Fall 2006 Brought to you by Masterpiece Mysterys
Misers get up early in the morning; and burglars, I am informed, get up the night before." - G. K. Chesterton
HISTORY MYSTERY:
On a cold autumn night in 1864, along the lonely buttes near the Bitter Root Mountains in Idaho, Lloyd Magruder stood watch over his herd. Lloyd was returning from a lucrative trip selling merchandise to miners at Alder Gulch, sacks of gold dust in his bags. Fearing robbers, Magruder had hired three guards for the journey home. Unbeknownst to Magruder, his guards were recently escaped convicts, one of whom was sneaking up behind him with an axe in his hand.
The murderer’s axe became so deeply embedded in Magruder that the killer had to place his boot on the victim’s chest and tug with all his might to remove the blade.
In Lewiston, at that exact moment, Hill Beachy, owner of Lewiston’s Luna Hotel, woke up from his dream in a cold sweat. Hill had just seen his good friend Lloyd Magruder murdered, seen the killer use his boot to yank out the axe. And Beachy recognized him!
When Beachy told the town magistrate and many of the townfolk of his premonition, he was laughed at or scorned. Soon after, the killers checked into the Luna Hotel before boarding a stage coach and Beachy vowed to bring them to justice. His wife agreed that he should follow the killers – and not return - unless he found them and found them guilty. She could not take the ridicule any longer.
On a wild chase down the Columbia River by steamboat and through the steamy streets of frontier towns, Beachy followed the trio of robbers. He finally caught up with them in San Francisco where they were waiting for the stolen gold dust to be minted into coins. After many frustrations the band was sent back to Idaho, where Beachy employed some theatrical tricks to get one of the gang to confess. In March the following year, the three men hung from the gallows – brought to justice by a dream. Eventually Hill Beachy even got the stolen money returned to Magruder’s widow.
“What you have to account for is if one person did see something why didn't that person say so? ... Possibility one, the person who saw it didn't realize what they had seen. That would mean, of course, that it would have to be rather a stupid person. Someone, let us say, who can use their eyes but not their brains. ... The second possibility, it might have been a person whose action in putting something in a glass was natural. It would be quite possible, audacious but possible, for someone to pick up that glass which as soon as it was in his hand or her hand, of course, would be assumed to be his or her own drink, and to add whatever was added quite openly. In that case, you see, people wouldn’t think twice … it would be a gamble, a risk, but it could happen…And then there’s the third possibility … Somebody saw what happened and has held their tongue deliberately … if so, it’s a very dangerous thing to do.” - Agatha Christie / Jane Marple
We've had the honour of creating a variety of children's parties as the Gumshoe Detective Agency. Between our experience and innovative mothers we have produced some excellent party ideas, and we've put them up for you!
Find pages of kid-tested fun, ready for you to use and enjoy. Find Kid's Party Tips Here.
From our experience conducting years of Gumshoe Detective Agency kids' parties here is our first Game for you, in one easy download. This Party in a PDF has everything (except the loot and the kids!) you need to organize a first-class Mystery your Gumshoes can have fun with and figure out. For only $4.95 Cdn give your kid the party everyone will talk about!
Find Shipwrecked On Sugar Island Here.
Coming soon, our next downloadable Party in a PDF - The Hobo Bread Heist. Watch for it!
One of the most popular sections of our site keeps getting better! We're now giving cool new prizes to the best answer of our 
mystery trivia quiz.
Enter the contest Oct 16 – Nov 15 and win this cool collector’s replica Buffalo Park Pass from Banff, Canada’s first National Park.
RECOMMENDED VIDEO:
Frequency (2000) – Dennis Quaid, James Caviezel, Shawn Doyle“What If?” An accidental cross-time radio link connects father and son across 30 years. The son tries to save his father's life, but then must fix the consequences. This movie is an excellent blend of suspense and science fiction, well worth a viewing!