Pawtucket tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 1890-189?, 1894-04-18

left. My wife had been dead Tor many
years | returned, i'm truth half mad,
shut myself alone in my room ana fell In
10 my chair dazed, unable 10 move-mere
ly a miserable, breathing wreck.
Soon my old valet, Prosper, who had
helped me place Juliette in her coffin and
lay her away for her last sleep, came In
noisclessly TO see If nc could not induce me
TO eat shook my head, answering moth
ing He persisted:
Monsieur is wrong This will make
him Ill. VIII monsieur allow me, then,
to put him To bedY
" No, no, l answered. Let me alone.
"IIe yielded and withdrew.
"How many hours passed do not know
What night What n night IL was very
cold. My fire OF logs had long since burned
out in the great fireplace, and the wind
a wintry blast, charged with an icy frost
--howled and screamed about the house
and strained at my windows with curl
ously sinister sound.
Long hours, / say, rolled by. i sat still
where had fallon, prostratod, overwhelm-
od; my eyes wide open, but my body
trengthless-dead; my soul drowned IN
despair. Suddenly the great bell gave
loud peal.
Il gave such a leap that my chair
cracked under me. The slow, solemn
sound rang through the empty house.
looked at the clock. It was in the morn
ing Who could be coming at such an hour'
Twice again the bell pulled sharply
The servants would never answer-per-
haps mover heard IL. l took up candle
and made my way to- the door was
about to demand:
aaA NJ "a
weakness, nerved myself and drew back
the bolts My heart throbbed, my pulse
beat, threw back the panel brusquely
and there I'm the darkness saw IA shape
like phantom, dressed i'm white.
~ reooiled, speechless with anguish
stammering
WhO-who are your
"a voice answered;
"'It Is /, father
at was my child-Juliette.
"Truly | thought myself mad. i shud
dered, shrinking backward before thospec
ter as it advanced, gesticulating with my
hand TO ward off the apparition. 1t Is that
gesture which has never left me.
Again the phantom spoke:
Father, fatherl See, / am not dead.
Some one came TO rob me of my jewels
they cut off my fnger-the-the flowing
blood revived me-
And | saw then that she was covered
with blood. | fell to my knees, painting,
sobbing, laughing, all in one. As soon as
/ regained my senses, but still so bewil
dered / scarcely comprehended the happl
ness that had come to me, took her IN
my arms, carried her to my room and rang
frantically for Prosper to reNindle the lire,
bring "A warm drink for her and 20 for the
doctor.
He came running, entered, gazed a
moment at my daughter in the chair, gave
gasp of fright and horror and tell BACK
dead.
1T was he who had opened the vault,
who had wounded and robbed my child
and then abandoned her, for he could not
efface all trace Of his deed, and he had not
even taken the trouble TO return the coffin
to its niche, sure, besides, of not being
suspected by me, who trusted him SO fully.
We are truly very unfortunate people,
monsieur"
He was silent.
Meanwhile night had come on, envelop-
ing in the gloom the still and solitary lit
tie valley. A sort of mysterious dread
seemed 20 fall upon me In presence Of these
strange beings-this corpse come to life
and this father with his painful gestures
LET us RETURN" said l; "the night has
grown chill"
And still in silence we retraced our
steps back TO the hotel, and shortly after
ward returned to the city. / lost all fur
ther knowledge of the two peculiar visit
ors to my favorite summer resort. rt.--Guy
de MadD"ssa=t.