The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-03-25

Ing exterior.
/ finished the hand and won. Again the
cards were dealt. and again I sorted my
hand with an inward feeling OF satisfac-
ton. for II was an uncommonly good one.
At that moment. however, a sudden and
excruciating pain shot up my right arm.
causing me to drop the cards upon the
table.
"Hulioa, Freeman cried vickers. "Why.
what's the matter, old chap?'
Matter" l echoed in agony. "Why.
there's something wrong with my hand and
arm. The pain is frightful."
All four looked at me i'm surprise. while
Lawrence exchanged a significant glance
with Cayley.
What's wrong with your arm-rheuma-
tism?' the latter inquired.
81 don't know" L answered in alarm.
I've never before experienced such a
strange sensation. The pain is so acute
that it seems to affect my head"
Rubbish. old chap, Have a drink"
urged vickers passing the whisky bottle.
But i'm those few moments of my seizure
which. to me, seemed a kind of paralysis
my whole body had become affected. My
brain seemed in a whirl, my limbs seemed
stiffening-I had a strange sinking feeling
as though ] were dying.
That thought flashed through my mind.
and I tried to bestir myself. With a des-
perate struggle l rose while my compan-
ions remained seated at the table. but.
staggering, / lost my balance and fell
heavily to the floor.
Curiously enough 7 did not entirely lose
consciousness. I know that my limbs were
rigid, that my body was chilly. that my
heart, becoming paralyzed. has ceased its
beating. and that my eyes were closed. But
even In the blackness of death that had so
suddenly fallen upon me sounds reached
me dulled and uncertain, as though my
ears were filled with cotton wool.
Good" I heard a mans voice exclaim in
satisfaction. 1t sounded like Cayley's, but
OF that ] could not be certain. 'He knew
too much. but he won't trouble us any
more. that's certain continued the voice.
Those words froze my heart. I had. in
my eager amateur attempt to probe the
mystery surrounding these queer friends
of mine. showed my hand. and allowed N.Y.
self to become their victim. They had
murdered me.
But how had that effect been produced?
T had neither smoked nor drunk anything
there. 1t was impossible that they could
have drugged me.
felt eager fingers searching my pockets.
and suddenly heard a voice exclaim:
"Ah. we were not mistaken. Here Ii is!'
What was it they had found. 7 won
dered. I tried TO reflect. but could think
of nothing likely to be of value to them.
Mine was a perilous position. rigid. speech
less and helpless in the hands of these
four men, who were evidently a most des-
perate gang.
Have you examined him we1l?" inquired
another voice, which this time 1 recognized
as CayIey's.
"Yes. All that his pockets contained is
on the table" was the response.
Better destroy the lot" suggested Wick
ers. They might remain as awkward evil
dence. Put the whole lot into the fire."
IAN his clothes?" asked a voice.
1--WE can burn them later" answered
LCayley. Lets do the packing first"
1t was evident that these men believed
me to be dead. My only chance. there
fore, lay in remaining quite inanimate.
About me I heard strange whisperings.
and those cries of human agony which had
sounded now required to me. Suddenly I
felt hands about me. and I think I must
have been lifted up and carried someglittle
distance. Unfortunately. however, myicon-
sciousness seemed to be gradually leaving
me-. The voices that I had heard so dis
tinctly became curiously distorted. and my
brafh, for the first few moments quite
clear. now grew clouded and incapable of
any distinct thought.
The agony I was suffering was excruciat-
ing. My limbs were cramped and twisted.
the muscles were apparently overstrained
until they supported a tension terrible. and
my heart, having ceased its pulsations.
was silent.
I remember distinctly that a sense of my
true position became impressed upon me.
I could not move a single muscle in my
whole body. The awful truth was appar-
ent. Although I still retained some faint
Consciousness, just in the manner that an
eel moves after death. / was nevertheless
actually dead. I had been murdered by
these INSCRIPTIONS malefactors without
any apparent motive, save that 1 had. quite
by accident. discovered those mystical nu-
merals upon their blotting paper.
I was trying to reflect. striving to retain
my GOODNESS, when of a sudden / felt the
mental strain too great. My brain gave
way. and it's power slowly died out. The
last lingering spark of life became extin-
guished; the void of death fell upon me.
What time elapsed I had no idea. All I
know is that during the period which fol-
lowed, some curious events must have oc-
CURED.
AS I slowly struggled back to a knowl-
edge of things about me-, I became con-
scious of being cold. cramped and confined.
MY arms were pinioned at my side. my
head uncomfortable. my legs bent and my
whole body chilly be reason of insufficient
clothing. My eyes. as I opened them, fell
upon the low sloping ceiling of an attic,
and I saw by the grey light that dawn was
spreading. 1 listened attentively. but no
sound broke the quiet. save the faint jim
| gle of a cab-bell in the street far below.
Suddenly I managed to turn my head aside,
and then a fact became plain. a fact so
hideous that 1 started up with a shrek
of horror.
Ny outer garments had been removed.
and my body was packed tightly in a cir
cular tin which / at once recognized as one
of those big round cans used for the con-
III NT-L I.6