The Democratic advocate., 1877-08-25
WESTMINSTER, MD SATURDAY, AUGUST 25, 1877

less evening dress, and their manner, al
though supercilious enough, was calm and
polished. Now he saw them half dressed,
with disheveled hair-John carrying q
student's-lamp in his left hand, and in his
right an ugly-looking cane-sword with u
blade painfully naked, while George held
a revolver at full cock.
Talking in low tone, as they called
one another's attention to various spots
where possibly the burglar might be con,
cealed, they went slowly from corner to
corner, probing every recess with the
sword, aud in an attitude Of strained at.
tention to every sound. Their faces, gro
tesquely lit by the mingled FIRE and lamp
light, showed fierce hunters look that
made Bob fairly sick.
He did not dare to look at them long
lest the magnetism of his guze should at.
tract their involuntary attention. Nay, he
even made frantic effort not to think of
them, from the fear that some physical
current might have the same efFect-for
he believed strongly, though vaguely, in
the mysteries of animal magnetism, and
had notion that person sensitive to
such influence might detect the presence
of his victim by the very terror the latter
had Of him.
lie could scarcely believe his fortune,
when, moment later, the two brothers
passed again beneath him back into the
diningroom.
From there they went on through the
rooms beyond, and the sound of their foot
steps died away entirely.
Perhaps five minutes after, they re-
turned-that is, as far as the dining room
and Bob gathered from their conSer-
sation that they had found one of the fas.
Jennings in the basement in a condition in
dicating that the burglar might have es.
capped there.
Mrs. McLane and Angie, having salts
fed themselves that the coast was clear,
descended to the dining-room, aud lively
discussion of all aspects of the problem
ensued, which was highly edifying to Bob.
Then the conversation became still more
interesting, as it turned ON himself. lie
heard Mrs, McLane saying:
He must be a hard sleeper, for |
knocked several times on his door"
Then one of the brothers grunted some
thing contemptuously, and he heard An
gie's voice excusing him on the ground
that he must be tired after his long jour.
ney.
" Are you sure you looked everywhere
in the library?" was Mrs. McLane's next
question, at which cold sweat started out
on Bob's face. He had just begun to feel
quite comfortable.
John and George, however, declared
that they had looked everywhere.
did you look under the sofa2"
Behind the window.curtains2
" In that dark corner by the bookcase?"
asked the ladies in succession.
Ingenious cruelty of fate Even Angie
was racking her brain to guess his hiding.
place. What if it should be she who hit
upon it
Bob drew breath of relief as John re-
piled, with some asperity, to all these
questions, that he had told them once that
they looked everywhere.
This silcnced them, but Angie said, a
moment after:
Just let me ask one more question I;
Did you look on top of the bookcase ?"
1t seemed to Bob that he died then, and
came to life again to hear John reply,
contemptuously:
cover the bookcase? There's no room
there; and, if there were, nobody but a
monkey could get up"
"There's room enough" persisted An
gle, "and have often noticed, when sit
ting in the library, what nice hiding
place it would be. What if he should be
up there now, and hear what I'm sayingl"
she added, in an agitated whisper
"Nonsense said John.
"Well, there is no harm in looking,
anyway" said Mrs. McLane.
Come along, then" grumbled John.
"You shall see for yourselves"
At this Bob shut his eyes, and turned
his face to the wall. The ostrich instinct
is the human instinct of despair. He tried
to fly away from himself, and leave his
body there as derelict. The effort was
desperate, and seemed almost successful.
But he could not quite sever the counec-
ton, though his soul appeared to be how
ering over his body, only attached by a
single thread-but thread which, alas I
would not break.
A moment after they all passed through
the door directly beneath him, and going
clear to the other end of the library, stood
on tiptoe, and peered at his hiding place.
There seemed to be eyes in his back, which
felt their scrutiny. But the lamp they
carried did not suffice to bring out his fig.
ure clearly.
I'm sure l see something" said An
gle, getting up on chair.
" It's only the shadow of the freight"
replied John.
Light the gas and let us make sure"
said Mrs. McLane.
George stood up on chair under the
and lighted one of the burners.
An inarticulate ejaculation fell from
every mouth. A human figure was dis.
tinctly visible, reclining along the top of
the bookcase, with his face toward the
wall The ladies would have forthwith
run away but for the fact that one door of
the room was directly beneath the book
case, and the other close to it. Upon
BOb's paralyzed senses fell the sharp
words of John:
"We've got you. Get down."
He did not move, but at the summons
his soul, with inexpressible reluctance and
disgust, began to return from the end of
its floating thread, and reinhabit the
quarters for which it could not quite shake
off responsibility.
SECT up, or I'll shoot u said George.
"Oh, don't shoot him p cried Mrs.
McLane, while Bob, still motionless, dim-
ly hoped he would.
"Get upi reiterated John; aud he did
get up. His own will was inactive, aud
Johns was the force that moved his mus
cles. Ho turned around aud sat up, his
legs dangling over the edge of the book.
case, and his wet, white, wretched face
Il