ystery Mirror

aron Von Lodge was the head of a small country known as Lilliland near Switzerland. The time was the early 1900s.

Lilliland Castle, where generations of Von Lodges had reigned, had not changed much over hundreds of years. Painting and replacing rotting wood flooring were the usual activities as well as carpet cleaning, furniture polishing and tapestry mending. The flowers in the gardens were what made Lilliland Castle a favorite place for tourists to take pictures. Tourism was important to Lilliland because the increased economy was good for the country and provided many jobs for the citizens.

The restoration of furniture was more usual than the actual replacement. There was one piece of furniture that was not touched in over several hundred years. It was the mirror in the second floor library. The legend was that if you asked the mirror a question requiring only a “yes” or “no” answer, it would answer your question within the hour.

Each of the Barons who lived in the castle had the mirror and the wall on which it was mounted examined to see that there were no cracks or special molding on it.

The questioner must be a member of the royal family and sit in a chair facing the mirror directly. The lights were to be kept low and the question asked three times. The answer was in the form of a groan that was either a yes or no.

The Baron had enough of this ridiculous mirror and wanted to find out once and for all the basis for the mystery. The mirror again was examined in a university laboratory to see if there was anything about the mirror that was special. The Baron’s chief advisor, Professor Hamblin, formerly of Cambridge University, supervised the investigation.

The Professor reported to the Baron that there was nothing special or unusual about the mirror or the frame or the hook that held it on the wall. The Baron gave up on the investigation.

The one day sometime later, one of the castle staff remembered that after feeding the cats in the castle kitchen, they would seem to disappear into a hole in the wall. The hole in the kitchen wall was right below the room where the mystery mirror was hanging.

The hole led to a favorite resting place for the cats that they had used for centuries. The cats were first brought to the castle to chase the mice away and later became pets of the royal family. Sure enough the yes or no answers to the questions asked of the mirror, were in reality the cats purring or making noises in their sleep where they napped after a full meal behind the wall. The Baron closed the case.