ItwasafreakoffancyinmyfriendforwhatelseshallIcallit？
　　tobeenamoredoftheNightforherownsake；andintothis_bizarrerie_，asintoallhisothers，Iquietlyfell；givingmyselfuptohiswildwhimswithaperfect_abandon_。Thesabledivinitywouldnotherselfdwellwithusalways；butwecouldcounterfeitherpresence。Atthefirstdawnofthemorningweclosedallthemessyshuttersofouroldbuilding；lightingacoupleoftaperswhich，stronglyperfumed，threwoutonlytheghastliestandfeeblestofrays。Bytheaidofthesewethenbusiedoursoulsindreams-
　　reading，writing，orconversing，untilwarnedbytheclockoftheadventofthetrueDarkness。Thenwesalliedforthintothestreetsarminarm，continuingthetopicsoftheday，orroamingfarandwideuntilalatehour，seeking，amidthewildlightsandshadowsofthepopulouscity，thatinfinityofmentalexcitementwhichquietobservationcanafford。
　　AtsuchtimesIcouldnothelpremarkingandadmiringalthoughfromhisrichidealityIhadbeenpreparedtoexpectitapeculiaranalyticabilityinDupin。Heseemed，too，totakeaneagerdelightinitsexercise-ifnotexactlyinitsdisplay-anddidnothesitatetoconfessthepleasurethusderived。Heboastedtome，withalowchucklinglaugh，thatmostmen，inrespecttohimself，worewindowsintheirbosoms，andwaswonttofollowupsuchassertionsbydirectandverystartlingproofsofhisintimateknowledgeofmyown。
　　Hismanneratthesemomentswasfrigidandabstract；hiseyeswerevacantinexpression；whilehisvoice，usuallyarichtenor，roseintoatreblewhichwouldhavesoundedpetulantlybutforthedeliberatenessandentiredistinctnessoftheenunciation。Observinghiminthesemoods，IoftendweltmeditativelyupontheoldphilosophyoftheBi-PartSoul，andamusedmyselfwiththefancyofadoubleDupin-thecreativeandtheresolvent。
　　Letitnotbesupposed，fromwhatIhavejustsaid，thatIamdetailinganymystery，orpenninganyromance。WhatIhavedescribedintheFrenchman，wasmerelytheresultofanexcited，orperhapsofadiseasedintelligence。Butofthecharacterofhisremarksattheperiodsinquestionanexamplewillbestconveytheidea。
　　WewerestrollingonenightdownalongdirtystreetinthevicinityofthePalaisRoyal。Beingboth，apparently，occupiedwiththought，neitherofushadspokenasyllableforfifteenminutesatleast。AllatonceDupinbrokeforthwiththesewords：
　　“Heisaverylittlefellow，that’strue，andwoulddobetterforthe_Th殁tredesVari閠閟_。”
　　“Therecanbenodoubtofthat。”Irepliedunwittingly，andnotatfirstobservingsomuchhadIbeenabsorbedinreflectiontheextraordinarymannerinwhichthespeakerhadchimedinwithmymeditations。InaninstantafterwardIrecollectedmyself，andmyastonishmentwasprofound。
　　“Dupin。”saidI，gravely，“thisisbeyondmycomprehension。IdonothesitatetosaythatIamamazed，andcanscarcelycreditmysenses。
　　HowwasitpossibleyoushouldknowIwasthinkingof-？”HereI
　　paused，toascertainbeyondadoubtwhetherhereallyknewofwhomI
　　thought。
　　“ofChantilly。”saidhe，“whydoyoupause？Youwereremarkingtoyourselfthathisdiminutivefigureunfittedhimfortragedy。”
　　Thiswaspreciselywhathadformedthesubjectofmyreflections。
　　Chantillywasa_quondam_cobbleroftheRueSt。Denis，who，becomingstage-mad，hadattemptedthe_r鬺e_ofXerxes，inCr閎illon’stragedysocalled，andbeennotoriouslyPasquinadedforhispains。
　　“Tellme，forHeaven’ssake。”Iexclaimed，“themethod-ifmethodthereis-bywhichyouhavebeenenabledtofathommysoulinthismatter。”InfactIwasevenmorestartledthanIwouldhavebeenwillingtoexpress。
　　“Itwasthefruiterer。”repliedmyfriend，“whobroughtyoutotheconclusionthatthemenderofsoleswasnotofsufficientheightforXerxes_etidgenusomne_。”
　　“Thefruiterer！-youastonishme-Iknownofruitererwhomsoever。”
　　“Themanwhoranupagainstyouasweenteredthestreet-itmayhavebeenfifteenminutesago。”
　　Inowrememberedthat，infact，afruiterer，carryinguponhisheadalargebasketofapples，hadnearlythrownmedown，byaccident，aswepassedfromtheRueCintothethoroughfarewherewestood；butwhatthishadtodowithChantillyIcouldnotpossiblyunderstand。
　　Therewasnotaparticleof_charl鈚anerie_aboutDupin。“Iwillexplain。”hesaid，“andthatyoumaycomprehendallclearly，wewillfirstretracethecourseofyourmeditations，fromthemomentinwhichIspoketoyouuntilthatofthe_rencontre_withthefruitererinquestion。Thelargerlinksofthechainrunthus-Chantilly，Orion，Dr。Nichols，Epicurus，Stereotomy，thestreetstones，thefruiterer。”
