Los Angeles herald., 1906-04-22

of at last short, unsatisfactory letter that
knew was not like myself, and yet | had really
struggled over it, and all the time was writing
! it my eyes were half blinded by tears. Johns
Eletter in reply to this was longer and more
tender than usual, but it only puzzled me, 1T did
not comfort me nor quiet my fears.
Suddenly, one day, great temptation came
to me- A man who could read both the future
and the past arrived in our town and advertised
his wonderful powers. He could find lost articles
with butt the slightest clue to work upon; ne
could locate criminals and forecast accidents; he
had even been known to answer correctly ques-
| tions that were written but held concealed IN
the questioner's hand This tempted me.
"If this man can read the hidden messages OF
these notes. I said to myself, "he can read the
contents Of the mysterious package OF letters
without untying them"
Such is the fexibility of the human conscience
that Immediately grasped at the idea. would
obey the letter of Johns postnortem request,
and would relieve the unbearable stress of my
desire to know the contents of the letters. L
| did not go recklessy to my doom when this so
luton of my problem took definite form IN my
mind. planned visit to the "reader OF HE.
with all the cunning Of monomaniac, which l
now know that | then was.
| I permitted Tom, the dear boy, to take a
long-wished-for whole holiday and 90 fishing
with his mates. / thought of the awful posi-
bility of his being drowned, and the responsible
ity resting aopne upon me in his fathers absence,
but I took The risk. / made my visit Just after
the noon hour when other women were likely to
be occupied at home.
7 found the Professor" in and graciously at
my service observed that he looked me over
carefully from head to foot while he estimated
the price and weighed the package Of letters
/ carefully in his hand, but assured him l would
/ pay anything if he could interpret the contents
Of the letters correctly. ] informed him that
/ fha oft
to be taken out Of my sight, because, If took
any risk Of their being opened, might as well
read them myself. He said that his task would
be the more difficult if he were not able to iso-
late himself from all present influences, but he
thought he could perform it.
He counted the letters. There were thirteen
of them "An unlucky number" he observed,
though he might have omitted it, for. had
said the same thing over to myself a hundred
times Then he laid the package against his
forehead and turned his eyes so that they look
ed past me with something Of the expression
that is seen in astien-Lepage's picture OF Joan
of Area steadfast, faraway gaze into the mys-
teries of life--and death
After awhile he said: 'I begin to see! ] read!
All. it is plain now!" and he seized pencil and
rapidly wrote page after page on small tablet.
Once in while he would cease for a moment,
press the letters to his drawn brow, and hold
Fthem there until his eyes again assumed the
look that sees VISIONS. sdt enVrdnceu' Souiu
not have moved. think.
AT last after some hours, perhaps, of this
mighty effort on his part and the tense straIn
ON nine his pencil refused to write 1t would
start spasmodically and then suddenly stop.
Over and over again this took place. until the
"professor'' turned to me and said that his pow
or was exhausted :.
"It has required such tremendous will.force,
he explained. and, indeed he looked utterly limp
and worn out He said that he had translated
six letters, and he considered it the greatest feat
Of his professional life. He said too that it might
not be entirely satisfactory to me to have por-
tion of the letters only, but that he could 60 no
farther in his work, and that he could not make
known to me ftecontentsof these six without the
n.;ce in hand that we had agreed upon for the
whole. He was sure that there was mysterious
obstruction between letters six and seven, some
non.conducting material that disturbed the pas
sage of the magnetic fud-possibly picture |
maid the price and took from him the little fold-
cd sheets on which he had written and the pack
age of letters. / did not look at them till | was
safely locked in my own room. Even then |
forced myself to remove my bonnet and put 1t
away and to take my low rocking-chair near the