The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-03-17
z:5
WHO LIVES
NEXT DOOR?
Tie Legend Of a Lond0n Street


Every night?" / said. II could break
through in one.
Then I think | would try dear said
my wife. 1t will only be into the cell
lar, and if you found that there was
anyone there you could easily brick the
hole up again"
The next day having arranged what ]
should require, / visited an ironmonger,
to buy a couple of long chiseIs, small
/ crowbar, ana a short-handled, heavy
That afternoon l busted myself covering
the head of the hammer with thick
I leather, which l bound on with copper
wire, and as soon as the maids were safe
! ~ In thelr bedroom that night my wife
carried the lamp and a candiestick down
stairs, while followed with the tools.
The preparations were few. j borrow
ed q kitchen chair and a stool from the
scullery, upon which 10 stand the lamp,
my wife insisting upon keeping me com
pany, and saying that she would sit down
and attend to the dark lanthorn so as to
direct the rays from the bulls eve well
upon the bricks at the bottom of mar
row, doorway-like BIN where | intended
to work. Then, slipping off coat and
Walstcoat and turning up my sleeves, l
began.
did not get through the wall that
night, but l perspired freely, and made
| at the quality of the bricks and mortar
used in the days of George II.
The next night / was at it again, find
ing the task harder and harder
The third night came, and [ was not
through: but had thoroughly realized
what bad workman l was by the time
left off, with my, body terribly heated
and my ardor much cooled.
Look here said, If | don't break
through tomorrow nigih | shall give it up
as bad job, for I'm sick of it.
oh, my dear" cried my wife eXcit-
edly. you must go on nowl''
-Four hours good work the next night
upon brickwork two feet thick sufficed to
make an opening amply large enough for
me to pass through easily. and then
paused, covered with mortar dust, to wipe
my face and think, listening the while
and not hearing sound.
Now, then l said at last shall /
take the lanthorn and go thrOugh?'
Yes, said my wife, excitedy, and
then-"No, no; don't go in yet; the place
| may be fun of foul air.
Very we'll" / said, giving up willing
ly. for | was very tired; and we returned
upstairs, after carefully locking the cellar
door.
We neither of us slept much that night,
and the next day was one weary time of
suppressed excitement. When at last the
hour came for descending to the cellar
found that my wife was AS ready and
eager as | was.
must confess to slight sense of
shrinking when / closed and locked the
| cellar door after us. for one of the neigh
| boring church clocks was Just striking
| T. and / could see by the candle / car
| ried that my wife was very pale. But
her eyes met mine wit bout shrinking
and exchanging lights, / stepped into the
| tall, arched bin rather enCumbered with
! bricks, bent down close to the hole
| thrust the turned-on lanthorn before me.
held IL at arm g length within the adjCin-
| ing cellar, turning it in various direc-
| tiOns for a minute, and crept through and
stood uF among the brick rubbish which
| had fallen Then. with strange. creepy
sensation attacking my spine, l once more
| turned the light about, and ended by
| asking my wife to pass me the candle
Taking It from her | set it upon the
| floor a dozen feet or so away, and re-
| turned.
| Give me your hand dear"
took it at once, and she passed di-
| rectly so quickly and nimbiy that she WAS
! directly after by my side. retaining her
grasp though, tightly.
| .'Well?' she said, in an awe-stricken
| whisper.
wen" ! replied lightly; here We are
! Look, | continued, as l directed the rays
! from the bulls eye in all directions. along
| bins and over ceiling and floor; "a cellar
| IA wine cellar with no wine; nothing but
! dust and cObWebs"
Except that it is so full of dirt. it is
! exactly like ours dear, whispered my
( wife. huskiiy.
| Exactly only that so far as | can see
| there is not single bottle of wine What
| are you looking at?'
| 81 was trying to make out whether
| there were any footsteps in the dust
| Not step dear / said, as | made the
| light play about. ''HaHoa, this seems to
| be deep bin; it's almost like a passage.
| 1t goes in ever so far.
| / advanced toward the centre opening
| on my left, and making the light play
! down it | saw, some ten or q dozen feet
J in. something which looked queer, and
| advancing / found that the tall bin-free
| from mid-division halfway up-seemed
/ to be prolonged into a passage, probably
! leading into another cellar.
| The object on the floor proved to be a
! board, upon which lay a hardened mass
! of mortar blackened with dust, and with
| a bricklayers trowel nearly rusted away
| sticking in the top. while upon touching
| the handle with my boot toe it crumbled
| away.
What does that mean" whispered my
wife, who had followed.
| Il should say il was brought here to
J brick up some choice wine: but there is
! no clOSed-up bin visible. L6ts see; that s
/ the side facing the street. Come along,
! dear. let's look at the other cellars
! We passed out, to ind complete repe-
| tition of our own basement-two more
| cellars being quite empty; the last which
! ran beneath the pavement, having still
| within it a Undiscovered heap of Goals.
! / led the way up the broad flight OF
! stone stairs, to find glass door standing
| wide open and leading into a passage and
! hall exactly like our own i'm plan; but
whether the floor had been covered it
! was impossible to say, for il was half an
/ inch deep in a fine dust, over which [
! stepped gtngerly for fear of raising a
! cloud.
! NO stems" ( said. checrfully. but the
| place has been, or is. furnished. Look
| there's Il hall-seat and sidebOard. You
| can see at glance that no one can have
/ been here for many years. I shouldn't be
/ surprised if We find some fine old Geor-
/ giln or Queen Anne furniture No we
! sha' mt. ] added directly. as / made the
| light once more play about through a
! doorway; this place is full of packing
J cases.
There was no temptation to look far
/ Their, SO ! turned back and made for the
| front room, which in our house was my
| study.
The door was wide open. and AT the
/ first glance We could see that there were
/ bookcases upon the walls, while a large
/ table occupied the center, covered with
/ strengthening, dust-cCvered objects that
! seemed like pieces of machinery. There
! was tail stool or two. and "A faint re-
! hection from one of the cObwebbed win
/ dows showed that though bricked tip on
/ the other side the glazed sashes were
Ne crossed the hall, to find that the
/ dinIuS-TOOm was also wide open: but
/ it had evidently not been used Tor the
| same purpose as ours. There were the
! cohwebs and dust. and "a massive dining
/ room table with extra leaves, but covered
, closely with what / now made out to be
/ stands, bottles. chemical retOTts, and re
] ctiNeTS In addition To various other OBJ
I ieCtS apparently used for scientific Ptr-
/ poses, while the fireplace was bricked out
! to form q kind of furnace.
! We left the blaak-looking place after
| "a vain effort to pass through into the
| back room looking on the garden by the
| great folding doors; which formed one
/ end OF the room. but they We're fast
and We stepped out into the passage.
| Nothing very dreadful dear. l said
! Now. then, what here
! | was opposite the drdwiug-ToOm door
! as | spoke, Just at the foot OF the broad
Unlike the other rooms. this door was
shut, and it was only with difficulty that