The St. Johns herald., 1900-07-28
6%Ax&@s%a%@&a&A&@&0&a : A ManiaC'S Freak , c The Terrible Experience That Blanched ? | Woman $ Hair C
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 to be incredulous on the subject
 The above remark was made to Dr.
 Maynard, as we sat On the piazza ct
 his pretty villa, discussing the differ.
 ent effects of terror on oIssimilar tem.
 peraments- Without replying 10 me
 the doctor turned to his wife, and
 said:
 Helen. will you please relate to my
 old friend the incident within your
 own experience? It is the Is st con-
 vincing argument can advance"
 looked at Mrs. Maynard in sur
 prise. I had observed that her hair,
 which was luxuriant, and dressed very
 becomingly, was purely colorIess; but,
 as she was a young woman. and also
 a very pretty one. I surmised that it
 was powdered to heighten the bril- Marcy of her fine dark eyes.
 Yhe doctor and I hau been fellow students. but, after leaving college, we had drifted apart; to commence practice in an eastern c;/y. he to pur- sue his profession in growing town in Che west. I was now On a v;sit to- him for the first time since k:s mar Tiage.
 Mrs. Maynard. no doubt reading my supposition by my lock of incrcdulity. smiled as she shook her snow tresses over her shoulders. and. seating her self by her husbands side, related the following interesting episode:
 If was nearly two years ago since my husband was called on one evening to visit a patient several miles away. Our domestics had all gone to a wake in the vicinity. the dead man being q relative of one of our serving wom- on. Thus I was left alone. But felt no fear. for we never had heard os burglars or any sort of desperadoes in our quiet village. then consisting of few scattered houses. The windows leading out on the piazza were open as now. but l secured the blinds be- fore my husbands departure, and locked the inside doors. all e cept the front one. which I left for the doc tor to lock after going. crt, sc that if I should fall asleep bsfo-e his re- turn he would enter witho arousing me. l heard the doctors rarid foot steps on the gravel. quicgened by the urgent tones of @ mese enger who awaited him; and, afte the sharp rattle of the carriage w cells had be- come but m echo, I seatei myself by the parlor astral, and very soon became absorbed in the book l had been reading before being disturbed by the summons.
 But after a time my interest suc- eumbed to drowsiness. and I thought doctors study struck 12, so deter mined to wait a few moment more, feeling that he would be h me very soon. closed my book. dorned robe de chambre. let down my hair, and then. returned to my scat 10 Da- tiently wait and listen. 4Nct t',e faiI:t- est sound disturbed the stiffness of the night Not breath of air stirred the leaves. The silence was so pro- found that it became oppressive. lopgcd fer the sharp clicl, If 'he gate latch and the well-known sten on tte gravel walk I did not dare to break the hush myself by movinr CT singing. l was so oppressed with the dcer still ness. he human mind is a -t ~ange torturer Of itself. bega2 tc r-eiure up vivid fepcies about ghc visit ants. in the midst of whic'i poured to me tie stories I had boa~2 from superSfit'ors people about led spirits of these who had q ' raden- ly. like the man whom ;av serYants had ro~e to wake" who k' teen killed hv m accident at thc ~'ilI. In the midst of these terri v re- fect'crs. was startled bv t,o'thy footfall on the piazza. = ansa be- tween fear and hope. It r,i~ht be ! the doctor. But no. he would rot i tread Exc that; the step was tco soft ! and cautious for anytime less willy ! than a ost. As l listened H~7'p. my i eyes fvod 0n the window bird. saw {. the siafe ~''ve slowly and c2a+ious- | 4,'=-t.---i--I--the rays of the -,oon dis ] closed thin. eadaveTous fac ard i brif' f P'i'tering eyes, peer TO at me. i Horror Nho was it? or VI at was | it? felt the cold persrirat'- sfart , at every nore. seemed to bc f-ozen l in nav chair. I cculd not r.ove: ! could not cry out; my toncl,c sscroed 1 glued 10 t'e roof of my ncu whi!e i the deatAiy white face press c'~ser, and the great sanken eyes va -dered m their re,e about the roo-n Tn q few r'Crf2~ts the blind c'0~ed as noise os it had been c~-ce,l md the ce'c,s footsteps ca,~a 'o~ard ;he d~ar erciful heav~ns," I cried in a Nr trickpn whis~or as heard -v turn in th D., k. "the aoctcr in lis haste must 7ye for gotten 10 withdraw the key"
 l heard the front door oren. the step in the hall, and helpless as a statue, sat riveted to my chair. The 1arlor- door was oren. and in # stood ! tall. thin, man whom ne:sr before >eheld. He was dressed i7 n long, pose robe, a. sort of gaberdi~e. and ! black velvet slSuli-cap partially con- 'ealed a broad forehead. under which cleaned black eyes. bright as living 'oals, ar6' placed so near together hat their gaze. was preternaturHl in heir disNiRetnesS; heavy g-izzled yeb-cws hung over them like the angled rRane of lion; the nose was harp and prominent; the chin was vergrown. with white hair. which lung down Tn locks as weird as the Incient. Mariners. Ee politely doffed is cap. bowed. replaced it. ard then aid. in slightly foreign accent:
 Madam. it is nor necessary fer me Q stand on any further ceremony. as our husband, pr. Nayuard,'' here he gaic bowed 2roto-d,y. "saz al