The Weiser signal. [volume] (Weiser, Idaho) 1890-1904, 1902-12-13
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might seem to make the cool exercise
of my recollection almost out Of the
question, nevertheless remembering,
quite .nvoluntarily, places, people, con-
versations, minute circumstances of ev-
cry kind which l had thought forgot |
ten forever, which could not possibly
have recalled at will even under the
most favorable auspices. And what |
cause had produced in a moment the
whole of this strange, complicated,
mysterious effect? Nothing but some
rays of moonlight shining in at my
bedroom window.
l was still thinking of the picnic, of
our merriment on the drive home, Of
the sentimental young lady who would
quote "Childe Harold" because it was
moonlight. l was absorbed by these
past scenes and past amusements when
in an instant the thread on which my
memories hung snapped asunder. My
attention Immediately came back to
present things more vividly than ever,
and I found myself. neither knew
why nor wherefore, looking hard at the
picture again.
Looking for what?
Good Godl The man had pulled his
hat down on his brows! No; the hat
itself was gone! Where was the con-
lcal crown? Where the feathers
three white, two green? Not there! In
; place of the hat and feathers what
dusky object was it that now hid his
forehead, his eyes, bis shading hand?
Was the bed moving2
turned on my back and looked up.
Was l mad, drunk, dreaming, giddy
again or was the top Of the bed really
moving down, sinking slowly, regularly
silently, horribly, right down through
out the whole Of its length and breadth
right down upon me as l lay under
meath?
NV blood seemed to stand still. a
deadly, paralyzing GOODNESS stole al
over me as turned my head round OF
the pillow and determined to tes
whether the bed top was really moving
or not by keeping my eye on the maj
in the picture.
The next look in that direction wa
enough. The dull, black, frowzy out
line of the valance above me was with
in an inch of being parallel with hi
waist | still looked breathlessly, an
steadily and slowly-very slowly
saw the figure and the line of fran
below the figure vanish as the valanc
: nsoved down before it.
l am, constitutionally anything bl
: timid. | have been on more than OF
E occasion in peril of my life and ha'
q not lost my self possession for an !
:, stant but when the conviction first 81
z, tied on my mind that the bed top W
/, really moving, was steadily and co
: tinuously sinking down upon me,
: looked up, shuddeIing, helpless, par
s stricken beneath the hideous machine
d for murder, which was advancing clt
n err and closer to- suffocate me where
b lay.
/ looked up, motionless, speeches
1t breathless. The candle, fully spel
'e went out, but the moonlight still brlgl
70 ened the room. Down and down, wit
1t out pausing and without soundir
a came the bed top, and still my PAL
" terror seemed to bind me faster a.
TT faster to the mattress on which Ia
a Down and down 1t sank till the dus
SO odor from the lining Of the cano
Ia came stealing into my nostrils.
a. At that final moment the instinct
lg self preservation startled me out OF l
lg trance, and l moved at last Inc
n. was Just room for me to roll mys
&c sideways off the bed. AS l dropp
re noiselessly to the floor the edge OF
ed murderous canopy touched me OH
III shoulder.
a Without stopping to draw my brea
~ without wiping the cold sweat from
tn face. rose instantly on my knees
a. watch the bed top. 1 was htera
on spellbound by it. If had heard &c
AZ steps behind me, 1 could not III
OF turned round. If means of esc'
had been miraculously provided for
int I could not have moved to take adv
-op tage of it. The whole life in me "
an at that moment, concentrated In
at eyes.
IN 1t descended. The whole can6
re- with the fringe round it, came dow
DOWN, Close uOWu-SO CiOoC lA"e -
vas was not room now to squeeze my
the ger between the bed top and the
req felt at the sides and discovered
nat what had appeared to me from
be meath to be the ordinary light can
vas of a four post bed was in realit
IL thick, broad mattress, the substa
ne of which was concealed by the
lily. lance and it's fringe. l looked up
pos saw the four posts rising hideo
and hare. In the middle Of the bed
attn was q huge wooden screw that hac
identity worked it down through
very in the ceiling, just as ordinary pre-
nent are worked down on the substanc
van lected for compression. The frig
the apparatus moved without making
ooh- faintest noise. There had peel
iltef creaking as it came down. There
Ev- now not the faintest sound IRON
ard, ~" a,,ouo Amid a dead and a
'ne silence 1 beheld before me In the
sve,' teenth century and in the CIV
'usn capital of France such machln
uen' secret murder by suffocaton as
u " bova existed in the worst days Q