News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1890-08-14

nerhaps not for half an hour-perhaps
not for an hour-but I guess that's
about the longest you have to live.
| First, | mean to have a talk with you.
Do you know where came fromf'
/ did not, indeed, and | told him so,
wishing within myself with my whole
heart that he would take it into his
crazy brain to find his way back there
and leave me to sleep in peace.
''You don't know, eh? Well, 1 don't
church spire away there to the leftp
No, 1 didn't see the church spire nor
anything else in the world at that mo-
ment but the burning eyes of the ma
MAC; so told him l didn't see the OBJ
| iect he spoke of.
Don't see it, eh9 How blindl Why,
see therel" And to aid me in discern
ing this imaginary object he rose and
went toward the window and looped
the blind still further back. s'There-
see it now2'
NO." | said, z don't see it YETI
and 1 hoped he would try to pull the
curtain still further back, or pull it
down, or something anything to divert
! his attention from me a moment longer,
that l might leap from the bed and bolt
out of the room.
was already sitting up, and to glide
down upon the floor was the work OF
an instant; but at that moment the
madman, annoyed that | couldn't see
the church spire, dropped the blind,
turned round quickly, muttering,
''Blind, blind, :" and instantly compre-
hending my intention to escape bound
ed toward me with a spring like wild
cat, and catching hold of me with his
bony hand waved the cleaning knife
over me in such close proximity to my
face as to be anything in the world but
pleasant
80 you will, will you? Just lie down
before the half hour is up Lie down. :"
And with herculean strength he
lifted me up with his one hand-and /
was no feather in weight, can tell
you-and bounced me down with a
force that shook the whole bed.
l did lie down, and seeing that / was
inclined to obedience, he directed my
attention to the window again by in
quiring:
''Do you see the church spire now"
l didn't see it any clearer than be-
fore, it being slightly impossible, as no
church spire existed within ten miles.
But l saw that the maniac was getting
irritated at my want of capability to
see what did not exist, SO | thought it
might be as well to keep upon good
terms with him, and to his question
this time | admitted | did see the spire.
''Ah, good, good Well, under that
spire is a church, and around the
church is a graveyard. There 1 live
and there / came from. It's very lone
some sleeping there in the damp, cold
ground, and the grave worms-ugh =
to feel them creepin.h along over ones
skin, SO Shiny and slippery and cold,
banqueting upon the warm flesh of the
dead They say the dead are cold it's
= lie, sir. a liei eel my fiesh' IS it
lie barred his skim -1trIn and forced
me to lay my hands Hpon it.
.There. is that cold9"
told him no.
| replied that it was, and he con-
tinued:
They make it cold, the grave worms
do. They make it cold and Shiny as
the crawl over it. Did you feel the
grave worms on your fiesh9'
| shuddered with disgust as | told
him No"
You didn't, eh2 Lucky dogl lucky
dogl But you're not dead yet; wait
awhile, and you'll feel them just as
do. Pretty soon."
And he whirled the carving knife
round and round his head and then
brought it down with a sudden swoop
till he grazed my throat.
With cry of agony, not for the
slight scratch, but the horror of mind
under which was, | recoiled from the
glittering blade, shuddering as II l
would have sunk down through the
bed-down, down through the floor.
How 1 wished in my soul that l could
have done so-down anywhere out OF
that horrible presence With loud
laugh the maniac observed my terror,
and then he said:
frightened, eh2 Frightened? l
won't kill you for half an hour yet
I'm going to experiment upon you. l
| think I'll bleed you to death, just to
try how long it will take you to die
Eh2 what do you think of it? 2"
What did 1 think of it? My God! l
thought nothing, only that would soon
be dead, or as mad as my companion,
if some deliverance was not soon opened
up. Inever prayed much-God forgive
mel-but just then | breathed some
thing, l scarcely know what, for aid,
for help, for deliverance. | know that
dared not attempt to escape. My first
movement would have been the signal
for my death blow, and if | called
| aloud | might not awaken any one In
the house, but merely infuriate the
madman to such an extent that he
might Immediately butcher me. What
under heaven to do | knew not, and il
the maniac in his desire to ''experi
ment' should open vein l must in
evitably bleed to death. Meantime he
was waiting for an answer to his ques
tlon, which he repeated rather angrily.
''What did | think of his proposal tc
bleed me to death?"
| was about answering something
desperate, and giving myself up fol
lost, when bright idea flashed across
my troubled brain. o how devoutly
thanked heaven that l had read the
ARABIAN Nights" in my boyhood
There was my idea, which as yet only
heaven knew whether it would be sue
cessful or not; would tell him stories
and beguile his fancy until morning
md then, surely, would have some
means of escape. answered his ques-
tion by another.
Suppose 1 tell you q story about
bleeding to death-or rather about a
man who supposed he was being bled
to death and died from the fright"
''Died from the fright, eh9 Well,
let's hear it.
Very gladly began, making it long
and adding as much as possibly could
to the original, which was something
recollected long ago to have heard
about some one who wished to 'experl