Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1891-07-29


know, is very lofty room. Whoever
bad Invested 1t Of furniture had also
closed the window az the top To COM
pensate for this no had opened 1t at the
bottom. leaned over the sill and
looked out. Tho stars were shining far
away below me; yet the noises OF the
street which are novor absent in Paris,
no matter how late the hour, fell dis
tinctly upon my ear. Again ! glanced
below, completely mysti6ed. There,
shining In the azure depths, were the
silver, twinkling stars. tho familiar
companions OF my vigils. The earth
seemed to have melted beneath my feet
A dreadful feeling now took posses.
sion OF mo. Trembling violently, I fell
upon my knees upon the hard, white
washed floor and prayed fervently. I
shut my eyes to keep out the horrid
visions which oppressed me. Was 90.
ing mad? By degrees became calmer.
! opened my eyes and cast them heaven.
wards, and the next moment had sprung
to my feet again. staggering back. open
mouthed. wild-eyed. appalled,. Above
me, not forty feet away was the pave.
ment OF the street In which ] resided.
Upon It's stony surface men and women
walked, head downward, in the air, and
vehicles OF all kinds passed By me in q
singular procession, the quadrupeds en-.
gagged in drawing them appearing like
dies on un exaggerated ceiling.
Still / did not comprehend. While
my mental faculties remained unim.
paired, my brain was slow to appreciate
the marvellous change which had taken
place In my physical constitution. 1t
wss not until I withdrew my head from
the window and glanced upward that
began, family at frst, but soon with all
the intensity OF my being, to realize the
prodigious thing which had happened TO
me.
On the ceiling OF tho room, all the
furniture OF the apartment was arrayed
precisely ns had left 1t two hours be.
fore when had fallen asleep. There
was the desk with the inkstand into
which had dipped my pen. There was
ny heavy armchair, my stove, ponder.
Gus weight, which ! wondered did not
fall and crush me; my bookcase filled
with books. Amazed, looked at all
these things. Even the cat slumbered
on the hearth rug. How did she do IL,
seemingly holding on to nothing, in q
chamber which nad been literally
turned upside down.
Then suddenly an awful thought
flashed across me. Instinctively !
pulled out my watch, holding IL open
in my hand. To my amazement II
slipped from me and like balloon rose
to the level OF my chin. caught it and
pulled it down. It was Just at the strike
of midnight.
1t was the fateful hour. Perigo was
In perihelion.
Brought under its tremendous infu.
ence, the pitiful attraction of the earth
had been easily overcome. What my
father had dreaded and dimly foreseen
had come to pass. Henceforth was re-
leased from the influence OF the earth.
The gravity OF Perigo, in my single in.
stance, was all powerful Like q fash
the real state of the case darted through
my mind. i, not the earth. nor tho
house upon the earth, nor the room
within that house, but !, Jules Ber.
fraud, was walking upside down
My soul was seized with o sudden
panic. Rapidly I walked up and down
the ceiling. AS moved, coins. keys
and various articles fell rafting from nsy
pockets. A Ave franc silver piece struck
against the lamp. II it had broken It ]
could not have descended TO extinguish
the flames. Heat ascends. II was
sitting where was, notwithstanding
the open window, near which, indeed.
now realizing the awful influence OF the
atar, did not dare 70 venture, fearing
that false step might precipitate me
into those tremendous depths that like
fathomless ocean cleaned beneath me.
! took of my coat and laid it upon
the whitewashed floor. The moment
took my hands from 1t II arose rapidly
and struck against the carpcted ceiling
The cat woke up and ran aud nestled In
it. cried; "Shush! Shushp" It looked
up or down-whichever Is right, and
ran under the desk, fearful lest might
fall and crush It. /. on my part, stood
staring stupidity and wondering why It
did not fall into my outstretched arms
I experienced no unpleasant conse-
quences, physically, from my novel
situation. Ny body. however. seemed
to have grown much lighter. 1t seemed
as il could not weigh moro than Atty
pounds. My blood flowed naturally in
its channels. was feverish, but that
was from the heat of the chamber ]
leaned out Of the window and felt the
cool breeze upon my favered cheek.
gazod again into the eternal depths
below. There midway between the
Bear and the Pleiades was my natal
star. | had but to leap from the window
to be carried at once toward It. OF
what interest / might be to science II /
could reach it! But should never re-
turn, or II did it would be when Perigo
having passed its perihelion I should
be hurled back TO earth a shapeless, in.
distinguishable mass.
beo me seized with sudden desire
to leave my study. ! walked over TO
the door, but 1t was far above my head.
The transom, however. was open; by q
desperate spring reached 1t. drew my.
self up easily and crawled through.
Arrived on the other side. hung for o
moment by my hands and thon let 20.
1t would have been dark but for the
moon, whose mellow light came
through the glass roof of covered
passageway against which I had
dropped. Had I been OF nominal
weight must have crushed through,
and then nothing could have saved me;
but as 1t was the thick glass roof Of the
passagewny easily sustained me.
was moved by an indefnable In.
stinct ogo forward You may think II
was curious journey, thus to be wan.
dering around ones own house upside
down, walking along the ceilings; but
the world to me was upside down, and
the only thing that appeared to mo to
be at all ridiculous was the fact that
the earth. the houses and the people In
them were all upside down. l wonders
how the people could breath. and why
those houses. horses and carriages did
not detach themselves and fell into the
ioep abyss.
| reached the end OF the hall and