Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1890-07-11

fully placed i'll my pockctbook.
"And thcnl"
"Thcn, starting from the moment
when had this bit of rope III my pos.
session, began to digest badly, had
constant Nightmares, that took no partic.
ular form ut first, and thea, little by lit
tile, became more definite; and every
night l again saw Sauviniere, with his
little violet streak around his neck. 1t
was dreadful. 1t came to pass when
was afraid to go to sleep. l spent my
nights in gambling at the club. And
what Ill luck had You can imagine
Finally. | was taken sick. The doctors
knew not what to do. You understand,
OF course, that was not going to tell
them my dreams. You know Marthe,
my landlady. One day she told me that
her cook knew certain Saggi. You dc
not know him! A wonderful man, my
dear fellow, a sorcerer."
Robert uttered this word with an in
descri5ablc expression of anxious respect.
'tThca this cook had Saggi consult the
cards for her. AIarthe wanted to see him
and advised me to consult him. Let me
tell you that this Saggi is astonishing
frightfully, even. You have never paid
any attention to sorceryi".
Every little"
"lou are wrong. You see, people
laugh without realizing that they are
playing with terrible things"
"But the rope, the rope" cried.
"Ah, yes, the ropc-Iam coming back
to it. For Il year studied with Saggi.
and all that time misfortune continued to
rain upon me. l broke my leg in falling
from horse; quarrelcd with three old
friends, and was neglected in the will of
my uncle, who had made Inc play chess
with HIM twice n week for fifteen years
Everything, in short, everythingv'
"But the rope! Where did that como
in.'
"Thc rope! Exactly; it was the
ropel'
"What! it brought ill luckl"
eyes, my'dcar fellow. You would
never have believed it. But that's be-
cause you do not know. And mt that
time did not know either. But now!"
And with an air that WAS at once tri-
umphant and sorrowful, Robert added
IL was always dreaming of the hanged
man. / had nervous disease. 1 have
it yet, for that matter. Unable to stand
it longer, determined to tell all to
Saggi, and he explained everything to
me. Very bad, my ropu! Dcplorablc!
An absolute token of ill luck"
"Oh 10! another illusion wiped out !.
Painful, very painful" l said in con-
ciliating tone.
ado not Joke; it is very serious
matter. This WAS Saggi's explanation.
The rope with which man has been
hanged does indeed bring luck, but on
the express condition that the man
hanged did not commit suicide, but was
executed by Il public hangman.
"Prec;ous Information. Eut the horse
that We SAW just nowl"
81 am coming to that The rope that
has hanged Il suicide brings, on the con.
trary, i'll luck. Enlightened by this re-
velation,'I wanted o'get rid Immediate
" of the rope which hal been Keeping
SO carefully, and which was unuuestion-
ably the cause OF all my misiortunes.
But how to do it! 1t was not Il thing to
be done lightly The talisnan might
fall inIo other hands, and become the
misfortune Of some one else In that
case the responsibility would be mine,
and, you see, nothing obstructs the flow
oil the fluid portion of the soul like"
"Thank you, prefer to remain in ig-
norance. But what COURSE did YOU
takel"
81 resolved to throw this cursed rope
into the water. With that in view | left
my mouse one night, holding the piece of
red rope, which seemed to me to have n
demoniacal tint. AS was crossing the
crossing the Champs Elysces, ut the place
where we just saw the accident, l STUN
bed into II heap of sand-thcy were Just
then laying the wooden pavcmcnt-and
fell SO awkwardly that again broke TIT tn
leg whI'' -!s.t Ia d suffered by my previous
accident. In my fall dropped the rope.
l tainted, they carried me to my house
and | lay there fiat on my back for three
months. The rope remained in the hole,
and they laid the pavement over it.
And since that time all the horses fall at
that spot, and there have been fatal &C.
c;dents. 1t is frightful and queer, is it
notlr
terrifying" said with an air of con-
viction. "lSut how about YOURSELF
Have yon got rid OF your evil genius?"
Con-, you may be sure. I bought the
whole rope with which Stamford, the
English assassin, was hanged last sum-
mer in London. went to get it myself.
1t cost me, dear, but do not regret it.
Now am in luck. And, in fact, may
announce it to you, am going to DC
married. "-bice Stories Week.