The St. Johns herald., 1901-02-23
Horror Seven Hours Long ] An Exhibition of Courage by . Yankee School-AA'Am
TT IS said" remarked the olC
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TT IS said" remarked the old
 doctor, that a person can't live and retain his senses in a state of blind, animal terror for more than very few minutes at a time. Either nature will take refuge in her cyclone cellar, inconsistencies, and the person will faint; or the brain ten sion will get beyond the snapping point and he will become insane; or the hear. will collapse under the strain, and death wall follow. Or any two or all of these things may occur at once. So say the authorities. I was of the same opinion once, but I've known better for a good many years, although I've never seen a second case to disproye the rule. Did it ever occur 10 you when some long-standing record of courage or en- durance, CT the ability to bear pain has been broken. how often it is a woman that breaks it?
 'This was a young woman, a New England school-teacher by the name of Mildred Wicks. She had been invited 10 pay visit to two elderly maiden aunts who lived on the outskirts of an old town in the central part of Vir- ginia, where I began the practice of medicine. The house was one of those three-storied southern colonial st:Uc- lures with broad verandas and nuted columns the entire height of the front. From the left, in the rear, there extend cd a considerable wing which. in some former period of prosperity, had been given over to the guest chambers. but which now for years had been little used.
 By some misunderstanding the young woman arrived just week ear Her than sEe was expected, 10 find her aunt's house in the midst Of prepara- tory housecieaning. It consequently became necessary. until the room in the main part of the house could be prepared for her to put her in one of the wing cham bers. and in one of these, on the third floor, she was duly in- stalled. IL was one of those enormous, hich-studded rooms that have entirely gone out of fashion nowadays. eyen in large houses. There was a great fire place in it and solid mahogany furni- ture of a somber, old-fashioned type.
 ''The elderly aunts were somewhat apprehensive lest the remoteness and long Jisase of the chamber night cause their niece some uneasiuess. but she was healthy young person net given to nervousness. and scoffed at the idea. IL was arranged. nevertheless that the housekeeper, who ordinarily slept in the main division of the house. should occupy, that night. chamber ad join ing the visitors for the sake of com pany.
 At bedtime. however, an unexpected difficulty arose. It was suddenly re- memoered that the keys to both the young wonan's and the housekeeper's chamber had been missing for num- Der Of years, and the doors were also u,provided with inside bolts. The only duplicate keys were in the housekeep- CTS bunch held together by a solid brass ring. from which they could be removed only by breaking or fling the brass ring. Leaving the young wom- ans door entirely unsecured was. of conrse. not 70 be thought of. The Lousrkeeper finally proposed that she should lock the door for the night frem fhe outside. taking the keys with her into her own room and unlocking if again carly in the morning. The win dows of the chamber being three stories frca the ground there was no possibility of intrusion from that source. and should the housekeeper's presence be needed at any time during the night ii needed only few vigor- our raps on the wall to summon her. The young woman found no objection to this plan. and the housekeeer, after bidding her good-night, went out and locked the door after her.
 Left to herself, the young woman, tired frem her journey, lost TO time in undressing and getting into bed. and once in bed il was 2 very few moments until she was sound asleep. The next she knew she found herself sitting up staring out into the room. How long she had been asleep she could not tell; hours, she thought. sine there had been no moon when she had gone 10 bed and it now shone in her window from well up in the sky.
 "Then with a start it came to her that she had not awakened naturally; that there had been some sort Of noise. She peered around the room, but could see nothing alarming. and. save for the sound of the insects, the night was as quiet as the grave. So finally she lay down again and in few moments was halfway in a doze. Then suddenly she found herself sitting up again. her heart throbbipg wildly. Something was moving along the base of the wall opposite her bed. As it moved there came a series Of eurgling. sputtering, sterterJus sounds. exactly as though some one was choking. The young woman .elutched the bed clothes and tried to pierce the darkness. But she cobn distinguish only the vague outline of a crouching form. The chok- ing, gurgling sounds. however, contin- ued. and then suddenly she heard the clank of chain being dragged along the floor.
 ''The thing reached the corner of the wall and paused there for a moment. Then it emerged and began to creep slowly along the base of the second wall, which would bring it within yard or two of the post of the beo. The youN woman got as far as to her knees and remained there watching it's progress. There was no question of shrieking for help. She was locked .n with the thing. whatever t was. with the key of her door somewhere in the housekeeper's room, and the house keeper asleep. She knew. too, without