Lexington gazette. [volume] (Lexington, Va.) 1871-1962, 1903-10-21

uad become most notorious in crime
Their features were in a number O
cases familiar to me from old book
and recent prints.
| instantly recognized, among 9th
ers, Burke and Hare, the former O
whom was convicted in 1929 of
horrible series of murders on tn,
evidence of his accomplice; james
Bloomfield Rush, the Stanfeld Hal
murderer of 1913; Maria and George
Manning, the two atrocious crimi
mails of 1919; William Palmer, the
Rugeley poisoncr of 1886, and VIII
liam Fish, Catherine Wilson, Henry
Wainwright, the Stauntons, LEROY
and Lipski of later dates.
What blood guilty asscmblage
with which to pass the night How
the crime Of every individual seemed
indelibly written on his face!
One mans expression transiixed
me, held me spellbound and filled
me with loathing and horror. Who
he was | did not know, but | could
not take my eyes from his face. And
when the place again grew dark l
saw it still standing out alone in
the surrounding gloom, with the
suppressed grin of a cruel and I'M
relenting fiend.
hid my face in my hands.
threw myself on the floor until the
vision slowly faded away, leaving
Inc trembling in every limb. dare
not get up or open my eyes for fear
that | should see it again.
Suddenly peculiar sound of jan
CLING and crealiing fell on my ears.
What could il be? 1t seemed to
come from the corner of the cham
Der where the instruments of tor
ture were arranged for exhibition.
The thumbscrews, tongue pinchers,
branding irons, masks and cine
lures, the gressilon, the moltiere,
the cubitoirc-all seemed to my ex-
cited Imagination to be in move
ment and rafting one against the
other.
Thoughts came into my mind of
all the unspeakable agonies that had
been inflicted by those diabolicaI in
ventions. This place would kill me-
| felt | was going mad. Let me get |
free somehow-anyhow. | sprang
to my feet and rushed like maniac
in the darkness, striking wildly at
everything in my way, in search for
the door. Figure after figure | hurl-
ed to the ground as it came in my
path.
All at once felt strong arms
close around me. | was struggling
madly for life with this terrible un-
seen something that held me by the
throat and was strangling me in the
lark. | now saw again that fearful
lace! Was it that of my antagonist?
tried to cry out, but was chok-
ng. Gradually | relaxed my hold,
md everything became a blank.
"You have been very i'll, George, I
lear, but you are better now" I
| looked around me. | was in a t
TRANCE bedroom, and my sister /
lucy was bending over me. | con- '
inced her that it would be best for s
Ter to explain at once all that hap 4
'ened, for my terrible experience in
he dark chamber now came back to
ne. /
She said that the night watch s
nan, thinking he heard sounds in S
he chamber of horrors, had de- a
cended to the place, when / imme- h
lately ran into his arms in the n
ark. In the struggle l had faint "
1. Brain fever followed, and | had s.
arrowly escaped with my life. c
My address had been found in my s.
Ocket, and my friends commitment Il
| with. The peculiar sounds that | e.
id heard and exaggerated were v
'ubtlesS produced by the keys of Il
lie Waterman as he unlocked the n
,or of the chamber. +,