANGS  ON  THE  TRAIL  IN  THE  WEST.      149 

Mrs.  Hosford,  from  the  good  member  of  society  which 
she  was  supposed  to  be,  or  really  had  been,  suddenly  em- 
braced Spiritualism,  and  began  running  about  the  country 
with  any  old  vagabond  tramp  of  this  kind  that  came 
along  ;  and  from  the  hard-working,  economical  woman  she 
had  been,  she  had  become  a  spendthrift,  a  drunkard,  and 
a  prostitute.  Hosford  had  moved  away,  and  after  consid- 
erable time  and  inquiry,  it  was  ascertained  that  he  had 
gone  to  Oskaloosa,  in  Iowa,  determined  to  get  away  from 
old  associations  as  far  as  possible,  and  had  taken  their 
three  children  with  him,  which  she  had  vainly  endeav- 
ored to  secure. 

Bangs  spent  several  days  here  in  hunting  up  evidence. 
There  was  plenty  of  it — mountains  of  it.  Merchants  and 
other  business  men  of  the  town  would  button-hole  him, 
take  him  into  some  retired  place  and  tell  him  how  this 
man  had  been  caught  in  flagrante  delicto  with  Mrs.  Hos- 
ford, how  that  man  had  confessed  to  having  been  caught 
in  her  toils,  and  how  some  other  person  had  been  made  a 
suspicious  person  in  the  society  of  the  place,  through 
some  peccadillo  with  the  dashing  Madam. 

All  these  persons  referred  to  told  of  all  the  other  per- 
sons who  had  divulged  their  weaknesses,  'until  it  seemed 
to  Mr.  Bangs,  after  remaining  a  few  days  in  the  vicinity, 
that  the  entire  male  portion  of  the  community  were  im- 
plicated. But  securing  promises  of  depositions  was  quite 
another  thing.  Mr.  A.  was  a  married  man,  belonged  to 
the  church,  had  extensive  business  relations,  and,  while 
he  would  like  to  assist  in  the  noble  effort  to  show  up  the 


1 50     BA  KGS  ON  THE  TRAIL  IN  THE  WEST. 

infamous  woman,  he  really  could  not,  you  see,  place  hin». 
•self  in  so  delicate  a  position. 

Mr.  B.  was  not  a  member  of  any  church,  but  had  the 
reputation  of  a  high  order  of  morality.  While  he  could 
not  but  acknowledge  the  justice  of  the  request,  and  hoped 
that  Mr.  Bangs  would  have  no  trouble  in  securing  all  lie 
evidence  he  needed,  which  would  be  a  very  easy  matter, 
still  he  did  not  see  how  he  could  consistently  compromise 
himself  by  going  on  record  as  a  common  adulterer. 

Mr.  C.  was  neither  a  churchman,  nor  did  he  claim  a 
high  order  of  morality ;  but  if  he  had  good  luck,  he  would 
in  the  spring  marry  a  very  pretty  girl  of  the  village,  and 
if  she  should  ascertain  that  he  had  previously  been  so 
generous  with  his  affections  in  another  direction,  he  was 
satisfied  that  his  dream  of  future  bliss  would  be  dissolved 
in  thin  air  at  once. 

And  so  on  through  the  entire  village  directory.  There 
were  pointed  out  scores  of  persons  who  had  the  knowledge 
desired,  were  all  willing  to  help  him  secure  some  other 
person  for  sacrifice,  and  all  equally  enthusiastically  hoped 
that  her  suit  against  Lyon  would  end  in  an  ignominious 
failure ;  but  declined,  with  thanks,  the  proud  honor  of  ex- 
posing their  o-;rn  weaknesses,  for  even  the  extreme  honor 
of  assis  ing  in  hv:  downfall. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

A  Chicago  Divorce  '  Shyster." — Hosford  found. — His  pathetic  Narra- 
tive.— More  Facts. 

MR.  BANGS  was  in  no  hurry  to  leave  Sheboygan 
Falls,  as  he  found  that  he  was  in  a  fruitful  field 
for  information,  and  he  continued  garnering  it  in  and 
stacking  it  away  industriously. 

It  appeared  that  Hosford's  wife,  not  content  with  dis- 
gracing his  name,  had  soon  developed  her  old  and  never- 
satisfied  greed  for  money  and  any  sort  of  power  that  might 
be  wielded  mercilessly ;  and  it  was  evident  that  she  had 
money,  for  she  immediately  began  dressing  with  much  ele- 
gance and  travelling  about  the  country  extensively.  The 
probability  was  that  she  had  still  retained  the  money 
stolen  from  Bland,  and  had  also,  during  her  years  of 
economy,  carefully  added  to  it  until  she  had  secured  a 
large  sum,  as  she  had  occasion  to  use  a  good  deal  of 
money  in  a  certain  transaction,  which  quite  thoroughly 
illustrated  her  unprincipled  and  revengeful  character. 

When  Hosford  had  removed  from  Indiana  to  Wiscon- 
sin, he  had  purchased  a  larger  and  a  finer  farm,  and  had 
been  obliged  to  give  a  mortgage  upon  it  for  several  thou- 
sand dollars,  to  be  used  in  making  necessary  improve 


152        A  CHICAGO  DIVORCE  " SHYSTKP? 

ments.  This  had  been  paid  off  with  the  exception  ol 
about  three  thousand  dollars,  which  amount,  as  soon  ai 
Mrs.  Hosford  had  begun  making  it  lively  for  her  hr.sband, 
and  had  left  him  for  the  purpose  of  wedding  Spiritualism 
and  all  that  the  term  implies,  she  immediately  produced 
and  bought  up  the  mortgage,  placing  it  in  ex-Senator 
Carpenter's  hands  for  foreclosure;  but  poor  Hosford, 
struggling  under  his  heavy  load  of  desertion,  disgrace  and 
persecution,  managed  to  raise  the  money  and  take  it 
up,  thus  preventing  the  villainous  woman  from  turning 
him  out  of  his  own  home,  which  she  had  deserted  and 
desecrated. 

This  had  proven  too  much  for  even  the  patient  Hos- 
ford to  endure,  and  he  had  set  about  getting  a  divorce. 
But  this  was  a  harder  thing  to  do  than  he  had  anticipated. 
Although  he  was  in  possession  of  nearly  as  much  informa- 
tion as  Bangs  had  secured,  it  was  impossible  to  obtain 
definite  evidence  against  her.  Her  terrible  temper,  her 
unscrupulousness,  her  unbounded  and  almost  Jevilish 
shrewdness,  and  the  swift  and  sudden  principle  of  re- 
venge that  seemed  only  equalled  by  her  greed  for  money, 
compelled  thorough  awe  and  fear  among  those  from  whom 
Hosford  had  expected  assistance,  and  the  result  was  ha 
did  not  get  it,  and  he  was  obliged  to  let  the  suit  for 
divorce  go  by  default.  After  this  every  petty  annoyance 
that  could  occur  to  the  woman's  mind  was  visited  on  him, 
She  would  write  him  threatening  letters  ;  forward  him  ex 
press  packages  of  a  nature  to  both  humiliate  him  and 
cause  him  fear ;  run  him  in  debt  at  every  place  where  she 


A  CHICAGO  DIVORCE  "SHYSTER."        153 

could  force,  or  "  confidence,"  merchants  into  trusting  her  ; 
hire  a  carriage  and  secure  some  male  companion  as  vile 
as  she,  with  whom  she  would  proceed  to  her  old  home, 
and  in  the  presence  of  her  agonized  husband  and  help- 
less, innocent  children,  threaten  him  with  every  conceiv- 
able form  of  punishment,  including  death,  and  engage  in 
profanity  and  drunken  orgies  that  would  have  disgraced 
the  lowest  brothel  in  the  land. 

Mr.  Bangs  learned  that  after  this  sort  of  procedure  for 
a  considerable  period,  she  suddenly  disappeared.  Hos- 
ford  took  this  opportunity  to  dispose  of  his  farm  and 
remove  with  his  motherless  family  to  Iowa.  Mr.  Bangs 
could  not  learn  at  Sheboygan  what  the  woman's  history 
had  been  during  that  period,  but  vague  rumors  had 
floated  back  to  the  place  that  she  had  become  an  army- 
follower,  which  was  quite  probable  ;  but  at  the  close  of 
the  war  she  had  assumed  the  role  of  an  abandoned  adven- 
turess, and  had  wandered  about  the  Pacific  Slope  until 
she  had  made  too  extensive  an  acquaintance  for  her 
safety  in  that  section,  and  from  thence  had  wandered 
through  the  country  towards  the  East,  seeking  for  any 
kind  of  prey ;  and  being  hunted  from  place  to  place, 
under  countless  aliases,  until  she  had  in  a  measure 
retrieved  herself,  as  far  as  money  matters  were  concerned, 
and  being  careful  of  herself  physically,  had  regained  her 
good  looks  which  her  former  terrible  dissipation  had 
almost  destroyed,  and  had  eventually  so  insinuated  herself 
intc  the  affections  of  a  rich  somebody  that  she  had  been 
furnished  money  with  which  to  secure  a  divorce  from 
7* 


154        A  CHICAGO  DIVORCE  "SHYSTER" 

HosOrd,  which  had  been  granted  in  Chicago  about  a 
year  and  a  half  previous  ;  when  she  had  come  on  to 
Sheboygan  Falls  and  while  there  made  her  boasts  that  she 
would  soon  marry  one  of  the  richest  men  in  New  York 
State,  as  soon  as  his  wife  died,  which  wouldn't  be  very 
long  she  had  hoped  and  believed.  Besides  this,  the 
rumors  went,  she  had  failed  to  marry  that  richest  some- 
body in  New  York  State,  and  papers  had  been  seen  con- 
taining an  account  of  the  woman  and  Lyon,  her  suit 
against  him,  and  the  fact,  which  particularly  interested 
her  old  neighbors,  that  she  had  engaged  no  lawyer  what- 
ever, but  had  drawn  and  filed  the  bill  of  complaint  her- 
self. 

In  fact,  the  entire  community  were  in  a  state  of  great 
excitement  over  the  woman  who  was  also  creating  much 
excitement  in  the  East,  and  each  person  had  his  or  her 
story  to  tell  of  some  striking  peculiarity  or  previous 
adventure  of  the  madam's,  and  it  required  a  great 
amount  of  sifting  and  careful  work  for  Mr.  Bangs  to 
secure  what  he  came  for. 

After  a  few  days,  however,  he  had  worked  so  judi- 
ciously that  he  had  got  pledges  from  several  responsible 
citizens  that  they  would  give  their  depositions  as  to  her 
general  character  and  reputation  for  chastity,  or  rather, 
want  of  it,  whenever  a  commission  should  be  forwarded 
to  a  certain  lawyer  of  the  city  whom  he  engaged  to  take 
them, 

Fi  3m  here  he  at  once  proceeded  to  Iowa,  only  stop 
ping  at  Chicago  long  enough  to  secure  a  transcript  of  the 


A  CHICAGO  DIVORCE  "SHYSTER."        155 

divorce  which  had  been  granted  in  that  city  so  noted  for 
divorces,  that  one  shyster  alone  secured  seven  hundred 
and  seventy-seven  of  these  desirable  instruments  from  the 
period  between  the  great  fire  and  the  close  of  the  year 
1875,  from  whence  he  immediately  proceeded  to  Oska- 
loosa,  where  he  soon  became  acquainted  with  parties  who 
had  known  the  woman,  though  under  as  many  different 
aliases  as  she  had  visited  cities  of  that  State. 

She  had  invariably  advertised  herself  as  a  medium  and 
female  physician,  and  had  swindled  every  one  with  whom 
she  had  come  in  contact,  from  the  editor  to  errand-boy? 
from  one  end  of  the  State  to  the  other,  and  had  gained 
even  a  worse  reputation  there  than  in  Wisconsin.  He 
ascertained  that  Hosford  was  not  living  at  Oskaloosa,  and 
before  going  through  the  same  experience  in  listening  to 
countless  tales  of  the  woman's  depravity  as  he  had  in 
Wisconsin,  he  decided  to  proceed  to  his  place,  which  was 
near  Monroe,  twenty-nine  miles  distant.  He  procured  a 
conveyance  and  drove  out  to  Hosford' s  farm,  arriving  at 
the  place  about  dusk,  where,  after  he  had  stated  his  busi- 
ness, he  was  invited  to  remain  over  night,  and  made  com- 
fortable. 

Although  a  farmer,  Hosford  had  everything  cozy  and 
pleasant  about  him,  had  married  into  a  very  respectable 
family,  and  had  secured  a  most  agreeable  wife,  who  was 
caring  for  his  children — two  bright  girls  and  a  boy,  fiom 
twelve  to  fifteen  years  of  age — with  almost  the  tenderness 
and  affection  of  an  own  mother.  After  supper  Hosford 
sent  his  family  into  another  part  of  the  house,  and  ex- 


I5<>        A  CHICAGO  DIVORCE  "SHYSTER" 

pressed  himself  as  ready  to  give  any  information  in  hii 
power. 

He  had  not  yet  heard  of  the  suit  against  Lyon,  and 
when  Mr.  Bangs  told  him,  he  seemed  astonished  beyond 
expression,  and  after  a  little  time  said  that  he  had  often 
tried  to  think  of  some  Satanic  scheme  that  the  woman 
would  not  dare  to  undertake  if  it  occurred  to  her,  but  he 
had  failed  to  imagine  any.  But  with  the  record,  especially 
for  personal  purity,  behind  her  that  Mrs.  Winslow  pos- 
sessed, he  could  not  but  be  particularly  startled  and  sur- 
prised at  her  supreme  self-possession  and  audacity.  After 
a  little  further  desultory  conversation,  Mr.  Bangs  told  him 
that  the  Agency  had  all  the  necessary  information  regard- 
ing their  early  career,  and  of  their  subsequent  history  up 
to  the  time  when  they  left  Terre  Haute,  and  probably  a 
great  deal  after  that  time,  and  asked  Hosford  if  he  would 
be  willing  to  go  over  the  whole  matter,  giving  the  outlines 
of  their  troubles,  what  brought  them  about,  and  what  had 
been  their  result. 

He  was  the  same  old  Dick  Hosford — abrupt,  kind, 
generous,  with  perhaps  some  of  the  old  "  forty-niner " 
roughness  worn  off  and  a  toning-down  of  his  whole  na- 
ture, that  his  keen  sorrows  had  given  him  ;  but  he  was 
quite  as  impulsively  reckless,  and  just  as  impulsively  ten- 
der, and  he  began  his  story  in  a  kind  of  weary  way,  that, 
to  one  knowing  his  history,  was  really  sad  and  touching. 

"  Well,  sir,"  said  Hosford,  "  I  knew  the  gal  had  been 
doing  wrong  at  Detroit,  but  for  all  these  hard  years  in 
Californy  I  had  been  working,  savin',  and  goin'  thnmgb 


A  CHICAGO  DIVORCE  "  SHYSTER."        1 57 

danger  with  the  purty  pictur  ahead  that  the  bright  girl  I 
had  left  by  the  river  would  one  day  make  me  a  happy 
home.  I  worked  like  a  nigger,  and  it  was  sometimes  up 
and  sometimes  down  with  me  out  thar — mostly  down, 
though.  But  I  struck  a  good  lead  one  day,  and  worked 
close  till  it  panned  dry.  I  didn't  have  much  aside  some 
of  them  fellows  out  thar ;  but  instead  of  runnin'  it  down 
my  throat,  givin'  it  to  cut-throat  gamblers,  or  flingin'  it 
away  on  vile  women,  I  started  full  chisel  for  the  States. 
I  come  to  Terre  Haute,  as  you  know,  and  spent  nearly 
all  my  dust  buyin'  a  little  farm.  Then  I  started  fur  Net- 
tle ton's,  whar  I  expected  heaven — but  found  hell! 

"  It  bust  me  all  up  like,  and  I  wandered  about  the  old 
place  jest  as  though  I  had  went  to  sleep  happy  and  waked 
up  in  a  big  grave  that  I  couldn't  get  out  of.  The  old 
folks  themselves  wasn't  any  more  cut  up  than  me  ;  but  I 
thought  as  how  I  wasn't  doin'  anything  to  help  matters, 
'n  only  making  them  more  trouble.  So  I  thought  and 
thought  what  to  do,  and  finally  made  up  to  go  a-huntiu' 
her,  'n  told  the  old  folks  I  wouldn't  come  back  'thout  her. 

"  It  all  come  over  me  then  what  she  was  doing ;  but  I 
only  thought  to  get  her  back  for  the  old  folks'  sake 
Well,  sir,  I  went  to  Chicago,  and  hung  around  that  dog- 
goned  city  fur  a  week  'r  two ;  but  no  Lil.  Then  I  come 
back,  lookin*  everywhere,  askin'  everybody,  an'  peerin" 
into  every  place  ;  but  no  Lil.  Fir  .ally,  I  got  to  Detroit, 
and  I  went  into  every  one  of  those  places  where  I  feared 
she  might  be  ;  but  no  Lil.  Do  you  know  where  I  found 
her  ?  " 


158       A  CHICAGO  DIVORCE  " SHYSTER* 

Mr.  Bangs  told  him  he  did,  and  how. 

"  Well,  sir,"  continued  Hosford,  "  I  was  utterly  dis- 
couraged, 'n  was  goin'  to  go  back  and  sell  the  place,  and 
get  away  from  the  country  altogether ;  but  when  I  saw 
her  all  so  rosy,  fixed  up  so  gay,  and  got  to  be  such  a 
grand  sort  of  a  woman,  I  just  caved  in  altogether  and 
wanted  her  for  myself  more  'n  ever.  I  thought  she  had  a 
good  heart,  and  that  I  loved  her  enough  to  always  be  kind 
to  her — as  God  knows  I  was — and  thought  that  might 
keep  her  right.  I  never  asked  her  a  question,  'n  wouldn't 
let  the  old  folks.  Everybody  makes  mistakes,  ye  know, 
and  it  kind  of  makes  people  wild  to  let  'em  know  you 
know  it,  and  to  badger  'em  with  questions.  Well,  she  had 
lots  of  good  sense,  and  took  off  her  finery  before  we  got 
to  the  old  folks',  who  were  'most  crazy  with  joy  that  we  had 
come  back  together  as  man  and  wife.  We  stayed  at  Net- 
tleton's  a  few  days,  then  went  direct  to  Terre  Haute.  I 
don't  believe  a  man  ever  had  a  better  wife  'n  she  was  to 
to  me  while  we  lived  there.  We  never  mentioned  the  old 
times,  and  were  very  happy,  as  the  children  kept  comin' 
along.  The  silks  and  jewels  she  got  at  Detroit  were  all 
put  away,  'n  I  never  saw  'em,  till  one  day  I  come  home 
unexpected  and  found  the  children  shut  out  in  the  yard, 
and  my  wife  afore  the  lookin' -glass,  all  rigged  out  in  her 
old  finery,  an'  lookin'  herself  over  and  over,  while  countin* 
a  big  pile  of  money  that  I  had  never  seen  before.  I  got  a 
good  look  at  her,  but  went  whistlin'  about  the  house  for 
a  long  time,  so  as  to  let  on  that  I  didn't  see  her,  and  to 
give  her  time  to  get  her  old  clothes  on  agin. 


A  CHICAGO  DIVORCE  "SHYSTER."        159 

"  It  seemed  as  if  right  there  and  then  the  clouds  begun 
hangin'  over  the  house.  I  didn't  say  a  word  about  it,  and 
made  everything  as  cheery  as  I  could ;  but  begur  tryin' 
to  think  what  had  set  her  goin',  and  after  a  few  days  found 
that  she  had  been  attendin'  some  of  those  Spiritual  meet 
ings  down  to  town,  and  one  of  the  Doctors  come  up  to 
our  place  and  stayed  a  few  days,  representin'  himself  as  a 
good  Methodist. 

"  I  knew  it  wouldn't  do  to  stay  there  any  longer,  an'  so 
we  moved  to  Wisconsin,  I  makin'  her  think  it  was  healthier 
'n  where  they  had  no  ager.  Well,  sir,  after  we  got  there 
everything  was  pleasant  and  happy  agi'n  till  the  Spiritual- 
ists begun  overrunnin'  that  country  too,  and  she  com- 
menced her  tantrums  at  once.  I  didn't  oppose  her  goin' 
to  them  meetin's,  but  told  her  I  hoped  she  wouldn't  get 
mixed  up  with  'em  too  much  ;  but  'twas  no  use.  The 
devil  had  come  into  the  house  in  that  shape,  and  though 
I  prayed  hard  that  it  might  leave,  it  got  worse  and 
worse,  till  the  children  were  'most  crazy  with  fright  and 
sorrow.  I  didn't  know  what  to  do.  She  run  me  in 
debt,  slandered  me,  disgraced  me.  She  would  not  only 
run  about  the  country  with  those  terrible  people,  but  she 
took  to  her  old  life,  which  was  worse  than  everything  else. 
I  tried  every  way  to  reform  her ;  but  she  was  bound  to 
go  her  vile  way,  and  I  could  stand  it  no  longer. 

"You  know  the  rest  up  there.  After  she  had  been 
gone  some  time  and  had  got  the  divorce  in  Chicago,  I 
come  here  with  the  children,  to  try  and  get  away  from  it 
all  You  h~ve  seen  my  wife.  She  ain't  a  purty  woman, 


160        A  CHICAGO  DIVORCE  "SHYSTER" 

She  is  pure  and  good  though,  and  I  prayed  to  God  that 
the  shadder  would  never  come  here.  But  'twasn't  an}' 
use.  It  seemed  as  though  my  prayin'  never  helped  things 
much  !  We  hadn't  more  'n  got  settled  here,  when  I  heard 
of  her  travellin'  through  the  country — you  know  hoi*. 
Some  way  she  found  me  out  here,  and  I  haven't  had  much 
peace  since. 

"  One  time  she  came  here  and  left  a  trunk  full  of  nice 
silk  dresses  and  things.  After  a  time,  wife  and  I  looked 
into  it  and  found  over  two  hundred  keys  of  all  kinds,  be- 
sides pistols  and  knives.  She  came  and  took  it  away 
soon  after,  accusin'  us  of  stealin'  some  of  her  things,  and 
threatened  to  have  us  arrested.  A  few  months  afterwards 
she  went  up  to  Newton,  the  county-seat,  and  swore  out 
a  warrant  for  our  arrest  on  the  charge  of  assault  and 
battery,  and  got  subpoenas  out  for  all  the  folks  across  the 
way.  The  Sheriff  came  down  here  to  serve  his  warrant 
and  subpoenas,  and  at  Monroe  learned  something  about 
the  woman,  so  that  by  the  time  he  got  here  and  talked  it 
over  with  us,  I  come  to  the  conclusion  she  wanted  to  get 
us  away  and  then  steal  the  children  ;  so  we  took  them  all 
along,  left  one  of  the  neighbors  to  take  care  of  the  house, 
and  went  to  Newton  to  stand  trial.  Sure  enough,  she 
didn't  appear  agin'  us,  but  did  come  here  in  a  carriage 
fur  the  children,  awful  drunk,  and  come  near  sliootin'  the 
man  that  was  taking  care  of  the  place  ! " 

Bangs  here  asked  Hosford  whether  he  had  ever  seen 
her  since  or  had  heard  from  her. 

"  I  have  seen  her  but  once,"  he  replied.     "But  I  bav« 


A  CHICAGO  DIVORCE  "SHYSTER."        l6l 

heerd  about  her  doin's,  time  and  time  again.  She  7ome 
here  one  day  in  a  carriage,  dressed  fit  to  kill ;  and  the  first 
I  see,  she  was  tryin'  to  get  the  children  into  the  carriage 
with  her.  I  ordered  them  to  come  in,  when,  with  an  oath, 
she  put  her  hand  to  her  bosom  as  if  to  draw  a  pistol. 

"  I  got  mad  at  this,  and  told  her  that  if  she  had  come  to 
that  agin,  I'd  have  a  hand  in  too  ;  and  as  soon  as  I  turn- 
ed into  the  house  as  if  to  get  a  pistol — I  only  had  an  old 
rusty  one  with  a  broken  lock,  but  had  an  idea  that  I 
could  some  way  use  it — she  blazed  away  at  me,  the  ball 
going  through  the  front  door  and  driving  the  splinters  into 
my  clothes.  As  she  didn't  know  whether  she  had  hit  me 
or  not,  she  drove  away  at  full  gallop,  and  I've  never  sot 
eyes  on  her  since." 

The  poor  fellow  seemed  to  say  this  with  an  inexpressi 
ble  sense  of  satisfaction  and  relief.  He  had  had  more 
than  his  share  of  her  general  depravity  forced  upon  him, 
and  the  respite  from  it,  though  short,  was  very  dear  to  him. 

Bangs  got  from  Hosford  the  names  of  parties  in  con- 
tiguous towns  who  could  give  him  definite  information 
about  Mrs.  Winslow,  while  he  offered  to  come  to  Roch- 
ester himself,  if  his  presence  was  required  ;  and  after  a 
good  night's  rest  and  an  early  breakfast,  Mr.  Bangs  re- 
turned to  Monroe.  After  a  few  days'  travel  and  inquiry 
he  secured  a  thousand  times  more  information  than  neces- 
sary to  compel  the  retiracy  of  the  splendid  Mrs.  Winslow 
from  her  then  public  and  profitable  field  of  operations, 
after  which  he  returned  to  New  York,  well  satisfied  witb 
the  result  of  his  by  no  means  pleasant  labors. 


CHAPTER  XVL 

Mrs.  WinsloVs  Signal  answered. — She  endeavors  to  ivin  Bristol,  and 
shows  that  they  are  "Affinities." — Deteclive  Fox  mystified. — An 
Evening  with  the  One  fairWoman. — Closer  Intimacies.— A  Journey 
proposed. — Detective  Bristol  as  a  Lover. 

BACK  in  the  streets  of  Rochester,  Bristol  followed 
Mrs.  Winslow  with  much  wonderment  and  some 
anxiety  as  to  the  result,  not  sure  as  to  whether  any  of  the 
three  lovely  women  had  noticed  his  leaving  at  the  call  of 
their  hated  rival,  and  cogitating  what  the  woman  might 
want  with  him. 

They  soon  arrived  at  the  Garden,  the  woman  frequent- 
ly looking  back  to  assure  herself  that  the  retired  banker 
was  following  her,  and  finally  passed  into  the  Fields  and 
took  a  booth,  where  she  ordered  a  bottle  of  wine,  which 
gave  her  right  to  its  occupancy  for  an  indefinite  period  ; 
and  as  soon  as  Bristol  sauntered  in,  she  signalled  him  to 
join  her,  which  he  did  with  great  apparent  hesitation  and 
diffidence,  and  the  general  appearance  of  a  man  guilty  of 
almost  his  first  wrong  intent,  but  yet  with  strong  resolu- 
tion to  not  let  it  get  the  better  of  him. 

She  did  not  remove  the  delicate  lace  veil  from  her  face, 
and  it  blended  the  pretty  flush  which  the  exercise  had 
heightened  with  her  naturally  clear  complexion  in  a  most 


MRS.  WINSLOW' S  SIGNAL  ANSWERED.     163 

artistic  way,  and  toned  the  light  in  her  great  gray  eyes  in- 
to a  languid  lustre,  very  thrilling  to  behold  when  one 
knows  there  is  a  clean  life  behind  such  beauty,  but  as 
dangerous  when  transformed  into  a  winning  mask  cover- 
ing the  perdition  in  the  heart  of  a  wicked  woman,  as  the 
dazzling  power  of  the  Prophet  of  Khorassan. 

Bristol  was  a  very  courtly  sort  of  fellow,  and  received  a 
glass  of  wine  from  the  neat  hand  with  considerable  grace, 
though  inwardly  wondering  what  it  all  meant.  Their 
wine-glasses  touched,  and  the  cheap  nectar  was  drunk 
in  silence,  Mrs.  Winslow  only  indulging  in  those  little  mo- 
tions and  changes  of  features  that  some  women  believe 
to  be  attractive  and  fascinating,  and  which  really  are  so  to 
many  susceptible  people  ;  and  though  Bristol  might  ordi- 
narily have  succumbed  to  the  charms  of  the  accomplished 
woman  before  him — and  had  he  been  the  retired  banker 
she  supposed  him  to  be  would  probably  have  done  so — 
as  the  sedate,  elderly,  and  capable  detective,  he  only 
pretended  to  be  smitten,  and  coyishly  acknowledged  her 
loving  glances  with  more  than  ordinary  ardor. 

Finally,  the  fair  woman,  after  modestly  biting  her  lips  for 
a  time,  began  tapping  the  table  with  the  handle  of  her 
fan,  and  looking  Bristol  full  in  the  face,  suddenly  said  : 

"  Mr.  Bristol,  aren't  you  a  little  curious  why  I  wanted 
to  see  you  ?  " 

"  Any  man  who  is  a  man,"  replied  Bristol  earnestly, 
*'  could  not  but  have  a  pardonable  curiosity  when  so  fail 
a  woman  as  Mrs.  Winslow  claims  his  attention  ! " 

"There,  there,"  said  she  laughing,  and  extending  he» 


1 64    MRS,  WINSLOWS SIGNAL  ANSWERED. 

hands  across  the  table  as  if  in  a  burst  of  confidence,  "  let 
us  wave  formalities;  let  us  be  friends." 

Bristol  took  her  proffered  hands  rather  stiffly,  but  held 
them  as  long  as  was  necessary,  as  they  were  pretty  hands, 
warm  hands,  and  hands  that  could  grasp  another's  with  a 
good  show  of  honesty,  too. 

"There  is  no  reason  why  we  shouldn't,"  he  said  gal- 
lantly, as  she  poured  out  another  glass  of  wine. 

"  Only  one,"  answered  Mrs.  Winslow  archly.  "  The 
three  Graces  don't  like  me,  and  they  are  bound  we  sha'n't 
meet.  Now,"  she  continued,  again  tapping  the  table  ner- 
vously with  her  fan,  and  then  raising  her  fine  eyebrows 
and  looking  at  Bristol  half  anxiously,  half  tenderly,  and 
altogether  meltingly,  "I  feel  as  though  we  had  been  ac- 
quainted for  years.  Don't  think  me  bold,  Mr.  Bristol, 
but  I  have  had  you  in  my  thoughts  much — possibly  too 
much,"  she  added  with  the  faintest  trace  of  a  blush  ;  "  but 
if  I  could  feel  that  this — I  was  going  to  say  attachment, 
though  that  would  be  quite  improper,  and  I  will  say — un- 
explainable  regard  I  have  formed  for  you  was  in  the  least 
measure  reciprocated " 

Bristol  interrupted  her  with  :  "I  think  I  can  assure  you 
that  it  is,  at  least,  in  a  proper  measure." 

"  Then,"  she  continued,  apparently  radiant  with  happi- 
ness, "as  I  was  about  to  say,  I  am  sure  it  could  be  ar- 
ranged so  that  we  could  be  more  in  each  other's  society. 
You  know  who  I  am  ?  "  she  abruptly  and  almost  suspi- 
ciously asked. 

Bristol  was  almost  put  off  his  guard  by  the  sudden 


MRS.  WINSL O  W S  SIGNAL  ANSWERED.     165 

change  of  the  subject,  but  parried  the  question  with  : 
"  Certainly  not ;  at  least  no  more  than  through  what  I 
have  been  told  at  the  restaurant." 

Tears  started  in  her  well-trained  eyes,  but  she  impet 
uously  brushed  them  away  and  followed  the  pretty  piece 
of  acting  with  :  "  Oil,  Mr.  Bristol !  I  fear  we  may  never 
be  to  each  other  what  we  might  have  been  if  these  three 
old  hags — I  mean  old  maids — had  not  poisoned  your 
mind  regarding  me.  Let  me  tell  you,"  and  she  took  hold 
of  his  collar  and  drew  the  reluctant  detective  towards  her, 
"  they  are  trying  to  get  your  money — your  vast  wealth. 
Let  a  comparatively  unknown  friend  whisper  in  youi  ear, 
' Beware  /'  " 

Bristol  started,  adjusted  his  glasses,  grasped  Mrs.  Win- 
slow's  hand,  and,  as  if  very  much  frightened  and  extreme- 
ly grateful,  said  heartily  and-with  great  fervor,  "My  dear 
madam,  for  this  kindness  I  am  yours  to  command  ! " 

The  woman  evidently  felt  assured  from  that  moment 
that  she  had  made  a  conquest ;  but  her  varied  experience 
and  professional  tact,  as  well  as  her  native  shrewdness, 
prevented  her  from  expressing  too  great  gayety  over  it, 
and  she  proceeded  to  inform  Bristol  how  keen  and 
shrewd  the  old  ladies  under  Washington  Hall  were  ;  how 
in  confidence  they  had  told  her  that  they  would  compel 
him  to  marry  one  of  them,  and  were  going  to  draw  cuts 
to  determine  which  should  carry  off  the  prizv; ;  and  when 
that  was  settled,  if  he  did  not  marry  the  fortunate  person 
willingly,  their  combined  evidence  would  bring  him  down, 
or  despoil  him  of  a  great  portion  of  his  wealth,  which, 


166    MRS.  W1NSLOWS SIGNAL  ANSWERED. 

she  had  no  doubt,  he  had  acquired  by  long  years  of 
honest  toil. 

Bristol  expressed  himself  aghast  at  the  depravity  of 
women,  and  told  Mrs.  Winslow  that  it  seemed  to  him  that 
the  nearer  the  grave  they  got  the  more  terrible  their  greed 
and  hideousness  became. 

Mrs.  Winslow  murmured  that  she  was  not  so  very,  -very 
old. 

"  Quite  the  contrary,"  said  Bristol,  gallantly,  "  and 
even  when  you  become  so,  I  am  sure — very  sure,  that  you 
•will  prove  a  marked  exception." 

An  expression  of  pleasure  flitted  into  her  face,  suc- 
ceeded by  one  of  evident  pain — pleasure,  probably,  that 
she  had  made  another  dupe  as  she  supposed ;  pain,  that 
in  one  swift  moment  there  had  flashed  into  her  mind 
some  terrible  picture  of  her  cursed,  lonely,  homeless  old 
age,  when  the  whole  world  should  scoff  at  her  and  thrust 
her  from  it,  like  the  vile  thing  that  she  was  and  the  hid- 
eous thing  that  she  would  surely  become  ;  both  followed 
by  the  set  features,  where  the  cruel  light  came  into  her 
eyes  and  the  swift  shuttles  of  crimson  and  ashy  paleness 
shot  over  her  curled  lips — the  outward  semblance  of  the 
inward  tigress,  that,  though  diverted  for  an  instant  by 
some  little  sunlight-flash  of  either  tenderness  or  regret, 
never  could  be  won  from  its  irrevocably  awful  nature  ! 

But  it  was  all  gone  as  soon  as  it  had  come,  and  she  sat 
there,  to  all  appearances  a  handsome  woman,  as  mod- 
estly and  carefully  as  possible  encroaching  upon  the 
grounds  of  a  first  after-marriage  flirtation,  and  in  a  fen 


MRS.  WINSLOW'S  SIGNAL  ANSWERED,     ify 

moments  pleasantly  said  :  "  I  have  become  so  interested 
in  you,  Mr.  Bristol,  that  I  have  found  myself  asking  the 
question  :  Why  is  it  that  this  gentleman  is  continually 
in  my  mind  ?  until,  do  you  know,  I  have  such  a  curiosity 
about  you  that  I  shall  be  perfectly  delighted  to  get  better 
acquainted  with  you." 

Bristol  gracefully  acknowledged  the  compliment  by 
stating  to  her  that  he  himself,  since  he  had  seen  her,  had 
had  a  strange  feeling  that  he  should  know  more  about  her, 
and  the  presentiment  was  still  so  strong  upon  him  that  he 
was  now  quite  sure  that  he  should. 

"  Ever  since  I  saw  you  I  have  felt  that  we  should  be 
come  intimate,"  continued  Mrs.  Winslow  radiantly. 

"  And  I  may  myself  confess  that  ever  since  I  saw  you, 
Mrs.  Winslow,  I  really  knew  that  I  should  be  obliged  to 
search  you  out  and  remain  near  you." 

Mrs.  Winslow  blushed  and  cpyishly  asked  :  "  Mr.  Bris- 
tol, do  you  believe  in  affinities  ?  " 

"  Most  assuredly." 

"  So  do  I,  and  as  we  have  sat  here  together,  it  has 
seemed  to  me  that  the  good  spirits  were  hovering  over 
and  around  us,  and  had  been,  and  were  even  now,  whis- 
pering to  us  the  sacredness  of  the  affinity  which  surely 
must  exist  between  us." 

Mrs.  Winslow  said  this  in  a  kind  of  rhapsody  of  emotion, 
which  betokened  both  an  air  of  sincerity  derived  from  fre- 
quent repetition  and  long  practice,  and  a  sort  of  supersti- 
tious belief  in  what  she  herself  said  ;  and  then  poured  out 
another  glass  of  wine  for  each,  while  Bristol  remarked  a* 


168    MRS.  WINSLOWS  SIGNAL  ANSWERED. 

he  drank,  that  of  late  years  these  spirits  had  been  a  grea! 
source  of  comfort  to  him,  and  that  their  free  circulation  was 
a  good  thing  for  society. 

An  hour  or  two  was  pleasantly  beguiled  in  this  mannei, 
but  Bristol  hardly  knew  what  course  to  pursue,  and  began 
to  feel  that  in  the  absence  of  instructions  he  might  become 
altogether  too  familiar  with  the  charming  woman  who  was 
making  such  an  effort  to  please  him.  But  he  dare  not 
cause  her  to  become  angry  at  him,  for  that  would  destroy 
his  usefulness,  and  she  seemed  bound  that  he  should  ad- 
mire her ;  so,  as  he  had  been  directed  by  me  to  continue 
the  role  of  the  "  retired  banker,"  he  concluded  it  would 
be  better  to  humor  Mrs.  Winslow  in  the  belief  that  he 
was  -smitten  by  her,  as  she  showed  great  anxiety  that  it 
should  be  so.  Accordingly,  when  she  proposed  that  he 
should  call  at  her  apartments  that  evening,  he  acceded  to 
the  request  with  such  a  show  of  pleasure  that  Mrs.  Wins- 
low  could  not  restrain  her  gratification,  but  rose  and  ter- 
minated the  interview  by  slapping  Bristol  heartily  on  the 
shoulder  and  calling  him  a  "  dear  old  trump,  anyhow ! " 
And  Fox,  who  was  reading  the  morning  paper  over  a  glass  of 
beer  at  a  little  table  not  more  than  ten  feet  distant,  looked 
in  blank  astonishment  at  Bristol,  as  if  fearing  that  the 
woman  had  really  bewitched  him  ;  while  little  Le  Compte, 
who  stood  at  the  entrance  beyond,  looked  the  very  pic- 
ture of  abject  jealousy  as  he  saw  his  darling  lavishing  en- 
dearments upon  a  man  old  enough  to  be  her  father. 

Mrs.  Winslow  passed  out  of  the  Fields,  and  noticing 
Le  Compte,  who  was  retreating  as  rapidly  as  possible, 


MRS.  WINSLOW'S  SIGNAL  ANSWERED.     169 

beckoned  to  him,  and  when  he  had  approached  her  near 
enough  for  her  to  speak  to  him,  gave  him  a  few  quick, 
angry  words  that  sent  him  at  a  rapid  pace  over  the  rail- 
load  bridge  in  the  direction  of  his  rooms ;  while  she,  after 
a  paiting  smile  at  the  beaming  Bristol,  who  stood  radi- 
antly in  the  Fields'  entrance,  walked  into  St.  Paul  street, 
and  from  thence  back  and  forth  past  the  restaurant, 
where  the  three  deserted  old  maids  might  witness  her 
stride  of  triumph  ;  while  Bristol  joined  Fox  at  a  retired 
spot  under  the  shade  of  the  trees  overhanging  the  brink 
of  the  precipice  rising  from  the  gorge  of  the  Genesee 
River,  and  explained  the  status  of  affairs  which  had  all 
unconsciously  to  himself  drawn  him  from  his  quiet  work 
into  an  awful  whirlpool  of  love  and  all  that  the  term 
implied.  Fox  felt  much  relieved  at  this  information,  and 
at  once  proceeded  home,  while  Bristol,  with  a  guilty  look 
in  his  face,  returned  to  the  little  restaurant,  where  he 
found  a  dispatch  from  me  stating  that  Mrs.  Winslow 
intended  going  to  Canada  two  days  later,  as  I  had  been 
very  positively  informed  by  Le  Compte,  and  directing  him 
to  in  some  manner  keep  her  company  and  never  let  her 
make  a  move  or  meet  a  person  without  his  knowledge. 

Bristol  hardly  saw  how  he  was  to  do  this,  but  concluded 
that  it  might  be  best  to  wait  until  after  his  interview  with 
his  charmer  in  the  evening,  so  that  he  could  also  forward 
the  result  of  that  with  his  regular  report ;  and  after  ex- 
pressing unbounded  regret  at  being  obliged  to  part  from 
the  three  graces  and  a  little  card-party  they  had  ar- 
ranged, he  proceeded  to  Mrs.  Winslow's  apartments, 


MRS.  WINSLGW^S SIGNAL  ANSWERED. 

which  had  seemingly  been  specially  arranged  for  hii 
reception. 

The  mistress  of  the  place  was  most  elegantly  attired, 
and  greeted  the  "  retired  banker "  with  such  grace  and 
marked  esteem,  that  Fox,  at  his  lonely  window  opposite, 
almost  felt  jealous  of  the  attention  bestowed  upon  his 
comrade  by  their  mutual  quarry. 

If  ever  a  woman  endeavored  to  make  herself  irresisti- 
bly winning,  it  was  Mrs.  Winslow  on  that  night.  She 
threw  off  all  reserve  at  once,  and  was  all  smiles,  pleasant 
words,  and  pretty  ways.  The  rooms  were  most  beauti- 
fully arranged,  and  where  splendid  flowers  failed  to  furnish 
aroma,  the  delicate  odors  of  art  took  their  place.  A  very 
shrewd  woman  was  Mrs.  Winslow — a  woman  who  was 
supreme  in  the  art  of  providing  bijouterie  to  appeal  to 
the  sensuous  in  men's  natures.  In  her  conversation, 
which  apparently  was  lady-like  enough  when  guarded, 
there  was  always  more  suggested  than  said.  The  tone, 
the  smile,  the  eye,  the  gesture,  the  touch — every  move- 
ment, glance,  or  sound,  betokened  an  unexpressed  some- 
thing ready  at  any  moment  to  be  brought  forward  to 
crush  down  a  weakening  resolution,  and  sweep  from  exist- 
ence so  much  of  good  or  purity  as  might  come  into  her 
baleful  presence.  She  had  rich  game  in  Bristol,  she 
thought.  Why  could  she  not  work  this  with  the  Lyon 
case,  bring  to  a  successful  termination  a  half-dozen  other 
cases  she  was  working  up,  secure  a  big  pile  of  spoil  at  one 
time,  and  then  with  her  little  Le  Compte  glide  away  to 
La  Belle  France,  where  with  his  wit  and  her  winning  ways 


MRS.  WINSLOW '5  SIGNAL  ANSWERED.    1 7 1 

and  wisdom,  she  might  yet  amass  vast  wealth  in  levying 
upon  the  personal  and  family  pride  of  the  thousands  ot 
rich  numskulls  who  annually  throng  the  gay  capital. 

And  so  to  any  man  but  a  duty-doing  detective  that 
evening  would  have  been  a  thrilling  one.  As  it  was,  it 
was  a  hard  one  for  Bristol,  who  knew  that  Fox's  lynx 
eyes  were  upon  him  from  across  the  street,  who  had  to 
invent  lege.id  after  legend  regarding  his  life,  his  present 
and  his  imaginary  future,  and  who  was  obliged  under  any 
circumstances  not  only  to  please  the  woman,  but  to  pre- 
serve himself  blameless — two  things  to  ordinary  men 
quite  difficult  to  manage. 

During  the  hour  that  Bristol  remained  with  her  she  inti- 
mated to  him  the  propriety  of  his  securing  another  board- 
ing-place, so  that  they  might  enjoy  each  other's  society 
without  the  annoyance  to  which  the  old  maids  would 
subject  them  both  should  .he  remain  there.  He  had 
wanted  to  make  a  change,  Bristol  said,  but  his  long  and 
varied  experience  had  made  him  cautious,  and  he  nevei 
gave  up  one  good  thing  until  he  had  secured  a  better. 
How  would  as  pleasant  a  place  as  this  do,  Mrs.  Winslow 
wanted  to  know  ?  She  had  been  thinking  of  renting  the 
entire  flat,  she  said,  and  then  re-renting  it  to  select 
parties,  like  Mr.  Bristol,  who  were  willing  to  pay  a  good 
price  for  a  really  luxurious  place  in  which  to  live. 

Bristol  was  apparently  flattered  by  her  regard  for  him, 
which  had,  of  course,  alone  suggested  the  matter  to  he*- 
mind ;  but,  being  an  elderly  gentleman  of  conservative 
habits,  he  required  time  to  think  the  matter  over.  In  an) 


172   MRS.  WINSLOW' S SIGNAL  ANSWERED. 

event,  it  couldn't  but  be  a  pleasant  theme  for  contempla- 
tion. 

In  fact,  they  got  along  famously  together ;  so  much  so, 
indeed,  that  before  Bristol  had  taken  his  departure,  Mrs. 
Winslow  had  pressed  him  to  accompany  her  on  a  trip  of 
both  business  and  pleasure  to  Toronto,  and  had  so 
urgently  presented  the  request  that  he  had  half  consented 
to  go,  and  was  quite  sure  that  he  would  be  able  to  do  so, 
unless  some  unexpected  business  transaction  should 
detain  him.  In  any  case,  he  would  be  able  to  inform  her 
by  the  next  afternoon,  he  said,  as  he  gallantly  bade  her 
good-night,  and  observed  Le  Compte  scowling  upon  him 
from  the  dark  end  of  the  hall  beyond. 

Bristol  hastened  to  the  post-office  and  added  the  events 
of  the  evening  to  his  daily  report,  which  reached  me  the 
next  afternoon,  when  I  telegraphed  to  him  to  proceed 
with  Mrs.  Winslow,  as  her  friend  ;  but  while  pleasing  her 
by  feigning  extreme  regard,  to  be  discreet,  and  not  put 
himself  too  much  in  her  power,  nor  to  allow  her  to  ad- 
vance any  of  her  other  schemes  by  a  sort  of  exhibition  of 
him  as  her  champion  and  protector. 

Mrs.  Winslow  was  made  very  happy  by  Bristol's  accept- 
ance of  her  invitation,  and,  at  her  suggestion,  they  took 
the  train  for  Port  Charlotte  as  strangers — Mrs.  Winslow 
informing  Bristol  that  the  "  old  scoundrel,"  meaning 
Lyon,  was  having  her  watched,  she  believed,  but  she 
would  outwit  him  at  every  point ;  but  on  arriving  at  the 
Port  the  loving  couple  got  together  quite  naturally,  and 
soon  after  were  on  board  a  steamer  bound  for  Port  Hope, 


MRS.  WINSLOW' S  SIGNAL  ANSWERED.    1/3 

It  was  one  of  those  dreamy,  hazy  days  of  early  Sep- 
tember, when  the  disappearing  shore  seemed  to  gradually 
take  upon  itself  a  tint  of  blue  as  deep  as  that  of  the  sky 
above  and  as  pure  as  that  of  the  waters  below,  which  on 
this  day  was  almost  as  smooth  as  a  mirror,  only  broken 
by  long,  far-reaching  swells  that  seemed  to  have  neither 
beginning  nor  end,  but  which  here  and  there  swept  away 
in  endless  ribbons  of  liquid  light,  while  the  trailing  wake 
of  the  steamer  seemed  in  the  pleasant  sun  like  some 
marvellous  and  limitless  lace-work  flung  across  the  water 
in  wanton  richness  and  profusion. 

It  was  a  lovely  day  for  love,  and  to  an  unprejudiced 
observer  Bristol  and  Mrs.  Winslow  improved  it.  At 
Charlotte  the  woman  spoke  of  the  matter  in  such  a  way 
that  Bristol  understood  that  she  would  not  object  to 
make  the  trip  as  his  wife,  but  he  innocently  failed  to 
catch  the  meaning  of  her  covert  invitation,  and  was  only 
the  attentive  admirer  during  the  entire  trip.  But  in  the 
cabin,  or  seated  coyishly  together  under  a  huge  sunshade 
upon  the  forward  deck,  they  were  as  fine  a  couple  as  one 
would  care  to  see,  while  the  woman  seemed  unusually 
affectionate  and  agreeable. 

Arriving  at  Port  Hope  after  a  few  hours,  the  couple 
took  the  night  train  for  the  West,  and  arrived  at  Toronto 
at  midnight,  being  driven  to  the  Queen's  Hotrl.  They 
had  become  so  confidential  and  intimate  by  this  t'me  that 
Mrs.  Winslow  again  suggested  the  propriety  of  travelling 
under  more  intimate  relations  than  they  had  done,  but 
was  again  carefully  diverted  from  her  purpose  bj  the 


174    MRS.  WINSLOW'S SIGNAL  ANSWERED. 

assumed  innocence  of  the  venerable  detective,  who  saw 
that  her  real  purpose  was  to  secure  evidence  of  having 
travelled  as  his  wife,  in  order  to  have  a  future  power 
over  him,  as  she  certainly  believed  him  to  be  a  man  of 
great  wealth. 

She  had  told  him  that  she  had  business  that  would  pre- 
vent her  seeing  him  during  the  next  day,  at  which  he 
expressed  extreme  regret,  and  they  retired  to  their  sepa- 
rate apartments  for  the  night 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

Careful  Work.— Bristol's  Trick  on  the  Bell-boy  at  Queen's  Hntd, 
Toronto.— The  old  Merchant— In  the  Toils.— A  Face  at  the  Tran- 
som.— A  cowardly  Puppet  before  a  brazen  Adventuress. — Tb« 
Horrors  of  Blackmail  — "  Furnished  Rooms  to  Rent." 

AS  Mrs.  Winslow  had  said,  she  was  not  to  be  seen 
the  next  morning ;  and  Bristol,  after  breakfasting 
early,  came   to   the   conclusion  that  he  should  also  be 
busied  for  the  day  following  my  instructions  to  watch  her 
every  movement. 

He  ascertained  the  number  of  her  room  and  leisurely 
strolled  through  the  hall  until  he  located  it,  when  he  at 
once  took  a  position  where  he  could  observe  any  move- 
ment in  or  out  of  the  door.  At  about  ten  o'clock  he 
noticed  a  waiter  enter  her  room  as  if  by  summons,  in 
a  few  minutes  pass  out  smiling,  and  shortly  afterwards 
return  with  a  very  large  glass  filled  with  some  sort  of 
liquor.  Soon  after  he  brought  her  breakfast,  and  about  a 
half-hour  later  he  saw  that  the  dishes  were  being  removed 
from  the  room,  and,  lying  on  one  edge  of  the  tray,  an 
ordinary  envelope,  from  its  puffed  condition  evidently  con- 
taining a  note.  He  felt  sure  that  this  would  give  him  the 
overture  to  the  day's  performance ;  but  how  to  secure 
it  was  another  thing  entirely.  He  could  not  take  the 


1 76  CAREFUL  WORK. 

letter  from  the  tray,  as  it  rested  on  the  front  edge  which 
projected  over  the  boy's  shoulder,  and  was  consequently 
immediately  before  his  eyes.  He  probably  would  not  be 
able  to  bribe  him  into  letting  him  have  it,  for  the  letter 
might  require  an  answer,  and  he  would  fear  getting  into 
trouble.  Bristol  was  standing  at  the  end  of  the  hall,  by 
the  window  overlooking  the  street,  while  the  waiter  was 
approaching  the  stairs  which  descended  to  the  lower 
floors  near  him.  The  boy  had  reached  the  second  step 
going  down,  and  it  was  Bristol's  last  opportunity. 

