Differences in the Visit to the Notary Hardenbrook's Office
From the shooting script to the finalized film, there are several differences once Ichabod rises "fit for another day" and until Ichabod finds the Evil Eye under his bed. Not all need to be noted. I will keep to those involving Ichabod's summation regarding the Horseman's puppetry and his meeting with Notary Hardenbrook.
As the version found in both The Art of Sleepy Hollow and the novelization is, in my opinion, superior I feel as though the differences should be shared.
Film version:
Ichabod rises slowly from the bed, still recovering from his wound. As Lady Van Tassel exits his room he sees Young Masbeth enter. He has in his hand a pitcher and is walking toward a table with a water basin. "Well, I'm fit for another day I think. Fit enough to face a mortal adversary."
A matter of time has elapsed. Ichabod now crawls about on the floor of his room on all fours, picking up an assortment of loose papers, some of which seem to be from his ledger. Young Masbath sits in a chair beside Ichabod's desk.
"Doctor Lancaster." Ichabod hurriedly places a paper with the doctor's name on a chest. "Reverend Steenwyck." Another paper is placed. He crawls forward, toward Masbath, and taps the boy's shoe so that he may reach a paper under it. "Notary Hardenbrook." Yet another paper is placed beside the other two, followed by a fourth and final one. "And Magistrate Philipse, who tried to cut and run and lost his head." Ichabod rises from his place on the floor to look out the window, deep in thought. "Four frightened men arguing together on the very night Magistrate Philipse was killed." Ichabod moves from the window, pauses, and rubs his hands together. "There is conspiracy here." He walks to his desk and begins to write in his ledger the word conspiracy.
"The doctor, the reverend, the notary, and the magistrate. What is the secret that unites them?" He sets about pacing the room then writes in his ledger two words he just spoke, the secret.
"Magistrate Philipse knew there were five bodies to four graves." We see that Ichabod has written 5 to 4. "He knew the widow was pregnant. He would not tell me the name of the father. " Ichabod goes to the window again, pacing. "What does this point to?" He writes points to. "We must proceed by process of elimination. I shall make a list of every man and woman in Sleepy Hollow. Starting with its chief citizen, Baltus Van Tassel. " He writes Baltus. Ichabod grins. "I feel we're getting very close."
We see that all of the notes Ichabod has written while thinking compose the message, " 5 to 4 the secret conspiracy points to Baltus.
"Yes, I suppose Baltus is the chief citizen now that old Van Garrett is dead," says Young Masbath.
"Yes..." Ichabod utters slowly, still placing pieces together. "The Van Garretts... I'd almost forgotten them."
Ichabod turns suddenly. He opens the Van Tassel family Bible. After studying the page with the family tree, he closes the book, inspired. "Come with me," he instructs Young Masbath.
"Where?"
"To Notary Hardenbrook's."
"Have you thought of something?
"Yes. I have."
The scene changes to that of the town square. The streets are littered with people moving frantically about, attempting to ready themselves against the unknown. Ichabod and Young Masbath ride though.
We now are inside the office of Notary Hardenbrook. Stacks upon stacks of papers litter the desks, floors and tables of the messy room. The lights are low as Ichabod and Young Masbath enter.
Ichabod quickly scans the room. "Hopeless," he remarks before he and Young Masbath begin to search papers among the surface debris.
Young Masbath spots his father's bag on a table. "My father's satchel," he says and walks over to retrieve it.
Ichabod turns, listening. He is standing beside a tall grandfather clock.
"Why is it here?" Masbath asks, taking the satchel into his hands.
At the same moment, Ichabod opens the door to the clock and whimpers in dismay as he meets with Notary Hardenbrook, who was hidden inside.
"Leave me alone!" Hardenbrook pleads, stepping out of the clock.
"Notary Hardenbrook," Ichabod starts.
"Leave me alone!" The Notary repeats.
"Just as soon as you show me the last will and testament of old man Van Garrett!"
"The will leaves everything to his son," Hardenbrook says, sitting on a chair near a desk.
Ichabod stands firm. "Who died with him, so the estate passes to the next of kin."
"Naturally," Hardenbrook agrees. "All legal and above board."
Young Masbath begins searching his father's satchel. "Sir," he says, withdrawing an envelope.
Notary Hardenbrook looks up in surprise. His closed fists move toward his face in worry. "I'm a dead man. Oh no," he moans.
Ichabod takes the paper Young Masbath offers him. He examines the envelope only to find that it has been opened. "Van Garrett's seal - broken!" He unfolds the paper. "Seems Van Garrett made a new will just before he died. Naming . . . Widow Winship?"
Young Masbath withdraws another paper from his father's satchel. "And here, look. A marriage certificate."
"Ah hah," Ichabod mutters, looking over the paper. "Old man Garrett secretly married the widow. He left everything to her and her unborn child. So the new will stood between the Van Garrett fortune and the person who would have otherwise inherited everything."
"It's true," Hardenbrook said. "But we four were drawn in against our will."
"Your will?" Ichabod questions, puzzled.
"He means -" Young Masbath breaks in.
