Western liberal. (Lordsburg, N.M.) 1887-1919, 1893-04-28


my betrothed feeling decidedly silly.
Every body mad glanced mp st my
hasty movement, but made no COM
mont, SO ! subsidized into my chair, an
swering Hopes remarks at random and
feeling most dreadfully puzzled. When
l glanced again ut Mrs. Jackson, she
wus looking ont Of the window with a
pale, sad face. Good heavensr thought
/, can that woman be jealous Of that
noble husband Of hersr Then | searched
the room for Cairns, and was Mortified
to find the same dreadful look on his
face. And-wgs l mad, or did again
sec that diaboiiCal face bent as if whis-
pering in his carr
"'Cairns, ! called, without an in
stant's pauoe, ring for lights
Gle started violently at sound Of my
voice, and his face resumed its usual
amiable look as he sprang up to do my
bidding. After the lights anne | saw
no more visionary faces and should have
Thought it all a fancy on my part had
not cousin Rose found opportunity to
whisper, Did you see that horrible face
beside Mrs. Jackson'sy and she became
very angry when / laughed at her and
told her she must have been dreaming.
In the end | convinced her Of the folly
Of such an idea, but have many times
been sorry We did not tell the Others i'll
stead Of hushing it up.
"NJell, after that night things were
never quite the same. A spirit Of dis
cord was ever in our midst. We got a
habit of looking over our shoulders,
though l don't think any one remarked
it but myself, as if conscious some one
or something was ever beside us. A
malign influence seemed to have taken
possession Of the place, and to have got
into all our hearts. Roger and Rose
had quarreled. Hadyn became offen-
sively attentive TO my Eancee and evinced
such a growing antipathy toward my
self that all intercourse between US be-
came uncomfortable.
''Many times ii the dusk | thought /
saw that devilish face, ana the lips
seemed ever whispering diabolical
%wickedness into the heart Of some one.
It pervaded the whole house, and the
only ones u%ndisturbed were mother and
Mrs. Kent.
"'Oh, dearr sighed Rose one day
after tormenting Roger until he had
gone away with white face and woeful
eyes; i don't know what possesses me
nowadays. Iseem to delight in wicked
ness, and l never was so before. What
can it be, Roger
al believe some owl spirit haunts This
house. was my reply. let rs try to
induce the rest to 30 somewhere else for
the remainder of the SIMMER
For q moment Rose seemed seriously
considering the subjcct; her | saw that
half turning Of the head so dreaded.
and she laughed mochingly:
Leave this delightful place? Why,
Royce, you must be mad. don't want
to go. l rather enjoy being wicked.
It's a new sensation, you know and she
ran OF, seemingly much amused at my
disappointed face.
II tiled to induce Hope Kent to pro
pose a change, but all to no purpose,
and so time a on. One evening | was
walking with her on the terrace, and
her manner was so kind, so like the
dear old days before we went to that ac-
cursed place, that l was emboldened to
ask her to set a day for our marriage.
"At my words she turned such a
flushed, happy looking face to me that
for a moment l was sure her answer
would be all l desired. But all at once
her expression changed, and l saw, OF
imagined l saw, for one horrible instant
that diabolical face beside hers, the ma
licious eyes fastened upon mine, while
the lips moved beside her ear.
'Grasping her arm, / cried excitedly,
RUM Yielding to the impulse Of my
hand, she sped lightly beside me to
where the others were gathered on the
veranda; then she turned upon me with
flashing eyes:
"'How dare you brighten me so? Your
face was just dreadful
"Of course l could not explain, but |
have often since wished l had, even at
the risk Of ridicule and chatf. After
that Hadyn was always more in favor
than myself, and her continued GOODNESS
almost drove me mad. There is no use
in going over in detail all the events OF
that wretched time, but here is a list OF
the results:
"Mr. and Mrs. jackson have been
through the mire Of the divorce court:
Mr.. and Mrs. Cairns welded bliss has
forever lost its flavor; father and Mr..
Kent have dissolved partnership and
are bitter nemies, Mother and Mrs
Kent were tine only one uninfected by
that foul Kama Rupa, yet they are
made unhappy by their husbands rup-
turing of lifelong ties. Rose Upham is
married, but not to Roger Kent, wlo Is
going to the dogs in consequence"
Here my friend paused and gazed
gloomily oat upon the snowy street.
"Well," | said, when the silence had
lasted some minutes. "And your
''IT' There was a flash in the fine
eyes turned upon my face. Il ferretei
out the history Of that old house, and
found, Rs / had expected, that n of the
most diabolically wicked of men had
lived aud died there, and that his inau.
ence so peryaded the place that no one
had " lived happily there since hia
time, also that more than one who had
gone there pure and good had gone
away to a life of wickedness."
Another silence which lasted until
again broke IL.
80 mHHH