"  Stop  ! "  he  said  excitedly  to  the  boy.  "  Here,  give 
me  that  tray,"  and  he  pulled  it  from  the  boy's  shoulder 
and  rested  it  upon  the  stair-rail.  "  I'll  take  care  of  this. 
Run  down  to  the  street,  now,  quick,  and  get  me  a  this 
morning's  paper.  There's  a  newsboy  right  in  front  of  the 
house.  Here's  a  half-dollar;  keep  the  change  !  " 

The  boy  seemed  startled  at  the  action,  but  Bristol  had 
been  so  impetuous  about  it;  that  he  had  relinquished  the 
tray  and  started  down  stairs,  but,  recovering  himself, 
came  back  and  reached  his  hand  up  as  if  to  take  the  letter. 

"Tut,  tut,"  said  Bristol  angrily,  picking  up  the  letter 
and  carelessly  putting  it  in  his  pocket  without  looking  at 
the  address,  "  I'll  take  care  of  everything  until  you  get 
back  ;  get  along  with  you  now !  " 

Bristol  was  noted  for  his  benign  and  fatherly  appear- 
ance, and,  after  another  good  look  at  him,  the  waiter  took 
a  brisk  trot  down  stairs,  leaving  the  detective  in  posses- 
sion of  the  letter.  He  hastily  put  the  tray  upon  the  floor, 
and  whisking  the  letter  from  his  pocket,  saw  that  it  was 


CAREFUL  WORK.  177 

addressed  with  a  pencil,  to  "  J.  Devereaux,  No.  — ,  Yonge 
St.,"  and  marked  "  Personal."  It  was  but  the  work  of  an 
instant  to  open  it,  and  but  of  a  moment  to  read  it,  as  it 
was  short  and  to  the  point,  and  ran  as  follows : 

QUEEN'S  HOTEL,  TORONTO,  Sept.  6,  186-. 
DEVEREAUX — I  am  hard  up.  I  need  one  thousand 
dollars,  though  five  hundred  will  do,  but  I  must  have  that 
amount  at  once.  You  have  intimated  that  you  would  not 
help  me  any  further.  I  have  merely  to  say  to  you  that  if 
you  do  not  either  call  with,  or  send  the  money,  during  the 
day,  I  will  cause  you  to  reflect  as  to  whether  your  busi 
ness  and  social  reputation  are  not  worth  to  you  and  your 
estimable  family  immeasurably  more  than  the  trifle 
named.  Exercise  your  own  pleasure  about  the  matter 

however. 

MRS.  W. 

Bristol  copied  this  upon  the  back  of  the  addressed  en- 
velope in  less  than  a  minute,  and  in  a  minute  more  had 
the  note  enclosed  in  another  envelope  and  addressed  in 
a  handwriting  sufficiently  similar  to  that  of  Mrs.  Wins- 
low's  to  answer  every  purpose,  and  had  just  got  into  a 
calm  and  bland  position  with  the  tray,  when  the  boy  came 
up  the  stairs,  three  steps  at  a  time,  gave  the  paper  a  toss 
into  the  hall,  jerked  the  letter  out  of  Bristol's  hand,  and 
after  giving  him  a  look  that  had  considerable  resentment 
in  it,  strode  down  th  2  stairs  with  his  tray  on  his  shouldei 
and  his  letter  in  his  pocket,  in  a  very  offended  and  digni 

fied  manner. 

8* 


1 78  CAREFUL  WORK. 

But  as  Bristol  was  on  this  kind  of  business  at  Toronto 
he  thought  he  n.ight  as  well  ascertain  where  the  little  fel 
low  went ;  and,  taking  a  position  a  half-block  distant  from 
the  hotel,  was  obliged  to  wait  but  a  little  time  before  the 
waiter  came  down  and  started  off  on  a  brisk  walk  down 
the  street. 

He  waited  until  the  boy  had  passed  him,  and  then  fol- 
lowed him  in  and  out  the  streets  until  he  saw  him  sud- 
denly turn  into  a  large  wholesale  house  on  Yonge  street, 
when  he  rapidly  lessened  the  distance  between  them,  ar- 
riving in  front  of  the  place  as  he  saw  the  boy  hand  the 
note  to  a  thin  old  gentleman,  who  took  him  aside  and 
nervously  questioned  him  for  a  few  minutes,  after  which 
he  nodded  to  him  as  if  assenting  to  something,  or  direct- 
ing the  boy  to  return  an  affirmative  answer  to  whoever 
had  sent  the  note,  or  whatever  it  contained. 

The  boy  walked  briskly  back  to  the  hotel,  and  Bristol 
only  remained  long  enough  to  notice  the  old  man — 
who  was  evidently  the  Devereaux  of  whom  Le  Compte 
had  informed  me,  and  whose  name  Bristol  had  so  recently 
written — walk  tremblingly  towards  the  door  as  if  over 
come  with  some  sudden  faintness,  and  in  a  sort  of  vacant, 
listless  way  tear  the  note  into  little  bits  and  fling  them 
piecemeal  upon  the  stones  of  the  street,  hurling  the  last 
bunch  of  pieces  upon  the  pavement  with  a  violent,  agon- 
ized action,  as  if  he  would  to  God  he  could  dispose  of  the 
dark  and  relentless  shadow  across  his  life  as  quickly  and 
as  effectually  ! 

All  Bristol  now  had  to  do  was  to  ascertain  when  Dev 


CAREFUL  WORK.  179 

ereaux  called,  and,  if  possible,  to  overhear  what  was  said 
at  the  interview. 

But  this  might  not  be  so  easy  a  matter  to  accomplish 
as  securing  the  contents  of  the  letter  addressed  to  the 
latter.  After  studying  the  matter  over  for  a  little  time, 
but  without  any  definite  decision  what  to  do,  he  found 
himself  strolling  along  the  hall  where  Mrs.  Winslow's 
room  was  located,  and  noticed  several  rooms  standing 
open  and  being  put  to  rights  after  the  departure  of  guests. 
Among  this  number  was  one  next  to  that  occupied  by 
Mrs.  Winslow,  and,  taking  the  number,  he  immediately 
repaired  to  the  office  and  had  his  baggage  changed  to  that 
room,  where,  after  dinner,  with  a  few  cigars  and  some 
fresh  reading  matter,  he  comfortably  and  leisurely  waited 
for  developments. 

The  day  dragged  along,  and  both  Bristol  and  Mrs. 
Winslow  became  anxious. .  The  latter  paced  back  and 
forth  in  her  room,  and  every  few  moments  went  to  the 
door,  and  even  passed  out  into  the  hall,  going  as  far  as 
the  stairs  and  peering  anxiously  down,  while  the  waiter  at 
frequent  intervals  was  summoned  to  provide  her  courage 
and  patience  of  a  liquid  character.  Finally,  however, 
Bristol  noticed  that  she  had  either  concluded  to  take  a 
short  nap,  or  was  determined  to  wait  patiently,  for  quite 
a  period  of  silence  elapsed  in  her  roDm,  which  he  took 
advantage  of  to  steal  quietly  out  into  the  hall,  leaving  his 
door  ajar  so  that  he  might  re-enter  it  noiselessly  as  occa- 
rion  required. 

It  was  not  long  before  the  occasion  presented  itself  foi 


180  CAREFUL  WORK. 

Bristol  had  got  no  more  than  to  the  end  of  the  hall  when 
he  saw  Devereaux  ascending  the  stairs  from  below.  He 
quietly  stepped  behind  the  curtains  that  trailed  from  the 
lambrequin  over  the  window,  and  watched  the  old  mar  as 
he  came  up  the  stairs. 

He  was  a  little,  gray,  withered  old  man.  Almost  all 
his  strength  was  gone,  and  he  certainly  had  but  a  few 
more  years  to  use  what  little  strength  was  left.  His  hair 
was  almost  white,  and  his  face  was  quite  as  colorless, 
while  the  weak,  rheumy  eyes  seemed  almost  ready  to  fall 
through  the  flesh  which  had  withered  away  to  the  bones 
of  his  face.  He  was  a  living  example  of  the  black- 
mailer's victim  as  he  labored  along,  now  and  then  catch- 
ing at  the  stair-rail  for  help,  and  looking  behind  and 
around  him  as  if  fearing  some  sudden  discovery.  Arriv- 
ing upon  the  hall  floor,  he  peered  anxiously  at  the  num- 
bers upon  the  doors,  and  after  settling  in  his  mind  what 
direction  to  take,  went  on  tremblingly  with  bowed  head 
towards  the  woman  who  was  as  remorseless  as  death 
itself. 

He  found  the  room  after  a  little  trouble,  and  tapped  at 
it  apprehensively.  It  was  at  once  opened  and  immedi- 
ately closed  after,  when  Bristol  sprang  from  his  hiding- 
place  and  was  in  the  adjoining  room  almost  as  soon  as 
the  next  door  had  closed. 

During  the  afternoon,  when  Mrs.  Winslow  had  absented 
nerself  from  her  room,  he  had  dragged  the  bureau  against 
the  door  opening  into  her  apartment,  placed  i  quilt  from 
his  bed  upon  it  in  order  that  his  jumping  upon  it  might 


CAREFUL  WORK.  l8l 

occasion  no  noise,  and  with  his  knife  cut  a  diamond 
shaped  piece  out  of  the  green  paper  covering  the  glass 
transom,  darkening  his  own  room  so  that  his  eyes 
could  not  by  any  possibility  be  seen  through  the  aperture 
in  the  piece  of  paper,  which  had  a  dead  black  appearance 
from  Mrs.  Winslow's  room  ;  and  by  the  time  the  poor  old 
man  had  confronted  the  woman  in  a  scared  kind  of  a  way, 
and  had  seated  himself  upon  the  sofa  obedient  to  her  im- 
perious gesture,  the  "  retired  banker's "  eyes  and  eye- 
glasses looked  calmly  down  upon  a  scene  the  whole  terri- 
ble import  of  which,  could  it  have  been  presented  to  the 
world  in  all  its  terrible  hideousness,  and  in  some  form  be- 
come eternally  typical  of  the  curse  it  illustrated,  would 
have  stood  for  all  time  a  savage  Cerberus  frightening  men 
from  this  kind  of  infamy  and  self-destruction. 

In  all  my  startling  experience  with  criminals  and  the 
sad  incidents  which  have  in  the  peculiar  nature  of  my 
business  forced  themselves  upon  my  observation,  there 
has  been  no  one  thing  so  reprehensible  as  the  trade  of 
the  blackmailer,  and  there  is  a  no  more  terrible  torture 
than  that  inflicted  by  that  class  of  criminals  ;  and  I  am 
satisfied  that  could  heads  of  families  realize  their  terrible 
danger  when  heedlessly  forming  some  unholy  alliance, 
which  is  sure  to  eventually  whip  and  scourge  them  until 
life  is  a  burden,  there  would  be  less  of  the  moral  laxity 
and  lechery  than  now  burdens  the  world  from  palace 
and  pulpit  to  poverty-stricken  hovel. 

What  more  pitiable  picture  than  that  of  a  man  just 
ready  to  pass  from  all  that  should  be  worth  having  and 


1 82  CAREFUL  WORK. 

loving  to  the  unknown  country,  with  fear  behind  and  aw- 
ful uncertainty  beyond — with  the  work  of  a  whole  life, 
which  should  now  bring  a  reward  of  tenderness,  gratitude, 
and  reverential  esteem,  embittered  and  blasted  by  the 
relentless  curse  that  ever  trails  after  weakness  and  pas- 
sion— fear,  distrust,  and  apprehension  between  himself 
and  family,  and  the  Damoclean  sword  ever  above  him, 
ready  to  fall  at  the  instant  he  endeavors  to  throw  the 
horrible  shadow  from  him  to  regain  honesty  and  upright 
ness! 

There  the  old  man  sat,  a  cowardly  puppet  before  a 
brazen  adventuress — sat  there  a  weak,  drivelling,  idiotic 
wreck  before  one  so  vile  that  she  was  no  longer  capable 
of  regret — sat  there  ruined  in  everything  worth  the  preser- 
vation of,  suffering  what  he  had  for  years  suffered — the 
regret,  the  remorse,  the  shame,  and  the  abject  fear  that 
were  worse  than  a  thousand  deaths ;  while  the  utterly 
heartless  woman,  with  her  hands  folded  across  her  waist  in 
a  masculine  sort  of  a  way,  looked  at  him  smilingly,  seem- 
ingly enjoying  his  efforts  to  recover  the  breath  lost  in  the, 
to  him,  severe  labor  of  getting'  to  her  room  ;  as  it  ap- 
peared to  be  the  custom  for  him  to  see  her  there  rather 
than  in  the  parlor. 

The  interview  was  business-like,  and,  as  it  was  not  over- 
whelmed with  sentiment,  was  not  protracted. 

Mrs.  Winslow  asked  Devereaux  if  he  had  brought  the 
money,  and  he  stammered  that  he  had.  Well,  she  wanted 
it,  and  didn't  want  any  nonsense  with  it,  either,  she  said, 
with  a  vast  amount  of  meaning  thrown  into  the  words ;  he 


CAREFUL  WORK  183 

knew  whether  he  owed  her  that  amount  or  not,  ?.nd,  if  he 
did,  she  didn't  propose  having  any  bickering  about  it. 

Then  the  old  man  slowly  rose,  and  cursing  her,  himself, 
and  all  the  world,  flung  her  the  money  and  said  he  would 
;o,  as  he  knew  that  was  all  she  wanted. 

She  told  him  frankly  that  it  was  pretty  nearly  all  she 
wanted,  but  added  jocosely  that  he  was  still  "  a  charmer," 
and  that  that  fact,  too,  had  its  influence  in  periodically 
drawing  her  to  him  ;  and  then  bade  him  an  affectionate 
good-by  as  he  feebly  glared  at  her,  and  passed,  whining, 
cursing,  and  tottering  away. 

Mrs.  Winslow  was  very  happy  and  gay  now,  and  during 
the  evening  and  on  their  return  to  Rochester  was  all 
smiles  and  winsomeness.  Her  detective  companion 
could  scarcely  enter  into  her  unusual  joyousness,  but  did 
the  best  he  could,  and  that  was  well  enough,  as  she  was 
so  pleased  with  the  success  of  her  Toronto  trip  that  her 
mind  was  altogether  employed  with  it  until  nearing  home, 
when  her  eminent  business  ability  again  asserted  itself, 
and  she  became  more  affectionate  than  ever  to  the  retired 
banker,  repeating  the  proposition  concerning  the  rooms, 
which  Bristol  had  of  course  reported,  and  which  he  would 
be  prepared  to  act  upon  when  he  could  secure  his  rr  ail 
at  Rochester. 

He  told  her  he  had  thought  favorably  of  it,  and  after  he 
had  ascertained  whether  he  should  remain  in  the  city  a 
stated  period  or  not,  would  inform  her  of  his  decision, 
which  he  presumed  would  be  favorable  and  permit  o{ 
their  continued  pleasant  :ntimacy;  while  Mrs.  Winslov* 


1 84  CAREFUL  WORK. 

confided  to  him  th^t  she  had  thought  seriously  of  the 
course  for  some  time.  She  knew  Lyon  was  having  hei 
watched,  she  said,  and  she  had  decided  that  it  would  be 
best  to  change  her  business  to  one  which  could  not  be  so 
easily  misinterpreted,  or  at  least  add  to  her  present  busi- 
ness something  that  in  the  eyes  of  those  who  scoffed  at 
spiritualism  would  have  a  measure  of  respectability  about 
it,  and  from  which  she  could  not  only  secure  a  livelihood, 
but  such  a  pleasant  companion  as  Mr.  Bristol ;  and  they 
parted  upon  the  train  before  arriving  at  the  depot  with  a 
thorough  understanding  about  the  future,  and  an  appoint- 
ment for  another  meeting  at  the  first  opportunity. 

Unknown  to  Bristol  I  had  sent  another  operative  to 
keep  him  and  Mrs.  Winslow  company,  and  on  receiving 
the  reports  of  each  I  decided  to  put  my  men  in  her 
rooms,  where  one  of  them  could  constantly  observe  her 
actions,  and  never  under  any  circumstances  give  her  an 
opportunity  to  make  any  new  move  without  my  knc  vl- 
edge.  I  therefore  sent  another  man  to  Rochester  for 
outside  work,  and  directed  Bristol  to  accept  the  woman's 
proposition  and  become  her  lodger,  and,  as  soon  after  as 
possible  without  exciting  her  suspicions,  appear  to  be- 
come acquainted  with  Fox,  recommend  him  as  a  lodger, 
and  secure  his  introduction  to  the  place  as  M.  D.  Lyford, 
a  book-keeper  in  some  establishment  of  the  city  which 
they  might  settle  upon,  so  that  he  might  relieve  Bristol, 
and  vice  versa,  as  occasion  required. 

So  the  furnished  rooms  sign  went  up  over  the  clairvoy- 
ant sign,  and  Mrs,  Winslow  added  to  the  charms  of  hand 


CAREFUL  WORK.  1 8$ 

some  medium  those  of  an  attractive  landlady,  while  the 
three  old  maids  under  Washington  Hall  lost  their  piize, 
who  became  a  sort  of  an  aged  page  to  the  castaway  wo- 
man who  had  such  luxurious  rooms  for  rent  in  the 
autumn  of  186-,  on  South  St.  Paul  street,  near  Meech'a 
Opera-house,  in  the  beautiful  city  of  Rochester. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

Harcout  again. — "  Things  going  slow." — A  Bit  of  personal  History.— 
A  new  Tenant. — Detective  Generalship. — Mrs.  Winslow  fears  sh« 
is  watched. — Mr.  Pinkerton  cogitates. 

IT  is  pleasant  to  realize  that  the  world  moves  along 
just  the  same,  whether  the  many  mild  lunatics  it  car- 
ries attempt  to  interfere  with  it  or  not.  There  are  count- 
less men,  precisely  like  Harcout,  incapable  of  holding  in 
their  little  brains  but  one  idea  at  a  time,  and  that  idea 
invariably  pushes  to  the  surface  their  own  supreme  ego- 
tism and  self-consciousness,  and  just  as  invariably  displays 
their  utter  ignorance  of  what  they  are  continually  interfer- 
ing with  ;  and  it  is  both  a  grateful  and  charitable  thought 
that  such  small  minds,  burdened  with  such  vast  assurance, 
are  merely  provided  by  Omniscience  to  make  us  patient, 
to  warn  us  from  allowing  such  knowledge  as  we  may  for- 
tunately gain  from  developing  into  similar  self-assertion, 
and  to  serve  to  illustrate  true  worth  by  contrast. 

Here  was  this  fellow  sweeping  into  my  office  every 
day,  demanding  every  detail  of  my  operations  on  Mrs. 
Winslow,  even  intimating  that  I  should  consult  with  him 
as  to  every  move  to  be  made,  and  submit  to  his  consid- 
eration even  the  character  of  the  men  employed,  the  color 
of  their  clothing  and  the  quality,  and  every  item  or  act 


HARCOUT  AGAIN,  iS/ 

concerning  or  included  in  the  work.  He  had,  in  some 
unexplainable  way  that  is  common  to  brazen  assurance 
or  unmitigated  ignorance,  fastened  himself  upon  the  weak 
old  man  as  a  sort  of  confidential  agent,  or  what-not, 
worked  upon  his  fears,  his  superstitions,  and  his  foolish 
half-faith  in  a  system  of  religion  that  has  never  yet  made 
other  than  male  and  female  prostitutes,  adventurers,  ot 
lunatics,  until  the  old  man,  standing  alone  and  almost 
friendless,  had  learned  to  cling  to  him,  and  almost  rely 
upon  his  consummate  bravado  to  extricate  him  from  the 
meshes  of  the  web  his  own  vileness  and  a  vile  woman 
had  woven  about  him  ;  so  that  in  one  sense  he  stood  in 
the  relation  of  principal  to  me,  and  I  found  it  impossible 
to  shake  him  off,  or  relieve  myself  to  any  great  extent  of 
his  impudent  presence  and  foolish  suggestions. 

I  knew  that  he  was  utterly  without  principle,  and  was 
only  making  a  show  of  this  extraordinary  energy  in  order 
to  appear  to  more  than  earn  whatever  he  got  from  Lyon, 
and  continue  in  the  tatter's  mind  the  feeling  that  he  was 
utterly  indispensable  to  him.  I  also  knew  him  to  be  as 
mean  an  adventurer  as  Mrs.  Winslow  was  an  adventuress ; 
that  he  was  the  villain  who  had  first  unloosed  this  vast 
flood  of  vileness  and  lechery  upon  society,  and  who,  as 
the  shameless  Christian  minister  of  Detroit,  had  put  the 
fire-brand  from  hell  in  this  woman's  hand,  to  ever  after 
continue  her  moral  incendiarism  wherever  she  might  go, 
until  thrust  from  life  and  infamous  memory,  and  it  annoyed 
me  that  this  sort  of  a  man  should  dictate  to  me. 

I  could  have  disposed  of  him  at  one  stroke,  and  I  am 


1 88  HARCOUT  AGAIN. 

satisfied  that  had  I  on  only  one  occasion  addressed  him 
as  the  Rev.  Mr.  Bland,  and  casually  inquired  concerning 
his  old  Detroit  friends,  including  Mother  Blake,  he  would 
have  slunk  away  without  a  word  or  a  protest  of  any  kind 
whatever ;  and  had  I  gone  farther,  and  showed  him  what 
he  himself  did  not  know,  that  this  woman,  whom  he  was 
so  anxious  to  have  brought  down  with  some  startling 
development,  was  none  other  than  the  one  whom  he  had 
led  into  a  life  of  sin  from  the  pleasant  Nettleton  farm- 
nouse  by  the  winding  river,  and  that  he  was  now  playing 
guardian  to  a  man  that  would  have  probably  been  free 
from  the  curse  that  was  hanging  over  him,  had  it  not  been 
for  Harcout's  earlier  and  more  rascally  villainy,  he  would 
have  disappeared  altogether,  but  I  realized  that  this 
would  not  do.  It  would  have  had  the  effect  of  put-ting 
Lyon  at  the  mercy  of  a  horde  of  new  ghouls,  while  the 
existing  one  frightened  all  others  away  and  was  in  a 
measure  a  protection  to  Lyon,  for  he  was  now  only  bled 
by  one,  where  he  would  otherwise  have  been  bled  by 
twenty. 

Aside  from  this,  it  would  have  probably  resulted  in  Mrs. 
Winslow's  being  put  on  her  guard,  giving  her  time,  not 
only  to  cover  her  tracks  in  many  criminal  instances  we 
had  already  discovered  against  her,  but  also  cause  her  to 
prevent  witnesses  from  giving  depositions,  or,  where  de- 
positions had  already  been  taken,  give  her  an  opportunity 
to  secure  affidavits  from  the  parties  who  gave  them  that 
they  were  mistaken  as  to  the  identity  of  the  person  named 
in  those  instruments,  and  in  other  particulars  greatly  de- 


HARCOUT  AGAIN.  189 

stroy  the  effect  of  the  work  already  done  and  that  which  I 
had  planned ;  and  I  was  consequently  obliged  to  bear 
the  fellow's  dictatorial  manner  and  suggestions,  as  he  in- 
sisted on  doing  the  work  this  way  or  that  way,  and  urged 
that  I  was  not  "  pushing  things  "  fast  enough. 

"Why,  Mr.  Pinkerton,"  said  he  one  day,  his  eyebrows 
elevated  and  the  corners  of  his  mouth  drawn  down,  his 
whole  face  expressive  of  lofty  condescension  and  gentle, 
though  firm  reproof,  "  things  are  going  rather  slow- 
rather  slow.  Hem  !  When  we  brought  this  case  to  you, 
we  depended  upon  expedition — depended  on  expedition, 
Mr.  Pinkerton." 

"  And  have  you  any  cause  to  complain  ? "  I  asked 
pleasantly. 

"Well,  I  don't  know  as  we  should  exactly  call  it  'com- 
plain.'  No,  I  dca't  know  as  we  exactly  complain ;  but, 
if  we  might  be  allowed  the  privilege — hem  ! — we  would 
beg  to  suggest,  without  giving  offence — beg  to  suggest, 
mind  you,  without  giving  offence,"  he  repeated,  in  the 
most  offensive  way  possible,  "  that,  if  I  might  be 
allowed  ihe  expression,  things  are  not  pushed  quite 
enough  ! " 

"  On  the  contrary,"  I  continued  good-naturedly,  "  we 
have  secured  what  any  good  lawyer  would  consider  an 
overwhelming  amount  of  evidence,  and  are  letting  the 
woman  take  her  own  course,  in  order  to  allow  her  to  com- 
pletely unwind  herself." 

"  But  you  see,  Pinkerton,  we  supposed  when  we  brought 
the  case  to  you  that  you  would,  so  to  speak,  smash  things 


190  HARCOUT  AGAIN. 

— break  her  all  up  and  scatter  her,  as  it  were — rhem  I—- 
disperse her,  you  know." 

He  said  this  as  though  he  had  taken  a  contract  with 
Lyon  to  compel  me  to  avenge  them  both  on  the  woman, 
and  it  heated  rny  blood  to  be  considered  in  the  light  of 
any  person's  hired  assassin ;  but  I  controlled  myself,  and 
explained  the  matter  to  him. 

"  Harcout,"  said  I,  "  do  you  know  anything  about  my 
history  ?  " 

"  Well,  nothing  save  what  I've  seen  in  the  newspapers. 
Merely  by  reputation,"  he  added  lightly. 

"  Well,  sir,  whatever  that  reputation  may  be,  Harcout," 
I  said,  "  this  is  the  truth.  I  never,  that  I  know  of,  did  a 
dishonorable  deed.  I  worked  from  a  poor  boy  to  what- 
ever position  or  business  standing  I  now  have — worked 
hard  for  everything  I  got  or  gained,  and  I  never  yet  found 
it  necessary  to  do  dirty  work  for  any  person." 

"  Quite  noble  of  you — quite  noble,"  said  Harcout  pat- 
ronizingly. 

"  The  detection  of  criminals,"  I  continued,  paying  no 
attention  to  his  moralizing,  "  should  be  as  honorable — and 
so  far  as  I  have  been  able  tc  do,  has  been  made  as  hon- 
orable— while  it  is  certainly  as  necessary,  as  that  of  any 
other  calling.  No  element  of  revenge  can  enter  into  my 
work.  You  came  to  me  with  a  case  which  I  at  first  ob- 
jected to  take,  on  account  of  its  nature.  I  would  not 
have  taken  it  for  all  the  money  Mr.  Lyon  possesses,  had 
I  not  been  assured  that  this  Mrs.  Winslow  was  a  danger- 
ous woman.  Nor,  knowing  that  she  is  one,  as  I  now  do, 


HARCOUT  AGAIN.  191 

would  I  have  any  connection  with  the  case  if  I  found 
that  Mr.  Lyon  insisted  on  my  using  the  peculiar  povvei 
which  I  always  have  at  command  for  any  other  purpose 
than  the,  in  this  case,  legitimate  one  of  securing  evidence 
against  her  which  actually  exists.  I  am  satisfied  that  a 
no  more  relentless  and  terrible  woman  ever  lived,  but 
shall  leave  her  punishment  to  her  disappointment  in  not 
securing  what  her  whole  soul  is  bent  on  getting,  and  that 
is  Lyon's  money.  I  have  nothing  whatever  to  do  with 
punishment,  sir,  and  no  person  ever  did  or  ever  can  use 
my  force  for  that  nefarious  purpose  ! " 

"  Oh,  exactly — exactly,  "  replied  the  oily  Harcout  \ 
"  but,  you  see,  we  rather — hem  !  — expected  something 
startling,  you  know.  Now,  for  instance,"  here  he  raised 
his  eyebrows  and  pursed  his  lips  in  a  wise  way  ;  "  suppos- 
ing you  had  just  ascertained  all  about  her  early  history, 
you  would  probably  have  found  that  Mrs.  Winslow  had 
played  these  games  all  her  life.  Undoubtedly  you  could 
point  to  the  very  first  man  whom  she  blackmailed " 

"Undoubtedly,"  I  interrupted,  "  I'm  sure  1  could  do  it 
at  this  moment ! " 

Harcout  looked  at  me  quickly,  but  as  I  was  gazing  at 
the  ceiling  as  if  in  deep  thought,  he  went  on  quite  enthu- 
siastically : 

"  Exactly.  They  learn  it  early.  They  will  swindle  at 
ixteen,  lob  at  eighteen  ;  blackmail  at  twenty;  and  kill  a 
man  any  time  after  that ! " 

"Why,  Harcout  are  you  a.  woman-hater?"  I  laugh. 
higly  asked,  notwithstanding  my  annoyance. 


192  HARCOUT  AGAIN. 

"  Oh,  no,"  he  suddenly  replied  ;  "  but  I  had  a  friend  who 
once  suffered  from  very  much  the  same  sort  of  a  woman 
as  this  Mrs.  Winslow,  and  she  was  not  eighteen  years  old 
either.  But  to  resume :  Get  this  point  in  her  life,  and 
the  rest — hem  !  — the  rest  reads  right  on  like  the  chapters 
Of  a  book  ! " 

"And  then  what  ?  "  I  ventured  to  ask. 

"Then  what?"  he  asked  indignantly;  "go  for  her 
through  the  newspapers.  Drive  her  out  of  the  country. 
Make  it  impossible  for  her  to  ever  return  ;  "  and  then,  as 
if  reflecting,  "ruin  her  altogether.  Any  reporter  will 
listen  to  you  if  you  have  anybody  to  ruin !  In  fact,  get 
up  an  excitement  about  it  and  show  her  up." 

"And  try  your  case  in  the  newspapers  instead  of  in  the 
courts  ? "  I  added,  "  which  would  have  the  effect  of 
leaving  the  matter  at  the  end  just  where  it  was  at  the 
beginning,  with  nothing  proven,  and  Mr.  Lyon  still  at  the 
mercy  of  any  future  surprise  the  woman  might  conceive  a 
fancy  of  springing  upon  him." 

But  there  was  no  means  of  changing  this  lofty  gentle- 
man's opinions,  and  these  interviews  were  always  neces- 
sarily closed  by  the  threat  on  my  part  that  I  would  have 
nothing  further  to  do  with  the  matter  if  I  was  not  allowed 
to  conduct  my  operations  according  to  my  own  judgment 
in  the  light  of  my  own  large  experience  upon  such  matters, 
and  Mr.  Harcout  would  depart  in  a  most  dignified  and 
frigid  manner,  as  though  it  were  a  "  positively  last  appear- 
ance," only  to  return  the  next  day  with  more  objections 
and  a  new  batch  of  suggestions,  which  were  given  me  few 


HARCOUT  AGAIN.  193 

"what  they  were  worth,"  as  he  would  remark,  and  we 
would  fight  our  battles  all  over  again,  with  the  stereotyped 
result. 

I  saw  Mr.  Lyon  very  seldom,  and  he  always  approach- 
ed me  in  the  timid,  reluctant  way  in  which  he  had  come 
into  my  office  when  the  case  was  first  begun ;  but,  con- 
trary to  what  I  had  anticipated  through  Harcout's  injunc- 
tions to  "  push  things "  and  crush  the  woman  out,  he 
approved  of  my  course  throughout,  and  seemed  wonder- 
fully pleased  that  everything  had  been  conducted  so 
quietly  and  yet  so  effectively.  Of  course  he  shrank  from 
the  trial  and  the  miserable  sort  of  publicity  all  such  trials 
compel ;  but  he  was  more  fearful  of  the  woman's  future 
unexpected  and  sudden  sallies  upon  him,  which  both  he 
and  myself  were  satisfied  would  be  made  at  her  conve- 
nience or  whim,  and  was  only  too  glad  to  agree  to  any 
course  which  would  compel  silence  and  peace. 

At  Rochester  everything  was  working  smoothly.  After 
Bristol  had  become  located,  his  first  work  was  to  secure 
the  admission  to  Mrs.  Winslow's  rooms  of  Fox,  as  Lyford, 
which  was  done  by  representing  that,  the  same  day  he  had 
himself  gone  there,  he  had  suddenly  come  upon  a  sort  of 
relative  of  his  who  was  a  book-keeper  in  a  wholesale 
house  on  Mill  street,  and  who  was  boarding  at  the  Os- 
born  House,  and  would  be  glad  to  make  some  arrange- 
ment whereby  he  might  live  comfortably,  be  near  his 
business,  and  take  his  meals  when  and  where  he  pleased. 
Thinking  he  would  be  more  pleasantly  situated,  and,  at  the 
same  time,  be  able  to  economize  somewhat,  Bristol  said 
9 


194  HARCOUT  AGAIN. 

he  had  recommended  Mrs.  Winslow's  rooms  very  highly 
and  that  Lyford  had  agreed  to  call  and  take  a  look  at  the 
place,  which  he  did,  making  a  good  impression,  and  ar- 
ranging to  have  his  baggage  sent  the  next  day. 

The  rooms  were  situated  so  that  the  two  detectives  in 
a  measure  had  their  quarry  surrounded,  or,  at  least,  com- 
pletely flanked.  The  halls  of  the  floor  intersected  each 
other  at  right  angles  at  the  top  of  the  stairs,  and  Mrs. 
Winslow's  reception-room  was  at  the  right,  as  the  hall  was 
entered  from  the  stairway,  while  her  sleeping-room  could 
only  be  reached  from  this  sitting-room,  although  being 
situated  next  the  hall  running  parallel  with  the  front  of  the 
building,  while  Bristol  had  shrewdly  secured  another  sleep- 
ing-room fronting  on  St.  Paul  street,  similar  in  size  to 
Mrs.  Winslow's,  adjoining  hers,  and  also,  like  hers,  open- 
ing into  the  reception-room,  which  they  had  agreed  to  use 
in  common,  as  it  seemed  that  the  fair  landlady  was  all  of 
a  sudden,  for  some  reason,  becoming  close  and  penurious. 
Fox's  room  was  across  the  hall  immediately  opposite  Mrs. 
Winslow's,  as  he  had  expressed  a  strong  desire  to  be  as 
near  his  cousin,  Mr.  Bristol,  as  possible,  so  that  by  chance 
and  a  little  careful  work  the  parties  were  located  with  as 
much  appropriateness  as  I  could  possibly  have  wished  for. 
The  operatives  each  paid  a  month's  rent  in  advance,  taking 
receipts  for  the  same,  and  immediately  began  paying  par- 
ticular attention  to  all  parties  who  came  in  and  out  of  (he 
building,  circulated  freely  among  the  Spiritualists  of  the 
city,  and  got  on  as  good  terms  as  possible  with  the  charm- 
ing landlady,  who  seemed  at  times  to  be  a  little  suspicious 


HARCOUT  AGAIN.  1 95 

of  her  surroundings,  as  it  introduced  altogethei  too  many 
strange  faces  to  suit  a  person  who  had  a  no  clearer  con- 
science than  she  had. 

From  the  gay,  dashing  woman  she  had  been  she  be- 
came unpleasantly  suspicious.  She  explained  this  to 
Bristol  and  Fox  as  arising  from  unfavorable  visions  and 
revelations  from  the  spirits  through  the  different  mediums 
she  had  employed  to  give  her  the  truth  about  her  case 
with  Lyon.  The  rooms  had  filled  up  rapidly  with  people 
whom  the  operatives  had  taken  pains  to  ascertain  all 
about,  and  who,  as  a  rule,  were  honest  folks ;  but  Mrs. 
Winslow  could  not  get  it  out  of  her  mind  that  some  of 
them  were  spies  from  Lyon,  and  were  watching  her  in 
everything  that  she  did. 

There  had  been  nothing  whatever  done  to  alarm  her  on 
the  part  of  my  men  ;  but  the  fact  alone  that  here  were  a 
dozen  people  all  about  herr  any  one  of  whom  might  at 
any  time  spring  some  sudden  harm  upon  her,  began  to 
affect  her  as  the  fear  she  had  all  her  life  inspired  in  others 
had  affected  them ;  and  she  began  to  form  a  habit  of 
talking  pleasantly  on  ordinary  subjects,  and  then  turning 
abruptly  and  almost  fiercely  upon  Bristol  and  Fox,  who 
were  now  the  only  persons  left  whom  she  would  at  all  trust 
— even  distrusting  them — with  a  series  of  questions  so 
vital,  and  given  with  such  wonderful  rapidity,  that  it  re- 
quired the  best  efforts  of  the  operatives  to  parry  her  home- 
thrusts  and  quiet  her  regarding  them. 

It  was  a  question  in  my  mind  whether  she  had  laid  by 
a  large  sum  of  money  or  not.  Years  before  she  had  sev 


196  HARCOUT  AGAIN. 

eral  thousand  dollars ;  up  to  the  time  she  came  to  Roch. 
ester  she  had  had  the  reputation  of  never  paying  a  bill, 
and,  however  hedged  in  she  might  be  by  justice,  jury,  con- 
stables, or  sheriff,  she  not  only  escaped  incarceration,  but 
beat  them  all  without  paying  any  manner  of  tribute.  She 
had  done  a  fair  business  in  duping  Spiritualists  and  other 
weak-minded  people  while  in  Rochester ;  she  had  evi- 
dently levied  upon  Devereaux  often  and  largely,  and  to 
my  certain  knowledge  had  taken  some  thousands  of  dol- 
lars from  Lyon,  and  I  was  at  a  loss  to  know  why  she  was 
growing  so  grasping  and  exacting  as  the  reports  showed 
was  true  of  her ;  for  she  soon  complained  of  being  poor, 
levied  additional  assessment  for  care  of  the  rooms,  insisted 
upon  her  tenants  receiving  sittings  at  a  good  round  price 
from  her,  and  in  general  dropped  the  veneer  which  had 
formerly  made  her  extremely  fascinating,  and  became, 
save  in  exceptional  moments  of  good  nature,  a  masculine, 
repulsive  shrew,  who,  with  a  slight  touch  of  hideousness, 
might  have  passed  for  a  stage  witch  or  a  neighborhood 
plague. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

Mrs.  Winslow  becomes  confidential — Some  of  her  Exploits.—  (let 
Plans. — A  Sample  of  Legal  Pleading. — A  fishy  Story. — The  Adven- 
turess as  a  Somnambulist. — Detective  Bristol  virtuously  indig- 
nant.— Failing  to  win  the  "  Retired  Banker,"  Mrs.  WinsloW 
assails  Detective  Fox  with  her  Charms. 

AFTER  a  time  Bristol  and  Fox  became  M/s.  Win. 
slew's  only  confidants.  Their  business  was  to  be- 
come so,  and  they  successfully  accomplished  their  object. 
As  Bristol  said  in  one  of  his  reports  :  "  Only  set  her 
tongue  wagging,  and  she  spouts  away  as  irresistibly  as  an 
artesian  well." 

Had  she  been  possessed  of  womanly  instinct  in  the 
slightest  degree,  this  would  have  been  impossible.  But 
being  a  male  in  everything  save  her  physical  structure,  it 
was  quite  natural  that  she  should  hobnob  with  those  most 
congenial ;  2nd  as  she  had  antagonized  all  her  lodgers 
save  my  operatives,  and  they  made  a  particular  effort  to 
keep  up  a  good-natured  familiarity,  the  three  were  cer- 
tainly on  as  easy  terms  as  possible,  and  passed  the 
autumn  evenings,  which  were  growing  long  now,  in  con- 
versation of  an  exceedingly  varied  nature,  with  an  occa- 
sional sitting  or  seance,  and  not  infrequently  a  visitation 
of  spirits  of  more  material  character ;  and  the  following 


1 98       MRS.   W1NSLOW  IS  CONFIDENTIAL. 

are  a  few  of  the  many  facts  in  this  way  brought  out,  and 
by  Bristol  and  Fox  transmitted  to  me  at  New  York  in 
their  daily  mail  reports. 

In  one  of  Mrs.  Winslow's  peregrinations,  probably  for 
blackmail  purposes,  she  secured  the  indictment  in  Craw- 
ford County,  Pennsylvania,  of  one  George  Hodges,  for 
swindling.  He  was  not  at  that  time  arrested,  but  a  year 
or  so  after,  finding  that  he  was  in  Cincinnati,  and  claim- 
ing that  he  was  a  non-resident,  had  him  arrested  as  a  fugi- 
tive from  justice.  When  the  case  was  called  before  an 
obscure  justice,  no  prosecuting  witness  appeared,  where- 
upon Hodges  was  discharged  and  at  once  secured  a  war- 
rant against  her  for  perjury,  but  afterwards  withdrew  it 
Meantime  the  woman  shook  the  dust  of  Cincinnati  from 
her  feet  and  repaired  to  St.  Louis,  where  she  began  several 
suits  against  parties  there,  notably  one  against  a  leading 
daily  newspaper  of  that  city,  from  which  she  afterwards 
secured  one  thousand  dollars  damages  for  libel.  She 
afterwards  swung  around  the  circle  to  Harrisburg,  Penn- 
sylvania, where  she  obtained  from  the  Governor  of  that 
State  a  requisition  on  the  Governor  of  Ohio,  at  Columbus, 
upon  whom  she  waited  and  requested  him  to  designate  her 
as  the  person  to  whom  should  be  delegated  the  power  un- 
der the  law  to  convey  the  fugitive,  Hodges,  to  the  Key- 
stone State  ;  but  the  private  secretary  of  the  Governor  of 
Ohio  suspecting  that  the  person  who  had  presented  the 
papers,  and  for  whose  benefit  they  had  been  issued,  would 
make  improper  use  of  them,  they  were  returned  to  the 
Governor  of  Pennsylvania,  whereupon  she  had  made 


MRS.   WIN  SLOW  IS  CONFIDENTIAL.       199 

Columbus  ring  with  denunciations  of  gubernatorial  corrup- 
tion, and  threatened  to  cause  the  impeachment  of  Penn- 
sylvania's Executive,  although  those  two  commonwealths 
wore  never  completely  shattered  by  her. 

Again  in  conversation  regarding  her  case,  which  now 
seemed  never  out  of  her  mind  or  off  her  tongue,  she 
informed  Bristol  confidentially  that  she  intended  keeping 
Lyon  in  the  dark  altogether,  giving  him  and  his  counsel 
no  inkling  as  to  what  course  she  intended  to  pursue, 
which  would  so  worry  him  that  he  would  be  glad  to  settle 
for  at  least  twenty-five  thousand  dollars,  rather  than  have 
the  case  come  to  trial  and  be  exposed  as  she  would  ex- 
pose him  ;  and  if  he  did  not  settle  at  the  last  moment,  she 
would  have  subpoenas  issued  for  Lyon's  mother-in-law,  all 
his  children,  several  other  women  who,  the  spirits  had  re- 
vealed, had  been  similarly  betrayed,  and  even  Lyon  him- 
self, and  then  she  would  make  a  sensation. 

At  this  stage  she  was  positive  he  would  settle,  as  she 
knew  he  was  half  worried  to  death  about  the  matter;  and 
besides  this,  he  knew  that  she  knew  he  had  told  a  certain 
lawyer  of  the  city  that  he  had  once  loved  her  better  than 
any  other  woman  on  earth,  and  the  only  reason  he  had 
discarded  her  was  that  he  was  sure  her  love  had  taken 
hold  on  his  pocket  and  forsaken  himself. 

She  had  signed  a  release  of  all  claims,  but  she  would 
Stoutly  maintain  that  it  was  fraudulently  secured,  which 
would  only  further  establish  the  fact  that  she  had  had 
a  valid  claim  upon  him.  Nor  did  she  fear  the  opposing 
counsel.  She  was  lawyer  enough  to  attend  to  her 


200       MRS.   WINSLOW  IS  CONFIDENTIAL. 

she  said.  Her  legal  knowledge  helped  her  through  vnany  a 
difficulty,  and  as  she  had  been  lawyer  enough  to  file  a  iec« 
laration,  she  could  get  a  rejoinder  in  shape  whenever  the 
answer  should  appear  upon  the  coui  t  records.  Oh,  she 
knew  how  to  handle  a  jury ;  she  had  done  it  before  !  In 
this  case  she  would  say :  "  Gentlemen  of  the  jury  :  — 
There  are  many  who  believe  that  I  merely  seek  for 
money.  This  is  not  true.  I  ask  for  a  verdict  that  I  may 
gain  a  husband.  For  all  of  the  injury  that  I  have 
received — lost  time,  lost  money,  lost  reputation,  years  of 
suspense  and  hope  deferred — I  only  ask  for  a  verdict  in 
consonance  with  what  a  man  in  Lyon's  position  should 
be  compelled  to  give  to  one  so  grossly  wronged.  Gentle- 
men, if  you  give  me  a  heavy  verdict,  you  give  me  Mr. 
Lyon.  I  say  this  in  all  sincerity — yes,  as  a  proof  of  my 
sincerity.  I  want  the  man,  not  his  money ;  and  a  heavy 
verdict  gives  me  the  man,  for  Mr.  Lyon  is  so  penurious 
that  he  will  marry  me  rather  than  pay  the  amount  I  claim. 
With  him,  he  has  so  won  my  whole  being,  even  in  poverty 
I  would  feel  richer  than  to  live  without  him  the  possessor 
of  millions  !  " 

In  delivering  this  eloquent  peroration,  Mrs.  Winslow  in 
reality  rose  upon  a  chair,  and,  figuratively,  upon  the  giddy 
altitude  of  her  dignity,  and  tossing  back  her  head,  elevat- 
ing her  eyebrc  ws,  looking  peculiarly  fierce  with  her  great 
gray  eyes,  and  flinging  the  back  of  her  right  hand  into  the 
palm  of  her  left  with  quick,  ringing  strokes,  delighted  her 
audience  of  operatives,  and  male  and  female  Spiritualists, 
who  on  this  occasion  crowded  the  reception-room  an</ 


MRS.   WINSLOW  IS  CONFIDENTIAL.       2OI 

cheered  their  hostess  as  she  descended  from  her  impro- 
vised rostrum  to  order  something  to  refill  the  glasses 
which  had  been  enthusiastically  emptied  to  her  over- 
whelming success. 

When  business  was  dull  with  the  woman,  she  would  b~- 
certain  to  retain  the  company  of  the  detectives,  as  -. 
seemed  that  she  was  beginning  to  avoid  being  left  alone 
as  much  as  possible,  and  would,  under  no  circumstances, 
allow  them  both  to  be  absent  at  the  same  time.  Though 
ordinarily  careful  of,  and  close  with,  her  money,  to  keep 
my  men  at  home  on  these,  to  her,  dreary  evenings,  she 
would  send  for  cigars,  liquor,  and  choice  fruits,  and  aftei 
considerable  urging  they  would  remain,  when  the  conve*  • 
sation  would  invariably  turn  upon  the  Winslow-Lyon  case, 
or  some  incident  in  the  fair  plaintiffs  eventful  life,  which 
the  gentlemen  as  invariably  listened  to  with  the  closest 
interest  and  attention. 

On  one  occasion  Spiritualism  was  being  discussed,  when 
Mrs.  Winslow  touched  on  her  early  history,  and  the  reve- 
lation then  made  to  her  which  in  after-life  convinced  her 
of  the  possession  of  supernatural  powers.  Her  father  had 
had  several  boxes  of  honey  stolen  from  his  bee-hives, 
when  she  was  but  a  little  girl.  Search  was  made  for  them 
in  every  possible  direction,  but  no  trace  of  them  could  be 
found,  whereupon  she  conveniently  went  into  a  trance, 
the  first  she  had  ever  experienced,  continuing  in  that 
state  several  hours,  and  finally  awakening  from  it  terribly 
exhausted.  But  the  trance  brought  the  honey,  for  a 
wonderful  vision  came  upon  her,  wherein  spirit-forms  ap- 
9* 


202       MRS.  WIN  SLOW  IS  CONFIDENTIAL. 

peared  clothed  in  overwhelming  radiance,  and,  after  c* 
lessing  her  spiritual  form  for  s.5me  time,  and  making  hei 
realize  that  she  was  an  accepted  child  of  Light,  pointed 
their  dazzling  celestial  fingers  towards  an  old  hollow 
stump  standing  at  the  side  of  the  road  leading  towards 
town.  So  powerful  and  penetrating  was  the  light  which 
radiated  from  these  spirits  that  it  seemed  to  permeate  the 
stump,  leaving  its  form  perfect  as  ever,  but  making  it 
wholly  translucent,  so  that  she  could  see  the  boxes  of 
honey  piled  up  within  the  stump  as  clearly  as  though  she 
had  been  standing  beside  it  and  it  had  been  made  of  glass. 
She  gave  this  information  to  her  father,  who  ridiculed  the 
revelation,  but  was  both  curious  and  desirous  of  getting 
the  honey,  and  went  to  the  old  stump,  where  he  found  the 
boxes  uninjured  and  piled  in  precisely  the  same  mannei 
as  described  by  his  precocious  child  ;  all  of  which  was  re- 
lated as  if  thoroughly  believed — as  it  Doubtless  was — in  a 
voice  as  hollow  and  mysterious  as  the  stump  itself,  while 
the  operatives  preserved  the  utmost  gravity  and  decorum, 
and  impressed  her  in  every  way  with  their  belief  in  her 
varied  and  wonderful  power. 

Her  affection  for  Bristol  continued  for  a  few  weeks 
unabated,  and  her  most  powerful  arts  were  used  in  en- 
deavoring to  compel  him  to  reciprocate  it.  These  at- 
tempts went  as  far  as  a  naturally  lewd  and  naturally 
shrewd  woman  dare  go — so  far,  in  fact,  that  in  one  and 
the  last  instance  they  became  absurdly  ridiculous.  There 
was  no  bolt  upon  the  door  of  either  of  their  sleeping- 
rooms,  and,  besides,  it  was  necessary  fcr  Bristol  to  eithei 


MRS,   WIN  SLOW  IS  CONFIDENTIAL.       2O3 

retire  first  or  step  into  Fox's  room  for  a  little  cha',  ot  a 
sociable  smoke,  as  Mrs.  Winslow  had  an  unpleasant  ano 
persistent  habit  of  disrobing  for  the  night  in  the  reception- 
room. 

One  evening,  after  Mrs.  Winslow  ha£  given  a  seleci 
seance  to  a  few  admiring  friends,  including  my  detectives, 
Bristol  had  hurried  off  to  bed,  being  tired  of  the  mum- 
mery, and  after  being  obliged  to  listen  for  some  time  to 
her  tumblings  and  tappings  about  the  room,  had  finally 
fallen  into  a  peaceful  doze  of  a  few  minutes'  duration, 
when  he  was  awakened  by  that  undefinable  yet  irresisti- 
bly increasing  sense  of  some  sort  of  a  presence,  which 
often  takes  from  one  the  power  of  expression,  or  action, 
but  intensifies  the  mind's  faculties.  The  gas  in  the  re- 
ception-room had  been  turned  low,  and  his  door  had  beer, 
softly  opened.  The  rooms  were  quite  dark,  but  the  light 
from  the  street-lamps  were  sufficient  to  show  him  the 
plump  outlines  of  a  form  which  he  felt  sure  that  if  it  had 
had  an  orthodox  amount  of  clothing  upon  it  he  could 
recognize.  It  certainly  seemed  to  be  the  form  of  a 
woman,  and  her  long,  dishevelled  black  hair  fell  all  about 
her  shoulders  and  below  her  waist,  while  her  robe  de  nuit 
trailed  behind  her  with  fear-inspiring,  tremulous  rustlings. 
On  came  the  robust  ghost,  and  in  the  weird  gloaming 
which  filled  the  apartment,  he  saw  tha  rr.ysterious  thing 
moving  towards  him,  and  in  a  sort  of  frenzy  of  excitement 
yelled  : 

"  Who's  that  ?  " 

No  answer ;  but  the  slow,  firm  pace  of  the  apparition 


204       MRS.   WIN  SLOW  IS  CONFIDENTIAL. 

came  nearer  to  Bristol's  bedside,  and  he  partially  rose 
upon  his  knees  as  if  to  defend  himself. 

