The Bedford gazette. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1805-current, 1857-11-13

by little, and the old man not even to dream oil
my secret deeds or thoughts. | fairly chuck
led at the idea. And perhaps the old man
heard me; for hr moved in the bed suddenly, as
If startled. Now you may think that drew
back-but no. His room was as black as pitch
+ with the thick darkness for the shutters were
close fastened through fear of robbers,J and SO
/ | knew that he could not see the opening Of
the door, and + kept on pushing it steadily,
steadily.
| had got my bead in, and was about to open
the lantern, when my thumb slipped upon the
tin fastening, and the old maa, sprang up in bed,
( crying out ''Who's there ?''
| kept quite still and said nothing; for an
hour ! did not move muscle, and iG the mean
time / did not hear the old man lie down. H
was still sitting up in the bed listening just as
[ have done, night after night, hearkening to
4 the death watches in the wall.
Presently heard slight groan, and knew
that it was the groan Of mortal terror. II was
not groan pain or of grief, Oh, no! it was
the low stiAed sound that rises from the bottom
1 of the soul when overcharged with awe. /
knew the sound well. Many a night, Just at
/ midnight, when all the world slept, it has
swelled up from my own bosom, deepening,
with It's dreadful echo, the terrorS that distract
me. ! say knew it well. knew what the
old man felt, and pitIed him, although l chuck
led at heart. | knew that be had been lying
awake ever since the first slight noise, when he
/ had turned in bed. His fears had been ever
since growing upon him. He had been trying
10 fancy them causeesS but could not. He had
been saying 10 himself, alt is nothing bnt the
wind in the chimney; it is only mouse cross
/ ing the floor" or, ''it is merely cricket which
has made a single chirp."
! Yes, he had been trying to comfort himself
with these suppostions but he had found all in
vain because death, in approaching the old
man, had stalked with his black shadow before
him, and the shadow had now reached and en-
veIoped the victim. And it was the moral in-
/ fuence Oft the unperceived shadow that caused
him TO ferl-aithough be neither saw nor heard
/ me-to feel the pressure of my head within the
/ room.
/ When 7 had waited a long time, very pa
ientIy, without hearing the old man lie down,
| resolved to open a little, very, very little
crevce in the lantern So ] opened it-you
cannot imagine how stealthily, stealthily-nn
I til a; length single dim ray, like the thread Of
/ the spider, shot out from the crevlce and fell
upon the vnfure eye.
1t was open, wide, wide open and | grew
furious as | gazed upon it, | saw it with per-
/ feet distinctness-all doll blue, with a hideous
/ veil over it that chilled the very marrow in my
bones but | could see nothing else Of the old
mans face or person, for I had directed the ray,
as if5y instinct, precisely upon the damned
1 spot.
/ And now-have I not told you that what
I you mistake for madness is but over acuteness
! of the senses now, say. there came 10 my ear
a low, doll, quick souud-much such a sound as
a watch makes when envelopod in cotton, /
knew that sound well, too. It was the beating
+ of The old mans heart. It increased my fury,
as the beating of drum stimulates the soldier
| into courage.
/ But even vet I reirained and kept still I
scarcely breathed. held the lantern notion
/ less. I tried how steadily could maintain the
ray upon the eye. Meantime the helish tattoo
ofth heart Increased. It grew quicker and
louder and louder every instant. The old mans
/ terror must have been extreme 1t grew loud
er, say. louder every moment Do you mark
me- well have told Won that | am nervous
+ so | am And at that hour ofthe night and a
mid the dreadful silence ofthat house, so strange
noise as this excited me to uncomfortable
wrath. Yet for some minutes longer refrain
ed and kept still. But the heating grew louder,
louder. l thought the heart must burst
And now a new anxiety seized me, that the
sound would be heard by a neighbor. His last
! hour had come With a loud yell | threw
open the lantern and eaped into the room. He
shrieked once-oniy once in an instant
dragged him to the floor and pulled the heavy
bed over him. then sat upon the bed and
smiled gaiIy to find the deed 50 far done. But
for many minutes the heart beat with muliled
sound. This, however, did not vex me; it
would not be beard through the walls At
length it ceased. The old man was dead.
removed the bed and examined the corpse
Yes, he was stone, stone dead | placed my
hand upon the heart and held it there manv
minutes. There was no pulsaion. The old
man was stone dead. His eye would trouble
me no more.
IF you still think me mad you will think so
no longer when | describe the precautions
A took for the concealment of the body. The
( night waned, and | worked hastily but in ST.
4 Ience. First of all | dsmembered the corpse
/ [ cut of the head, arms and legs. ] then took
up three planks from the flooring of the cham
1 Der, and deposited all between the scantlings
/ | then replaced the boards so cleverlv, SO cum
nIngly, that no human eye-not even his-coud
/ have detected anything wrong. There was no.
thing to wash out-no stain of any knd-no
blood spots whatever. had been TOO wary for
that. tub caught alI-ha ha
When had made an end of these labors it
was four O'Clock, still dark as midnight. As the
bell sounded the hour, there came a knocking at
the street door. went down to open it with
! light heart for what had now to frar? There
entered three men, who introduced themselves
with perfect suavity as officers of the police A