The After House

He thought himself a priest of heaven, appointed to make ghastly

sacrifices at certain signals from on high. The signals I am not

sure of; he turned taciturn after his capture and would not talk.

I am inclined to think that a shooting star, perhaps in a particular

quarter of the heavens, was his signal. This is distinctly

possible, and is made probable by the stars which he had painted

with tar on his sacrificial robe.

The story of the early morning of August 12 will never be fully

known; but much of it, in view of our knowledge, we were able to

reconstruct. Thus--Jones ate his supper that night, a mild and

well-disposed individual. During the afternoon before, he had read

prayers for the soul of Schwartz, in whose departure he may or may

not have had a part I am inclined to think not, Jones construing

his mission as being one to remove the wicked and the oppressor,

and Schwartz hardly coming under either classification.

He was at the wheel from midnight until four in the morning on the

night of the murders. At certain hours we believe that he went

forward to the forecastle-head, and performed, clad in his priestly

robe, such devotions as his disordered mind dictated. It is my

idea that he looked, at these times, for a heavenly signal, either

a meteor or some strange appearance of the heavens. It was known

that he was a poor sleeper, and spent much time at night wandering

around.

On the night of the crimes it is probable that he performed his

devotions early, and then got the signal. This is evidenced by

Singleton's finding the axe against the captain's door before

midnight. He had evidently been disturbed. We believe that he

intended to kill the captain and Mr. Turner, but made a mistake in

the rooms. He clearly intended to kill the Danish girl. Several

passages in his Bible, marked with a red cross, showed his inflamed

hatred of loose women; and he believed Karen Hansen to be of that

type.

He locked me in, slipping down from the wheel to do so, and

pocketing the key. The night was fairly quiet. He could lash the

wheel safely, and he had in his favor the fact that Oleson, the

lookout, was a slow-thinking Swede who notoriously slept on his

watch. He found the axe, not where he had left it, but back in the

case. But the case was only closed, not locked--Singleton's error.

Armed with the axe, Jones slipped back to the wheel and waited. He

had plenty of time. He had taken his robe from its hiding-place in

the boat, and had it concealed near him with the axe. He was ready,

but he was waiting for another signal. He got it at half-past two.

He admitted the signal and the time, but concealed its nature--I

think it was a shooting star. He killed Vail first, believing it

to be Turner, and making with his axe, the four signs of the cross.

Then he went to the Hansen girl's door. He did not know about the

bell, and probably rang it by accident as he leaned over to listen

if Vail still breathed.