"Say! — you!"  shouted  Bristol,  "get — get  out  of 
here ! " 

But  the  ghostly  figure  came  on  as  resistless  as  fate  until 
it  reached  his  bedside.  By  this  time  he  had  risen  to  his 
feet  and  was  edging  along  the  wall  to  escape,  when  to  his 
horror  he  saw  the  spectre  bound  into  the  bed  he  had  so 
expeditiously  vacated  and  reach  for  him  with  a  very  busi- 
ness-like grasp  which  he  nimbly  eluded,  and  with  a  series 
of  bounds  and  scrambles  reached  the  floor.  He  stood 
where  he  had  struck  for  a  moment,  addressing  some  very 
decided  and  italicized  remarks  to  the  lively  ghost  in  his 
bed,  and  then,  in  one  grand  burst  of  virtuous  indignation, 
made  an  impetuous  dive  at  the  figure,  caught  it  by  one  of 
its  very  plump  arms,  brought  the  ghost  from  the  bed  with 
a  mighty  effort,  and  securing  its  left  ear  with  his  right 
hand,  trotted  the  animated  shadow  out  of  his  room  and 
into  the  reception-room  right  up  to  the  pier-glass,  and  then 
turning  on  one  of  the  jets  at  its  side,  said  to  the  magnifi- 
cent ghost,  in  a  voice  husky  from  excitement  and  rage  : 

"  Woman  !  if  you  ever  do  that  thing  again,  I'll — I'll — 
aren't  you  ashamed  of  yourself,  Mrs.  Winslow  ?  " 

At  the  sound  of  her  name,  and  after  a  few  moments' 
apparently  bewildered  reflection,  Mrs.  Winslow  opened 
her  eyes,  which  had  previously  remained  closed,  and  in  an 
affectedly  startled  way  gasped  : 

"  Oh  !  where  am  I  ?  what  have  you  been  trpng  to  do 
with  me,  Mr.  Bristol?" 


MRS.   WINSLOW  IS  CONFIDENTIAL.       20$ 

To  have  seen  the  couple  thus  in  the  full  gaslight  before 
the  pier-glass,  which  both  reflected  and  intensified  the  odd 
situation — the  woman,  held  to  the  mirror  so  that  she  might 
more  startlingly  view  the  result  of  her  gauzy  pretence  at 
somnambulism,  and  the  man,  in  his  night-shirt,  his  limp 
night-cap  dangling  from  his  neck  upon  his  shoulder,  the 
ring  of  stubby  gray  hair  around  his  head  raised  by  excite- 
ment until  it  almost  hid  the  glistening  baldness  above,  his 
legs  bare  below  the  knees,  but  with  a  face  so  full  of  virtu- 
ous resentment  at  the  scandalous  and  shallow  scheme  of 
the  woman  to  implicate  him  in  something  disgraceful,  that 
his  uprightness  clothed  him  as  with  fine  raiment — would 
have  been  to  have  witnessed  the  apotheosis  of  sublimely 
triumphant  virtue  and  the  defeat  of  shame. 

"  What  have  /  been  trying  to  do  with  you  ?  "  shoute  J 
the  now  enraged  Bristol ;  "that's  all  very  fine  ;  but  what 
have  you  been  trying  to  do  with  me,  madam  ?  " 

"Why,  didn't  I  ever  tell  you  that  I  often  walk  in  m) 
sleep  ?  "  she  asked  with  apparent  innocence  ;  and  then,  aa 
if  noticing  for  the  first  time  how  meagrely  both  herself  and 
her  companion  were  clad,  gave  vent  to  a  half-smothered 
"  Oh  ! — shame  on  you,  Mr.  Bristol !  "  and  broke  away 
from  him,  running  into  her  own  room,  while  Bristol,  after 
walking  back  and  forth  in  a  state  of  high  nervous  excite- 
ment for  some  time,  muttering,  and  shaking  his  fist  towards 
her  room,  finally  smoothed  his  rebellious  locks  so  as  to 
admit  of  the  readjustment  of  his  night-cap,  and  trotted 
fiercely  to  bed,  never  more  to  be  distvrbed  by  sleep-walk- 
ing female  Spiritualists. 


206       MRS.   WIN  SLOW  IS  CONFIDENTIAL. 

There  was  nothing  in  all  this  save  a  quite  common  and 
silly  attempt  on  the  part  of  the  adventuress  to  get  some 
of  the  hard-earned  money  of  which  she  thought  he  was 
possessed,  and  it  disgusted  her  that  he  was  no  more 
appreciative  than  to  look  upon  her  charms,  that  had  set 
the  heads  of  so  many  other  men  all  awhirl,  with  such  a 
cool  and  impressionless  regard  for  them. 

This  latter  fact  bothered  her  probably  fully  as  much  as 
in  not  being  able  to  get  at  his  bank  account,  and  she  finally 
settled  into  a  sort  of  suspicious  dislike  of  him,  and  turned 
tier  attention  to  Fox,  who,  being  a  quiet  sort  of  a  fellow, 
with  less  brusqueness  than  Bristol,  was  not  so  well  fitted 
to  keep  her  at  arm's  length,  and  was  consequently  imme- 
diately the  recipient  of  her  torrent-like  attentions,  caresses, 
-and  confidence. 

A  book-keeper  was  the  next  thing  to  a  retired  banker — 
sometimes  even  better  off,  Mrs.  Winslow  thought ;  and,  be- 
lieving that  Fox  was  the  book-keeper  he  represented  him- 
self to  be,  she  conceived  the  idea  of  travelling  during  the 
pendency  of  the  suit,  and  gave  Fox  glowing  accounts  of 
the  vast  sums  of  money  they  could  make  if  she  only  had 
so  presentable  a  man  as  he  for  a  sort  of  agent,  manager, 
and  protector. 

One  afternoon  Fox  came  in  early,  and  said  that  as  he 
was  suffering  severely  from  headache  he  had  been  excused 
from  his  duties,  and  had  come  home  for  rest.  He  passed 
into  his  own  room  and  laid  down  upon  his  bed,  where  he 
was  immediately  followed  by  the  woman,  who  threw  her- 
self passionately  into  his  arms,  declaring  that  he  was  the 


MRS.   WINSLOW  IS  CONFIDENTIAL.       2O/ 

only  man  whom  she  had  ever  really  and  truly  lov«d,  and 
terminated  her  expressions  of  ardor  by  a  proposition  that 
he  should  "  get  hold  of  a  big  pile  down  there  to  the 
store,"  as  she  expressed  it,  and  fly  to  some  quiet  spot 
where  they  might  revel  in  love  and  all  that  the  term 
implies. 

Had  he  been  a  book-keeper  instead  of  what  he  was, 
attd  able  to  secure  any  large  sum  of  money,  she  would 
have  probably  so  bedevilled  him  that  he  would  have  be- 
come a  criminal  for  life  for  the  sake  of  gratifying  his  pas- 
sion and  her  demands,  and  in  a  week  after  she  would 
have  had  nine-tenths  of  the  money,  and  Fox  would  have 
been  a  penniless  fugitive  from  justice. 

He  had  more  trouble  than  Bristol  in  dispossessing  the 
mind  of  the  adventuress  of  the  idea  that  he  was  not  the 
man  to  allow  her  to  become  his  Delilah ;  but  when  this  was 
done,  and  she  disgustedly  realized  that  not  all  men  were 
ready  to  sell  themselves  body  and  soul  for  her  embraces, 
while  she  was  indignant  and  suspicious,  yet  a  sort  of  easy 
confidence  was  established  between  the  mysterious  three, 
whiclr  brought  out  a  good  many  strong  points  in  her  char- 
acter, and  at  the  same  time  led  to  the  securing  of  a  large 
amount  of  evidence  against  her.  In  fact,  it  seemed  that 
so  soon  as  she  thoroughly  understood  the,  to  her,  novel 
situation  of  being  in  constant  contact  with  two  men  who, 
though  probably  no  better  than  average  men,  were  still 
from  the  nature  of  their  business  compelled  to  be  above 
reproach  in  all  their  association  with  her,  her  self-assertion 
and  consciousness  of  power,  which  she  had  been  able  t« 


208       MRS.   WIN  SLOW  IS  CONFIDENTIAL. 

assert  over  nearly  every  man  with  whom  she  came  in 
contact,  in  a  measure  left  her,  and  she  became,  at  least  to 
my  operatives,  an  ordinary  woman,  whose  inherent  vile- 
ness,  low  cunning,  and  splendid  physical  perfection,  were 
her  only  distinguishing  characteristics.  This  was  all  nat- 
ural enough,  for  I  had  compelled  these  men  to  be  hei 
almost  constant  companions,  and  as  they  had  been  with 
her  long  enough  to  drive  away  any  superfluous  constraint, 
and  she  had  found  both  of  them  unassailable,  though 
sociable  and  agreeable,  her  conversation,  which  chiefly 
concerned  herself,  became  as  utterly  devoid  of  decency 
as  her  life  had  been,  so  that  no  incident  01  rehearsed  ro- 
mance of  herself  lost  any  of  its  piquancy  by  unnecessary 
assumption  of  modesty  in  its  narration. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

A  Female  Spiritualist's  Ideas  of  Political  and  Social  Economy.—  The 
Weaknessss  of  Judges. — Legal  Acumen  of  the  Adventuress. --An 
unfriendly  Move. — Harcout  attacked. — Lilly  Nettlcton  and  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Bland  again  together. — A  Whirlwind. 

ONE  evening,  after  Mrs.  Winslow  had  had  a  very 
busy  day  with  her  spiritualistic  customers,  which 
had  become  quite  unusual,  she  showed  herself  to  be  more 
than  ordinarily  communicative,  undoubtedly  on  account 
of  the  spirits  which  had  kept  her  such  close  company, 
and  at  once  started  in  upon  an  edifying  explanation  of 
her  political  views,  and  confided  to  Bristol  and  Fox,  as 
illustrative  of  her  high  political  influence,  that  certain 
officers  of  the  Government  only  held  their  lease  of  office 
through  her  leniency. 

From  this  she  verged  into  political  and  social  economy, 
stating  her  earnest  belief  to  be  that  every  man  should 
have  a  military  education,  and  that  if  they  were  found  to 
be  unfit  physically  to  withstand  the  rigors  of  a  military 
life,  they  should  be  immediately  condemned  to  death, 
and  thus  be  summarily  disposed  of.  And  so,  too,  with 
women.  There  should  be  appointed  a  capable  examin- 
ing board,  and  wherever  a  woman  was  found  wanting  in 
physical  ability  to  meet  every  demand  made  upon  her  by 


210       A  FEMALE  SPIRITUALISTS  IDEAS. 

her  affinities  through  life,  she  should  also  be  instantly  <le 
prived  of  existence.  She  maintained  that  there  should  be 
a  continuous  and  eternal  natural  selection  of  the  best  of 
these  mental  and  physical  conditions,  just  the  same  as 
the  stock-raiser  bred  and  inbred  the  finest  animals  to 
secure  a  still  finer  type,  and  that  all  persons,  male  or 
female,  failing  to  reach  a  certain  fit  standard  of  perfection 
in  this  regard,  should  be  condemned  to  death.  She 
would  have  no  marriage  save  that  sanctioned  by  the 
supreme  love  of  one  eternal  moment ;  and  shamelessly 
claimed  that  passion  was  the  real  base  of  all  love,  and 
that,  consequently,  it  was  but  a  farce  on  either  justice  or 
purity  that  men  and  women  should  be  by  law  condemned 
to  lives  of  miserable  companionship.  In  this  connec- 
tion she  held  that  not  half  the  men  and  women  were  fit  to 
live,  and  were  she  the  world's  ruler  she  would  preside  at 
the  axe  and  the  block  half  of  her  waking  hours. 

These  sentiments  were  quite  in  keeping  with  her 
expressions  concerning  the  late  war,  her  gratification  at 
Lincoln's  assassination,  and  her  threats  that  she  had  Presi- 
dent Johnson  in  her  power  through  her  knowledge  of 
some  transactions  in  Tennessee.  This  was,  of  course,  all 
silly  talk,  but  it  showed  the  woman's  tendencies  and  dis- 
position, and  enabled  Bristol  and  Fox  to  gradually  lead 
her  into  narrations  of  portions  of  her  own  career  during 
and  after  the  war. 

She  boasted  of  her  ability  in  fastening  herself  upon  a 
command,  or  military  post,  by  getting  some  one  of  the 
leading  officers  in  her  power  so  they  dare  not  drive  her 


A  FEMALE  SPIRITUALIST'S  IDEAS.       211 

beyond  the  lines,  and  then,  when  the  soldiers  wei  e  paid 
off,  getting  them  within  her  apartments,  drugging  them, 
xobbing  them,  and  finally  securing  their  arrest  for  absence 
without  leave.  She  claims  that  in  this  way  she  often 
made  over  five  hundred  dollars  daily,  and  would  then  buy 
drafts  on  northern  banks,  not  daring  to  keep  the  thou- 
sands of  dollars  about  her  which  would  frequently  accrue. 

Interspersed  with  these  narratives  were  numberless  tales 
of  adventure  wherein  Mrs.  Winslow,  under  her  aliases 
of  the  different  periods  referred  to,  had  been  the  heroine, 
jmd  where  her  shrewdness  and  daring,  she  wished  my 
operatives  to  understand,  had  brought  utter  dismay  to 
each  of  her  opponents,  all  of  which  had  for  its  point  and 
moral  that  she  was  not  a  person  to  be  trifled  with,  as  Mr. 
Lyon  would  eventually  ascertain  to  his  sorrow. 

To  more  thoroughly  impress  this,  in  another  instance 
the  question  of  being  watched  and  annoyed  by  Lyon  or 
his  agents  arose,  when  she  insisted  to  Bristol  that  Fox  was 
a  detective,  and  to  Fox  that  Bristol  was  one,  and  then 
abruptly  accused  them  both  of  the  same  offence,  express- 
ing great  indignity  at  the  assumed  outrage ;  and  when  they 
had  succeeded  in  partially  pacifying  her,  she  turned  on 
them  savagely,  saying  that  they  had  better  bear  in  mind 
that  she  did  not  care  whether  they  were  detectives  or 
not ;  that  she  was  a  pure  woman — an  innocent  wo- 
man ;  but  still,  she  wanted  not  only  them,  if  they  wert 
detectives,  but  all  the  world,  to  understand  that  she  was 
capable  of  taking  care  of  herself,  whoever  might  assail 
her.  Evidently  the  good  legal  mind  which  the  woman 


212       A  FEMALE  SPIRITUALIST'S  IDEAS. 

certainly  possessed  had  reverted  to  her  criminal  acts  in 
other  portions  of  the  country,  for  she  asserted  very  vio- 
lently that,  should  Lyon  undertake  to  have  her  conveyed 
to  any  other  State  upon  a  requisition  to  answer  to 
trumped-up  charges  for  the  purpose  of  weakening  her 
case,  she  would  shoot  the  first  man  that  attempted  her 
arrest ;  and  that,  if  finally  overpowered  by  brute  force, 
she  would  still  circumvent  him  by  securing  a  continuance 
of  the  trial  at  Rochester,  and  make  that  sort  of  persecu- 
tion itself  tell  against  "  the  gray-headed  old  sinner,"  as 
she  most  truthfully  called  him. 

She  further  remarked,  with  a  meaning  leer,  that  she 
never  had  any  trouble  with  the  judges.  They  were 
generally  old  men,  she  had  noticed,  and  her  theory  was 
that  old  men,  even  if  they  were  judges,  had  a  quiet  way  of 
looking  after  the  interests  of  as  fine-appearing  women  as 
she  was ;  and  even  if  they  did  not  have,  her  powers  of 
divination  were  so  wonderful  that  she  could  at  any  time 
go  into  the  trance  state  and  ascertain  everything  neces- 
sary to  direct  her  to  success,  giving  as  an  illustration  a 
circumstance  where  a  certain  St.  Louis  daily  newspapei 
had  grossly  libelled  her,  whereupon  she  had  sued  its  pro- 
prietors for  ten  thousand  dollars,  retaining  two  lawyers  to 
attend  to  her  case.  When  it  came  to  trial  her  counsel 
failed  to  appear.  With  the  aid  of  the  spirits  she  grasped 
the  situation  at  once,  and,  showing  Judge  Moody  a 
receipt  for  attorneys'  fees  amounting  to  two  hundred 
dollars  which  she  had  paid  them,  pleaded  personally  for  a 
continuance  until  the  next  day,  which  he  granted,  show 


A  FEMALE  SPIRITUALIST'S  IDEAS.       213 

ing  her  conclusively  that  he  was  in  sympathy  with  her, 
She  then  went  home,  and,  again  calling  on  the  spirits, 
they  revealed  to  her  that  she  should  win  a  victory. 

So  she  read  all  the  papers  in  the  case,  in  order  to  ac- 
quaint herself  with  the  leading  points,  and  then  subpoe- 
naed her  witnesses.  Having  everything  well  prepared, 
she  proceeded  to  the  court-room  the  next  day,  and  on  the 
case  being  called,  the  spirit  of  George  Washington  in 
stantly  appeared.  It  had  a  beautiful  bright  flame  about 
its  head,  and  floated  about  promiscuously  through  the 
upper  part  of  the  room.  She  was  certain  that  it  was  a 
good  omen,  but  it  was  a  long  time  before  she  could  get 
any  definite  materialization  from  the  blessed  ministering 
angel  from  the  other  side  of  the  river.  After  a  time,  how- 
ever, George's  kind  eyes  beamed  upon  her  with  unmistak- 
able friendliness,  and  the  nimbus,  or  flame,  that  shone 
from  his  venerable  head  in  all  directions,  finally  shot  in  a 
single  incandescent  jet  towards  the  head  of  the  judge  ; 
and  immediately  after,  the  gauzy  Father  of  his  Country 
placed  his  hands  upon  the  former's  head,  as  if  in  benedic- 
tion. This  was  a  heavenly  revelation  to  her  that  the  judge 
was  with  her,  as  afterwards  proved  true. 

George  stayed  there  until  the  trial  was  ended,  which  she 
conducted  in  her  own  behalf,  constantly  feeling  that  she 
herself  was  being  upheld  by  strong,  though  invisible  hands. 
When  the  jury  was  being  impanelled,  the  flame,  with  an 
angry,  red  appearance,  pointed  to  those  men  who  were 
pieju3iced  against  her,  to  whom  she  objected,  and  they 
were  invariably  thrown  out  of  the  panel ;  while  all  through 


214        A  FEMALE  SPIRITUALIST'S  IDEAS. 

the  trial  the  judge  insisted  that  there  should  be  no  advan 
rage  taken  of  her,  if  she  had  been  forsaken  by  her  coun 
sel ;  and  with  the  aid  of  Washington   she  won  a  splendid 
victory,   securing  a  judgment  of  one  thousand   dollars, 
which  was   paid ;  and    there    are    scores  of  lawyers  and 
newspaper  men  in  St.  Louis  who  will  remember  this  case, 
that  know  of  the  woman  and  her  almost  ceaseless  litiga- 
tion in  that  action,  and  who  will  also  recollect  that  she  did 
get  a  thousand  dollars  from  one  of  the  leading  newspapers 
there. 

Her  cunning  and  shamelessness  were  largely  com- 
mented upon  at  the  time  ;  but  it  was  reserved  for  Mrs. 
Winslow  to  inform  the  world,  through  my  operatives,  that 
George  Washington  ever  descended  to  this  grade  of  pet- 
tifogging. It  can  only  be  accounted  for  through  a  knowl- 
edge of  that  peculiar  system  of  religion  which  gives  to  the 
very  dregs  of  society  a  mysterious,  and  therefore  terrible 
power,  whether  assumed  or  otherwise,  over  its  better  ele- 
ments for  their  annoyance,  persecution,  and  downfall. 

There  was  also  a  poetical  and  religious  element  in  the 
woman's  composition  which  very  well  accorded  with  her 
superstitiousness.  This  was  quite  strongly  developed  by 
a  liberal  supply  of  liquor,  which  she  never  failed  to  use 
whenever  she  became  worried  and  excited  over  the  com- 
ing trial,  both  of  which  begat  in  her  impulses  for  certain 
lines  of  conduct  exactly  the  reverse  of  those  counselled 
by  her  more  quiet,  calculating  reflections. 

One  pleasant  October  day,  when  suffering  from  a  pecu- 
liarly severe  attack  of  romantic  fancies,  she  conceived  the 


A  FEMALE  SPIRITUALIST'S  IDEAS.       21$ 

idea  of  breaking  through  all  her  stern  resolves  relative  to 
not  seeing  Lyon,  and  making  one  more  effort  to  win  him 
back  to  her  altogether,  or  so  affect  him  by  her  fascinating 
appearance  that  he  would  be  glad  to  settle  with  her  at  any 
reasonable  figure  he  might  name — say  twenty-five  or  fifty 
thousand  dollars. 

It  was  a  pleasant  fancy,  and  Bristol  and  Fox  were  ex- 
ceedingly interested  as  they  noticed  her  excited  prepara- 
tions for  her  expedition  of  conquest.  She  sang  like  a  bird, 
and  the  bright  color  came  into  her  face  as  she  tripped 
about,  busied  in  the  unusual  employment.  All  the  fore- 
noon she  dressed  and  undressed,  posing  and  balancing 
before  the  pier-glass  like  a  danseuse  at  practice,  studying 
the  effect  of  different  colors,  shades,  and  shapes,  until  at 
last,  having  decided  in  what  dress  she  should  appear  the 
most  bewitching,  she  retired  for  a  long  sleep,  so  as  to  rest 
her  features  and  give  her  eyes  .their  old-time  lustre. 

At  about  two  o'clock  she  awakened,  and,  after  dressing 
in  a  most  elaborate  and  elegant  manner,  at  once  started 
out  upon  her  novel  expedition  to  the  Arcade. 

The  Arcade  in  Rochester  is  a  distinct  and  somewhat 
noted  place  in  that  city.  It  has  nearly  the  width  of  the 
average  street,  and  extends  the  distance  of  a  short  block 
— from  Main  Street  to  Exchange  Place— being  nearly  in 
tiie  geographical,  as  well  as  in  the  actual  business  centre 
of  the  city.  It  is  covered  with  a  heavy  glass  roofing, 
filled  on  either  side  by  numerous  book  and  notion  stalls, 
brokers'  offices,  and  the  offices  of  wealthy  manufacturers 
whose  business  requires  a  down-town  office,  and  is  also,  ai 


2l6       A  FEMALE  SPIRITUALIST'S  IDEAS. 

it  has  been  from  almost  time  immemorial,  the  location  of 
the  post-office  ;  so  that,  as  the  thoroughfare  leads  directly 
from  the  Union  Depot  to  the  up-town  hotels,  it  is  con- 
stantly thronged  with  people,  and  is  the  spot  in  that  city 
where  the  largest  crowd  may  be  collected  at  the  slightest 
possible  notice. 

Tc  Mrs.  Winslow's  credit  it  should  be  said  that  up  to 
tnis  time  she  had  kept  so  remarkably  quiet  that  public 
scandal  had  nearly  died  away,  and  as  she  had  gone  into 
the  different  newspaper  offices  with  some  of  the  wicked 
old  light  burning  in  her  eyes,  and  "  warned"  them  con- 
cerning libelling  her,  both  she  and  her  suit  were  no  longer 
causing  much  remark ;  but  now,  when  she  was  seen  ma- 
jestically bearing  down  Main  street,  with  considerable  fire 
in  her  fine  eyes,  determination  in  her  compressed  lips, 
and  the  inspiration  of  resolve  in  every  feature  of  her  hand- 
some though  masculine  face,  there  were  many  who, 
knowing  the  woman,  felt  sure  there  was  to  be  a  scene, 
and  by  the  time  she  had  turned  from  Main  street  into  the 
Arcade  quite  a  number  were  unconsciously  following  her. 
After  she  had  got  into  the  Arcade  she  attracted  a  great 
deal  of  attention  in  sweeping  back  and  forth  through  that 
thoroughfare,  as  in  passing  Lyon's  offices  she  gave  her 
head  that  peculiarly  ludicrous  inclination  that  all  women 
affect  when  they  are  particularly  anxious  to  be  noticed, 
but  also  particularly  anxious  to  not  have  it  noticed  that 
they  wish  to  be  noticed  ;  and  continued  her  promenade, 
each  time  brushing  the  windows  of  Lyon's  offices  with  hei 
ample  skirts,  and  growing  more  and  more  indignant  that 


A  FEMALE  SPIRITUALIST'S  IDEAS.       2 1/ 

nobody  appeared  to  be  interested  in  her  exhibition,  save 
the  lookers-on  within  the  Arcade,  who  were  increasing 
rapidly  in  numbers. 

This  seemed  to  exasperate  the  woman  beyond  meas- 
ure, and  finally,  after  casting  a  hurried  glance  or  two 
through  the  half-open  door,  she  apparently  nerved  herself 
for  the  worst  and  made  a  plunge  into  the  office,  while  the 
crowd  closed  about  the  door. 

Bristol  had  of  course  felt  it  his  duty  to  inform  Mr.  Lyon 
of  the  fair  lady's  intended  demonstration,  and  the  latter 
had  judiciously  found  it  convenient  to  transact  some  im- 
portant business  in  another  part  of  the  city  on  that  after- 
noon ;  but  the  elegant  Harcout  had  bravely  volunteered 
to  throw  himself  into  the  breach  and  bear  the  brunt  of  the 
battle — in  other  words,  sacrifice  himself  for  his  friend,  and 
was  consequently  sitting  at  Lyon's  desk  behind  the  railing, 
which  formed  a  sort  of  a  private  office  at  one  side  of  the 
general  office,  as  Mrs.  Winslow,  pale  with  rage  and 
humiliated  to  exasperation,  came  sweeping  into  the 
room. 

"Ah,  how  d'ye  do,  ma'am  ?"  said  Harcout  blandly,  but 
never  looking  up  from  his  desk,  at  which  he  pretended  to 
be  very  busily  engaged.  "  Bless  my  soul,  you  seem  to  be 
very  much  excited  !  " 

"  Sir  ! "  said  Mrs.  Winslow,  interrupting  him  violently, 
"  I  want  none  of  your  '  madams '  or  '  bless  my  souls.'  I 
want  Lyon,  you  puppy  ! " 

"Ah,  exactly,  exactly,"  replied  Mr.  Lyon's  protector 

with  the  greatest  apparent  placidity,  though  with  a  shade 
IO 


21 8       A  FEMALE  SPIRITUALIST'S  IDEAS. 

ef  nervousness  in  his  voice ;  u  but  you  see,  my  dear>  you 
can't  have  him  ! " 

It  was  not  the  first  time  this  man  had  called  this  woman 
'  my  dear,"  nor  was  it  the  first  time  he  had  attempted  to 
beat  back  her  overpowering  passion.  Had  he  known  it 
as  Mr.  Harcout,  or  had  she  recognized  him  as  Mrs. 
Winslow,  it  would  have  made  the  interview  more  dramatic 
than  it  was — perhaps  a  thread  of  tragedy  might  have  crept 
in;  as  it  was,  however,  she  only  savagely  retorted  that 
she  wouldn't  have  him,  but  she  would  see  him  if  he  wai 
in,  whether  or  no. 

"Well,  my  dear  good  woman,"  continued  Harcout 
soothingly,  but  edging  as  far  from  the  railing  and  his 
caller  as  possible,  "he  isn't  in,  and  that  settles  that. 
Further,  you  can't  have,  or  see,  him  or  his  money,  and 
that  settles  that.  So  you  had  best  quietly  go  home  like 
a  good  woman  and  settle  all  this,"  concluded  Harcout 
winningly  and  yet  impressively,  and  with  the  tone  of  a 
Christian  counsellor. 

The  crowd  laughed  and  jeered  at  this  grave  and  sarcas- 
tic advice,  and  it  seemed  to  madden  her.  Raising  her 
closed  sunshade  and  hissing,  "/'//  settle  this!"  she 
rushed  towards  Harcout,  struck  at  him  fiercely,  following 
up  the  attack  with  quick  and  terrific  blows,  which  com- 
pletely demolished  the  parasol  and  drove  him  nimbly  from 
p  lace  to  place  in  his  efforts  to  avoid  the  effects  of  her 
wrath. 

For  the  next  few  moments  there  was  a  small  whirlwind 
in  Lyon's  offices.  The  railing  was  too  high  for  Mrs. 


A  FEMALE  SPIRITUALISTS  IDEAS.        2ig 

Winslow  to  leap,  or  she  certainly  would  have  scaled  it. 
Harcout  :ould  not  retreat  but  a  certain  distance,  or  he 
certainly  would  have  sought  safety  in  flight.  So  the 
whirlwind  was  created  by  rapid  and  savage  leaps  of  Mrs. 
Winslow,  as  if  to  jump  the  railing  and  fall  bodily  upon 
her  victim,  and  at  every  bound  the  woman  made,  the  shat 
tered  parasol  waved  aloft  and  came  down  with  keen  cer- 
tainty and  stinging  swiftness,  upon  such  portions  of  the 
gilt-edged  gentleman  as  could  be  most  conveniently 
reached. 

It  is  difficult  to  realize  what  the  woman  would  have 
done  in  her  mad  passion,  had  not  a  lucky  circumstance 
occurred.  She  and  Harcout  had  never  met  since  the 
time  when,  in  the  face  of  her  robbery  of  him,  she  had  un- 
blushingly  compelled  him  to  wed  her  to  the  credulous 
Dick  Hosford  at  the  Michigan  Exchange  Hotel  in  Detroit ; 
and  had  she  now  recognized  him  as  the  villain  who  had 
made  her  what  she  was,  it  is  a  question  whether  she 
would  not  have  made  a  finish  of  him  there  and  then. 
But  some  one  in  the  crowd  raised  the  cry  of  "  Police  !  " 
which  sobered  her  at  once,  and,  giving  the  tattered  rem- 
nant of  her  sunshade  a  wicked  pitch  into  Harcout' s  face, 
she  turned  quickly,  shot  into  the  Arcade  as  the  crowd 
made  way  for  her  and  quickened  her  speed  by  wild  jibes 
and  taunts,  until  she  had  reached  the  street,  where,  in  a 
dazed,  hunted  sort  of  way,  she  hailed  a  passing  cab; 
sprang  into  it,  and  was  driven  rapidly  away. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

Mrs.  Winslow,  under  the  Influence  of  "  Spirits  "  of  an  earthly  Order, 
becomes  romantic,  religious,  and  poetical. — A  Trance. — Detective 
Bristol  also  proves  a  Poet. — A  Drama  to  be  written. 

WHEN  the  evening  came  and  Mrs.  Winslow  came 
with  it,  she  was  observed  to  be  in  a  high  state  of 
nervous  and  vinous  excitement,  and  at  such  times  she 
contrived  to  inaugurate  a  series  of  actions  which  proved 
not  only  interesting,  but  illustrative  of  her  strange 
character. 

She  declared  to  Bristol  and  Fox  that  the  Lord  was 
hardening  Lyon's  heart  as  in  the  olden  times  the  heart  of 
Pharaoh  was  hardened,  so  that  he  should  rush  upon  his 
fated  disgrace  as  the  Egyptian  king  rushed  upon  his  fate 
while  forcing  the  children  of  Israel  into  deliverance,  and 
destruction  upon  himself ;  and  like  the  unrelenting  Mrs. 
Clennam  in  "  Little  Dorrit,"  had  at  command  any  num- 
ber of  scriptural  parallels  to  prove  the  righteousness  of 
her  sin.  This  sort  of  blasphemy  is  the  most  pitiable  im- 
aginable, and  to  hear  the  woman  in  her  semi-intoxicated, 
ser.n'-crazed  condition,  mingling  her  vile  catch-words  with 
scraps  of  spiritualistic  sayings,  snatches  of  holy  songs, 
couplets  of  roystering  ballads,  and  crowning  the  hideous- 


MRS.   W1NSLOW  BECOMES  POETICAL.     221 

ness  of  the  whole  with  countless  Bible  quotations,  was  to 
be  in  the  presence  of  supreme  garrulousness,  temperamen- 
tal religious  frenzy,  and  superstitious  vilcness. 

It  appeared  that  after  she  had  escaped  from  the  excite- 
ment she  had  created  in  the  Arcade,  she  had  been  driven 
to  the  apartments  of  every  clairvoyant  of  note  in  the  city 
and  had  a  "  sitting  "  with  each.  In  her  excited  condition, 
and  being  noted  for  having  plenty  of  money,  it  was  both 
easy  to  rob  her  and  secure  what  was  uppermost  in  her 
mind.  Consequently,  it  was  revealed  to  her  by  every 
medium  that  Lyon  would  settle  with  her  for  a  large  sum 
of  money. 

One  medium  averred  that  in  her  vision  Lyon  was  seen, 
as  it  were,  bending  a  suppliant  at  her  feet,  and,  at  the  last 
moment,  admiring  her  character  as  much  as  fearing  the 
nature  of  the  testimony  he  knew  she  could  bring  against 
him,  he  declared  his  love  for  her  and  begged  that  they 
might  be  married  in  open  court. 

Another  depicted  the  sorrows  she  would  be  obliged  to 
endure  before  her  affairs  culminated.  She  would  be 
watched,  annoyed,  harassed  ;  but  her  way  would  be  well 
watched  by  the  spirit-forms  which  were  evidently  floating 
around  promiscuously  to  protect  the  pests  of  society ; 
and,  whether  she  got  the  man  or  not,  she  should  share  hit- 
fortune.  This  much  could  be  surely  promised. 

Another  was  wonderfully  favored  with  divine  "spirit 
light"  upon  the  subject — so  favored,  indeed,  that  time 
without  number  her  other-life  had  insensibly  and  uncon- 
sciously wandered  away  in  search  of  correct  information 


222     MRS.   WINSLOW  BECOMES  POETICAL. 

regarding  the  result  of  the  Winslow-Lyon  suit,  and,  with* 
out  her  volition  or  bidding,  it  had  delved  into  the  mys- 
teries for  her  suffering  sister.  She  could  assure  her 
suffering  sister,  the  clairvoyant  said,  that  Lyon  was  spirit- 
ually at  her  feet.  All  the  trouble  had  arisen  between 
them  from  Mrs.  Winslow's  standing  upon  a  higher  spirit- 
ual plane  than  Mr.  Lyon.  He,  as  was  natural  to  man, 
had  more  of  the  sensual  element  beclouding  his  spirit-life. 
Now,  pleaded  the  clairvoyant,  couldn't  she  adjust  an 
average  between  them  ?  She  was  certain — yes,  the  spirits, 
who  never  lie,  had  positively  revealed  to  her  that  all  that 
was  needed  was  some  one  to  properly  discover  each  of 
these  affinities  to  the  other.  In  any  case,  all  would  event- 
ually be  well,  and  there  was  peace,  prosperity,  and  a  large 
amount  of  money  in  waiting  for  her. 

This  sort  of  absurdity  was  related  by  Mrs.  Winslow  to 
an  unlimited  extent  that  evening,  as  the  three  sipped  the 
liquor  she  had  provided,  and  she  insisted  with  great  fervor 
that  all  these  revelations  strongly  corroborated  the  light 
she  herself  had  received  on  the  same  subject. 

As  a  long  pause  ensued  after  one  of  these  heated  as- 
severations, Bristol  ventured  to  ask  how  she  had  been  en- 
lightened concerning  the  matter. 

Raising  her  flushed  face  towards  the  ceiling,  then  lift- 
ing her  right  arm  above  her  head  and  holding  it  there  for 
a  moment,  she  allowed  it  to  slowly  descend  with  a  coiling, 
serpentine  motion,  when  she  burst  into  a  sudden  ecstasy 
of  speech,  movement  and  feature,  and  partly  as  in  answer 
to  the  inquiry,  and  partly  as  if  struck  with  a  swift  and  ir« 


MRS.   WINSLOW  BECOMES  POETICAL.     22$ 

resistible  inspiration,  she  said  in  a  low,  unearthly  voice, 
and  with  weird  effect  : 

"  Yes,  yes,  I  hear  your  angel  voices  calling  ;  I  see 
your  beautiful  forms  ;  I  feel  your  tender  fingers  touching 
my  aching  head  ;  I  am  listening  to  your  sweet,  soft  whis- 
pers. Ah  !  what  is  it  you  say  ? — yes,  yes,  yes  !  You  art 
with  me.  You  will  watch  over  and  guard  me.  You  will 
ward  off  the  evil  influences  that  surround  me,  and  despite 
the  darkness  which  envelops  me,  even  as  the  glorious  sun 
leaps  from  his  couch  of  crimson  and  with  his  burnished 
lances  drives  the  grim  hosts  of  shadows  before  him  with 
the  speed  of  the  light ! — What !  are  you  now  leaving  ?" 

Here  Mrs.  Winslow  gasped  and  kicked  with  her  pretty 
feet  alarmingly. 

"What — what  is  that? — that  rosy,  effulgent  light  that 
fills  all  space  ?  Ah,  yes  !  I  see  they  beckon  for  me  to 
look  up,  to  not  be  cast  down  or  despair.  I  will  look  up. 
See  !  in  their  hands  are  long,  feathery  wands  with  which 
they  sweep  the  flaming  sky,  while  across  its  burnished 
arc  I  see,  yes,  I  see  in  letters  of  purple  that  oft-recurring 
legend — Twenty-five  thousand  dollars  I " 

Now,  although  I  am  not  arguing  this  question  of  Spirit- 
ualism, and  am  only  giving  to  the  public  the  history  so 
far  as  I  dare  of  an  extraordinary  woman  and  practical 
Spiritualist,  I  cannot  resist  asking  the  question,  or  putting 
forward  the  theory,  which,  during  the  progress  of  this  case 
particularly,  and  a  thousand  times  before  and  since  in  a 
general  way,  has  irresistibly  forced  itself  into  my  mind. 
I  give  it  in  all  fairness,  I  am  sure,  and  only  with  a  view 


224    MRS.   WINSLOW  BECOMES  POETICAL. 

that  it  may  dispel  certain  feelings  of  squeamishness  with 
which  a  good  many  people  approach  the  subject  to  inves- 
tigate it.  I  may  be  accused  of  presenting  it  with  too 
little  delicacy ;  but  the  public  must  recollect  that  ihe 
nature  of  my  business  compels  me  to  get  at  the  truth  of 
things,  and  to  do  that,  matters  must  in  a  majority  of 
cases  be  handled  without  gloves.  This  is  my  only  ex- 
cuse, and  perhaps  it  may  be  a  good  defence ;  but  in  any 
event  this  is  the  question  :  Has  there  ever  been  a  so- 
called  Spiritual  "  manifestation "  that  has  not  subse- 
quently been  explained  as  trickery  by  persons  more  cred- 
ible of  belief  than  its  medium  or  originator  ?  After  that 
has  been  answered  in  the  affirmative,  for  it  can  be  an- 
swered in  no  other  way,  all  there  is  left  of  this  Spiritual- 
istic structure  is,  how  account  for  such  exhibitions  as  that 
given  by  Mrs.  Winslow  and  those  given  by  others  of  her 
craft,  even  granting  their  personal  purity,  which  is  un- 
doubtedly exceptional  ? 

This  is  the  question  which  has  oftenest  come  into  my 
mind  in  my  necessarily  almost  constant  study  of  these 
people,  and  the  answers,  though  continually  varying,  have 
all  eventually  forced  upon  me  the  conviction  that  this  re- 
ligion, as  it  is  sacrilegiously  called,  only  takes  hold  of 
people  of  abnormal  or  diseased  temperaments — people 
diseased  in  mind,  in  morals,  in  body,  or  in  all ;  and  if 
that  is  true,  as  I  sincerely  believe  it  to  be,  the  dignifying 
of  a  disease  or  infirmity  as  a  religion  is  simply  an  absur- 
dity too  foolish  for  even  ridicule. 

She  sat  rigid  as  a  church-spire  for  a  few  moments,  as  if 


MRS.   WINSLOW  BECOMES  POETICAL.     22$ 

the  sight  of  so  much  money,  even  if  only  in  purple  letters 
upon  a  burnished  sky,  had  transfixed  her,  and  then,  after 
a  littie  hysterical  struggling,  became  as  limp  as  a  camp- 
meetirig  tent  after  a  thunder-storm  ;  and  after  a  few 
passes  of  her  long,  white  and  deft  fingers  over  her  eyes 
in  a  scared  way,  asked,  "  Oh,  gentlemen,  where — where 
am  I  ?  " 

"  On  the  boundaries  of  the  spirit-land,"  gravely  replied 
Bristol,  pushing  the  bottle  of  liquor  to  the  side  of  the 
table. 

The  woman  was  certainly  exhausted,  for  she  had 
worked  herself  into  such  a  state  mentally — precisely  the 
same  as  in  all  similar  demonstrations,  whether  visions  are 
claimed  to  be  seen,  or  not — that  she  was  completely  en- 
ervated physically,  and  said  in  a  really  grateful  tone, 
"  Thank  you,  Mr.  Bristol,"  and,  pouring  out  a  large  por- 
tion of  liquor,  tossed  it  off  at  one  gulp,  like  a  well-prac- 
tised bar-room  toper. 

"Yes,  yes,"  she  continued  languidly,  "  I  have  a  certain 
promise  of  eventually  being  victorious.  When  the  good 
spirits  are  with  one,  there's  no  cause  for  fear." 

"  Not  the  slightest,"  affirmed  Fox  sympathetically. 

"  But  it  seems,"  replied  Mrs.  Winslow  in  a  discouraged, 
desolate  tone,  "  as  though  everybody's  hand  is  raised 
against  me — as  though  the  dreary  days  pass  so  slowly— 
and  that  I  haven't  a  true  friend  in  the  world  ! " 

"  My  dear  Mrs.  Winslow,"  interrupted  Bristol  in  a 
calm,  fatherly,  even  affectionate  tone,  *'  that  melancholy's 

all  very  fine  ;  but  we  are  your  friends,  and  we  will  stand 
IO* 


226    MRS.   WINSLOW  BECOMES  POETICAL. 

by  you  through  thick  and  thin  to  the  end  of  the  suit.  A 
few  fast  friends,  you  know,  are  better  than  a  thousand 
sunny-weather  friends." 

"  Oh,  yes  ;  oh,  yes,"  returned  the  woman  in  a  tone  of 
voice  that  said,  "  I  can't  argue  this,  but  I  somehow  know 
you  are  both  betraying  me,"  and  then,  closing  her  eyes, 
and  clasping  her  hands  tightly  together,  sang  in  a  weird 
contralto  voice,  cracked  and  unsteady  from  her  excite- 
ment and  exhaustion,  some  stanza  of  an  evidently  re- 
ligious nature,  the  burden  of  which  was  : 

"  I  am  weary,  weary  waiting 

While  the  shadows  deeper  fall ; 
I  am  weary,  weary  waiting 
For  some  holy  voice's  call  !  " 

Undoubtedly  the  song,  though  desecrated  by  the  singer, 
the  place,  and  the  occasion,  was  a  wailing  plaint  from  the 
depths  of  the  woman's  soul,  for  moments  of  utter  deso- 
lation and  absolute  remorse  come  to  even  such  as  she. 

"Now,"  said  Bristol,  becoming  suddenly  interested, 
"  I'm  something  of  a  poet  myself.  When  the  seat  of 
government  was  moved  from  Quebec  to  Ottawa,  I  con- 
structed a  lampoon  on  the  government  that  set  all  Can- 
\da  awhirl.  Really,  Mrs.  Wioslow,  I'm  surprised  at  your 
poetical  nature." 

"  Poetical  nature  ?  "  repeated  the  woman  excitedly 
'  Why !  that  is  what  Lyon  loved  in  me  most.  My  trance* 
sittings  are  wonderful  exhibitions  of  poetical  power.  la 


MRS.   WINSLOW  BECOMES  POETICAL.     22? 

that  state  I  can  compose  poems  of  great  length  and 
power." 

The  gentlemen  of  course  seemed  incredulous  at  this 
statement,  and  challenged  her  to  a  test  of  her  poetical 
tiance-power,  which  she  instantly  accepted,  the  wager 
being  a  quart  of  the  best  brandy  that  could  be  had  in  the 
city  of  Rochester. 

Putting  herself  in  position,  she  asked  :  "  What  sub- 
ject ? "  Bristol  replied,  "  Lyon,"  when  she  struggled  a 
little  in  her  chair,  kicked  the  floor  a  little  with  her  heels, 
rubbed  up  her  eyes,  gasped,  and  after  a  moment  of  rest 
began  to  incant  in  a  kind  of  monotone  tenor : 

"  Oh,  Lyon,  Lyon  !  don't  you  run  ; 
Tke  suit's  begun  ;  we'll  have  our  fun 
Before  we're  done.     I'll  tell  your  son 
That  I  have  won,  although  you  shun 
Your  darling  one  !  " 

"  Oh,  Lyon,  pray,  why  speed  away  ? 
To  fight  a  woman  is  but  play. 
Although  you're  old,  and  bald,  and  gray, 
Do  right  by  your  Amanda  J. — 
You'll  soon  be  clay  ! " 

Amanda  J.  Winslow,  for  this  was  the  woman's  assumed 
name  in  full,  might  have  continued  in  this  divine  strain 
for  an  indefinite  period,  had  not  the  operatives  burst  into 
loud  and  prolonged  laughter  at  her  ludicrous  appearance, 
which  so  disgusted  the  woman  that,  though  communicat- 
ing with  celestial  spheres,  as  she  assumed  to  be,  and  un- 
doubtedly was  doing  as  much  as  any  of  her  craft  ever  did. 


228    MRS.   WINSLOW  BECOMES  POETICAL. 

she  jumped  up  with  a  bound,  savagely  told  the  men  they 
were  a  brace  of  fools,  and  with  a  lively  remark  or  two, 
which  had  something  very  like  an  oath  in  it,  went  to  bed, 
leaving  the  men  to  finish  the  bottle  and  the  poetry  as 
they  saw  fit. 

Mrs.  Win  slow  was  a  thorough  church-goer,  and  distrib- 
uted the  favor  of  her  attendance  among  the  orthodox 
churches  and  the  "  meetings  "  of  the  members  of  her  own 
faith,  quite  fairly — perhaps,  as  was  natural,  giving  the 
Washington  Hall  Sunday  evening  Spiritualistic  lectures 
a  slight  preference ;  and  soon  after  the  Arcade  affair, 
which  had  launched  her  into  poetry,  she  returned  to  the 
rooms  one  Sunday  evening,  declaring  that  all  her  evil 
spirits  had  left  her,  and  that  her  former  passionate  love 
for  Lyon  had  also  departed,  her  only  desire  now  being 
for  his  money. 

To  show  how  thoroughly  she  had  been  dispossessed  of 
her  evil  spirits,  she  remarked  that  she  now  thoroughly 
hated  Lyon,  but  it  would  not  do  to  let  this  appear  on 
trial,  or  she  would  lose  the  sympathy  of  the  jury.  Every 
effort  should  now  be  bent  towards  compelling  him  to  di- 
vide his  wealth  with  her,  whom  he  had  so  deeply 
wronged.  There  should  be  no  compromise  ;  she  would 
not  even  be  led  to  the  altar  by  him  now.  She  would 
have  from  him  what  would  most  anmy  him,  and  that  was 
his  money. 

Having  resolved  on  this,  the  darkness  that  surrounded 
her  was  dispelled  and  the  spirits  of  light  rallied  as  a  sort 
of  standing  army ;  and  in  this  beneficent  condition  she 


MRS.   WINSLOW  BECOMES  POETICAL.     229 

wished  to  either  go  into  the  country  to  recuperate  foi 
a  few  weeks,  or  seek  the  retirement  of  Fox's  room  and 
there  expend  her  superfluous  brain  and  spirit  power  upon 
a  play  to  be  entitled  "  His  Breach  of  Promise."  To  this 
end  she  proposed  removing  the  elegant  furnishings  of  hei 
apartments  and  storing  them  in  a  spare  room,  giving  out 
to  callers  that  she  was  absent  from  the  city,  and  then, 
after  having  secured  Fox's  room,  she  would  be  able  to 
burn  the  midnight  oil  unmolested  so  long  as  her  inspi- 
ration might  continue. 

She  also  favored  Fox  and  Bristol  with  a  sketch  of  the 
play,  which  was  to  be  a  sort  of  spectacular  comedy-drama, 
which,  according  to  the  lady's  description,  would  contain 
certainly  seven  acts  of  rive  scenes  each,  and  would  be  pre- 
ceded by  a  prologue  which  would  play  at  least  an  hour  ; 
in  fact,  it  seemed  that  the  great  play  "  His  Breach  of 
Promise"  was  to  be  constructed  on  the  Chinese  plan,  to 
be  continued  indefinitely,  and  admission  only  to  be 
secured  in  the  form  of  course  tickets.  Outside  of  these 
great  aids  to  the  popularity  of  the  play,  it  was  to  have  the 
additional  startling  and  novel  attractions  of  represen- 
tations of  her  first  meeting  with  Lyon,  his  regret  be- 
cause she  was  married,  his  copious  tears  whenever  in  her 
presence,  his  securing  her  divorce,  the  death  of  Lyon's 
wife,  and  every  manner  of  pathetic  and  ludicrous  incident 
connected  with  the  case  ;  how  they  each  wooed  and  won 
the  other,  including  a  grand  transformation  scene  typical 
of  Lyon's  subsequent  treachery,  and  her  reward  of  virtue 
in  a  fifty  thousand  dollar  verdict  for  damages. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

Mi,  Pinkertcm  decides  to  favor  Mrs.  Winslow  with  a  Series  of  Annoy 
ances. — The  mysterious  Package. — The  Detectives  labor  under 
well-merited  Suspicion. — ''  My  God  !  what's  that  ?  " — The  deadly 
Phial. — This  Time  a  Mysterious  Box. — Its  suggestive  Contents.— 
"  The  Thing  she  was." — Tabitha,  Amanda,  and  Hannah  assaulted. 
— A  Punch  and  Judy  Show. 

THE  reports  which  I  had  for  some  time  received 
daily  regarding  Mrs.  Win  slew's  behavior  satisfied 
me  that  the  delay  in  reaching  the  Winslow-Lyon  case — 
which  was  at  the  bottom  of  the  docket  of  the  fall  term, 
and  on  account  of  a  press  of  court  business  had  been  put 
over  to  the  winter  term — the  strict  silence  I  had  en- 
joined upon  Mr.  Lyon,  and  the  general  suspicion  which 
possessed  her  of  everybody  and  everything,  were  all 
having  the  natural  effect  of  unsettling  her  completely,  and 
I  determined  upon  a  series  of  surprises  and  annoyances 
to  the  woman,  without  in  any  way  apprising  Bristol  and 
Fox  of  what  was  to  be  done;  so  that  although  they  might 
imagine  from  what  source  the  unwelcome  "materializa- 
tions" came,  they  would  still  be  sufficiently  uninformed 
to  share  in  the  general  surprise  and  escape  the  charge  of 
complicity. 

