The sun. [volume] (Morris, Stevens County, Minn.) 1882-1895, 1886-03-11
THE BLACK CAMEL.
BY THE MARQUISE DE LAMA.

BY THE MARQUIsE DE LAMA.
On a certain bleak evening, during
the Winter of 'S3 1 was sitting alone
in the room l occupied on the top
floor of a fashionable New York apart
ment house, was just recovering-or
supposed to be recovering-from an
attack of illness, and / was still very
weak. The doctor, in fact, had left
ME but little while before, assuring
me gravely that must be very care
full if l desired to regain my usual good
health. But, to tell the truth, / was
somewhat self-willed, and not apt to
regard attentively what / was inclined
to call the doctors motions" AS
soon as he mad disappeared, there
fore, l sprang recklessly from the
couch where had been lying, and
drawing a chair up to the fire, took a
book from the table and began to
read. felt little chilly as / threw
off the eider-down quilt that covered
me; but 1 quieted my conscience by
thinking that the heat from the bed OF
Goals before me would soon make me
warm again. opened my book and
soon found myself so deeply interested
in what was reading that presently
fell to musing over the chapter
l had just finished. The work
IIa,Lo,.{ S~onoap'y Dpln
Piles of Sociology, and the chapter re-
lated to the ideas of death and resur-
rection as considered by primitive
man. The subject was one upon which
l myself had thought not a little, and
one that had a peculiar fascination
for me. From the time was a little
boy at school had been in the habit
OF wondering and specializing as to
what takes place in consciousness wht n
the soul leaves the body. OF course,
when a child, did not think of it in
these precise terms, such words being
| then unknown to me, but the ideas
| themselves were substantially the
same.
On this particular December evening,
as l have already said, l fell into a
UIOWH StluN 1ilSl t1lOuS1lC cboooU Wis
subject until / became completely alb
sorbed in it. Now and then l would
rouse myself and draw little closer
| to the fire, for the chill had not left
me. And my head seemed oppressed
by some peculiar weight ] was unable
| to shake off. A sensible man would
have gone at once to bed; but in some
respects l was the very opposite OF
sensible. Presently, however, a queer
ringing sound in my ears warned me
that some change was taking place in
me, yet with mad persistence my only
act was to rise from my seat and
throw some more Goals upon the fire;
then sinking back again, relapsed
once more into profound meditation
Very soon paid the penalty OF my
rashness. A deadly faintness all at
once crept over me. The weight de-
scended from my head to my chest: an
icy chill stole into my veins, and be.
gan to gasp for breath. My first i'm.
pulse was to spring up and endeavo1
to reach little cabinet on the wall in
which / kept a bottle OF brandy. but
strange to say, / was powerless to do
so. Again came that sense of a dead
weight pressing heavily upon me, and
with it was terrible feeling of suftoca-
ton. l tried to call aloud, although
/ recognized the uselessness of such a
proceeding, as no one would be likely
to hear ME.
"Alas!'' thought, chad l but fol
lowed the doctors advice! But now it
is too late. can do nothing for my
self, and I shall probably die here
alone"
This gloomy thought called up with
i'll me the small amount OF force pos
sessed. With one desperate effort
caught firmly hold of the arms of my
chair and succeeded in fairly raising
myself. But, to my inexpressible hor
ror, just at this point / felt myself
sinking slowly and gradually, unit
finally ! fell with dull thud up
on the heart rug. After that, al
was darkness and oblivion for q
while. Then, little by little, con
seriousness dawned once more upon me
and ] rose, much to my astonishment
with apparent ease from my recum
bent position. At first the room ap
peared dark to me. The surrounding
| atmosphere was like black, impene
trable curtain. But this, no doubt
came from my extreme weakness and
from the effects of my fall. Presently
the obscurity vanished, and saw my
room as it usually was. The light
burned just as had left it, and the
fire still glowed brightly on the
hearth.
"Now, at all events, / will 60 tc
bed" said to myself. II will not
prolong my heedlessness. Thank
heaven Ihave recovered in time to save
myself"
/ turned to walk toward the othe1
side of the room, when, to my intense
surprise, my foot struck something
heavy and unyielding on the floor.
bent down to see what the object
could be, and in SO doing l started
back with an exclamation of terror
and trembling in every limb.
Lying close beside my chair was thu
PROSTATE form of a man, and, to my
unspeakable CONSERVATION, nearer
examination convinced me that thu
body was my own. was dead cher
dead! Could it be possible? Igot
down on the floor and passed my
hand over the inanimate shape. II
was still warm, but saw at once that
life was extinct. As the freight shot
up into blaze noticed that the face
wore a purplish tinge, which as gaz
ed, turned to dull ashen hue. Tht
! limbs had lost their elasticity; ths
eyes were open, yet knew they were
sightless.
/ While / looked the feeling Of horror
that ut first possessed me changed tc
one of sorrow.
II do not care for myself" / SAID
mournfully; "but Mary, my pool
Mary"