New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-02-03
THE HERALD OF FATE.


On certain winter morning, rev years .s s t'r,
Mr. Clark Rogers, who was the 20. IA JUG ILL
of Harkness. Lyon a. Co, in Sansomesu. aPpearcu -,
~ +hs otsice with very unusual expression on
his face Hardness. who was an auaoie, hlnu ~.
man. noticed il. and asked whetner ne was ny IT,
feeling verv much out OF sorts that morning;
did not escape Lyon the practical managing heau
of the firm who ventured the remark tIap noecL'
evidently had something on his MIND Ing Do U1
keepers who were accustomed to WORK unuer Hi =.
Rogers's direction, commented upon IL at noon TO
one another, and decided that something very queer
must have happened to affect him SO deeply. Aha
The something very queer which had upset tns
matter fact intellect of Clark Rogers. ana had
brought the strained, bewildered look upon me-
face was letter which the p9s.nan o r,G With
the reading Of that letter complete @ IN 1 LS
taken place in his mind For the first tune IN nus nus
life of fort years he was orouEnt iaSe 70 oU
cejvable explanation. Heretofore no problem hao
ever presented itself to which his plain common
Was wa not Sua orbit winch he
to traverse, the result was something very IKE
panic. .,,. ,o..or ,.hicb
had come regularly through the mail and pore
the San Francisco postmark OF the preceding uay,
was that it came from a dead man. That Howaro
Russell was dead there could be no uouph loi
nearly twenty years before Rogers hlmseH nae
helped TO carry his body to the grave 1hey nsu
been friends during their boyhood ana youth III a
decaying New England town. On the Other hah w:
there seemed to be no possible doubt that TINS
letter was from Howard Russell 1t was signed
with his name, was written unmlStaKspy IL n
hand and contained references 10 Things Oh Wmon
no one else could know. After strained eno.s
TO account for il all Mr. Rogers read ana rereau
the letter. experiencing as he did SO queer sen
sation Of mental numbness. Inc ieiOer f"n aS
follows:
My Dear Clark: You are doubtless ast0nished 20
receive letter In my handwriting, ana arc valiiy
have been wishing and striving to communicate Will
you and at last have found human medium throuka
w wrRe you and his body held 81 soul speak
the message I wish to send. know that this is all
revealed 10 you the possibility of the return Of human
soul to tho earth after rs departure from the body
nse soq e for oG you to s.
Russell who writes this letter e1 w ya kd
With mo alone few hours before my death, that
TOT Hor r tyr WAL yo% yo o Of ap he
afternoon whom srolled together through the woods
and talked Of Mary and soemIy as ccsnt 10 tha
sufHclentl Can you imagine that any one eso
shgd know Of these two sy Ss wish TO como
speak to yo and because Of the love Teh you once
there Ss d aSr SS are yo this win
self detained at the Office by unfinished WORK There
can ,O to YOU % dep 10 speak TV y R R
shall listen to him. learn your destiny and act upon
in the possibility Of this close your 70 the truth
withhold Judgment for the present but listen faith
'' THE SPIRIT OF HOWARD RUSSELL.
Now had any one of Clark Rogens's friends,
who were wont to admire the cool, practical way
in which he took the affairs Of life, related such
an occurrence to him, he would have been at
no loss for an explanation Some enterprising
swindler," he would have declared. who hap
pened to have learned these facts about you,
initiates the dead mans handwriting in the
hope Of getting you 70 pay for further disclosures
Yet now that the ease was OF his own experience,
this explanation was dismissed almost without
hearing For time his thoughts continued to
grope about blindly, striving 70 grasp. anything
by which they could find their way back to light
There seemed TO be nothing within reach, and for
once hopeless amaZement ruled in his mind.
Mr. Clark Rogers had no relatives, and nc
was not in the habit Of making confdants OF
his few friends. His life was essentially COM
monplace, methodical and lonely. lie spent the
days over the ledgers of Hardness, Lyon IL Co,
and the evenings in his apartments or at the
club. Ile had come to the coast many years
before. while still young man, and had slowly
worked his way up from poverty to a1iuence by
the most strict attention to business The prop
erty which he had thus acquired he proposed to
leave to his sisters son, young man OF con-
siderable business promise, who hVed IN Guy
of the middle West Such a life Vas without
perplexites of any sort, and tended TO make
harder TO bear anything Strange OF unexpected
which came to pass.
For these reasons therefore, the face Of Clark
Rogers wore the troubled look which had attracted
the notice of his partners and the clerks Inc ne
he should have further evidence, ana IN the enort
TO accomplish this he found himself unable to
keep his thoughts upon his work during tne Gay.
whatever, he might have dismissed the question
from his mind, but in default OF that IL con-
SANITY returned TO torment MIN freSentiy .
curious desire to see the conclusion OF the anait
took possession of him, and he began TO wonaet
whether the alleged medium" would put IN an
appearance. Under other circumstances IL Wou,d
have seemed to him preposterous that ne should
be brought TO consider the idea oil listening 10 an
impostor of this stamp, but at present ne Wa
strangely o1 dGs the ss at the office
fbe evening proved true, for the reason thai nc
found at the end Of the day that he had &C,
complished but small part OF his accustomed
Iabors. .
Al about 0 o'clock that evening Mr. Rogers sa
alone In his private Office at the front end OF tn
building ON Sansome-st To the rear, beyond TN
iahvrinth OF tables and showcases, were the gas
coyorartrnents where few bookSeepers were still
work Intent upon finishing the duties he hat
left undone during the day. Rogers was bendln!
over the paper on his desk. The room was ngntst
dimly bF an argand gss-lamp When at last h
looked up he discovered that he was no ionGe
alone. but that tall man, dressed IN . snap1'
had entered unnouced, although both the st;ee
and Office doors closed. His arms were folded
and from under the brim of his black sloueh hat
pair of great. deep-set eyes looked down upon IN
merchant.
GOOD evening" said he. when Rogers looke'
IN; /" my name is Campion."
How did You get IMP" asked Rogers. IN
The doors open quietly and you ns were mucl
AZ IL became more evident that his strange Wis
;tor was hesh and blood, and not some unearthll
being Mr. Rogers's calmness returned. lie me
anned the man to seat opposite TO himself II
front of the desk, and, for minute. looked In
fepfly at his face the light fell on ii from tn
gas-ismp The mediums features we're large am
strikinp and OF a waxy palencss. After the short
Searching gaze ne had bestowed upon Mr.. Roger
when he first entered he did not again look q
him, but allowed his luminous eyes to stare blank
into space.
Presently, when Mr. Rogers felt his self-eontro
sufIicienfly established to speak. he said: Wei
sir what Is your business with me
do not know answered the man.
His method Of speaking was quite as strange a
his appearance. He spoke slowly, yet each sen
tenee seemed TO come at a breath. Although with
ont emphasis or injection, IL was still not ca
nressionscss, for his voice was sonorous and th
words clearly enunciated.
. You DO not lmowl Then what did you com
for9'