Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1882-11-08

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"The letters were very short, aud
we're not dated, They were evidently
from lover TO his mattress, The spell
ing aud handwriting we're those OF q
man imperieetly educated, hut the Ian
guags itself was iorcible, In the On
pressohs OF ohdearment there was 9
kind Of rough. wild love, but here and
there were dark intelligible hints al
some seerst not Of love, some secret
that seemed OF crime,
~ put down tho letters. and began
10 muse over their contents.
Fearing, however. that the train OF
thought into which ! fell might IN.
steady my nerves. reused myself, laid
the letters on the table, stirred up the
fire, and opened my book.
~ read quietly enough until about
half past elayen, then threw myself,
dressed, upon tho bod. aud told my
servant he might retire TO his own
room, which adjolned mine, but that
no must keep awake. i bade him leave
open tho doors between tho two cham
bers, Thus alone, | kept two canllef
burning on the table by my eed-head,
placed my watch by my weapon. and
calmly resumed my reading. Opposite
me the fire burned clearly aud by II
lay the dog. seemingly asleep.
." In about twenty minutes felt an
exceedingly cold air pass by my cheek
I ianced tho door must have got open
but no, II was closed. l then looked IA
my loft, and saw the fame OF the can
dies violently swayed, aa by wind, Of
tho same moment the watch beside the
revolver softly slid from the table,
soitly-soitly-no visible hand, II was
gone. Isprang up, seizing the revolver
with ono hand, tho dagger with the
other; was rot willing that my wea
pom should share the fate OF the watch,
Three slow, loud, distinct knocks were
now heard at tho bed'head, My ser
want called out
" IL that you, airY
"No; DO on your guard
"Tho dog now reused himself, and
sat on his launches, his ears moving
quickly backward and forward He
kept his eyes hxed on mo with O look
40 strange that he concentrated oil my
attention upon bimself. Slowly he
rose up, all his hair bristling, and stood
rigid, and with tho same wild stare.
had no time, however, TO examine the
dog. Presently my servant emerged
rom his room and II ever saw horror
on the human face, II was then.
should not have recognized him had VIC
met in the street, 30 altered was no II,
every linoament. He passed by me
| quickly, aylng il whisper that seem
cd scarcely TO como from his lips;
"Run run II Is after me
"He gained the door, pulled II open,
aud rushed ont. ! followed him IN
voluntarily, calling to him 10 step but
without needing mo he kept on. was
left alone, but thought he had gone Ia
summon help. However, none came
Pride bade me remain, and closing the
door, carefully examined the room end
walls to see II there were any concealed
door. ] could find no trace OF one, NOT
even O sean, In the wbitewnsh. then
went to the floor and looked out into
the passage.way. Nothing but dark
ness visible. locked the door. Then
perceived that tho dog had SUNK into
an angle of the wall, and was pressing
himself close against it as IL literally
striving to force his way into it. Tap
preached and spoke to him; the poor
brute was evidently beside himself
wi h terror. II showed all its teeth, the
saliva dropping from its jaws, and would
would certainly have bitten me il l had
touched it. 1t did not seem to recog'
nize me. Finding that all efforts to
sooth him were in vain, I left him, and
returned to my book.
"I now became aware that something
interposed between the page and the
light, The page was overshadowed. l
looked up, and saw what l find very
difficult indeed to describe.
"It was darkness shaping itself out
of the air IN q very underlined outline.
cannot say it was OF human form, and
yet it more OF a resemblance to hu-
nan form, or rather shadow, than any.
thing else. As it stood wholly apart and
distinct from the air around it, its di.
mensions seemed gigantic; the summit
nearly reached the ceiling. While I
gazed, a feeling OF intense cold seized
me. An iceberg before could not more
have chilled me, nor could an iceberg
have caused cold more purely physi.
cal. / am convinced that it was not O
cold caused by fear. A. continued to
gaze, I thought-hut this cannot say
with precision-that distinguished
tso eyes looking down on me from the
hight. One moment I seemed to dis.
tinguish them clearly, and the next they
seemed gone; but still twor Us Of pale.
blue light frequently shot through the
darkness, as from the hight on which I
half believed, half doubted I had en-
countered the eyes.
"I strove to speak. My voice utterly
failed me. I could only think to my
self, rs this fearP No, it is not fear.
strove to rise, in vain; I felt Gs If
weighed down by an irresistible force.
With violent effort, at last succeed
ed in stretching out my hand toward
the weapon on the table as did SO, l
received on the arm and shoulder a
strange shock, aud my arm fell to my
side powerless. And now, to add to my
horror, the light began slowy to wane
from the candles. They were not, as it
were, extinguishel, but their flame
seemed very gradually withdrawn. 1t
was tho same with the fire. The light
was extracted from the fuel. In few
moments the room was in total dark
ness. The dread that came over me to
be thus in the dark with that dark
thing, whose power was 80 intensely
felt, brought reaction of nerve. In
fact, terror had reached that climax that
either my senses must have deserted
me or must have burst through the
spell. did burst through it. I found
voice, though the voice was shrek.
Then I rushed to the window, tore aside
the moldering curtain, and flung open
the shutters. My first thought was a
light And when I saw the moon clear
and calm, felt a joy that almost COM
pensated for tho previous terror.
"My eye now rested on the table, and
from under il there rose hand, visible
as far as the wrist. 1t cloaed softly on the
two letters had left lying on the table |;
hand and letters both vanished. Then
came the three loud, measured knocks L
had heard at the bed head before this
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