Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1886-12-25


stood before me like desperate, hunted
animal, and there flashed ceross INC
sudden, horrible suspicion that he was in
some way connected with his wife's ILL
ness. An instant's swift reflection con-
WINGED me Of II y injustice-her symptoms
we're not thosn Of q person to whom an
injurious drug has been given, and the
remorse felt colored my manner to him
with oven greater kindness.
So gave him an opinion which was
the result more of weeks of observation
than Of my visit that evening to tho pa
tent Frankly, | win tell you, - oaid,
''that think Mrs. Westhaven win event
ually succumb to the same Illness which
attacked her sister. Three months ago /
would have refuted this theory as unten-
able in view of her superintendent vital
itty, but TO the eyes of stranger 1t IL pos
sibly more apparent than to her family,
to You, that she Is very much changed in
health and appearance. paused.
Wcsthayen drew his breath In short, dry
gasps, His hands moved restlessly along
the back Of chair before him.
'Do you think my wife viii dieSn
scarcely recognized his voice. re-
piled gently:
''Not necessarily so. A change of eli
mato has effected much in the case OF
Miss Carlyon; she is certainly different
person from what she was when first
saw her. In fact" / added refectivcly,
miss Carlyon has gained in almost ex-
act proportion to Mrs. Westhaven's loss. y
Westhaven started violently. His face
grew liyid. He regarded me with
strange expression, one which I could
not fathom. continued quietly:
II should give Mrs. Westhaven no
medicines. II she does not improve you
must take her back TO the east. Miss
Carlyon need not be considered be-
lieve her to be quite restored TO health"
think no one ever impressed me SO
disagreeably as Miss Carlyon at this
period. She had recovered her health in
a most extraordinary way, but 1t seemed
to bring her neither happiness nor good
temper. 1t was impossible to converse
with her upon the most trivial topics.
Her capricious temperament was weari-
some in the extreme and her Indifference
to her sister utterly repulsive. West
haven was oblivious to it. Whatever was
the fascination she exerted over him, he
was quite subservient to the spell. She
chung persistently to his side and monopo-
liked the time and attention which
should have been given for humanity S
| sake to his wife.
/ avoided Westhaven. He was q great
disappointment to me, and had entirely
lost respect for him, though l firmly be-
lieved his greatest sin to be weakness in
the hands of an INSCRIPTIONS woman
| One day he came to me quite beside him
| MiouH In, In al
he had believed her entirely recovered
The was in despair. His wife, he said,
was much better ! did not know what
to advise. l was not practicing physi-
clan, and had come to the firm conclu-
sion that had best not NEEDLE with a
complicated and perplexing hereditary
trouble which promised no successful
cure. preferred not to advise at all,
but promised to see them in the evening.
Westhaven left me dejectedly.
l saw nothing Of him through the day
and toward 3 O'Clock in the afternoon !
reproached myself for what might seem
to him an objectionable Indifference on
my part, and, ON m impulse, went di-
rectly to his rooms. The day was insuffer-
ably hot, There were few guests in the
hotel, the season was well over and NJ
one was visible in the corridors. There
was not sound save the splashing of a
fountain which played in the court be-
low, cooling the air deliciously. Iwalked
lazily along the gallery, gazing upward
at the bit Of blue sky above the open
court, intensely blue as only tropical sky
can be.
suddenly paused, transf1xed, incapa-
BILE of further motion. l stood before q
door leading into an inner sitting room
of Westhaven's, q room which had en-
tered but once, which believed he used
for study. The large glass ventilator
above the door was swung partially open,
and tipped at such an angle that the in
terror of the room, glowing in the fierce
sunlight which poured into it through
the open window, was reflected with the
fatal detailed reproduction of photog,
raphy, upon the surface of the glass.
Every detail Of its horrible revelation
was burned upon my brain in an instant
Upon long table before the window
through which the sun beat holly, lay 8
long, glass case, with convex sides, an6
within this uncovered case, ivid, CHASTITY
unconscious, lay Mrs Westhaven. Hel
face was drawn by an expression of terri
BILE agony, her limbs were rigid, hel
hands clenched convulsively, her beauti
full, white breast was bare. The blazinl
rays of the sun concentrated by the stronf
lens formed by the convex side of thu
case threw the spectrum directly over hel
heart. She was absolutely motionless
could not sec even that she breathed
lst where thes actinic rays of the spec
trum fell.upon her soft skin, those mys
terious rays, whose terrible chemiGa
power has yet to be fathomed, wer,
placed two fine glass tubes connecting
with a magnetic electric battery by tn,
side of the case, manipulated by West
haven.
His face could not see; it was, ben
over the body of his wife; his whole atti
tude breathei desperate and fearfu
anxiety. Though those delicate tube
flowed a something, ultra etheric, th,
faintest aurora, and passing into the, bat
terry was transmitted by meansof oonnecs
ing wires to the hands of Miss Carlyoer
who, seated almost directly beneath th
ventilatoE, held the handles of the, bat
terry firmly in her grasp. Her head ara
| thrown back, her face was clearly nc
, fiected above me, her eyes were shining
her breath came quickly. The silence O
death was in the ROOM; felt the painful
, excitement OF the scientist pending
} dangerous experiment
eonld hayo ahriek erf alnrsd Ia r,arvou