old Fireplace

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

Castles historically are uncomfortable places to visit in the winter unless the fireplaces are lit to create warmth.

The Baron went out of his way to make certain that ll of his guests at the castle were warm and comfortable during the cold winter months.

All the castle guest rooms were kept warm except one. It seemed that the fire in the fireplace went out sooner than the fireplaces in the other guest rooms. Thus, the room had developed the reputation of being the coldest guest room in the castle.

Some believed the room was so cold because of the rumor that was began many years ago that a young female overnight guest disappeared and was never seen again. But that was not a true story because she had secretly eloped with another guest. The elopement was planned many months before she stayed at the castle. The happy couple were married and lived in England.

Professor Hamblin, the Baron’s chief advisor, was asked to investigate to see why the fireplace in the room was so cold.

The Professor looked at some old plans of the castle and found that the fireplace in question was directly below a bathroom. The plumbing was old in the bathroom and when the water was turned on it would drip onto the fire in the fireplace and put it out too soon.

The plumbing was fixed and the drip stopped and the cold fireplace soon began to keep the room as warm as the other rooms in the castle.

The Baron thanked the Professor for his investigation and wondered why the story of the disappearing woman was repeated so often when it was really just a plan to elope and marry. The mystery was not really a mystery after all when the cause was discovered and fixed.