I  accordingly  sent  three  additional  men  to  Rochester 


MRS.  WIN  SLOW  IS  ANNOYED.  231 

with  thorough  instructions  and  full  information  as  to  the 
madam's  residence  and  habits,  with  a  description  of  hei 
tenants,  including  Bristol  and  Fox,  who  were  unknown  to 
the  operatives  sent. 

My  object  in  doing  this  was  a  double  one.  I  desired 
first,  to  test  the  woman's  so-called  spirit  power  ;  for,  should 
these  annoyances  prove  of  the  nature  of  a  persecution, 
she  and  her  friends,  the  Spiritualists,  would  be  able  to 
call  celestial  spirits  to  her  aid,  or,  better  still,  divine  from 
whence  the  persecution  came,  and  compel  its  discontinu- 
ance by  the  means  provided  by  ordinary  mortals.  In 
case  she  could  not  do  this,  which  was  of  course  rather 
doubtful,  I  knew  from  her  superstitiousness  and  the  guilty 
fear  possessed  by  every  criminal,  which  she  largely  shared, 
that  she  would  be  quite  likely  to  either  make  some  con- 
fessions which  would  implicate  her  in  further  blackmailing 
operations,  or  force  her  into  a  line  of  conduct  agreeing 
perfectly  with  her  true  character,  and  which  would  com- 
pel her  to  show  herself  thoroughly  to  the  public;  and 
further,  I  think  I  must  confess  to  a  slight  desire  to  assist 
a  little  in  punishing  her,  after  I  had  become  so  fully  aware 
of  her  villainous  character. 

Accordingly,  while  Mrs.  Winslow  was  still  deep  in  the 
plot  of  her  great  drama,  but  before  the  changes  suggested 
— which  would  have  made  her  a  sort  of  literary  nun  in 
Fox's  room — had  occurred,  she  was  the  recipient  of  a 
large  package  of  railway  time-tables,  with  the  farthest  ter 
minus  of  each  road  underscored,  and  further  called  at- 
tention to  by  a  hand  and  index  finger  pointing  towards  if 


232  MRS.   WINSLOW  IS  ANNOYED 

from  Rochester,  intimating  that  it  was  either  desired  of 
demanded,  on  the  part  of  somebody,  that  she  should  leave 
Rochester  for  one  of  the  points  indicated. 

When  Bristol  and  Fox  returned  "  home,"  as  they  had 
come  to  call  their  lodgings,  that  evening,  Mrs.  Winslow 
was  at  her  escritoire,  completely  immersed  in  time-tables 
and  manuscript,  and  had  all  the  air  of  an  important  author 
struggling  for  fitting  expressions  with  which  to  clothe  some 
suddenly  inspired,  though  sublime  idea. 

She  looked  at  them  closely  a  moment,  as  if  she  would 
read  their  very  thoughts.  Whether  seeing  anything  suspi- 
cious or  not,  she  remarked  very  pointedly  : 

"  Good  deal  of  railroad  rivalry  nowadays,  isn't  there  ?" 

"Yes,  considerable,"  replied  Bristol  pleasantly,  and 
then  asking,  "  Are  you  going  to  introduce  some  rival  rail- 
roads in  your  new  play,  Mrs.  Winslow  ?  " 

"  Not  much  !  "  she  answered  tersely. 

"  I  wouldn't,"  replied  Bristol,  taking  a  seat  near  the 
chandelier  and  pulling  a  paper  from  his  pocket ;  "  they're 
dangerous." 

Mrs.  Winslow  paid  no  attention  to  this,  but  suddenly 
eyed  Fox,  and  sharply  asked  : 

"  They  like  very  much  to  sell  through  tickets,  don't 
they?" 

"I  believe  they  do — ought  to  pay  better,"  he  promptly 
rejoined,  eyeing  her  in  return. 

"  Well,"  said  she,  after  a  slight  pause,  and  as  if  with 
something  of  a  sigh,  "  it's  all  right,  perhaps ;  but  if 
either  of  you  should  meet  any  railroad  agent  who  seems 


MRS.   WINSLOW  IS  ANNOYED.  233 

to  be  laboring  under  the  delusion  that  I  want  to  found  a 
colony  in  some  far  country,  just  tell  him  to  expend  his 
energies  in  some  other  direction  !  " 

Of  course  my  operatives  were  surprised,  and  demanded 
an  explanation  ;  but  the  recipient  of  the  circulars  was 
quite  dignified,  and  would  only  clear  the  matter  up  by 
occasional  little  passionate  bursts  of  confidence,  as  if 
finding  fault  with  them  for  not  being  able  to  unravel  the 
mystery  to  her.  They  protested  they  knew  nothing  about 
the  matter,  and  she  undoubtedly  believed  them  ;  but  she 
ventured  to  inform  them  that  if  anybody — mind  you,  any- 
body— supposed  they  could  scare  her  away  from  Roches- 
ter by  any  such  hint  as  that,  they  were  mightily  mistaken, 
that's  all  there  was  about  that. 

My  detectives  allayed  her  fears  as  much  as  possible, 
but  it  was  plainly  observable  that  she  was  really  annoyed 
by  the  occurrence.  There  •  is  always  a  hundred  times 
more  terror  in  the  fear  of  unknown  evil  than  in  that 
which  we  can  boldly  meet,  and  this  particularly  applies  to 
those  who  know  they  deserve  punishment,  as  in  Mrs. 
Winslow's  case. 

The  next  evening  they  were  all  sitting  discussing  gen- 
eral topics  and  a  pint  of  peach  brandy,  and  had  become 
exceedingly  sociable,  particularly  over  the  railroad  circu- 
lars, which  Fox  and  Bristol  had  by  this  time  induced  her 
to  regard  in  the  light  of  a  huge  joke,  or  error,  when  the 
party  were  suddenly  startled  by  some  object  which  caused 
a  peculiar  ringing,  yet  deadened  sound,  as  it  struck  the 
partly-opened  door  and  then  bounded  upon  the  carpet 


234  MRS.   WINSLOW  IS  ANNOYED. 

where  it  glisteningly  rolled  out  of  sight  under  the  sofa 
where  the  thoroughly-scared  Mrs.  Winslow  sat. 

"  My  God  !  what's  that  ?  "  she  screamed,  rushing  to  the 
door  and  peering  down  the  staircase,  as  rapidly  retreating 
footsteps  were  distinctly  heard  ;  but  not  being  able  to  dis- 
cover anybody,  scrambled  back  into  the  room,  shutting 
and  bolting  the  door  behind  her. 

The  woman  was  deathly  pale,  the  color  brought  to  her 
face  by  the  brandy  having  been  driven  from  it  as  if  by 
some  terrible  blow  ;  but  it  came  back  with  her  into  the 
room,  where  Bristol  and  Fox  appeared  nearly  as  frightened 
as  she. 

She  looked  at  them  a  moment  in  a  dazed,  stupefied 
way,  and  then  demanded  :  "  What  does  this  mean  ?" 

"That's  what  I'd  like  to  know!"  returned  Bristol, 
hunting  for  his  quizzers,  which  he  had  lost  in  his  jump 
from  his  chair.  "  This  is  all  very  fine,  but  it's  pretty 
plain  somebody  here's  sent  for  !  " 

"  And  /  don't  want  to  go  !  "  chimed  in  Fox,  climbing 
down  from  a  safe  position  upon  the  escritoire. 

The  three  looked  at  each  other  in  an  extremely  suspi- 
cious way,  and  the  woman  again  demanded,  this  time 
threateningly,  what  it  all  meant. 

"  Something  with  a  glitter,  and  it  rolled  under  there," 
was  all  Bristol  could  tell  her  about  it. 

"  Let's  get  it,  whatever  it  is  !  "  said  Fox,  with  an  appar- 
ent burst  of  bravery  and  spirit. 

So  Bristol  at  one  end  and  Fox  at  the  other  end  of  the 
sofa,  rolled  it  out  with  a  great  show  of  caution,  while  Mra, 


MRS.   WINSLOW  IS  ANNOYED.  23$ 

Winslow,  though  preserving  a  good  position  for  observa- 
tion, kept  nimbly  out  of  the  way. 

"  What  can  it  be  ?  "  she  persisted  excitedly. 

"  A  vial  sealed  with  red  wax,  with  a  string  attached, 
and  containing  some  clear  liquid,"  said  Fox,  stooping  to 
pick  it  up. 

"  Don't — don't,  Fox  !  "  shouted  Bristol,  pushing  him 
back  impetuously  ;  "  the  devilish  thing  may  burst  and  kill 
us  all — nitro-glycerine,  you  know  ! " 

Mrs.  Winslow  shuddered,  drew  her  elegant  wrappings 
About  her  fair  shoulders,  as  if  the  thought  chilled  her  like 
the  sudden  opening  of  some  cold  vault,  and  looked  ap- 
pealingly  at  the  two  men. 

"  Or  might  contain  some  deadly  poison,"  said  Fox,  in 
a  warning  tone. 

"  And  the  fiend  who  threw  it  in  here  expected  the  bot- 
tle to  break  and  the  poison  to  murder  us  !  "  said  Mrs. 
Winslow  indignantly. 

"  Things  have  come  to  a  pretty  pass  when  attempts  like 
this  are  made  on  people's  lives  !"  said  Bristol,  adjusting 
his  spectacles  and  edging  towards  the  mysterious  missile. 

"  I  shall  move  at  once,"  stoutly  affirmed  Mrs.  Winslow. 

"  Don't  do  any  such  thing,"  said  Fox  earnestly.  "That 
will  only  show  whoever  may  be  committing  these  indigni- 
ties that  we  are  alarmed  by  them." 

"  We  ? — we  ?  "  repeated  the  adventuress,  with  a  pecu- 
liar accent  upon  the  word  "we."  "  It  isn't  you  men  that 
is  meant.  It's  me.  This  is  some  of  that  Lyon's  doings 
Oh,  I  could  cut  his  heart  out  1 " 


236  MRS.   WINSLOW  IS  ANNOYED. 

The  detectives  saw  that  she  was  getting  greatly  excited, 
and  Bristol,  with  a  view  of  quieting  her  as  much  as  pos- 
sible  for  the  night,  picked  up  the  vial  by  a  string  tied  to 
it  and  hung  it  upon  a  nail,  remarking  that  he  was  some- 
thing of  a  chemist  himself  and  didn't  believe  it  was  ex- 
plosive, and  also  expressed  a  conviction  that  Mrs.  Wins- 
low  should  have  it  analyzed. 

To  this  she  acceded,  and  expressed  a  determination  to 
"  get  even "  with  the  author  of  these  outrages,  in  which 
laudable  resolve  the  detectives  promised  to  assist  her ; 
but  the  peach  brandy  seemed  the  only  relief  possible  to 
Mrs.  Winslow  for  the  remainder  of  the  evening,  which 
was  chiefly  passed  in  wild  speculations  and  theories  con- 
cerning the  new  "  manifestations,  which  she  began  to  fear 
might  be  the  result  of  jealous  clairvoyants  and  vindictive 
spiritualists,  who  had  endeavored  to  blackmail  both  her- 
self and  Mr.  Lyon,  and,  failing  in  this,  were  now  perse- 
cuting her. 

The  next  day  Mrs.  Winslow  went  out  quietly  and  se- 
cured the  services  of  a  chemist  under  the  Osborne  House, 
who  pronounced  the  contents  nothing  but  water,  which 
proved  a  great  relief  to  the  agitated  trio,  but  did  not  re- 
move from  Mrs.  Winslow's  mind  the  anxiety  and  unrest 
that  these  undesired  and  unlooked-for  materializations 
were  causing. 

About  noon,  after  Fox  and  Bristol  had  come  in  from  a 
little  stroll  and  they  were  all  laughing  over  the  scare  of 
the  previous  evening,  a  step  was  heard  on  the  stairs,  and 
soon  after  a  little  man  with  a  big  box  on  his  shoulder,  and 


MRS.   WINSLOW  IS  ANNOYED. 

a  slouched  hat  on  his  head  which  hid  his  face  pretty 
thoroughly,  came  to  the  head  of  the  stairs,  knocked  at  the 
door,  and  without  waiting  for  an  invitation  to  come  in, 
entered,  and  depositing  the  box  with  the  remark,  "  For 
Mrs.  Winslow,  from  the  Misses  Grim,"  spryly  sprang  back, 
shut  the  door,  and  clattered  away  down  the  stairs  and  into 
the  street  before  Mrs.  Winslow  could  get  a  second  look  at 
him,  though  she  sprang  after  him,  shouting,  "  Here  ! 
here  !  come  back  here  or  I'll  have  you  arrested  ! "  But  he 
only  clattered  away  the  livelier,  and  she  returned  to  the 
room  raging  and  vowing  that  the  box  contained  some  in- 
fernal machine  for  the  purpose  of  distributing  minute  por- 
tions of  her  anatomy  all  over  the  city  of  Rochester. 

This  became  more  likely  when  Mrs.  Winslow  recollected 
that  the  Misses  Grim — Tabitha,  Amanda,  and  Hannah — 
were  the  three  old  maids  from  whom  she  had  thought  she 
had  secured  a  wealthy  old  banker  to  pluck ;  and  though 
he  had  proven  to  her  a  very  ordinary  man,  somewhat  in- 
firm from  rheumatism,  and  a  trifle  quarrelsome,  though 
eminently  virtuous  and  punctilious,  she  had  never,  of 
course,  let  them  know  how  badly  she  had  been  swindled ; 
and  as  they  yet  regarded  their  lost  boarder,  Bristol,  as  a 
priceless  treasure,  lost  to  them  through  her  perfidy,  it  was 
no  more  than  natural,  Mrs.  Winslow  thought,  that  in  their 
chagrin  and  disappointment  they  should  concoct  some 
diabolical  plan  to  injure  her. 

But  still  it  might  not  be  from  them.  She  had  other 
enemies,  many  of  them,  and  the  Misses  Grim's  name 
might  have  been  given  to  cover  up  some  other  person's 


238  MRS.   WINSLOW  IS  ANNOYED. 

misdeeds.  But  whatever  it  might  be,  her  curiosity  soon 
overcame  her  fear,  and  she  requested  Fox  to  open  it. 

After  securing  a  hammer  from  his  room,  the  latter  pro- 
ceeded to  open  the  mysterious  box  ;  but  after  the  cover 
had  been  partially  drawn  and  it  was  evident  that  the  box 
had  not  been  delivered  for  the  purpose  of  exterminating 
anybody,  it  occurred  to  its  fair  owner  that  there  might 
be  something  within  it  not  desirable  for  her  to  let  the 
gentlemen  see,  whereupon  she  requested  them  to  retire  ; 
but  after  Bristol  had  grumblingly  disappeared,  and  Fox 
had  got  to  the  door,  she  recalled  the  latter  and  asked 
him  anxiously  if  he  would  not  open  it  for  her.  He 
gallantly  agreed  to,  and  got  down  on  his  knees  upon  the 
carpet  and  began  taking  off  the  cover. 

"  I  do  wonder  what  it  can  be  ! "  said  Mrs.  Winslow 
anxiously. 

"I  can't  find  anything  but  bran,"  returned  Fox,  digging 
about  the  box  carefully. 

"  Bran  !  "  she  exclaimed  incredulously  j  "  that  box  is 
too  heavy  for  bran." 

Fox  dug  away  for  a  little  while  longer  and  finally  shout- 
ed, "  I've  got  something  !  " 

"  And  what  is  that  something  ?  " 

The  question  was  answered  by  the  thing  itself,  which 
now  appeared  from  the  bottom  of  the  box,  vigorously  lift- 
ed by  Fox's  hand  and  plumped  through  the  bran  upon  the 
carpet. 

"  Well,  what  is  it  ?  "  she  demanded. 

"  Vegetable,"  said  Fox  tersely. 


MRS.   WINSLOW  IS  ANNOYED.  239 

*•  Oh,  pshaw  !  is  that  all  ?  "  asked  the  disgusted  woman. 

"  Yes,  that's  all,"  he  replied,  after  digging  about  in  the 
bian  for  a  moment.  Mrs.  Winslow  also  satisfied  herself 
that  it  was  all  by  searching  in  the  bran,  and  the  two  then 
proceeded  to  investigate  the  vegetable. 

"It's  a  turnip,  and  somebody's  been  digging  in  it," 
said  Mrs.  Winslow. 

"  I  think  you  are  mistaken,"  mildly  interposed  Fox. 
"  It's  something  else  entirely." 

"  What's  this  !  "  exclaimed  the  woman  ;  "  sure  as  I 
live,  a  cross-bones  and  skull  on  one  side,  and  on  the 
other  side,  '  D-e-a-d' — dead  !  " 

"  It  isn't  dead  turnip  !  "   interrupted  Fox. 

"Dead  beet?"  she  asked  musingly,  a  sudden  crimson 
flooding  into  her  face. 

"  Shouldn't  wonder,"  he  answered. 

Biting  her  lips  she  glided  to  a  window.  It  was  a  cold 
autumn  day,  and  the  panes  rattled  drearily  as  she  seemed 
to  shrink  and  hide  between  them  and  the  heavy  curtains, 
while  the  color  came  and  went  hotly  in  her  face.  It  hurt 
her,  wounded  her,  showed  her  to  be  the  thing  she  was 
in  a  way  that  could  never  have  been  effected  by  ten  thou- 
sand innuendoes  .or  direct  charges  ;  and  she  pressed  her 
face  against  the  cold  panes  as  if  to  force  and  drive  away 
the  hideous  picture  that  a  momentarily  honest  glimpse  of 
herself  had  revealed  to  her,  and  continued  standing 
thus,  buried  in  the  memories  which  build  remorse,  until, 
noticing  the  thing  in  her  hand  which  had  caused  this  hu- 
miliation, she  flung  it  violently  across  the  room,  and  rush- 


240  MRS.    WINSLOW  IS  ANNOYED. 

ing  into  her  sleeping-room,  hastily  prepared  for  going  out  ^ 
then  dashing  through  the  reception-room,  she  passed  into 
the  hall,  and  meeting  Bristol,  said  : 

"  Bristol,  I  want  you  to  come  with  me  ! " 

Bristol  immediately  complied,  but  was  given  a  lively 
chase,  for  Mrs.  Winslow  was  strong  of  limb,  fleet  of  foot, 
and,  on  this  occasion,  was  impelled  by  a  burst  of  spirit 
which,  if  rightly  directed,  would  have  led  a  conquering 
army. 

She  started  directly  for  Main  btreet,  and  turned  up  that 
thoroughfare  at  a  pace  which  attracted  considerable  at- 
tention. After  rapidly  walking  two  blocks  she  swept 
across  the  street,  and  after  having  waited  for  Bristol  to 
come  up  with  her,  plunged  into  the  little  restaurant  under 
Washington  Hall,  with  my  operative  close  at  her  heels. 

The  sudden  entrance  of  the  couple  caused  a  great  com- 
motion in  the  quaint  little  eating-room,  and  the  drowsy 
customers  smiled  when  they  saw  the  unaccustomed  form 
of  the  woman  whom  the  Misses  Grim — Tabitha,  Amanda 
and  Hannah — had  taken  no  trouble  to  prevent  being 
known  as  her  deadly  enemy. 

Tabitha,  the  most  ancient,  at  once  bristled  up  and  took 
a  position  behind  her  neat  counter,  her  wrinkled  head 
trembling  with  so  much  excitement  that  her  sparse  curls 
created  a  kind  of  quivering  nimbus  about  it. 

"Well,  ma'am  and  what  can  /do  for  you?11  asked 
Tabitha  with  a  flaunt  of  her  head  and  a  sarcastic  tinge  in 
her  voice. 

Mrs.  Winslow  got  to  the  counter  in  two  or  three  quick 


MRS.    WINSLOW  IS  ANNOYED.  241 

jumps  or  starts,  and  asked,  husky  with  rage,  "I— -I  just 
want  to  know  which  one  of  you  old  straws  sent  that  box 
to  me  ?  " 

"Box  to  you!"  jerked  out  Amanda,  the  next  less 
ancient  of  the  Misses  Grim,  who  had  just  entered  and  at 
once  stopped  stock  still  to  catch  Mrs.  Winslow' s  remark  ; 
"  box  to  you  ?  Tush  ! — box  to  nobody  !  "  and  she  too 
sidled  in  behind  the  counter  to  reinforce,  and  tremble 
with,  her  very  old  sister. 

"  Oh,  you  can't  play  your  innocence  on  me  !  "  retorted 
Mrs.  Winslow  very  violently.  "  You  wear  very  white 
collars,  and  very  black  caps  and  very  straight  dresses, 
and  look  very  saintly,  but  you're  just  three  old  witches ; 
that's  what  you  are  !  " 

"Pooh,  pooh  !  "  snorted  Tabitha  and  Amanda  hysteri- 
cally. 

"  Pooh,  pooh  !  if  you  like  ;  but  if  I  find  out  which  one 
of  you  sent  that  box,  I'll — I'll  shake  every  bone  in  her 
old  body  into  a  match  ! "  shouted  Mrs.  Winslow,  dancing 
up  and  down  against  the  counter  and  working  her  fingers 
savagely. 

"Match?"  responded  Hannah,  the  least  ancient  and 
most  fiery  of  the  three  virgins,  and  who  entered  at  this 
critical  moment;  "match  indeed!  you're  a  match  for 
anything  villainous!"  and  then  she  too  trotted  behind 
the  counter  to  throw  the  weight  of  her  presence  into  the 
conflict. 

By  this  time  the   interested   customers   had   gathered 

around,  and  people  from  the  street,  noticing  the  unwonted 
II 


242  MRS.    WINSLOW  IS  ANNOYED. 

enthusiasm  awakened  in  the  Washington  Hall  restaurant, 
were  rapidly  collecting  upon  the  outside  and  flattening 
their  curious  noses  against  the  intervening  panes. 

Mrs.  Winslow  could  no  more  control  herself  than  could 
the  old  maids,  and  quickened  by  the  presence  of  the 
increasing  crowd,  burst  into  a  screaming  demand  for  the 
person  who  sent  the  "dead"  beet  to  her. 

"  Dead  beat ! — ha,  ha,  ha  !  "  laughed  the  three  sisters 
convulsively,  at  once  realizing  the  appropriateness  of  the 
joke  and  excitedly  enjoying  it ;  "  dead  beat,  eh  ?  we 
didn't  doit!"  "But,"  added  Hannah,  maliciously,  "il 
you  do  find  the  person  as  did  send  it,  Mrs.  Winslow,  and 
will  send  'em  around,  we'll  board  'em  for  a  month  free  ! " 

There  was  war,  direful  war,  imminent ;  and  no  one 
could  imagine  what  might  have  resulted  had  the  conflict 
of  tongues  culminated  in  a  conflict  of  hands.  But  to  have 
seen  the  three  ancient,  prim,  and  trembling  women  on. 
the  one  side,  and  the  ponderous,  though  handsome  Mrs. 
Winslow  on  the  other — the  old  maids  either  with  arms 
akimbo  or  with  hands  firmly  clenched  upon  the  counter's 
edge  as  if  to  compel  restraint,  their  bodies  weaving  back 
and  forth,  their  heads  bobbing  up  and  down,  and  their 
stray  frills  and  curls  wildly  dancing  as  if  each  particular 
hair  was  in  a  mad  ecstasy  of  its  own ;  and  Mrs.  Winslow, 
upon  her  side  of  the  counter,  in  a  perfect  frenzy  of 
excitement,  stamping  her  feet,  jumping  backward  and 
forward,  bringing  her  clenched  hand  down  upon  the 
counter  with  terrible  force  for  a  woman,  and  shaking  it 
furiously  at  the  agitated  row  of  old  maids,  would  be  to 


MRS.   WIN  SLOW  IS  ANNOYED.  243 

have  witnessed  a  marvellous  improvement  upon  any  form 
of  the  Punch  and  Judy  show  ever  exhibited. 

Bristol  saw  that  unless  they  were  separated  he  would 
become  implicated  in  a  case  of  assault  and  battery,  and 
after  great  effort  pacified  the  women  sufficiently  to  enable 
him  to  pilot  his  landlady  out  of  the  restaurant,  through 
the  streets  and  finally  into  her  own  apartments,  where  she 
passed  the  remainder  of  the  dreary  day  in  weeping, 
storms  of  baffled  rage,  or  protracted  applications  to  the 
spirits  which  can  be  controlled,  whether  one  is  a  spiritu- 
alist x  not,  so  long  as  money  lasts  and  total  prohibition 
is  no:  enforced. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

Cast  down. — "  Trifles." — A  charitable  Offering  — Dreariness. — Going 
Crazy. — An  interrupted  Seance. — A  new  Form  of  the  Devil. — The 
Red-herring  Expedition  and  its  Result. — A  mad  Dutchman. — Deso- 
lation.— An  order  for  a  Coffin.— The  sympathizing  Undertaker,  Mr. 
Boxem. 

MRS.  WINSLOW  now  began  to  show  great  pertur- 
bation of  spirits.  In  conversation  with  my 
detectives,  who  endeavored  to  cheer  her  up  and  lead  her 
to  regard  these  surprises  as  mere  jokes  not  worth  any 
person's  notice,  she  constantly  argued  the  opposite,  and 
thus  arguing,  conjured  up  countless  possibilities  of  harm, 
gradually  working  herself  into  that  condition  of  mind 
where  every  little  unusual  noise  or  movement  of  any  per- 
son in  the  building  or  upon  the  street  was  a  signal  for 
some  querulous  inquiry  or  complaint. 

She  was  also  very  much  worried  concerning  her  suit, 
and  went  about  among  the  Spiritualists  seeking  their  ad- 
vice and  encouragement,  and  giving  and  receiving  a  good 
deal  of  scandal  concerning  the  case.  From  one  she 
would  hear  that  Lyon  was  employing  certain  other  medi- 
ums in  his  behalf,  and  that  she  had  better  look  out  for 
them.  Another  would  inform  her  that  Lyon  had  several 
other  mistresses,  among  them  a  Miss  Susie  Roberts,  and 


CAST  DOWN.  245 

a  Madame  La  Motte,  both  Spiritualists  and  mediums, 
from  whom  Lyon  intended  to  prove  her  bad  character, 
and  whom  she,  in  turn,  vowed  she  would  have  subpoenaed 
in  her  own  behalf,  and  impeach  their  testimony  through 
what  she  could  compel  them  to  admit  of  both  themselves 
and  Lyon.  At  other  places  she  learned  that  these  perse- 
cutions were  Lyon's  work  entirely,  or  rather,  the  wo'rk  jf 
nis  agents,  principal  among  whom  were  the  two  ladies 
mentioned.  And,  in  fact,  wherever  she  went  she  heard 
or  found  something  to  give  her  uneasiness  or  cause  her 
unrest. 

"Yes,"  she  said  sadly  to  my  operatives,  "  I  can't  stand 
this  sort  of  thing  much  longer." 

"  Oh,  nonsense  !  "  rejoined  Bristol ;  "  you  haven't  been 
hurt,  have  you  ?  " 

"  No  ;  but  I  can't  tell  when  I  shall  be.  That's  what  I 
can't  bear." 

"  But  I  thought  you  were  a  woman  of  too  great  force 
of  character  to  allow  trifles  to  trouble  you,"  exclaimed 
Fox  tauntingly. 

"  Trifles  !  "  said  she  hotly ;  "  trifles  !  Is  expecting 
every  moment  to  be  murdered,  or  blown  up,  a  trifle  ?  Is 
fearing  that  everything  you  taste  will  poison  you,  or  every- 
thing you  touch  do  you  deadly  harm,  a  trifle  ?" 

"  People  will  think  you  deserve  to  be  annoyed  if  you 
show  them  you  are  annoyed,"  argued  Fox. 

"  I  have  long  since  ceased  to  care  what  people  think. 
Sometimes  I  am  sure  I  hate  every  human  being ;  and  I 
do  believe  the  more  the  world  hates  me,  the  more  monej 


246  CAST  DOWN. 

I  make.  If  these  things  are  not  stopped  soon,  I  tell  you," 
she  continued  in  a  tone  of  voice  that  seemed  to  say  the) 
could  stay  the  annoyances  if  they  would,  "  I'll  go  to  St 
Louis-  and  attend  to  my  cases  there  ! " 

This  opened  the  eyes  of  my  operatives,  and  they  simul- 
taneously conveyed  the  intimation  to  each  other  that  care 
ful  working  might  secure  some  information  about  any  St. 
Louis  cases  the  woman  might  have  which  would  be  desir- 
able ;  and  in  a  short  time,  by  gradually  leading  Mrs. 
Winslow  on,  they  discovered  that  the  brazen  adventuress, 
according  to  her  own  story,  had  pending  no  less  than 
Seven  cases  in  the  Circuit  Court  at  St.  Louis,  every  one 
of  them  being  suits  on  some  trivial,  trumped-up  charge. 

It  seemed  fated  that  Mrs.  Winslow  should  leave  Roch- 
ester, if  her  remaining  depended  upon  these  mysterious 
offerings  ceasing,  for  while  they  were  yet  in  conversation 
upon  the  subject,  a  colored  porter  called  with  a  great 
basket-load  of  provisions,  and  without  a  word,  after 
spreading  a  newspaper  upon  the  carpet,  began  unloading 
his  store. 

"In  heaven's  name,  who  sent  you  here  with  those?" 
she  entreated  of  the  colored  gentleman. 

"If sail  right;  it's  all  right,"  he  said  soothingly,  and 
winking  hard  at  my  operatives. 

"  But  it  isn't  all  right ;  it's  all  wrong  ! "  she  retorted, 
warming. 

"  Guess  not,  missus ;  lemme  see :  Quart  split  peas, 
quart  beans,  one  punking,  jug  m'lasses,  'n  a  mackerel 
Done  got  'em  all,  jure  1 " 


CAST  DOWN.  247 

"Where  did  they  come  from,  you  black  imp?1'  the 
woman  demanded,  advancing  threateningly. 

He  grabbed  his  basket  quickly,  and,  slowly  retreating 
towards  the  door,  winked  again  very  knowingly  at  Bristol 
and  Fox,  tapped  his  forehead  and  shook  his  head  deplor- 
ingly,  and  then  nodded  towards  Mrs.  Winslow,  very 
plainly  saying  in  pantomime,  "  Poor  thing  ! — badly  de- 
mented ! "  and,  as  Mrs.  Winslow,  in  the  excess  of  her 
anger,  made  a  dive  at  him,  he  sprang  back  through  the 
door,  ejaculating,  "  Lo'd,  ain't  she  crazy,  though!"  and 
made  good  his  escape,  laughing  with  that  expression  of 
complete  enjoyment  which  only  an  Ethiopian  can  give. 

Mrs.  Winslow  was  now  thoroughly  convinced  that  the 
two  men  who  had  been  her  constant  companions  of  late 
had  had  something  to  do  with  annoying  her,  and  she  cun 
ningly  followed  the  negro  to  the  store  where  he  was  em- 
ployed, where  she  at  once  sharply  questioned  the  proprie- 
tor, who  told  her  just  as  sharply  that  only  a  few  minutes 
before,  a  ministerial-looking  man,  claiming  to  be  city  mis- 
sionary for  some  church  up-town,  called  and  purchased  the 
goods,  remarking  that  they  were  for  some  crazy  woman 
living  in  the  block  next  to  Meech's  opera-house,  whom 
he  had  just  visited,  and  found  to  be  possessed  of  the 
peculiar  mania  that  she  would  receive  no  provisions  save 
in  full  dress  in  the  presence  of  her  physicians,  and  that  it 
was  his  desire  to  so  humor  her.  So  he  had  entrusted  the 
errand  to  the  colored  man,  who  had  carried  cut  the  in- 
structions given  him ;  and  that  that  was  all  there  was 
about  it. 


248  CAST  DOWN. 

When  she  returned  crestfallen  to  the  apartments,  am 
Bristol  and  Fox  had  heard  her  story,  they  so  derived  it. 
claiming  that  the  groceryman  had  fallen  in  love  with  hel 
and  invented  the  story  upon  the  spur  of  the  moment,  fear- 
ing to  disclose  his  languishing  affection,  she  now  be- 
lieved that  they  were  innocent  of  complicity  in  the 
matter  and  seemed  to  lapse  into  a  bewildered  sort  of 
condition,  where  she  would  wander  about  the  rooms,  sus- 
piciously pass  and  repass  my  operatives  and  searchingly 
scrutinize  their  faces,  and  for  long  periods  stand  at  the 
dreary  window  peering  into  the  street  as  if  into  a  dead 
blank,  never  noticing  the  scurrying  snow-flakes  which 
were  coming  as  a  silent  prelude  to  another  winter,  and 
only  occasionally  breaking  the  silence  by  murmuring, 
"  Crazy  ?  crazy  ?  Yes,  I  shall  become  so  if  these  terri- 
ble things  are  not  stopped  !  " 

But  Mrs.  Winslow  had  seen  too  much  of  life  and  was 
too  hard  a  citizen  generally  to  be  terribly  borne  down  by 
these  manifestations  for  any  great  length  of  time,  though 
they  completely  overpowered  her  at  their  occurrence,  and 
she  was  allowed  to  become  quite  cheery  before  being 
favored  with  another  materialization,  which  came  in  the 
following  manner. 

They  were  having  a  pleasant  little  seance  in  the  rooms 
one  evening  soon  after  the  colored  grocery  porter  had 
accused  Mrs.  Winslow  of  being  crazy,  and  the  several 
ladies  and  gentlemen  collected  there  were  engaged  in 
communing  with  the  Spiritualistic  heaven  in  the  old  and 
very  common  table-rapping  method.  They  were,  as 


CAST  DOWN.  249 

a  rule,  lank,  lean  people,  the  ladies  wearing  short  hair, 
and  the  gentlemen  wearing  long  hair.  This,  with  a  few 
other  affectations  and  irregularities,  was  nothing  against 
them,  had  it  not  been  equally  as  true  that,  according  to 
my  operatives'  subsequent  inquiries,  every  member  of  ti  I 
company  was  either  living  in  open  adultery  or  practising 
all  manner  of  lewdness  without  even  the  convenient  cloak 
of  an  assumption  or  pretension  that  the  marriage  relations 
existed.  But,  good  or  bad  as  they  were,  they  wore  at 
the  threshold  of  heaven,  and  had  very  appropriately 
darkened  the  room  to  get  as  near  to  it  as  possible  with- 
out being  seen,  and  only  the  faintest  possible  jet  flick- 
ered in  the  chandelier.  They  had  all,  save  Mrs.  Win- 
slow,  been  served  with  a  message,  and  she  was  now  the 
inquirer,  solemnly  asking  of  another  medium  some  infor- 
mation from  the  dear  departed  from  over  the  river. 

"  Shall  I  soon  receive  word  from  an  absent  friend  ?  " 
— (evidently  meaning  Le  Compte,  who  had  disappeared 
a  month  or  two  previous).  Three  affirmative  raps 
followed. 

"  Shall  I  succeed  in  my  case  against  Lyon  ?  "  The 
spirits  were  certain  that  she  would. 

"  Shall  I  be  rewarded  for  all  my  tiouble?"  she  asked, 
waiting  tremblingly  for  an  answer. 

To  this  inquiry  three  thundering  raps  were  heard  at  the 
door. 

What  could  it  mean  ? 

The  members  of  the  little  circle  were  completely  un 

nerved.     And  it  was  not  strange   either,      Here  were 
II* 


2$0  CAST  DOWN. 

nearly  a  dozen  people  closely  huddled  in  the  centre  of  a 
room  so  dark  that  only  the  dim,  indistinct  outline  of  any 
person,  or  thing,  could  be  seen  in  the  ghostly  gloaming. 
They  believed,  pretended  they  believed,  or  acquiesced  in 
the  belief  or  pretension,  that  they  were  in  direct  commu- 
nication with  the  spirit-land. 

In  the  most  ridiculous  condition  of  mind  which  any 
person  might  enter  into  such  a  performance,  the  secrecy 
and  mysteriousness  of  the  seance,  the  hushed  silence,  the 
darkness,  and  that  tension  of  the  mind  caused  by  a  con- 
stant expectation  of  some  startling  manifestation,  will 
compel  in  the  most  sceptical  mind  a  strange  feeling  of 
solemnity  akin  to  awe  ;  so  that  when  Mrs.  Winslow's  last 
inquiry  was  answered  so  pat,  as  well  as  with  such  an 
alarming  loudness,  the  entire  company  sprang  to  their 
feet,  and  on  this  occasion  there  was  genuine  surprise  in 
the  faces  of  my  detectives. 

Bang,  bang,  bang  !  came  the  second  series  of  raps, 
which  promised  Mrs.  Winslow  she  should  be  "  rewarded 
for  all  her  trouble." 

But  the  answer,  in  the  way  it  came,  didn't  seem  to  sat- 
isfy her.  Somebody  stepped  to  the  chandelier  and 
turned  on  the  light,  which  showed  all  the  company  to  have 
been  considerably  startled  ;  but  the  hostess  was  white 
from  fear. 

"  Won't  somebody  see  what  new  form  of  the  devil  has 
been  sent  here  to  annoy  me  ?  "  she  asked  passionately. 

Fox,  as  "  somebody,"  stepped  briskly  to  the  door  and 
turned  the  key  just  as  the  first  "  Bang  ! "  of  another 


CAST  DOWN.  251 

series  of  raps  was  begun,  and  opening  it  quickly  discov- 
eied  a  dapper  young  fellow  with  a  big  black  bottle  held 
by  the  neck  in  his  hand,  which  was  raised  for  the  purpose 
of  giving  the  door  bang  number  two. 

In  response  to  Fox's  loud  and  sharp  inquiry  as  to  what 
on  earth  was  wanted,  he  reversed  the  position  of  the 
bottle  with  the  dexterity  of  a  bar-tender,  took  from  tlu 
floor  a  huger  basket  than  that  brought  by  the  colored  por- 
ter, and  slipping  into  the  room,  nodded  familiarly  to  Mrs. 
Winslow,  and  then  coolly  to  the  company,  after  which  he 
quietly  proceeded  to  unload  his  store. 

"  Great  heavens  !  "  said  she  despairingly,  "  I  dorit  want 
those  things  left  here.  I  have  no  need  for  anything  of 
the  kind.  I  take  my  meals  at  the  Osborne  House  !  " 

"  Gettin '  '  toney  '  lately  !  "  responded  the  intruder  with 
a  shrug,  piling  the  packages  up  neatly  in  one  corner  and 
taking  no  heed  of  her  expressed  wish  concerning  them. 

There  was  no  response  to  this,  and  he  resumed  in  a 

light  and  airy  tone  :  "  Times  has  changed,  Mrs. :  eh  ? 

What  was  it  at  Memphis  and  Helena,  anyhow  ?  " 

This  reference  to  the  less  aristocratic,  though  quite  as 
respectable,  vocation  of  a  female  camp-follower,  though 
it  caused  the  woman  to  change  color  rapidly,  only  brought 
from  her  the  remark,  "  I  don't  know  what  you  mean,  sir  ! 
I'll  get  even  with  whoever  is  responsible  for  this  out- 
rage '  — here  she  glared  around  upon  the  company  as  if  to 
ascertain  whether  any  one  present  was  guilty — "  if  if 
costs  me  a  thousand  dollars  !  " 

The  new-comer  only  smiled  sarcastically  at  this  and 


252  CAST  DOWN. 

checked  off  his  packages,  concluding  the  operation  bjf 
carefully  counting  two  dozen  red  herrings,  whose  aroma 
was  sufficient  to  announce  their  presence  if  he  had  not 
exhibited  them  at  all ;  while  members  of  the  company 
looked  about  them  and  at  each  other  as  if  for  some  ex- 
planation of  the  strange  proceeding. 

Finally,  Mrs.  Winslow,  with  a  mighty  effort  to  restrain 
herself,  advanced  and  asked  the  young  man  if  he  would 
not  please  give  her  the  name  of  the  person  to  whom  she 
was  indebted  for  the  articles. 

He  arose,  and  smiling  blandly,  remarked,  "  You  didn't 
used  to  be  so  particular  about  presents  and  such  things ! " 
Then  he  added  with  a  meaning  leer  :  "  At  Helena  and 
St.  Louis,  ye  know,  old  girl ! " 

"  Old  girl !  "  the  ladies  all  screamed.  "  Why  what 
does  this  mean,  Mrs.  Winslow?" 

"  Nothing,  nothing  !  "  she  replied  hastily  ;  and  then  she 
hurried  the  too  talkative  young  fellow  away,  and  came 
back  into  the  room  with  a  show  of  gayety.  But  it  broke 
up  the  little  party,  and  soon  after  the  ladies,  with  frigid 
excuses  about  not  having  very  much  time,  and  the  gentle- 
men, with  peculiar  glances  out  of  the  corners  of  their 
eyes  towards  the  woman  who  had  been  so  familiarly  term- 
ed an  "  old  girl,"  took  their  departure,  leaving  Bristol, 
Fox,  Mrs.  Winslow  and  the  melancholy  pile  of  packages 
surmounted  by  aromatic  red  herrings  in  a  state  of  solemn, 
moody  silence. 

Bristol  was  first  to  break  the  stillness,  wh.'ch  he  did  by 
asking  rather  testily : 


CAST  DOWN.  253 

"  You  think  Fox  and  I  have  had  something  to  do  with 
this,  don't  you  ?" 

She  looked  at  him  a  moment  as  if  she  would  read  his 
innermost  thoughts,  and  replied  :  "  No,  I  don't !  It  comes 
from  some  of  those  strumpets  of  mediums,  and  I  would 
give  a  good  deal — a  good  deal,  mind  you,  Bristol ! — to 
know  who  it  was.  I'd — I'd " 

"  What  would  you  do  ?  "  asked  Fox,  putting  her  on  her 
mettle  for  a  savage  answer. 

"  I  would  either  burn  them  out,  poison  them,  push  them 
over  the  falls,  or  lie  in  wait  for  them  and  shoot  them  ! " 

Mrs.  Winslow  said  this  with  as  much  sincerity  and 
coolness  as  if  giving  an  estimate  on  any  ordinary  business 
transaction,  and  evidently  meant  it. 

"  Oh,  you  wouldn't  kill  anybody,  Winslow,"  replied  Fox 
airily. 

"  Wouldn't  I,  though,  Mr;  Fox?  "  she  rejoined  with  the 
old  glitter  in  her  eyes  and  paleness  upon  her  upper  lip 
that  had  at  an  earlier  period  worried  the  Rev.  Mr.  Bland  j 
"wouldn't  I?  If  you  had  fifty  thousand  dollars  in  your 
trunk,  I  would  kill  you,  appropriate  the  money,  cut  you 
up  and  pack  you  in  the  trunk  and  ship  you  to  the  South 
— or  some  other  hot  climate  by  the  next  express  ! " 

She  was  just  as  earnest  about  the  remark  as  she  would 
Have  been  in  carrying  out  the  act ;  and  after  Fox  had  con- 
gratulated himself,  both  aloud  cheerfully  and  in  his  own 
mind  very  thankfully,  that  neither  his  trunk,  or  for  that 
matter  his  imagination,  contained  any  such  gorgeous  sum, 
he  went  to  his  own  room  XOr  the  night,  leaving  the  very  ex- 


254  CAST  DOWN. 

cited  Mrs.  Winslow  and  the  very  calm  Mr.  Bristol  to  coi* 
template  the  groceries  and  each  other. 

After  a  few  minutes'  brown  study  she  suddenly  turned 
to  her  companion  with  :  "  Bristol,  you  and  I  are  pretty 
good  friends,  aren't  we  ?" 

"  Certainly,"  he  replied. 

"  And  haven't  I  always  treated  you  pretty  well  ?  " 

"  Yes ;  with  one  exception." 

"  What  is  that  ?  " 

"  The  sleep-walking  you  did  in  my  room." 

u  Oh,  that's  nothing,  Bristol.  Never  happened  but 
once,  and  won't  occur  again.  Otherwise  I  have  treated 
you  pretty  well,  haven't  I?" 

Bristol  felt  compelled  to  confess  that  she  had. 

"Well,  then,"  she  continued  wheedlingly,  "will  you  do 
me  a  favor  ?  " 

"What  is  it?" 

*'  I  want  you  to  take  a  walk  with  me." 

"  Pretty  late,  Winslow,  pretty  late  ;  nearly  ten  o'clock, ' 
replied  the  detective,  looking  at  his  watch. 

"  The  later  the  better,"  she  replied  earnestly.  "  I  want 
to  use  those  herrings." 

"  Use  those  herrings  !  Why,  there  are  at  least  two 
dozen.  How  on  earth  will  you  use  them  all  ?  " 

"Some  of  these  humbug  mediums,"  replied  Mrs.  Win- 
slow  in  a  style  of  expression  that  showed  her  to  be  very 
familiar  with  the  Spiritualists,  "  or  old  Lyon  himself. 
have  sent  me  these  things.  I'm  going  to  adorn  the  door* 
knob  of  every  one  of  their  places  with  a  string  of  herringa 


CAST  DOWA.  255 

In  that  way  I'll  hit  the  right  one  sure.  Come,  won't  you 
go?" 

Bristol  saw  that  the  woman  would  go  anyhow,  and  fear 
ing  that  she  might  get  into  some  trouble  that  would  cause 
her  arrest  and  thus  expose  him  and  Bristol  to  public 
notice,  which  a  capable  detective  will  always  avoid,  con- 
sented to  accompany  the  woman,  which  so  pleased  her 
that  she  immediately  sent  out  for  brandy,  and  not  only 
imbibed  an  inordinate  amount  of  it  herself,  but  also 
pressed  it  upon  Bristol  unsparingly. 

Her  mind  seemed  filled  with  the  idea  that  Lyon  had 
become  the  "  affinity"  of  nearly  every  female  medium  of 
prominence  in  the  city  in  order  to  further  his  designs 
against  her  ;  and  to  remind  them  that  they  were  watched, 
she  had  Bristol  write  "  Lyon-La  Motte,"  "  Lyon-Roberts," 

"Lyon ,"etc.,  upon  about  a  half-dozen  couples  of 

herrings,  and  upon  all  the  rest,  save  those  intended  for  the 
Misses  Grim,  which  were  labelled  "Tabitha,  Amanda,  and 
Hannah,"  she  had  written  the  names  of  the  different 
ladies  who,  in  her  imagination,  had  supplanted  her,  and 
tied  all  the  herrings  so  labelled  together  with  one  very  di- 
lapidated herring  marked  "  Lyon."  It  is  needless  to  say 
that  the  latter  bundle  of  sarcasm  was  intended  for  the 
ornamentation  of  Mr.  Lyon's  residence. 

Bristol  felt  like  a  very  bad  thief,  and  Mrs.  Winslow 
acted  like  a  very  foolish  one.  The  moment  they  gained 
the  street  she  began  a  series  of  absurd  performances  that 
well  nigh  distracted  Bristol  and  greatly  increased  the 
danger  of  police  surveillance.  She  laughed  hysterical!/, 


2  $6  CAST  DOWN. 

chuckled,  and  expressed  her  delight  in  a  noisy  effort  t<« 
repress  it,  until  the  tears  would  roll  down  her  face.  Oc- 
casionally they  would  meet  or  pass  parties  who  knew 
her,  who  would  say  to  companions,  in  the  tone  and  man 
ner  with  which  they  would  have  probably  spoken  of  othel 
sensations,  "  There's  the  Winslow  !  "  when  she  would 
shrink  and  shudder  up  to  Bristol's  side,  begging  for  the 
shelter  and  protection  of  his  capacious  cloak.  Again, 
imagining  she  saw  somebody  following  them,  or  was  sure 
that  loungers  lingering  in  deserted  doorways  or  at  the 
entrance  to  dark  hallways  or  alleys  were  detectives  -on 
their  trail,  she  would  give  the  patient  Bristol  such  nudges 
as  nearly  took  his  breath  away,  and,  at  his  lively  protest, 
would  whimper  and  tremble  like  a  querulous  child. 

Their  first  work  was  to  be  done  on  State  Street,  near 
Main,  and  when  they  had  arrived  at  a  certain  hallway, 
Mrs.  Winslow  insisted  that  Bristol  should  accompany  he* 
to  the  rooms  which  she  desired  to  decorate.  This  h« 
datly  refused  to  do,  when  she  began  moaning  something 
about  want  of  spirit,  and  then,  with  a  sudden  gathering 
of  the  admirable  quality  for  her  own  use,  stole  quietly  up 
stairs  and  in  a  moment  after  came  plunging  down,  as  if 
the  inmates  of  the  entire  block  had  turned  out  to  give  her 
chase.  But  this  was  not  the  case,  and  the  expedition 
progressed  without  any  developments  of  note,  Mrs.  La 
Motte,  Miss  Susie  Roberts,  and  the  Misses  Grim  being 
properly  remembered,  until  they  arrived  at  Mr.  Lyon'a 
residence,  some  little  distance  from  the  thickly  settled 
portions  of  the  city. 


CAST  DOWN.  257 

The  house  was  one  of  the  rambling,  moss-covered 
buildings  of  ancient  style  and  structure,  and  was  set  back 
from  the  road  some  distance  among  a  score  of  trees 
quite  as  grand  and  ancient  as  the  mansion  itself;  and 
the  old  pile  did  have  a  gloomy  appearance  to  the 
adventurous  couple  that  paused  breathlessly  before  the 
gates. 

"Bristol,"  said  Mrs.  Winslow  shiveringly,  "do  you 
know  that  sometimes,  when  I  see  that  great  black  pile  up 
there,  I'm  glad  he  didn't  marry  me  ?" 

"  Why  ?  "  her  companion  impatiently  asked.  He  was 
getting  cold  and  tired,  and  was  in  no  condition  to  appre- 
ciate maudlin  melancholy. 

"  Because  I'm  sure  I'd  die  in  the  old  rack-o' -bones  of 
a  place;  and  besides  that,  I'm  sure  there  are  spooks 
there  !  " 

"  Pooh,  pooh  !  "  sneered  Bristol  angrily  ;  "  go  along 
and  attend  to  your  business,  or  I'll  go  back  and  leave 
you  !  " 

Thus  admonished,  the  sentimental  lady  proceeded  with 
her  work. 

For  some  reason  the  gate  was  very  hard  to  open,  and 
considerable  time  was  consumed  in  getting  into  tie 
grounds.  Then  it  was  a  long  walk  to  the  house.  Bristol 
anxiously  watched  the  woman  move  slowly  along  the 
broad  walk  until  she  disappeared  in  the  shadows  which 
surrounded  the  house  and  the  darkness  of  the  night ;  and 
it  seemed  an  age  to  him,  as  he  stamped  his  feet  as  hard 
as  he  dare  upon  the  stone  pavement  and  whipped  his 


2$8  CAST  DOWN. 

hands  about  his  shoulders  to  drive  away  the  chilliness 
which  he  found  creeping  on. 

He  heard  her  footsteps  first,  then  saw  her  emerge  from 
the  gloom,  and  finally  saw  her  stop  as  if  to  listen.  He 
also  listened  very  intently,  and  thought  he  heard  some- 
body moving  about  the  house ;  and  was  immediately 
satisfied  of  the  correctness  of  his  hearing  by  noticing 
that  Mrs.  Winslow  suddenly  turned  towards  the  road 
and  made  remarkably  good  time  to  the  gate,  which, 
feeling  sure  of  trouble,  he  made  strenuous  efforts  to 
.open. 

