Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1881-02-05

E
tween the two chairs. thick octave volume
backed out OF It's place on the shelf and sailed
trahquiiiy through the air at the height OF three
OF ioaf leed; aneing neatly on top Of the table.
A nneiy painted porcelain pipe lett hook on
the wall and Joined the volume. A tobacco box
jumped from the mantelpiece. The door OF
CABINET swung open. and decanter and wine
glass MADE the Journey In company. arriving
spontaneously at the same destination. Every
thing In the room seemed instinct with the
spirit Of hospitality.
+ seated myself In the easy chair. filled the
WineglaSS. lighted the pipe and examined the
volume Ii was the HGHdbltck GeY Gelre6slehre
or Bussius OF Vienna When l had repla ,ed
the book upon the table 1t deliberately opened
itself al the 432d page.
You are not nerEo1s2" denaude1 a
voice, not four feet from my tympanum.
"
This voice had familiar sound. recognized
!, as the voice which heard in the street on
| the night OF November c, when IL called me an
NO said 81 am not nervous I am q
man Of science accustomed TO regard al phe-
nonena as explaiDable by natural laws. pro-
vlded We can discover the laws No. am not
frightened"
$50 much the better You are a man of
science, like myself, here the voice groaned-
"a man OF nerve; and friend of Pandora'5-'
name is introduced it would be well to know
with whom or with what am speaking
That Is precisely what desire to eommuni-
render me great service. Ny name is or was
stephen Fiack. am or have been a citizen Of
the United States. My exact status at present
Is Isl as great mystery TO myself as It can posi-
Oily DE TO you. But am. or was an honest man
and gentleman, and offer you my hand
saw no hand, reached forth my own, how
ever, and II met the pressure Of warm, living
Now resumed the voice, after this silent
pact OF friendship, "be good enough to read
the passage at which have opened the book
Here is rough translation Of what read in
German.
AS the color Of the organic tissues constituting
the body depends upon the presence of ce,taia
ia ming iron Of he ultimate elements, it FOL
lows that the hue may vary according to well de-
Of IN hs sobes sves radef
tinge to every tissue. The melanfne that colors
increased or fimioised according to laws rscentiy
formulated by scharii Of BASEL. In the epidermis
Glen. supply the albino The h;eulatine and the
melsnine. iogether with the sreenish yellow bill
pigmen Is which impart color character to tissues
otherwise transparent, or neary So deplore my
esting histooeica experiments conduc ted by tn At
iGdefatigable investigator. Froiiser OF Frieours,
the way of coloration and discoIoration of the nm
man body by che Dlical means.
For five years" continued my unseen com
panion when ] had finished reading, Il was
Frol1ker'S student and laboratory assistant at
Freilburg. Bussius only half guessed at the
Importance OF our experiments. We reached
policy required they should not be published
even TO the scientific world. FroEker del a
year ago last August
81 had faith in the genius OF this great thinker
and admirable man. II he had rewarded my
uBques'iontng loyalty with fun confidence /
should not now be miserable wretch. But
his natural reserve, and the jealousy with
which all savants guard their unverifed re-
suits, kept me ignorant OF the essential formula
governing our experiments. As his disciple |
was familiar with the laboratory details OF the
secret The consequence Is that have been
led into misfortune more appalling than has
been the lot OF any human being since the
primal curse fell upon Cain.
Our efforts were at first directed to the
enlargement and variation OF the quantity OF
Elementary matter in the system. By increas
Ing the proportion of melanine, for instance.
conveyed In food to the blood, we were able to
make a fair man dark, dark man black as an
African. There was scarcely a hue we could
not impart to the skia by modifying ard vary
usually tried On me. At different times have
been copper colored, viG-et blue. crimson and
chrome yellow. For one triumphant week |
rainpGw. There still remaiss witness to the
Interesting character OF our eork during this
period.
The voice paused, and in few seconds
hand bell upon the mantel was sounded Pre-.
sently an old man wit, close fitting skull cap
shuftled into the room.
'Kaspar," said the yct6e. 10 German, "silow
the gentleman your hair
N"ho',r '"',,c..cs,,ng any surprise, ana as If
perfectly accustomed 10 receive commands ad
dressed to him out of vacancy, the old domestic
bowed and removed his cap The scanty LOCKS
thus discovered were OF lustrous emerald
green. ! expressed my establishment.
THE gentleman tDds your hair very b2autl-
fui /" said the voice, again In German. That
Is all, kaspar,"
Replacing MS cap, the domestic vi hdrew,
with look OF gratlied vanity on his face
"Old kaSpar was FrOliker5 servant ana Is
LoW mine. He was the subject OF one Of our
first applications of the process. The worthy
man was SO pleased with tue result that he
would never permit us to restore to his hair its
original red. he is faithful soul, and my
only Intermediary and representative In the
visible world.
Now" continued Fiack. "to the story of my
undoing. The great histologfst with whom II
was my privilege to be associated next turned
his attention TO another and still more interest
ing branch OF the investigation. Hitherto he
mad sought merely to Increase or to modify the
pigments In the tissues. He now began a
series OF experiments as to the possibility OF
eliminating those pigments altogether from
the system by absorption, exudation, and the
use OF the chiorldes and other chemical agents
successful.
again was the subject Of experiments
which Froliker supervised, impartlng to me
only so much OF the secret OF his processes as
was unavoidable. For weeks at time re-
maine" 1n his private laboratory, seeing no
one and seen py no one excepting the Profess
sor aLo the trustworthy kaSpar. Her Froliker
! proceeded With caution, closely watching the
| effect or each new test, and advancing by de
| greeS. He never went so far In one experiment
| that he was unable to withdraw at discretion
| He always kept open All easy road for retreat
| For that reason felt myself perfectly safe In
MS hand, and submitted TO whatever he re-
| quiTed.
Under the action of the etiolating drugs
| which the professor admintSt cred in connection
with powerful detergentS,I became at first pale,
| White, colOrless as an albnO but without SUI
| ferlng In general health. My hair and beard
| looked like spun glass and my skin like marble.
| The professor was satisfied with his results
| and went no further at this time. He restored
| to me my normal color.
| "ln the next experiment, and in those sue
| ceeding. he allowed his chemical agents to take
! f1rmer hold upon the tissues OF my BODY I
| became not only white, like bleached man.
| but slightly translucent like porcelain figure
| Then again he paused for while giving me
| back my color and allowing me to 60 forth into
| the world. TWO months later was more than
! translucent. You have seen floating those sea
rao1ates, the medus;n or jelly fish, their outlines
| almost invisible TO the eye. Well, became I'm
| the air like the Jelly fish In the water. Almost
| perfectly transparent, 1t was only by close in.
| spectlon that old KaSpar could discover my
| Whereabouts In the room when he came TO bring
! me food. 1t was kaspar who ministered to my
wants at times when was clustered"
but your clothlng?" inquired, interrupting
| FIackS narrative. THAT must have stood out
IN strong contrast with the dim aspect OF your
h hp1V - $500