The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1892-03-03

sist, and threw him 10 the foor and tied his
/ han with = towel Heaven pity me! those
/ vuI r DIS pitcoussup plic1tiOns-they cry IN the
! wind "a night aud his eyes. in hopeless en-
Z sa.,E. glow yOudcr In the Goals
VIII not detail how he was carried BACK 10
1 the iail; nor how ] tried bis case; nor the
praise I received all ] need say Is that won,
and Joel lIHrkton was-was hanged Tor tho
murder Of bis wife"
The Gre had sunk low but 70 still shed light
/ enough 20 show the terror reelected IN ms lace
lv Tic poiHt yet 20 be told. Ills head had
4 fallen upon bis breast, so that his last words
had been mutllod. aud be egiPped the knobbcd
ends Of the chair arms as a man, suspended
over au abyss, would clutch a support.
1.-Two months later ha presently resumed,
"thrsa came 20 ue iadispU,able proof that
/ lie '-,Cu was innocent That night sat late
IN my s,udy-a nigh, ike this, with the wind
I frctuug in The b0Hchs and The leaves whisper
. inc ia each other before they died. sat az the
| table, not studying. bat fighting The remcI5e IA
my heart. ] had received the nomination 10
tho senate, but my old aspirations were, Ike
the leaves, whispering low IN my soul Of their
death.
suddenly, by Ec ialcfuable perception OF
I the nerves, became al ware OF presence ~ the
room, and before my fright permitted me TO
look up, ] caught the indistinct view one gets
/ through The corner az the eye slowly, chilled
by apprehension, turned my head, aud there,
/ lust where JUul HaIlliOu had stood on the night
OF his escape, ] saw hand extended toward
me. Oaly hand I looked Tor the wrist, the
arm, tie form, but my sight went clear 10 the
wal. Ii WAS nothing Tut hand, except that VI
protrGdcd from a round dick of blackness, rs II
thrust through a sable CLOTH
A shuddcr stopped him ior few mOmcntsi
then. turning again 10 me. he said;
And that hand remained there, always
reaching out 10 me. / braycd it night after
night, trying 10 study, 90 be nay old self, 10
forget il when al my d0wn-toNn Office, but i
could not IL became worse than the hand OF a
4 thici who steals worldly goods; il stole my ar
dor, MY ambition. n drove me here TO this
room; but, my friend, God help nig! that hand
is sull ~ there, reaching out daylight or
daIlS-it is always, a.E.y. .gaeaiBc The years
have fed, and j have gone un jhcre day and
night, fascinated, tortured hv the aaIe that Z
has been Withdrawn hut q has always been
there, Gad heaven pity melt Is up there
noW-now. ID is Stealing a|a. a." lie. ID has
been reached out 10 stay me ia my upward
career Look ~ mc-a wreck. My God, il is
the hand of Joel liarkton!"
He fell back in his chair, overcome, aud !
sprang up IN the fear ihat my friend was The
victim OF that terrible almost iUL4Iable mental
disorder, an halluruatiou.
Philip" inquired earnestly are you sure
that IL j, not Imagination 2"
Imasinstiou!" he repeated, with increased
terror: you moan an hallucinaton. God help
me, II it is have thought Of that. believe
an haliucination 10 be incurablc. Let me tell
you that my grandfather was tortured TO his
death by the vision OF a rat. IL is the iron law
Of hcrcdily. ] would rejoice my friend if
could only believe that this hand is that Of a
spirit Then ii might be exercised. lam still
young enough TO achieve something; but that
hand rrasps the very center Of my life. aud
81 ia IN do
IL attracts me 10 that noon, often in the dead OF
night feel il pulling me there, aud cannot
resist il is an hallucination, aud il viii kill
me-"
lie reasoned thus more calmly Than he had
told tho story, and ] saw in this fact a hope for
him. With sudden purpose ] asked:
PHILIP, have you ever taken anyone up
there?"
mo" he replied starting into perception OF
my purpose; I" IL others can see it,, il is the
hand Of a spirit, and there may be found q way
10 drive il from me. Arc you brave enough 10
60 up there with mcf"
+" j am"
"Now?"
AT once"
"Come. then" he said, rising.
The old mansion being only partially occu'
pied, il was a solemn expedition through IT,
our footsteps echoing empiily through the wide
halls aud joting and iarring the weakened
beams the wind tor,uring the loosened case
memts aud growing its uncaHny glee in the
huge chimneys.
At the study door, before unlocking It,
Philip turned TO me, and, holding up tho lamp
looked seaTchingly into my face. frightful
change had come over his own. Ills eyes were
shiny aud unsteady, and Tor the FIRST time the
chill Of a thought far more terrible than Of the
ghOstly hand few over me, that my old friend
was mailman. Realization Of my position
flashed upon me. j was Ia lonely attic, be-
yond cgrshOt, with a maniac firmly believed
the reaching hand was a dclusion. Should
tell him SOP IL told him did not see il
would he not turn npon me with the oycrpow
egiug rage Of lunatic2 Whatever his Uurpos,
IN scrutiuizing me il seemed ~ be satisfied, AND
be said:
"John, you take tho lamp, open the DOOR
aud walk in. ] viii wait for you here Until
you tell me If you SEQ il. II ] 90 Ia my eye
will be riyeted upon IT, aud you will know thel
( where IL appears Have you cOuragey"
without replying ] took the lamp, while h
inserted the key and showed the bolt. turnet
the knob slowly, trcmblingly, afraid OF him a
{ much as OF what j might sec in the room, and
2 pushed open the door. The close, damp smell
{ Of an unused apartment rushed out as stcppc'
. . over the sill.
G il was a small room, with ceiling slantin
IS with the roof. In moment j saw that IL re
) manned precisely as IN the long past, a some
a what gloomy place at any time, but now rcn
\ dcrcd weird by MOrcland's tale. i knew tina
: his two glaring eyes at the threshold ioilOwc
20 my every movement, as, holding the lamp up,
I looked about There were the bookshelf
J, the globe, tho bust Of Horace the writing tabi,
u but nowhcre-Eccnly, eagerly, anXiously as
e looked, ia the center, in every cOrner-did
j. see a hand,
do you sec itP" Philip called out
Il ] hCstaicd, but i instantly reflected that
g could not deceive him. Before j could rcply
4, however be rushed cxctedly, almost fcrC
b. ciously IN, sua,cLcd the lamp from my hant
Is and catching my arm pulled me TO the table
Il Then holding tie Light toward the end, h
D. pointed with the long iOrciugcr; bat j sa
nothing. Slowly his head turned around az
10 his gaze, fierce now, fell upon me.
n Don't you see tf" he asked, hOarsely.
.c "N0, Philip" answered family; ] sec Hoil
D. ing"
% There, there" lie almost screamed; "rigl
? there, two inches from my finger, han
] reaching out from a black spot in the al
g There, there hand with scar in the paT
E There, thcrc-now you soc H."
j no, Philip" ] said, " do not see H."
o. With a low moan DE dropped the lamp upC
Oh the table, aud sank upon his knees, crying:
= Ny, Cod my God IL is an hallucnation
o. j was myself SO agtatcd that ! cannot "a
be how ] brought him down TO his ROOM lie Vs.
pa Frustrated. Ills pCculiarty, strengthened D
tic Gaze Of his grandfather was 10 fear
at lailuciuation more than spirit hand aud
|#H ID gNH rffs. n