Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1884-08-08

every yard. 1 was ready to roar
fer very disquietude of spirit.
'Confound it ALL 1 almost shouted,
this is beyond a jokel What an
abject piece of imbecility for a
man who has always flattered him.
self on having too much reason to
fall a prey to any superstitious de-
lusions whatever l must be i'll ;
if things go on like this tomorrow
shall give in and 60 to old Bur-
rows (the family Esculapius) to be
put together again.
Meanwhile every step forward
appeared to grow more and more
difficult. A sudden sound of
footsteps close behind most un-
accountably paralyzed my powers
of locomotion, and filled me with a
horrible dread. This was mons
trous; with a kind of groan of dis
gust and misery over my own de-
crepitude, 1 resOlutely turnedround
and waited till the steps reached
me.
Merciful heaven. What was
this that came up, brushed past
me, and went on? My brain reel
ed, a cold perspiration broke out
on my forehead, for frantic as it
may sound, it was myself that 1
saw go by. My exact image and
counterpart came toward me, look
ed me full in the face with cold,
Indifferent eyes, differing from mine
only in their expression at the
moment, and passed on, brushing
me with the sleeve of a light over
coat exactly like the one | wore.
l noticed with despairing recogni-
ton on the creatures left hand,
which was raised, holding the un-
buttoned flap of his coat in front of
him IA favorite trick of mine), the
very ring Olga had given me a
week ago, and which was also on
my finger at that moment.
For one long minute 1 stood stu
pefed with horror; the next l dart
ed forward after that terribly fa-
miliar form, which crossed the
streetand went on toward our door.
1 felt sure that 1 must be mad, or in
the clutches of some hidden night
mare. OH for some power to-
shake it off and awake. But no
the area ratings had firm and
chilly reality when l touched them.
My footsteps and those of others
sounded all too solidly on the de-
serted pavement. / even caught
myself deliriously smiling at Pc
culiar trick of walking in the thing
in front, with which Barbara had
often taunted me. It was an ex-
traordinary opportunity of seeing
oneself as others see one, but what
mortal could have availed himself
of it under such circumstances
staggered on behind him, una
BILE to diminish the twenty yards or
so that separated us. Would he
stop at 104? The suspense was
almost intolorable. He disappear
ed through the door, though the
only surviving family latch-key
was in my pocket. When | reach
ed the door it was shut, aud bore
no signs OF any unusual treatment.
1 could not go in. | could not fol-
low into the house and run the
risk of meeting him on the dark
stairs. A horror unspeakable had
taken possession of my senses. L
turned and fled, and spent uncount-
ed hours in walking about the 81
lent streets and squares, uncon-
scious of the lapse of time.
The early sunshine aroused and
cheered my scattered wits. Grad
ually the sounds of common life
awakening brought back my rea-
soning faculties. The discOrdant
cry of that bird of dawn, the early
sweep, was as music in my ears and
seemed to make the dreadful
night fade into remoteness and un-
reality.
/ made my way back to Lancas-
ter Gate, fO0tsOre and exhausted.
The milkman was driving merrlly
up and down; when l reached our
doorsteps, it seemed year since
had last ascended them. rushed
up to my room; it was, of course,
empty, the bed untouched. But
on the pillow and turned down
sheet, exactly where my head and
shoulders would have been in the
natural course of things, lay the
ruins of a large bust, the Hermes,
which had been wont to stand on a
bracket over the head of the bed.
This bracket my mother had fire.
quently entreated me to replace by
q frmer support; it had given
away at last under the pom lerous
weight of the bust, which striking
against the iron rail of the bed,
had broken into two or three
murderous portions that reposed
on the pillow and sheet, the
hracket only having chosen to