The situation finally dawns on Ichabod. "Of course. The four town elders. Now I see what parts you had to play. Reverend Steenwyck knew the secret because he performed the marriage. Doctor Lancaster attended the pregnant woman. Magistrate Philipse gave protection of the law. And Notary Hardenbrook concealed the documents which had been entrusted by Van Garrett to his faithful servant. The four conspirators drawn into the plot."
Hardenbrook leaves his current chair for another, one not so close to his visitors. "We did not know it was a murdering plot!"
"But I have not finished, sir. First, the Van Garretts, father and son, slain by the Horseman raised from the grave to chop heads. Now up pops a widow with a claim on the fortune - off with her head." Ichabod directs his words to Young Masbath who reacts with shock. "But murder begets murder," Ichabod continues, calmly. "It was the servant, Jonathan Masbath . . . the night father and son quarreled over the new will, Jonathan Masbath was summoned upstairs to bear witness. Here is his signature. I am afraid it was his death warrant, Young Masbath. The Horseman came for him. Came for him at the bidding of someone who had power over him. Someone who dug in the earth in the Western Woods and stole his skull."
Notary Hardenbrook wipes his nose, cowering in his chair.
"The missing head which must be restored to the Horseman before he will return to Hell! Someone who stood to gain or lose a fortune!"
Hardenbrook covers his ears.
"None other than Van Garrett's next of kin, Baltus Van Tassel!"
Novelization:
Young Masbath bustled into the room and began preparing Ichabod's clothes and washing basin.
"Help me," Ichabod said. "I am fit for another day, I think."
"Where are we going?" Young Masbath asked softly.
"To the notary's office."
"Why?"
"Because that is where I expect to find deposited the last will and testament of the elder Van Garrett."
"You have thought of something!" Young Masbath said.
"Of something you said, Young Masbeth: 'The Widow Winship came many a day with a basket of eggs to Van Garrett.'"
The statement had struck Ichabod as incongruous, for a reason he could not fathom - until he remembered words Katrina had told him: "When my father brought us to Sleepy Hollow, Van Garrett set him up with an acre and a broken-down cottage, a dozen of Van Garrett hens."
"Van Garrett, I understand, had hens to spare," Ichabod went on.
The boy's face clouded. Ichabod could see he had caught on - the eggs had been a pretext. The widow had another reason for visiting. She and Van Garrett were in love.
"I begin to see . . ." Ichabod went on. "It was Van Garrett's child that the widow was carrying! And what news have you?"
Young Masbath gestured grimly out the window. "I heard someone leaving last night. Looked like they headed into town, but I lost them in the woods."
A suspect. But to what crime? How did this connect to the Horseman? "You didn't see who?"
"All I saw was the lantern," Young Masbath replied as he fetched a clean shirt for Ichabod. Into the woods. Into the lair of the Horseman at dark, where no one in his right mind would dare to go. Unless...
Unless the person had no reason to fear.
Yes. The pieces were beginning to fall together. "The Horseman does the killing," Ichabod mused aloud as he quickly dressed for the day's work, "but, I believe, at the bidding of a mortal, someone of flesh and blood."
"What makes you say that?" Young Masbath asked.
"The witch - the crone - when I happened upon her corpse, she lay in a pool of blood. Blood poured hard from her neck. The wound was not cauterized!
"Then . . . she was not killed by the Hessian. Someone only tried to make it seem so."
Ichabod nodded. "It was the settling of a private score. But the Horseman cuts heads to a different drum. The crone pointed us to what drives the Hessian - his skull was stolen from his grave. The person who stole it has power over him. Here is why the Headless One has returned through the fate of the Tree of the Dead - he chops heads until his own is returned to him!"
"But what person-"
"A person who stands to gain by these murders."
***
The banging of hammers and the smell of sawdust greeted Ichabod and Young Masbath as they rode into town. In house after house, men boarded up windows. Occasionally, upon seeing Ichabod, they spoke in hushed tones and glowered angrily.
A crowd stood in front of the general store. Inside, people handed them provisions to be conveyed hand over hand to nearby wheelbarrows, which others then pushed toward the church.
Not far from there stood Notary Hardenbrook's office. Ichabod and Young Masbath dismounted and tied their horses to the post. They watched the stream of townspeople heading toward the old church, jamming the gate of the wrought-iron fence that surrounded it. On the grounds, a group worked to erect large wooden crosses.
"Sanctuary," Ichabod remarked. "Or so they hope."
Reverend Steenwyck's strident voice cut through the bustle. He stood on a crate in front of the church, pointing to Ichabod. "There he is! There! The desecrator of Christian burial! Twice he met the Horseman and kept his head! How is it so? The devil protects his own!"
A thick clot of dirt smacked against Ichabod's shoulder. He grabbed Young Masbath and rushed into Hardenbrook's office.
The old man barely looked up as they entered. Every inch of the room was crammed with papers, as if not one sheet had ever been moved since the day he opened business. The place smelled of ink, mildew, and neglect.
"I take it, Mr. Hardenbrook," Ichabod said, preparing for a fight, "that wills and testaments are held here on public record?"
Hardenbrook sullenly handed him a legal document. "I believe this is what you wish to see. Take it and go!"
