The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1865-12-07

mailed hand and struck the youth |
fierce crushing blow upon the cheek
whereupon the picture disappeared
again.
Our friend rubbed his eyes and gazet
about the apartment, which was nov
only Illuminated by the fickering can
[ die, and with horror saw the grim lore
stalk with measured tread across the
room to the opposite wall, where stood
an empty frame. The figure, once with.
5 in the frame, resumedits former appear.
ance of immobility.
Our friends eyes started with af.
fright, and his hair bristlcd on his head
Sleep was banished from his eyes for
that night, and earlyin the morning he
4 presented himself before his, host with
| a pale face and beating heart, and re-
lated what he had seen; to which the
other merely replied with shrug ofthe
/ shoulders, and spoke as follows: 1ss !.
a"What / am about to relate to you
| happened in Picardy, four hundred
years ago. 4, gt..fgq4
SThere were two beings in this very
castle, whose every hope of happiness,
and whose every JOY and sorrow were in
each others society. One of them was
"a young and handsome page; the other
was his young mistress, the daughter of
the naughty owner of this domain.
1 Snow, this fathers pride knew no
bounds. His frown struck terror where:
lever it fell his heayytread, as he strode
over the stone, floors On which his steel
clad foot harshly clashed, made his re-
tainers shrink with fear. His voice
| frightened the rocks from their resting
places on the tower of his castle, and
made the very cobwebs ON the ceilings
tremble with its vibrations. How he
ever came to have SO sweet and so gen
4 - -
tie "a daughter, was mystery to all
about him. & ata gas fsissI
,'sWell, this page loved the young
girl, but he loved in fear and trembling.
Her love for him was the pain Of her
life, aud she was watched.
"One day the noble lord returned
suddenly from hunting expedition, and
discovered these two poor lovers breath
ing their vows of love to each other
/ The page had his arm about the mai
denis waist and her head rested on his
shoulder. The cruel father raised his
| hand, covered as it was with mailed
glove, and dashed it fercely into the
face Of the page, which was instantly
deluged in blood. The mark of that
blow remained there for many a long
day, and at length ate its way into the
boys heart. 1t crushed his spirit, for
he could not resent it, and at last he
died of broken heart. ti1s 9 s
/ There was a portrait Of the page in
the long picture-gallery. After his
death, strange, to say, the mark of a
hand appeared upon the face Of the por-
4 trait. Whenever the cruel lord stood
before this picture, the mark of the
Elhand became scarlet He had the pic
ture taken down and destroyed; but,
! bless you that made no difference, for
the figure Of a hand appeared upon the
wall where the picture had been, and by
4 degrees the whole portrait oozed through
| the wall and seemed to be painted
upon it. ..ls
. This noble lord then thoughtto wash
it out, but it was indelible. He hung
other pictures over that spot on the
wall, but the picture came through the
canvass in front of it. He had it paint
ed out again and again, but it always
oozed through at each new coating, and
appeared as plain as it ever was.
! He at length had the wall pulled
! down and a new one built in its stead
! but for all the good it did, he might al
q we'll have let it alone! The portrait al
ways would reappear, and at length The
haunted lord had the room closed vi
for good. dssA =
.After this, whenever he gazed init
!, a mirror, it failed to reflect back hi
image, but there appeared instead th,
portrait oflthe page, with the blow O
the mailed glove upon his face. *
! cat length this noble lord died in
miserable frame Of mind, leaving n,
heirs to his large estates. His daugh
ter died longbefore him, and so he passed
the last years Of his life quite alone
for all knew he was haunted, and avoid
: ed him. That is the explanation !
what you saw last night, and what al
! see who are bold enough to sleep in tha
j apartment ssh