Camas Prairie chronicle. [volume] (Cottonwood, Idaho) 1901-1917, 1905-03-10

it once before She was waiting for me-
We were going to fly together, whittier
know not. i had begun my descent, and
was rapidly nearing the bottom, when
my steps were suddenly, arrested. Just
on a level with my head, writing and
twisting its coils round one OF the pro-
tuberant branches Of the pear tree. was
a red snake; but although it's body was
a mass Of moving coils, it's head was
perfectly motionless; and out of it glared
a pair Of codl, stony eyes that held mine
a pair of cold, stony eyes that held mine,
take away my gaze from them, but they
held me with resistless power All
! strength deserted me; my hands relaxed
their grasp of the boughs, my feet slid
pcwerlessly from their hold, and | fell
The reality. awoke-not with a
start, but | slowly rose up into sit
ting posture, as though en- iron lever,
worked by some hiddenu power. had
pressed me upwards. l could feel that
my eyes were wide open and staring
my whole body locked and rigid.
Upon the desk at the foot of the he'd
! stood a lamp, the light Of which was
strongly intensified by a reflector Its
glare fell full upon a woman's face. In
an instant l recognized Judith Porter.
She was attired in dress of black vel
vet. made high up to her throat; draped
behind her head was curtain of black
velvet, upon which was, as it We're.
thrown in powerful relief her pale coun-
tenance and red hair. Her eyes were
| unnaturally dilated and fixed They
seemed drawing my soul out of my body,
and absorbing it in themselves.
My next sensation was that l was
speaking ering questions, Of what
nature / could not tell, for the answers
were made without any volition on my
part; they seemed drawn by come occult
influence from the most secret recesses
OF my memory.
By and by all consciousness deserted
me- and became motionless. When /
awoke was lying just as had thrown
myself, half dressed, upon the bed. The
dull light Of a lowering sky, out Of which
the rain was descending IN torrents, was
upon me, My visitant had left no trace
behind her; every article was precisely
in the same condition, as far as / could
remember, as when retired to rest.
/ got off the bed and bathed my head
and face with cold water. This revived
me; but there was a dulIness about the
DfdAn Uldl 4 GOuEu nOL GlGdE AWAY. AS
my faculties resumed their functions, /
became conscious of sensations vet more
strange. There was a feeling of void
ness, as though some vital principle had
been drawn from me; but above, all,
there was an intense longing to be again
within the influence Of those eyes-yet /
shuddered at the thought There was a
spell upon me-a spell that drew me
faEfl IN Arvr nd, Tr1af41,
Mr.. Porter's threat was no idle one.
Body and soul was, through his daugh-
ter, utterly subdued to his will Out
of her presence, / felt that l could not
exist. / followed her about like
spaniel dog, was ever trying to catch
her gaze a few seconds beneath its in
fiuence reduced me to a trance-like state,
in which my soul seemed to pass from
my keeping into hers. Ny sleep-when
l could sleep, which was seldom-was
haunted by the widest fantasies My
health soon began to suffer; my cheeks
became hollow, my looks emaciated 1t
was as though a vampire was proving
upon my life 1t was not love that
she inspired me with, but a fearful fasci-
nation; while lay at her feet passion
ately imploring her to take pity upon me,
to give me her love, to become my wife,
would have given the world to have
possessed the power to fly from her to
the furthermost extremity Of the earth.
was her slave-bound to her by chains
stronger than were ever forged by hui
man hands.
And she was merciless in her power.
She hated me, loathed me, despised me!
She did not tell me So but my instincts.
No., H., gape3f;ryo ,,ooaa5
words to divine her thoughts While
free agent, l had refused, shrunk from
an alliance with her, and she was now
enjoying her vengeance.
you should have taken me when
was offered to you" she said, mocEing-
" NOW it is too later
/ knew she did not mean the latter
part of her sentence. knew that after
she had glutted herself with my torture,
she would become my wife. could read
it as plainly as though her mind had
been a printed book open before me.
still went through the form of super
intending the boys, but was very little
use in this pitiable condition, and Mr..
Porter himself was Oftener in the school
room than had ever known him before.
He treated me the same as usual, but he
never regarded me without a cunning
leer Of triumph. Except during the
school hours was never suffered to
enter the kitchen, or to exchange a
word with Martha. l afterwards learn
ed that she made several attempts to get
to me, but all these efforts We're baked
by the vigilance OF her master or mis-
tress.
As for me, made no effort to see her
neither had any desire; / was alienated
from every object in life save one. One
night, as l was going to bed, l found
her standing close against the wall upon
the first landing. She laid her hand