Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1873-02-13

CHASTITY look.
As Lucy gazed in speechless terror, the
figure slowly raised its hand, with warning
gesture, and at the same instant moved step
toward her.
Every remnant of courage now forsook her
mind; cold horror took possession of her,
and tottering backward she fell fainting to
the ground.
1t was long ere she recovered her senses
When she did so, she was lying on couch in
her own room; a light was burning on the
floor in corner, and her faithful Melissa was
bathing her face and applying scent-bottle'
containing some powerful restorative, to her
nostrils.
"Oh Missy" she exclaimed, in tone of
intense relief, as the bewildered Lucy opened
her eyes, II thought you was mos dead! For
the Lords sake, Missy, what has happened in
the house this night? Pears to me like the
world is comm to an end.''
"What is the matter Melissa ?" murmured
her mistress, in faint tones. "Has anything
happened?"
"Happened! My Lord, Missy, such awful
noises as I've been hearin, you never did hear.
Didn't you hear none of 'ern ? What was it
scared you, Missy ?'
"I-hardly know" said Lucy, putting her
hand to her brow and trying to recall her
scattered thoughts. 81 saw something in the
moonlight, believe-I must have been dream
ing. went to look after you, Melissa. Did
you have light out in the entry, some time
ago?'
"Mc, Missy? No, ma'am! don't trus'
to walk bout at night, specially in this house.
I was sound asleep, and first thing [ knew,
Mas Stanley came shakin' and hollerin at
me, and tell me to get up right away and
come after you, cause you'd tainted. He
came in here with me, and showed me what
to do to bring you round again he seemed in
desprut hurry, and said somethin' bout
things going wrong, and he must see what the
matter was, and off he went. He looked
awful white and scared, and his voice was so
shaky he could hardly talk plain. And then
I heard runnin' and screamin', that made
nv blood run cold it seemed to me somebody
was bein' murdered in the house. just sot
here by you, and I was that sick with fright
1 didn't know at first what was about. At
last the noise stopped, but Mas Stanley amt
come back"
"Good Heaven" murmured Lucy, with a
shudder, "what can have happened? Oh
Melissa, cannot you find out"
"Me, Missy? For the Lords sake don't
make me 90 outside of that door," said the
maid, in such terror at the idea, that Lucy
saw it would be cruelty to press the demand
upon her. 81 darsen't 60 searchin' about in
place where sperrits walk, like know they
does in this house.
"But, Claude?" cried Lucy, starting up in
a sudden accession of fright; "where is he
are you sure he is safe?"
"Oh! yes, ma 'am-don't you fear for him,
he's inside your dressing-room, all right,
sleeping like baby. He never woke up
once, the blessed chile"
To satisfy her mistress, Melissa opened the
dressing room door as she spoke, revealing a
glimpse of the little invalid fast asleep in his
cot-bed. Lucy remembered that she had
given him an anodine on retiring, which, prob
ably accounted for his not having been dis
turbed.
About an hour more passed, spent by Lucy
in trying to allay the sickening fears that had
taken possession Of her soul. What new mys-
terry was going on-what new plot being en-
acted-the drift of which it was not permitted
to her to discover? The recollection of the
shadowy appearance she had seen in the moon
light recurred chillingly to her mind; had
her terror invested it with distinctness it did
not possess, and given it form and motion or
had it really been supernatural being es-
capped from the regions of space to visit, for
some inexplicable purpose, therealms ofearth
Then again she remembered the apparition,
though ola different sort, that had so terrified
Claude some time before, and the mysterious
sounds that had afterwards frightened him
away from his chamber, all of which she had
attributed at the time to some malicious effort
to work upon his nerves and startle his tlmid
mind. Was this last appearance, too, the re-
suit of some such scheme? If so, how could
it have been arranged for her to encounter it
at such an unexpected time and place? She
recalled the weird, phantom-like look of the
figure, its pale awful countenance and gesture
of warning, and shudderingly closed her eyes
as if to shut out the appalling remembrance.
She could not reason, she could not explain
away her own fears confused and unnerved,
she continued to pursue bewildering and
unsatisfactory train Of ideas that seemed to
revolve in her brain until it grew dizzy and
sick with vain, Improbable effort to discover
some clue to the truth.
Where, too, was her husband? Why did
he stay away from her all this time, leaving
her to the sole care Of a servant, when every
sentiment of duty and affection on his part
should have kept him at her side?
The pale gray dawn was beginning to steal
in at the windows, ere any sound broke the
stiffness that had fallen upon the disturbed
household, and Stanley at length entered his
wife's apartment.
His countenance wore stern expression,
and approaching Lucy he asked in a cold,
sarcastic tone
"Wcll, Lucy, how do you feel now? Have
you recovered yet from the effects of your
midnight rambler"
Surprised and wounded at his manner, SO