"For  heaven's  sake,  Bristol,"  she  gasped,  "why  don't 
you  open  this  gate.  I'll  be  eaten  up  with  the  dogs,  and 
we'll  both  be  caught !  " 

The  last  clause  of  Mrs.  Winslow's  remark  roused 
Bristol  to  a  vigorous  exercise  of  his  muscle.  He  tugged 
away  at  the  gate,  shook  it,  threw  himself  against  it  from 
one  side,  and  his  companion  threw  herself  against  it  from 
the  other  side ;  but  all  in  vain.  Not  a  moment  was  to  be 
lost.  Lights  were  seen  flashing  to  and  fro  in  the  great 
mansion,  angry  voices  came  to  them,  with  the  by  nowise 
cheering  short,  gruff,  savage  responses  of  loosened  bull- 
dogs, and  in  a  moment  more  the  front  door  was  passed 
by  two  men  and  as  many  dogs  that  came  dashing  out  in 
full  pursuit. 

Matters  at  the  gate  were  approaching  a  crisis.  The 
gate  could  not  be  opened,  and  Mrs.  Winslow  must  pass 
it  or  get  captured. 

"  Climb  or  die  ! "  urged  Bristol,  reaching  through  tha 


CAST  DOWN.  259 

pickets  of  the  gate,  which  was  a  high  one,  and  lifting  on 
the  portly  form  of  the  excited  woman. 

"  I  will,  Bristol !  "  she  returned,  with  a  gasp. 

And  she  did  climb  ! 

It  was  best  that  she  did  so,  as  a  good  deal  of  trouble 
•was  coming  down  that  brick  walk  like  a  small  hurricane, 
and  it  would  logically  strike  her  in  a  position  and  from 
a  direction  that  would  not  enable  her  to  respond;  and 
if  either  or  both  of  those  dogs  had  been  able  to  have 
grasped  the  situation,  partially  impaled  as  she  was  upon 
Jhe  pickets,  the  fascinating  Mrs.  Winslow  would  have 
fallen  an  easy  prey. 

She  was  very  clumsy  about  it,  but  in  her  desperation 
she  in  some  way  managed  to  scale  the  gate,  leaving  a 
good  portion  of  her  skirts  and  dress  flying  signals  of  dis- 
tress upon  the  pickets,  and  finally  fell  into  Bristol's  arms. 
It  was  a  moment  when  silk  and  fine  raiment  were  as 
bagatelle  in  the  estimate  of  chances  for  escape,  and  it  was 
but  the  work  of  an  instant  for  Bristol  to  tear  her  like  a 
ship  from  her  fastenings  and  make  a  grand  rush  towards 
home. 

Those  portions  of  Mrs.  Winslow's  garments  which  were 
left  flaunting  upon  the  gate  not  only  set  the  dogs  wild, 
but  served  to  detain  them.  The  men  were  also  halted  a 
minute  by  the  natural  curiosity  they  awakened,  after 
which  they  made  a  furious  onslaught  upon  the  gate,  that 
only  yielded  after  sufficient  time  had  elapsed  to  enable 
the  culprits  to  get  some  distance  ahead,  when  the  men 
and  dogs  started  pell-mell  down  the  street  after  them. 


260  CAST  DOWN. 

Bristol  fortunately  remembered  that  when  they  were 
nearing  Lyon's  house,  he  had  noticed  that  the  door  lead- 
ing to  an  alley  in  the  rear  of  a  pretentious  residence  had 
been  blown  open  and  was  then  swaying  back  and  forth  in 
the  wind.  With  the  advantage  in  the  chase  given  by  the 
dog's  criticism  upon  Mrs.  Winslow's  wearing  apparel  and 
the  men's  hinderance  at  the  gate,  they  were  able  to  seek 
shelter  here,  which  they  did  with  the  utmost  alacrity, 
fastening  the  gate  behind  them,  where  they  tremblingly 
listened  to  the  pursuers  tearing  by. 

Mrs.  Winslow  insisted  on  immediately  rushing  out  and 
taking  the  other  direction,  but  Bristol,  feeling  sure  that 
the  party  would  go  but  a  short  distance,  held  on  to  her 
until  the  two  men  returned  with  the  dogs,  swearing  at 
their  luck,  and  telling  each  other  wonderful  tales  of  bur- 
glaries that  never  took  place,  while  Bristol  thoughtfully 
put  in  the  time  by  making  Mrs.  Winslow's  skirts  as  pre- 
sentable as  possible,  by  the  aid  of  the  pins  which  every 
prudent  man  carries  under  the  right-hand  collar  of  his 
coat,  and  hurriedly  ascertaining  from  her  that  she  had  un- 
fortunately tied  the  herrings  upon  the  door-bell  instead  of 
the  door-knob,  thus  involving  pursuit. 

After  everything  had  become  quiet,  and  Bristol  had 
made  several  expeditions  of  observation  to  doubly  assure 
himself  of  the  coast  being  clear,  the  couple  stole  cau- 
tiously out  of  the  alley  into  the  deserted  street,  and  after 
much  precaution  and  many  alarms,  caused  by  the  creak- 
ing of  signs,  the  sudden  flaring  of  gas-lamps,  and  the  fierce 
gusts  of  wind  dashing  after  and  into  them  around  the 


CAST  DOWN.  26l 

sharp  corners  of  buildings,  they  at  last  arrived  at  home 
past  midnight ;  and,  having  ordered  it  as  they  neared  the 
block,  for  a  half-hour  longer  they  sipped  hot  toddy  by  a 
rousing  coal  fire,  recounting  their  exploits  of  the  night, 
and  eventually  retiring  with  something  of  the  spirit  of 
conquerors  upon  them. 

Down  came  the  snow  and  the  wind  next  morning,  two 
things  which  will  usually  in  early  winter  call  a  whole  city- 
ful  out  of  bed,  and  set  the  human  tides  in  a  rapid  motion. 
Fox  and  Bristol  had  long  before  got  into  the  streets  and 
had  heartily  enjoyed  some  newspaper  items,  one  recount- 
ing racily  the  outrage  of  labeled  herrings  being  hung  to 
the  door-knobs  of  the  houses  of  many  respectable  citizens, 
and  another,  under  glaring  head-lines,  giving  the  minutest 
details  of  a  desperate  attempt  at  burglary  of  Mr.  Lyon's 
house,  and  a  double-leaded  editorial  which  agonizedly 
asked  in  every  variety  of  form,  "Where  are  our  police?" 
But  Mrs.  Winslow,  from  her  adventures  and  toddy  of 
the  previous  night,  slept  late  and  long,  and  when  she  did 
come  creeping  out  into  the  sleeping-room,  half  dressed 
and  altogether  unlovely  in  disposition  and  appearance, 
she  looked  out  upon  the  snow-flakes  and  the  crowds  of 
people  without  any  emotion  save  that  of  anger  at  being 
aroused. 

The  only  thing  to  be  seen  of  anything  like  an  unusual 
object  was  a  very  large  load  of  hay  standing  at  the  en- 
trance of  the  building ;  but  of  course  this  had  no  particu- 
lar interest  to  a  Spiritualist.  She  had  had  a  half-formed 
impression  that  she  had  heard  knocking  at  the  door,  and 


262  CAST  DOWN. 

she  turned  from  the  window  to  ascertain  whether  that  im- 
pression had  been  correct.  Throwing  a  shawl  about  hei 
head  and  shoulders,  she  unlocked  the  door  and  peered  out 
cautiously.  There  was  nobody  there,  and  the  wind  whis- 
tled up  the  stairs  so  drearily  that  she  closed  the  door  with 
a  slam,  and  after  starting  up  the  fire,  which  was  slumbering 
on  the  hearth,  she  crept  into  bed  again. 

She  had  no  more  than  got  at  the  drowsy  threshold  of 
dreamland  than  she  was  startled  by  a  loud  knocking,  this 
time  proceeding  from  something  besides  an  impression  of 
the  mind,  each  knock  being  accompanied  by  some  lively 
expression  of  German  impatience.  The  demonstration 
was  intelligible,  if  the  words  were  not,  and  Mrs.  Win  slow 
bounded  out  of  her  bed  and  into  the  reception-room  in 
no  pleasant  frame  of  mind. 

On  protecting  her  form  as  much  as  her  indelicate  dis- 
position required — and  that  was  not  much — she  flung  tht 
door  open  and  savagely  asked  : 

"  What's  wanted  ?  " 

"  Ef  you  keep  a  man  skivering  and  frozing  to  died  mil 
der  vind  und  schnow-vlakes,  I  guess  mebby  I  charge  more 
as  ten  dollars  a  don  for  'em !  " 

He  was  all  smiles  at  first,  but  he  resented  her  brusque 
manner  as  swiftly  and  severely  as  he  could  with  his  broken 
brogue.  He  was  an  honest,  broad-shouldered,  big-headed 
German  farmer,  and  though  wrapped  and  wound  from 
head  to  foot  in  woollens,  the  only  thing  that  seemed  warm 
about  him  was  his  glowing  pipe  and  his  disturbed  temper. 
He  shook  his  head  at  the  woman,  and  again  began  a 


CAST  DOWN.  263 

•tammering  recital  of  his  wrongs,  when  she  cut  him  short 
with  : 

"  You're  crazy  !  " 

"  Grazy  ?  Of  I  make  a  foolishness  of  a  fellar  like  as 
you  do — well,  dot's  all  right ! "  and  he  stood  up  very 
straight  and  puffed  great  clouds  of  smoke  past  her  into 
her  elegant  room. 

She  had  got  a  stolid  customer  on  hand,  and  she 
saw  it.  So  she  asked  him  civilly  what  he  wanted  at  her 
door. 

"  Yust  told  me  vere  ish  der  parn,  und  I  don't  trouble 
you  no  more." 

"Whose  barn?" 

"  Vere  der  hay  goes." 

"  Hay  ?  What  hay  ?  I  don't  know  anything  about 
any  hay,"  she  replied,  laughing  at  his  perplexity. 

"  I  shtand  here  an  hour  already,  und  ven  I  got  you 
up  no  satisfagtion  comes.  Py  Shupiter,  dot  goes  like  a 
schwindle  !" 

He  was  very  mad  by  this  time,  and  walked  back  and 
forth  in  front  of  her  door,  shaking  his  fists  and  gesticulat- 
ing wildly ;  and  to  prevent  a  scene,  which  might  cause  a 
collection  of  the  inmates  of  the  building,  she  quieted  him 
as  much  as  possible,  and  ascertained  that  some  obliging 
person,  more  enthusiastic  about  the  amount  than  the 
character  of  some  token  of  esteem,  had  taken  the  trouble 
tc  order  a  load  of  hay  to  be  delivered  at  her  number, 
describing  the  place,  room,  and  woman  so  minutely  that 
there  could  be  no  possibility  of  mistake,  where  the  ownei 


264  CAST  DOWN. 

was  to  collect  all  additional  charges  above  two  dollars, 
which  had  been  paid. 

It  took  Mrs.  Winslovv  a  long  time  to  persuade  the  far 
mer  that  she  owned  no  barn,  kept  no  animals,  had  no  use 
for  hay,  and  that  there  had  been  some  mistake,  or  that 
some  person  had  deliberately  played  a  joke  upon  him 
but  finally,  after  a  shivering  argument  of  fully  fifteen  min- 
utes, and  the  expenditure  of  a  dollar  bill,  with  the  seduc- 
tive offer  that  she  would  give  him  ten  dollars  if  he  would 
find  and  bring  to  her  the  man  who  ordered  the  load,  her 
obstinate  visitor  departed,  roundly  swearing  in  good  Ger- 
man that  he  would  have  the  Gottferdamter  schwindler 
brought  up  by  der  city  gourts  and  hung,  to  which  Mrs. 
Winslow  groaned  a  hearty  approval  as  she  shut  the  door 
of  the — to  her — desolate  room. 

If  there  had  previously  been  any  doubts  in  her  mind 
as  to  there  being  a  preconcerted  plan  to  annoy  and  exas- 
perate her  beyond  endurance,  they  were  now  entirely  re- 
moved, and  the  woman  broke  down  completely,  wringing 
her  hands  in  mute  expression  of  bitter  anguish.  The 
storm  without  was  not  half  so  violent  as  the  storm  within, 
and  the  blinding  flakes  which  swept  from  the  bitter  sky 
raged  upon  a  no  more  barren,  frozen,  desolate  soil  than 
her  own  selfish  heart. 

There  may  be  a  kind  of  pity  for  such  a  woman  ;  there 
should  be  pity  for  every  form  of  human  suffering,  or  even 
depravity ;  but  in  my  mind  there  should  be  none  to  verge 
from  pity  into  palliation  and  excuse  for  this  woman. 
Great  as  was  her  mental  suffering,  there  was  in  it  not  a 


CAST  DOWN.  265 

touch  of  remorse.  Terribly  as  her  mind  was 
racked  and  tortured  with  doubt,  uncertainty,  fear,  and 
despair,  tiiere  was  in  it  no  trace  of  the  womanhood  which, 
however  low  it  may  descend,  is  still  capable  of  regret. 
She  was  not  heart-sick  for  the  life  she  was  leading,  but 
dreaded  the  punishment  she  knew  it  deserved.  Her 
nature  had  never  shrunk  from  the  countless  miseries  she 
had  entailed  on  others,  and  her  heart  never  misgave  her 
only  in  the  absence  of  her  kind  of  happiness  or  in  the 
superstitious  fear  of  the  evils  which  she  felt  assured  were 
constantly  her  due.  She  was,  as  far  as  I  ever  knew,  or 
can  conceive,  a  soulless  woman  whose  troubles  only  pro- 
duced vindictiveness,  whose  utter  aim  in  life  was  social 
piracy,  whose  injuries  only  begat  hate,  and  whose  suffer- 
ings only  concentrated  her  exhaustless  hunger  and  thirst 
for  revenge. 

After  the  first  burst  of  rage  and  passion,  she  settled 
down  into  a  condition  of  deep  study  and  planning,  and 
about  the  middle  of  the  afternoon  began  passing  in  and 
out  and  visiting  various  places,  in  a  way  which,  though  it 
might  not  particularly  attract  attention,  yet  betokened  some 
business  project  being  resolutely  and  quietly  carried  out. 

During  one  of  the  periods  when  she  was  within  her 
apartments,  quite  a  commotion  was  raised  in  the  lower 
story,  the  stores  of  which  were  occupied  by  a  tobacconist 
and  milliner,  by  a  call  from  a  prominent  undertaker  of 
Main  Street,  who  with  a  mysterious  air  exhibited  the  fol- 
lowing note,  at  the  same  time  asking  whispered  conun- 
drums about  it. 
12 


266  CAST  DOWN. 

"  MR.  BOXEM  : 

"  DEAR  SIR — Please  quietly  deliver  a  full-sized  coffin 
at  No. — South  St.  Paul  Street,  at  the  first  room  to  the 
right  of  the  stairway  as  it  reaches  the  third  floor.  En- 
closed please  find  five  dollars,  in  part  payment.  Will 
maki  it  an  object  to  you  to  ask  no  questions  below,  and 
deliver  the  coffin  as  soon  after  dark  as  possible. 

(Signed)  "MRS.  A.  J.  W ." 

Mr.  Boxem  was  by  no  means  a  solemn  man ;  but  he 
had  a  heavy  bass  voice,  which  he  used  to  such  great  effect 
in  asking  questions  below  stairs,  that  he  succeeded  in 
creating  a  fine  horror  there,  so  that  by  the  time  he  had 
proceeded  to  Mrs.  Winslow's  rooms,  it  was  settled  in  the 
minds  of  the  tobacconist  and  the  milliner,  their  employees, 
and  any  customers  of  either  who  had  happened  in  during 
Mr.  Boxem's  preliminary  investigation,  that  each  and 
every  one's  previous  solemn  prediction  as  to  "  something 
being  wrong  upstairs "  had  now  come  true,  as  they  each 
and  every  one  reminded  the  other  that  "  Oh,  I  told  you 
so!" 

Mr.  Boxem,  finding  Mrs.  Winslow's  door  ajar,  quietly 
stepped  in  and  reverently  removed  his  sombre  crap? 
hat. 

"  Evening,  ma'am,"  he  said  politely,  but  with  a  profes 
sional  shade  of  sympathy  in  the  greeting. 

"  And  what  do  you  want  ?  "  she  asked  in  a  kind  of  doe 
peration,  noticing  an  open  letter  in  his  hand. 

"  Your  order,  you  know,  "  he  replied  tenderly  ;  "  thes» 


CAST  DOWN.  267 

things  are  sad  and  have  to  be  borne.     Can't  possibly  be 
helped,  more  'n  one  can  help  coming  into  the  world." 

Mrs.  Winslow  could  not  reply  from  rage  and  anger,  and 
hiding  her  face  in  her  hands,  walked  to  the  window. 

"  No,  it's  the  way  of  the  world,"  continued  Boxem, 
with  a  sigh  ;  "  ah — hem  ! — might  I  ask  if  it  is  in  there  ?' 
he  concluded,  producing  a  tape-line  case. 

"  It  ? — in  God's  name,  what  /'/  !  "  sobbed  the  woman. 

"  Why — the — the  " — stammered  her  visitor  somewhat 
abashed,  "  the  body — the  corpse,  you  know  !  Have 
come  to  measure  it.  Painful,  I  know ;  but  business  is 
business,  if  it's  only  coffin  business;  and  I  can't  possibly 
do  a  neat  job  without  I  get  a  good  measure.  Something 
like  the  tailoring  trade,  you  see  !" 

"  Body  ?  — corpse  ? — come  to  measure  it  ?  Oh,  I  shall 
go  wild,  I  shall  go  wild,"  persisted  the  woman,  half  fran- 
tic at  the  intimation  which  came  to  her  that  a  corpse  was 
not  only  in  her  place,  but  in  the  very  room  where  she 
slept,  and  that  this  fiend  who  was  pursuing  her — this 
Nemesis,  who  struck  her  pride,  her  ambition,  her  desires, 
her  very  life,  at  every  move  she  made,  had  actually  sent 
an  undertaker  there  to  measure  the  dead  body. 

It  is  hard  to  tell  what  would  have  happened  if  the  good 
sense  of  the  undertaker  had  not  come  to  the  relief  of  the 
situation  ;  and,  hastily  answering  her  that  there  had  prob- 
ably been  some  mistake,  that  the  order  was  probab.y 
meant  for  the  next  block,  and  offering  other  similar 
excuses  while  hastily  apologizing  for  the  intrusion,  Mr. 
Boxem  very  sensibly  went  back  to  his  business  and  hia 


268  CAST  DOWN. 

coffins,  five  dollars  ahead  until  more  promising  inquiries 
should  bring  to  light  the  friend  of  the  alleged  dead,  and 
the  owner  of  the  money,  who,  fortunately  for  Mr.  Boxena, 
has  not  appeared  to  this  day. 


CHAPTER  XXIV 

Breaking  up. — Doubts  and  Queries. — Suspected  Eevelopments.— Th« 
Detectives  completely  outwitted. — On  the  Trail  again. — From 
Rochester  to  St.  Louis. — A  prophetic  Hotel  Clerk. — More  Detec- 
tives and  more  Need  for  them. — Lightning  Changes. 

BRISTOL  and  Fox  happened  around  in  time  to  par- 
ticipate in  the  general  excitement  which  the  under- 
taker's visit  had  awakened,  and  after  getting  as  full  particu- 
lars as  possible  from  the  people  below,  who  refused  to 
believe  that  some  dark  deed  had  not  been  committed  up- 
stairs, they  proceeded  to  the  rooms,  where  they  found  the 
door  to  Mrs.  Winslow's  private  apartment  closed,  and  the 
two,  finding  no  opportunity  to  converse  with  their  land- 
lady, shortly  went  out  for  supper. 

On  their  return  they  found  Mrs.  Winslow  in  a  remarka- 
bly pleasant  frame  of  mind,  and  quite  full  of  jokes  about 
the  order  for  a  coffin — so  much  so,  in  fact,  that  my  opera- 
tives were  quite  surprised  at  the  change  from  her  previous 
demeanor  under  similar  circumstances.  Altogether  they 
passed  one  of  the  pleasantest  evenings  since  they  became 
the  woman's  tenants.  Several  ladies  that  lived  in  the  same 
building  were  invited  in,  refreshments  of  wines  and  some 
rare  fruits  out  of  season  were  served,  singing,  card-playing, 


270  BREAKING   UP. 

and  piano  playing  with  some  waltzing  were  indulged  in, 
and  it  was  noticed  by  the  two  men  that  Mrs.  Winslow 
was  almost  hysterically  happy,  as  if  she  had  decided  upon 
Borne  exceedingly  brilliant  and  satisfactory  plan,  the  exe- 
cution of  which  was  being  preluded  in  this  way. 

At  the  close  of  the  evening  she  casually  announced 
that  the  next  time  she  had  any  company  she  hoped  to 
show  them  a  better  place. 

Somebody  at  once  inquired  if  she  was  going  away, 
whereupon  she  gayly  replied  that  instead  of  going  away  she 
was  going  to  make  better  arrangements  for  staying.  She 
had  intended  all  along,  she  said,  tidying  up  the  place,  but 
had  been  so  lazy  that  she  had  kept  neglecting  it  until  it 
was  really  too  bad,  and  now  she  had  decided  to  begin 
tearing  up  things  to-morrow. 

In  answer  to  Bristol  and  Fox's  inquiries  as  to  what  was 
to  be  done  with  them  in  the  meantime,  she  said  that  she 
had  already  arranged  that,  and  had  secured  a  pleasant 
room  at  the  Osborn  House,  where  they  were  to  remain 
without  additional  expense  to  themselves  until  she  had 
concluded  her  changes.  This  rather  dashed  the  opera- 
tives, but  they  made  no  further  remark  upon  the  subject 
until  the  company  had  dispersed,  when  they  urged  the 
propriety,  both  on  the  grounds  of  economy  and  convenience 
of  "  doubling  up,"  as  Bristol  termed  it,  in  one  room  until 
another  was  finished,  and  then  removing  to  that,  until  their 
respective  apartments  had  been  renovated.  But  Mrs. 
Winslow  was  obdurate,  alleging  that  on  account  of  these 
annoyances  she  had  be  :ome  weak  and  nervous  of  late, 


BREAKING   UP.  2^\ 

and  did  not  desire  to  be  annoyed  with  either  the  argu 
ment  or  arrangement. 

So  that  early  on  the  next  morning,  when  Mrs.  Winslow 
announced  to  the  detectives  that  an  express  wagon  was  in 
waiting  to  convey  their  baggage  to  the  Osborn  House, 
there  was  no  alternative  but  to  go,  as  the  persons  engaged 
to  do  the  renovating  were  on  hand  and  had  already  begun 
their  work  of  turning  the  rooms  into  chaos.  Mrs.  Win- 
slow  assured  them  that  but  a  few  days  would  elapse  be- 
fore they  would  all  be  together  again  in  their  old  quar- 
ters; and  as  they  grumblingly  went  away  complaining  of 
short  notice  and  the  like,  she  bade  them  a  merry  good- 
by,  adding  that  she  should  stay  about  with  some  of  her 
Spiritualistic  friends  in  the  city,  and  perhaps  take  a  little 
trip  down  to  Batavia;  but  in  any  event  would  let  them 
know  the  first  moment  that  the  rooms  were  ready  for 
occupancy. 

While  Bristol  and  Fox  were  settling  themselves  in  their 
new  quarters  they  indulged  in  a  very  heated  argument  as 
to  Mrs.  Winslow' s  object  in  this  all  but  forcibly  ejecting 
them  from  their  rooms,  which  they  had  occupied  so  long 
that  they  had  come  to  consider  them  something  of  a 
home  ;  as  to  whether  Mrs.  Winslow  meant  to  do  without 
their  presence  hereafter  or  not,  Bristol  feeling  sure  that 
the  woman  meditated  some  future  action  which  war,  to  re- 
lieve herself  of  their  society,  if  indeed  it  did  not  mean 
more  than  that,  while  Fox  felt  equally  as  certain  that  the 
whole  affair  was  only  one  of  the  whiraful  woman's  whimsy 
that,  being  satisfied,  would  result  in  their  early  recall. 


2/2  BREAKING   UP. 

In  any  event  in  this  way  the  combination  of  medium 
istic  and  detective  talent  was  broken  up. 

I  was  at  once  informed  about  the  turn  things  had 
taken,  and  ordered  that  extra  diligence  should  be  used 
in  keeping  the  woman  under  notice,  as  I  felt  apprehen- 
sive that  making  her  rooms  tidy  was  not  her  object  at  all. 
I  had  no  right  to  detain  her,  go  wherever  she  might ;  but 
Lyon's  counsel  had  been  for  some  time  absent  from 
Rochester,  and  some  things  in  connection  with  the  de- 
fence had  not  yet  received  proper  attention.  The  depo- 
sitions as  to  the  woman's  character  and  adventures 
throughout  Wisconsin,  Iowa  and  Missouri  had  not  yet 
been  taken,  nor  indeed  had  the  very  necessary  formula 
of  serving  notice  upon  Mrs.  Winslow  of  the  proposed 
taking  of  such  evidence  been  gone  through ;  so  that,  as  it 
would  require  some  time  to  take  this  evidence  after 
notice  had  been  served,  it  was  very  desirable  that  sh«» 
should  be  kept  in  sight. 

The  next  development,  showing  her  to  be  a  very 
shrewd  woman,  was  in  her  sending  word  over  to  the  hotel, 
the  same  day  that  my  operatives  left  her  rooms,  that  she 
had  been  taken  suddenly  and  severely  ill,  and  had  been 
obliged  to  turn  over  the  work  to  a  lady  friend  of  hers,  and 
might  not  be  able  to  resume  the  supervision  of  :t  for  sev- 
eral days. 

Bristol  called,  ostensibly  to  tender  his  condolence,  out 
was  unable  to  find  Mrs.  Winslow,  being  met  by  a  very  smart 
little  lady,  who  informed  him  that  it  would  be  impossible 
to  see  his  former  landlady,  as  she  was  extremely  ill  and 


BREAKING   UP.  2/3 

could  not  be  at  present  disturbed ;  but  that  should  any 
change  in  her  condition  occur,  both  he  and  Fox  should  be 
promptly  informed.  I  had  instructed  them  to  do  theit 
best  in  watching  the  premises,  which  I  am  satisfied  they 
had  done,  and  I  had  also  put  the  two  other  men,  Grey 
and  Watson,  on  the  lookout,  but  none  of  them  had  ob- 
served her  either  pass  out  of  or  into  the  place,  and  they 
began  to  be  convinced  that  she  really  was  lying  ill  within 
the  building. 

During  this  condition  of  things,  and  being  somewhat 
anxious  about  the  matter,  I  went  to  Rochester  myself, 
and  held  a  consultation  with  my  men,  having  the  block 
further  examined  under  various  guises  and  pretexts, 
which  proved  beyond  doubt  that  the  woman  was  gone, 
and  had  probably  left  the  building  a  very  few  minutes 
after  the  operatives  had  departed  ;  and,  for  some  reason 
best  known  to  herself,  but  probably  on  account  of  the 
mysterious  annoyances  which  had  been  following  each 
other  very  rapidly,  had  either  left  the  city  entirely  or  was 
hiding  very  closely  within  it,  with  a  view  to  discover 
whether,  with  the  two  men  out  of  her  society,  and  herself 
in  peaceful  retiracy,  she  could  not  ascertain  from  what 
source  her  troubles  came,  or  avoid  them  altogether. 

To  my  further  annoyance,  the  magnificent  Harcout  ap- 
peared and  kindly  offered  me  countless  suggestions  and 
theories,  which  were  each  one  considered  by  Mr.  Harcout 
to  be  worthy  of  immediate  adoption ;  and  in  order  to  get 
rid  of  him,  I  was  obliged  to  appear  to  acquiesce  in  an  im- 
aginative theory  of  Mrs.  Winslow's  flight  to  New  York, 
12* 


274  BREAKING   UP. 

and  represent  myself  as  so  interested  in  his  idea  of  how 
she  could  be  traced  to  her  hiding-place,  that  I  desired  of 
him  as  a  personal  favor  that  he  would  follow  the  trail, 
giving  him  a  man,  and  the  man  a  wink — and  there  never 
was  a  finer  picture  of  pomposity  and  assumption  than 
when  Harcout  and  his  man  started  for  New  York.  Rid 
of  him,  I  again  turned  to  my  work  of  getting  upon  the 
right  trail. 

I  was  sure  the  woman  had  left  the  city,  and  further  in- 
quiry at  the  rooms  convinced  me  that  I  was  correct. 
The  little  woman  finally  acknowledged  flatly  that  she  had 
gone,  but  would  under  no  circumstances  tell  whether  she 
had  left  the  city  or  not.  She  also  exhibited  a  bill  of  sale 
of  the  goods  and  a  transfer  of  the  lease,  and  wanted  to 
know  if  that  did  not  look  as  though  she  had  gone  ?  But 
she  persisted  in  her  refusal  to  give  further  information, 
and  that  was  the  end  of  it. 

No  one  had  seen  any  trunks  or  packages  leave  the 
place,  nor  could  my  detectives  get  any  trace  of  her  hav- 
ing left  the  city  over  any  of  the  different  roads.  Inquiries 
made  at  all  the  leading  livery  stables,  express  and  hack- 
stands, of  the  city,  failed  to  discover  that  Mrs.  Winslow 
had  been  conveyed  to  any  near  railroad  station  where  she 
might  have  taken  a  train  ;  nor  could  it  be  by  any  means 
ascertained  that  such  a  person  had  purchased  a  ticket  at 
any  of  the  adjacent  towns  for  any  point  to  the  east,  west, 
or  south. 

In  fact,  all  trace  of  Mrs.  Winslow  was  lost,  and  I  was 
satisfied  that  she  had  for  some  time  been  sure  of  the  dan- 


BREAKING   UP.  2/5 

ger  of  her  surroundings  ;  and,  while  not  able  to  fasten 
any  particular  suspicious  act  upon  Bristol  or  Fox,  un- 
doubtedly intuitively  felt  that  they  were  either  directly 
responsible  for  her  troubles,  or  were  in  some  unexplain- 
able  way  connected  with  their  cause  ;  and  being  enough 
of  a  professional  litigant  to  be  aware  of  the  necessity  of 
service  of  notice  upon  her  as  to  the  taking  of  evidence 
before  such  evidence  could  be  taken,  and  that  it  would 
be  possible  by  a  sudden  disappearance  and  remaining 
secreted  until  the  case  might  be  called,  to  defeat  Lyon's 
attorneys  from  using  this  mountain  of  evidence  which  she 
knew  existed  against  her,  whether  she  knew  we  had  col- 
lected it  or  not,  the  double  motive  for  her  mysterious 
absence  was  plainly  apparent. 

Remembering  Bristol  and  Fox's  reports  as  to  her  threat 
to  go  to  St.  Louis  and  "attend  to  her  cases"  there  unless 
the  annoyances  ceased,  and  knowing  from  previous  evi- 
dence already  secured  that  she  had  figured  extensively  in 
various  capacities,  but  principally  as  Spiritualist,  black- 
mailer and  courtesan  in  that  city,  I  finally  concluded  that 
she  had  gone  there,  though  her  mode  of  leaving  Roches- 
ter, if  she  had  left  the  city,  had  certainly  been  such  as 
to  demonstrate  ability  worthy  of  a  better  cause. 

I  accordingly  directed  Bristol  and  Fo.t  to  return  to 
New  York,  and  detailed  the  two  men  who  had  made  it 
lively  for  Mrs.  Winslow,  and  who,  of  course,  knew  her,  but 
whom  she  had  not  seen  face  to  face,  the  "  materializations  " 
having  all  been  done  for  them  by  other  parties,  to  proceed 
to  St.  Louis  in  search  of  her,  stopping  at  any  point  where 


2/6  BREAKING   UP. 

railroad  divergences  were  made  from  the  trunk  lines  be- 
tween the  east  and  the  west,  and  make  extremely  diligent 
inquiries  for  her,  while  I  left  another  man  in  Rochester 
for  the  purpose  of  watching  for  her  reappearance  there, 
which  would  undoubtedly  occur  as  soon  as  her  former 
tenants  were  gone,  in  the  event  that  she  was  secreted  in 
Rochester,  instead  of  being  at  the  west,  and  to  make  this 
plan  more  certain,  caused  Bristol  to  write  a  letter  to  Mrs. 
Winslow,  stating  that  both  he  and  Fox  had  made  number- 
less efforts  to  see  her,  but,  failing  to  ascertain  either 
where  she  was,  or  the  cause  of  her  sudden  disappearance, 
and  both  being  out  of  active  business,  they  had  concluded 
to  go  on  to  New  York,  but  would  return  to  Rochester 
should  she  resume  charge  of  the  rooms  and  desire  them 
for  tenants.  I  made  arrangements  also  at  the  post-office 
to  ascertain  whether  any  letters  were  reforwarded  to  her 
at  any  point,  and  also  at  the  express  office  regarding 
packages,  so  it  could  be  hardly  possible  for  her  to  keep 
up  any  correspondence  or  relation  of  any  kind  with  parties 
in  Rochester  without  disclosing  her  place  of  retreat. 

Having  completed  these  arrangements,  I  returned  to 
New  York  and  anxiously  waited  for  some  news  from  the 
West. 

No  trace  was  found  of  the  woman  until  Operatives 
Grey  and  Watson  had  arrived  at  Chicago,  where  they  im- 
mediately circulated  among  the  Spiritualists  of  that  city, 
who  are  both  numerous  and  of  rather  doubtful  moral 
standing.  They  ascertained  that  a  woman  answering  her 
description  had  been  there,  and  advertised  largely  under 


BREAKING   UP.  277 

another  alias  than  Mrs.  Winslow,  but  nothing  Jefinitely 
could  be  learned  until  in  their  reports  I  discovered  that 
the  little  Frenchman,  Le  Compte,  was  figuring  as  the 
unknown  lady's  companion  and  business  manager,  when 
I  telegraphed  to  follow  Le  Compte  and  his  woman,  being 
morally  certain  that  these  two  were  Monsieur  the  Mineral 
Locater  and  the  celebrated  plaintiff  in  the  Winslow- Lyon 
breach  of  promise  suit. 

It  was  discovered  after  some  trouble,  and  with  the  as- 
sistance of  my  Chicago  Agency,  that  Le  Compte  had 
suddenly  left  that  city  for  some  southern  or  south-western 
point,  possibly  St.  Louis,  but  no  information  could  be 
gained  as  to  what  direction  Mrs.  Winslow  had  taken,  it 
being  evidently  her  plan  to  avoid  pursuit,  should  there  be 
any  made.  My  conviction  still  being  strong  that  her  ob 
jective  point  was  St.  Louis,  I  ordered  the  men  on  there, 
without  positively  knowing  that  either  of  the  parties  were 
there ;  but  was  gratified  to  learn  that  Le  Compte  had 
been  in  the  city,  whether  he  was  there  or  not  on  the  oper- 
atives' arrival.  The  operatives,  Grey  and  Watson,  at 
once  searched  the  newspapers  and  found  no  advertise- 
ments which  would  cover  the  desired  couple,  or  either  of 
them ;  but,  notwithstanding,  visited  all  the  mediums, 
clairvoyants,  and  prominent  Spiritualists  of  the  city,  but 
could  find  no  trace  of  the  fugitives  from  that  generally 
very  prolific  source,  and  began  to  have  the  impression 
that  her  trip  there,  if  she  were  in  the  city  at  all,  was  one 
of  pleasure  or  of  blackmail  business  outside  of  herregulai 
clairvoyant  line. 


278  BREAKING   UP. 

The  next  move  made  by  the  men  was  to  search  about 
among  the  hotels  and  boarding-houses,  and  really  ferret 
her  out.  This  was  a  tedious  process,  and  very  little 
success  was  made  in  this  endeavor  for  two  or  three  days, 
when  one  noon,  as  Grey  was  wandering  about  the  city  in 
a  seemingly  useless  endeavor  to  find  the  woman,  he 
stepped  into  the  Denver  House,  formerly  the  old  City 
Hotel,  and  began  to  search  over  the  register.  He  had 
not  proceeded  far  when  the  clerk,  eyeing  him  cautiously, 
said  : 

"  See  here,  Mister,  ain't  you  lookin'  for  somebody  ?" 

"  Certainly  I  am,"  he  replied  pleasantly. 

Grey  looked  at  him  a  moment  and  saw  that  he  would 
not  drop  the  subject,  and  immediately  endeavored  to  mis- 
lead him  by  answering,  "  Of  course  I  am  ;  I  came  in 
from  the  country  this  morning,  and  I  don't  know  what 
hotel  she  was  going  to." 

"Ah,  ha,"  mused  the  clerk,  as  if  at  loss  how  to  pro- 
ceed, "I  guess  you  didn't  know  where  to  find  her,  and 
you  havn't  found  her  yet,  have  you  ?  " 

"  No,"  Grey  replied  quietly. 

"  Is  she  big  or  little  ?  " 

"  Well,  she  ain't  little,"  answered  Grey. 

"  Now,  see  here,  my  friend,  that's  all  right ;  but  I'm 
pretty  sure  you  didn't  just  come  in  from  the  country,  and 
further,  I  think  I  can  show  you  the  woman  you've  been 
hunting." 

Grey  smiled  and  intimated  that  he  was  perfectly  will- 
ing to  be  shown  the  woman. 


BREAKING   UP. 

"  Well,  you  just  let  me  have  your  hat;  I'll  put  it  on  the 
hat-rack  inside  the  dining-room  door,  then  you  go  to  the 
wash-room  and  pass  into  the  dining-room  as  though  you 
had  forgotten  your  hat  and  had  come  back  for  it.  Look 
at  the  head  of  the  first  table  over  by  the  windows,  and 
if  you  don't  find  your  woman  with  a  little  Frenchman, 
I'll  treat ! " 

Grey  was  surprised  at  the  revelation,  as  there  could  be 
no  possible  means  for  him  to  know  of  his  mission  ;  but 
the  clerk's  reference  to  the  "  little  Frenchman "  con- 
vinced him  that  there  was  something  worth  following  up 
in  the  matter,  and  he  followed  his  new  friend's  instruc- 
tions implicitly,  passed  into  the  dining-room,  took  his  hat 
from  the  rack,  turned  and  got  a  good  view  of  the  fair 
Mrs.  Winslow  and  the  faultless  Monsieur  Le  Compte, 
who  were  evidently  enjoying  life  as  thoroughly  as  perfect 
freedom  from  restraint,  and  spiritualistic  free  love,  would 
enable  them. 

He  expressed  no  surprise,  however,  at  seeing  the 
woman,  and  remarked  to  the  clerk  as  he  passed  into  the 
hall,  "  Why,  that  isn't  any  friend  of  mine  !  " 

"Nor  anybody  else's!"  said  the  clerk  with  a  leer. 
"  But  really,  now,"  he  anxiously  added,  "  ain't  you  after 
her?" 

"  Certainly  not,"  Grey  stoutly  replied  ;  but  as  the  clerk 
took  him  into  the  bar-room  to  treat  him  according  to 
jjgreement,  which  he  submitted  to  unblushingly,  he  admit' 
ted  that  he  had  a  curiosity  to  know  something  about  her 
as  he  had  either  s^en  her,  or  heard  of  her,  previously, 


280  BREAKING   UP. 

Then  the  clerk  told  him  a  good  deal  about  thr.  woman 
unnecessary  for  me  to  recite  to  my  readers,  which  only 
fnrther  showed  her  vile  character,  and  so  worked  upon 
my  operative's  curiosity  and  interest  that  he  decided  to 
come  to  the  hotel  for  a  few  days ;  but  as  he  was  informed 
that  Mrs.  Winslow's  intentions  were  to  remain  there  the 
lemainder  of  the  week,  and  the  clerk  promised  to  keep  a 
good  lookout  for  her,  he  concluded  to  hunt  up  his  com- 
panion, inform  him  of  his  good  fortune,  and  transfer  their 
baggage  to  that  hotel. 

As  it  was  now  about  two  o'clock,  Grey  did  not  find 
Watson  before  six,  and  it  was  fully  eight  o'clock  before 
they  got  settled  at  the  Denver  House.  But  their  eyes 
were  not  gladdened  by  a  sight  of  the  fugitive  on  that 
evening,  nor  was  she  at  breakfast  next  morning.  The 
operatives  began  to  be  alarmed  lest  the  bland  clerk  had 
taken  them  in,  and  were  particularly  so,  when,  at  their  re- 
quest, for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining  whether  she  was  in 
her  room,  he  knocked  at  her  door,  and  after  a  few  minutes 
returned  with  a  blank,  scared  face,  saying  that  the  Jezebel 
had  left,  and  more  than  that,  that  she  owed  the  hotel  over 
fifty  dollars  for  board  and  wine  furnished  on  the  strength 
of  her  elegant  and  dashing  appearance. 

On  further  examination  of  the  room  it  was  evident  that 
the  woman  had  not  occupied  it  at  all  during  the  previous 
night,  but  had  left  the  hotel  immediately  after  dinner 
whether  from  a  previous  decision  to  do  so,  or  from  one  of 
those  sudden  impulses,  quite  contrary  to  the  geneial  rule 
of  human  action,  which  made  her  an  extraordinarily  diffi 


BREAKING   UP.  281 

cult  quarry  to  follow,  or  still,  from  some  suspicion  that  she 
was  being  followed. 

Grey  felt  quite  crestfallen  that  he  had  lost  Mrs.  Wins* 
low  by  one  of  her  characteristic  manoeuvres,  and  at  once 
made  inquiries  concerning  her  baggage,  ascertaining  from 
the  clerk  that  she  only  had  a  portmanteau  with  her  at  the 
hotel,  but  had  had  a  trunk  check  which  she  had  exhibited 
when  asking  some  question  about  the  arrival  and  depart- 
ure of  trains. 

Grey  sent  Watson  to  intersections  of  prominent  streets 
to  keep  a  lookout  for  parties,  while  he  at  once  proceeded 
to  the  "  Chicago  Baggage  Room,"  as  it  is  called,  under 
the  Planters'  House,  where  he  ascertained,  after  considera- 
ble trouble  and  representing  himself  as  an  employee  of 
the  Chicago,  Alton,  and  St.  Louis  road,  looking  for  lost 
baggage,  that  Mrs.  Winslow  had  come  there  personally 
about  two  o'clock  the  day  previous  and  presented  the 
check  for  her  trunk,  which  had  been  taken  away  by  an 
expressman  with  "  a  gray  horse  and  a  covered  wagon." 

The  next  step,  of  course,  was  to  find  the  expressman 
with  the  gray  horse  and  covered  wagon,  who  had  taken  the 
woman's  trunk,  and  this  was  no  easy  matter  to  do.  There 
were  plenty  answering  that  description,  but  Grey  labored 
hard  and  long  to  find  the  right  one,  and  finally  found  it 
this  way. 

Being  an  Irishman  himself,  and  a  pretty  jolly  sort  of  a 
fellow,  he  was  not  long  in  finding  a  compatriot  the 
owner  of  a  gray  horse  and  a  covered  wagon,  of  whom  he 
asked : 


282  BREAKING   UP. 

•'  Did  you  move  the  big  woman  with  the  big  trunk  at 
two  o'clock  yesterday  ?  " 

"  An'  if  I  did  ?  "  said  the  expressman,  on  the  defensive. 

"  Nothing  if  you  did  ;  but  did  you  ?  "  replied  Grey. 

"  It's  chilly  weather,"  replied  the  expressman,  winking 
hard  at  a  saloon  opposite. 

"  Yes,  and  I  think  a  drop  of  something  wouldn't  hurt 
us,"  added  Grey,  following  the  direction  of  the  express- 
man s  wink  and  thought  quickly. 

They  stepped  over  to  the  saloon  and  were  soon  calmly 
looking  at  each  other  through  the  bottom  of  some  glasses 
where  there  had  been  whiskey  and  sugar.  They  looked 
at  each  other  twice  this  way,  and  finally  they  were  obliged 
to  take  the  third  telescopic  view  of  each  other  before  they 
could  resume  the  subject. 

Then  the  expressman  looked  very  wise  at  Grey,  re- 
marking musingly,  "  A  big  'oman  with  a  big  trunk,  eh?" 

"  Yes,  a  pretty  fine-looking  woman,  too." 

"Purty  cranky?" 

"  Yes." 

"  And  steps  purty  high  wid  a  long  sthride  ?  " 

"  Exactly." 

"  'N  has  clothes  that  stand  up  sthiff  wid  starch  'n  silk 
r.  the  makin'  ?  " 

"  The  very  same,"  said  Grey  anxiously. 

"  I  didn't  move  her,"  said  the  expressman,  shaking 
his  head  solemnly. 

Grey  felt  like  "  giving  him  one  '  as  he  said  in  his  re- 
ports, but  repressed  himself  and  said  pleasantly  that  he 


BREAKING    UP.  283 

was  sorry  he  had  troubled  him,  and  turned  to  go  away, 
knowing  this  would  unloosen  his  companion's  tongue,  if 
anything  would. 

"  Sthop  a  bit,  sthop  a  bit ;  you  didn't  ax  me  did  I  know 
ef  any  other  party  moved  her  ?  " 

"  That's  so,"  said  Grey,  smiling  and  waiting  patiently 
for  developments. 

"  Av  coorse  it's  so."  Then  looking  very  knowingly,  he 
said  mysteriously,  "  The  man's  just  ferninst  the  Planters', 
— not  a  sthone's  throw  away.  He's  a  big  Dutchman,  'n 
got  a  dollar  fur  the  job." 

They  were  both  around  the  corner  in  a  moment,  and 
Grey  at  once  made  inquiries  of  the  German  owner  of  a 
"grey  horse  and  a  covered  wagon"  as  to  what  part  of  the 
city  he  had  removed  the  trunk. 

He  was  very  secretive  about  the  matter,  and  refused 
any  information  whatever. 

"  Come,  come,  me  duck,"  said  the  Irishman,  ""me  frind 
here  is  an  officer,  'n  ef  ye  don't  unbosom  yerself  in  a 
howly  minit,  ye'll  be  altogether  shnaked  before  the 
coort ! " 

He  said  this  with  such  an  air  of  pompous  sincerity,  as 
if  he  had  the  whole  power  of  the  government  at  his  back, 
that  the  German  at  once  began  relating  the  circumstances 
in  such  a  detailed  manner  that  he  would  have  certainly 
been  engaged  an  entire  hour  in  the  narrative,  if  Grey  had 
not,  as  he  himself  expressed  it,  "  out  of  the  tail  of  his  eye  " 
seen  Mrs.  Winslow,  not  twenty  feet  away,  sailing  down 
Fouith  street,  towards  the  Planters'.  In  another  moment 


284  BREAKING   UP. 

she  would  pass  the  corner  of  the  court-house  square, 
where  she  could  not  help  but  see  the  little  crowd  of  ex- 
pressmen, hackmen  and  runners,  his  inquiries,  and  the 
statement  by  his  companion  tliat  he  was  an  officer,  had 
attracted. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

Btfll  foiled — Mr.  Pinkerton  perplexed  over  the  Character  of  the  Ad 
venturess. — Her  wonderful  recuperative  Powers. — A  lively  Chase. 
— Another  unexpected  Move. — The  Detectives  beaten  at  every 
Point. — From  Town  to  Town. — Mrs.  Winslow's  Shrewdness. — 
Among  the  Spiritualists  at  Terre  Haute. — Plotting. — The  beautiful 
Belle  Ruggles. — A  wild  Night  in  a  ramshackle  old  Boarding- 
House. — Blood-curdling  "  Manifestations." — Moaning  and  weep- 
ing for  Day. — Outwitted  again. — Mr.  Pinkerton  makes  a  chance 
Discovery. — Success. 

GREY  took  in  the  situation  at  once,  and  was  equal 
to  the  emergency.  He  knew  if  the  German  saw 
Mrs.  Winslow,  and  thinking  him  an  officer  who  might  ar- 
rest him  for  complicity  in  something  wrong,  he  would  pro- 
bably shout  right  out,  "  There  she  is,  now !  "  He  was 
also  just  as  sure  that  his  new-found  Irish  acquaintance,  in 
the  excess  of  his  friendliness,  would  rush  right  over  to 
Fourth  street  and  stop  the  woman.  So  in  an  instant  he 
created  a  counter-attraction  by  calling  the  German  a  liar, 
collaring  him,  and  backing  him  through  the  line  of  wag- 
ons out  of  sight,  and  as  Mrs.  Winslow  passed  farther 
down  Fourth  street,  backed  him  through  the  line  of  teams 
in  the  opposite  direction,  while  the  German  protested 
volubly  that  he  was  telling  only  the  truth;  and  just 
the  moment  Mrs.  Winslow's  form  was  hid  by  the 


280"  STILL  FOILED. 

Planters'  House,  he  released  the  now  angry  expressman, 
flung  him  a  dollar  for  "  treats,"  and  running  nimbly  around 
the  block,  fell  into  a  graceful  walk  behind  Mrs.  Winslovr. 
keeping  at  a  judicious  distance,  and  following  her  for  sev- 
eral hours  through  the  dry-goods  stores,  to  the  Butchers 
and  Drovers'  Bank,  where  she  drew  a  portion  of  the 
amount  which  she  had  secured  from  the  prominent  St. 
Louis  daily  as  damages,  and  which  had  remained  undis- 
turbed in  that  bank  until  this  time  ;  into  several  saloons, 
where  she  boldly  went,  and,  in  defence  of  the  theory  of 
women's  rights,  stood  up  to  the  counter  like  a  man,  order- 
ing and  drinking  liquor  like  one  too  ;  to  the  Four  Courts, 
where  she  at  least  seemed  to  have  considerable  business  ; 
to  numberless  Spiritualist  brothers  and  sisters,  including, 
of  course,  the  mediums  ;  and  finally  to  a  very  elegant  pri- 
vate boarding-house  kept  by  a  respectable  lady  named 
Gay  no,  whom  the  adventuress  had  so  won  with  her  oily 
words  and  dashing  manners,  accompanied  by  her  large 
Saratoga  trunk,  that  not  only  she,  but  a  little  French  gen- 
tleman named  Le  Compte — whom  Grey  had  hard  work  to 
avoid,  as  he  had  followed  Mrs.  Winslow  at  a  respectful 
distance,  and  as  if  with  a  view  of  ascertaining  whether 
any  other  person  besides  himself  was  following  the  madam 
— had  managed  to  secure  quarters  in  an  aristocratic  home 
and  an  aristocratic  neighborhood,  for  all  of  which  the  ex- 
perienced female  swindler  had  no  more  idea  of  paying, 
unless  compelled  to,  than  she  had  of  paying  her  fifty-dol- 
lar hotel  bill  at  the  Denver  House. 

On  receipt  of  this  information,  I  directed  Superinten 


STILL  FOILED.  287 

dent  Bangs  to  proceed  to  Rochester  and  hurry  up  Lyon's 
attorneys  in  securing  the  legal  papers  necessary  to  avail 
ourselves  of  the  large  amount  of  evidence  already  discov 
ered.  and  serve  notice  upon  her  while  she  was  still  in 
sight,  and  before  her  suspicions  of  being  watched  and  fol- 
lowed, which  it  was  evident  was  now  growing  upon  her, 
had  forced  her  into  still  more  artful  dodges  to  evade  us. 

