Daily national Democrat., 1861-02-23
A Curious Story.

The following curious story is told by the
distinguished Prof Tholuck, of Halle. who
received it from the lips Of DIR. Dew ette
himself, who was his personal friend:
"Dr. Dew Wette, the famous German Bibli-
cal critic returning home one evening be-
tween nine and ten o'clock, was surprised
upon arriving opposite the house in which
he resided, to see Il bright light burning in
his study. In fact, he remembered to have
eXtuguished the candles when he went out
an hour or two previously, locked the door
and put the key in his pocket, which upon
feeling for it was still there. Pausing for n
moment to wonder for what purpose and by
what means any one had entered the room,
he erceiyed the shadow of a person appar-
emily occupied about something in a remote
corner, Surprising it to be burglar en-
poyed in rilling his trunk, he was on the
point of alarming the police, when man
advanced to the window into fun view, as if
for the purpose Of looking into the street II
Has De JFette hiDtscf!-the scholar, author,
prolessor-his height size, figure, stoop-his
head, his face, his features, eyes, mouth, nose,
chin, every one-skull-cap, study gown,
neck-tie, all, everything; There was no mis-
taking him, no deception whatever There
stood DR.. De Wette in his own Eblary, and
he out in the street-why he must be some
body else! The doctor instinctvely grasped
his body in his hands, and tried himself with
the physiological test of ofself-consciousness and
identity, doubtful if he could believe his SEN
scs and black were not white that he longer
existed his former self and stood perpleXed
bewildercd and coutounded, gazing at his
own likeness looking out of the window
| Upon the persons refining from the window,
which occurred in a few moments, De Wete
resolved not to dispute the possession Of his
study with the other doctor before morning
and ringing at the door of house opposite
where an acquaintance resided he asked per-
mission TO remain over night
The chamber occupied by him command
ed n full view of the interior of his library
and from the window he could see his other
self engaged in study and meditation, now
walking up and down the room, immersed in
thorght now sitting down at the desk to
write; now rising to search for a volume
among the bookshelves and initiating in all
respects the peculiar habits of the great doe
tor engaged at work, and busy With cogita-
tiuns. AT length, when the cathedral clock
had finished striking, first four and then
eleven strokes, rs German clocks are wont TO
do an hour before twelve, De Wettc number
two manifested signs Of retiring to rcst-tool;
out his watch, the identical large gold one
the doctor in the other chamber felt sure was
at that moment safe in his wais;coat pocket,
and wound II up, removing portion Of his
clothing, came to the window, closed the
curtains. and, in a few moments, the light
disappeared. De Wette number one, waiting
a little time convinced that number two had
disposed himself to sleep, retired also TO bed
wondering very much what all this could
mean.
"Rising the next morning, he crossed the
street and passed up stairs to his library. The
door was fastened; he applied the key,
opened it and entered No one was there,
everything appeared in precisely the same
+ condition in which he had left it the evening
beiore--his pen lying on the paper as he had
dropped it on going out, the candles on the
table and the mantle piece, evidently not
having been lighted, the window curtains
drawn aside as he had left them; in fine,
! there was not single trace of any persons
having been in the room. Had he been i'll
sane the night betorcI He must have been.
He was growing old something vas the
matter with his eyes or brain anyhow, hc
had been deceived and ii was foolish in him
to have remained away all night Eudeay-
oring TO satisfy his mind with some such re-
| Elections as these, he remembered he had not
yet examined his bed room. Almost ashamed
TO make the search, now convinced that ii
was hallucination of the senses, be crossed
the narrow passage way and opened the door
He was thunder struck The ceiling, lofty
massive hricl; arch, had fllcn during the
night. filing the room with rubbish and
crushing his bed into atoms De Wcttc, tho
arparition, had saved the life Of the Great
German scholar.
"Tholluck, when relating the ancclote
added upon concluding, 4 do not pretend to
account for the phenomcuon; no knowledge
scientific or metaphysical, in my possession
is adequate to explain it; bu / have no
more doubt it actually, positively, literally
did occur, than have Of the existence Of the
sun III U'mmH da"