The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1891-10-29

peStCou, elItA sum Oily llttil ttWttke, i
shuffled to the door, and opened it.
AS I am a living man, Jack, whom I
had thought still asleep in the bed,
walked into the room.
He was laughing heartily. 'You're
a tremendous sleeper" he said, IT.
thought I would arouse the whole
house last night trying to wake you,
and then had to give 1t up and sleep
on the sofa in the sitting room. What
on earth"
The expression of terrorized amaze
ment on my face must have alarmed
Jack, for he stopped suddenly and
looked at me with q glance of curious
questioning.
"What on earth's the marter?" he
continued presently.
"Do you mean to say you were not
in this room last night?" I asked
| My voice sounded scarcely louder
than whisper.
"Most assuredly I do was the re.
ply.
with me?" a-s
"Why, no! OF course not"
"Jack, Jack" l CRIED" for, Gods
sake don't trihe with me. Say it is
all q jest-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?"
The surprise depicted on Jacks face
was evident. .
! 81 don't know what you mean" he
said, II simply know that I was not
in this room last night, and certainly
did not sleep here. Besides how
could I enter the room without you
unfastened the door, and how could
have locked the door after leaving the
room?" .. -..N
In my anguish OF mind I had for
gotten that the door was locked.
There could be no doubt Of it. Jack
had not been in the room, but It
was. 0..
"It is true, them" I fairly screamed,
''it is true! The Thing has been here
here in my room-bolts and bars
can not keep it out. Oh, God, I am
lost, lost"
Jack took my hand. "You've been
dreaming, oldfellow," he said, land
besides,'' he added. "you've got a
fever. Let me prescribe for w.
mo, no." I cried, ''it's no dream
1 wish it was. Come, come, look here
-" l dragged him over to the bed-to
that side Of the bed where It had been,
and where the covers were yet raised
as though some form lay >huddled be-
meath them-"Look," cried, as I
threw back the covers and disclosed
the disordered bed, ''can you doubt
that some one has slept there?''
NO." he said, "surely not, butt
was yourself"
His disposition to make light of the
matter corded me into telling him the
whole story. He seemed interested,
and when spoke OF how had fallen
to sleep with my arm around the form
of the Thing that slept beside me, he
| looked considerably startled. But
when I had finished he put his hand
on my shoulder in his old familiar
way, and said:
"You need attention more than I
thought. You have been working too
hard, and your head isn't just right.
Try to realize how preposterous the
|
hallucination.'
I saw that it would be useless to
try to convince him that he was wrong
or to endeavor to shatter his theory;
so simply said: "Perhaps you are
right" and later, when he proposed
to put me under a regular course of
experimental treatment, acquiesced,
| willing to please him, but satisfied in
my own mind that the skill OF no ply
sician on earth was competent to help
me. .,. ..--E
This second visitation made a far
more lasting impression than the first
| one, and my nervousness increased.
During the balance of Jacks visit we
always retired together. took his
allopathic doses dutifully, and lis
tened, without attempting to combat
his arguments, when he endeavored
to prove what apoor, imaginary thing
my ghost was. But when at the sound
OF a strange football, l started in ter
ror, or, sitting down at table beside
an empty chair, Iinstinctively reached
out as though to twitch some unseen
object, his face revealed the pity he
felt for me- He alone knew how much
l suffered. When, finally, he went
away, all hope seemed gone out OF my
life
! Perhaps you will blame me for what
l am about to tell you. I deserve
your condemnation. But what hum
man creature, however sorelv OPP
pressed and tortured, can resist the
Influence of a woman'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 aadark, horrible some
thing in my life that might one day
wreck her young life as we'll as mine.
did not tell her. That is where I was
weak and selfish.
| For awhile the happiness OF my new
life drove away the dark fears that
Swallowed me. But it was only for a
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
| ~ felt it's presence, but the horror
that was always in me, that 1t would
come back, drove me to the verge OF