Pike County press. (Milford, Pa.) 1895-1925, 1903-10-02

NNIlttu lie son re knew OF the long
standing document that named him
his fathers heir. He was the only
person benefited by the disappearance
and dissipation had dulled his sense
Of honor. The pain In my hancees
eyes neryed me to speak out the
thoughts that had harassed me since
discovered the all-important docu-
ment missing
"Maizie. no reed must be rejected
as too slender to lean upon now. Per
haps your brother and / are both In
nocent, both truthful ] am not super.
stitiouss you know, but after our last
weird argument your fathers viii, sud
denly, mysteriously missing, brought
with It an uncanny thought have
been unable to shake off with reason.
Remember the promise made by the
conscientious business man, whose
word was equal to a bond, that he
would communicate with me from the
spirit world
perhaps he has" I continued in a
hushed voice. Perhaps this is the
promised proof" / paused again to
MDAhn my MOANn kHAEAMAAIa II II ANf II
he win dispel your grief, my darling,
by directing us to or returning the
paper that will vindieate your brother
Of attempted fraud will"
She interrupted my declaration Of
a new faith eagerly. 1T is possible,
Maurice" she said. "Mind reckons
not distance. If we both earnestly
,,,.,. 49, ,,..ftca ,,,.., 40 IT,, r,rilf ,,,,4
us in communication with my father,
my real father, who is not buried un-
der Oakwood leaves. but living in his
next higher sphere, for prayer, you
know is the precipitation of Individual
will into the mysteries that surround
the Godhead."
1 gasped with astonishment, for my
fancee had never before expressed
her concurrence with her fathers pc
culiar beliefs, but so strong was her
suggestion that under its reflection l
lived the night on a mental altitude
till then undreamed, floating as it
were on waves of ether high above
the material plane. went down to
my office next morning prepared for
anything, and Of course found nothing
new bearing on the case. My unwonted
mental tension broke, as it was sure
to, under the days cares, and left me
irritable, disinelined to work. About
II O'Clock 1 closed my desk and
went out carefully locking the door
behind me. When l returned in half
an hour, although the door was locked,
to my great amazement the top of my
desk was rolled back, and legal docu-
ment lay like white basis on the tidy
green baize. l crossed the room with
a bound, and stood with my arms be-
hind me, regarding the lost will with
bulging eyes. And something else.
Written across it in the unmistakable
chirography of my iancee's father,
read:
so much for the phenomena of spir-
itisml Yours for telepathy, Gilbert
Weir"
A message from the dead The
supernatural seemed to have posses
sion of my practical workshop, the
air was dense with wraithy, floating
shapes. Maurice Brice, you are an
imbeeile or the victim of some clap
trap hoax" l declared in a hollow
voice. but the ghostly chill refused to
leave my spine.
"But if it was a joke, who could
gain entrance and depart again
through a locked door? And the door
was locked on my return" THE same
hand that filched it from a locked
box!" chuckled the dim shapes. I'VE
of the spirit reckon not distance nor
locksp'
To assure myself l was not suffering
from an optical illusion, I lifted the
paper and grayely pronounced my own
writing genuine. But that pencil in
dorsement in familiar hand which I
knew was three weeks dead? I let It
fall again with a shiver
From too much brooding / have be-
come imaginative" reasoned. 81
will leave It here, just so, and go out
again. If find it on my return l will
believe-something-if 1t is gone will
know dreamed it all" And GLAD to
escape the shadowy occupants of my
Office l again locked the door. trying
tbs knob to make sure the key was
not a trickster.
If had only relied on my cwn
Judgment and kept the strange pro
ceedings to myself! But half an hour
later I again inserted my key, pale
and tremulous, and with Maizie at my
heels. There" l triumphed, as the
door swung in. "Of course 1 was
dreaming. There is no will on the
desk" The top was closed as l had
left It when l first went out.
Maizie dropped into my pivot chair
with burst of tears ut Is your cyni-
cism, your unbelief Maurice" she
sobbed. Il know it was there; that
you saw It as you told me- There is
so much beyond our comprehension
we have no right to doubt what we
cannot understand"
'But the door was locked" 1
soothed. ''You saw me open II. /
did very wrong to tell you 1t would
stil be there if ! had seen it. sweet
heart"
Unseen forces do not require
keys" she silenced scornfully. My
father has removed the viii again to
punish you for doubling" going on
into another hysterical shower.
'Alaizie," I began. but before
could find words for my regret a step
on the threshold recalled me to the
improperly Of love scene in a law
Office, / sprang up, glowering at a re-
treating visitor crossing the hall with
long strides.