The Virginia enterprise., 1904-09-09


with her &C once and thsreir LAY shis
folly. She began to play with him
much 40 4 cat does with d mouse.
She was evidently Of the opinion that
he would make an excellent subject.
Cassie fought against the power which
she seemed to exert. over him, but his
efforts were unavaiHng. IN his calm
moments he was of the opinion that he
hated Her as cordially us he had once
loved her, but she was evidently Of a
different opinion. One day she turned
to him and riveting his eyes with her
own, said, authoritatively: .5= X
"You love me-" = .1# 4.
Cassic's head swan for an instant;
then a wild ,exhilaration filed his be-
ing. He strove to go toward her, but
found himself rooted to the spot. "a;
bah, I command you to hate me,'
she exclaimed. = - 3<@#
Instantly his mood changed, and a
deadly passion simbued his soul. A
few passages Of her hands, and he was
his normal self again, standing sheep
ishly before her. w
did you think you loved me?"
she asked. =. - ~ ....
Il thought So" he answered weakly.
'There is the keynote" she said, Il
controlled your thought"
He tried to exert his own will; bur
in vain. .:.
DO you believe in my science now"
she asked. do you see that so-called
love is merely an emotion. that per-
son may incite or subdue at will? Do
you realize that you are my slave II
so will it," She laughed and told
him to go.
He was dazed-but, he left her firm
believer in hypnotism or whatever it
was that gave her her power over him.
Once in the. open air he tried to re-
cover himself, but failed. Shortly af-
! terwards he learned that even in alb
sence her power was strong enough
to draw him back to her. He fought
against it, with all his force, but in
vain. 1t was not exactly love he felt,
but an overwh Ginning desire to do her
| will In his saner moments he realized
that he was growing into a nonentity
"a mere puppet in her hands. He
strove then with all the strength of hi.
manhood to stay away, but without
avail. His business went to rack and
ruin for want of attention, and the
| intense mental strain caused his health
| to fail.
In the meantime, the woman had
| evidently made up her mind to marry
him in spite Of himself, and this
thought caused him more alarm than
had the loss of his health and fortune.
Finally, he consultedha physician.
The man was practical practitioner,
who gave little or no credcnce to Cacs-
sic s rather garbled story. He told
| him that he was the victim of a nervous
ailment, and advised outdoor treat
ment with plenty of hard work, Fin
! ally, he was induced to take SONG stock
in Cassic's representations, and advised
him to get as far away from the wo-
man as possible; hence his desire to
join the survey.
The story was revelation to Kent.
He expressed his opinion of the woman
in rather strong terms. I dare say
it was the only occasion upon which
Kent had ever made harsh remark
about any woman. However. he did
not have blind faith in the story;
he agreed with the physician that
Cassic's nervous system needed build
/ ing up, and decided to watch him.
Cassie affirmed that the influence
still came over him at intervals, and
pleaded with Kent to conf1ne him if
he ever showed any intention of return
ing. Kent promised, and then asked
for a description of the woman. Cas-
sic gave it in glowing terms. She was
dark, he said, and superbly beautiful.
Her eyes he thought her chief charm,
! and in them lay her power. AS se
spoke, he drew her picture from lis
pocket and handed it to Kent. Kent
took it and looked intently at the
most beautiful face he had ever seen,
and as he looked, the face seemed fair
ly alive. He felt dazed-the ground
was slipping from him-his head swan,
and he sank back in a swoon.
When he came to, a scrap of paper
lay in his hand. On it was scribbled:
"Why did keep the picture? The
ordeal has proven too much for me.
I am compelled to return. You see
the influence which the mere sight of
the picture has haG over you! I am
out of funds, and have borrowed your
wallet I will return" Here the
note rambled. 49, -. !
| Kent's wallet contained all the money
with which he, intended to nay of the
men. It has never been returned. !
Query: Has Cassie suffered lapse
of memory, or was he a villain?- ?-Over-
land Monthly. j
| King of Italy Obliging.
The king Of Italy is one of the lead
ing royal motorists of the world. He
was the first sovereign who took. to