The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1879-11-14
THE DAUGHTER OF THE
DARK.


viewing for his personal qualification
some fragment of his own creation and
ordering. He continued:
81 got them together. brought them
to see something was needed. Then I
told them Of the scheme l have had so
long in my head. At first they were
frightened and held back. But worked
on and spoke and spoke and spoke until
they listened. And now it is going to
be as / designed it. Do you hear thatw
He brought down his hand with such
violence ON the table, that Mrs. Crane
uttered low cry of surprise. Turning
almost furiously upon her he shouted:
"GOOd Heavens, woman, are you there
still Did not tell you to go to bed?'
She rose and crept from the room and
went to bed in the dark. She lay think
ing long before she could sleep. While
she lay awake she was afraid to cry, lest
he might hear her sobs and come up;
afraid to weep, lest when he came he
might see her tears. At last she fell
asleep; her reason no longer held back
her tears, and they burst through her
lids. And later still, she sobbed in her
sleep. He heard her, and came up softly
and held a candle above her face, and
listened and watched until he knew she
slept Then he blew out the candle, put
it on the table, and throwing up his
hands towards Heaven, whispered:
"My God! can I have let the secret
slip? If so, all is lost"
Next morning his wife was stirring
when he awoke. When he came down
she looked careworn and haggard. She
moved about him with fear and cling
ing solicitude. She watched every move
nent of his as though he were child
walking among sleeping snakes. At last,
when he was about to leave, he turned to
her and said:
"Helen, / was talking aloud before l
went upstairs last night. It's a foolish
habit and bad one. / was greatly ex-
cited and worn out. Did tell you what
/ am organizingT
"No," in faint, tremulous tone.
because I came up and found you Sob
bing in your sleep"
81 was only frightened; / do not know
what is going to happen, but l fear
something dreadful. Won't you keep
out of it for nv sake-for the sake Of"
"Hush! Good morning, Helen; take
care of yourself. I'll try and be in early
tonight. Not word of this to any one,
mind! rely on you to hold your tongue"
And he was gone.
That evening he did return sooner
than usual, and made exceptional efforts
to be soothing and interesting. When
eleven o'clock came he said to her:
"l am in tonight, and it's quite time
you were in bed. Co."
She took the candle up. He went to
her and put his right arm around her and
kissed her.
"Helen, hope you will sleep we'll to-
night; no more sobbing. There is moth
ing to be afraid Of; you may be quite
sure of that. We must have your sister
as soon as ever come to keep you COM
pany. Do you know you sobbed
SO loud in your sleep last nigh t
that heard you down here quite dis
tin.tly. DO | speak now often in my
sleep as I used long agoG"
"Not often" ..-...
"But when I do I make long speeches,
as if | was at meeting, like l used al
ways%'
ooh, no! not so long as that"
II know, not so long; but as sensible,
as well put together? l mean with sense,
you knowY'
ayes, quite sensible"
"Weil, goodnight now. Go to sleep
soon; and mind, no fretting tonight"
She went to bed, but her sleep was
light and broken. She woke, and while
she lay awake one O'Clock struck. He
had not come up yet. She dozed again.
Once more she woke. Still he had not
come up. She lay long while fearing,
trembling. Four o'clock struck. -Four
o'clock, and he not come up yet! There
must be something wrong.
Pale and half sick with dread, she got
up, lighted candle, threw shawl
round her, opened the door and descend
ed the stairs.
All was still in the house, but from the
sitting-room where she had left her hus-
band, came the low murmur of human
voice-the voice of her husband.
She stopped down and looked through
the keyhole. The light was out. She
put her ear to the keyhole. Yes-the
slow speech, the thick articulation, the
end of sentences in disorder. He was
speaking in his sleep.
She became alarmed. Why had he
gone to sleep there? Why had he not
come up to bed?
She turned the handle and entered the
room. Shading the light with her hand
she advanced. All in the room was as
she had left it, except that a chair had
been turned feet up on the hearth rug,
and pillow taken from the easy chair
and placed upon the slanting back Of the
chair. With his head upon this pillow,
and his body covered with travelling
rug, lay Michael Crane asleep, and
speaking softly in his sleep.
The woman held the candle high aloft,
but ON one side, SO that the light might
not fall upon the face of her husband.
He lay on his back; he had removed his
spectac1es and his thin worn "a aca Iookad