Ichabod was stunned. Hardenbrook had given up easily. Why? As he carefully perused the yellowed sheet, Ichabod could not stop his fingers from trembling, The heading was set in clear, plain type:
LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT
PETER VAN GARRETT
"Van Garrett Senior left his estate to his next of kin," Hardenbrook explained, "that is to say, to his only son. However, the son being murdered in the same instant."
"The next of kin after the son would be the eldest of the line from Van Garrett's father's sister," Ichabod deduced, the line of succession instantly becoming clear. "None other than Baltus Van Tassel, something no one else thought to mention!"
Baltus. It didn't seem possible.
"Well, you have found your way to it," Hardenbrook snapped, "and I hope you will leave now, before my windows are broken."
"I am not ready to leave," Ichabod declared.
Hardenbrook let out a moan.
"A brick though your window is not what puts you in terror, Hardenbrook. There is something else. I saw your fear - and Steenwyck's and the doctor's - when you met at Philipse's house. Philipse paid with his head, and you fear for your own.
"It's true!" Hardenbrook shouted. "But we did not know it was a murdering plot when we were drawn in!"
"Drawn in by whom?" Ichabod pressed.
Hardenbrook sagged in his seat, wringing his hands. "Mercy upon me . . . we meant no harm to come to her . . ."
"No harm to come to whom?"
"But the marriage made her next of kin . . ."
"Made who next of kin to whom? I'm confused."
"He means," Young Masbath spoke up, "that old Van Garrett secretly married the Widow Winship."
It all made sense now. The widow was Van Garett's wife. She would inherit the estate.
"Of course!" Ichabod said. "And Van Garrett must have made a new will, leaving everything to her - so she stood between Baltus and the legacy! Where is the new will?"
"I cannot be seen to help you," Hardenbrook pleaded. "The Horseman will come to me!"
"I will not leave without the very last will and testament of -"
Hardenbrook abruptly tore into a pile of papers, tossing the top sheets into the air. Papers flew at Ichabod's feet as the old man dug deeper and deeper until finally he flung another will at Ichabod. "Go, then! I am a dead man."
Hardenbrook's features seemed to sink inward. He buried his face, sobbing uncontrollably.
"Sir?" Young Masbath said.
Ichabod scanned the paper quickly. An unexpected signature at the bottom made his heart drop: Jonathan Masbath.
"Young Masbath . . ." Ichabod said slowly, a new and painful detail revealing itself. "I know why your father died. That night when Van Garrett quarreled with his son, Jonathan Masbeth was summoned upstairs to witness the new will. Here is your father's signature. It was his death warrant."
Young Masbath took the sheet. His eyes welled up as he looked at the familiar script.
Looking down, Ichabod spotted another set of names, on a sheet near his left shoe. He stooped to pick it up and scanned the text. "The marriage certificate! Parson Steenwyck married Van Garrett and Widow Winship."
It was all falling into place now. A little logic revealed how the other men fit in.
"Dr. Lancaster confirmed the widow was pregnant," Ichabod said. "She told the secret to Magistrate Philipse. Notary Hardenbrook concealed the documents - and you all kept silence! Why? For some nameless dread of the man who stood to gain by it - Baltus Van Tassel!"
The Art of Sleepy Hollow:
Young Masbath enters as Lady Van Tassel goes out.
Ichabod looks at his palms, which are stained with dried blood.
ICHABOD
Help me. I am fit for another day, I think.
The scene incorporates Young Masbath pouring water for Ichabod to wash himself, and helping him into his clothes.
YOUNG MASBATH
Where are we going?
ICHABOD
To the Notary's office.
YOUNG MASBATH
Why?
ICHABOD
Because that is where I expect to find deposited . . . the last will and testament of the elder Van Garrett . . .
YOUNG MASBATH
You have thought of something?
ICHABOD
. . . of something you said, Young Masbath . . . The Widow Winship came many a day with a basket of eggs to Van Garrett . . . who I understand had hens to spare . . . I begin to see. It was Van Garrett's child that the widow was carrying. And what news have you?
YOUNG MASBATH
I heard someone leaving last night. Looked like they headed to town, but I lost them in the woods.
ICHABOD
You didn't see who?
YOUNG MASBATH
All I saw was their lantern.
Ichabod ponders, troubled, as Masbath brings him a shirt.
ICHABOD
The Horseman does the killing but, I believe, at the bidding of a mortal, someone of flesh and blood.
YOUNG MASBATH
What . . . ? What makes you say that?
ICHABOD
The witch . . . The crone, when I happened upon her corpse, she lay in a pool of blood. Blood poured hard from her neck. The wound was not cauterized.
YOUNG MASBATH
Then, she was not killed by the Hessian. Someone only tried to make it seem so.
ICHABOD
(nods)
It was the settling of a private score. But the Horseman cuts heads to a different drum. The crone pointed us to what drives the Hessian- his skull has been stolen from his grave. The person who stole it has power over the Hessian. Here is why the Headless One has returned through the gate of the Tree of the Dead. He chops heads until his own is restored to him.
YOUNG MASBATH
But what person . . . ?
