A RUSSIAN STORY.

Colonist, Volume LV, Issue 13738, 2 June 1913, Page 2

A RUSSIAN STORY.

The gold-mining town of Blagovochonsk, on the Amur, in Eastern Siberia, has lived, for fiiimo tinic in a state of excitement, llieh merchants and travellers visiting this town and staying at ono of the two hotels, which are the property of one man, have been found dead in the morning, suffocated and robbed. No trace of the criminal or criminals could be found, nor any sign of a- struggle in tho room occupied by tho deceased. The local police were quite baffled. More than ono became engaged at tho hotel as servants, and while they wore there tho crimes continued, the cause of them remaining; a mystery. A detective from St. Petersburg was called in. Ho visited tho hotels and examined the fatal Irdroom. He- noticed one thing which haunted his memory for several days. That was a large sculptured angel above the bod on which many of tho victims had died. Fascinated by tho thought of the hovering angel, he roturned to the hotel, but this time he was disguised as a rich merchant, <and ho flung money about «as if ho had plenty to spare. Ho went to bed that night feigning to h» 4feank. As soon as ho lay down hJB |§yes caught tho angel above tho bolt. Its cheeks wore blown out, and it held the trumpet to its stone Yipr.. Ho wondered how often this sight, with its suggestion of Death and Judgment, had'been tho last seen by a- poor soul. But ho did not soon forget to snoro and simulate deep and drunken slumber. Presently through his half-closed eyes he saw tho angel niovo. It was descending! Slowly and .noiselessly it crept nearer to the recumbent snoring figure on tho bed. V\ rhon it had. got quite close the detective slipped quickly out and dived uudo-rnieath tho bod, where ho crouched with his revolver in his hand. Ho felt tho sudden bump

a>s tho angel camo down on tho bed, end then perrcd -out. Tho angel was :itfcarh-O'.l 'to the coiling by several thick it,;;lt;, down, on© of which tho

proprietor of the hotel was lowering, himself. The proprietor camo down, and was going through the pocket k of tho detective's clothes when ho was startkd by tha appearance of the man whom he h-ul nupposcd to be safe iri tho angel's cold em brace. Under tho influence of tho detective's revolver ho submitted to handcuffing, and waa marched to tho nearest police quarters. It transpired that tho angel was mado to descend by machinery in th-e- attics above tho fatal .sleeping apartment.