Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1869-04-28
i temperance.
The Skeleton Hand.
REFORMED IN SPITE or MYSELF.

FNi NihEEtNh hHhAlA1A " iHt lulIlOFlnW 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 spectacle Of the
proud home and broad lands, once mine but
now in the hands Of strangers-all these,
which might well have stung to madness or
driven to despair q less degraded being, reach
ed me not, nor affected me in tho depth Of
my degradation. had reached a point at
which no motive that might be urged could
any longer affect me.
One evening | was sitting in my miserable
home. The children were asleep in bed
They bad cried themselves to sleep in hunger
My wife sat opposite to me on the other side
of the wretched fireplace stitching some rags
Of clothing. | was sullen and silent.
At last felt a craving for the stimulus
that now wasnocessary to my life. Rising, |
walked to the cupboard where it was kept
My wife knew well my intention. She fol-
lowed me with her eyes
! went there desperate and careless---ony
eager for the qualification Of my appetite.
| reached forth my hands tremblingy
seized the bottle and was about raising it to
my lips
But at that very instant, just as the bottle
touched my lips, felt terrible sensation
Il was as though some one had grasped my
throat
Wife !" | cried in deep, fcrco voice.
" llag do you dare ?" and turning with
clenched fist, | struck at what | supposed was
my wife. For thought that she was trying
in this violent way in desperation to keep me
/ from drink.
But to 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.
\ terrible feeling passed through me- Shud-
deringly | 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 grasp
ing me so tightly.
Horror Of horrors
As | raised my hand felt the unmistaka-
bic outline Of bony thumb and bony fingers
pressed against my flesh. 1t was a skeleton
hand that clutched me by the throat.
My hand fell down powerless by my side
the bottle crashed on the floor My children
awoke at the noise, and wife aud children all
stared at me with white faces.
There |, trembling in every limb, stood
transfixed with terror, the awful feeling of the
supernatural now fully possessing me. I'm
able to speak, gasped with fear. drew
away my body. but my head was still held BY
the same dread and invisible power. l could
/, not move that.
Unspeakable horror filled me. None but
those who have experienced something like
this know what it is to have such feelings. -
The body seems parlyzed, while the mind
seems to be endowed with extraordinary ac-
tivity, and thus possesses new capacities for
suffering.
But at last l felt the grasp relax. | stag
gered back, the grasp ceased altogether and
| Grew off to another corner of the room,
endeavoring to 90 as far as possible from the
place where this mysterious thing had seized
me.
Soon my wife and children turned away
the former to work, the latter to sleep. They
knew not what it was that had affected me-
but concluded that it was some pain arising
from sickness or sudden faintness | did
not speak word, but resumed my former
scat.
And now, gradually, my craving returned.
Yet how could | satisfy it My bottle was
broken 1t lay in fragments on the floor
All my liquor was gone. What was | to
do2 The craving became irresistible, had
to yield.
So | took my hat, fumbIed in my pockets
and found few cents, and taking an old bot
tie that lay in the corner | went forth in the
darkness. 1t was not without some feeling
of trepidation that | entered the dark passage
way. Fear lest the same Thing of Horror
might return agitated me. But passed on
unharmed, and reached my old resort, where
| laid my bottle on the counter. The clerk
soon filed it. With an irresistible impulse
clutched the bottle and rushed forth to
drink the liquor.
hurried off for little distance and came
to the head of wharf Here, unable any
9 longer to resist my craving, pulled out the
cork so as to drink.
: 1t was very dark. No one was near me.
In the distance rose the low hum of the city (;
out in the harbor might be heard the noise Of
sailors and boatmen. had a general idea
of this as | stood there, though all my
: thoughts were concentrated on the bottle. At
= last | raised it to my mouth
Scarce had the bottle touched my lips when
again experienced that terrible feeling.
My throat was seized this time more vio-
lontly more fercey, as if by some power
Z which had already warned me- and was en-
ragged at having to repeat the warning. My
throat was compressed painfully in that fierce
! gripe; there was anger in it. A thrill OF
horror shot through me. Again the bottle
fell from my trembling hands and was crushed
! to fragments upon the stone pavement.
!. Again | raised my hands to my throat,
: : though in deadly fear but the motion was
y mechancal-a natural and involuntary effort
, to tear away the thing that seized my throat
!, to free myself from the pain and horror OF
y that mysterious grasp. Again then | raised
y y my hands, aud again | felt there under my
touch, plainly and unmistakably, the long,
. hard, bony hand which | had felt before.
. One touch was enough. My hands fell down,
down. | tried to shrek, but in vain. |
= gasped for BREATH and thought that would
be sufiocatod.
But at length the grasp slowly and unwil-
!, lingly relaxed. | breathed more freely. At
y y length the touch was no longer felt.
y paced the streets for long time. At
y first every vestige of my appetite had been
driven away by the horror of that moment.
As time passed il began to return. Once
= more | felt the craving True, the fear Of
n another attack was strong, and for long time
!, deferred me but at last the craving grew
too strong for the fear.
; Norving myself Up to a desperate pitch OF
$ resolution, | rushed back to the shop where
}. ! had last purchased the liquor.
: See here!p | cried I'm crazy for a
Q drink / broke that bottle Give mo a
Q glass, for Gods sake-only one glass J!
t Something in my fhce seemed to excite the
/, mans commiseration. He poured out glass
il for me in silence.
e With trembling hand | raised il toward
is my lips. The grateful fumes already entered
}, my nostrils. My lips already touched the
!, edge of the glass.
r Suddenly my throat was seized with trc-
j. mendous grasp.
! 1t was as though the Power which was tor.
i mentng me had become enraged by my re-
II nf ox..oattso., h.,l D.,