ICHABOD:
A person who stands to gain by these murders.
120. EXT. TOWN SQUARE. CHURCH - DAY
WAGONS, HORSES, and TOWNSPEOPLE swarm. A CROWD empties the town's general store. Provisions are passed along, man to man, and loaded onto wheelbarrows.
Ichabod and Young Masbath ride, passing MANY ANGRY FACES.
All up and down the long straight road, home owners board up windows with lumber.
Ichabod and Young Masbath stop, tying their horses in front of the "Notary." Ichabod looks off . . .
DOWN THE ROAD, people head to the CHURCH. Much activity . . .
ICHABOD
Sanctuary. Or so they hope.
People carry supplies into the church, within the bordering WROUGHT-IRON FENCE. Others work to build and erect massive WOODEN CROSSES.
In the crowd here, Reverend Steenwyck spots Ichabod and Young Masbath, pushes past people, shouting . . .
STEENWYCK
There he is! There . . . !
People begin to pay attention to Steenwyck as he climbs atop a crate, pointing to Ichabod . . .
STEENWYCK (CONT'D)
(to everyone)
The desecrater of Christian burial!
Twice he met the Horseman, and kept his head! How is it so . . .?
At THE NOTARY, Ichabod tries to ignore, heads inside, as a clod of earth hits him in the shoulder.
IN THE CHURCHYARD, Steenwyck continues his rant.
STEENWYCK
The Devil protects his own.
121. INT. NOTARY PUBLIC. HARDENBROOK'S OFFICES - DAY
A small, untidy room with piles of dusty documents in great disorder. The Notary Hardenbrook looks at Ichabod with his one good eye. Young Masbath stands near.
ICHABOD
I take it, Mr. Hardenbrook, that wills and testaments are held here on public record?
Hardenbrook is in a funk, trying to act calm. He passes a document across the desk.
HARDENBROOK
I believe this is what you wish to see. Take it and go!
Ichabod scans the will of Peter Van Garrett.
HARDENBROOK (CONT'D)
Van Garrett Senior left his estate to his next of kin, that is to say, to his only son. However, the son being murdered in the same instant . . .
ICHABOD
The next of kin after the son would the eldest of the line from Van Garrett's father's sister . . . none other than Baltus Van Tassel: something no one else thought to mention!
HARDENBROOK
Well, you have found your way to it, and I hope you will leave now before my windows are broken.
The crowd murmurs outside like angry bees. Ichabod flourishes the will.
ICHABOD
I am not ready to leave.
Hardenbrook starts moaning and wringing his hands.
ICHABOD (CONT'D)
A brick through your window is not what puts you in terror, Hardenbrook . . . there is something else . . . I saw your fear, and Steenwyck's and the doctor's, when you met at Philipse's house . . . Philipse paid with his head, and you fear for your own.
HARDENBROOK
Yes, it's true! - but we did not know it was a murdering plot when we were drawn in!
ICHABOD
Drawn in by whom?
HARDENBROOK
Mercy upon me! - We meant no harm to come to her!
ICHABOD
No hard to come to whom?
HARDENBROOK
(babbling)
But the marriage made her next of kin . . .
ICHABOD
Made who next of kin to whom?!- I'm confused!
YOUNG MASBATH
He means old Van Garrett secretly married the Widow Winship.
ICHABOD
(getting it)
Of course! And Van Garrett made a new will, leaving everything to her and his unborn child . . . So she stood between Baltus and the legacy! Where is the will?
HARDENBROOK
I cannot be seen to help you - the Horseman will come for me -!
ICHABOD
I will not leave without the very last will and testament of -
Hardenbrook digs into a mountain of documents, hurling handfuls into the air . . . and flings the second will at Ichabod. Young Masbath nervously checks the door.
HARDENBROOK
Go then! I am a dead man!
He starts to sob.
YOUNG MASBATH
Sir . . .
ICHABOD
(reading)
Young Masbath . . . I know why your father died. That night when Van Garret quarreled with his son, Jonathan Masbath was summoned upstairs to witness the new Will. Here is your father's signature. It was his death warrant.
Young Masbath takes the document and looks at it tearfully.
ICHABOD (CONT'D)
But the secret was not safe. Mrs. Killian the midwife was forewarned the baby was coming - and so she, too, had to die.
One of the other hurled documents has fluttered down fortuitously in front of Ichabod. He picks it up.
ICHABOD (CONT'D)
The marriage certificate. Parson Steenwyck married them. Doctor Lancaster confirmed the widow was pregnant. She told the secret to Magistrate Philipse. Notary Hardenbrook concealed the documents . . .
Hardenbrook snivels and moans and wrings his hands.
ICHABOD (CONT'D)
And you all kept silence! Why? . . . For some nameless dread of a man who stood to gain by it - Baltus Van Tassel!
Alternate take found on an Inkworks Trading Card:
In a scene kept in the film Ichabod and Young Masbath arrive in town during chaos. The townspeople are panicking, storing provisions in the nearby church. Reverend Steenwyck can be seen in the distance, surrounded by a listening crowd.
Ichabod and Young Masbath enter the Notary's Offices in a hurry, looking over their shoulders at the raging crowd.
