Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1883-12-21

ing vision, though its appearance, there
N the mirror, over my dining-room
chlmney-piece, was remarkable and
startling enough, to say the least of it.
In the middle Of the class, which in its
other parts reflected simply and natur-
any the commonplace objects in the
room. chairs and tables and Window
curtains, there appeared a small but
wildly distinct picture of a house and
garden. 1t was a very pretty house, its
'front.' covered on one side with a green
creeper, which was spangled with star
~. White blossoms, and onthe other with
a tresco such as l hadheard described as
existing on the walls of houses in italy.
where L had never been-a fresco rep
resentlng an old woman sitting with a
basket of oranges at her feet. There
were four windows, two upstairs, two
down, exactly over each other: they
We're all half shaded with green blinds,
and [ could see that the top one, on the
right hand side was slightl, open. Up
the garden there ran q broad gravel
walk, with soft fresh turf, gemmed with
f1ower-beds on either side of it. The
Enclosure was fenced round with a
rather high wooden paling, and in one
corner Of it there stood q summer-house,
with a quaintly-shaped roof, that had
something of a pagoda about it. Over
the whole there was spread a soft. sill
very light, as though a bright, full
moon was shining down upon it. A
yellow CLEAN, as of a lamp burning
within, stole through.the open window,
and mingled with the white rays with
out.
l laid my fingers on my pulse. Wa
1 going fast into q raging fever! NV
pulses were as steady IS they were
when l rose that morning after a nights
sound sleep. l tested my brain by 60
ing through, in my mind, all the symp-
toms and features in a difficult and per-
picking case which had been lately un-
der my care; my mind acted as coolly
and calmly and regularly as it had ever
done. l repeated to myself several pas
sages of poetry from different authors
in different languages; they came as
quickly and easily to my tongue as if l
had been reading them from a printed
book. 1 gazed around, and fixed my
eyes or various objects in the room to
see whether l should be subjected to
other optical illusions, but in all other
points my eyes were as reasonable as
they usually were. They showed me
nothing but the familiar chairs and Ia
BILE, and the well-known pattern of the
paper on the wall. Then l looked back
at the mirror. yae house was still
there.
Had I been re,ding lately a descrip-
ton of such a house, or had lately seen
anywhere a picture like it? Either OF
these things might possibly have left a
vivid impression on my mind which
might have accounted for the strange
delusion. I was not. however, able to
recollect, search my memory as I would,
that a book or a painting had brought
such a house and garden before my
thoughts. Twas naturally neither ex-
citable nor imaginative; indeed, 1 was
generally regarded by everyone who
knew me, and by myself INTO the bar
| gain, as one of the most prosaic, rational
beings in the world. My fancy had
never before played me the smallest
trick ever as I rode home, worn out
with watching by a sick bed, on the
darkest night; even in the many pain
full scenes full of death and gloom
through which my professional life had
led me. In the dissecting-room, in the
severest operation, my hand had always
been as steady as if l were peeling an
orange. All this made the present in
comprehensive vision yet more utterly
inexplicable. Besides, even while ]
gazed at it, I knew that l had never felt
more calm and collected and more in
an ordinary condition of body and mind
throughout my very commonplace, very
busy history.
Would another pair of eyes see the
house in the mirror? I wondered. With
a hurried hand I rang the bell to test
this point, and summoned my house.
keeper, who generally herself waited or
me. This good lady's name was Mrs
Trickey. 1t is a common Devonshirt
name, let it be at ono understood by
those who are not aware of the fact, anC
is in no way meant to hint at any I'm,
pleasant proclivities or unNarrantablt
whims on the worthy DANES part; sht
was as honest and simple-mindet
woman as ever handled a bunch O
keys:
MIS-. 1TlCkeys 1 nave IuuS AO1 yot
to ask you to do a very simple thing
l said, hesitatingly, now that she wa
present, scarcely knowing how to be
gin; for I felt, if 1 spoke out plainly, m,
housekeeper must infallibly thinl
that l had suddenly taken leave of m.
senses.
"VVhat will zee please to have, STRIP
replied Mrs. Trickey, in true Devon
shire fashion.
"Mrs. Trickey will you please lool
in the glass over the chimney-piece?"
blurted out rather abruptly, not know
ing how else to find out what l wante'
to discover.
sect along with your nonsense, Mas
ter Fred" cried Mrs. Trickey, with
toss of her head, which was so e%nergeti
it almost discomposed the stiff frills Q
her cap.
1t must be mentioned here that Mrs
Trickey had lived with my mother whel
Twas a boy. and that, with her, | still
continued Master Fred, though all tn
world besides knew me as Frederic
Heathcote, Esq, surgeon.
II can assure you, Mrs. Tricky,
mean no insult, 0 even a joke, re
piled, humbly. II fancied sonethin!
was wrong in the reflection of the glass
g. L.. ~ J,.%oI - n, oh,