It was about this time that several gentlemen connected with the newspaper press arrived on the scene for the purpose of obtaining particulars of the case.
On entering the dwelling, Herriges’ mother, a very old; and as the reporters describe her, “weasaned faced woman,” seized one of them and begged him to save her.
“Oh, save me! for the mob is throwing bricks and stones at the house! They are going to burn it down, and burn us all alive in it.”
She was assured that she would be protected, and that no harm would befal her; and a special messenger was despatched to the police station to have a powerful posse of men hurried down to save the place. Each moment the mob was growing larger and increasing in the violence of its demonstrations, and had not the force of police arrived shortly after this, there is no doubt but that the house would have been torn completely down, and perhaps burned. Happily, however, such a result was averted by prompt action on the part of the authorities.
The newspaper gentlemen, thereupon, had ample opportunity to proceed with their visit of inquiry.
A respectable looking woman led the way up stairs ascending which required more than ordinary effort, not only on account of their wretched condition, but also on account of the frightful stench that came from the late abode of the imbecile.
This person informed the visitors that two rooms had been set apart for the use of John. The “parlor” as she called the den on the first or ground floor was entirely destitute of any furniture but the remains of an ancient sofa, a regular skeliton with nothing left but the wooden slats. Over this was a horribly filthy quilt. This was the imbecile’s “parlor.” His “bed-room” was the cage to which reference has already been made. The scanty glimmering light that forced its way in between the wooden slats nailed across the window was just sufficient to show the efforts that had been so hurriedly but abortively made to cleanse the den.
Most prominent was a bed freshly placed there and covered with a middling good coverlet. One of the gentlemen remarked as he noticed this.
“Ah, I see you have put a bed in here. There was none when John was taken out.”
“Oh, yes it was,” said the woman quickly. “The bed was always here, but we have put a spread over it. We did not do any thing else.”