New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-08-25

HORRORS might not befalI me / closed my eyes
a,, ny quite stall, hardly daring to breathe even,
doot" 'ct us mOtl0nless as If / had been really
uead do not know how long lay thus, without
siionnns or opening my eyes There was dead
- sdnn, around me; not sound, not an echo Of
Which, 9"I' h Where was !? Hardly in the room in
,onr on had been murdered for. in "a curious I'M
for r' thnlg way still half thought l was dead
or mere all night long one could hear from time
and the ~; the street ana even the shutters
ont 0ne curtains could not entirely shut them
yeo, hg hst the dead silence continuing /
49, u tS 10 open my eyes, and TO try and form
room iued Oh where was. was in fairly large
y WI 1 could see well, because the moonlight
thin Streaming into II. and this was the first
oning l noticed the light came in, not through
fly WINDOWS IN the side of the room, but from
hioh I'D III the centre OF the room the roof was
narts' w ABOUT three feet than in the other
p" "i.s ana In the woodwork which con-
The bi, fe m CHER and lower parts and by which
Of isIher part was supported, were large panes
val IL, did not know ' the plan Of
cont t uousei had been into no room ex-
c cpI mat dread one which had been my lodging
d pu could form no theory as to where l
nut. as returning consciousness grew fuller. the
bvmer W renectlon returned. and with it came the
n n5 aand, then my arm; half raised myself l
SouId move, though / felt stiff and bruised :;
~, uuU now my heart beat at the faint sound of
,,Io yMh movement how | sank back terrified at
oie tnnought that the sound might be overheard
a au mat those faces might close round me again.
si,ao VIVID picture take bodily form more !,
aISroSs my forehead 10 clear my troubled brain
mere was something cold and damp that matted
my nalr and oozed down from it in strealls; it was
Inloihcht or TWO before understood what IL was
oioou' nall dried, thickening and clammy Once
nor. more raised myself my elbow; then | sat UP :
d ~ prepared to rise to my feet then suddenly
oiio quickly sank back again upon the floor and
closed my eyes and summoned all my self-com-
manu- manu- ana all my force Of will TO feign uncon-
SeiousneSs for, in that instant Of rising had
caught the sound Of approaching footsteps and |
hat | M
lace TO face with death The footsteps came
nearrr; they paused at the door; the door was
opened, and some one entered o man, | felt sure
I1 1 the step was n heavy one. He came TO where
iay, ana 0ent over me-not quite close t. my face
lof could not feel his breath Jpn me- though it
came tnlck and fast and hardly minute passed
DeIore ne moved away again. 1t is not good, /
suppose 10 look upon murdered corpSe-least of
All TO The murderer. / half opened my eyes aS he
moved away could not keep them closed; felt
,naJ i must look and see who was in the room
les, wos right; il the man who had struck
me senseless-dead as he had thought. Presently.
rs nf.l sun looked the woman came in, and then
said; " he says he doubts il amt deep enough
me man answered, with one of those oaths he
used so much, that Tom a fool; but he went
out OF the room the woman following him and
leaving the door open.
Now was my time. my only time, my one solitary
chance Of escape, if chance there were at all
quickly rose; quickly and softly / stole 10 the
door ana looked out Near me, the left, were
the end of the passage into which looked was the
street door. The room was in had been evidently
Dullt out at the back Of the house; remembered
now seeing It's closed door each day as | had come
in. candle gave dim ght to the passage and
hckehd as though in draught a faint sound
came up from below; otherwise all was still. l
le1t the room and crept along the passage to The
'front.' dOOt only piece OF wood between me and
the street between me and safety: but that piece
of wood was barred and bottled and the top bolt
was TOO high for me TO reach. | was cut OIL then
ah fp.n lion,
drag up TO the door the chair which the cIndle
stick was standing for already on the stone stair
case, leading to the kitchen heard the footsteps
iIembled, as | looked round, back toward the
room had left, and then mp the Stairs. Nov /
saw why the candle llickered: the window half
way up the staircase WAS open. Through it |
saw the sky bright with stars toward it turned
as toward my only hope of salvation. ! did not
hesitate; had not time 10 think for the woman'S
footsteps were very distinct now, and ] knew
had but an instant before the discovery Of my
hight. Up the stairs then, as swiftly and noise
tssly as possible and out of the window to Il
1nd Of platform, loaded, and with Oblong cree
ton in the middle | guessed at once where
waS-on the roof of the room / had just left: and
before was a large graveyard, one Of those
disused graveyardS. Of which, am told, there are
still many in London The tombStoncS were all
white and distinct in the moonlight. and I re-
member thinking they looked like so MANY sheets
Of noe-paper standing upright; and the fancy came
TO me that perhaps the. dead came out Of their
these headstOnes MESA ges to the living. thought
this in the midst of my terror, thought this rs
crept round the raised part of the roof and Ollcd
over the pararet 10 see what height was from the
ground Then quickly | shrank back: for just
below me- digging a hole in the ground, were the
two men was trying 10 escape from. | knew at
once what the hole was for: | knew il was to he
my grave-the " it, which the woman had said
Tom had thought not deep enough. 7 fell upon
my hands and knees What could | do now? L
dared not 90 back-I could not go forward. Thank
(,,H fIo doc aol- hat uolt
bright moonlight! Thank God for having made
me so small and slight! | crept t. that part Of
the raised roof which lay IN darkness, and pressing
myself close against il, lay down at full length
and waited. BY raising my head | could look
through the panes Of glass into the room below: |
did so. and saw the woman hurrylng from SIDE to
side 'peering into the corners where the shadows
fell and behind the one or two pieces of furniture
Then she went out of the room and put my head
down and lay very still.
The length of the roof ran parallel with the back
Of the house, and the breadth, of course, at right
angles TO il. The staircase window was much
nearer one end of the root than the other. that
a person coming out Of the window could see along
one end and down one side. the other end ana
side being hidden. II was fortunately the END thaC
could not be seen from the window mat was III
shadow, and here lay, waiting for the woman 10
come and give the alarm of my escape. l had
not to wait long only minute elapsed between
her disappearance from the room below and the
sound of her footsteps on the IeadS-Very quick
footsteps that went at 10 the side OF the roof
facing the churchyard jim, Tom the woman
called, in a hOarse whisper, as II fearful Ol Delns
overheard by others than those TO whom she spoke.
Come, come quick; she's gone!p She could not
make the men hear and presently she went uowh
the ladder into the churchyard- heard some
oaths, some eXclamat tons, some warnings OF
hush - and then could catch nothing but a CON
fused murmur of whist erin[ voices, dared not
move, / dared not rise and rush back INTO the
house for each moment | seemed to hear step
upon the ladder, each moment / expected to see
one Of those sinister faces appear above the para
pet and | knew that certain space OF time WAS
necessary 10 my escape / remembered that the
street door Was barred and locked waited,
listening, and then my hands and knees crePt
softly, stealthily toward the edge OF the rcoi
| raised nv head and looked over. The two men
and the woman were standing huddled together
a few PAGES from the ladder Only one OF the
WINS fear upon IT, / caught the words, Fool
must be in the house," and then the face was