　　Therearefewpersonswhohavenot，atsomeperiodoftheirlives，amusedthemselvesinretracingthestepsbywhichparticularconclusionsoftheirownmindshavebeenattained。Theoccupationisoftenfullofinterestandhewhoattemptsitforthefirsttimeisastonishedbytheapparentlyillimitabledistanceandincoherencebetweenthestarting-pointandthegoal。What，then，musthavebeenmyamazementwhenIheardtheFrenchmanspeakwhathehadjustspoken，andwhenIcouldnothelpacknowledgingthathehadspokenthetruth。Hecontinued：
　　“Wehadbeentalkingofhorses，ifIrememberaright，justbeforeleavingtheRueC。Thiswasthelastsubjectwediscussed。Aswecrossedintothisstreet，afruiterer，withalargebasketuponhishead，brushingquicklypastus，thrustyouuponapileofpavingstonescollectedataspotwherethecausewayisundergoingrepair。
　　Yousteppedupononeoftheloosefragments，slipped，slightlystrainedyourankle，appearedvexedorsulky，mutteredafewwords，turnedtolookatthepile，andthenproceededinsilence。Iwasnotparticularlyattentivetowhatyoudid；butobservationhasbecomewithme，oflate，aspeciesofnecessity。
　　“Youkeptyoureyesupontheground-glancing，withapetulantexpression，attheholesandrutsinthepavement，sothatIsawyouwerestillthinkingofthestones，untilwereachedthelittlealleycalledLamartine，whichhasbeenpaved，bywayofexperiment，withtheoverlappingandrivetedblocks。Hereyourcountenancebrightenedup，and，perceivingyourlipsmove，Icouldnotdoubtthatyoumurmuredtheword’stereotomy，’atermveryaffectedlyappliedtothisspeciesofpavement。Iknewthatyoucouldnotsaytoyourself’stereotomy’withoutbeingbroughttothinkofatomies，andthusofthetheoriesofEpicurus；andsince，whenwediscussedthissubjectnotverylongago，Imentionedtoyouhowsingularly，yetwithhowlittlenotice，thevagueguessesofthatnobleGreekhadmetwithconfirmationinthelatenebularcosmogony，Ifeltthatyoucouldnotavoidcastingyoureyesupwardtothegreat_nebula_inOrion，andI
　　certainlyexpectedthatyouwoulddoso。Youdidlookup；andIwasnowassuredthatIhadcorrectlyfollowedyoursteps。Butinthatbitter_tirade_uponChantilly，whichappearedinyesterday’s’_Mus閑_，’thesatirist，makingsomedisgracefulallusionstothecobblerschangeofnameuponassumingthebuskin，quotedaLatinlineaboutwhichwehaveoftenconversed。ImeanthelinePerdiditantiquumliterasonum。
　　IhadtoldyouthatthiswasinreferencetoOrion，formerlywrittenUrion；and，fromcertainpungenciesconnectedwiththisexplanation，Iwasawarethatyoucouldnothaveforgottenit。Itwasclear，therefore，thatyouwouldnotfailtocombinethetwoideasofOrionandChantilly。ThatyoudidcombinethemIsawbythecharacterofthesmilewhichpassedoveryourlips。Youthoughtofthepoorcobbler’simmolation。Sofar，youhadbeenstoopinginyourgait；butnowIsawyoudrawyourselfuptoyourfullheight。IwasthensurethatyoureflecteduponthediminutivefigureofChantilly。AtthispointIinterruptedyourmeditationstoremarkthatas，infact，bewasaverylittlefellow-thatChantilly-hewoulddobetteratthe_Th殁tredesVari閠閟_。”
　　Notlongafterthis，wewerelookingoveraneveningeditionofthe“GazettedesTribunaux。”whenthefollowingparagraphsarrestedourattention。
　　“EXTRAORDINARYMURDERS-Thismorning，aboutthreeo’clock，theinhabitantsoftheQuartierSt。Rochwerearousedfromsleepbyasuccessionofterrificshrieks，issuing，apparently，fromthefourthstoryofahouseintheRueMorgue，knowntobeinthesoleoccupancyofoneMadameL’Espanaye，andherdaughterMademoiselleCamilleL’Espanaye。Aftersomedelay，occasionedbyafruitlessattempttoprocureadmissionintheusualmanner，thegatewaywasbrokeninwithacrowbar，andeightortenoftheneighborsenteredaccompaniedbytwo_gendarmes_。Bythistimethecrieshadceased；but，asthepartyrushedupthefirstflightofstairs，twoormoreroughvoicesinangrycontentionweredistinguishedandseemedtoproceedfromtheupperpartofthehouse。Asthesecondlandingwasreached，thesesounds，also，hadceasedandeverythingremainedperfectlyquiet。Thepartyspreadthemselvesandhurriedfromroomtoroom。Uponarrivingatalargebackchamberinthefourthstory，thedoorofwhich，beingfoundlocked，withthekeyinside，wasforcedopen，aspectaclepresenteditselfwhichstruckeveryonepresentnotlesswithhorrorthanwithastonishment。
