The Columbus journal., 1888-07-25
Van Deckermann's BARGAIN.
By N. THEED.

NC NC oNa oAfo ACSoiSs oiAA ySu ~
violence from him. In the moonlight, too
things have a strange, uncanny look witt
them. ] tried to fatter myself that l wa.
keeping silence and pretending not to b
awake, partly in order to see what my
visitor was about to do. partly to defeat hi:
insane malice: but l was conscious, III spite oi
myself, of a fascination against which / IVES
powerless. To lic 2nd watch from between
NV closed eyelidS was al 1 could 90.
Still with hands outstretchei, still with thu
same tottering gait, past the foot OF
the bed, and toward the fireplace
where, turning round in the mid
stream of the moonlight, face and
figure alike stood revealed. The same and
vet not the same, q mask rather than a face
the lips parted, the eyes open and staring
fxedly before them, with a terrible, unmis.
taxable stare of v~acuity-the face Of one
more dead than alive. Terrible as the sight
was, it brought with it a sudden and IN
looked for relief. The first look at those ap-
parently sightless orbs and that expression
less countenance assured NE that the old man
was as genuinely unconscious of his sur
roundings as l was endeavoring to appear to
be of mine. Once before, / had Seen a man
walking in his sleep, and l had not forgotten
That ghaStiy phenomenon.
He was still cropping about with his hands,
and it did not occur to me at the moment as
altogether opposed to the theory l had so
readily adopted that what was in his normal
state only nearsiShtedness should be exag-
gerated in his present condition into almost
if not tot~al-blindness. Suddenly, while l
was still watching him, for my eyes had not
Quilted him for a moment, one wandering
hand found n resting place on the arm of the
big chair l had noticed upon entering the
room as having been put for my accommoda-
ton. The effect upon the frame of the old
man was as though there were connected
with the wood q galvanic battery. Every
nerve in his body seemed to he put in mo
ton, but though his teeth chartered and his
ewes moved in their sockets, no sound escaped
hint was as though one had electrified a
corpse.
So strong as that, n yet not strong
enough to awaken him! A chill that l could
not account for, and that seemed to be numb
ing all my faculties, was creeping over ME.
The face that / was staring at, with eyes
which refused to leave il for the shortest mo
ment of time, seemed more and more the dis
torted image of that l was familiar with; 1
felt as though break this unnatural silence l
must, but no words came to my assistance.
Had /, too, been struck dumb and helplesss
IL only he would speak, rave, do anything!
! was scarcely conscious OF the longing
that was upon lie, before it was gratlhed;
the trembling figure erected itself, as If de-
terminedly getting the better of the shock it
had received, and once more, but this time
as of fixed purpose, the thin grasping fingers
were stretched out in the direction of the
chair. As they closed upon it, the whole
face changed, all expression of eagerness and
avidity took the place of the vacant stare /
had hitherto confronted, what looked like O
flash Of triumph seemed to quicken into life,
beneath their bushy brows, the eyes whose
power of vision | had thought suspended,
and with a strange, unearthly sound, half
cry, half chuckle, which made my blood
creep, the old man flung himself on his knees
before the chair.
In this attitude, and with his back to me,
what was it he was doing, or attempting
to do.
raised myself a little in the bed and saw
TO my increased myStification that he had
taken hold of the chair-a ponderous old
continuance, swathed in a loose cover of faded
damask-and was apparently ~endeavoring to
eAAs - ~ AhA,N Wv AN "obAA oR"SS
il, and not escape without more or less in
jury to himself in doing so. Yet how to
withdraw him from it without awakening
him, and that ~roughly-a measure always,
so l had been instructed, to be carefully
avoided in cases of somnambulism. :
Mr.. Van Deckermann," I said, finding
my voice at last with all effort, ''can l come
and help your
Tl.n. .r,. ~ .L,,% clio ~ 1853, ~ - $1,000.
thing falling, but there was no answer-ant
where was Mr.. Van Deckermann!
The old chair was still standing-and
standing on terra firna III the track of the
moonbeams-of the homely elderly figure in
the brown suit, which had been kneeling
before it a M before, there was not q
trace. l sprang out of bed, fired with
a sudden overmastering indignation at find
ing himself, as it were, baffied and cheated,
and flung open the doors of the closet, of the
emptiness of which l had assured myself be-
fore retiring for the night. 1t was as l had
left il. The only other way in which, even
.supposing my senses for the moment to have
deserted me, my visitor could nave eluded
me was quitting the room outright.
went to the door-it was locked, as 1 had
taken the precaution of locking it a few hours
previously, on the inside.
/ stood for a moment in an utter hopeless
bewilderment, and then l burst into a laugh,
which sounded even to myself forced and I'M
natural.
"Pshar l exclaimed, II must have been
dreaming"
The words had scarcely passed nv lips
when something, the like of which 1 had
never heard before-something between n
laugh and a wall-an ndescribable minglinC
Of pain and mockery-sounded close at my
elbow. Turning sharp round to see whence
it came, l lost my balance and fell face for
ward on the bed, dragging the sheet, at
which l clutchei to save myself. to the
ground. As l did so, something fell on the
floor with a thud. 1t was my watch. which
failing its accustomed receptacle, l had
slowed away under my pillow, but Of this l
did not satisfy myself until the morning,
when, upon finding and picking it up l dis
covered that it had stopped at a quarter
to 4 O'Clock. OF the rest of that night l have
no remembrance, save a confused one of
~scrambling into bed with, / think, the most
fervent prayer to be delivered from evil /
had ever uttered on my lips.
And You expect me to believe that you
were in YOU sober senses when you saw, or
1IIdR iuc1 you u" ,tDlS-WudLS lall i call lIs
double Of myselfF' said Mr.. Van Decker
mar when l had related as briefly as I
could my experience of the night before.
81 have told You already, sir, that / was
wide awake. Put it to yourself whether l
should be likely to be such a fool as to let
anything which l could possibly account for
to myself as a bad dream or a mere optical
delusion stand in the way of my acceptance
of SO substantial a benefit as that you offer
me! l could no more subject my wife,
"Pshm he broke in, scornfully; don't
talk about YOU wife. BE honest and say
frankly that you are not prepared to face it
yourself"
II had said as much already, Mr.. Van
Deckermann- Nothing would induce me,
after what l went through last night, to be-
come your tenant"
And Yet You don't believe in the super
naturalE'
II did not" I replied. 81 should have
said no to anybody who might nave put the
question to me yesterday in all good faith.
To-day ] should decline TO answer it.; l don't
know what to believe"
The old man puckered up his brows and
regarded me thOughtfully.
"Well, it is Your own look out" he aid
81 suppose l was mistaken in my man. 1t
would have been better for both OF us if your
nerves had been stronger. l told You last
night L had lbeen too candid with Won I