n gold. For this
coin the _Tribune_ believed he had been murdered, and that they had a
clue to the murderer. The vanished man had several times been seen in
the company of a suspicious German, of intelligent but erratic
appearance. This queer character lived in a hotbed of socialism on the
West Side, and the young broker was supposed to be in his power. In
fact, it was known for certain that the erratic German had secured a
large sum of money from him, and that Werner had visited his rooms in
the slums of the West Side more than once. Moreover, the two had made a
secret railway journey together two days before the disappearance, and
on the very day that Werner was last seen, the German had fled his
lodgings without giving any explanation of his departure to his few
acquaintances. When the _Tribune_ reporter called at these lodgings, the
landlord still had in his possession a gold eagle, with which the German
had paid his rent, and in the grate of the deserted room were the
charred remains of burnt papers. One of these was a rather firm, crisp
cinder, and had been a blue-print of a drawing. As nearly as could be
judged, from its shrivelled state, it appeared to be the plan of some
infernal machine. The name of the fugitive was Anderwelt, and he called
himself a doctor. Further investigations were being carried on by the
_Tribune_, which promised to prove beyond a doubt that he was the
murderer of Isidor Werner.
But the _Evening Post_ still held the palm for sensations, and I copy
verbatim from its columns of June 15th:
"It is rare that a newspaper, dealing strictly in facts, has to
record anything so closely bordering on the supernatural and
mysterious as that which we must now relate. The following facts,
however, are vouched for by the entire editorial department of the
_Evening Post_, and many of them by several hundred witnesses. We
begin by apologising to the hundreds who have called at this office
and have been unable to see the Werner infernal machine. We gave it
that name in a thoughtless jest, but its subsequent actions have more
than justified the title. Our reporter brought it from Berrien
Springs, as directed, and deposited it in the court of the _Evening
Post_ building. As is quite generally known, this court is a central
well in the building, affording ventilation and light to the interior
offices, from every one of which can be seen what goes on in it. The
well
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