The Plymouth weekly Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1860-1869, 1869-04-08
Gelefte6 n1isrellanp.
THE SKELETON HAND.

FIELDING 10 q miserable haOlt nad ru-
ined me- 1t had blasted my prospects,
destroyed my business, alienated my
friends, and brought me down to the low
est point of existence. The habit had al
together overcome me. In vain / strug-
gled against it. The imploring looks and
words of my wife; the sight of my wan
faced and emaciated children turning
their eyes to me, the author at once of
their being and of their misery the spec
'acle of the proud home and broad lands,
once miue but now in the hands of stran-
gers-an these, which might well have
stung to madness or driven to despair q
less degraded being, reached me not, nor
affected me in the depth of my degrada-
ton. had reached point at which no
motive that might be urged could any
longer affect me.
One evening | was sitting in my miser-
able home The children were asleep in
bed. They had cried themselves to sleep
in hunger. My wife sat opposite to me
on the other side of the wretched fire.
place stitching some rags of clothing.
was sullen and silent
At last felt a craving for the stimulus
that now was necessary to my life. Ris-
ing, | walked to the cupboard where it
was kept. My wife knew well my inten-
ton. She followed me with her eyes.
went there desperate and careless
only eager for the qualification of my ap-
petite.
reached forth my hands. tremblingly
seized the bottle, and was about raising 1t
to my lips.
But at that very instant, just as the
bottle touched my lips, / felt terrible
sensation. II was as though some one had
grasped my throat.
Wife ~ cried, in deep, fierce voice.
"Hapl do you dare?" aud turning, with
clenched fist, | struck at what supposed
was my wife For thought that she was
trying in this violent way in desperation
10 keep me from drink.
But 70 my surprise saw my wife sitting
by the fire place with her work In her
hand, looking at me IN wonder
1t could not have been her evidently.
A terrible feeling passed through me.
Shudderingly l raised my hand to feel
what it was that was at my throat, or If
there was any thing there at all, which
seemed to be grasping me so tightly.
Horror of horrorsl
AsI raised nv hand l felt the unmis-
taxable outline Of bony thumb and bony
fingers pressed against my flesh. 1t was a
skeleton hand that clutche6 me by the
throat
My hand fell down powerless by my
side; the bottle crashed on the floor. My
childen awoke at the noise, a1d wife and
children all stared at me with white faces
There I, trembling in every limb, stood
transfxed with terror, the awful feeling o1
the supernatural now fully possessing me
Unable to speak, gasped with fear.
drew away my body, but my head was
off ho1H hv no 6re51 and 1nVlG1flp
power. | could not move that.
Unspeakable horror filed me. None
but those who have experienced some
thing like this know what it is to have
such feelings The body seems paralyz zed,
while the mind seems TO be endowed with
extraordinary activity, and thus possesses
new capacities for suffering.
But az last | felt the grasp relax.
staggered back, the grasp ceased alto
gether, and drew off to another corner
of the room, endeavoring to go as far as
possible from the place where this myste-
rious thing had seized me.
Soon nv wife and children turned
away, the former to work, the latter to
. sleep. They knew not what 1t was thai
had affected me, but concluded that 1t was
some pain arising from sickness or sudden
fslntness. / did not speak word, but re-
sumed my former seat.
And now, gradually, my craving re
turned. Yet how could 1 satisfy it? My
bottle was broken. II lay in fragments
on the floor. All my liquor was gone
What was to do? The craving became
irresistible. had to yield.
So took ny hat, fumbled in my pock
cts and found ien cents, and taking ar
old bottle that lay in a corner, I wen
forth in the darkness. 1t was not withou
some feeling of trep,dation that entered
the dark passage-way. Fear lest the sam,
Thing of Horror might return agitatat
me. But / passed on unharmed, an:
reached my old resort, where laid my
bottle on the counter. The clerk sooI
filed it. With an irresistible impulse
clutched the bottle and rushed forth tC
drink the liquor.
hurried off for a little distance anC
came to the head of wharf Here, un
able any longer to resist my craving,
pulled out the cork so as to drink.
IL was very dark. No Que was near me
In the distance arose the low hum OF th,
city; out in the harbor might be heart
he noise OF sailors and b0stmep. ] ha'