A deleted scene of Ichabod and Young Masbath entering the Notary's Office:
https://www.gettyimages.com/
Official comic book version:
As the version found in both The Art of Sleepy Hollow and the novelization is, in my opinion, superior I feel as though the differences should be shared.
Film version:
Ichabod rises slowly from the bed, still recovering from his wound. As Lady Van Tassel exits his room he sees Young Masbeth enter. He has in his hand a pitcher and is walking toward a table with a water basin. "Well, I'm fit for another day I think. Fit enough to face a mortal adversary."
A matter of time has elapsed. Ichabod now crawls about on the floor of his room on all fours, picking up an assortment of loose papers, some of which seem to be from his ledger. Young Masbath sits in a chair beside Ichabod's desk.
"Doctor Lancaster." Ichabod hurriedly places a paper with the doctor's name on a chest. "Reverend Steenwyck." Another paper is placed. He crawls forward, toward Masbath, and taps the boy's shoe so that he may reach a paper under it. "Notary Hardenbrook." Yet another paper is placed beside the other two, followed by a fourth and final one. "And Magistrate Philipse, who tried to cut and run and lost his head." Ichabod rises from his place on the floor to look out the window, deep in thought. "Four frightened men arguing together on the very night Magistrate Philipse was killed." Ichabod moves from the window, pauses, and rubs his hands together. "There is conspiracy here." He walks to his desk and begins to write in his ledger the word conspiracy.
"The doctor, the reverend, the notary, and the magistrate. What is the secret that unites them?" He sets about pacing the room then writes in his ledger two words he just spoke, the secret.
"Magistrate Philipse knew there were five bodies to four graves." We see that Ichabod has written 5 to 4. "He knew the widow was pregnant. He would not tell me the name of the father. " Ichabod goes to the window again, pacing. "What does this point to?" He writes points to. "We must proceed by process of elimination. I shall make a list of every man and woman in Sleepy Hollow. Starting with its chief citizen, Baltus Van Tassel. " He writes Baltus. Ichabod grins. "I feel we're getting very close."
We see that all of the notes Ichabod has written while thinking compose the message, " 5 to 4 the secret conspiracy points to Baltus.
"Yes, I suppose Baltus is the chief citizen now that old Van Garrett is dead," says Young Masbath.
"Yes..." Ichabod utters slowly, still placing pieces together. "The Van Garretts... I'd almost forgotten them."
Ichabod turns suddenly. He opens the Van Tassel family Bible. After studying the page with the family tree, he closes the book, inspired. "Come with me," he instructs Young Masbath.
"Where?"
"To Notary Hardenbrook's."
"Have you thought of something?
"Yes. I have."
The scene changes to that of the town square. The streets are littered with people moving frantically about, attempting to ready themselves against the unknown. Ichabod and Young Masbath ride though.
We now are inside the office of Notary Hardenbrook. Stacks upon stacks of papers litter the desks, floors and tables of the messy room. The lights are low as Ichabod and Young Masbath enter.
Ichabod quickly scans the room. "Hopeless," he remarks before he and Young Masbath begin to search papers among the surface debris.
Young Masbath spots his father's bag on a table. "My father's satchel," he says and walks over to retrieve it.
Ichabod turns, listening. He is standing beside a tall grandfather clock.
"Why is it here?" Masbath asks, taking the satchel into his hands.
At the same moment, Ichabod opens the door to the clock and whimpers in dismay as he meets with Notary Hardenbrook, who was hidden inside.
"Leave me alone!" Hardenbrook pleads, stepping out of the clock.
"Notary Hardenbrook," Ichabod starts.
"Leave me alone!" The Notary repeats.
"Just as soon as you show me the last will and testament of old man Van Garrett!"
"The will leaves everything to his son," Hardenbrook says, sitting on a chair near a desk.
Ichabod stands firm. "Who died with him, so the estate passes to the next of kin."
"Naturally," Hardenbrook agrees. "All legal and above board."
Young Masbath begins searching his father's satchel. "Sir," he says, withdrawing an envelope.
Notary Hardenbrook looks up in surprise. His closed fists move toward his face in worry. "I'm a dead man. Oh no," he moans.
Ichabod takes the paper Young Masbath offers him. He examines the envelope only to find that it has been opened. "Van Garrett's seal - broken!" He unfolds the paper. "Seems Van Garrett made a new will just before he died. Naming . . . Widow Winship?"
Young Masbath withdraws another paper from his father's satchel. "And here, look. A marriage certificate."
"Ah hah," Ichabod mutters, looking over the paper. "Old man Garrett secretly married the widow. He left everything to her and her unborn child. So the new will stood between the Van Garrett fortune and the person who would have otherwise inherited everything."
"It's true," Hardenbrook said. "But we four were drawn in against our will."
"Your will?" Ichabod questions, puzzled.
"He means -" Young Masbath breaks in.
The situation finally dawns on Ichabod. "Of course. The four town elders. Now I see what parts you had to play. Reverend Steenwyck knew the secret because he performed the marriage. Doctor Lancaster attended the pregnant woman. Magistrate Philipse gave protection of the law. And Notary Hardenbrook concealed the documents which had been entrusted by Van Garrett to his faithful servant. The four conspirators drawn into the plot."
