Pharaoh's Broker: Being the Very Remarkable Experiences in Another World of Isidor Werner — John Shaqi
Pharaoh's Broker: Being the Very Remarkable Experiences in Another World of Isidor WernerDouglass, Ellsworth
Science
Pharaoh's Broker: Being the Very Remarkable Experiences in Another World of Isidor Werner
Douglass, Ellsworth
Science fiction
The _Inter Ocean_ developed a theory that the suicide was only a
pretended one for the purpose of fraudulently collecting life insurance
policies. It was cited that Isidor Werner had insured his life for more
than $100,000, and this in spite of the fact that he had no family,
parents, brothers or sisters to provide for; but had taken the policies
in favour of his uncle, Israel Werner, and in case of his prior death,
in favour of a cousin, Ruth Werner. This theory gained but little
currency among those who knew the man best, and although the insurance
companies prepared to resist payment of the policies to the bitter end,
yet, as time went on, no one attempted to prove his death, nor to claim
the handsome sum which would result from it. Moreover, Israel Werner and
his daughter Ruth, the beneficiaries under the policies, persisted in
believing that their relative was yet alive, though they could give no
good reasons for so believing, nor explain his disappearance.
In its issue of June 15th the _Tribune_ scouted the idea of suicide
altogether. It had a better and more plausible theory of the case.
Isidor Werner had a large sum of money in the Corn Exchange Bank,
drawing interest by the year. In case of either a premeditated or a
pretended suicide he would most certainly have withdrawn, and made some
disposition of, this money. In fact, he had, on the day of his
disappearance, drawn out five thousand dollars of it in 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:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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