The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1898-02-28

He 10dlked OUer and seated himself ut the
coffin shaped table.
to see you deliquesce. Are there any
married people here? 1t is only ques-
ton of tasting in advance the pleasures
of a widowhood. Would you like to see
your husband disappear, my sister? My
brother, do you wish to see your wife
decompose? Sacrifice yourselves, l beg
of you. Come, come up here! Death
awaits you'll"
They laughed, but here and there a
laugh sounded strident or hysterical.
The laugh did not ring true, but had
the sound of cracked crystal. No one
stirred. This parody of death affected
even these hardened spectators
"Oh, well, my friends, there is a Ca
daver belonging to the establishment
which we can use. 1t is pity. You
may readily understand that we do not
take the dead for companions -
AS no one among the spectators would
enter the coffin the manager, with a
gesture, ordered one of the supernumer-
aries Of the cabaret to enter. From an
open door the figurant glided across the
stage and entered the coffin, standing
upright. The manager wrapped him
about with q shroud, leaving only the
pale face of the pretended dead man ex-
posed above this Wilderness. The man
smiled.
'He laughs, messieurs, he laughs
STILL" said the manager. "You will
soon see him pay for that laugh. Rome
- De-. al
Some of the audience shouted APP
plause to this quotation from a famous
author Bernardet did not listen. He
was studying from corner of his eye
his neighbours face. The man gazed
with sort of fascination at this fantas-
tic performance which was taking place
before him. He frowned; he bit his
lips; his eyes were almost ferocious in
expression. The fgurant in the coffin
continued to laugh.
"Look, look keenly," went on the
manager. "You will see your brother
dematerialize after becoming changed
in color. The flesh will disappear, and
you will see his skeleton. Think, think,
my brothers, this is the fate which
awaits you perhaps soon on going away
from here. Think of the various illness
es and deaths by accidents which await
you. Contemplate the magic spectacle
offered by the Cabaret du Squelette and
remember that you are dust and that to
dust you must return. Make wisely this
reflection which the intoxicated man
made to another man in like condition,
but asleep, And that is how 1 shall be
on Sunday While waiting, my broth
ers and sisters, for nothingness, look at
the Standardization of your contem.
porary, if you please"
The play of lights, while the man
was talking, began to throw greenish
pallor and to make spots at first trans
parent uponthe orbits of the eyes; then,
little by little, the spots seemed to grow
stronger, to blacken, to enlarge. The
features lightly picked out, appeared
to change gradually, to take on gray
and confused tints, to slowly disappear
as under veil, damp vapor which
covered, devoured, that face, now un-
recognizable 1t has been said that the
manner in which this phenomenon was
managed was remarkable thing. It is
true, for this human body seemed liter
ally to dissolve before this curious
crowd, now become silent and frighten-
cd. The work of death was accomplish
ed there publicly, thanks to the illusion
Of lighting. The livid man who smiled
few moments before was motionless,
fixed; then, passing through some singu-
lar changes, the flesh seemed to fall
from him in