Hardenbrook leaves his current chair for another, one not so close to his visitors. "We did not know it was a murdering plot!"
"But I have not finished, sir. First, the Van Garretts, father and son, slain by the Horseman raised from the grave to chop heads. Now up pops a widow with a claim on the fortune - off with her head." Ichabod directs his words to Young Masbath who reacts with shock. "But murder begets murder," Ichabod continues, calmly. "It was the servant, Jonathan Masbath . . . the night father and son quarreled over the new will, Jonathan Masbath was summoned upstairs to bear witness. Here is his signature. I am afraid it was his death warrant, Young Masbath. The Horseman came for him. Came for him at the bidding of someone who had power over him. Someone who dug in the earth in the Western Woods and stole his skull."
Notary Hardenbrook wipes his nose, cowering in his chair.
"The missing head which must be restored to the Horseman before he will return to Hell! Someone who stood to gain or lose a fortune!"
Hardenbrook covers his ears.
"None other than Van Garrett's next of kin, Baltus Van Tassel!"
Novelization:
Young Masbath bustled into the room and began preparing Ichabod's clothes and washing basin.
"Help me," Ichabod said. "I am fit for another day, I think."
"Where are we going?" Young Masbath asked softly.
"To the notary's office."
"Why?"
"Because that is where I expect to find deposited the last will and testament of the elder Van Garrett."
"You have thought of something!" Young Masbath said.
"Of something you said, Young Masbeth: 'The Widow Winship came many a day with a basket of eggs to Van Garrett.'"
The statement had struck Ichabod as incongruous, for a reason he could not fathom - until he remembered words Katrina had told him: "When my father brought us to Sleepy Hollow, Van Garrett set him up with an acre and a broken-down cottage, a dozen of Van Garrett hens."
"Van Garrett, I understand, had hens to spare," Ichabod went on.
The boy's face clouded. Ichabod could see he had caught on - the eggs had been a pretext. The widow had another reason for visiting. She and Van Garrett were in love.
"I begin to see . . ." Ichabod went on. "It was Van Garrett's child that the widow was carrying! And what news have you?"
Young Masbath gestured grimly out the window. "I heard someone leaving last night. Looked like they headed into town, but I lost them in the woods."
A suspect. But to what crime? How did this connect to the Horseman? "You didn't see who?"
"All I saw was the lantern," Young Masbath replied as he fetched a clean shirt for Ichabod. Into the woods. Into the lair of the Horseman at dark, where no one in his right mind would dare to go. Unless...
Unless the person had no reason to fear.
Yes. The pieces were beginning to fall together. "The Horseman does the killing," Ichabod mused aloud as he quickly dressed for the day's work, "but, I believe, at the bidding of a mortal, someone of flesh and blood."
"What makes you say that?" Young Masbath asked.
"The witch - the crone - when I happened upon her corpse, she lay in a pool of blood. Blood poured hard from her neck. The wound was not cauterized!
"Then . . . she was not killed by the Hessian. Someone only tried to make it seem so."
Ichabod nodded. "It was the settling of a private score. But the Horseman cuts heads to a different drum. The crone pointed us to what drives the Hessian - his skull was stolen from his grave. The person who stole it has power over him. Here is why the Headless One has returned through the fate of the Tree of the Dead - he chops heads until his own is returned to him!"
"But what person-"
"A person who stands to gain by these murders."
***
The banging of hammers and the smell of sawdust greeted Ichabod and Young Masbath as they rode into town. In house after house, men boarded up windows. Occasionally, upon seeing Ichabod, they spoke in hushed tones and glowered angrily.
A crowd stood in front of the general store. Inside, people handed them provisions to be conveyed hand over hand to nearby wheelbarrows, which others then pushed toward the church.
Not far from there stood Notary Hardenbrook's office. Ichabod and Young Masbath dismounted and tied their horses to the post. They watched the stream of townspeople heading toward the old church, jamming the gate of the wrought-iron fence that surrounded it. On the grounds, a group worked to erect large wooden crosses.
"Sanctuary," Ichabod remarked. "Or so they hope."
Reverend Steenwyck's strident voice cut through the bustle. He stood on a crate in front of the church, pointing to Ichabod. "There he is! There! The desecrator of Christian burial! Twice he met the Horseman and kept his head! How is it so? The devil protects his own!"
A thick clot of dirt smacked against Ichabod's shoulder. He grabbed Young Masbath and rushed into Hardenbrook's office.
The old man barely looked up as they entered. Every inch of the room was crammed with papers, as if not one sheet had ever been moved since the day he opened business. The place smelled of ink, mildew, and neglect.
"I take it, Mr. Hardenbrook," Ichabod said, preparing for a fight, "that wills and testaments are held here on public record?"
Hardenbrook sullenly handed him a legal document. "I believe this is what you wish to see. Take it and go!"
