Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1890-07-18

WIFI DIlSHI piCIuico anu hstNih uccp
frieze of peoples on an ebony ground.
The carpet was crimson. strewn over
with black fur rugs, and the furniture
was ebony. upholstered in crimson
Pension silk. There were crimson
silk-shaded lamps here and there, and
beside one sat a strange figure. which
arose to greet us as we entered.
That's the sorceress," whispered
barley. (the young man l mentioned:
his real name l will not give).
The woman was n small. slender
creature, all decked in red satin and
black lace. Her high-heelcd red satin
shoes were beaded in black, and in the
black masses of her hair glttered a
crescent of rubes. Her face was very
dark; she had immense black eyes and
a crooked mouth, with little dimples
at the corners, and teeth brilliantly
white. She bowed and smiled to the
whole of us, and then her keen. COM
prehensive glance fell upon barley.
Her face grew suddenly sad and cloud
cd.
You have an urgent destiny to full
FILL" she said. lyon have n life to
save from present and future perdition.
1t comes 10 you as recompense
for two unhappy lives. The story of it
all is terrible one. / can but dimly
see it, but what | see fills me with
horror. / am sorry you came, l am
always affected by the fortunes of the
people / tell | can't talk any more
now. Leave me. and you all can como
some other time for your fortunes. /
am very tired"
She sank into her deep crimson chair
and closed her eyes. We left her
silently. awed and impressed against
our will.
When we entered the cool air of the
October night the young fellows COM
menced testing over the scene.
She's n queer one" said Valen-
tine. Lots of believers among the
fashionable people, and makes loads of
money"
''C0nfound her." said barley. with n
nervous shrug. Il wish she'd singled
out some one else for her uncanny pre-
diction."
Where shall we go next?" That
was the question we stood and asked
each other as we reached Twenty-third
street.
Perhaps you'd like to sec some of
the opium dives?" suggested Mar
lowe.
LAS I'm in for anything uncanny YOU
fellows propose, l think, perhaps, l
should"
We'll, there's one here that I know
of which is decidedly different from the
usual run. You hear of their luxury
and all that. but this one is the only
luxurious one in all New York. It's
kept by an old mana Chinaman.
presumably-and young girl about
whom there is nothing Chinese. She's
a beautiful creature, and people 20
there to see her, and she fills their
pipes and sings them songs with look
of loathing and scorn upon her face,
passionate enough to scare a man with
delirum tremens into his senses.
have access to this place. having got
the drop on the old man through pro-
fessional knowledge of some of his pro-
ceedings.
To this place we went, reaching it
! through many ways too complicated for
description. At last the queer, crooked
little dwarf who met us at the entrance
drew apart the rich curtains of the
apartment. Along the walls were
divans of rich material, upon which re-
| posed forms in the abandonment of
drugged sleep. A dim, crimson glow
pervaded the room, and about in this
mystical light glided the wraith-like
figure of girl clad in shimmering yell
low satin. gold embroidered The
| figure of the old Chinaman arose from
its half reclining position on the richly
carpeted floor and bowed with cring-
ing politenesss before Marlowe. The
man was richly clad in Chinese robe,
gorgeously embroidered. l examined
his face curiously. 1t was not a
Chinese face. The complexion, despite
the paint was that of Circassian. The
eyebrows were painted into thin. slant
ing shape, and the full, sensual lips
could never have belonged to any one
save a Mixado Chinaman. The face re-
called something familiar. something
had seen before and liked not the
memory of. AS was pondering over
the strange figure the girl came up
to us. She held golden bowl, filled
with pipes, in her hands.
"Will YOU have one?" she asked sui
lenly, and yet in a voice strangely soft
and musical.
looked up closely to examine the
face of this strange young being. The
black-lashed lids were downcast, and
the face. my God! it was the very face
Of the woman who lay lifeless before
me fifteen years before. / felt myself
grow weak, and young barley lay his
strong hand on my shoulder.
is anything the matterp" he asked.
Perhaps he's had too much already"
| heard the girl say contemptuously.
saw Darley's gaze fixed like one
spell bound upon her, and for the first
time she lifted her eyes, and saw them
meet his. In hers lay an infinite.
logged sorrow like the anguish OF
some dumb brute; in his lay ali infinite
tenderness and pity. know these two
beings had met their destiny.
Two years after this | went to New
York, and barley brought his young
wife to see me. and / told them my
story. and they told me theirs.
After their first meeting he went to
the place ostensibly as a patron. but
really to watch and study the horrible
life of this young creature. He gained