It  was  certainly  her  determination  to  clothe  all  her  acts 
with  as  much  mysteriousness  as  possible,  and  in  this  man- 
ner work  upon  Lyon's  feelings  and  fears  until  she  would 
compel  him,  through  actual  disgust  of  and  shame  at  th«* 
long-continued  public  surveillance  of  his  affairs,  to  end  the 
worrying  tension  upon  his  mind  by  a  compromise  that 
would  yield  her  a  large  sum  of  money. 

That  she  was  able,  and  had  the  means  to  make  these 
quick  moves  and  sudden  changes,  was  equally  as  certain, 
though  it  was  a  question  in  my  mind  then,  and  has  been 
to  this  day,  how  much  money  she  might  have  had  at  com- 
mand. I  know  that  at  times  she  must  have  had  almost 
fabulous  sums  in  her  possession.  I  was  also  often  quite 
as  sure  that  she  was  absolutely  penniless,  when,  of  a  sud- 
den, she  would  carry  out  some  bold  scheme  that  required 
a  great  deal  of  money,  which  invariably  came  into  requi- 
sition from  some  mysterious  source  in  the  most  mysteri- 
ous manner  possible.  Whatever  might  have  been  the 
woman's  pecuniary  resources,  I  must  confess  that  in 
nearly  every  instance  I  underrated  her,  and  in  fact  that, 
in  every  respect,  the  more  I  endeavored  to  analyze  her 
the  more  of  an  enigma  she  became. 


288  STILL  FOILED. 

Like  nearly  all  women  of  disreputable  character,  she 
was  terribly  extravagant,  reckless,  and  improvident ;  but 
as  an  offset  to  this  she  was  supreme  in  the  meanness 
ordinary  courtesans  are  above — that  petty  but  never- 
ceasing  swindling  so  terribly  annoying  to  the  public. 

With  all  these  things  in  her  favor,  so  far  as  being  an 
ingenious  pest  is  concerned,  she  was  also  possessed  of 
the  power  of  physical  as  well  as  financial  recuperation  to 
a  wonderful  degree ;  and  to  whatever  depth  of  tempera- 
mental dejection  or  physical  exhaustion  and  degradation 
she  might  descend,  she  would  of  a  sudden  reappear,  fresh 
and  blooming,  with  no  perceptible  trail  of  her  vileness 
upon  her,  in  which  condition  she  would  remain  just  so 
long  as  would  conserve  her  interests. 

While  Superintendent  Bangs  was  on  his  way  to  St. 
Louis,  Grey  and  Watson  were  being  led  a  lively  chase 
about  the  city  by  Mrs.  Winslow,  and  the  bland  clerk  of 
the  Denver  House  was  devoting  nearly  all  his  time  in 
tracking  her  from  place  to  place  to  enforce  the  collection 
of  his  employer's  bill. 

Her  first  exploit  was  to  borrow  twenty  dollars  from 
Mrs.  Gayno  on  her  baggage,  who  was  thus  prevented 
from  turning  her  out  of  doors  when  her  true  character  was 
learned ;  and  as  a  further  illustration  of  her  shrewdness, 
after  she  had  remained  at  the  house  as  long  as  she  desired, 
she  left  between  days,  without  refunding  the  borrowed 
money  or  paying  her  bill,  and  in  some  mysterious  way 
also  spirited  away  all  her  baggage. 

This  of  course  caused  more  trouble  in  finding  her.  and 


STILL  FOILED.  289 

she  was  finally  discovered  in  furnished  rooms.  Even  here 
she  suddenly  made  her  presence  so  unbearable  tc  the 
landlord  that  he  gladly  paid  her  a  bonus  to  depart,  which 
she  did  equally  as  mysteriously  as  on  the  previous  occa- 
sion, when  she  was  lost  again,  and  the  third  time  found  at 
a  Spiritualistic  gathering  at  the  hall  near  the  corner  of 
Chestnut  and  Seventh  streets,  where  she  was  one  of  the 
speakers  of  the  evening  and  did  herself  and  the  cause 
justice. 

In  this  way — following  her  while  she  was  securing 
abstracts  of  her  many  cases  against  the  people  of  St. 
Louis,  the  number  and  trivial  character  of  which  had 
become  a  matter  of  public  scandal,  newspaper  comment, 
and  universal  condemnation  among  members  of  the  bar, 
keeping  track  of  her  in  numberless  conditions  and  locali- 
ties, and  listening  to  endless  tales  of  the  woman's  reckless 
conduct  during  her  previous  residence  in  the  city — Mrs. 
Winslow  gave  the  two  men  all  they  could  possibly  attend 
to. 

One  Wednesday  morning  about  eleven  o'clock,  when 
Grey  had  just  stepped  out  upon  the  street  from  a  late 
breakfast  at  the  Planters' — having  been  out  until  nearly 
morning  the  night  previous  on  a  fruitless  attempt  to  keep 
the  woman  under  surveillance  for  a  few  hours,  that  detec 
tive  was  looking  up  and  down  the  street  quite  undecided 
AS  to  what  course  to  pursue — he  saw  Mrs.  Winslow  just 
leaving  an  expressman  at  the  court-house  square,  who 
immediately  jumped  into  his  wagon  and  drove  off. 

Grey  ran  quickly  down  Fourth  street,  and  after  a  few 
13 


290  STILL  FOILED. 

minutes'  chase  succeeded  in  overtaking  the  vehicle. 
Halting  it  he  asked  the  driver  : 

"  Are  you  going  to  move  that  woman  ?  " 

He  checked  his  horse  with  an  air  that  plainly  said  that 
kind  of  interruption  was  neither  profitable  nor  desirable ; 
but  driving  on  at  a  brisk  pace,  there  was  jolted  out  of 
him  the  remark  :  "  My  friend,  I'm  working  for  the  public. 
Sometimes  it  pays  better  to  keep  one's  mouth  shut  than 
to  open  it,  especially  to  strangers." 

Grey  hurrying  on  at  the  side  of  the  wagon,  and  holding 
to  it  with  his  left  hand,  with  his  right  he  found  a  green- 
back. Handing  this  to  the  driver,  he  sprang  into  the 
seat  beside  him,  saying,  "  Sometimes  it  pays  better  to 
open  one's  mouth  !  " 

"That's  so,"  replied  the  driver  stuffing  the  bill  into 
his  pocket  and  elevating  his  eyebrows  as  if  inquiring 
what  Grey  wanted  him  to  open  his  mouth  for. 

"  I  want  you  to  drive  slowly  enough  for  me  to  keep  up 
with  you.  Mind,  you  needn't  tell  me  anything  unless  you 
have  a  mind  to." 

"Oh,  I'd  just  as  leave  tell  you  as  not,"  he  replied. 
"  She's  going  over  to  East  St.  Louis  to  try  and  get  the 
'  Alton  Accommodation,'  if  it  hasn't  gone  yet.  The  Chi- 
cago train's  way  behind,  and  the  '  Alton '  don't  go  until 
the  '  Chicago  '  comes  ;  ye  see  ?  " 

Grey  knew  this  was  partially  true,  for  he  had  but  a  few 
moments  before  received  a  telegram  from  Mr.  Bangs, 
stating  that  he  was  aboard  the  down  train  which  had  been 
belated ;  so  that  the  best  thing  to  do  was  to  take  the 


STILL  FOILED.  2$l 

expressman's  number,  so  that  he  could  fi.id  him  again  in 
case  of  a  mistake,  or  any  deception  being  practised, 
which  he  did.  He  then  returned  to  the  Planters',  paid 
hi  5  bill,  wrote  notes  to  both  Watson  and  Superintendent 
Bangs  stating  how  matters  stood,  went  to  the  levee,  and 
in  a  few  minutes  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  the  trunk  put 
on  board  the  ferry,  where  its  owner  shortly  followed. 

Grey  went  on  board,  taking  a  position  near  the  engines, 
where  he  could  have  an  unobstructed  view  of  the  stairs, 
so  that  if  this  should  prove  to  be  another  ruse  of  the 
madam's  to  get  him  started  across  the  river  and  then 
glide  off  the  boat  to  take  up  still  more  retired  quarters, 
he  could  beat  her  at  her  own  game.  But  Mrs.  Winslow 
remained  on  the  boat,  and  just  as  it  was  pushing  off  for  the 
Illinois  shore  the  landlord  of  the  Denver  House,  accom- 
panied by  a  constable,  came  rushing  on  board. 

Seeing  Grey,  he  immediately  applied  to  him  for  infor- 
mation as  to  whether  the  woman  was  on  board.  He 
replied  by  pointing  her  out  where  she  was  leaning  over 
the  guards  immediately  above  them.  The  landlord  and 
his  man  at  once  proceeded  to  interview  the  woman, 
threatening  all  sorts  of  things  if  that  bill  was  not  paid,  to 
all  of  which  she  gave  evasive  answers  until  the  Illinois 
shore  was  reached,  when  she  reminded  them  that  she  was 
outside  the  jurisdiction  of  the  State  of  Missouri,  and  that 
if  either  of  them  laid  their  hands  upon  herself  or  her 
property,  she  would  feel  compelled  to  cause  a  St.  Louis 
funeral,  as  she  was  a  good  shot,  and  when  in  the  right  did 
not  hesitate  to  shoot ;  which  so  frightened  the  hotel  man 


#»  STILL  FOILED. 

and  the  little  minion  of  Missouri  law,"  as  Mrs.  Wins- 
low  c  lied  the  constable,  that  they  retreated  empty- 
handed  and  with  a  confirmed  disgust  at  the  active  expo 
nents  of  modern  Spiritualism. 

Grey  was  now  in  a  quandary  as  to  what  to  do.  The 
Chicago  train  was  reported  as  over  two  hours  late,  and 
he  was  informed  by  the  conductor  of  the  Alton  Accommo- 
dation that  though  his  train  could  not  leave  St.  Louis 
until  the  Chicago  train  had  arrived,  yet  that  he  dare  not 
hold  the  train  a  moment  after  that  time.  This  precluded 
Grey's  informing  Mr.  Bangs  of  his  whereabouts,  as  the 
train  was  now  too  near  the  place  to  admit  of  his  being 
reached  by  a  telegram ;  and  should  he  risk  losing  the 
woman  to  apprise  Mr.  Bangs,  it  might  be  impossible  to 
find  her  again  at  all.  Fortunately  he  learned  that  the  pas- 
senger train  stopped  at  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  railroad 
crossing,  and,  interesting  a  brakeman  in  his  behalf,  he 
arranged  with  him  to  go  up  to  the  crossing,  board  the 
train,  rush  through  it  and  call  out  for  Mr.  Bangs  as  he 
went,  directing  the  latter  to  pay  the  brakeman  two  dollars 
for  his  trouble,  then  jump  off  the  train,  walk  rapidly  back 
to  the  crossing  and  there  board  the  Alton  train  as  it  was 
going  out,  if  possible ;  which  latter  plan  would  have 
succeeded,  no  doubt,  had  not  Mr.  Bangs  been  chat- 
ting upon  the  rear  platform  of  the  rear  car,  and  failed 
altogether  to  hear  the  extremely  loud  inquiries  made  for 
him. 

Mrs.  Winslow  recognized  Grey  as  a  person  in  some- 
body's employ  who  was  following  her,  and  the  moment  he 


STILL  FOILED.  293 

seated  himself  in  the  single  passenger-car  attached  to  the 
train,  the  woman  began  such  a  terrible  tirade  of  abuse 
against  him  that  he  was  made  to  feel  that  the  detective's 
life  is  not  altogether  one  of  roseate  hue,  and  so  anncyed 
the  other  passengers  that  a  large-sized  brakeman  was  se- 
lected as  a  delegation  of  one  to  quiet  her.  It  was  evi- 
dent she  had  been  drinking  heavily,  and  she  kept  this 
brakeman  pretty  well  employed  for  some  time  in  not  only 
endeavoring  to  quiet  her  termagant  tongue,  but  to  keep 
her  in  her  seat,  as  she  would  often  rise  in  the  ecstasy  of 
her  wrath  and  denounce  poor  Grey,  who  meekly  bore  it 
all  with  a  patient  smile,  until  the  conductor  again  ap- 
peared, when  Grey  showed  him  his  thousand-mile  em- 
ployee's ticket  and  claimed  that  he  was  an  employee  of 
that  road  looking  up  lost  baggage  ;  that  it  was  suspected 
that  Mrs.  Winslow  had  stolen  the  trunk  she  had  with  her, 
and  that  he  had  been  ordered  to  follow  her  for  a  day  or 
two  until  he  got  further  instructions  from  headquarters. 
This  put  him  all  right  with  the  trainmen,  and  caused  the 
conductor  to  compel  the  woman  into  some  sort  of  civility 
and  silence. 

At  about  two  o'clock  the  train  arrived  in  Monticello, 
where  Mrs.  Winslow  left  the  train,  and  the  detective  fol- 
lowed. The  agent  informed  Grey  that  it  was  at  least 
a  mile  to  a  telegraph  office  uptown,  but  that  no  train 
save  a  "  wild-train  "  would  pass  either  way  until  after  he 
would  have  time  to  send  a  dispatch  and  return.  He  im- 
mediately went  uptown  and  sent  a  telegram  to  the  agent 
at  East  St.  Louis  to  please  inquire  for  a  Mr.  Bangs  about 


294  STILL  FOILED. 

the  depot,  and  if  there,  to  have  him  answer ;  also  one  to 
Mr.  Bangs  himself  at  the  Planters'. 

Returning  to  the  depot,  the  agent  informed  Grey  thai 
Mrs.  Winslow  had  also  been  uptown,  which  was  quite  evi 
dent,  as  she  had  donned  an  entirely  different  suit  of  cloth- 
ing,  evidently  with  some  inebriated  sort  of  an  idea  that 
this  might  change  her  appearance  enough  to  enable  her 
to  escape  him.  She  finally  bought  a  ticket  to  Brighton, 
and  got  her  trunk  checked  to  that  point. 

On  their  arrival  at  Brighton,  Grey  saw  several  ladies 
get  off  the  rear  platform  of  the  ladies'  car,  among  whom 
was  his  unwilling  travelling  companion,  and  watched 
until  they  had  passed  into  the  depot.  In  order  to  make 
sure  that  she  was  to  stop  here,  he  ran  rapidly  to  where 
the  baggage  was  being  unloaded,  where  he  found  that 
her  trunk  had  been  put  off.  He  waited  there  until  he 
saw  the  trunk  wheeled  into  the  little  baggage-house,  when 
he  leisurely  walked  back  to  the  depot  and  stepped  i^to 
the  ladies'  waiting-room,  to  keep  the  company  of  the 
adventuress. 

What  was  his  surprise  to  see  it  almost  deserted,  no 
Mrs.  Win  slow  there,  and  no  surety  of  anything  at  all. 
He  rushed  into  the  gentlemen's  room,  galloped  around 
the  depot,  looked  in  every  direction,  only  to  turn  towards 
the  train,  with  the  startling  suspicion  that  he  had  again 
been  outwitted  by  the  shrewd  Spiritualist  who  made  her 
livelihood  by  villainy  and  shrewdness,  which  was  quickly 
confirmed  as  he  made  an  ineffectual  attempt  to  overtake 
the  departing  train,  only  to  see  the  face  of  Mrs.  Winslow 


STILL  FOILED:  295 

pressed  hard  against  the  rear  window  of  the  ladies'  car, 
and  almost  white  with  a  look  of  fiendish  enjoyment  and 
hate  at  the  useless  attempts  of  her  relentless  pursuer  whom 
she  had  so  neatly  foiled. 

Mrs.  Winslow  had  slipped  a  detective — and  a  good 
detective,  too — again,  was  gone,  and  all  Grey  could  do 
was  to  wait  at  Brighton  until  Superintendent  Bangs  could 
overtake  and  counsel  with  him. 

By  telegrams  to  and  from  conductors  it  was  speedily 
ascertained  by  Superintendent  Bangs,  who  had  come  on 
to  Brighton  and  directed  Watson  to  report  at  the  Chicago 
Agency,  that  the  woman  had  gone  to  Springfield,  Ills., 
and,  after  arranging  with  the  station-agent  at  Brighton 
to  send  information  to  Chicago  regarding  any  call  that 
might  be  made  for  her  trunk,  or  as  to  any  orders  that 
might  be  received  to  have  it  forwarded,  Mr.  Bangs  and 
Grey  went  at  once  to  Springfield,  where  a  trace  of  the 
woman  was  found  at  the  St.  Nicholas  Hotel. 

It  was  ascertained  that  she  had  remained  at  the  hotel 
over  night,  and  the  clerks  thought  it  probable  that  she 
was  then  at  the  house,  her  bill  not  having  been  paid  ;  but 
a  thorough  search  for  her  only  developed  the  fact  that 
she  was  at  least  absent  from  the  hotel,  whether  with  an 
intention  of  returning  or  not. 

Mr.  Bangs  directed  Mr.  Grey  to  remain  at  the  St. 
Nicholas,  keeping  on  the  alert  for  her,  while  he  visited 
the  more  elegant  houses  of  ill-repute  with  which  that 
capital  abounds  during  legislative  sessions  and  which 
«rere  just  at  this  time  getting  in  readiness  to  receive  law 


296  STILL  FOILED. 

makers  and  lobbyists ;  and  also  the  othei  and  less  respect 
able  establishments  for  piracy,  managed  by  professed 
mediums,  astrologists,  fortune-tellers,  and  all  the  other 
grades  of  female  swindlers  ;  and  after  a  considerable  time 
spent  in  investigation,  found  a  certain  Madam  La  Vant, 
astrologist — who  professed  to  cast  the  horoscope  of 
people's  lives  with  all  the  certainty  of  the  famous  Dr. 
Roback — who  was  descended  from  the  vikings  and  jarls 
of  the  Scandinavian  coast,  but  in  reality  kept  a  house  of 
assignation,  that  most  dangerous  threshold  to  prostitution. 
Madam  La  Vant  at  once  acknowledged  that  Mrs. 
Winslow  had  been  there;  even  showed  Superintendent 
Bangs  a  bundle  she  had  left  with  her.  She  stated  that 
she  had  called  there  early  in  the  morning  and  left  the 
package,  with  the  promise  to  return  about  three  o'clock  in 
the  afternoon,  when  she  was  to  occupy  a  room  she  had 
engaged  there,  and  had  already  paid  in  advance  for  its 
use.  Mr.  Bangs  did  not  feel  exactly  at  rest  about  the 
matter,  but  could  not  do  otherwise  than  return  to  the 
hotel  for  his  dinner,  promising  to  call  in  the  afternoon, 
and  alleging  that  he  had  information  to  give  the  woman 
regarding  certain  persons  who  had  been,  and  then  were, 
following  her ;  for  if  she  were  then  in  the  house  she 
would  remain  there,  and  he  had  no  legal  authority  to 
molest  her  or  search  the  place  without  Madam  La 
Vant's  consent,  which  he  could  not  of  course  get  if  she 
was  shielding  her,  which  she  undoubtedly  was  •  and  i( 
Mrs.  Winslow  was  really  away  from  the  house,  the 
madam  would  take  some  means  of  preventing  her  return. 


STILL  FOILED.  297 

lie  went  13  the  hotel  as  quickly  as  possible,  found 
Grey,  whom  he  immediately  sent  to  watch  for  the  ingress 
or  egress  of  the  adventuress,  took  a  hasty  dinner,  and 
then  relieved  my  operative  so  that  he  might  dine,  after 
which  the  two  watched  the  house  until  dark. 

But  their  closest  vigils  over  the  place  failed  to  cause 
the  discovery  of  Mrs.  Winslow,  who  was  doubtless  by 
this  time  many  miles  away  from  Springfield,  enjoying 
peace  and  quiet  in  some  other  city.  Superintendent 
Bangs  called  on  Madam  La  Vant  as  soon  as  the  evening 
had  come,  and  that  lady  expressed  great  surprise  that  he 
had  not  seen  his  "  friend,  Mrs.  Winslow,"  as  she  express- 
ed it ;  following  this  remark  by  the  explanation  that  she 
had  returned  to  her  house  not  over  a  half-hour  after  he 
had  left  it,  and  had  stated  that  she  had  decided  to  go  on 
to  Chicago  immediately,  whereupon  Madam  La  Vant  had 
refunded  her  the  money  advanced  for  the  room,  and  the 
woman  had  taken  her  bundle  and  departure  simultane- 
ously. 

The  detectives  were  satisfied  that  the  astrologist  was 
squarely  lying  to  them,  and  that  she  had  in  some  way 
aided  the  fugitive  to  escape,  or  had  effectually  secreted 
her — the  former  opinion  being  the  most  reasonable ;  and 
when  I  had  been  apprised  of  the  turn  things  had  taken,  I 
was  satisfied  that  Mrs.  Winslow  was  in  Madam  La  Vant's 
house  at  the  very  time  that  Mr.  Bangs  was  first  there ; 
that  her  friend,  the  madam,  was  merely  carrying  out  hei 
instructions  in  stating  that  she  had  been  there,  was  then 
out,  but  would  return,  and  that  at  the  very  moment  Mr 
13* 


298  STILL  FOILED. 

Bangs  had  started  for  the  St.  Nicholas  she  had  left  IA 
Vant's,  and,  as  soon  as  possible  thereafter,  the  city. 

I  immediately  concluded  that  as  I  had  no  authority  t« 
arrest  or  in  any  way  detain  the  woman — which  put  my  r*>en 
at  a  great  disadvantage,  preventing  their  telegraphing  in 
advance  for  her  detention,  or  securing  and  using  official 
assistance  of  any  kind  for  the  same  purpose — that  I  had 
better  recall  Mr.  Bangs  at  once,  which  I  did,  and  trust  to 
Grey's  doggedness  in  following  her,  instructing  him  par- 
ticularly to  if  possible  prevent  being  seen  by  her,  or  in 
any  way  alarming  her,  hoping  either  for  her  speedy  re- 
turn to  Rochester,  on  the  principle  that  the  guilty  mind 
constantly  reverts  and  is  drawn  towards  its  chief  topic 
of  thought,  and  that  strive  to  keep  away  from  it  as  much 
as  she  might,  she  would  be  irresistibly  drawn  to  it ;  or 
that  through  the  former  plan  I  might  get  her  into  some 
little  village  or  secluded  spot,  or  quiet  town,  where,  upon 
Grey's  announcement,  Mr.  Bangs  or  some  other  depu- 
tized person  might  cautiously  reach  her  before  she  was 
aware  of  her  danger,  and  serve  the  notice  that  would 
make  the  legal  fight  not  only  possible,  but  a  stormy  one 
on  account  of  the  vast  amount  of  crushing  evidence  I  had 
secured  for  Mr.  Lyon  against  her. 

It  was  more  and  more  apparent  that  the  woman's  plan 
was  to  beat  us  in  this  way,  and  thus  by  long  and  unbear- 
able suspense,  mysteriousness  of  action,  and  constant  an. 
noyance  in  the  shape  of  threatening  letters,  which  now 
continually  poured  in  upon  Mr.  Lyon,  not  only  from 
Rochester,  but  from  other  portions  of  the  country,  com 


STILL  FOILED,  299 

pel  him  to  settlement;  and  I  saw  that  the  whole  supreme 
and  devilish  ingenuity  of  the  Spiritualistic  adventuress 
was  being  aimed  at  avoiding  legal  process,  and  to  the 
accomplishment  of  this  result. 

So  much  time  had  now  elapsed  that  it  was  necessary 
for  Lyon's  attorneys  to  go  into  court  to  explain  the  diffi- 
culties attendant  upon  reaching  the  woman,  and  secure 
an  extension  of  time  in  serving  the  papers ;  and  by  the 
time  this  was  accomplished,  Grey  had  tracked  her  from 
town  to  town  and  city  to  city,  all  through  Central  Illinois, 
riding  on  the  same  train  with  her  times  without  number, 
doubling  routes  and  meeting  her  at  unexpected  points, 
travelling  at  all  hours  and  in  all  manner  of  conveyances, 
never  sleeping  for  days,  eating  from  packages  and  parcels, 
with  scarcely  time  for  personal  cleanliness  or  care,  which 
often  debarred  him  from  admission  to  places  where  a 
woman,  by  that  courtesy  which  is  due  to  her  for  what  she 
ought  to  be,  was  admitted  and  very  properly  protected 
from  such  hard-looking  citizens  as  Grey  had  become ;  so 
that  finally  the  two  came  into  Terre  Haute  together,  the 
adventuress  as  fresh  as  a  daisy,  and  perfectly  capable  of 
another  grand  expedition  of  the  same  extent,  and  the 
detective  completely  worn  out  and  entirely  unfit  for  fur- 
ther duty. 

Anticipating  something  of  this  kind  and  knowing  that 
the  woman  might  quite  naturally  gravitate  to  that  point, 
I  had  ordered  Operative  Pinkham  to  proceed  from  Chi- 
cago to  Terre  Haute,  and  there  assist  Grey,  or  relieve 
him  altogether,  as  occasion  required,  and  coijtinue  the 


3°0  STILL  FOILED. 

trail  east  towards  Rochester,  to  which  point  the  woman 
seemed  gradually  drifting,  though  evidently  determined 
to  prolong  her  journey  so  as  to  arrive  in  Rochester  not 
more  than  a  day  or  two  before  the  time  set  for  trial  of 
the  Winslow-Lyon  breach  of  promise  case. 

Arriving  at  Terre  Haute,  Mrs.  Winslow  immediately 
went  to  Mrs.  Deck's  boarding-house,  and  upon  telling 
that  sympathetic  old  lady  a  harrowing  tale  about  her  per- 
secutions, was  received  with  open  arms,  and  it  was  not 
long  before  her  pitiful  story  had  drawn  a  crowd  of  attenu- 
ated automatons  to  sympathize,  suggest,  and  harangue 
against  the  entire  orthodox  world. 

So  impressed  were  these  people  with  the  woman's 
pitiable  condition,  that  word  was  immediately  passed 
among  them  that  the  persecuted  lady  should  lecture  to 
them  at  Pence's  Hall,  after  which  a  sort  of  a  general  love- 
feast  should  be  held,  to  be  followed  by  seances  and  a  col- 
lection for  the  benefit  of  the  now  notorious  plaintiff. 

That  winter  afternoon  a  quiet  gentleman  dropped  into 
Mrs.  Deck's  and  secured  accommodations  for  a  few  days' 
stay,  representing  himself  as  a  commercial  traveller  from 
Cincinnati.  Mrs.  Deck  was  absent  working  energeti- 
cally in  the  interests  of  her  spiritualistic  guest,  and  the 
quiet  man  was  obliged  to  transact  his  business  with  the 
handsome  Belle  Ruggles  He  was  a  pleasant,  winning 
sort  of  a  fellow,  young,  shapely,  and  adapted  to  immedi- 
ately gaining  confidence  and  esteem. 

From  a  little  conversation  with  her  the  quiet  man,  who 
was  none  other  than  Detective  Pinkham  from  my  Chicago 


STILL  FOILED.  3O1 

Agency,  was  sure  that  he  could  trust  the  girl,  whom  he  at 
once  saw  had  no  sympathy  with  these  people  or  their 
crazy  antics.  He  saw  that  she  was  full  of  spirit,  too, 
capable  of  carrying  out  any  resolve  she  had  made,  and 
altogether  the  single  oasis  of  good  sense  in  this  great 
desert  of  unbalanced  minds. 

So  it  was  not  long  before  he  had  her  sentiments  on 
Spiritualism,  on  Spiritualists,  and  on  Mrs.  VVinslow,  whom 
she  denounced  with  tears  of  anger  in  her  eyes  as  a  dis- 
grace to  womanhood  and  to  their  place,  and  he  had  not 
been  three  hours  in  the  house  before  the  young  lady  and 
himsdf  had  entered  into  a  conspiracy  to  give  the  woman 
such  a  scare  as  she  had  not  recently  had,  and  drive  her 
from  the  pleasant  though  quaint  old  home  her  presence 
was  contaminating. 

The  snow  and  the  night  came  together,  and  the  storm 
shook  the  old  house  until  its  weak,  loose  joints  creaked, 
and  every  cranny  and  crevice  wailed  a  dismal  protest  to 
the  wind  and  the  driving  snow.  It  would  take  more  than 
that  though  to  keep  people  of  one  idea  at  home,  and  the 
entire  household  departed  at  an  early  hour  for  Pence's 
Hall,  from  which,  whatever  occurred  there,  Mrs.  Deck's 
large  family  did  not  return  until  nearly  midnight,  by  which 
time  Operative  Pinkham  and  Belle  Ruggles  had  concluded 
their  hasty  preparations  for  a  little  dramatic  entertain- 
ment of  their  own,  and  were  properly  stationed  and  ac- 
coutred to  make  it  a  brilliant  success. 

"  Good-night,  my  poor  dear ! "  said  the  kind-hearted 
old  body  as  she  ushered  Mrs.  Winslow  into  her  best 


302  STILL  FOILED. 

room,  a  long  antiquated  chamber,  full  of  panels,  ward 
robes  set  in  the  wall,  and  ghostly,  creaking  furniture.  "  I 
have  to  give  you  this  room,  we  are  so  full.  My  first  hus- 
band died  there,  but  you  don't  care  for  anything  like 
that.  I  never  sleep  there,  the  place  scares  me  ;  but  I 
know  you  will  like  it,  you  are  so  brave  !  " 

Whether  brave  or  not,  Mrs.  Winslow  seemed  all  3f  a 
shiver  when  she  had  entered  the  room  where  Mrs.  Deck's 
first  husband  had  died. 

She  closed  the  door  carefully,  and  putting  her  candle 
dpon  a  grim  old  bureau,  began  a  thorough  and  seemingly 
frightened  examination  of  the  room.  The  storm  had  not 
gone  down,  and  as  it  beat  upon  the  old  place  with  excep- 
tionally wild  and  powerful  gusts,  the  feeble  structure 
seemed  to  shrink  from  them  and  tremble  in  every 
portion. 

On  these  occasions  doors  to  the  wardrobes  and  closets 
of  the  strange  room  would  open  suddenly  as  if  sprung 
from  their  fastenings  by  unseen  hands,  while  panels 
would  slide  back  and  forth,  cracks  in  the  ceilings  and 
walls  would  open  alarmingly,  until,  in  fact,  to  the  wo- 
man's vivid  imaginations  every  portion  of  the  lonely  old 
chamber  or  its  weird  furnishings  seemed  possessed  of 
supernatural  life  or  motion.  The  fact  is,  Mrs.  Winslow 
was  trembling  like  the  house  itself;  but  after  a  few 
moments  she  snuffed  the  waning  candle  which  the  frugal 
Mrs.  Deck  had  given  her,  and  in  its  flickering  rays  hastily 
began  preparing  for  bed. 

Just  as  she  bent  over  to  blow  out  the  candle,  some 


STILL  FOILED.  3O3 

invisible  assistant  did  the  work  for  her,  and  at  the  same 
moment  a  hissed  "  Beware  !  "  caused  her  to  start  with  a 
scream  and  plunge  for  the  bed,  into  which  she  scrambled 
after  upsetting  a  chair  or  two,  when  she  pulled  the  cover- 
ing over  her  head  and  groaned  with  fright 

And  now  the  blessed  materializations  began. 

A  sudden  click  and  then  a  sliding  sound  above  hei 
head  announced  that  the  "  control "  had  begun  opera- 
tions, and  in  a  moment  a  few  grains  of  plastering  and 
some  strange  and  weird  combinations  of  musical  sounds 
seemed  to  simultaneously  fall  into  the  room.  The 
plaster,  of  course,  came  right  down,  some  of  it  upon 
exposed  parts  of  the  trembling  medium's  person;  but  the 
music,  which  seemed  to  be  badly  out  of  harmony, 
appeared  to  have  the  power  of  circling  in  the  air,  which 
it  did  for  some  little  time,  and  as  suddenly  ceased  as  it 
had  begun,  when  from  these  mysterious  upper  regions 
came  a  long,  low,  tremulous,  unearthly  groan,  that  died 
away  into  a  ghastly  sigh  as  the  storm  clutched  the 
decayed  old  mansion  and  shook  it  until  it  rattled  and 
rattled  again. 

"  My  God ! "  quavered  the  half-smothered  woman, 
"  that's  Mrs.  Deck's  first  man's  ghost ;  he'll  kill  me  ! 
Mur !" 

She  had  begun  to  shout  "  Murder  ! "  but  a  still  more 
awful  voice  proceeding  from  the  direction  of  the  bureau 
bade  her  keep  silence. 

She  was  silent  for  a  moment,  but  the  storm  wailed 
about  the  house  so  dismally  that  the  "  poor  dear,"  who, 


3<>4  STILL  FOILED 

according  to  Mrs.  Deck,  was  brave  enough  to  cheerily 
retire  in  what  had  been  the  bed-chamber  of  the  dead, 
could  bear  the  horror  of  her  position  no  longer,  and  be- 
gan a  vocal  lamentation  which  gave  promise  of  attracting 
more  than  a  spirit  audience,  when  the  materialized  spirit 
of  "Mrs.  Deck's  first  man,"  or  whatever  owned  the  voice, 
laid  a  heavy  hand  upon  the  trembling  woman,  sepul- 
chrally  warned  her  to  desist  from  her  outcries,  and  then 
read  her  such  a  lecture  from  the  Other  World  as  she  had 
never  transmitted  in  her  most  effective  "  seances  ; "  after 
which  she  was  ordered,  on  pain  of  instant  death,  to  leave 
Mrs.  Deck's  and  Terre  Haute  as  soon  as  morning  should 
come,  and  a  pledge  being  secured  from  her  to  the  effect 
that  she  would,  and  that  she  would  under  no  circumstan- 
ces leave  the  room  for  the  night,  the  spirit — which  had 
very  much  the  appearance  of  Detective  Pinkham,  the 
commercial  traveller  from  Cincinnati — left  the  room  by  the 
door  in  a  twinkling,  very  like  a  mortal,  and  still  very  like 
a  mortal,  quietly  stole  upstairs  and  helped  extricate  Miss 
Ruggles  from  her  gloomy  position,  where  she  had  done 
"  utility  "  business  as  a  groaning  garret  ghost. 

All  that  dreary  night  the  wicked  woman  moaned  and 
wept  for  day.  Her  coward  heart  shrank  from  the  evil 
she  knew  she  deserved.  The  storm  never  ceased,  but 
rose  and  fell  as  if  keeping  pace  with  her  terrors,  and  the 
old  place  furnished  her  crazed  imagination  untold  horrors. 

At  last  the  dawn  came,  but  she  had  found  no  moment's 
sleep,  and  before  the  household  was  astir  the  wretched 
woman  crept  out  upon  the  street,  and  plodding  through 


STILL  FOILED.  3°5 

the  swollen  drifts,  followed  by  a  very  pleasant  appearing 
commercial  traveller  from  Chicago,  she  staggered  to  the 
station,  and  was  rapidly  borne  away  from  her  sympathizing 
friends  towards  the  east. 

Being  apprised  by  telegraph  of  Pinkham's  rather  strange 
method  of  giving  her  an  impulse  in  the  direction  of  Roch- 
ester, I  at  once  proceeded  to  that  city  with  Superinten- 
dent Bangs,  anticipating  her  arrival  there  shortly  after 
our  own;  but  was  again  disappointed,  the  adventuress 
having  doubled  on  the  detective,  and  so  successfully 
avoided  him,  that  the  third  day  after  leaving  the  Hoosier 
City  he  arrived  in  Rochester  with  a  long  face  and  in  an 
extremely  befogged  condition. 

After  having  directed  Mr.  Bangs  and  Pinkham  to  re- 
main and  watch  every  incoming  train,  one  stormy  evening, 
as  I  was  about  returning  to  New  York,  by  the  merest 
chance  I  espied  the  woman  cautiously  emerging  from  the 
Arcade,  and  following  her  I  soon  housed  her  in  the  apart- 
ments of  an  old  mediumistic  hag  on  State  street.  Calling 
a  carriage  I  was  rapidly  driven  to  the  Osborn  House, 
where  I  found  Mr.  Bangs,  and  with  him  and  the  legal 
papers  returned  to  the  place  in  less  than  fifteen  minutes 
from  the  time  I  had  left  it. 

Cautiously  approaching  the  room,  we  listened  and  heard 
low,  earnest  voices  within.  Through  the  transom  we 
could  see  that  the  light  inside  was  turned  veiy  low,  and 
rightly  judged  that  somebody  was  being  given  a  *'  sitting," 
for,  carefully  trying  the  knob,  I  found  that  the  place  was 
secured  against  ordinary  intrusion,  and  throwing  ray 


306  STILL  FOILED. 

weight  against  the  door  it  flew  from  its  old  and  rusty 
fastenings,  and  in  an  instant  we  were  within  the  medium's 
room. 

"That  is  the  woman  !  "  said  I,  pointing  to  Mrs.  Wins- 
low,  who  had  sprung  from  her  chair  white  with  fear,  while 
the  wretched-looking  medium,  though  previously  in  the 
"  ti  ance  state  "  stared  at  us  with  protruding  eyes. 

"  And  who  are  you  ?  "  she  gasped,  looking  from  one  to 
the  other  in  dismay. 

"  Persons  whom  you  will  give  no  more  trouble  after 
the  service  of  these  papers,"  gallantly  replied  Mr. 
Bangs,  pissing  the  legal  documents  into  her  hands,  which 
closed  upon  them  mechanically  ;  and  after  I  had  politely 
handed  the  medium  sufficient  money  to  repair  the  damage 
I  had  caused  her  door,  we  bade  the  two  spiritualists  a 
cheery  good-night  and  left  them  to  a  consideration  of  the 
contrast  between  mortal  and  immortal  "  manifestations." 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

Shows  Low  Mrs.  Winslow  makes  a  new  Move. — Also  introduces  the 
famous  Evalena  Gray,  Physical  Spiritual  Medium,  at  her  sump- 
tuous Apartments  on  West  Twenty-first  Street,  New  York. — Re- 
minds the  Reader  of  the  Aristocratic  Classes  deluded  by  Spirit- 
ualism. Describes  a  Seance  and  explains  the  "  Rope-trick,"  and 
other  Spiritualistic  Sleight-of-hand  Performances. 

MRS.  WINSLOW  was  quite  crushed  by  her  failure 
to  evade  service  of  the  notice  to  take  evidence 
in  just  those  sections  of  the  country  where  she  had  been 
too  well  known  for  her  present  good,  and  for  a  few  days 
seemed  to  be  in  that  peculiar  mental  condition  where  one 
may  be  easily  led,  or  driven,  'into  committing  a  desperate 
act  for  mere  relief  from  a  too  great  conflict  of  emotions. 
She  flitted  about  the  city  in  a  state  of  great  unrest  for 
a  little  time,  not  being  able  to  dispossess  her  mind  of  the 
fear  or  feeling  of  being  pursued ;  stealing  into  the  houses 
of  those  of  like  belief,  and  with  an  air  of  great  secrecy 
insisting  that  they  should  give  her  refuge  and  protection 
from  Lyon's  minions,  who,  she  claimed— and  perhaps  had 
come  to  believe — would  yet  in  some  way  do  her  bodily 
harm ;  mysteriously  gliding  about  the  Arcade  and  in  the 
vicinity  of  his  house,  as  if  expecting  by  some  occult  power 
to  be  able  to  divine  what  might  be  the  rich  man's  plana 
concerning  her  ;  and  like  the  very  evil  thing  that  she  was, 


308     MRS.  WINSL  O  W  MAKES  A  NE  W  MO  VE. 

hiding  in  uncanny  places,  scared  at   her   own   voice  ol 
footsteps,  until  the  spell  had  left  her. 

About  this  time  New  York  city  dailies,  and  many  of 
the  newspapers  of  large  circulation  throughout  the  interioi 
of  the  State,  were  publishing  the  following  advertisement : 

"  Immense  Success  ! — Miss  Evalena  Gray,  the  cele- 
brated Spiritual  Physical  Medium,  lately  from  the  Queen's 
Drawing-room,  Hanover  Square,  London,  also  Crystal 
Palace,  Sydenham,  and  assisted  by  Mile.  Willie  Leve- 
raux,  from  Paris,  will  give  one  of  her  marvellous  seances 
this  evening  at  her  elegant  parlors,  No.  19  West  Twenty- 
first  street,  opposite  the  Fifth  Avenue  Hotel,  at  7:30 

P.M." 

New  York  city  knew  Miss  Evalena  Gray  as  a  new 
aspirant  to  the  honors  and  emoluments  derived  from  her 
ability  to  do  mysterious  things  very  gracefully.  She  was 
as  beautiful  a  woman  as  had  ever  come  into  New  York  on 
this  kind  of  business,  and  those  who  considered  her  a 
true  medium  were  in  ecstasies  over  the  magnificent  con- 
tortions and  superb  evolutions  which  her  "great  spiritual 
power  "  enabled  her  to  execute  with  bewildering  rapidity, 
while  disbelievers  in  the  source  of  these  phenomena 
originating  in  celestial  spheres  could  not  resist  her  fasci- 
nating powers  ;  and  the  consequence  was  that  her  adroit- 
ness and  beauty  had  created  a  great  sensation,  so  much 
so  in  fact  that  respectable  people  had  begun  arguing 
about  her,  which  answered  just  the  purpose  sought. 

New  York  also  knew  her  as  a  woman  so  full  of  soul— 


MRS.  WINSL  O  W  MAKES  A  NE  W  MO  VE.     309 

that  latter-day  substitute  for  brains  and  personal  piuity — 
as  to  have  readily  confused  and  silenced  great  throngs  in 
Europe  wherever  she  had  appeared  ;  and  she  had  invari 
ably  challenged  investigation,  and  that,  too,  with  as 
much  audacity  as  success,  which  had  in  every  instance 
been  wonderfully  marked  and  complete. 

Mrs.  Winslow  knew  her  as  a  little  sprite  she  had  met 
three  years  before  at  Chardon,  Ohio,  a  pleasant  little 
village  of  about  3,000  inhabitants,  twelve  miles  south  of 
Painesville,  where  Mrs.  Winslow  had  been  giving  seances. 
Miss  Gray  was  then  just  starting  in  her  Spiritualistic 
career,  and  Mrs.  Winslow,  seeing  her  aptitude  and  gene- 
ral fascinating  qualities,  endeavored  to  persuade  her  tc 
accompany  her. 

Miss  Gray  evidently  believed  in  her  own  powers,  at 
feast  had  considered  the  proposition  unfavorably  ;  but  the 
two  had  become  warm  friends,  and  Mrs.  Winslow  had 
cheerfully  imparted  to  the  demure  novitiate  all  her  sup- 
ply of  manifestations,  which  she  had  rapidly  acquired, 
and  the  two  had  parted  with  the  promise  to  meet  again 
at  the  very  first  opportunity,  each  drifting  away  to  fulfil 
her  traitorous  course  against  society  and  blasphemous 
satire  upon  respectability. 

So,  Mrs.  Winslow,  being  in  that  condition  of  mind 
wherein  its  possessor  must  have  some  person's  confidence, 
saw  this  advertisement,  and  feeling  sure  that  Miss  Eva- 
lena  Gray  had  been  in  clover,  concluded  that  she  could  go 
to  her  for  rest  and  consolation  ;  accordingly,  she  threw  off 
the  clouds  which  had  seemed  to  settle  upon  he.r,  gathered 


3 10    MRS.  WINSL  O  W  MAKES  ANEW  MO  VE. 

her  baggage  together  from  various  secret  places  where  (\ 
had  been  deposited,  took  rooms  at  the  National  Hotel 
for  a  few  days  in  quite  a  rational  manner,  and  after  a 
week  of  perfect  rest  and  physical  care,  which  told  wonder- 
fully in  her  favor,  in  connection  with  her  great  recupera- 
tive powers,  and  having  provided  a  wardrobe  of  no 
mean  character,  left  Rochester  for  New  York  as  hand- 
some and  attractive  a  woman  as  one  would  meet  in  a 
day's  journey. 

I  was  apprised  of  her  departure  by  telegraph,  and  had 
a  spry  little  operative  at  the  Hudson  River  depot  at 
Thirty-first  street,  ready  to  play  the  lackey  to  her.  She  at 
once  proceeded  in  a  carriage  to  the  Fifth  Avenue  Hotel, 
where  she  secured  fine  apartments  overlooking  the  en- 
trance to  Miss  Evalena  Gray's  elegant  parlors  at  No.  19 
West  Twenty -first  street;  and  although  I  had  no  pre- 
vious information  as  to  what  called  Mrs.  Winslow  to 
New  York,  I  was  for  several  reasons  satisfied  that  it  was 
for  the  purpose  of  communicating  with  Miss  Gray,  and  at 
once  took  measures  for  securing  the  substance  of  the 
interview. 

As  Mrs.  Winslow  had  arrived  late  in  the  afternoon,  I 
thought  probably  she  would  make  no  move  until  the  fol- 
lowing day,  but  took  the  precaution  to  secure  a  room 
adjoining  hers  for  the  use  of  an  operative,  sending  another 
detective  to  Miss  Gray's  seance  at  half-past  seven,  to 
ascertain  whether  Mrs.  Winslow  was  at  any  time  present, 
and  also,  if  necessary,  to  devise  some  means  to  remain  in 
the  house  until  the  two  women  had  met,  should  they  do  so. 


MRS.  WINSLOW  MAKES  A  NET*  MO  VE.     311 

The  detective  sent  to  Miss  Gray's  place  was  barely 
able  to  secure  admission,  on  account  of  having  come  on 
foot,  that  fact  alone  laying  him  liable  to  suspicion.  For 
an  hour's  time,  splendid  equipages,  at  short  intervals, 
lolled  up  to  the  mansion,  and  their  occupants  were  turned 
over  to  a  negro  butler  of  such  gigantic  proportions  and 
gorgeous  livery  as  to  give  the  ordinarily  aristocratic  place 
an  air  of  oriental  splendor,  the  interior  appointments  being 
fully  in  keeping  with  the  promise  of  sumptuousness  which 
the  reception  always  gave.  Once  entered,  my  operative 
had  an  opportunity  to  study  these  appointments. 

The  carpets  were  of  such  rich  and  heavy  texture  that 
they  gave  back  no  sound  to  the  foot-fall,  and  by  an  inge- 
nious arrangement,  beneath  the  lambrequins  adorning  tho 
windows,  two  noiseless  fan-like  blinds  opened  or  closed 
instantly,  lighting  or  darkening  the  room  as  suddenly,  and 
evidently  for  use  during  day  seances,  which  were  some- 
times given  ;  while  opposite,  two  broad  parlors  led  away, 
en  suite,  to  a  raised  dais  at  the  rear,  upon  which  Miss 
Evalina  Gray,  assisted  by  Mile.  Leveraux,  from  Paris, 
gave  her  wonderful  spiritual  manifestations. 

At  either  side  of  the  centre  of  the  first  room,  and  on 
a  level  with  the  floor,  was  a  fountain  cut  in  marble, 
back  into  the  basin  of  which  the  water  fell  with  a  dreamy, 
tinkling  sound  which  suggested  poetical  luxuriousness. 
Rare  statuary  filled  every  accessible  niche.  Heroic  paint- 
ings of  the  olden  times,  and  the  softer,  more  sensual 
paintings  of  ths  late  French  schools,  blended  together 
until  they  gave  the  walls  a  rosy  glow.  Flowers  loading 


3 1 2     MRS.  WINSL  O  W  MAKES  A  NEW  MO  VE. 

the  air  with  fragrance,  warmed  the  room  with  the  coloi 
and  life  which  flowers  only  can  give.  Hidden  music- 
boxes  gave  forth  the  rare  and  blended  melodies  of  sunny, 
southern  climes  ;  while  rich  divans,  arranged  with  that 
pleasant  kind  of  taste  that  bespeaks  no  arrangement  at 
all,  were  scattered  negligently  about  the  room,  now  rapid- 
ly being  filled  with  the  aristocratic  people  who  had  arrived 
and  were  constantly  arriving. 

My  operative,  having  gained  a  good  point  for  observa- 
tion, now  turned  his  attention  to  the  rapidly-increasing 
assemblage.  Almost  without  exception,  they  were  men 
and  women  of  evident  wealth  and  leisure,  but  with 
scarcely  a  face  denoting  culture  and  refinement  They 
were  representatives  of  that  numerous  class  who,  after  the 
rapid  acquirement  of  money,  have  found  no  good  thing 
with  which  to  occupy  their  minds,  or,  what  is  more  proba- 
ble, have  no  minds  to  be  thus  occupied  ;  and,  while  not 
giving  Spiritualism  any  public  endorsement,  secretly  fol- 
low its,  to  them,  fascinating  superstitions  and  mysteries, 
and  practice,  in  an  easy  way  that  prevents  scandal  or  in- 
famous notoriety,  the  sensualities  which  inevitably  result 
from  its  teachings  or  association  with  those  hangers-on  of 
society  professing  its  belief,  all  the  time  building  a  hope 
that  a  lazy,  sensuous  heaven  may  be  reached  without  ef- 
fort or  struggle  by  merely  cherishing  a  secret  faith  in  what 
most  satisfies  their  animal  nature,  and  yearning  to  live 
hereafter  as  they  most  desire  to  live  here — were  it  not  for 
the  voice  of  society — in  a  brutal  freedom  from  restraint, 
utterly  devoid  of  moral  and  social  purity,  and  without  the 


MRS.  WINSL  O  W  MAKES  A  NEW  MOVE.     313 

slightest  semblance  of  that  law,  written  and  unwritten, 
which,  from  the  creation  of  man  and  \\oman,  has  built 
about  the  domestic  relations  a  protection  and  defence  of 
sacred  oneness  and  sanctified  exclusiveness  which  no  van- 
dal dare  attack  without  eventually  receiving  some  just  and 
certain  punishment. 

A  conscientious  detective  will  allow  but  little  to  escape 
his  attention,  and  my  operative,  who  had  already  had  con- 
siderable experience  with  these  illusionists,  noticed  a  few 
arrangements  which  the  spirits  had  evidently  insisted  on 
being  made  to  insure  the  success  of  Miss  Gray's  seances, 
which  were  varied  in  their  character,  and  "  never  com- 
prised her  entire  repertory,"  as  the  actors  would  say,  so 
that  she  was  able  to  continue  an  attraction  for  some  time 
to  those  persons  who  came  to  see  her  and  witness  her 
manifestations  out  of  mere  curiosity. 

The  frescoing  of  the  walls  of  the  back  parlor  had  been 
done  in  lines  and  angles,  which  admitted  of  any  number 
of  apertures  being  cut  and  filled  with  noiseless  pantomime 
doors,  so  neatly  as  to  almost  defy  detection.  The  semi- 
circular platform  was  raised  fully  three  feet,  sloping  con- 
siderably to  the  front,  and — whether  it  did  or  not — might 
have  contained  a  half  dozen  "  traps  "  such  as  are  used  for 
stage  effects ;  while,  as  is  contrary  to  all  rules  for  lighting 
places  for  public  entertainment,  the  front  parlor  was 
lighted  very  brilliantly,  the  back  parlor  scarcely  at  all, 
while  but  a  few  glimmering  rays  fell  from  the  chandeliers 
over  the  platform,  where  the  spirits,  like  certain  "  star " 
actors,  could  not  appear  unless  under  certain  conditions. 


3H    MRS.  WINSLOW  MAKES  A  NEW  MOVE. 