Ichabod was stunned. Hardenbrook had given up easily. Why? As he carefully perused the yellowed sheet, Ichabod could not stop his fingers from trembling, The heading was set in clear, plain type:
LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT
PETER VAN GARRETT
"Van Garrett Senior left his estate to his next of kin," Hardenbrook explained, "that is to say, to his only son. However, the son being murdered in the same instant."
"The next of kin after the son would be the eldest of the line from Van Garrett's father's sister," Ichabod deduced, the line of succession instantly becoming clear. "None other than Baltus Van Tassel, something no one else thought to mention!"
Baltus. It didn't seem possible.
"Well, you have found your way to it," Hardenbrook snapped, "and I hope you will leave now, before my windows are broken."
"I am not ready to leave," Ichabod declared.
Hardenbrook let out a moan.
"A brick though your window is not what puts you in terror, Hardenbrook. There is something else. I saw your fear - and Steenwyck's and the doctor's - when you met at Philipse's house. Philipse paid with his head, and you fear for your own.
"It's true!" Hardenbrook shouted. "But we did not know it was a murdering plot when we were drawn in!"
"Drawn in by whom?" Ichabod pressed.
Hardenbrook sagged in his seat, wringing his hands. "Mercy upon me . . . we meant no harm to come to her . . ."
"No harm to come to whom?"
"But the marriage made her next of kin . . ."
"Made who next of kin to whom? I'm confused."
"He means," Young Masbath spoke up, "that old Van Garrett secretly married the Widow Winship."
It all made sense now. The widow was Van Garett's wife. She would inherit the estate.
"Of course!" Ichabod said. "And Van Garrett must have made a new will, leaving everything to her - so she stood between Baltus and the legacy! Where is the new will?"
"I cannot be seen to help you," Hardenbrook pleaded. "The Horseman will come to me!"
"I will not leave without the very last will and testament of -"
Hardenbrook abruptly tore into a pile of papers, tossing the top sheets into the air. Papers flew at Ichabod's feet as the old man dug deeper and deeper until finally he flung another will at Ichabod. "Go, then! I am a dead man."
Hardenbrook's features seemed to sink inward. He buried his face, sobbing uncontrollably.
"Sir?" Young Masbath said.
Ichabod scanned the paper quickly. An unexpected signature at the bottom made his heart drop: Jonathan Masbath.
"Young Masbath . . ." Ichabod said slowly, a new and painful detail revealing itself. "I know why your father died. That night when Van Garrett quarreled with his son, Jonathan Masbeth was summoned upstairs to witness the new will. Here is your father's signature. It was his death warrant."
Young Masbath took the sheet. His eyes welled up as he looked at the familiar script.
Looking down, Ichabod spotted another set of names, on a sheet near his left shoe. He stooped to pick it up and scanned the text. "The marriage certificate! Parson Steenwyck married Van Garrett and Widow Winship."
It was all falling into place now. A little logic revealed how the other men fit in.
"Dr. Lancaster confirmed the widow was pregnant," Ichabod said. "She told the secret to Magistrate Philipse. Notary Hardenbrook concealed the documents - and you all kept silence! Why? For some nameless dread of the man who stood to gain by it - Baltus Van Tassel!"
The Art of Sleepy Hollow:
Young Masbath enters as Lady Van Tassel goes out.
Ichabod looks at his palms, which are stained with dried blood.
ICHABOD
Help me. I am fit for another day, I think.
The scene incorporates Young Masbath pouring water for Ichabod to wash himself, and helping him into his clothes.
YOUNG MASBATH
Where are we going?
ICHABOD
To the Notary's office.
YOUNG MASBATH
Why?
ICHABOD
Because that is where I expect to find deposited . . . the last will and testament of the elder Van Garrett . . .
YOUNG MASBATH
You have thought of something?
ICHABOD
. . . of something you said, Young Masbath . . . The Widow Winship came many a day with a basket of eggs to Van Garrett . . . who I understand had hens to spare . . . I begin to see. It was Van Garrett's child that the widow was carrying. And what news have you?
YOUNG MASBATH
I heard someone leaving last night. Looked like they headed to town, but I lost them in the woods.
ICHABOD
You didn't see who?
YOUNG MASBATH
All I saw was their lantern.
Ichabod ponders, troubled, as Masbath brings him a shirt.
ICHABOD
The Horseman does the killing but, I believe, at the bidding of a mortal, someone of flesh and blood.
YOUNG MASBATH
What . . . ? What makes you say that?
ICHABOD
The witch . . . The crone, when I happened upon her corpse, she lay in a pool of blood. Blood poured hard from her neck. The wound was not cauterized.
YOUNG MASBATH
Then, she was not killed by the Hessian. Someone only tried to make it seem so.
ICHABOD
(nods)
It was the settling of a private score. But the Horseman cuts heads to a different drum. The crone pointed us to what drives the Hessian- his skull has been stolen from his grave. The person who stole it has power over the Hessian. Here is why the Headless One has returned through the gate of the Tree of the Dead. He chops heads until his own is restored to him.
YOUNG MASBATH
But what person . . . ?
ICHABOD:
A person who stands to gain by these murders.
