The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1892-02-29
A HYPNOTIC CRIME.
Translated from the French.

persisted the lawyer.
eyes"
| "And you think -
81 shall examine him again to-day"
replied the doctor, 81 nave seen several
experts in the new science and they all
agree that poor Julian is an Impression
able subject, ready made victim TO any
one who might have wished his deed done
by proxy; but the motive? Probably some
lovers quarrel, some revenge; they say
the girl was pretty and coqueh sh. There
is something battling about tn affair"
added the doctor with slight relaxation
of his p OCCASIONAL caution. "While l
have never had much confidence in this
idea OF suggestion am not prepared TO
say that there is nothing in H."
"Let me go with you to-day, doctor, l
will slip in without speaking, listen to
the story he reiates, and one of us may
chance on some word or idea TO give US
the indication we seek"
SO it was agre- d.
How do you fe-l today" asked the
doctor kindly, as they entered the prison
er's cell.
The man was lying on his hard bed,
staring in front of him, with hollow, va
can't eyes.
"My thoughts" he replied, "flutter
ot 7ut aimlessly, sad, oh, sad, as long sn.w-
covered plains under the light of the
moon. / have worn myself out with
walking to and fro. My limbs ache as il
/ had been beaten. / feel very cold, but
the palms OF my hands are burning up
with fever, and ! have dali pain at the
base of my brain"
The physician nodded gravely and said
a few soothing words, then requested
the patient to relate all he could remem-
Der about the crime.
"But, DOCTOR" objected Julian, al have
already told you twenty times or more. 1t
will be monotonous to go over all that
again, though, to be sure, there is nothing
better to do here. Well then, place your
self there, opposite to me, SO that you will
hide that white wall; ii looks to me like
canvas on which is painted that unfad-
ing image, the Golfer with the head upon
It'll When you go away my terror will re-
turn. IL they would only soil that wall a
little it seems to me the slightest stain
would obviate this fancy. / tried to soil
it, and the janitor scolded me as if i had
been a schoolboy.
$50 on with your story" said the
doctor, quietly.
81 was walking along aimlessly when
from long, dark narrow street l
emerged on the thoroughfare. Lights
were shining here and there under the
| trees like great flowers of flame. The
yelling of showmen, the music and bells
of the merry -go-rounds, the trumpets
and drums, hurdy- gurdys, and squeaking
playthings of the children made most
horrible din, for the annual festival was
in full tide.
"Cornered by group OF curious people,
i was crowded and crushed, raised off my
feet and carried along before a booth.
! Above the door read the word, Metem-
psychosis.'
"A fat man was selling tickets; he was
pitted by smallpox and had one eye
smaller than the other.
"Inside it was very almost quite, dark.
"Before us a square of light opened in
the canvas which was stretched at the
! further end OF the booth. Within this
| frame appeared table with a gauze
screen separating 1t from the pectators.
"The fat man passed around paste
| board head such as milliners use for
| bonnets. When it had gone from hand
| to hand and was acknowledged to be truly
what it appeared to be, Ee placed it on the
! table and fastened the gauze screen. The
| light frightened; by transitions impossi-
BILE to catch, without anything seeming to
| mo c, as the man announced a transiur-
nation the pasteboard head turned into a
| vase full OF flowers, th into a cage .ull
! of birds after that into deaths lead,
| which becarre the mask of celebrate
statues representing successively Venus,
| Juna, Cleopatra, Anne OF Austria, Marie
Antoinette, and SO on and or, until the
! Snowman said 'Instead of pasteboard
| and stucco you shall now see living fiesh.'
"slowly the face dislocated, the features
became hazy, infused, to form again lit
| tie by little, and appear distinct, animated,
| h, ranized.
"'An ingenious trick thought: Il
| don't even care to know il It is accom-
/ plished by the aid of mirrors
/ "The head OF a young girl, sweet and
\ fair, had formed behind the gauze. She
\ opened her great black eyes which with
out definite expression, followed me with
| the strange fixity OF portrait, while
/ across her face fitted the rather silly
smile of the antique statues.
"This steady stare seemed to turn me
| TO stone. My limbs grew rigid. | felt
very strangely, though it was neither ia
tigue nor pain, and there was something
oddly familiar about the head. Where /
| could have seen it before under different
I
| no more remember now than could then.
"When the crowd Of spectators left
remained. The Snowman seemed sur
| prised, but sold me another ticket.
81 remained through another represen-
tation. When the young girl appeared i'm
| the last act experienced the same singu-
lar sensation OF torpor, and could not
move hand or foot until she vanished
from the square.
The Snowman walked towards the
door and followed him.
"'why,' asked, did you write metem-
psychosis on your sign instead OF meta
morphosis?'
"Then ] must have been mistakenr
he said, 'Bahl never mind; very few will
know the difference.
"Profting by push Of the crowd, 1
slipped behind the man and hid against
the canvas.- He went out, saying:
"'Don't be impatient, Mnlie: I am
going out TO get something for supper
al raised the canvas. On a large Golfer
1 A