Passaic City record., 1891-09-12


bed since elevon without closing my
eyes. It was the old story; was ac-
customed to it. Suddenly, amid the host
of perplexing and even awe-insp1ring
thoughts whirling through ones brain
under these conditions, l remembered
that pocket letter-case containing the
two FL Scotch bank notes. Where was
it2 / had not seen it for weeks. After
restlessly striving to drive away the de-
sire to get up and get it, it mastered me,
and out of led sprang. For fully an
hour I carried on the quest, but all in
vain. Every conceivable corner, drawer
and pocket was ransacked. The key of
the escroitoire had been mislaid, so l
could not examine that; but knew it
contained little else but papers.
At length, entirely exhausted, lrritated
and fevered, and with the chamber can
die expiring with splutter, 1 flung my
self on a couch in the drawing-room.
Dawn had not yet broken, but in few
minutes, as lay there coiled up in my
dressing gown, / unexpectedly fell
asleep-a restless, dreaming sleep, full OF
fantastic, weirdlike indescribable shapes.
When awoke it was daylight, though
the room was still shadowy and obscure,
save in one spot close to the long win
dow, where the Venetian blind was par
tally raised-the window nearest that
dark corner occupied byy the old escri-
toire. The head of the couch was to-
ward the mantelpiece, but almost facing
the door from the landing on the further
side of the wall.
At the moment opened my eyes with
a feeling of relief at having just escaped
some visionary peril, to my amszement l
saw that door slowly open and the figure
of man stealthily entering it. It did
not make the faintest sound on its
hinges, nor did he with his footstep-
not so much as the creaking of plank.
The light in that part of the room was
far too dim to allow of my seeing what
he was like. His face was slightly
averted, also, and except that the gen
eral looks of the man seemed to be not
altogether unfamiliar, I could not in the
least tell who he was. The first impulse,
of course, was to sit up and call out, but
for some inexplicable reason | restrained
it-perhaps because the thought instantly
crossed my mind that here was the thief,
and upon that I suppose rapidly con-
cluded to watch him, and pretenned to
be still sleeping.
However this may be, did not move
as observed him creep noiselessly across
the room to the end of the mantelpiece
farthest from that where l was lying. He
appeared not to notice me, and after
feeling for moment between the edge
of the looking glass and the wall by the
mantel shelf, he took something away,
and instantly crossed back to the win
dow by the escritoire. He passed the
little gap of light SO quickly into the
dark corner that l still failed to recog-
Dize him. Then could dimly make out
that he was apparently unlocking the
numbering piece of old furniture, though
still without making the slightest sound.
"Ho! ho!" thought I, ''my fine fell
low, now I've caught you, have II You
have found the key, and are going to
exercise your calling in that direction,
eh2 Well, there's not much that is
worth your attention there; you won't
find that profitable hunting ground!"
was not long, you may depend, in
coming to determination. While he
was still fumbling at the escritoire l
rose, and, stealing softly up behind him,
suddenly seized him by the back of his
collar. He endeavored to writhe out of
nv grasp, but turned him round SO
quickly that we both staggered and fell
on the floor in huddled heap together
he undermost. In the fall l struck
my forehead severely against something,
probably projecting chair. For the
moment the blow seemed to blind me;
but as we had rolled over into the gap
of light from the window caught sight
of his face, turned up as it was toward
mine, and saw-whose face think you2
Why; no other than my own-yes, my
very own, as we'll knew it in the look
ing-glass.
That one instant of amazement and
CONSERVATION in which, as by flash, I
made this recognition, was followed by
total oblivion of all surroundings. The
face and figure seemed to fade away be-
meath me and to vanish with my con-
seriousness.
How long lay prostrate, face down
ward on the floor, I know not; but in
that position l found myself when my
bewildered senses slowly returned. For
awhile, of course, I could remember
nothing-how I came there or what had
brought me to such a pass. Only very
slowly did the circumstances recall
themselves. What on earth did they
meana My forehead was unmis-
takably cut and still bleeding; indeed,
there was patch of congealed blood on
the carpet plainly visible in the broad
flood of early sunlight now streaming in
beneath the half-raised blind. Had 1
been dreamingG More likely I had had
fit; anyhow, l was so utterly bewildered
that it was some time before my thoughts
became coherent. Then alarmed and
fully conscious for the first time in my
life that must be seriously ill or labor
ing under some mysterious mental aber-