Go to the library and rent all books on " The granter of secrets and Rigor vitae " that mention them even vaguely. Read them when I get home."
((This is not a simple task in the 1920's long before computerized keyword searches. You've got lists of books by title, author and category, that's it.))
"Rigor Vitae" does not appear in the card catalog.
"Granter of Secrets" is similarly disappointing.
The individual words turn up nothing that looks likely to be relevant.
Some general books on religion and the occult might help. You check out a few.
Latin phrases are a dime a dozen in this subject, but you don't see "Rigor Vitae" specifically. The Granter of Secrets is difficult to pin down. Stories of gods, demons and otherworldly beings imparting knowledge are quite common from Prometheus onward. It's possible that Corbitt invented it as a descriptive title for the thing he claims to have contacted. It isn't necessarily a widespread term for a specific being.
It's now late in the day and begining to get dark.
((You do have one volume of diary left btw, it was a 3 book set.))
"Hmm, I wonder."
Look up any information about Andrew Webber and Walter Corbitt.
You find an obituary for Webber dated 1848, he apparently was cared for by his children after he fell ill and lived with them for some time after he was forced to sell his house.
You also find another story mentioning Corbitt:
Find a place for Cheddar to stay the day in safety and head back to the house.
((I don't really think I'm going to find out anything outside of it, but I want Cheddar out of the line of fire.))
The friendly grocer, by the name of Jim Eardley, who was nice enough to feed Cheddar, agrees to let you leave him in his back room. He says he closes at 7:30 so he hopes you'll pick him up before then or wait till morning.
You then walk back to 20 Copp's Hill. There's little activity in the neighborhood. Most of the old homes that once stood here now replaced with modern office buildings, which themselves have an empty look about them, as if they too will soon have to be replaced. Occasionally an old building hasn't been replaced at all but instead lies in ruins. An ancient newspaper vendor tending his stall is one of the few people you see. Apparently either there is occasional traffic from the office workers or he's too old and set in his ways to move. It's a rather depressing neighborhood. Even the modern parts of it have an air of ancient decay.
It's late afternoon, but you have a fair amount of light left.
Look up information on the LeDeux family - dates of birth and death, with details on the latter. They seemed to have owned the house for quite a long time. If nothing interesting is unearthed, seek information on the other owners, like Mr. Jones, for instance.
You find records of the death of Mr and Mrs LeDeux, both from about 1890 and listed as "death by misadventure."
Neither of them appears to have local birth records, so they were apparently immigrants to the city, or perhaps the country.
There do not seem to be any death notices for any Jones associated with that address in the general time period. Though you do find mention of a son born to a Mr and Mrs Jones living at 20 Copp's hill in 1910.
It's getting on toward evening and the staff is looking like they want to close.