Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1879-04-22
"Where is Isaac ?" demanded nv

| Il SuOulO ike 10 FelITo dS soon as pos
sible,n said I, for MY WEAKNESS was ex
cessive.
"Certainly-" The woman started u
with alacrity.
"Where are you going to put him {?
asked the guide.
"Up chamber"
"Put him in Isaac's ROOM"
"No.n
Its the most comfortable"
II tell you nO.n
But here 1 interrupted the whispere,
colloquy.
II am not particular-I don't car
where you lodge me, only make haste.
So was conducted up steep ladde
that stood in the corner of the room in
to an apartment, ceiled with slopet
beams and ventilated by one small win
dow, where q cot bedstead, crowde,
close against the board partition, and :
pine table, with two or three chairs
formed the sole attempts at furniture.
The woman set the light-an old oi
lamp-on the table.
Anything more can give, sir ?"
"Nothing, thank YOU"
"At A o'clock in the morning, if yol
please, must walk over to R sta
tion in time for the o'clock express. ,
"I'll be sure to call you, SIR"
She withdrew, leaving me alone ir
the gloomy little apartment. sat dowr
with no very agreeable sensation.
II will sit down and write to Alice
1 thought; "that will soothe my nerves
and quiet me, perhaps"
descended the ladder; the fire still
glowed readily On the hearth beneath
my companion and the woman sat be-
side it, talking in low tone, and third
person sat at the table eating, short
stout, Misunderstanding man, in red
flannel shirt and muddy trousers.
I asked for writing materials, and re-
turned to my room to write to my wife
"My Dear Alice"
Ipaused and laid down my pen as ]
concluded the words, half smiling to
think what she would say could she
know my strange quarters.
Not till both sheets were covered did
I lay aside my pen and prepare for slum-
ber. AS folded my paper L happened
to glance toward the couch.
Was it the gleam of human eye OBJ
serving me through the broad partition,
or was it my own fancy? There was q
crack there, but only blank darkness
yy,o4h;ry boa snorl1Iod haIof,',s,, - ,n"' 10
tool< ont nv watch IT, Voc one
o,o1ook r. woo so.rooJv ,orth 1,t;ie
for ' mo to nn6ress for throo ho,rs, s'aa,,
T wonld lie down in NV clothes q nd
atot, what sIu~,h hor r on.,,d ~ e. a1ao Hno
ing my valise at the head of my bed
and barricading the lockless door with
two chairs, extinguished the light and
Law down.
At first was very wakeful. but grad.
ually soft drowsiness seemed to steal
over me like misty mantle. until all o1
sudden some startling electric thrill
coursed through nv veins and I sat ur
excited and trembling.
A luminous softness seemed to glow
through the room-no light of the moon
or the stars was ever so penetrating
and by the little window / saw Alice,
my wife, dressed in floating garments
of white, with her long, golden hail
knotted back by blue Tibben. Appa.
rently she was coming to me with out
stretched hands, and eyes full of wild
anxious tenderness.
I Isprang to my feet and rushed toward
her; but, as reached the window, the
fair apparition seemed to vanish into
the stormy darkness, and I was left
alone. At the self same instant the
sharp report of pistol sounded-I could
see the Jagged stream of fire above the
pillow, straight through the very SPOT
where, ten minutes since, nv head bad
lain.
With an instantaneous realization =,
NV darger T SWING n,vseif o1 oUar the o'
edge of the window inn1ninc sone
eieht or ten feet into the tangled hush az
below and as cronched tbera raonv-
erinr INV breath r heard tba-tranon =,
footsfens into INV room "
"Ts he dead ?iS cried a voice mn the
Iaader-the smooth. deceitfuI voica ot
the woman with the bslf. closadeves
"Of course he is" erowled Voice
back: sstbat charge would have killed
ten men. A LIGHT there onick : and
fell Tom to he rsadv
cold aponizing shudder ran tbropob
me. What q den of midniaht nurSer.
ers had 7 fallen into! And how fear-
fullv narrow had been nv escane,
With the sneed that onIv nnrtsl tar-
ror can give. rushed through the wood
now illuminated by faint glimmer oi
starlight. I know NOT what imnn,se 81
guided nv footsteps. never shall
know how MANY times T crossed nv, ~ y
own track. or how close I stood to The
brink of the deadly ravine. hut mar.
cifuI providence ncomnassed me with
a guiding and protecting care for when
the morning dawned. with faint red
bars of orient light against the stormy
eastern sky, 1 was close to the hioh
road. some seven miles from RI
Once at the town, I told NV story to
the police, and detachment was sent
with me to the spot.
After much searching and MANY false
alarms. we succeeded in finding the
ruinous old house, but it was emntvN
our birds had flown. nor did T racoye,
nv valise and watch and chain. which
latter had left under my pillow.
"It's Drew's gang said the leader O,
the police, land they've troubled us
these two wears. don't th;nk thonoh
they'll come bsck here Just at present. .
Nor did they.
But the strangest part of my story is
yet to come. Some three weeks subse-
quently l received letter from nv sis
ter, who was with Alice in her English
home-a letter whose intelligence filled
me with surprise.
II must tell you something very
strange" wrote my sister, ''that hap
pened on the night of the 18th of Octo-
Der. Alice had not been we'll for some