The Neihart herald. [volume] (Neihart, Mont.) 1890-1901, 1897-06-26
A MENTAL PICTURE.

Midnight and the rush and whirl
OF the express flying south. Between
me and my destination 300 miles.
Three hundred miles passed over in
this eddying fight. The events of
that night I remember how wildly
Although I had dozed frequently on
the journey, I distinctly remember
calculating in my mind there now
remained but one other station at
which stoppage would be made be-
fore reaching London. This was
Norton Heath. No one alighted, and
only one person entrained.
The door of my own carriage was
quickly flung open, and man some
what younger than myself sprang
in, closing the door behind him.
Never bestowing upon me even the
most casual glance the stranger set
tied into a corner and yielded him
self up to the rhythmic whirl of the
wheels, which increased almost i'm
perceptibly with the velocity of the
train as it sped over the darkened
country.
After little while he took from
one of his pockets flask of brandy
which he emptied at a draft and
then relighted his cigar, which had
gone out since he entered the car
riage. The monotonous hum of the
wheels, together with the quantity
of spirits he must have consumed,
heightened his drowsiness to lethar-
gy, and he gazed vacantly through
the darkened window into the un-
searchable gloom of wreathing
smoke that wove itself into 1000
chimeras past the magician's cum
ming.
We had journeyed thus for nearly
half an hour when, by chance turn
ing my eyes in the strangers direc-
ton, I beheld the man haggard and
terror stricken. The half smoked
cigar lay on the floor near his foot,
and he had taken a grim hold on
the door handle, and, rigid with
fear, he gazed away into the dark
ness. 1t was no ordinary sight which
thus held his attention, was GER
tain.
Fearful of intruding on the pri-
vacy of SO complete stranger, 1 for
some time refrained from speaking,
but the strangers movements now
became SO many nameless fears not
to be endured. Unable longer to
bear the horror of the mans face, l
at length passed over and looked
out.
The night was dense, deep plu-
tonian darkness, not a star visible
The agony of the white face upon
the pane caused me shiver. Now
and then a spasm convulsed his
whole being, and for a rare instant
the fixed eyes were closed. How
long this state continued / never
knew.
At last / could endure the thing
no longer. l seized the man $ hands,
each in one of my own. Even as I
did so the droning of the wheels in
creased, and against the blackened
pane vague, half formed contours
Logan dimly to shape themselves,
coming and going Enthusiastically, like
silhouettes of the dancers against
the curtained window of ballroom.
The train. however, appeared to be
travelling at much greater celerity,
and the peculiar effect for some time
excited my curiosity to a high pitch.
Reused to a keener sense of OBJ
servation, began to cast about for
the cause of the fantasy. An empty
up train, hitherto unnoticed, had
sided and for some distance jour-
neyed abreast of us. And yet, how
ever, it seemed unreasonable to sup
pose that the train had slowed down
after coming up with us. Indeed
so rapid was our passage that the
carriages could be felt to oscillate
bodily as the train eddied round
sharp bend in the track.
So strange and weird seemed the
feeting shapes upon the pane that
for long time ! was utterly at
loss to account for the curious freak.