Shortly  Mile.  Leveraux  conducted  Miss  Gray  through  a 
side  door  to  the  platform,  and  as  the  latter  smiled  recog- 
nition to  the  large  number  present,  exclamations  of  "Isn't 
she  sweet  ?  "  "  How  beautiful ! "  "  Almost  an  angel  as  she 
is ! "  and  other  expressions  of  extreme  admiration,  filled 
the  room. 

A  deft  little  woman  was  Evalena  Gray  ;  a  sprite  of  a 
thing,  light,  airy,  graceful,  and  with  such .  a  gliding, 
serpentine  motion  when  walking,  glistening  with  jewels 
as  she  always  did,  that  one  instinctively  thought  of  some 
lithe  and  splendid  leopard  trailing  along  the  edge  of  a 
jungle  with  an  occasional  angry  flash  of  sunlight  upon  it. 
From  her  feet,  both  of  which  could  have  rested  within 
your  hand,  and  given  room  for  just  such  another  pair,  to 
her  shoulders,  which  were  sloping  and  narrow  though 
beautifully  symmetrical,  she  was  as  straight  as  an  arrow. 
Then  her  slender,  faultless  neck  carried  her  head  a  little 
forward,  with  a  slight  bend  to  the  side,  which  gave  her 
face  a  half-daring  or  wholly  appealing  expression,  as 
people  of  different  temperaments  might  look  at  it, 
though  it  always  attracted  and  held  an  observer,  for  it 
was  as  strange  a  face  as  its  owner  was  a  strange  woman. 
The  chin  stood  there  by  itself,  though  shapely,  and  at  the 
point  was  prettily  depressed  by  a  little  dimple,  just 
needed  to  save  the  lower  part  of  the  face  from  a  shrewish 
look.  Above  this  the  lower  lip  curved  gradually  to  the 
edge  of  the  carmine  point,  but  was  stopped  there  by  a 
sort  of  drawn  look,  which  with  her  dazzling  white,  though 
slightly  irregular  teeth,  thin  upper  lip  quickly  parting 


MRS.  W1NSL  O  W  MAKES  A  NEW  MOVE.     3 1 5 

from  the  lower,  at  either  pleasure  01  anger,  rather  large, 
thin  nostrils,  which  noticeably  expanded  and  contracted 
with  the  rise  and  fall  of  her  not  over  large  bosom,  and  her 
languid  blue  eyes,  one  a  trifle  more  closed  than  the  other, 
but  both  looking  demurely  from  under  lashes  of  wonder- 
ful depth  of  sweep  and  length — all  gave  the  face,  which 
was  witchingly  attractive  notwithstanding  these  marked 
features,  either  a  plaintively  spiritual  appearance,  or  a 
wickedly  fascinating  expression  beyond  the  power  of  de- 
scription ;  while  her  hair,  of  that  nameless  color  which 
might  be  formed  of  gold  and  silver,  mingled  and  fell  from 
her  fine  head,  half  hiding  her  delicate  ears — pretty  and  fault- 
less ears  they  were — in  wonderful  richness  and  profusion. 

Never  were  seen  more  beautiful  hands  and  fingers  than 
those  belonging  to  Miss  Gray,  and  they  had  a  way  of 
assuming  all  manner  of  positions  in  harmony  with  the 
changes  of  her  expressive  face  and  the  motions  of  her 
supple  form,  while  her  little  body  was  a  mere  bundle  of 
pliable  bones  and  elastic  sinews,  which  could  compel  all 
manner  of  contortions  without  change  of  posture,  by  mere 
will-power.  She  was  not  a  beauty  ;  but  altogether,  with 
her  real  or  assumed  languor,  her  strange  eyes  that  might 
mean  lasciviousness  or  might  arouse  your  pity,  her 
parted  lips  which  would  seem  to  protest  of  weariness  or 
be  ready  to  whisper  a  naughty  secret  to  you,  with  her 
elf-like  form  that  made  her  appear  at  once  a  dainty  in- 
nocent thing  and  a  pretty  witch — she  was  a  woman  pos- 
sessing a  terribly  fascinating  power  and  capable  of  any 
devilish  human  accomplishment. 


3 1 6    MRS.  WINSL  O  W  MAKES  A  NEW  MO  VE. 

When  the  murmurs  of  admiration  had  died  away,  she 
arose,  and  in  her  languid  manner  especially  prepared  for 
the  public,  told  her  audience  a  long,  though  interesting 
fabrication,  of  how  she  first  discovered  she  was  possessed 
of  this  blessed  spirit-power  :  how  she  had  at  first  doubted 
it,  and  endeavored  to  free  herself  from  its  possession ; 
but  finally  saw  that  it  could  not  be  forced  from  her.  On 
thorough  conviction  that  she  was  a  medium  she  had 
begun  a  laborious  scientific  investigation  into  the  subject, 
and  finally  resolved  to  fathom  the  remotest  secret  of 
Spiritualism. 

But  even  to  her  the  blessed  gates  had  been  barred  when 
she  came  with  this  spirit  of  unclean  scepticism.  Still, 
being  assured  that  it  had  been  given  to  her  to  walk  with 
celestials,  her  future  course  was  only  a  natural  sequence. 
What  had  most  sorely  tried  her  in  this  life,  she  remarked, 
was  to  be  herself  morally  sure  of  these  wonderful  medi- 
umistic  powers,  and  then  realize  how  cruelly  the  world 
scoffed  at  her  as  well  as  at  all  others  who  were  anchored 
upon  the  same  beautiful  faith.  To  prevent  this  and  find 
uf>e  for  her  powers  in  the  highest  spheres,  she  had  travelled 
in  Europe  from  Rome  to  St.  Petersburg,  and  from  Vienna 
to  London. 

In  every  instance  the  impossibility  of  any  deception 
being  practised  in  her  manifestations  was  admitted  ;  but 
until  she  had  arrived  in  London,  she  had  failed  to  find 
anybody  of  repute  honest  enough  to  speak  the  truth. 
But  there  she  had  met  a  high-minded  man  who  had 
broken  through  the  barriers  of  prejudice,  and,  in,  an 


MRS.  WINSLOW  MAKES  A  NEW  MOVE.     3 1/ 

open,  manly  way,  fearless  of  the  sneers  of  the  conm-on 
herd,  or  of  his  business  peers,  had  thoroughly  investi- 
gated her  exhibitions,  found  that  they  had  proceeded  from 
supernatural  power,  and  had  publicly  stated  his  belief  in 
their  genuineness. 

With  such  irrefutable  evidence  of  the  possession  of  this 
spirit- power,  she  was  now  fulfilling  her  mission  of  con- 
vincing the  public  of  the  existence  of  these  heaven-in- 
spired phenomena,  explainable  upon  no  other  possible 
theory  than  that  of  the  inter-communication  between  this 
and  the  other  world  of  ministering  angels,  self-determin- 
ing their  actual  existence  by  more  or  less  perfect  materi- 
alizations. 

With  this  and  much  more  of  the  same  sort,  Evalena 
Gray  began  her  revelations,  all  of  which  had  previously 
been  performed  and  exposed  as  ordinary  tricks  of  an  illu- 
sionary  character,  but  which  were  given  by  the  languid, 
spirituelle  lady  with  such  a  show  of  her  being  on  the  thresh- 
old of  the  celestial  spheres,  that  the  very  atmosphere,  .al- 
ready charged  with  everything  to  provoke  mystification 
and  solemn  curiosity,  now  seemed  filled  with  some  weird, 
supernatural  influence  and  presence. 

First  the  little  lady,  who  was  dressed  in  white  muslin, 
with  long  flowing  sleeves  exposing  very  pretty  arms,  came 
down  from  the  platform  and  seated  herself  in  the  centre 
.of  the  bark  parlor,  inviting  the  forming  around  her  of  a 
circle  of  from  twelve  to  fifteen  persons,  who  should  sit  so 
closely  together  that  there  could  be  no  possibility  of  her 
passing  out  of  the  circle,  and,  if  the  rest  o/.  .he  audienc* 


3 1 8    MRS.  WINSLO  W  MAKES  A  NEW  MO  VE. 

chose,  they  might  form  a  circle  around  the  inner  circle  sc 
that  no  confederates  might  reach  her.  This  was  done, 
when  she  requested  some  gentleman  to  place  his  feet 
upon  her  tiny  feet  to  assure  the  audience  (hat  she  did  not 
leave  her  chair. 

Members  of  the  mystic  circle  then  clarped  hands,  and 
the  lights  were  turned  off  completely.  The  stillness  of 
death  followed,  broken  only  by  a  low,  shuddering  sigh 
announcing  the  control  of  the  medium  by  the  spirits,  and 
immediately  after  came  raps  so  loud  and  distinct  as  to 
almost  give  the  impression  that  an  echo  followed  them. 
Then  the  medium  began  patting  her  hands  together  as  an 
absolute  proof  that  none  of  the  succeeding  manifestations 
could  by  any  possible  means  be  produced  by  her.  While 
this  continued  without  interruption,  in  the  face  of  some 
came  a  whispered  "  God  bless  you  1 "  others  were  patted 
caressingly  upon  the  face  and  head  ;  whiskers  and  mus- 
taches were  delicately  tweaked  ;  watches  were  taken  from 
one  pocket  and  put  into  another;  a  gent's  quizzers  would 
be  placed  upon  a  lady's  nose,  and  vice  versa;  music 
floated  about  in  the  air  over  the  heads  of  those  compos- 
ing the  circle ;  lights  were  seen  to  glitter  like  fire-flies 
above  the  medium's  head,  and  a  score  of  other  equally 
startling  phenomena  occurred.  When  silence,  with  Ihe  ex- 
ception of  the  soft  and  delicate,  but  never-varying  hand- 
patting,  again  fell  upon  the  assemblage,  a  few  raps  an-  • 
nounced  the  departure  of  the  spirits  ;  and  when  the  gas 
was  turned  on,  the  dainty  little  medium  sat  in  precisely 
the  same  position  as  when  the  circle  was  formed,  and  the 


MRS.  WINSLOW MAKES  A  NEW MOVE.     3*9 

gentleman  had  taken  good  care  to  hold  her  neat  little  feel 
between  his  own.  A  sceptical  lady  now  held  Miss  Gray's 
feet — held  them  as  securely  as  only  a  sceptical  lady  could 
— when  precisely  the  same  manifestations  occurred. 
Again  her  feet  were  secured  as  before,  with  the  addi- 
tional precaution  of  their  being  tied.  She  was  then  tied 
to  her  chair  securely,  her  hands  tied  firmly  with  a  large 
handkerchief,  and  a  delicate  wine-glass  filled  with  water 
placed  upon  the  floor  several  feet  from  the  chair.  The 
lights  were  again  turned  off,  the  raps  were  heard  as  be- 
fore, and  were  in  turn  immediately  followed  by  the  hand- 
patting,  and  when  the  room  was  again  lighted  the 
wine-glass  of  water  was  found  delicately  poised  upon 
Miss  Evalena  Gray's  head. 

Many  startling  variations  of  the  same  general  character 
were  introduced,  and  when  this  portion  of  the  seance  was 
concluded,  the  astounded'  company  gathered  about  the 
pale  and  interesting  medium  with  expressions  of  un- 
bounded wonder  almost  amounting  to  awe,  mingled  with 
terms  of  endearment;  for  she  sweetly  conversed  with 
them  for  a  little  time,  and,  with  rare  insight  into  char- 
acter, gave  each  a  pleasant  word  of  recognition  espe- 
cially fitted  to  every  case,  in  a  manner  winning  beyond 
expression. 

She  now  retired  for  a  short  time,  while  Mile.  Leveraux 
entertained  the  assemblage  with  selections  from  her  com- 
panion's exceptionally  interesting  European  experiences 
as  put  in  form  pi  obably  by  some  enterprising,  though  im 
pecunious,  New  iTork  Bohemian. 


320     MRS.  WINSL  O  W  MAKES  A  NE  W  MO  VE. 

When  Miss  Gray  returned  she  was  attired  quite  differ- 
ently. Instead  of  wearing  the  white,  soft  muslin  which 
had  given  her  a  peculiarly  graceful  appearance,  she  had 
donned  a  closely-fitting  basque  of  black  rep  silk,  heavily 
trimmed  with  the  costliest  of  lace,  while  the  skirts  to  her 
dress  were  drawn  very  tightly  around  her  form  into  a  neat 
panier. 

It  might  have  been  noticed  by  any  other  person  in  the 
room,  as  it  was  noticed  by  my  operative,  that  her  bust  and 
shoulders  seemed  to  have  undergone  considerable  change 
during  her  absence.  She  seemed  much  more  full  across 
the  breast,  and  her  waist  was  certainly  not  so  narrow  and 
graceful  as  when  she  was  operating  in  muslin  within  the 
circle.  But  then,  the  spirits  might  have  caused  this  sud- 
den growth,  and  she  was  still  physically  handsome  and 
shapely. 

A  committee  of  gentlemen  was  then  called  for,  and 
Miss  Gray  announced  that  she  would  submit  to  being 
tied  to  a  chair  as  securely  as  it  was  in  the  power  of  the 
gentlemen  selected  by  the  audience  to  tie  her ;  where- 
upon Mile.  Leveraux  walked  about  the  room  and  exhib- 
ited the  rope  to  be  used,  which,  though  slender,  seemed 
strong  as  a  Mexican  lasso. 

There  could  have  been  no  deception  or  fraud  about  this 
rope. 

The  three  who  had  been  selected  to  do  the  work  then 
expressed  their  determination  to  tie  Miss  Gray  "  so 
the  devil  himself  would  have  to  help  he»,"  as  one  said, 
proceeding  with  the  interesting  operation  in  the  bright 


MRS.  WINSLOW  MAKES  A  NEW  MOVE.     321 

gaslight,  while  all  the  people  gathered  aoout  as  if  anxioui 
to  see  that  it  was  done  properly,  or  curious  to  notice  ho\* 
the  little  woman  would  bear  the  ordeal.  They  certainly 
did  their  work  well,  and  as  the  rope  was  wound  around 
and  about  her,  being  drawn  taut  in  every  instance,  it 
seemed  to  sink  into  her  delicate  flesh  in  a  cruel  way  that 
made  her  wince  and  tremble,  the  operation  calling  forth 
numberless  sympathetic  remarks  from  those  present, 
which  she  acknowledged  by  a  painful  martyr-like  smile  as 
she  patiently  bore  the  infliction  until  thoroughly  tied.  At 
her  special  request,  as  she  said,  to  prevent  a  stoppage  of 
circulation,  her  hands  were  tied  at  the  wrist  over  a  fold  of 
silk  to  prevent  abrasion  of  the  flesh ;  and  after  all  the 
knots  had  been  sealed  with  wax,  she  was  pronounced  tied 
so  securely  that,  without  connivance  of  confederates,  it 
would  require  superhuman  aid  to  release  her. 

With  a  pleasant  smile  she  looked  around  upon  the 
wondering  spectators  and  said  : 

"  Good  friends,  I  will  absolutely  and  incontestably 
prove  to  you  that  I  am  possessed  of  that  kind  of  aid.  I 
want  you  all  to  form  a  circle  around  me.  Every  one  in 
the  room  shouldjoin.it.  Stand  so  closely  together,  clasping 
hands,  that  no  living  person  can  pass  the  circle  either  way." 

The  circle  was  then  formed  as  she  had  requested,  half 
upon  the  platform  and  half  upon  the  floor,  Miss  Gray 
being  at  least  ten  feet  from  any  of  the  persons  composing 
it.  She  then  asked  anxiously  : 

"  Are  you  all  really  satisfied — yes,  convinced,  that  therf 
can  be  no  shadow  or  form  of  deception  about  this  ?  " 
14* 


322     MRS.  WINSL  O  W MAKES  A  NEW  MO  VE. 

Some  hesitated  about  giving  a  decided  affirmation  to 
that  belief,  when  she  swiftly  singled  out  the  doubters  and 
pressed  upon  them  not  only  the  privilege,  but  the  desir- 
ability and  necessity,  if  they  sought  the  truth,  of  personally 
examining  the  manner  in  which  she  had  been  tied.  After 
this  had  been  done  and  all  scepticism  had  been  silenced, 
she  bade  them  a  cheerful  "  Good-by  ! "  and  closing  her 
eyes  in  a  weary  manner,  seemed  to  pass  into  a  peaceful 
slumber,  as  the  lights  were  gradually  turned  off,  finally 
leaving  the  room  in  total  darkness,  and  with  no  sound  to 
relieve  the  painful  stillness  save  the  orthodox  rappings 
announcing  the  arrival  of  the  spirits,  the  hidden  music 
stealing  softly  to  the  hushed  circle  or  the  still  softer  water- 
wimplings  from  the  fountains  making  their  music  in  the 
carved  marble  basins. 

It  seemed  a  long  time  to  the  breathless  people  com- 
posing the  circle,  but  probably  not  more  than  ten  minutes 
had  elapsed  when  the  raps  again  startled  the  listeners,  and 
in  an  instant  the  full  light  of  the  chandeliers  flooded  the 
room. 

There  sat  the  marvellous  Physical  Spiritual  Medium 
utterly  free,  but  as  if  just  recovering  from  a  swoon — the 
ropes,  their  seals  unbroken,  lying  a  few  feet  from  the 
chair. 

There  was  a  simultaneous  rush  to  where  she  was  sitting 
apparently  limp  and  exhausted  from  the  great  struggle 
which  the  spirits  had  had  through  her  human  personality, 
to  release  her  from  bondage,  during  which  Mile.  Leveraux 
took  occasion  to  remark  that  the  strain  upon  Miss  Gray1! 


MRS.  WINSLOW MAKES  A  NEW MOVE.     323 

powers  had  been  too  great,  and  begged  that  the  ladies 
and  gentlemen  would  excuse  her  at  once,  as  the  medium's 
condition  would  unfortunately  necessitate  the  immediate 
termination  of  the  seance  for  that  evening;  whereupon 
she  left  the  room  supporting  the  delicate  Miss  Gray  in  a 
manner  that  would  have  done  credit  to  any  theatre  in  the 
world. 

There  was  no  illusion  and  could  have  been  no  collu- 
sion. 

Every  one  in  the  parlors  had  seen  the  woman  tied  so 
firmly  that  the  ropes  had  sunk  into  her  very  flesh.  The 
circle  had  been  formed  so  securely  as  to  admit  of  the 
passage  out  or  in  of  no  person  whatever.  They  had  all 
seen  her  sitting  in  the  chair  in  a  secure  condition,  and 
could  have  heard  any  movement  on  the  part  of  any 
person  within  the  circle  who  might  have  attempted  to 
steal  to  her  assistance.  But  there  were  the  ropes  with 
unbroken  seals,  lying  there,  silent  but  absolute  evidence 
that  no  human  agency  had  uncoiled  them. 

In  the  face  of  all  this,  what  were  reasoning  people  to 
believe  ? 

They  could  not  but  believe  the  one  thing  that  they 
generally  did  believe  after  having  visited  Evalena  Gray's 
seances,  and  that  was  that  there  does  exist  an  intercom- 
munication between  this  and  the  "Land  of  the  Leal;" 
thai  all  persons  at  times  feel  these  spirit  forces  working 
upon  or  within  them  in  different  forms  and  with  different 
degrees  of  intensity ;  and  that  there  are  these  fine  organ 
isms,  so  free  from  earthly  conditions  or  hindsrances,  as  to 


324    MRS.  WINSLOW MAKES  A  NEW MOVE. 

almost  permit  the  rehabilitation  of  spirit-lives  which,  as 
truly  friendly  aids  and  assistants,  often  perform  what 
seem  to  the  comprehension  of  ordinary  mortals  as  past 
belief,  giving  in  their  materializations  many  blessed 
glimpses  of  the  spirit-land. 

All  of  which  would  be  thrillingly  pleasant  to  believe 
and  ruminate  over  if  it  was  not  true  that  there  are  proba- 
bly hundreds  in  this  country  alone  who  can  do  this  sort 
of  thing  without  looking  pale  and  interesting  over  it ; 
without  necessitating  the  indorsement  of  a  millionaire 
brewer  or  anybody  else ;  and  who  would  consider  it 
hardly  fair  to  charge  two  dollars  admission,  as  Miss 
Gray  did,  for  the  utter  humbug  of  sitting  within  a  circle 
as  a  woman  dexterous  enough  to  have  her  feet  held  and 
then  be  able  with  the  left  hand  to  pat  the  right  palm  for 
a  moment,  then  the  right  arm — made  bare  from  the  wrist 
to  the  shoulder  by  the  sudden  unloosening  of  a  delicate 
elastic,  clasped  into  the  bracelet — or  her  cheek,  forehead, 
or  neck,  as  necessity  compelled,  but  making  this  patting 
incessant  and  so  like  that  of  the  two  hands,  that  detec- 
tion (in  the  dark)  would  be  a  matter  of  impossibility ; 
and  with  this  same  bared  right  arm  and  hand  producing 
all  of  these  manifestations,  ordinarily  so  marvellous,  even 
to  taking  a  little  music-box  out  of  the  pocket,  springing 
a  catch  to  start  the  melody,  "floating"  it  all  about  the 
heads  of  those  composing  the  circle,  shutting  off  the 
music,  and  putting  the  box  in  the  pocket ;  or  even  neatly 
balancing  a  wine-glass  of  water  upon  the  head. 

And  when  this  was  all  done,  without  claiming  any  par 


MRS.  WINSL O W MAKES  A  NE W MOVE.     325 

ticular  nearness  to  heaven  regarding  it  either,  I  ana 
satisfied  that  I  have  lady  operatives  in  my  employ  who 
can  step  into  a  room  adjoining  a  seance-parlor,  adjust 
i  rubber  jacket,  inflate  it,  hiding  the  tube  of  the  same 
under  a  closely-fitting  collar,  allow  themselves  to  be  tied 
so  that  the  ropes  would  seem  to  cruelly  sink  into  the 
flesh;  and  that,  after  a  room  had  been  darkened  ten 
minutes  they  would  be  able  to  have  allowed  the  air  to  so 
escape  from  the  rubber  jacket,  that,  with  the  contraction 
of  the  form  possible  to  many,  the  ropes,  with  unbroken 
seals,  would  almost  fall  from  their  forms  of  their  own 
weight. 

This  is  precisely  how  Miss  Evelena  Gray  performed 
her  tricks. 

They  did  not  reach  to  the  dignity  of  respectable 
sleight-of-hand  ;  and  I  could  go  on  endlessly  multiplying 
these  farces,  which  are  so  continuously  and  disgustingly 
played  upon  the  public  for  just  what  money  they  will 
bring  and  nothing  more ;  for  who  ever  saw  a  Spiritualist 
that  went  about  the  world  bringing  ministering  spirits 
from  heaven  to  &arth  for  the  good  such  materializations 
might  do  ?  And  further,  who  ever  saw  a  Spiritualistic 
medium,  preacher  or  lecturer  that  did  not  make  his 
religious  faith,  assumed  or  otherwise,  yield  him  his  living 
and  provide  him  his  luxuries  besides  ? 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

After  the  Sean:e. — Daddy,  the  "Accommodation  Husband."— The 
two  fascinating  Swindlers  in  Council. — Miss  Evalena's  European 
Career. — How  the  Millionaire  Brewer  was  baited  and  played  with. 
— A  Bit  of  Criminal  History. — A  choice  Pair. — Mrs.  Winslow's  As- 
pirations and  Resolves. 

IT  appeared  that  Miss  Evalena  Gray  and  Mile.  Leve- 
raux,  and  their  male  companions,  or  affinities,  did  not 
reside  at  No.  19  West  Twenty-first  street,  but  in  more 
modest  quarters  farther  down-town  ;  and  after  the  assem- 
blage had  dispersed,  the  two  Misses,  an  attendant  or  two, 
a  tall,  gaunt,  meek-looking  fellow,  whom  the  no  longer 
angelical  Evalena  called  "  Daddy,"  and  a  very  fascinating 
young  man  called  in  the  advertisements  W.  Sterling  Bisch- 
off,  manager,  were  gathered  in  the  front  parlor  previous 
to  being  driven  home,  when  W.  Sterling  said  quickly,  and 
as  if  suddenly  recollecting  something  which  it  would  not 
be  profitable  for  him  to  forget : 

"See  here,  Gray;  'most  forgot.  Here's  a  note  sent 
ovei  from  the  Fifth  Avenue.  None  of  your  larks  now  I" 

The  person  addressed  so  familiarly  as  Gray  was  none 
other  than  the  interesting  Evalena,  who,  putting  her  lan- 
guor aside,  and  snatching  the  note  from  the  "  manager," 
said : 


AFTER    THE  SEANCE.  $27 

"  Give  it  here,  now  !  I'll  lark  if  I  like,  and  you  won't 
hinder." 

"But  there's  Mr.  Gray,"  persisted  the  manager,  nodding 
towards  the  meek,  gaunt  man,  whose  lips  seemed  to  move, 
though  he  ventured  no  remark. 

"  Oh,  Daddy  don't  mind,  do  you,  Daddy  ?  " 

"Daddy"  was  Miss  Evaleaa  Gray's  husband,  but  was 
under  such  peculiarly  good  spiritual  "  control "  that  he 
merely  smiled  a  sickly  smile  and  murmured  that  he  be- 
lieved not. 

Miss  Gray  proceeded  to  examine  the  note  without  wait- 
ing for  the  timid  Mr.  Gray's  opinion,  and  suddenly 
exclaimed  : 

"  Gracious  !  I'm  going  right  over  there  !  " 

"What  for?"  inquired  Bischoff  anxiously,  while  Mi. 
Gray's  lips  pursed  into  the  form  of  an  unspoken  inquiry  ; 
"  man  or  woman,  eh  ?" 

"  None  of  your  business ! "  she  answered  promptly. 
'  Here,  Leveraux,  help  me  on  with  my  wrappings.  You 
drive  home.  A  friend  of  mine  that  I  haven't  seen  for 
all  the  last  three  years  is  stopping  over  there,  and  wants  to 
*»ee  me.  I  may  stay  all  night.  If  I  shouldn't  want  to,  I'll 
order  a  carriage  and  come  down  in  an  hour  or  two." 

The  three,  who  were  elegantly  supported  by  this 
woman's  juggleries,  seemed  to  realize  that  there  was  no 
use  of  opposing  her ;  and  without  knowing  whether  it 
was  a  man  or  woman  she  intended  visiting  at  that  hour 
of  the  night,  went  gloomily  home,  while  a  few  minutes 
later  Miss  Gra},  unannounced,  and  at  the  unseasonable 


328  AFTER    THE  SEANCE. 

hour  of  eleven  o'clock,  was  knocking  at  the  door  of  Mrr 
Winslovv's  room. 

In  a  moment  more,  though  Mrs.  Winslow  was  on  the 
point  of  retiring,  and  was  in  that  easy  deshabille  in  which 
women  love  to  wander  about,  doing  a  hundred  unmen- 
tionable and  unimportant  things  before  getting  into  bed 
for  good,  Miss  Gray  was  pushing  her  lithe  form  through 
the  cautiously  opened  door,  and  at  once  unlimbered  her 
tongue  and  her  reserve  ;  the  result  of  which,  as  noted  by 
my  operative,  showed  the  eminent  vulgarity  of  the  two 
female  frauds,  and  illustrated  the  fact  that  whatever  pre- 
tensions they  might  make,  their  conversation  alone  would 
serve  to  discover  the  inherent  and  low  vileness  of  their 
character. 

"  Oh,  you  dear  old  fraud  !  "  said  Evalena,  entering, 
after  Mrs.  Winslow  had  virtuously  given  herself  sufficient 
time  to  ascertain  that  there  was  no  evil-minded  man  at 
the  door,  and  had  gladly  admitted  her  visitor  ;  "  if  you've 
got  any  other  company,  of  course  I  won't  come  !  " 

Mrs.  Winslow  laughed  knowingly,  and  then  told  her 
visitor  how  really  glad  she  was  to  see  her.  She  was 
sincere  in  this,  and  sincerity,  even  in  a  bad  cause,  is  a 
redeeming  feature. 

"  Well,  well,  you  rascal,"  continued  Miss  Gray  in  a 
jolly,  rollicking  sort  of  a  way,  "couldn't  wait  untL 
to-morrow.  Where  have  you  been,  what  have  you  been 
doing,  and  how  are  you,  anyhow?  Come,  now,  tell  me 
all  about  yourself !  " 

Saying   this   in  a  kind  of  a  rush  of  excitement,  Misi 


AFTER    THE  SEANCE  329 

Gray  settled  herself  in  a  corner  of  the  luxurious  sofa, 
pulled  her  feet  under  her  to  get  a  more  comfortable 
position,  and  like  an  interested  philosopher,  waited  for 
and  listened  to  the  narrative  which  comprised  many  of 
the  facts  I  have  given ;  but  instead  of  telling  the  whole 
truth,  only  gave  that  part  of  it  which  made  her  appear 
to  have  been  eminently  successful  in  her  swindling  opera- 
tions, and  showed  life  with  her  to  have  been  floating 
calmly  upon  one  continuous,  peaceful  stream. 

"  And  now,  Evalena,"  said  Mrs.  Winslow,  rounding  off 
her  story  with  a  great  flourish  over  what  she  was  to  make 
out  of  Lyon,  whom  she  described  as  still  madly  in  love 
with  her,  "  where  have  you  been,  and  what  have  you  been 
doing  since  I  saw  you  at  Chardon  ?  " 

The  glib  tongue  of  the  marvellous  Physical  Spiritual 
Medium  began  at  once,  and  she  rattled  away  at  a  terrible 
rate. 

"  Well,  I've  got  the  same  husband " 

"  Oh,  pshaw  ! "  interrupted  Mrs.  Winslow  half  con 
temptuously. 

"But  he's  such  a  dear,  good  old  fool  that  I  can't  throw 
him  over.  Why,  I  can  make  him  shrink  from  six  feet  two 
to  two  feet  six  by  just  looking  at  him  !  Money  couldn't 
hire  such  a  devoted  servant  anywhere.  He'll  do  just 
anything  I  tell  him ;  and  if  I  want  him  out  of  the  way 
for  a  few  days,"  she  continued  with  a  comical  wink,  "  I 
just  give  him  a  fifty-dollar  bill  and  say :  '  Daddy,  you 
don't  look  well ;  take  a  run  into  the  country,  and  I'll 
write  for  you  when  I  want  you  ! '  He  goes  away  then 


330  AFTER    THE  SEANCE. 

with  his  face  about  a  yard  long.     But  he  goes  ;  and  he 
never  made  a  rumpus  in  his  life  ! " 

"  Oh,  that's  quite  another  thing,"  said  Mrs.  Winslow, 
evidently  relieved  to  know  that  Miss  Gray  had  had  so 
good  a  reason  for  living  so  long  a  time  as  three  years 
with  the  same  man. 

"  Yes,  he's  what  I  call  an  '  accommodation  husband.' 
He  accommodates  me,  and  I — "  here  Miss  Gray  sighed 
piously — "  accommodate  myself ! " 

"  Exactly,"  remarked  Mrs.  Winslow,  beginning  to  ap- 
preciate the  pleasant  nature  of  such  an  arrangement. 

"Well,"  resumed  the  marvellous  medium,  "we  went 
all  through  the  Ohio  towns  giving  exposes ;  went  out 
through  Chicago,  and  then  down  to  St.  Louis.  But  the 
expose  business  didn't  pay.  We  found  that  people  would 
pay  more  money  to  be  humbugged  than  to  learn  how 
some  other  person  might  be  deluded  !  " 

"  Every  time  !  "  tersely  observed  Mrs.  Winslow. 

"  So  at  St.  Louis  we  resolved  to  become  Spiritualists. 

"  The  very  best  thing  you  could  have  done  ! "  said 
Mrs.  Winslow  approvingly. 

"  And  at  Quincy,"  resumed  Evalena,  "  we  blossomed 
oul.  Oh,  but  didn't  the  papers  go  for  us,  though  ! — called 
us  everything." 

"  D n  the  newspapers,  anyhow  !  "  exclaimed  Mrs. 

Winslow  in  a  burst  of  indignation  over  her  own  wrongs. 

"Oh,  no,  no,  no!  that  won't  do.  Make  huge  adver 
tis'ng  bills.  That's  better — much  better.  That's  what 
we  did,  and  we  made  big  money  too.  By  and  by  we 


AFTER    THE  SEANCE.  331 

came  on  here  to  New  York,  made  a  huge  show,  took  in  a 
vast  pile,  and  then  went  to  Europe.  Oh,  that's  the  only 
way  to  do  it !  " 

"  Yes,"  said  Mrs.  Winslow  with  a  deep  sigh.  "  I  have 
often  felt  the  want  of  that  peculiar  tone  which  going  to 
Europe  gives  one." 

"Well,  we  did  have  a  gay  time,  though,"  said  Miss 
Gray  in  a  dreamy  way,  as  if  ruminating  over  her  con- 
quests ;  "  and  at  Venice — oh,  that  delicious,  ravishing, 
dreamful  Venice  ! — I  bilked  a  swarthy  nobleman  from  the 
daountains  out  of  five  thousand  dollars.  At  Rome  I  did 
a  swell  American  out  of  everything  he  had.  At  Vienna, 
a  Hungarian  wine-grower  fell,  and  I  trampled  upon  him 
as  his  brutes  of  peasants  beat  out  the  grapes  in  vintage- 
time.  At  Berlin  a  German  student  killed  himself  for  me ; 
and  at  St.  Petersburg  I  fooled  the  Czar  himself.  But 
when  I  got  back  to  London  I  got  better  game  than  him." 

"  Bigger  game  than  the  Czar  ?  Oh,  my  !  "  exclaimed 
Mrs.  Winslow,  thinking  how  she  had  wasted  her  sweet- 
ness on  two  detectives  like  Bristol  and  Fox. 

"  Well,  bigger  game  this  way,"  pursued  little  Miss  Gray, 
reasoning  it  out  slowly.  "  This  Spiritualistic  business  can 
only  be  played  on  low,  ignorant  people  ordinarily.  Get 
the  recognition  of  so  big  a  man  as  one  of  the  wealthiest 
brewers  in  Great  Britain,  and  then,  if  Miss  Gray  has 
money  and  can  open  sumptuous  parlors  in  so  fashionable 
a  vicinity  as  Madison  Square,  and  can  own  a  quarter  of  a 
column  of  the  New  York  papers  every  day,  Miss  Evalena 
Gray's  fortune  is  made.  Do  you  see  ?  " 


332  AFTER   THE  SEANCE. 

Mrs.  Winslow  did  see,  but  wanted  to  know  how  she 
had  secured  such  approval. 

Her  companion  looked  at  her  a  moment  in  blank  as- 
tonishment ;  then  drawing  down  the  corners  of  her  mouth 
as  if  protesting  against  such  verdancy  on  the  part  of  so 
old  a  Spiritualistic  soldier  as  Mrs.  Winslow,  gave  a  very 
expressive  series  of  winks,  broke  into  loud  laughter,  and 
then  suggested  that  if  she  wanted  anything  like  that  ex- 
plained it  would  be  no  more  than  fair  to  order  either 
Krug  or  Monopole  to  help  her  through  so  dreary  a  re- 
cital ;  whereupon  the  latter  did  as  requested,  and  after 
the  two  had  washed  down  a  ribald  toast  with  wine,  the 
angelic  Miss  Gray  continued : 

"  Well,  you  see,  we  came  directly  from  St.  Petersburg 
to  London,  and  got  up  a  big  excitement  there  right  off. 
The  Times  denounced  us,  and  we  replied  savagely  through 
the  Telegraph  at  a  half-crown  a  line.  We  kept  this  up 
until  all  London  was  engaged  in  the  controversy,  and  oui 
rooms  were  constantly  thronged." 

"What  luck!"  sighed  Mrs.  Winslow,  sipping  her 
wine. 

"  By  and  by  the  'nobbies '  got  discussing  the  matter  at  the 
clubs.  We  challenged  examination  by  committees  every- 
where, of  course,  and  one  day  a  batch  of  M.P.s,  clergy, 
men,  merchants,  and  all  that,  came  down  upon  us.  I 
picked  out  one  man  named  Perkins — a  brewer  from  the 
Surrey  side,  and  one  of  the  wealthiest  men  in  all  Eng 
land,  and  a  man  of  education  and  standing,  too — for  game 
right  off." 


AFTER   THE  SEANCE.  333 

"  Must  be  lots  of  fools  over  in  London, '  remarked 
Mrs.  Winslow,  as  if  she  would  like  to  help  pluck  them. 

"  Yes,"  answered  Miss  Gray,  "  and  millions  in  this 
country.  We're  going  to  take  a  run  over  to  Washington 
this  winter." 

"  I  would  if  I  had  your  talent,"  replied  her  companion. 

"  Well,"  resumed  the  medium,  "  I  saw  Perkins  was  an 
easy-going  fellow,  and  I  wrote  him,  saying  it  was  some- 
thing unusual  for  me  to  do,  but  as  the  '  spirits '  " — here 
Miss  Gray  winked  very  hard  at  Mrs.  Winslow,  who  snick- 
ered— "  had  revealed  to  me  that  he  was  an  arrant  unbe- 
liever, but  at  the  same  time  a  fair,  honorable  man,  mag- 
nanimous enough  to  be  just — I  wished  him  to  make  a 
private  investigation." 

"  'Private  investigation's'  good  !"  said  Mrs.  Winslow, 
laughing  heartily. 

"  Certainly  good  for  me,"  continued  the  little  medium 
in  a  self-satisfied  way.  "  He  came,  though,  and  I  gave 
him  my  tricks  in  my  best  possible  style.  I  pretty  nearly 
scared  him  to  death.  Then  I  let  him  tie  me,  and  thj 
old  man's  hands  trembled  as  he  put  the  ropes  around  my 
waist  and  over  my  bosom.  '  Miss  Gray,'  said  he  tenderly, 
'  I  shall  injure  you  ! '  '  Mr.  Perkins,'  I  replied,  also  ten- 
derly, '  the  good  spirits  will  protect  me.  Pull  the  ropes 
tighter  ! ' 

"  He  pulled  the  ropes  tighter  and  tighter,  and  finally 
got  me  tied.  Then  he  darkened  the  room  and  in  a  few 
minutes  I  was  entirely  free  of  the  ropes  of  course,  and  I 
told  him  to  raise  the  curtain.  As  soon  as  he  did  so  I 


334  AFTER   THE  SEANCE. 

left,  telling  him  I  was  ill ;  and  as  soon  as  I  co  jld  change 
my  dress,  came  back  and  sat  down  with  him.  I  got  close 
to  him — as  close  as  I  am  to  you  now,  Mrs.  Winslow — and 
then,  putting  my  right  hand  on  his  knee,  and  my  left  hand 
on  his  shoulder " 

"Splendid  !"  interrupted  Mrs.  Winslow,  pouring  more 
wine  for  the  ingenuous  Miss  Gray,  and  taking  some  herself. 

"  Then,"  continued  Miss  Gray,  laughing  in  a  peculiarly 
wicked  manner,  "  I  got  my  face  pretty  close  to  his  and 
asked  :  '  Mr.  Perkins,  I  want  you  to  give  me  an  answer 
that  you  are  willing  to  have  made  public.  On  your  honor 
as  a  man,  do  you  not  now  believe  in  the  genuineness  of 
these  spiritual  manifestations  produced  through  me  ? '  '  I 
do,'  he  said  passionately,  throwing  his  arms  around  me, 
and — and  I  don't  know  what  he  would  have  done  had  not 
Leveraux  entered  the  room  at  that  supreme  moment !  " 

"Oh,  /see  !  "  murmured  the  other  blackmailer. 

"  Think  of  it,  Mrs.  Winslow ! "  added  Miss  Gray 
tauntingly  ;  "  think  of  it !  In  the  arms  of  a  man  who  can 
draw  his  check  for  a  million  sterling — and  poor  little  me 
from  Chardon,  Ohio  !  " 

"  My  !  but  you  are  a  little  rascal,  though  !  "  said  Mrs. 
Winslow  admiringly.  "  I  always  knew  you'd  make  an 
impression  somewhere." 

"  '  Leveraux  ! '  said  I  indignantly,  and  springing  from 
Perkins's  embrace  after  I  had  kissed  him  in  a  way  that  set 
him  shaking  again,  '  if  you  ever  breathe  a  word  of  this, 
or  annoy  Mr.  Perkins  in  any  manner  under  heaven,  1'U 
kill  you  !  Go  1 ' 


AFTER    THE  SEANCE.  335 

"Poor  Leveraux  knew  her  cue  and  replied  hotly,  '  I'(? 
kill  myself  before  I'd  do  so  disgraceful  an  act ! '  and  ther 
flounced  out  of  the  room." 

"  What  a  pair  !  "  exclaimed  Mrs.  Winslow. 

"He  thought  I  was  just  perfectly  splendid  after  that) 
kept  coming  and  coming,  indorsed  me  publicly,  got 
wild  over  me ;  but  I  held  him  at  arm's  length  for  months, 
until  I  thought  the  man  would  really  go  crazy  ;  and  final- 
ly— well,  you  know  I  told  you  Daddy  was  an  '  accommo- 
dation husband,'  and  if  he  hadn't  been  one  after  I  had 
tripped  up  one  of  the  richest  men  in  all  England,  I 
would  have  just  hired  somebody  to  have  dumped  him  into 
the  Thames,  sure  !  " 

The  sparkling  flow  of  Miss  Gray's  experience  was  here 
interrupted  by  Mrs.  Winslow' s  ordering  another  bottle  otf 
wine,  and  after  the  couple  had  partaken  of  the  same,  the 
spicy  narrative  was  continued  : 

"  But  now  comes  the  fun,  Winslow.  I  can't  tell  you 
how  my  rope  trick  is  done.  I've  got  a  little  addition  to 
it  that  makes  it  a  regular  sensation.  It  don't  hurt  me  a 
particle,  and  allows  the  strongest  men  to  pull  away  with  all 
their  might." 

"I'd  give  a  thousand  dollars  for  it,  Evalena,"  said  her 
friend  warmly. 

"  No  good  ;  B  o  good  for  you,"  replied  Miss  Gray, 
critically  looking  over  Mrs  Winslow's  splendid  physical 
completeness.  il  Fact  is,  Winslow,  you  aren't  built 
exactly  right  for  that  kind  of  work.  There's  too  much 
of  you  to  do  the  rope  trick  with  eminent  success.  I 


AFTER    THE  SEANCE. 

played  Daddy  as  my  brother,  and  myself  for  an  innocen^ 
so  neatly  that  Perkins  honestly  thought  he  had  made  a 
wonderful  conquest.  He  believed  it  all,  for  he  was  one  of 
(hose  honest  fools — in  fact,  came  near  being  too  hones? 
for  me." 

"Why,  how?" 

"  Well,  he  installed  me  as  his  mistress  in  grand  style  j 
but,  of  course,  I  insisted  in  giving  seances  and  compelled 
public  recognition  through  his  public  recognition  of  my 
'  wonderful  spirit-power.'  The  man  was  so  infatuated 
that  he  bored  me  terribly  with  his  visits.  Why,  I  could 
hardly  get  time  to  attend  to  business.  You  know  we 
always  have  a  stock  of  ropes  on  hand  in  the  seance-rooms, 
so  that  when  any  one  objects  to  the  one  I  ordinarily  use, 
there  are  always  other  ropes  at  hand  that  I  can  use.  One 
night  some  fellow  broke  my  best  rope,  and  the  next  day  I 
was  carelessly  practising  with  another  with  my  door  un- 
secured. Perkins  had  been  down  to  Brighton  for  a  week 
or  two,  and  of  course  had  to  rush  over  to  see  me  the 
minute  he  got  in  London — to  give  me  a  '  happy  surprise,' 
I  suppose.  There  I  sat  when  he  suddenly  bolted  into 
the  room  and  saw  the  thinness  of  the  whole  thing  in  an 
instant." 

"  What  did  he  see  ?  "  asked  Mrs.  Winslow  abruptly. 

"You  are  shrewd,  Winslow,  but  you  can't  catch  me 
that  way  ;  no,  no,  no  !  But  he  did  see  the  whole  trick  as 
clear  as  a  June  day.  Do  you  think  I  fainted  ?  " 

"  Not  much,"  said  her  companion  tersely. 

*'  No ;  but  he  nearly  did.     He  reeled  and  staggered  as 


AFTER   THE  SEANCE.  337 

though  he  had  been  struck  by  a  sledge-hammer,  and  I 
saw  in  his  face  a  determination  to  rush  from  the  room  and 
denounce  me  to  all  London.  It  was  make  or  break  with 
me  then,  VVinslow,  and  with  a  bound  I  got  to  the  door, 
turned  the  key,  and  sent  it  crashing  through  a  five-pound 
pane  of  glass  into  the  street  below.  Then  I  just  whipped 
out  this  little  derringer,"  she  continued,  producing  a  beau- 
tifully mounted,  though  diminutive  weapon,  "just  run  it 
right  up  under  his  eyes,  and  backed  him  into  a  seat." 

"  '  Great  God  ! '  he  whimpered,  '  I'm  undone  !  I'm  un- 
done ! — what  a  very  devil  you  are  ! ' 

"  My  heart  did  go  thumping  to  see  the  man  used  up  so  ; 
bi't  I  had  to  be  rough,  and  said  :  '  Yes,  I  am  a  devil,  Per- 
kins, and  you  must  pledge  me  your  word — yes,  you  must 
take  a  solemn  oath  before  that  God  you  have  called  upon, 
that  you  will  never  expose  me,  or  I  will  blow  your  brains 
out ! '  " 

"Splendid!  splendid!"  ejaculated  Mrs.  VVinslow. 
"Did  he  doit?" 

"  I  should  say  he  did  do  it !  He  got  down  on  his  knees 
and  begged  like  a  baby.  And  do  you  know,  my  blood 
was  up  so  then,  and  I  so  despised  him  for  his  want  Ot 
manliness,  that  I  came  within  an  ace  of  killing  the  infer- 
nal booby ! " 

"  He  deserved  it ! "  said  Mrs.  Winslow  sympathetically. 

"  After  I  had  him  nearly  scared  to  death,"  resumed  the 

marvellous  medium,  "  I  began  reasoning  with  him,  and, 

by  being  excruciatingly  tender,  convinced  him  that  by 

exposing  me  he  would  gain  nothing,  but  would  lose  in 

IS 


33**  AFTER    THE  SEANCE. 

.verything  that  a  man  of  spirit  prided  in — honor,  social 
reputation,  and  business  standing,  and  drew  a  lively  picture 
of  his  disgrace  at  the  clubs  and  in  social  circles,  and  of  the 
cartoons  which  would  certainly  appear  in  Punch  and  the 
other  comic  papers  ;  and  the  result  was  that  I  held  on  to 
his  affection  and  his  purse-strings  by  compelling  him  to 
feel  that  my  detaining  him  in  the  room  and  threatening  to 
shoot  him  was  the  only  thing  which  prevented  him  from 
rashly  ruining  both.  Altogether,  Winslow,  1  got  over  two 
thousand  pounds  out  of  him.  He  wasn't  deprived  of  a  first- 
class  mistress  while  I  remained  in  London,  and — and  we 
are  so  good  friends  now  that  every  little  while  I  get  a  splen- 
did remittance  from  him  ;  and  if  I  ever  should  want  to  go 
back,  I  could  have  the  very  best  in  all  England  !  " 

"  Well,  well,  well !  "  murmured  Mrs.  Winslow  for  the 
want  of  something  better  with  which  to  express  hei 
admiration. 

"  I  do  think  I  played  it  pretty  well,"  resumed  Miss 
Gray;  "  and  I  made  him  swallow  it  all,  too.  He  really 
Relieved  everything  from  the  moment  I  fell  into  his  arms 
until  he  caught  me  with  the  ropes.  I  was  his  spirit-wife — 
another  hard  wink —  "  and  he  my  only  affinity.  Leveraux 
helped  me  in  the  whole  thing  splendidly. 

"Who  is  Mile.  Willie  Levereaux  ? "  inquired  Mrs. 
Winslow. 

"She  is  a  sister  of  Ed.  Johnson,  the  'bank-biuster,' 
and  a  keen  girl,  too,"  answered  the  medium. 

"  How  did  you  happen  to  get  hold  of  her  ?  " 

"Well,  you   see,   Ed.    Johnson,   Mose   Wogle,    Frank 


AFTER    THE  SEANCE.  339 

Dean —  'Dago  Frank' — and  Dave  Cummings,  with  Chief 
of  Police  McGillan  and  Detective  Royal,  of  Jersey  Cily, 
put  up  a  job  on  the  First  National  Bank  there.  McGiilan 
was  to  keep  everybody  away  from  them  ;  and  he,  or 
Royal,  was  to  always  remain  at  headquarters  to  let  the 
boys  off  if  they  got  nabbed.  They  played  it  as  plaster- 
workers — Italians,  you  know — and  began  working  from  a 
room  over  the  bank  down  through  the  ceiling  into  the 
vault  ;  but  an  old  scrub-woman  about  the  place  got  sus- 
picious, and  had  them  arrested  one  day  when  both  Mc- 
Gillan and  Royal  happened  to  be  in  Philadelphia.  They 
had  promised  the  boys  help  to  break  jail,  but  they  failed 
everywhere ;  and  Willie,  thinking  to  get  Johnson  off,  went 
to  the  bank  officers  and  told  them  the  whole  story.  They 
promised  to  help  her  brother,  but  said  her  evidence  would 
have  to  be  corroborated.  So  she  sent  for  McGillan  and 
Royal,  got  them  into  her  rooms,  then  over  on  Thirty, 
seventh  street,  and  had  a  Hoboken  official  in  a  closet, 
with  a  stenographer,  who  took  all  the  conversation,  which 
amounted  to  a  complete  confession  of  their  complicity. 
It  never  did  any  good,  though.  McGillan  and  Royal 
got  the  most  swearing  done,  and  got  clear;  while  John- 
son and  the  rest  of  the  boys  got  fifteen  years'  solitary  con- 
finement in  the  New  Jersey  penitentiary.  It  almost 
broke  Willie  down  ;  but  she  is  splendid  help  now." 

Mrs.  Winslow  drew  a  long  sigh,  and  the  two  drank 
again  to  drown  the  doleful  feelings .  raised  by  this  recital  ; 
for  even  high-toned  and  uncaught  criminals  do  not  find 
the  contemplation  of  stone  walls  and  iron  bars  by  anj 


340  AFTER    THE  SEANCE. 

means  pleasant  and  refreshing ;  and  with  this  lively  his 
tory  of  herself  and  her  companions,  the  "  Marvellous 
Ph}  sical  Spiritual  Medium "  called  a  servant,  ordered  a 
conveyance,  and  was  driven  home,  after  having  promised 
to  call  with  her  own  carriage  on  the  next  day  ;  while  Mrs,, 
VVinslow,  after  surveying  her  own  magnificent  physique  as 
reflected  in  the  pier-glass,  muttered  : 

'7V/ make  an  effort,  go  to   Europe,  and,  like  so  many 
others,  win  fame  too  !  " 

Then  with  a  resolute  toss  of  her  head  the  adventuress 
plumped  into  her  bed,  where,  for  aught  we  know,  she 
carried  on  her  vile  conquests  and  miserable  villainies  in 
her  dreams  the  whole  night  long. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

Mrs.    Winslow  demonstrates  her   Legal  Ability.— The   "  Bleach   ol 

Promise  Trial." — A  grand  Rally  of  the  Spiritualistic  Friends  of  the 
Adventuress. — The  Jury  disagree. — Mrs.  Winslow  convicted  at 
St.  Louis  of  Common  Barratry. — An  honest  Judge's  Rebuke. — A 
new  Trial. — The  Spiritualistic  Swindler  overthrown. — Remorse  and 

Wretchedness. 

