Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1892-09-22
am not mad. and that this is not

an insane fantasyl"
"Let us reason a little, Harry
Here is a solid body which we
touch, but which we cannot see
The fact is, SO unusual that il
strikes us with terror. Is there nc
parallel, though, for such a pheno-
menon? Take a piece of pure
glass. tits tangible and transpar-
ent. A certain chemical coarse
ness is all that prevents it's being
SO entirely transparent as to, be
totally invisible. 1t is not
theoretically impossible, mind
you, to fabricate a glass which
shall not reflect a single ray,sof
light-a glass SO pure and homo
genous in its atoms that the rays
from the sun shall pass through it
as they do through the air, re-
fracted but not reflected: We do
not see the air. and yet we feel iit.p
"That's all very well, Hammond,
but these are inanimate substan-
ces. Glass does not breathe, air
does not breathe. This thing. has
a heart that palpitates. A will that
moves It,. Lungs that play and
inspire and respire." ,"
"You forget the strange pheno-
mena of which we have so often
heard of late" answered the Doc
tor, gravely. "At the meetings
called spirit circles invisible
hands have been thrust into the
hands of those persons round the
feshly hands that
seemed to ,pulsate with mortal
life"
"What? Do you think, then,
that this thing is"
81 don't know what it is," was
the. solemn reply; "but please the
gods I will, with your assistance,
thoroughly investigate it.'
We watched together, smoking
many pipes, all night long by the
bedside of the unearthly being
that tossed and painted until it was
apparently wearied out. Then we
learned by the low, regular breath
ing that it slept.
The next morning the house
was all astir. The boarders con
on the landing outside.
my room, and Hammond and my
self were lions. We had
swer a thousand questions as to
the state of our extraordinary
for as yet not one person
in the house except ourselves
could be induced to set foot in the
apartment.
The creature was awake. This
was evidenced by the convulsive
in which the bed-clothes
were moved in It's efforts to escape.
There was something truly terri
BILE in beholding, as it were, those
secondhand indications of the
terrible writings and agonized
for liberty, which them
selves were invisible.
Hammond and myself had racked
ourbralns during the long night
o discover some means by which.
We might realize the shape and
general appearance of the Enigma.
AS well as we could make out by
passing cur hands over the crea-
;ure's from, its outlines and Inca
nents were human. There was
mouth; a round smooth head
without hair; nose, which, how
'ver, wasa little elevated above
he cheeks; and it's hand and
'eet felt like those of a boy. At
irst we thought of placing the be-
ng on a smooth surface and
racing it's outline with chalk, as
Ihoemakers trace the outline of
he foot. This plan would give us
he solid figure, and satisfy all our
wishes. But how to do it2 The
movements of the creature would
disturb the setting of the plastic
covering, and distort the mould.
Another thought. Why not give
t chloroform? It had respiratory
'rgans-that was evident by its
breathing. Once reduced to a
state of insensioility, we could do
With it what we would. Doctor
sent for; and after the
worthy physician had recovered
rom the first shock of amaze
nent, he proceeded to administer
he chloroform. In three minutes
afterward we we're enabled to
remove the fetters from the