120. EXT. TOWN SQUARE. CHURCH - DAY
WAGONS, HORSES, and TOWNSPEOPLE swarm. A CROWD empties the town's general store. Provisions are passed along, man to man, and loaded onto wheelbarrows.
Ichabod and Young Masbath ride, passing MANY ANGRY FACES.
All up and down the long straight road, home owners board up windows with lumber.
Ichabod and Young Masbath stop, tying their horses in front of the "Notary." Ichabod looks off . . .
DOWN THE ROAD, people head to the CHURCH. Much activity . . .
ICHABOD
Sanctuary. Or so they hope.
People carry supplies into the church, within the bordering WROUGHT-IRON FENCE. Others work to build and erect massive WOODEN CROSSES.
In the crowd here, Reverend Steenwyck spots Ichabod and Young Masbath, pushes past people, shouting . . .
STEENWYCK
There he is! There . . . !
People begin to pay attention to Steenwyck as he climbs atop a crate, pointing to Ichabod . . .
STEENWYCK (CONT'D)
(to everyone)
The desecrater of Christian burial!
Twice he met the Horseman, and kept his head! How is it so . . .?
At THE NOTARY, Ichabod tries to ignore, heads inside, as a clod of earth hits him in the shoulder.
IN THE CHURCHYARD, Steenwyck continues his rant.
STEENWYCK
The Devil protects his own.
121. INT. NOTARY PUBLIC. HARDENBROOK'S OFFICES - DAY
A small, untidy room with piles of dusty documents in great disorder. The Notary Hardenbrook looks at Ichabod with his one good eye. Young Masbath stands near.
ICHABOD
I take it, Mr. Hardenbrook, that wills and testaments are held here on public record?
Hardenbrook is in a funk, trying to act calm. He passes a document across the desk.
HARDENBROOK
I believe this is what you wish to see. Take it and go!
Ichabod scans the will of Peter Van Garrett.
HARDENBROOK (CONT'D)
Van Garrett Senior left his estate to his next of kin, that is to say, to his only son. However, the son being murdered in the same instant . . .
ICHABOD
The next of kin after the son would the eldest of the line from Van Garrett's father's sister . . . none other than Baltus Van Tassel: something no one else thought to mention!
HARDENBROOK
Well, you have found your way to it, and I hope you will leave now before my windows are broken.
The crowd murmurs outside like angry bees. Ichabod flourishes the will.
ICHABOD
I am not ready to leave.
Hardenbrook starts moaning and wringing his hands.
ICHABOD (CONT'D)
A brick through your window is not what puts you in terror, Hardenbrook . . . there is something else . . . I saw your fear, and Steenwyck's and the doctor's, when you met at Philipse's house . . . Philipse paid with his head, and you fear for your own.
HARDENBROOK
Yes, it's true! - but we did not know it was a murdering plot when we were drawn in!
ICHABOD
Drawn in by whom?
HARDENBROOK
Mercy upon me! - We meant no harm to come to her!
ICHABOD
No hard to come to whom?
HARDENBROOK
(babbling)
But the marriage made her next of kin . . .
ICHABOD
Made who next of kin to whom?!- I'm confused!
YOUNG MASBATH
He means old Van Garrett secretly married the Widow Winship.
ICHABOD
(getting it)
Of course! And Van Garrett made a new will, leaving everything to her and his unborn child . . . So she stood between Baltus and the legacy! Where is the will?
HARDENBROOK
I cannot be seen to help you - the Horseman will come for me -!
ICHABOD
I will not leave without the very last will and testament of -
Hardenbrook digs into a mountain of documents, hurling handfuls into the air . . . and flings the second will at Ichabod. Young Masbath nervously checks the door.
HARDENBROOK
Go then! I am a dead man!
He starts to sob.
YOUNG MASBATH
Sir . . .
ICHABOD
(reading)
Young Masbath . . . I know why your father died. That night when Van Garret quarreled with his son, Jonathan Masbath was summoned upstairs to witness the new Will. Here is your father's signature. It was his death warrant.
Young Masbath takes the document and looks at it tearfully.
ICHABOD (CONT'D)
But the secret was not safe. Mrs. Killian the midwife was forewarned the baby was coming - and so she, too, had to die.
One of the other hurled documents has fluttered down fortuitously in front of Ichabod. He picks it up.
ICHABOD (CONT'D)
The marriage certificate. Parson Steenwyck married them. Doctor Lancaster confirmed the widow was pregnant. She told the secret to Magistrate Philipse. Notary Hardenbrook concealed the documents . . .
Hardenbrook snivels and moans and wrings his hands.
ICHABOD (CONT'D)
And you all kept silence! Why? . . . For some nameless dread of a man who stood to gain by it - Baltus Van Tassel!
Alternate take found on an Inkworks Trading Card:
In a scene kept in the film Ichabod and Young Masbath arrive in town during chaos. The townspeople are panicking, storing provisions in the nearby church. Reverend Steenwyck can be seen in the distance, surrounded by a listening crowd.
Ichabod and Young Masbath enter the Notary's Offices in a hurry, looking over their shoulders at the raging crowd.
A deleted scene of Ichabod and Young Masbath entering the Notary's Office:
https://www.gettyimages.com/
Official comic book version:
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