The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1864-03-19

| lSss IKE man cut In bronze. at length
the cisck struck nine l had BY thi
uE:e become SO nervous that alnes
/ dreaded to hear my own voice intSrrup,
the silence. :, However, | pushed BY
plate noisely aside. and said, with as muci
show Of ease as | could muster:
"Have you any place. friend, in which
can sleep to nightY'
! He shifted his position tneasily, and
without looking round, replied in the same
form OF words as before:
Yes; you can sleep, traveller
Where, in the loft aboye?'
He nodded affirmatively, took the Ian
tern from the table, and turned toward,
the dairy. As We passed, the light stream
ea fora mement over the creuching figure
rs your wife i'll r asked pausing and
locking back.
His eyes met mine for the first time
and a shudder passed over his body.
es, he said, with an effort "Shs is
i'll. 80
was about to ask what allied her, but
something ia his face arrested the question
on my lips l know not to this hour,
what that something was l could not
define it then; l cannot describe it now
but hope l may never see it in a living
face again.
l followed him to the fost of the ladder
at the further end of the dairy.
Up there, he said, placed the lantern
in my hand, and strobe heavily back into
the darkness.
went up, and found nsyssIf in a long
low sranaryi stored with corn sacks, lav.
onions, roch-salt, cheeses, and farming
implements. In one corner were the un-
usual luAuries OF a mattress, a rug and a
three-legged stool Ny first care was to
make systematic inspection of the loft
and ali that it contained my next, to
open little unglazsd lattice with sliding
shutter just opposite my bed
The night was brilliant, aud stream
OF ire.h air and moonlight poured Ia
Oppressed by astrange uudefined sense of
trouble, | extinguished the lantern, and
stood looking out upon the solemn peaks
AID glaciers. Their solitude seemed to
ms more than usually profound. | could
not help assoc;ating them, in some vague
way, with the mystery in the house /
perplexed myself with all kinds Of wild
coJectures AS to what the nature Of that
mystery might be Tho womans face
haunted ms like an evi. dream. Again
and again | went frem the lattice, vain,v
= long tiI1e went by thus, tsiil at length
overpowered BY the tatigues OF the day,
stretched myself on tho mattress, cook
my knaPsack for a pillow, snd fell fast
asleep.
! can g.ess neither how long my sleep
lasted, :Ior from what cause ! awoke !
o.iy know that my sleep was drecmles.
and profound /; and that started from il
suddenly, unaccountabIy, trembling in
every nerve, snd possessed by an over
whe!nIEins sense sf danger.
DanCsr. d; niger Of what kind From
what? From whence? | looked reund-
! was alone, md the moon was shining ia
IS sereaely rs when fell asleep got
up, walked 10 and fro, reasoned with my
self; all in vain. | could not stay the
beatings OF my heart. / could not mas
ter the horror that pressed my Train.
felt that ! dared not lie down again that
must get out Of the house somehow and
at once; that to stay weuld be dsath
that the instinct BY whici, was governed
mus; a, all costs be obeyed
could not bear it. Resolved 20 escape,
or sell my lif. dearly, ! strapped on nv
krapsack, armed myself With my iron
headed aipenstsck, took ny large clasp
kniis between my teeth, and began eau
tionsly and noisisssly 10 descend me lad
der. Wien | was about half way down,
The alpens,eck, which | was studiously
keeping clear of the ladder, encountered
some dairy vessel, and sent it Gathering 10
the grnun1. Caution after this was use
less. sprarg tor.ari. reached the outer
loom 81 bound. and fcuud it, 10 my
am cement, desc rted. with the door wide
open ami the moonlight streaming III.
Saspecting trap ray first impulse was TO
stet:d still, with my back gsinst the wall,
prepared for desperate defense. Ali was
silent ! could only hear the ticking OF
the clock. and the beating of my own
heart The pallet was empty The
bread and milk we're standing where had
left them on the table The herdsnian
stool occupied the same spot by The des.
olate hearth. Bot he and his wife gone
gone in the dead Of night-learIng me, a
stranger in sole occupation of their home
While was yet irresol"te as whether
to go or stay, and while I was wondering
at the strangcness of nay position, heard
me,hirg-something that might hare
been the wind, save that there was no
wind stirring--something that might have
been tie wailng of a human voice. /
held my breath-hsard it again-iol,owed
il, as it died avav..... Il had not far to
go. A line of lights cleaning under the
door Of she'd at the back of the chalet,
and n cry bittercr and more piercing than
aay had heard, guided ne direct to the
spot
| looked In-recoiled with horror-went
back as if fascinated, and stood for some
moments, unable to move, to think, TO de
anything bu, stare helplessly at the scene
before me-. To this day, cannot recall it
"ithout something Of the same sickening
sensation.
Inside the hut, by the light Of pine
torch thrust into an Iror sconce against
the wall saw the herd>man kneeling by
the body of his wife grievins over her
like another Othel!o; kissing her white
lips, wiping the biooj-stains from her yell
low hair, ravinE out Iaarticulats cries Of
remorse, aud calling down all the curses
Of Heaven upon his own head, and that
Of some other man who had brought this
upon him. l understood it all uow-all
now, all the mystery, all the terror, all the
despair She had sinned against MIN; and
he had slain her. She was quite dead.
The very knife with its hideous testimony
fresh upon the blade, lay near the door.
turned and fed :blindly, wildly, like
man with bloodhounds on his track
now stumbling over stones; now torn by
briars: now, pausing = menent to take
breath; now, rushing forward faster than
before now battling up>hill with strains
ing lungs and trembling limbs; now stag
sering across level space; now, making
for the higher ground again and casting
never glance behind! At length
reach ed bare plateau above the line of
vegetation, where l dropped down ex-
L I l. for haa
teri ar d stupiiied until the intenss cold of
approaching dawn forced upon me the
necessity OF action rose and iooke,l a
round on scene no feature of which was
familiar to nae The very snow peaks,
though knew they must be the same,
locked unlike the peaks CT yesterday.
-rLo x1rn ,laciers seen from a Giferant