The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1907-02-15
THE BLACK CAT.

(C5n inuel from last week.

/
(C'n nuel from last week.
! continued my caresses, and when prepared to go
lome the animal evinced disposition to accompany me
permitted 1t to DO So occasionally STOPPING and pattng
IL as proceeded When reached the house it domesti-
ated itself at once and became Immediately great ia
'orlte with my wife
70, For my own part soon found dislike to it arising
within me- This was just the reverse of what had an
l4cpated; but know not how why it was tits evil
ent fondness Tor myself rather dsgusted and annoyed
by SLOW degrees these feelings of disgust and annoyance
rose INTO the bitterness of hatred avoided the creature
certain sense OF shame and the remembrance of nv for
ner deed OF cruelty preventing me from physically abus
ing IT, did not for some weeks strike otherwise vo-
llehIy Ill use IT, but graduallyvery graduallyI came
TO look upon 1t with unutterable oathng and to flee ST.
ent from Its odlous presence, from the breath of
Jestllence.
What added no doubt to nv hatred OF the beast was
me discovery on the morning after brought it home that
IKE Puo, 1t also had been deprived of of its eyes,
ms circumstance however only endeared it to my wife,
IWho as nave already SAID possessed in high degree
that humanity OF feeling which had been my dstin-
gushing trait and the of many of my simplest and
)urest pleasures
With my aversion to this cat however its parality for
myself seemed to increase 1t followed my footsteps with
pernacity which it would be difficult to make the read
r comprehend Whenever sat, it would crouch beneath
my CHAIR or spring upon my knees covering with its
oahsome caresseS. II arose to walk, it would get be-
tween my feet and thus nearly throw down. fasten
ing Its long and sharp claws in my dress Chamber in this
manner to my breast At such times, although onged t.
destroy it with blow was yet withheld from DOING
partly by memory OF my former crime but chiefly, let
me confess at once, by absolute dread OF the beast
yet Should be at loss how otherwise to define it. am
almost ashamed to ownyes in this felons cell, am
almost ashamed to ownthat the terror and horror with
which the animal inspired had been heightened by
Of the eres chmeras it would be possible to conceive
My wife had called my attention. than once to the
character OF the mark of white hair of which have spo
and which constituted the sole visible difference be-
tween the strange beast and the one had destroyed
The eader will remember that this mark, although large
nad been originally very indefinite; but by slow degrees
my Reason struggled to reject fancfut had at length
assumed rigorous distnctness Of outline 1t was "
he presentation of object that shudder to
nd for this above ALL Oathed and dreaded, and would
have rid myself Of the monster had | dared; it
1 say. the image OF hdeOuSof CHASTITY thngOf the
iALLOWS!-oh, mournful and terrible engine of Horror
and of Crime, OF Agony and OF Deathl
And now was indeed wretched beyond the wretched-
ness Of mere humanity. And brute beast-whose fellow
had contemptuos destroyeda brute beast to work out
or me- for me man, fashiOne1 the image Of the High
God so much of insufferable woe Alas neither by day
or by night knew the blessing OF rest any more During
the former the creature left moment alone; and in
the latter started hourly from my dreams of unutter-
able fear to find the hot breath of the thing upon my
face and its vast weight ncarnate Night Mare that
had no power shake off, incumbent, eternaly upon my
heart
Reneah the pressure OF orments such as these, the
feeble remnant of the good within me succumbed Evil
thoughts became my soul ntmate the darkest and most
evil of thoughts The moodness Of my usual temper in
creased to hatred of all things and of all mankind while
from the sudden frequent and ungovernabe outburss o
fury to which noI bindy abandoned myself, my un
complaining wife alas the most usual and the most
patient of sufferers.
One dav she accompanied me- upon some household er-
rand into the cellar of the old building which poverty
compelled us to inhabt The cat followed me down the
steep stairs and nearly throwing headong exaspera
cd me to madness Uplifting axe, and forgetting IN
NV wrath the childish dread which had hitherto stayed
nv hand | aimed blow at the animal, which would
have proved instantly fatal had descended as wished
But this bow was arrested by the hand of my wife
1oaded bv the interference ito rage more than demon
iacal. withdrew my arm from her grasp and buried the
axe her brain She fell dead upon the spot without al