“_IsidoreMuset_，_gendarme_，deposesthathewascalledtothehouseaboutthreeo’clockinthemorning，andfoundsometwentyorthirtypersonsatthegateway，endeavoringtogainadmittance。Forceditopen，atlength，withabayonet-notwithacrowbar。Hadbutlittledifficultyingettingitopen，onaccountofitsbeingadoubleorfoldinggate，andboltedneitheratbottomnottop。Theshriekswerecontinueduntilthegatewasforced-andthensuddenlyceased。Theyseemedtobescreamsofsomepersonorpersonsingreatagony-
　　wereloudanddrawnout，notshortandquick。Witnessledthewayupstairs。Uponreachingthefirstlanding，heardtwovoicesinloudandangrycontention-theoneagruffvoice，theothermuchshriller-averystrangevoice。Coulddistinguishsomewordsoftheformer，whichwasthatofaFrenchman。Waspositivethatitwasnotawoman’svoice。Coulddistinguishthewords’_sacr開’and’_diable。_’Theshrillvoicewasthatofaforeigner。Couldnotbesurewhetheritwasthevoiceofamanorofawoman。Couldnotmakeoutwhatwassaid，butbelievedthelanguagetobeSpanish。Thestateoftheroomandofthebodieswasdescribedbythiswitnessaswedescribedthemyesterday。
　　“_HenriDuval_，aneighbor，andbytradeasilver-smith，deposesthathewasoneofthepartywhofirstenteredthehouse。CorroboratesthetestimonyofMus鑤ingeneral。Assoonastheyforcedanentrance，theyreclosedthedoor，tokeepoutthecrowd，whichcollectedveryfast，notwithstandingthelatenessofthehour。Theshrillvoice，thiswitnessthinks，wasthatofanItalian。WascertainitwasnotFrench。Couldnotbesurethatitwasaman’svoice。Itmighthavebeenawoman’s。WasnotacquaintedwiththeItalianlanguage。Couldnotdistinguishthewords，butwasconvincedbytheintonationthatthespeakerwasanItalian。KnewMadameL。andherdaughter。Hadconversedwithbothfrequently。Wassurethattheshrillvoicewasnotthatofeitherofthedeceased。
　　“_Odenheimer，restaurateur。_Thiswitnessvolunteeredhistestimony。NotspeakingFrench，wasexaminedthroughaninterpreter。
　　IsanativeofAmsterdam。Waspassingthehouseatthetimeoftheshrieks。Theylastedforseveralminutes-probablyten。Theywerelongandloud-veryawfulanddistressing。Wasoneofthosewhoenteredthebuilding。Corroboratedthepreviousevidenceineveryrespectbutone。Wassurethattheshrillvoicewasthatofaman-
　　ofaFrenchman。Couldnotdistinguishthewordsuttered。Theywereloudandquick-unequal-spokenapparentlyinfearaswellasinanger。Thevoicewasharsh-notsomuchshrillasharsh。Couldnotcallitashrillvoice。Thegruffvoicesaidrepeatedly’_sacr開，’
　　’_diable_，’andonce’_monDieu。_’
　　“_JulesMignaud_，banker，ofthefirmofMignaudetFils，RueDeloraine。IstheelderMignaud。MadameL’Espanayehadsomeproperty。
　　Hadopenedanaccountwithhisbankinghouseinthespringoftheyear-eightyearspreviously。Madefrequentdepositsinsmallsums。Hadcheckedfornothinguntilthethirddaybeforeherdeath，whenshetookoutinpersonthesumof4000francs。Thissumwaspaidingold，andaclerkwenthomewiththemoney。
　　“_AdolpheLeBon_，clerktoMignaudetFils，deposesthatonthedayinquestion，aboutnoon，heaccompaniedMadameL’Espanayetoherresidencewiththe4000francs，putupintwobags。Uponthedoorbeingopened，MademoiselleL。appearedandtookfromhishandsoneofthebags，whiletheoldladyrelievedhimoftheother。Hethenbowedanddeparted。Didnotseeanypersoninthestreetatthetime。Itisabye-street-verylonely。
　　“_WilliamBird_，tailordeposesthathewasoneofthepartywhoenteredthehouse。IsanEnglishman。HaslivedinParistwoyears。
　　Wasoneofthefirsttoascendthestairs。Heardthevoicesincontention。ThegruffvoicewasthatofaFrenchman。Couldmakeoutseveralwords，butcannotnowrememberall。Hearddistinctly’_sacr開’and’_monDieu。_’Therewasasoundatthemomentasifofseveralpersonsstruggling-ascrapingandscufflingsound。Theshrillvoicewasveryloud-louderthanthegruffone。IssurethatitwasnotthevoiceofanEnglishman。AppearedtobethatofaGerman。Mighthavebeenawoman’svoice。DoesnotunderstandGerman。
　　“Fouroftheabove-namedwitnesses，beingrecalled，deposedthatthedoorofthechamberinwhichwasfoundthebodyofMademoiselleL。
