The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1893-02-12
and still hidden crime; rsnorse pushes him

and still hidden prime; rsnorse pushes him
to philanthropy."
1T was not n PLEASANT idea either. The
thought OF thus living side by side with .
rasoal-no, by nc means; he might be re-
p%entant and all that. but Suppose no yielded
to temptation once morep"
''The house perhaps was badly built P'
questioned another anxiously.
"Hum-m, $3.50! NO one could tsll, but
"True. and il had been necessary to prep
1t when they dug the drain last year In the
month of March,"
Maybe il was tho roof then, and The
house is tophsavyT" suggested a tenant on
the fifth floor.
"Or perhaps" said . ledger In the earrst.
there is a press for coming countet felt
money in the cellar; ] have often heard at
night = sound like the dull, muif1sd thud of
q coin stamper."
The opinion of another was that Russian,
maybe Z ussisn, spies had gained . lodg-
ment in the house, whilo the gentleman of
the first story was inclined to believe that
the proprietor purposed to set hrs TO his
house and furniture with the sole object OF
drawing great sums from the insurance
companies.
Then began to happen. as they all de-
clarea, extraordinary and even frightful
things. On tho sixth and mRnsard floors
AZ tAes bstohkS oAe
explioable noises were hoard. Then the
nurse of the old lady on the fourth story,
going one night to steal vino from the Gel
lar, encountered the ghost of the dsfunct
proprietor-he even held in his hand q re-
ceipt for rent, nv which she knew him..
And the refrain from loft to cellar was:
There is something under all this!'
From disquistude it had come TO fright;
from fright it quickly passed to terror. SO
that the gentlemen of the first floor, who
had valuables III the room, made up his
mind to go and sent in notice by his clerk.
Bernard went to inform the proprietor,
who responded:
A right. let the fool go"
But next day the chiropodist Of the sec
ond floor, though he had naught to fear fol
his valuables. initiated tho gentleman be-
meath him. Then the bachelors and the
little households Of the fifth story quickly
followed this example.
From that moment it was q general rout.
By the end of the week everybody had
given notice. Every one awaited some
friehtful catastrophe. They slept no more.
They organized patrols. The terrified
domestics swors that they, too. would quit
the ncoursed house. and remained tenn
p~ornrily only on tripled wages.
Bernard was NO more than the ghost OF
himself. the fever of fear had worn him &c
q shadow.
NO" repeated his wife m%ournfully. al
each fresh notification, mo-, ii is not nat.
ural."
Meanwhile three and twenty "for rent
placatds swung against the facade OF the
house, drawing an occasional application
for lodgings.
B~ernard-never grumbling now-climbed
the staircase and ushersd the visitor from
apartment to apartment.
lyon can have your choice" said he tc
the people that presented themselves, "ths
hnuaa Ia nokirplv vacant. nil tho tanQntl
have given notice MS one man. They dc
not know why. exactly. but things have
happened, oh, yes, things. n mystery sucf
as was never beto g known-the prophetic
has lowered his rents!!'
And the would-be dodgers fed away af
frighted.
The term ended, three and twenty van
carried away the furniture OF the three snt
twenty tenants. Everybody left. E. on
top to bottom. from foundation to garrett
the house lay empty of dodgers.
The rats themselves, finding nothing t.
live on. abandoned it also.
, Only tue concierge remained. gray greer
with fear in his lodge. Frightful vision
haunted his sleep. He seemed to hear In
gubIlous hoWllug5 and sinister murmur rs a
night that made his teeth chatter with ter
ror and his hair erect itself under his cot
ton nightcap. Nine. Be nard no mo
closed an eye than hes And Amanda in he
frenzy renowned all thought Of the oper
attic stage and married-for nothing in tn
world but to quit the paternal lodge
, young barber and hairdt esser whom sh
had never before been able to abide.
At last one morning after a more flight
full nightmare than usual Bernard, toe
took n good resolution. He went to tn
pro ~prietor. gave up his keys and scampes o.
away.
And now on the Rue de la Victoria stand
the abandoned houss-''The Accurse
House"-whose history | have told you
Dust thickens upon the closed Stats, gras
grows in the court. No tenent ever pre-
sents himself now, and in the quartz
where stand this ACQUIRED house, SO fune
real is its reputation. thst even the neigh
boring houses on either side have also de
preciated In value.
Lower ones rents! Who would think o
such a thing.-From the French of Emf
Gaboriau by f.. c. Waggener.