MRS.  WINSLOWS  stay  in  New  York  was  rather 
an  interruption  to  Miss  Evalena  Gray's  business, 
as  those  two  champions  of  the  theory  that  earth  and 
heaven  are  connected  by  a  spiritual  hyphen  only  adjust- 
able, or  to  be  made  serviceable,  by  the  brainless  im- 
beciles or  the  remorseless  sharks  of  society,  to  the 
exclusion  of  people  of  purity  and  worth,  indulged  in 
several  lapses  from  sobriety,  and  in  spiritual  love-feasts  ot 
such  remarkable  length  and  enthusiasm  that  W.  Sterling 
Bischoff,  Mile.  Levereaux,  and  the  mournful  accommoda- 
tion husband,  "  Daddy,"  became  quite  alarmed  for  the  re- 
sult, were  obliged  to  discontinue  the  marvellous  seances 
at  No.  Nineteen  West  Twenty-first  Street — on  account 
of  the  "  alarming  illness  of  the  fascinating  little  medium," 
as  the  manager  was  careful  to  see  that  the  truthful  news- 
papers annoui  ced — and  at  the  close  of  a  term  of  spiritu- 
ous rapture  of  remarkable  intensity  and  duration,  the 
three  who  were  vitally  interested  in  Miss  Gray's  recovery 


342       MRS.   WINSLOW' S  LEGAL  ABILITY. 

from  her  peculiarly  alarming  illness,  managed  to  part  the 
loving  couple,  induce  the  languid  Evalena  to  return  to 
her  fascinations  and  fools,  and  sent  Mrs.  Winslow  to 
Rochester  and  her  roguery. 

Although  her  trip  to  New  York  had  been  one  of  pro- 
longed dissipation,  Mrs.  Winslow  had  evidently  gained 
courage  from  it  from  the  assurance  of  Miss  Gray's  friend- 
ship, and  through  that  ingenious  little  woman's  recitals 
of  daring  and  conquest  now  applied  herself  with  new 
vigor  and  dash  to  her  infamous  work. 

During  her  absence  in  New  York,  Superintendent 
Bangs  and  a  legal  gentleman  from  Rochester  had  pro- 
ceeded to  the  West  and  were  rapidly  gathering  in  the  har- 
vest of  evidence  I  had  reaped,  and  which  subsequently 
became  so  serviceable. 

Mrs.  Winslow,  seeing  she  had  been  outwitted,  began 
diligently  arranging  matters  for  the  coming  trial,  and 
having  lost  the  main  point  of  dependence  which  she  had 
hoped  to  make  in  our  inability  to  use  the  evidence  which 
she  was  sure  Lyon's  counsel  could  get  by  a  liberal  ex- 
penditure of  money,  which  she  also  knew  must  be  at 
hand,  she  began  the  tactics  of  delay,  and  secured  a  change 
of  venue  from  Rochester  to  Batavia,  on  the  ground  of 
prejudice ;  and,  without  the  assistance  of  counsel,  boldly 
manoeuvred  her  case  nearly  as  carefully  and  judiciously 
as  the  most  proficient  of  criminal  lawyers. 

Ascertaining  that  Lyon's  counsel  had  secured  damag- 
ing evidence  against  her  in  those  sections  of  country 
where  she  had  previously  been  the  spiritualistic  harlot 


MRS.    WINSLOW'S  LEGAL  ABILITY.       343 

that  she  was,  she  rapidly  followed  Mr.  Bangs  and  his  com- 
panion, and  through  her  wonderful  personal  magnetism, 
physical  force,  consummate  bravado,  and  skilful  manipu- 
lations, succeeded  in  securing  numberless  affidavits — not 
that  she  was  a  pure  wiman,  but  that  as  far  as  the  affiant 
knew,  she  was  not  a  bad  woman. 

Some,  who  had  given  Lyon's  counsel  depositions  com- 
prel  ensive  enough  to  have  crushed  her  in  court,  were 
compelled  by  her  to  depose  under  oath  that  their  previous 
depositions  given  Mr.  Bangs  were  made  under  a  misap- 
prehension of  facts.  Others  were  induced  to  swear  that 
they  were  mistaken  in  her  identity,  which  would  naturally 
have  the  effect  of  breaking  the  chain  of  evidence  connect- 
ing her  with  her  numberless  different  aliases,  and  there- 
fore with  her  numberless  offences  against  the  laws  and 
society  ;  so  that  unless  our  work  had  been,  in  this  respect, 
anything  but  faultless,  Mr.  Lyon  would  have  certainly 
suffered  defeat. 

As  the  date  of  trial  at  Batavia  neared,  however, 
although  the  woman  had  showed  great  skill  in  her  man- 
agement of  her  own  case,  and  had  got  things  into  as  good 
shape  for  herself  as  nearly  any  lawyer  in  the  country 
could  have  done,  she  suddenly  changed  her  decision  re- 
garding conducting  the  case  personally,  and  engaged  the 
services  of  a  Rochester  lawyer  of  good  repute,  who  cer- 
tainly would  not  have  pleaded  her  cause  had  he  at  first 
been  aware  of  her  character  in  the  slightest  degree. 

At  last  the  case  came  to  trial  at  Batavia,  Judge 
presiding,  and  was  considered  of  sufficient  im- 


344       MRS.   WINSLOW'S  LEGAL  ABILITY. 

portance  to  command  the  quite  general  attention  of 
newspapers,  and  a  large  number  of  reporters  were  in  at- 
tendance,  while  the  little  city  had  never  before  attracted 
such  a  crowd  of  curious  people,  brought  there  and  kept 
there  by  the  great  interest  which  the  trial  had  awakened. 

Mr.  Lyon  seldom  appeared  in  court,  being  detained  itt 
Rochester  by  the  faithful  and  still  voluble  Harcout, 
where  the  latter  busied  himself  in  predicting  Mrs.  Win- 
slow' s  downfall  on  account  of  the  thorough  manner  in 
which  he  had  conducted  matters,  and  in  constant  trips  to 
the  newspaper  and  telegraph  offices  for  the  latest  news 
concerning  the  progress  of  the  case. 

At  Batavia  Mrs.  Winslow  had  in  some  unexplainable 
manner  worked  up  quite  a  feeling  in  her  behalf,  and  had 
busily  engaged  herself,  laboring  day  and  night,  in  all  the 
little  things  that  form  public  opinion  as  well  as  cause  the 
application  of  law  to  individual  preferences,  whether 
iustice  enters  into  such  decisions  or  not. 

Especially  was  her  business  ability  shown  in  securing  a 
jury  a  portion  of  whom  she  brazenly  boasted  dare  not 
find  for  the  defendant.  She  had  evidently  given  up  all 
expectation  of  a  verdict  in  her  favor ;  but,  in  perfect 
accord  with  her  line  of  policy  to  annoy  her  victim  into  a 
settlement,  had  arranged  matters  in  every  respect  so  that 
there  would  be  delay,  that  as  much  as  possible  nausea- 
ting scandal  should  reach  the  public  to  react  upon  Lyon, 
and  that  in  ever}-  way  the  outcome  of  the  case  would  be  to 
belittle,  bemean  and  disgrace  him,  for  having  had  to  do  in 
any  way  with  so  bad  a  woman  as  she  knew  herself  to  be. 


MRS.    WINSLOW*S  LEGAL  ABILITY.       345 

The  latter  was  a  point  most  people's  pride  would  pre. 
vent  them  from  making.  She  had  lost  that,  but  her 
active  mind  saw  how  revolting  it  all  would  be  to  him,  and 
her  cupidity,  greed  and  vindictiveness  made  the  prosecu- 
tion a  persecution  that  had  a  measure  of  fiendish  pleas- 
ure in  it  for  her. 

Here  her  mental  and  her  pecuniary  resources  were 
again  demonstrated  in  a  way  that  surprised  everybody  at 
all  cognizant  of  her  habits  and  history.  The  cost  of 
carrying  on  a  case  of  this  importance  was  very  large. 
Money  had  unquestionably  been  largely  used  in  bribery. 
Many  of  the  affidavits  she  had  so  expeditiously  secured  had 
been  purchased  outright.  The  court  costs  were  no  incon- 
siderable sum.  Her  lawyer,  feeling  somewhat  doubtful  of 
her  character,  and  wholly  satisfied  of  her  irresponsibility, 
demanded  his  fee — and  it  was  a  large  one — in  advance. 
But  every  demand,  save  those  that  would  not  injure  her 
case  by  refusing,  was  promptly  met,  and  the  mysterious 
source  of  supply  seemed  as  exhaustless  at  the  end  as  at  the 
beginning  ;  though  at  all  times  she  was  a  female  combina- 
tion of  the  Artful  Dodger  and  Job  Trotter,  capable  of  com- 
pelling confidence  and  sympathy.  During  the  progress  of 
the  trial  she  also  had  time  for  the  practice  of  her  spiritual- 
istic mummeries,  and  so  worked  upon  the  ignorance,  pas- 
sions, and  pockets  of  a  few  wealthy  farmers,  who  were  in 
attendance  at  court,  that  she  drove  a  thriving  trade  in  rev- 
elations and  prophecies  that,  whatever  other  effect  they 
might  have,  certainly  brought  her  large  sums  of  money. 

Although  the  larger  amount  of  evidence  on  both  sides 
15* 


346      MRS.   WINSLOW' S  LEGAL  ABILITY. 

was  of  a  documentary  character,  the  case  occupied  near 
ly  a  week,  and  public  interest  was  wrought  up  to  the  high 
est  possible  pitch  of  excitement  as  day  after  day  some 
startling  episode  or  dramatic  incident  was  developed  j 
and  finally,  when  Judge  Williams  charged  the  jury  and 
that  body  retired  for  consultation,  both  sides  of  the  case 
had  been  so  ably  conducted,  such  a  terrible  flood  of  vile- 
ness  had  been  launched  upon  the  community,  and  so  in- 
tense was  the  feeling  against  the  woman  on  the  part  of 
the  public — who  condemn  with  a  terrible  intensity  when 
once  made  aware  of  the  danger  in  the  heart  and  life  of  a 
social  assassin,  that  the  pretty  city  of  Batavia  was  all 
awhirl  from  agitation  and  excitement. 

All  this  had  been  greatly  increased  by  the  following 
dispatches  from  St.  Louis  to  the  Rochester  papers,  which 
had,  of  course,  been  received  and  widely  read  in  that  sec- 
tion, and  were  all  preceded  by  an  item  clipped  from  the 
Detroit  Tribune,  to  the  effect  that  the  notorious  female, 
Mrs.  Winslow,  had  been  indicted  in  St.  Louis  as  a  com- 
mon scold,  and  several  public  speakers  therein  named  had 
better  take  warning.  The  first  dispatch  read : 

"The  trial  of  Mrs.  Winslow,  charged  with  common 
barratry,  has  been  proceeding  in  the  Four  Courts  all  day. 
Scores  of  lawyers  are  here  from  all  parts  of  the  West,  as 
witnesses  for  the  prosecution.  The  case  excites  great  inter- 
est, a  similar  one  never  having  occurred  in  St.  Louis 
before." 

The  second  and  final  dispatch  from  St.  Louis  on  the 
subject  was  : 


MRS.   WINSLOW1  S  LEGAL  ABILITY.       347 

"  The  case  of  the  notorious  Mrs.  Winslow,  indicted  for 
common  banatry,  terminated  to-day.  The  jury  assessed 
her  punishment  to  be  six  months'  imprisonment  in  the 
county  jail." 

These  dispatches,  with  the  editorial  comments  they 
evoked,  had  been  received  during  the  progress  of  the  case, 
and  though  it  was  too  late  to  offer  the  facts  in  evidence 
as  to  the  woman's  character,  they  had  intensified  the 
feeling  against  her  until  Mrs.  Winslow  was  given  an  oppor- 
tunity of  realizing  something  of  the  depth  of  human  scorn. 

A  day  passed,  but  no  agreement.  What  could  it  mean  ? 
the  public  asked.  The  second  day,  being  Sunday,  passed 
slowly  over  the  town,  for  no  news  of  the  jury  could  be  ob- 
tained ;  and  though  it  was  a  raw  winter's  day,  the  streets 
were  full  of  people  anxious  to  learn  the  result.  Monday 
came  and  went,  and  still  the  jury  were  out.  Whispers  of 
bribery  now  began  to  fly  about  the  city,  and  when  the 
fourth  day  had  passed  with  no  agreement  and  with  repeat- 
ed requests  from  the  jury  that  they  might  be  discharged, 
the  whole  city  was  filled  with  indignation,  while  public  re- 
sentment ran  so  high  that  it  was  with  some  personal  risk 
that  this  exponent  of  Spiritualism  passed  to  and  fro  be- 
tween the  court-room  and  her  hotel. 

Finally,  it  being  ascertained  that  the  jury  disagreed  irre- 
concilably, they  were  called  into  court  for  their  discharge, 
and  filed  solemnly  into  their  box.  After  a  silence  that 
could  be  felt  had  settled  upon  the  vast  audience,  Judge 
Williams  wheeled  around,  and,  facing  the  jury — many  of 
whom  shrank  from  his  severe  and  penetrating  glance — in  a 


348      MRS.    WINSLOW'S  LEGAL  ABILITY. 

voice  of  quiet  power,  his  whole  bearing  being  one  of  digni 
fied  scorn,  he  delivered  with  great  solemnity  the  following 
well-deserved  rebuke  and  protest  against  the  corruption 
of  the  power  of  the  jury,  and  its  contempt  of  justice  and 
the  sacred  dignity  of  the  Court : 

"  GENTLEMEN  OF  THE  JURY — I  had  hoped  you  would 
agree  upon  a  verdict.  The  cause  is  a  plain  one,  and  there 
is  no  need  of  a  disagreement.  Another  trial  would  be 
expensive  to  the  county,  and  would  occupy  much  time. 
A  second  trial  would  again  crowd  this  court-room  with  a 
throng  of  auditors,  who  would  listen  day  after  day  to  the 
disgusting  depositions  which  are  on  file  in  this  caur.e. 
One  trial  such  as  this  is  too  much  for  the  decency  and 
morality  of  any  community,  and  another  jury  should 
never  be  called  to  pass  upon  this  case.  It  is  the  polic} 
of  all  courts  to  secure  agreements  from  juries,  and  in 
such  a  case  as  this,  more  than  in  almost  any  other,  a  disa- 
greement should  not  be  allowed. 

"  You  are,  after  being  out  four  days,  irreconcilably  di- 
vided. Some  of  you,  I  know,  are  determined  to  be  only 
guided  by  the  evidence  and  the  law,  as  given  to  you  by 
this  Court.  For  your  long  and  persistent  resistance  of 
all  attempts  on  the  part  of  some  of  your  number  to  pre- 
vent justice,  you  are  entitled  to  my  sincere  thanks  and 
those  of  all  right-minded  men  in  this  community.  Others 
there  are  upon  this  jury  who,  I  am  bound  to  believe,  have 
consulted  only  their  passions  and  prejudices  ;  have  delib- 
erately ignored  the  evidence  and  the  instruction  of  the 
Court,  and  are  anxious  to  perpetrate  what  they  know 


MRS.    WINSLOWS  LEGAL  ABILITY.       349 

or  might  have  known,  was  gross  injustice.  If  there  are 
such  men  upon  this  jury,  their  conduct  merits  severest 
condemnation.  I  have  great  respect  for  the  honest  con- 
victions of  jurors,  even  when  I  think  they  are  wrong.  I 
could  not  censure  jurors  for  honest  prejudices  ;  but  I  can 
have  no  respect  for  men  who,  from  base  and  unworthy 
motives,  seek  to  secure  unworthy  ends. 

"  If  any  one  was  to  look  leniently  upon  the  plaintiff,  it 
would,  of  course,  be  her  counsel.  But  to  make  twelve 
honest  men  ever  see  that  she  was  entitled  to  a  verdict  of 
even  one  cent,  is  a  work  that  transcends  human  ability. 

"  One  of  the  plainest  principles  of  law  applicable  to 
all  civil  cases,  is  that  the  plaintiff  can  only  recover  where 
there  is  a  fair  preponderance  of  evidence  in  his  favor. 
Upon  the  principal  question  in  this  case — that  is,  whether 
or  not  there  was  an  agreement  of  marriage  between  plain- 
tiff and  defendant — they  were  the  only  witnesses.  Sup- 
posing both  to  be  equally  credible,  how  can  the  plaintiff 
recover  when  every  act  affirmed  by  her  is  denied  by  the 
defendant  ?  But  are  they  equally  credible  ?  The  defend- 
ant is  proved  by  the  evidence  to  be  a  man  of  character, 
reputation,  and  social  position.  Who  is  the  plaintiff? 
By  her  own  evidence  she  is  one  who  years  ago  deserted  her 
husband  and  three  children  in  Wisconsin,  and  commenced 
the  life  of  an  itinerant  fortune-teller.  Since  then,  as  a  clair- 
voyant, a  mesmerist,  a  medium,  she  has  perambulated  the 
country,  professing  in  her  handbills  to  predict  future  events 
and  to  cure  all  manner  of  diseases  by  her  occult  arts. 

She  has  assumed  in  her  travels  those  invariable  proofi 


350      MRS.  WINSLOW'S  LEGAL  ABILITY. 

of  guilt,  aliases.  She  has  been  proven,  by  her  own  writ 
ing,  daily  conversation,  and  every-day  conduct,  to  br 
grossly  profane  and  indecent.  By  the  testimony  of  seveial 
unimpeached  witnesses,  produced  by  defendant,  she  ia 
shown  to  have  been  an  inmate  of  a  house,  or  houses,  of 
ill-fame,  and  to  have  committed  acts  of  the  most  shocking 
indecency  and  lewdness.  And  yet  this  is  the  woman 
whose  testimony  some  of  you  have  received  with  absolute 
verity,  while  rejecting  the  testimony  of  the  defendant  as 
of  no  value  in  comparison  with  it.  The  question  before 
you  was,  whether  between  this  woman  and  the  defendant 
there  had  been  a  binding  contract  of  marriage.  There  is 
no  one  of  you  so  low  that  you  would  have  entered  into 
such  an  obligation  with  this  woman.  You  would  have 
started  back  in  horror  at  such  a  proposition  ;  and  yet  you 
have  been  so  lost  to  decency  that  you  have  seemed  deter- 
mined, by  your  verdict,  to  thrust  such  a  disgrace  and  out- 
rage upon  the  defendant  ! 

"  You  were  told  by  the  Court  that  if  the  plaintiff  was 
married  at  the  time  when  she  said  the  defendant  agreed  to 
marry  her,  such  a  promise  was  absolutely  void.  The 
plaintiff  had  herself  sworn  that  the  promise  was  made  in 
1 86-,  and  that  she  was  then,  and  had  remained  for  nearly 
two  years  thereafter,  a  married  woman.  Did  not  the 
Court  tell  you  that  such  a  promise  was  void  ?  The  Court 
told  you  that  no  subsequent  ratification  of  such  a  promise 
could  make  it  binding.  The  Court  further  instructed  yon 
that  if  the  plaintiff  was  unchaste  at  the  time  of  the  prom- 
ise of  marriage,  and  her  unchastity  was  not  known  to 


MRS.   WIN  SLOWS  LEGAL  ABILITY.        35 1 

defendant,  that  the  marriage  contract,  if  entered  into,  was 
not  binding.  The  entire  record  in  this  case  teems  with 
the  history  of  her  licentiousness.  No  witness  has  been  so 
reckless  as  to  swear  that  within  the  last  ten  years  she  har 
had  either  virtuous  habits  or  virtuous  associations.  Thai 
she  was  virtuous  in  t86o,  or  rather,  that  if  then  vicious, 
her  character  in  this  regard  was  then  unknown  to  her 
neighbors  in  Indiana  and  Wisconsin,  is  rendered  highly 
probable  from  the  evidence.  But  there  was  a  period  pre- 
ceding this  by  many  years,  when  the  maiden  merged  into 
the  woman,  that  the  almost  exhaustless  evidence  produced 
by  the  defendant  shows  to  have  been  a  time  without 
shame,  and  when  her  keen  shrewdness  and  wicked  nature 
had  already  been  developed  to  a  degree  of  depravity  be- 
yond human  belief;  and  there  has  since  been  a  period 
when  the  vilest  inmate  of  the  lowest  den  of  prostitution 
was  happy  in  her  virgin  purity  in  comparison  with  this 
woman  ! 

"  Previous  to  the  first-mentioned  time  the  plaintiff  had 
followed  the  army  of  the  Southwest  in  its  weary  marches 
— not,  however,  as  the  evidence  discloses,  for  any  honest 
purpose.  She  had  wandered  infinitely  further  from  purity 
than  from  her  Northern  home.  And  yet  you  have  at 
tempted  to  render  a  verdict  that  after  all  these  wander- 
ings, and  after  this  incomparably  vile  career,  she  is  fit  to 
become  the  wife  of  a  respectable  citizen  of  Rochester, 
the  mistress  of  his  mansion,  and  the  sharer  of  his  large 
fortune. 

'You  were  further  instructed  that  if  a  promise  of 


552       MRS.   WINSLOW'S  LEGAL  ABILITY. 

riage  had  been  made,  and  if  the  plaintiff  had  at  that  time 
been  virtuous,  and  had  subsequently  become  unchaste 
the  defendant  was  re-leased  from  the  obligation  of  such 
a  promise  ;  what  regard,  in  view  of  the  evidence  in.  this 
case,  have  you  paid  to  that  instruction  ? 

Am  I  too  severe,  then,  when  I  say  that  when,  through 
four  long  days  and  nights  in  your  jury -room,  some  of  this 
jury  have  attempted  to  force  a  verdict  in  favor  of  the 
plaintiff,  notwithstanding  she  was  not  entitled  to  it,  and 
the  defendant's  witnesses  had  proven  that  she  was  utterly 
unworthy  of  it,  you  have  been  actuated  by  passion  and 
prejudice,  and  have  attempted  to  pervert  justice?  Had 
you  been  able  to  infect  all  your  comrades  with  your 
pestilential  breath,  and  had  a  verdict  in  her  favor  been 
rendered,  I  should  certainly  have  set  it  aside  immediately. 

"  I  cannot  but  express  my  severest  censure  at  the  result 
of  this  cause  at  your  hands,  knowing,  as  I  cannot  but 
know,  that  the  same  vile  machinations  which  have  left  a 
hideous  trail  of  this  female  monster  over  every  portion 
of  the  land,  have  brought  about  this  disagreement  which 
is  a  shame  and  a  disgrace  to  yourselves,  to  Genesetf 
County,  and  this  Court  !  " 

The  suit  necessarily  went  over  to  the  next  term  of 
court,  over  which  Judge  Williams  also  presided,  when  no 
developments  worthy  of  note  occurred,  the  same  evidence 
being  introduced,  the  same  tactics  on  the  part  of  Mrs. 
Winslow — who,  however,  had  been  obliged  to  secure  new 
counsel — being  attempted,  and  the  same  crowd  of  morbid 
curiosity-seekers  being  in  attendance. 


MRS.   WIN  SLOWS  LEGAL  ABILITY.       353 

But  the  woman  had  by  this  time  become  too  well 
known  for  the  slightest  hope  of  success,  or  even  to  enable 
her  to  receive  the  ordinary  consideration  and  protection 
of  the  Court. 

Without   leaving   their   seats    the  jury  found   for   tl^ 
defendant,  and  the  woman,  defeated  yet  insolent  and  da 
ing,    passed   out  into  the  summer-decked  streets  of  tlv 
little  city  of  Batavia  a  scorned,  dreaded   being,   driven 
from  everything  but  infamous  memory, 

I  was  never  sufficiently  interested  in  Le  Compte  to 
trace  his  future,  but  it  is  safe  to  say  that  he  never  visited 
"La  belle  France"  and  "Paris,  the  beautiful,  the  sub- 
lime, the  magnificent,"  in  company  with  the  once  fasci- 
nating Mrs.  Winslow. 

Harcout  is  still  the  pompous  henchman  of  the  har- 
assed millionaire,  Mr.  Lyon,  and  quite  covered  himself 
with  glory  from  having  claimed  the  entire  work  of  secur- 
ing the  evidence  that  caused  the  overthrow  of  the  adven- 
turess. 

Were  I  a  novelist,  rather  than  a  detective  and  obliged 
to  relate  facts,  I  could  have  made  an  effective  climax  by 
a  tragic  meeting  between  Harcout  and  Mrs.  Winslow, 
where  Lilly  Nettleton  would  have  recognized  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Bland  and  wreaked  summary  vengeance  upon  him  ; 
but,  so  far  as  I  am  aware,  they  never  met,  and  the  much- 
named  social  scourge  is  now  wearing  out  an  inconceivably 
vile  and  wretched  old  age — the  irrevocable  result  of  her 
course  of  life — an  outcast  and  a  wanderer  among  the 
lowest  classes  that  people  portions  of  the  Pacific  Slop* 


354       MRS.   WINSLOWS  LEGAL  ABILITY. 

cities,  with  remorse  and  wretchedness  behind,  and  uttel 
hopelessness  beyond ;  while  Mr.  Lyon,  now  a  feeble  eld 
man,  who  has  atoned,  through  regrets  and  humiliations, 
for  his  part  of  the  wrong  launched  through  his  as  well  as 
her  sin  upon  society,  has  at  least  become  thoroughly 
satisfied  of  the  thousands  of  evils  following  in  the  trail  of 
this  so-called  spirit-power,  his  fulness  of  knowledge  of  its 
workings  having  been  gained  through  this  particular  ex- 
perience with  THE  SPIRITUALISTS  ANE  THE  DETECTIVES. 


na 


G.    W.    DILLINCHAM,    Successor. 


1889. 


1889. 


NEW    BOOKS 


AND    NEW    EDITIONS, 

RFrUNTLY   ISSUED    BY 

G.  W.  I>H>,E>I:VGIIA:JI,  Publisher, 

Successor  to  G.  W.  CARLETON  &  Co., 


33  West  23d  Street,  New  York. 


The  Publisher  on  receipt  of  .price,  will  send  any  book 
on  this  Catalogue  by  mail,  postage  free, 


All  handsomely  bound  in  cloth,  with  gilt  backs  suitable  for  libraries. 
Mary  J.  Holmes'  Novels. 


Tempest  and  Sunshine $1  50 

English  Orphans i  50 

Homestead  on  the  Hillside....  i  50 

'Lena  Rivers ,  i  50 

Meadow  Brook I  50 

Dora  Deane i  50 

Cousin  Maude 150 

Marian  Grey i  50 

Edith  Lyle i  50 

Daisy  Thornton ..  i  50 

Chateau  D'Or i  50 

ueenie  Hetherton i  50 

essie's  Fortune i  50 


Darkness  and  Daylight ! 

Hugh  Worthington 

Cameron  Pride 

Rose  Mather 

Ethelyn's  Mistake 

Millbank 

Edna  Browning 

West  Lawn 

Mildred 

Forrest  House 

Madeline 

Christmas  Stories 

Gretchen....(New) ' 


Charles  Dickens-15  Vols.-"  Carleton's  Edition." 

Pickwick  and  Catalogue $i  50 

Dombey  and  Son 150 

Bleak  House i  50 

Martin  Chuzzlewit i  50 

Barnaby  Rudge — Edwin  Drood.  i  50 
Child's  England — Miscellaneous  i  50 
Christmas  Books — Two  Cities..  150 
Oliver  Twist — Uncommercial.,  i  50 


David  Copperfield 

Nicholas  Nickleby 

Little  Dorrit 

Our  Mutual  Friend 

Curiosity  Shop — Miscellaneous. 
Sketches  by  Boz — Hard  Times. 

Great  Expectations-^Italy 

Full  Sets  ID.  half  calf  oiudings. ..  . 


Alone $i  50 

Hidden  Path 150 

Moss  Side i  50 

Nemesis x  50 

Miriam i  50 


Marion  Harland's  Novels. 


At  Last. 

Sunnybank 

Ruby's  Husband 

My  Little  Love 

True  as  Steel (New).-. 


Beulah $i  75 

Macaria i  75 

Inez 175 

At  the  Mercy  of  Tiberius.  (New)     a  oo 


Agusta  J.  Evans'  Novels* 


St.  Elmo. 
Vashti  . 
Infelice. 


G.    W.  DILLINGHAM'S  PUBLICATIONS. 


Guy  Earlscourt's  Wife . . 


May  Agnes  Fleming's  Novels. 


M  5° 


A  Wonuerful  Woman 150 

A  Terrible  Secret i  50 

A  Mad  Marriage i  50 

Norine's  Revenge j  50 

One  Night's  Mystery i  50 

Kate  Danton i  50 

Silent  and  True i  50 

Maude  Percy's  Secret i  50 

The  Midnight  Queen... (New)...  i  50 


Expressmen  and  Detectives $i  50 


Allan  Pinlie  'ton's  "Works. 


I  5° 
I  5° 
I  5° 


Mollie  Maguiresand  Detectives. 
Somnambulists  and  Detectiyes.. 
Claude  Melnotte  and  Detectives. 
Criminal  Reminiscences,  etc  — 

Rail-Road  Forger,  etc i  50 

Bank  Robber*  and   Detectives...     i  50 

A  Double  Life (New) i  50. 

Bertha  Clay's  Novels. 


Thrown  on  the  World $i  50 


A  Bitter  Atonement i  50 

Love  Works  Wonders i  50 

Evelyn's  Folly i  50 

Under  a  Shadow i  50 

Beyond  Pardon i  50 

The  Earl's  Atonement i  50 

New  York  "Weekly"  Series. 


Brownie's  Triumph — Sheldon. .  .$i  50 
The  Forsaken  Bride.  do  ...  i  50 
Earl  Wayne'a  Nobility.do  ...  i  50 
Lost,  a  Pearle —  do  ...  i  50 

Young  Mrs. Charnleigh-Henshew  i  50 

His  Other  Wife— Ashleigh 150 

A  Woman's  Web— Maitland 


Rutledge $i 

Louis's  Last  Term,  St.  Mary's. 


True  to  the  Last $i  50 

The  Star  and  the  Cloud 150 

How  Could  He  Help  it  ?   150 


Widow  Goldsmith's  Daughter.. §i  50 
Chris  and  Otho i 


Ten  Old  Maid*  

Lucy 


Heir  of  Charlton $r 

Carried  by  Storm i 

Lost  for  a  Woman j 

A  Wife's  Tragedy i 

A  Changed  Heart i 

Pride  and  Passion j 

Sharing  Ker  Crime i 

A  Wronged  Wife 

The  Actress  Daughter 

The  Queen  of  the  Isle 


50 
50 
i  50 

i  5° 
i  5° 
i  50 
i  5° 
i  5° 
i  50 
i  50 


Gypsies  and  Detectives i 


Spiritualists  and  Detectives 

Model  Town  and  Detectives 

Strikers,  Communists,  etc 

Mississippi  Outlaws,  etc 

Bucholz  and  Detectives  

Burglar's  Fate  and  Detectives... 


i  5c 
i  50 
i  50 
i  5° 
i  5° 
i  50 
I  50 


A  Woman's  Temptation J 


Repented  at  Leisure 

A  Struggle  for  a  Ring 

Lady  Darner's  Secret .. 

Between  Two  Loves 

Put  Asunder (New) 


»  SO 
i  5° 
l  50 
i  5° 
i  S° 
i  50 


Curse  of  Everleigh — Pierce ! 

Peerless  Cathleen — Agnew 

Faithful  Margaret — Ashmore.... 

Nick  Whiffles— Robinson 

Grinder  Papers— Dallas 

Lady  Lenora — Conklin 


Miriam  Coles  Harris'  Novels. 


The  Sutherlands 

Frank  Warrington 


A.  S.  Roe's  Select  Stories. 


Julio  P.  Smith's  Novels. 


A  Long  Look  Ahead 

I've  Been  Thinking 

To  Love  and  to  be  Loved 


The  Widower. 


The  Married  Belle. 


i  50     Courting  and  Farming 

150     Kiss  and  be  Friends 

His  "Young  Wife 150     Blossom  Bud (New) 

Artemas  "Ward. 
Complete  Comic  Writings — With  Biography.  Portrait  and  50  illustrations.. 

The  Game  of  "Whist. 
Pole  on  'Whist— The  English  Standard  Work.    With  the  "  Portland  Rules  " 

Victor  Hugo's  Great  Novel. 
Les  Miserables — Translated  fron  the  French.    The  only  complete  edition... 

Mrs.  Hill's  Cook  Book. 

Mrs.  A.  P.  Hill's  New  Southern  Cookery  Book,  and  domestic  receipts... 
Celia  E.  Gardner's  Novels. 


$i  50 
i  50 

$150 
i  5" 
i  50 

$i  50 
i  5° 
i  So 
I  5° 
i  5° 


Stolen  Waters.    (Inverse) 

Broken  Dreams.       .do 
Compensation.  do 

A  Twisted  Skein.      do. 


Tested  .... 

Rich  Medway 

A  Woman's  Wiles 

Terrace  Roses.... 


f    75 

$i  50 

}200 


i  50 
i  50 
I  5° 


G.    W.  DILLINGHAM'S   PUBLICATIONS. 


Captain  Mayne  Reid's  Works. 


The  Scalp  Hunters../. 

The  Rifle  Rangers 

The  War  Trail i  50 


The  White  Chief. 

The  Tiger  Hunter 

The  Hunter's  Feast 

Wild  Life 

Osceola.  the  Seminole 


The  Wood  Rangers i  50 

The  Wild  Huntress 150 

Popular  Haud-Books. 
The  Habits  of  Good  Society — The  nice  points  of  taste  and  good  mai.ners.   .1 

The  Art  of  Conversation — For  those  who  wish  to  be  agreeable  talkers 

The  Arts  of  Writing,  Reading  and  Speaking — For  Self-Improvement   ... 
New  Diamond  Edition — The  above  three  books  in  one  volume — small  type.        50 

Carleton's  Hand-Book  of  Popular  Quotations 50 

Carleton's  Classical  Dictionary 75 

looo  Legal  Don'ts — By  Ingersoll  Lockwood 75 

600  Medical  Don'ts — By  Ferd.  C.  Valentine,  M.D 75 

Address  of  the  Dead — By  Charles  C.  Marble 75 

The  P,  G.  or  Perfect  Gentleman — By  Ingersoll  Lockwood i  25 

Josh  Billings. 

His  Complete  Writings — With  13  io.qraphy,  Steel  Portrait  and  100  Illustrations.§2  oo 
Annie  Edwardes'  Novels. 


Stephen  Lawrence §i  50 

Susan  Fielding i  50 

Ernest  Kenan's 

The  Life  of  Jesus.    Translated.. .$i  75 
Lives  of  the  Apostles.    Do.      ...    i  7 


A  Woman  of  Fashion $i  50 

Archie  Lovell i  50 

French.  "Works. 

The  Life  of  St.  Paul.    Translated.$t  75 
The  Bible  in  India — By  Jacolliot.    2  oo 


Mrs.  E.  D.  E,  N.  Southworth. 

The  Hidden  Hand §1  75 

M.  M.  Pomeroy  (Brick). 


Sense.     A  serious  book. 
Gold  Dust.        Do 


Nonsense.     (A  comic  book) $i  50 

Brick-dust.             Do.        ........  z  50 

Our  Saturday  Nights 150     Home  Harmonies 150 

Miscellaneous  Works. 

Philosophers  and  Actresses— By  Houssaye.     Steel  Portraits,  2  vols $4  oo 

Men  and  Women  of  i8th  Century — By  Houssaye.     Steel  Portraits,  2  vols..  400 

Fifty  Years  among  Authors,  Books  and  Publishers — By  J.  C.  Derby 2  oo 

Children's  Fairy  Geography — With  hundreds  of  beautiful  illustrations i  oo 

An  Exile's  Romance — By  Arthur  Louis i  50 

Laus  Veneris,  and  other  Poems — By  Algernon  Charles  Swinburne i  50 

Sawed-off  Sketches— Comicbook  by  "Detroit  Free  Press  Man."  Illustrated  i  50 

Hawk-eye  Sketches — Comic  book  by  "Burlington  Hawk-eye  Man."     Do.  i  50 

The  Culprit  Fay — Joseph  Rodman  Drake's  Poem.    With  100  illustrations...  2  oo 

Frankincense — By  Mrs.  Melinda  Jennie  Porter i  oo 

Love  [L1  Amour] — English  Translation  from  Michelet's  famous  French  work,  i  50 

Woman  [La  Femme] — The  Sequel  to  "L'Amour."        Do.          Do.  150 

Verdant  Green — A  racy  English  college  story.     With  200  comic  illustrations,  i  50 

Clear  Light  from  the  Spirit  'World — By  Kate  Irving i  25 

For  the  Sins  of  his  Youth — By  Mrs.  Jane  Kavanagh i  50 

Mai  Moul€e— A  splendid  Novel,  by  Ella  Wheeler  Wilcox i  oo 

A  Northern  Governess  at  the  Sunny  South — By  Professor  J.  H.  Ingraham.  i  50 

Birds  of  a  Feather  Flock  Together— By  Edward  A.  Sothern,  the  actor i  50 

The  Mystery  of  Bar  Harbor— By  Alsop  Leffingwell i  oo 

Longfellow's  Home  Life — By  Blanche  Roosevelt  Machetta.     Illustrated...  i  50 

Every-Day  Home  Advice — For  Household  and  Domestic  Economy I  50 

Ladies'  and  Gentlemen's  Etiquette  Book  of  the  best  Fashionable  Society,  i  oo 

Love  and  Marriage — A  book  for  unmarried  people.    By  Frederick  Saunders.  i  oo 

Under  the  Rose — A  Capital  book,  by  the  author  of  "  East  Lynne" i  oo 

So  Dear  a  Dream — A  novel  by  Miss  Grant,  author  of  "The  Sun  Maid." i  oo 

Give  me  thine  Heart — A  capital  new  domestic  Love  Story  by  Roe i  oo 

Meeting  her  Fate — A  charming  novel  by  the  author  of  "  Aurora  Floyd.".. .  i  oo 

Faithful  to  the  End — A  delightful  domestic  novel  by  Roe i  oo 

So  True  a  Love — A  novel  by  Miss  Grant,  author  of  "The  Sun  Maid." i  oo 

True  as  Gold — A  charming  domestic  story  by  Roe '••  i  oo 


G.    W.   BILLING  HAM'S   PUBLICATIONS. 


Humorous  /Works  and  Novels  in   s- aper  Covers 


A  Naughty  Girl's  Diary 

A  Good  Boy's  Diary 

It's  a  Way  Love  Has 

Abijah  Beanpole  in  New  York. 
Never — Companion  to  "  Don't.".. 
Always — By  author  of  "  Never.".. 

jtop — By  author  of  "  Never." 

Smart  Sayings  of  Children— Paul   i  oo 

Ciizy  History  of  the  U.  S 50 

Caxj,  Cooks,  etc.— By  E.T.  Ely..        50 


Dawn  to  Noon — By  Violet  Fane..$i  50 
Constance's  Fate.          Do. 

Nellie  Harland — Vance 

Lion  Jack—  By  P.  T.  Barnum 

Jack  in  the  Jungle.     Do 

Dick  B/oadhead.      Do 

How  to  Win  in  Wall  Street 

The  Life  of  Sarah  Bernhardt. .. 
Arctic  Tiavels — By  Dr.  Hayes.. 

Flashes  from  "Ouida." 

The  Story  of  a  Day  in  London. 
Lone  Ranch — By  Mayne  Reid..  . 
The  Train  Boy — Horatio  Alger.. 
Dan,  The  De:cctive.  Do. 


Miscellaneous  V7orks. 


Doctor  Antonio— By  Ruffini 
Beatrice  Cenci-  -From  the  Italian,   i  50 

The  Story  of  Mary 150 

Madame — By  Frajk  Lee  Benedict  i  50 
A  Late  Remorse.  Do.  i  50 

Hammer  and  Anvil.       Do.  i  50 

Her  Friend  Laureuie.    Do.  i  50 

Mignonnette — By  Saagr^e i  oo 

Jessica— Hy  Mrs.  W.  H.  White....    i  50 

Women  of  To-day.     I)o i  50 

The  Baroness — Joaquiu  Miller...  i  50 
One  Fair  Woman.  Do.  ...  T  50 
TheBurnhams — Mrs.G.E. Stewart  z  oo 
Eugene  Ridgewood — Paul  James  i  50 
Braxton's  Bar — K.  M.  Da^'gett..  i  50 
Miss  Beck— By  Tilbury  Hclt..  .  i  50 

A  Wayward  Life   .•.    i  oo 

Winning  Winds — Emerson i  50 

A  CollegeWidow — C.H. Seymour  i  50 
An  Errand  Girl — Johnson...  ..  i  50 

Ask  Her,  Man!    Ask  Her! i  50 

Hidden  Power— T.  H.Tibbies...     i  50 

Two  of  Us — Calista  Halsey ..        75 

Cupid  on  Crutches — A.  B.  Wood.  75 
ParsonThorne — E.M.  Buckingham  i  50 

Errors — By  Ruth  Carter.    ..   i  50 

Unmistakable  Flirtation — Garner  75 
Wild  Oats — Florence  Marryatt. ..  i  50 
The  Abbess  of  Jouarre — Renan..  i  oo 
The  Mysterious  Doctor — Stanley  i  50 
Doctor  Mortimer — Fannie  Bean,  i  50 
Two  Brides — Bernard  O'Reilly.,  i  50 
Louise  and  I — By  Chas.  Dodge.,  i  50 

My  Queen — By  Sandette i  50 

Fallen  among  Thieves — Rayne.  i  50 
Saint  Leger — Richard  B.  Kimball  i  75 


Miscellaneous  Novels. 


Miss  Varian  ot*  New  York 

The  Comic  Liar — By  Alden i  50 

Store  Drumming  as  a  Fine  Art.  50 

Mrs. Spriggins— Widow  Bedott i  50 

Phemie  Frost — Ann  S.  Stephens,   i  50 

That  Awful  Boy— N.  Y.  Weekly.  50 

That  Bridget  of  Ours.         Do.  50 

A  Society  btar — Chandos  Fulton.  50 

Our  Artist  in  Spain,  etc.— Carleton  i  oo 

Man  Abroad...  2? 


Death    Blow  to  Spiritualism  ..§ 

The  Life  of  Victor  Hugo 

Don  Quixote.     Illustrated 

Arabian  Nights.      Do 

Robinson  Crusoe.  Do 

Swiss  Family  Robinson— Illus. . 
Debatable  Land-R.  Dale  Owen. 
Threading  My  Way.  Do. 
Spiritualism— By  D.  D.  Home... 
Princess  Nourmahal — Geo.  Sand 
Northern  Ballads-E.  L.Anderson 
Stories  about  Doctors — Jeffreson 
Stories  about  Lawyers.  Do. 


Was  He  Successful  ?— Kimball.    ? 
Undercurrents  of  Wall  St.  Do. 
Romance  of  Student  Life.  Do. 
To-day.  Do. 

Life  in  San  Domingo.  Do. 

Henry  Powers,  Banker.  Do. 
Led  Astray — By  Octave  Feuillet. 

Lava  Fires— Smith 

The  Darling  of  an  Empire 

Confessions  of  Two 

Nina's  Peril — l!y  Mrs.  Miller.... 
Marguerite's  Journal — For  Girls 
Orpheus  C.Kerr — Four  vols.in  one. 
Spell-Bound — Alexandre  Dumas. 
Purple  and  Fine  Linen — Fawcett 
Pauline's  Trial — L.  D.  Courtney. 

Tancredi— Dr.  E.  A.  Wood 

Measure  for  Measure — Stanley.. 
Charette — An  American  novel  . .. 
Fairfax— By  John  Esten  Cooke... 
Hilt  to  Hilt.  Do. 

Out  of  the  Foam.  Do. 

Hammer  and  Rapier.       Do. 

Kenneth — By  Sal  lie  A.  Brock 

Heart  Hungry.Mrs. Westmoreland 
Clifford  Troupe.  Do. 

Price  of  a  Life— R.  F.  Sturgis... 

Marston  Hall— L.  Ella  Byrd 

Conquered— By  a  New  Author... 
Tales  from  the  Popular  Operas. 
Edith  Murray — Joanna  Mathews 
San  Miniato — Mrs. C.V. Hamilton. 
All  for  Her— A  Tale  of  New  York. 
L'Assommoir — Zola's  great  novel 
Vesta  Vane— By  L.  King,  R.  ... 
Wai  worth's  Novels — Seven  vols. 


MRS.  MARY  J.  HOLMES'  WORKS. 


TEMPEST  AND  SUNSHINE. 
ENGLISH  ORPHANS. 
HOMESTEAD  ON  HILLSIDE. 
'LENA  RIVERS. 
MEADOW   BROOK. 
DORA  DEANE. 
COUSIN  MAUDE. 
MARIAN  GREY. 
EDITH  LYLE. 
DAISY  THORNTON. 
CHATEAU  D'OR. 
QUEENIE  HETHERTON. 
BESSIE'S  FORTUNE. 


DARKNESS  AND  DAYLIGHT. 

HUGH  WORTHINGTON. 

CAMERON  PRIDE. 

ROSE  MATHER. 

ETHELYN'S  MISTAKE. 

MILLBANK. 

EDNA  BROWNING. 

WEST  LAWN. 

MILDRED. 

FOREST  HOUSE. 

MADELINE. 

CHRISTMAS  STORIES. 

GRETCHEN.     (New.) 


OPINIONS    OF  THE  PRESS. 

"  Mrs.  Holmes'  stories  are  universally  read.  Her  admirers  are  numberless. 
She  is  in  many  respects  without  a  rival  in  the  world  of  fiction.  Her  characters  are 
always  life-like,  and  she  makes  them  talk  and  act  like  human  beings,  subject 
to  the  same  emotions,  swayed  by  the  same  passions,  and  actuated  by  the  same 
motives  which  are  common  among  men  and  women  of  every-day  existence.  Mrs. 
Holmes  is  very  happy  in  portraying  domestic  life.  Old  and  young  peruse  her 
stories  with  great  delight,  for  she  writes  in  a  style  that  all  can  comprehend." 
— New  York  Weekly. 

The  North  American  Review,  vol.  81,  page  557,  wiys  of  Mrs.  Mary  J. 
Holmes'  novel  "English  Orphans": — "With  this  novel  of  Mrs.  Holmes'  we 
have  been  charmed,  and  so  have  a  pretty  numerous  circle  of  discriminating  readers 
to  whom  we  have  lent  it.  The  characterization  is  exquisite,  especially  so  far  as 
concerns  rural  a«d  village  life,  of  which  there  are  some  pictures  that  deserve  to 
be  hung  up  in  perpetual  memory  of  types  of  humanity  fast  becoming  extinct. 
The  dialogues  are  generally  brief,  pointed,  and  appropriate.  The  plot  seems 
simple,  soeasHy  and  naturally  is  it  developed  and  consummated.  Moreover,  the 
story  thus  gracefully  constructed  and  written,  inculcates  without  obtruding,  not 
only  pure  Christian  morality  in  general,  but,  with  especial  point  and  power,  the 
dependence  of  true  success  on  character,  and  of  true  respectability  on  merit." 

"  Mrs.  Holmes'  stories  are  all  of  a  domestic  character,  and  their  interest, 
therefore,  is  not  so  intense  as  if  they  were  more  highly  seasoned  with  sensation- 
alism, but  it  is  of  a  healthy  and  abiding  character.  The  interest  in  her  tales 
begins  at  once,  and  is  maintained  to  the  close.  Her  sentiments  are  so  sound,  her 
sympathies  so  warm  and  ready,  and  her  knowledge  of  manners,  character,  and 
tke  varied  incidents  of  ordinary  life  is  so  thorough,  that  she  would  find  it  diffi- 
cult to  write  any  other  than  an  excellent  tale  if  she  were  to  try  it." — Hasten 
Banner, 

t-fT*The  volumes  are  all  handsomely  printed  and  bound  in  cloth,  sold  every- 
where, and  sent  by  mail,  fostage  free,  on  receipt  of  price  [$1.50  each],  by 

G.  W.  DILLINGHAM,  Publisher, 

Successor  to  G.  W.  CARLETON  &  CO., 

33  W.  23d  St.,  NEW  YORK. 


CHARLES   DICKENS'   WORKS. 


I! 


A   NEW        uLO        EDITION. 


Amongr  the  many  editions  of  the  works  of  this  greatest  of 
English  Novelisis,  there  has  not  been  uniil  now  one  that  entirely 
satisfies  the  public  demand. — Without  exception,  they  earh  hav* 
si.une  stiong  distinctive  objection, — either  the  form  and  dimen- 
sions cf  the  volumes  are  unhandy —  or,  the  fpe  is  small  an  I 
;nd:stinct — or,  the  illustrations  are  unsatisfactory — or,  the  bind- 
ing is  poot — or,  the  price  is  too  high. 

An  entirely  now  edition  is  tw-v.  however,  prbiished  by  G.  W, 
Cirieton  &  Co.,  of  New  York,  which,  in  every  respect,  COM- 
pletely  satisfies  the  pcpinar  demand.  —  It  is  known  as 

"Carleton's  New  Illnstratod  Edition." 

COMPLETE  IN  15  VOLUME  5. 

The  size  and  form  is  rr^st  convenient  for  'loldinsr, — the  type  is 
e-atireiy  new,  ana  of  a  clear  and  open  chanrter  that  has  received 
the  approval  of  the  reading  communky  in  other  works. 

The  illustrations  a'e  by  the  original  ir lists  chosen  by  Charles 
Dickens  himself — and  the  paper,  printing,  and  binding  are  of  an 
attractive  and  substantial  character. 

This  beautiful  new  edition  is  compile  in  15  volumes — at  tbs 
extremely  reasonable  price  of  $1.50  per  volume,  as  follows  : — 

I. — PICKWICK    PAPERS    ANP    CATALOGUE. 

2. — OLIVER    TWIST. — UNCOMMERCIAL   TRAVELLER. 

3. — DAVID    COPPF.K^m.D. 

4. — GREAT    EXf-KCTAnoNS  — ITALY    AND   AMERICA. 

E. DOMPKV    AM.)    SON. 

6. — SARNABY    Rl'DGF.    A>T    EDWIN    DROOD. 
7. — NICHOLA*    NICKLIKf. 

8. — CURIOSITY  SHOP  AiND  MISCELLANEOUS. 

9. — BLEAK  HOUSE. 
IO. — LITTLE  DORR'T. 
II. — MARTIN  CHUZ7L2WIT. 
12. — O'JR  MUTUAL  FRIEND. 

13. CHRISTMAS  KCOKS.  —  TALE  OF  TWO  CITIES. 

14. — SKETCHES  BY  BOZ  AND  HARD  TIMES. 
15. — CHILD'S  FNGLAND  AND  MISCELLANEOUS. 

The  first  volume —  Pickwick  Papers — contains  an  alphabet :ca] 
catalogue  of  a'l  r,t  Charles  Dickens'  writings,  with  their  exact 
por,ii;ons  in  the  vol-jmes. 

This  edition  IF  so'd  by  Booksellers,  everywhere — and  single 
epecim^n  copiss  will  oe  lonvarded  by  mail,  postage  frft,  on  re- 
ceipt o.  price.  $1.10  bv 

0.  W,  DILLTNGHAM.  Publisher, 

Successor  to  <?.  W.  CAKLE1CN  &,  CO., 
33  VV.  23d  St.,  NEW  YORK. 


University  of  California 

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