Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1871-03-30
seemed 4 whole long night dnce I cFept
/ into that infer into that disnl organ

- -T.ss s.slzSs !.
seemed . whole long night ance I crep'
into that inter- into thH dismal organ
ioft.
every stop had been Used the whole time
the organ would not have been really in
iured. ] need mon be half such fdgity
anxious fellow AZ am over the instrument
might very well hare letthat poor little
donk-- that poor little gentleman alone fol
this conf, for this one service. had
better, indeed, have been sitting decently
in pew down stairs, listening TO the old
parson. He said good many capital
things, no doubt; / do not see why l
should have scoffed at the idea Of the serv-
ice; I wonder that had done It. / would
not again, for 1t was done for a good pur-
pose. After all, was in holy building
too; do not see why / should be afraid
it was only imagination, / dare say. What
figure could be up In such q place az this
and silent, tool Nonsense! 1t must have
been coat, hung up perhaps by one OF
the ringers. Was growing q coward in
my old age? I would go to itagain. Sup.
pose spoke first / don't know why ]
should, seeing it was only q bell-ringer's
coat; but ] will, just to army own voice.
It did not sound exactly like my own,
though, when it did come. !. L. any one
here in the belfry with me" | said /" il
so, pray speak, for l am shut alone IN the
church" No answer. OF course not
laughed a little grim kind Of laugh-what
answer had ! expected from an empty
coat? I took few small hesitating steps
forward, and, shutting my eyes, even in
the dense darkness, perhaps to concentrate
all my powers in my sense of touch, l put
out my right hand with slow, cautious
movement along the wall again. For an
instant my head reeled as If 1t would
throw me down like q teetotum, for ny
fingers went straight into thick mass of
tangled hair, and when l drew them sud
denly back and put them 70 my head to
steady it, they were cold as death. No
beIl.ringer's coat-a ghastly, hairy head /!
not human, Of Counsel What living man
would be standing thus in such place,
the head flattened against this rough, cold
wall. II it had been any one shut in like
m yself, he would have only too readily
my words; besides, what human
being would stand in such q posture
What living mani All! that brought a
new horror to my mind. Vas he living
or could a corpse be stationed 80 in this
ghostly place? Gould foul murder have
been once-Nonsense had not the ringers
all been Ginning there gayly only couple
Of hours befores If there had been q
corpse; butt would listen for the breath
I do not know how could do it, though
you may laugh ut the horror it had for me
lin your comfortable incapacity for pic
turing this ghostly tower. Itent my head
listening; but the thump Of my
own heart ard the gusts that ragged round
me were all heard Was it human or
Was it living or dead ? Oh |!
where were the bells, that / might sum
mon kindly release from this horrible i'm
prisonments But how could | reach the
bell now? dare feel my way no farther,
with the possibility Of another ghastly
figure barring my progress Yet If did
night here in Heaven knew what awful
companionship! No; l would summon
all the strength and courage that l used to
think possessed, and walk straight of
ntO the space till ] felt the roIes. Spread
ng now my t wo hands before me, l STUN
bled on, round and round, backward and
forward, frantically dashing out my hands
in all directions, until at last, oh, Heaven
be thanked l clutched the carpeted rope,
and felt that the power of bringing help
was in my hand ut last. But then new
drtau cicpt over mo. actually was afraid
to sound the bell. There, when l had
reached what1 had been struggling for,
this new cowardly fear took entire posses
sion Of me. Ny eyes were strained and
wide open in the darkness the rope was
grasped in both my sore and bleeding
hands, and there Istood trembling like a
child. How did / know what the sound
might not waken? Did I not know for a
certainty that I was not alone in this
haunted placer At the first note of the
changing bell, might not-soaat might l
not summon!,er 4fgfs .xfft
AS hesitated, with an intense throb
bling pain over my eyes, my foot moved
something on the ground-a piece of rope,
evidently !, and, vaguely glad Of anything
that should delay fora morA Ont the cal
wished to give, stopped and took it in
my hand. 1t resisted me, and / drew my
hand along it TO feel to what 1t might be
attached. As did 20, my hand came in
contact with another hand For one mo-
ment reeled and tottered !; Id the next.
with one mad effort, seized the bell rope,
raised my feet from the ground, and hung
my weight upon my hands; and, as one
solemn note doomed out my head swan
round, my fingers slid down the rope, and
l fell back senseless on the ground.
Neither shock nor friendly voice
called me back to consciousness; I awoke
in cold SILVER, to the horror, and the
darkness of which l had been tor a time
unconscious. sat up, opening my eyes
YEARLY, for the intense darkness literally
seemed to weigh down my eyelils, and il
all came slowly back upon INC with a two
what time would it be now Now long
had been in this double, darkness, Al
listen; the great clock bell sllSok and
trembled through the tower. One, two
Only, twol II the night were to lie spent
here, and each hour were to be ike this
my hair would be gray before diylight
! Two O'Clock! how mugay every obe was
Eaeaping now, and how nnthinkins OF the
one miserable man in the towcrl How
little should be thinking of anything SO
gh0stly ifsI were comfortably between my
own sheets nowl Those things 10 not
trouble one much until they visit ore with
terrible personality like this. Even this
mving, maddening wind would hardly
keep me awake on Obituary nights, yet
how impossible to fancy sleeping through
III Thprei was NOT that like dozen