　　waslockedontheinsidewhenthepartyreachedit。Everythingwasperfectlysilent-nogroansornoisesofanykind。Uponforcingthedoornopersonwasseen。Thewindows，bothofthebackandfrontroom，weredownandfirmlyfastenedfromwithin。Adoorbetweenthetworoomswasclosed，butnotlocked。Thedoorleadingfromthefrontroomintothepassagewaslocked，withthekeyontheinside。Asmallroominthefrontofthehouse，onthefourthstory，attheheadofthepassagewasopen，thedoorbeingajar。Thisroomwascrowdedwitholdbeds，boxes，andsoforth。Thesewerecarefullyremovedandsearched。Therewasnotaninchofanyportionofthehousewhichwasnotcarefullysearched。Sweepsweresentupanddownthechimneys。
　　Thehousewasafourstoryone，withgarrets_mansardes。_A
　　trap-doorontheroofwasnaileddownverysecurely-didnotappeartohavebeenopenedforyears。Thetimeelapsingbetweenthehearingofthevoicesincontentionandthebreakingopenoftheroomdoor，wasvariouslystatedbythewitnesses。Somemadeitasshortasthreeminutes-someaslongasfive。Thedoorwasopenedwithdifficulty。
　　“_AlfonzoGarcio_，undertaker，deposesthatheresidesintheRueMorgue。IsanativeofSpain。Wasoneofthepartywhoenteredthehouse。Didnotproceedupstairs。Isnervous，andwasapprehensiveoftheconsequencesofagitation。Heardthevoicesincontention。ThegruffvoicewasthatofaFrenchman。Couldnotdistinguishwhatwassaid。TheshrillvoicewasthatofanEnglishman-issureofthis。
　　DoesnotunderstandtheEnglishlanguage，butjudgesbytheintonation。
　　“_AlbertoMontani_，confectioner，deposesthathewasamongthefirsttoascendthestairs。Heardthevoicesinquestion。ThegruffvoicewasthatofaFrenchman。Distinguishedseveralwords。Thespeakerappearedtobeexpostulating。Couldnotmakeoutthewordsoftheshrillvoice。Spokequickandunevenly。ThinksitthevoiceofaRussian。Corroboratesthegeneraltestimony。IsanItalian。NeverconversedwithanativeofRussia。
　　“Severalwitnesses，recalled，heretestifiedthatthechimneysofalltheroomsonthefourthstoryweretoonarrowtoadmitthepassageofahumanbeing。By’sweeps’weremeantcylindricalsweepingbrushes，suchasareemployedbythosewhocleanchimneys。Thesebrusheswerepassedupanddowneveryflueinthehouse。Thereisnobackpassagebywhichanyonecouldhavedescendedwhilethepartyproceededupstairs。ThebodyofMademoiselleL’Espanayewassofirmlywedgedinthechimneythatitcouldnotbegotdownuntilfourorfiveofthepartyunitedtheirstrength。
　　“_PaulDumas_，physician，deposesthathewascalledtoviewthebodiesaboutday-break。TheywereboththenlyingonthesackingofthebedsteadinthechamberwhereMademoiselleL。wasfound。Thecorpseoftheyoungladywasmuchbruisedandexcoriated。Thefactthatithadbeenthrustupthechimneywouldsufficientlyaccountfortheseappearances。Thethroatwasgreatlychafed。Therewereseveraldeepscratchesjustbelowthechin，togetherwithaseriesoflividspotswhichwereevidentlytheimpressionoffingers。Thefacewasfearfullydiscolored，andtheeye-ballsprotruded。Thetonguehadbeenpartiallybittenthrough。Alargebruisewasdiscovereduponthepitofthestomach，produced，apparently，bythepressureofaknee。
　　IntheopinionofM。Dumas，MademoiselleL’Espanayehadbeenthrottledtodeathbysomepersonorpersonsunknown。Thecorpseofthemotherwashorriblymutilated。Allthebonesoftherightlegandarmweremoreorlessshattered。Theleft_tibia_muchsplintered，aswellasalltheribsoftheleftside。Wholebodydreadfullybruisedanddiscolored。Itwasnotpossibletosayhowtheinjurieshadbeeninflicted。Aheavyclubofwood，orabroadbarofiron-achair-
　　anylarge，heavy，andobtuseweaponwouldhaveproducedsuchresults，ifwieldedbythehandsofaverypowerfulman。Nowomancouldhaveinflictedtheblowswithanyweapon。Theheadofthedeceased，whenseenbywitness，wasentirelyseparatedfromthebody，andwasalsogreatlyshattered。Thethroathadevidentlybeencutwithsomeverysharpinstrument-probablywitharazor。
　　“_AlexandreEtienne_，surgeon，wascalledwithM。Dumastoviewthebodies。Corroboratedthetestimony，andtheopinionsofM。Dumas。
