The Lamar register., 1891-11-21

Questioning.
What on earth's the matterpv he
continued presently.
10 you mean to say you We're not
m this room last night?" | asked
MY voice sounded scarcely louder
than whisper.
ply. was ''' 10
with me?i' - '' '''
why, mol of course not"
Jack, Jack | cried" for Gods
sake don't trifle with me. Say it is
all iest-tell me YOU were in this
room last night-that you slept in my
bed. Jack, old fellow, isn't it true
that you got up early and left the
room and now you've come back to
play a practical Joke upon me?''
Inc surprise depicted on Jacks face
was evident.
II don know what you mean" he
said, II simply know that | was not
IN this room last night, and certainly
did not sleep here. Besides how
could | enter the room without YOU
uniastened the door, ana how could |
have locked the door after leaving the
room?"
In my anguish of mind Ind for
gotten that the door was locked.
There could be no doubt OF it. Jack
had not been IN the room, but 1t
was.
at is true, then" | fairly screamed,
''it Is true! The Thing has been here
here IN my room-bolts and bars
M I
lost, lost"
Jack took my hand. You've been
dreaming, old fellow" he snid, land
besides" he added. you've got a
fever. Let me prescribe for YOU,
No, no." cried, its no dream.
| wish it was Come, come. look here
- dragged him over to the bed-to
that side OF the bed where 1t had been.
and where the covers were vet raised
rs though some form lay huddied he
meath them-'1.ook." cried, ms /
threw back the covers and disclosed
the dIsordered bed, "can you doubt
that some one has slept there2i'
NO he said. surely not, butt
was yourself"
His disposition to make light of the
muttergor1cd me into telling him the
whole story He seemed interested,
and when ! spoke of how I had fallen
TO sleep withmy arm around the form
of the Thing that slept beside me, lie
looked considerably stnrtled. But
when had finished he put his hand
on my shoulder in his old familiar
way, and SAID:
You need attention more than |
thought. You have been working too
hard, and your hend isn't just right.
Try TO realize how preposteruus the
whole thing Is, and dismiss IL ns an
hullurinatiou"
| saw that II would be useless to
try to convince him that he was wrong
or 10 endenvor o shatter his theory;
so | simply said; Perhaps you are
right, and Inter, when he proposed
TO put me under a regular course of
experimental treatment, ncquiesced,
willing TO please him. but satisfied in
my own mind that the skill OF no phy
sician on earth was competent IN help
me.
l'hi. second visitation made n far
more lnsting Impression than the first
one. and my nervousness increased.
During the balance of Jacks visit we
always retired together. took mis-
ahopnthic doses dutifully, and hs-
tened, without attempting to combat
his arguments, when he endenv ored
to prove what poor, imaginary thing
my ghost was. But when at the sonnd
OF q strange football, | started in ter
ror, or. sitting down at table beside
an empty chair, Iinstinctively reached
ont as though to twitch some unseen
object. his face revealed the pity he
felt for me lie alone knew how much
suffered. When, finally, lie went
away, all hope seemed gone on: OF my
life
Perhans You will blame me for what
am about TO tell you deserve
your condemnation. But what hum
man creature, however sorelv OPP
pressed and tortured, can resist the
influence OF n womnu's love. She was
not more beautiful than other women;
but we loved and were married. She
trusted me implicitly. She did not
know there was dark, horrible some
thing in my life that might one day
wreck her young life as well as mine.
did not tell her That is where was
weak and selfish.
For nwhile the hsppiness OF my new
life drove away the dark fears that
shadowed me. But it was only for n
few short months. Then the old ter.
ror came back with tenfold bitterness
and dread. since that night when 1t
had slept beside me had not actual
ly felt its presence, but the horror
that was always in me, that 1t would
come back, drove me 70 the verge OF
despair.
NY wife noticed my abstraction, and
her loving eyes looked into mine with
a new tenderness, but to all her sym
pathetic questioning could simply
answer that there was nothing troub-
ling me that she might share,
Somehow got n mad idea into my
head that if 1t ever came back /
might kill it; and with n strange muir
derous instinct purchased a small,
sharp pointed dagger and constantly
carried it with me, hidden under my
coat. At night | hid it beneath my
pillow. How / kept her from seeing
it was n marvel.
One day, when she had gone home
to her parents for the day, she sent
me word that she would not return
until the following morning. At II
o'clock | went to bed and quickly fell