Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1885-06-14

"a WE'LL said. ~ supPV'o
dead, and there's an end OF It; bat u
is very singular catastrophe. nope
Marion won't be inconsolablc.'
During the rest Of dinner was con-
scious Of being rather poor company.
Following close upon the mysterious
occurrences have described, Sikes's
unhappy fate troubled me. My sus.
picions were. however. so underlined
and seemed even to me, when l tried
to contemplate them from an impair
tial point Of view, so ridiculous,
that 1 could not bring myself
20 communicate them to Ellen. and
incur the contempt which would be the
deserved portion Of grown-up man
who confessed to being seriously dis
turbcd by an odd sound in an empty
house. and by commonplace night
marc. have no hesitation in reveal
ing these sentiments now that SUISSE
ouent events have justified them. But
that evening again determined to wait.
| did not have to wait long.
Ii was a cold evening. and alter bid
ding goodnight to my sister, lighted
fire in my study and sat down to en-
10Y a new novel had long been wish
ing to read. was about half way
through my volume when ! suddenly
felt sensation of cold. looked up.
The fire was burning brightly, but !
did not feel its warmth. Ii was as
though some opaque body or a large
glass screen had been interposed be-
tween me and it. A moment
afterward | felt the heat fall
on my face again. Had heard
the muliled sound Of a footstep
on the hearth-rug close to me? put
ont my hand and felt nothing but the
warmth of the fire. AS | gazed about
the room in surprise my eye fell on an
armchair standing on the other side Of
the fire. 1t was nearly new chair,
which | had bought shortly after COM
ing to Welham Square. 1t had a
leather seat, smooth and unworn. with
particularly good and yielding springs.
lung upon its back was an anti
macassar worked esthetically in screw
els. As looked at this chair it struck
me that the seat was considerably de-
pressed. as though some one had re-
Gently sat down upon it and the seat
had failed to resume its ordinary level.
This surprised me. for | had sat in the
chair that morning and felt sure the
springs had been in good order. look
ed at the antimacassar. Toward the
top it was pushed up in wrinkles.
As | looked it occurred to me
that it was impossible for it to
hang in such manner by itself. 1t
looked for all the world as if an inyisi-
ble but substantial human frame was
then actually sitting in the chair.
When this notion occurred to me sat
dazed with an Undesirable horror,
staring stupidity at the chair, which did
not move. In an access Of frenzied
terror / hurled the book | was reading
at the chair. Did it strike the seat, or
did it glace away few inches from
the edge and fall on the hearth-rug?
The next instant the seat Of the
chair rose up audibly to its normal
level, and the antimacassar fell out
into its usual folds, still preserving,
however, the traces of its previous
wrinkles. ! started up, and. rushing
to the chair, began to prod it. ] could
discover nothing unusual in its cOndi-
ton. As | was doing SO | felt hand,
beyond all doubt, laid steadily on my
shoulder. faced round and saw no
thing. Who are you:" | shouted,
What do you WANT" But no an
swer came. | was alone.
sat Cogitating till l O'Clock, and
then went to bed. Just as | was get
ting into bed it occurred to me that
perhaps | might be annoyed in the
dark, and though had not yet seen
anything, the prospect seemed rather
awful, and with slightly-trembling
hand lighted night-light. When | had
done so, and got into bed, was rather
disposed to be ashamed Of myself, and
thought would put it out, but, partly
no doubt from a Discrimination to get out
of bed, determined that in any case it
would do no harm, and that would
leave it as it was. 1t occurred to me
what an odd thing it is that one feels
safer in bed than anywhere else, whereas
in fact one is never in q more defence
less situation. Then went to sleep.
do not know what time | woke. 1t
seemed to me that the air was blowing
in upon my chest where the bed-clothes
should have covered me up. And
yes, certainly there was an odd depreS-
sion in my pillow close in front of my
face, as if some heavy weight were
pressing it down. | put up my hand
to investigate. touched something
on the pillow. caught hold Of it,
and turned cold with terror; for |
held tightly in my hand another hand,
neither cold nor warm, but large and
solid. My light was still burning, and
there was no one to be seen. The hand
was suddenly jerked away from me. |
sprang out of bed and rushed to the
fireplace with despairing feeling that
some one followed close behind
me. | seized the poker, turned
round and struck wildly at the
air. Whether hit anything or
not do not know. | remember
only that as / was recovering myself
from frantic lunge at nothing re-
ceived sharp and stunning blow on
the back Of my head. When ] came to
myself it was G in the morning and
] was lying on the floor where had
fallen. The night-light was out, and
the morning sunlight was streaming in
at my window. There was very large
and painful bruise where had been
struck.
CHAPTER III.
felt that this was getting beyond
joke. 1t was all very we'll to frighten
me, but when my ghostly enemy took
to knocking me down like a ninepn |
was not going TO keep it to myself any
longer. had no intention of surren-
dering, for the blood Of the Masseys was
up, and the fact that each OF my ances-
tors since the house was built had
sooner or later evacuated the pre-
misses made nue. all the more deter
mined not TO be driven away with
L.. 4. A. -.