　　“Nothingfartherofimportancewaselicited，althoughseveralotherpersonswereexamined。Amurdersomysterious，andsoperplexinginallitsparticulars，wasneverbeforecommittedinParis-ifindeedamurderhasbeencommittedatall。Thepoliceareentirelyatfault-anunusualoccurrenceinaffairsofthisnature。Thereisnot，however，theshadowofaclewapparent。”
　　TheeveningeditionofthepaperstatedthatthegreatestexcitementstillcontinuedintheQuartierSt。Roch-thatthepremisesinquestionhadbeencarefullyre-searched，andfreshexaminationsofwitnessesinstituted，butalltonopurpose。Apostscript，however，mentionedthatAdolpheLeBonhadbeenarrestedandimprisoned-
　　althoughnothingappearedtocriminatehim，beyondthefactsalreadydetailed。
　　Dupinseemedsingularlyinterestedintheprogressofthisaffair
　　atleastsoIjudgedfromhismanner，forhemadenocomments。ItwasonlyaftertheannouncementthatLeBonhadbeenimprisoned，thatheaskedmemyopinionrespectingthemurders。
　　IcouldmerelyagreewithallParisinconsideringthemaninsolublemystery。Isawnomeansbywhichitwouldbepossibletotracethemurderer。
　　“Wemustnotjudgeofthemeans。”saidDupin，“bythisshellofanexamination。TheParisianpolice，somuchextolledfor_acumen_，arecunning，butnomore。Thereisnomethodintheirproceedings，beyondthemethodofthemoment。Theymakeavastparadeofmeasures；but，notunfrequently，thesearesoilladaptedtotheobjectsproposed，astoputusinmindofMonsieurJourdain’scallingforhis_robe-de-chambre-pourmieuxentendrelamusique。_Theresultsattainedbythemarenotunfrequentlysurprising，but，forthemostpart，arebroughtaboutbysimplediligenceandactivity。Whenthesequalitiesareunavailing，theirschemesfail。Vidocq，forexample，wasagoodguesserandaperseveringman。But，withouteducatedthought，heerredcontinuallybytheveryintensityofhisinvestigations。Heimpairedhisvisionbyholdingtheobjecttooclose。Hemightsee，perhaps，oneortwopointswithunusualclearness，butinsodoinghe，necessarily，lostsightofthematterasawhole。Thusthereissuchathingasbeingtooprofound。Truthisnotalwaysinawell。Infact，asregardsthemoreimportantknowledge，Idobelievethatsheisinvariablysuperficial。Thedepthliesinthevalleyswhereweseekher，andnotuponthemountain-topswheresheisfound。Themodesandsourcesofthiskindoferrorarewelltypifiedinthecontemplationoftheheavenlybodies。Tolookatastarbyglances-toviewitinaside-longway，byturningtowardittheexteriorportionsofthe_retina_moresusceptibleoffeebleimpressionsoflightthantheinterior，istobeholdthestardistinctly-istohavethebestappreciationofitslustre-alustrewhichgrowsdimjustinproportionasweturnourvision_fully_uponit。Agreaternumberofraysactuallyfallupontheeyeinthelattercase，but，intheformer，thereisthemorerefinedcapacityforcomprehension。Byundueprofundityweperplexandenfeeblethought；anditispossibletomakeevenVenusherselfvanishfromthefirmanentbyascrutinytoosustained，tooconcentrated，ortoodirect。
　　“Asforthesemurders，letusenterintosomeexaminationsforourselves，beforewemakeupanopinionrespectingthem。Aninquirywillaffordusamusement。”[Ithoughtthisanoddterm，soapplied，butsaidnothing]“and，besides，LeBononcerenderedmeaserviceforwhichIamnotungrateful。Wewillgoandseethepremiseswithourowneyes。IknowG，thePrefectofPolice，andshallhavenodifficultyinobtainingthenecessarypermission。”
　　Thepermissionwasobtained，andweproceededatoncetotheRueMorgue。ThisisoneofthosemiserablethoroughfareswhichintervenebetweentheRueRichelieuandtheRueSt。Roch。Itwaslateintheafternoonwhenwereachedit；asthisquarterisatagreatdistancefromthatinwhichweresided。Thehousewasreadilyfound；fortherewerestillmanypersonsgazingupattheclosedshutters，withanobjectlesscuriosity，fromtheoppositesideoftheway。ItwasanordinaryParisianhouse，withagateway，ononesideofwhichwasaglazedwatch-box，withaslidingpanelinthewindow，indicatinga_logedeconcierge。_Beforegoinginwewalkedupthestreet，turneddownanalley，andthen，againturning，passedintherearofthebuilding-Dupin，meanwhileexaminingthewholeneighborhood，aswellasthehouse，withaminutenessofattentionforwhichIcouldseenopossibleobject。