"
Fraudulent! The man still living! At this point there was a sudden
awakening. Everybody sat up and listened with all their ears.
"I may tell you, gentlemen," the Chairman explained, "that the writer
of this remarkable letter is none other than Lord Harry Norland
himself, We will now proceed without further interruption."
"In conjunction with another person, I devised and carried out
successfully a plan by which I was enabled to touch at once, and
without the disagreeable necessity of previously expiring and being
buried, the whole of the money for which I was insured. Other people
have attempted the same design, I believe, but the thing has hitherto
been managed clumsily. In my own case, it has been managed with great
dexterity and artistic skill. As you will naturally be curious on a
subject which interests you so closely I have no objection to reveal
the method. It is not enough to write to your office and state that a
certain person is dead. One must be prepared with proofs of the death
should any doubt arise. No proof of death is quite satisfactory without
evidence as to the disposal of the dead body. With that object, we
procured from the Hotel Dieu a patient apparently in an advanced state
of consumption.
Pages:
533
534
535
536
537
538
539
540
541
542
543
544
545
546
547
548
549
550
551
552
553
554
555
556
557