The Holly chieftain., 1904-01-08


which he had eaten at dinner that
had upset his digestion and filed his
mind with all these morbid fancies
There was nothing like indigestion
for making one see everything in
bad light.
Then he slept, and as he slept he
dreamed dream.
He thought he was lying on the
edge of precipice-a precipice which
went sheer down many hundreds of
feet But although he occupied sucl.
a dangerous position he felt no uneasi-
pess at first, only little gentle sur
prise as to what he was doing there.
and little wonder as to what was
going to happen.
Then hand came up and out of tho
abyss and grasped him, drawing him
nearer and nearer to the giddy verge
of the precipice and he felt himself
dragged slowly but surely to destruc-
ton. In vain he clutched at the grass
and stones and projections of the
cliff; he was still drawn on, until, ut
last, he was poised upon the very
edge and could look down into tao
depths of the chasm beneath. For Il
few seconds-during which he seemed
to experience lifetime of agony-he
remained in that awful position. Then
he felt himself falling-falling from
an immeasurable height-and woke!
What hideous dream" ne
thought How weird-how awful
how real. l would rather lie awake
the whole night through than dream
just such another. | wonder what the
time is?"
He felt for his watch and the
matches, and struck light. Just half
past three-no more. AS lie restored
the articles again to their places, he
7 thought he heard faint sounds OF
movement in the next room.
Evidently | am not the only rest
less person." he said to himself as he
lay down again. 81 have companion
in misfortune. Tomorrow morning
we shall be able to compare expert
ences. Suppose l were to knock at
the wall and speak to him? But then
| might disturb someone else and
alarm them. That would never do.
expect it must have been the cucum-
ber that gave me the nightmare.
hope sha'nt have another such
dream; ii do, III never touch cucum4
ber any more as long as | live" His
eyes closed, and in few moments his
deep and regular breathing showed
that he had again fallen asleep.
And again he dreamt and tho
dream was as follows:
He was lying in his bed, or at least.
so he thought. and, after a while, it
| seemed TO him that it became very
| hard and narrow, so that he had no
| room to move in it.. 1t was also very
| dark. He tried to turn over upon his
side, but found, as in the other dream
that he could stir neither hand MOI.
foot And what appeared to him a
long time. he began to. hear sounds
over his head. Sometimes in ona
| place, sometimes in another, and al
the same time he began to experience
| difficulty in breathing And still tie
sound went on-the sound of some
mering nails
The sound of some one hammering
nails into a coffin!
And with that, all at once, the awful
| truth broke upon him. He was dead.
and they were mailing him up in his
coffin-vdead
His heart stopped beating as he
grasped the full horror of the situa-'
| tion.
They we're burying him alive. Oh.
! orribe!-horrible!
In vain he tried to burst the bonds
of the insensibility in which he was
held. In vain he made frenzied eff
| forts to cry aloud. The most frantic
endeavors were unavailing. He was
unable to utter sound or produce the
smallest movement. Then it seemed
| as though some one were trying to
raise the lid of the coffin. There was
faint, creaking sound-a faint glim
mer of light was perceptible overhead.
1t increased and widened! oh, joy!
He was saved-saved! The coffin-liJ
was raised little by little-higher and
higher-in another moment he should
| be free!
1t was done. He saw face bend
| ing over him-a familiar face--the
face of an old friend Already he hail.
ed him in his heart as his benefactor,
his deliverer. Then-what were those
words he heard? Words he had heard
before--when was it?
You can ruin me whenever you
please, but now you are in my pow
err"
The lid was clapped down again,
eaying him in inter darkness The