　　“Theapartmentwasinthewildestdisorder-thefurniturebrokenandthrownaboutinalldirections。Therewasonlyonebedstead；andfromthisthebedhadbeenremoved，andthrownintothemiddleofthefloor。Onachairlayarazor，besmearedwithblood。Onthehearthweretwoorthreelongandthicktressesofgreyhumanhair，alsodabbledinblood，andseemingtohavebeenpulledoutbytheroots。
　　UponthefloorwerefoundfourNapoleons，anear-ringoftopaz，threelargesilverspoons，threesmallerof_m閠ald’Alger_，andtwobags，containingnearlyfourthousandfrancsingold。Thedrawersofa_bureau_，whichstoodinonecornerwereopen，andhadbeen，apparently，rifled，althoughmanyarticlesstillremainedinthem。A
　　smallironsafewasdiscoveredunderthe_bed_notunderthebedstead。Itwasopen，withthekeystillinthedoor。Ithadnocontentsbeyondafewoldletters，andotherpapersoflittleconsequence。
　　“OfMadameL’Espanayenotraceswerehereseen；butanunusualquantityofsootbeingobservedinthefire-place，asearchwasmadeinthechimney，andhorribletorelate！the；corpseofthedaughter，headdownward，wasdraggedtherefrom；ithavingbeenthusforcedupthenarrowapertureforaconsiderabledistance。Thebodywasquitewarm。Uponexaminingit，manyexcoriationswereperceived，nodoubtoccasionedbytheviolencewithwhichithadbeenthrustupanddisengaged。Uponthefaceweremanyseverescratches，and，uponthethroat，darkbruises，anddeepindentationsoffingernails，asifthedeceasedhadbeenthrottledtodeath。
　　“Afterathoroughinvestigationofeveryportionofthehouse，withoutfartherdiscovery，thepartymadeitswayintoasmallpavedyardintherearofthebuilding，wherelaythecorpseoftheoldlady，withherthroatsoentirelycutthat，uponanattempttoraiseher，theheadfelloff。Thebody，aswellasthehead，wasfearfullymutilated-theformersomuchsoasscarcelytoretainanysemblanceofhumanity。
　　“Tothishorriblemysterythereisnotasyet，webelieve，theslightestclew。”
　　Thenextday’spaperhadtheseadditionalparticulars。
　　“_TheTragedyintheRueMorgue。_Manyindividualshavebeenexaminedinrelationtothismostextraordinaryandfrightfulaffair。[Theword’affaire’hasnotyet，inFrance，thatlevityofimportwhichitconveyswithus，]“butnothingwhateverhastranspiredtothrowlightuponit。Wegivebelowallthematerialtestimonyelicited。
　　“_PaulineDubourg_，laundress，deposesthatshehasknownboththedeceasedforthreeyears，havingwashedforthemduringthatperiod。
　　Theoldladyandherdaughterseemedongoodterms-veryaffectionatetowardseachother。Theywereexcellentpay。Couldnotspeakinregardtotheirmodeormeansofliving。BelievedthatMadameL。toldfortunesforaliving。Wasreputedtohavemoneyputby。Nevermetanypersonsinthehousewhenshecalledfortheclothesortookthemhome。Wassurethattheyhadnoservantinemploy。Thereappearedtobenofurnitureinanypartofthebuildingexceptinthefourthstory。
　　“_PierreMoreau_，tobacconist，deposesthathehasbeeninthehabitofsellingsmallquantitiesoftobaccoandsnufftoMadameL’Espanayefornearlyfouryears。Wasbornintheneighborhood，andhasalwaysresidedthere。Thedeceasedandherdaughterhadoccupiedthehouseinwhichthecorpseswerefound，formorethansixyears。Itwasformerlyoccupiedbyajeweller，whounder-lettheupperroomstovariouspersons。ThehousewasthepropertyofMadameL。Shebecamedissatisfiedwiththeabuseofthepremisesbyhertenant，andmovedintothemherself，refusingtoletanyportion。Theoldladywaschildish。Witnesshadseenthedaughtersomefiveorsixtimesduringthesixyears。Thetwolivedanexceedinglyretiredlife-werereputedtohavemoney。HadhearditsaidamongtheneighborsthatMadameL。toldfortunes-didnotbelieveit。Hadneverseenanypersonenterthedoorexcepttheoldladyandherdaughter，aporteronceortwice，andaphysiciansomeeightortentimes。
　　“Manyotherpersons，neighbors，gaveevidencetothesameeffect。Noonewasspokenofasfrequentingthehouse。ItwasnotknownwhethertherewereanylivingconnexionsofMadameL。andherdaughter。Theshuttersofthefrontwindowswereseldomopened。Thoseintherearwerealwaysclosed，withtheexceptionofthelargebackroom，fourthstory。Thehousewasagoodhouse-notveryold。