The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1907-02-16

/ inc en- Nevertheless" His voice
sank and the smile slid down his
cheek and vanished-"it was the plaln'
unvarnished truth, and it happened as
! 7 told you-whilst we were scuodins
along through this Inferno-like DARK
ness. inst as tie train is doing now.
"Rut a man without head!" ven
| tured to expostulate. And 10 en.ei q
| moving train-in tunnel! Inc tnins
is impossible, you know, impossipie'
| 1T happened two years ago, anu l
was going then las / am going now
to Luyinci. small station just out
side of this tunnel on the Italian sloe-
At that time l was connected WIN a
FrancoItanan firm of jewelers. ana
as the samples l carried were extreme
w valuable, l made it point wnen
travelling by train to always engage an
entire compartment and have the
, guard lock me in securely. was
therefore, quite alone when the anair
|. of which / am about to tell you oc
Cured. l was, moreover, unusuaiiy
careful on this particular occasion, ana
kept a loaded revolver lying upon the
/ seat beside me- Some four montns
> previously, fellow commercial tras-
! eler. who had the misfortune 10 re-
: semble me very closely indeed, mao
a been murdered in a compartment OF
4 the Lyons express, and his murderer
t who was most fortunately captured
Y confessed t.lat he had mistaken tne
l. man for me.
e ION the morning prior to my start
;, ing upon the journey OF which am
n now telling you, this murderer nao
d been guillotined In Paris, and there
& was a full account of the execution IN
d all the evening papers, La Presse In
n particular giving a very graphic ue
]: scription of it. ! think read II quite
ID a dozen times that night and a dozen
y more the next morning, and 1 was
b. reading it again when the train
is whizzed suddenly into this tunnel Inc
il horrible droning of the wheels, com
bined with the gloom and, perhaps, the
z grewsomeness of the thing had been
te reading, got on my nerves and wnen
W. I heard the door behind meme
C. locked door!-open and close with
lie bang. | fairly bounded from my seat
AS / faced around, my heart hammer.
ID. ing against my ribs as though 1t wouio
be beat its way out of me, saw standing
before me the shape of man WITH
It. a great SCOOP cut out of his coat ane
ee- shirt where the collar should nave
tut been. a slim, red line running rounf
gh his throat, and above that line gray
Die white dead face with shut eyes ant
tut hanging lips"
"Ach! Lieber Gott-"
ay | heard the words quaver out iron
the Germans corner. but l could no
l see his face, for the thick vapor which
zee the opered window had let in fioate
too between us, humid, yellow, reeking Q
ger SULPHUR. | looked round at the Col
The nishman. every fiber of my being tint
he ling. and something creeping up m
Iai neck
it'll &C. ~, said family. You Ar
'ou sure it wasn't nerves.
las sure as am that you are sittin
'er here beside me this minute" he r
piled. Nerves may often make ma
Oh fancy that he sees things, but the
can't make those things talk"
.iun And he talked?"
nei "Yes. AS l faced round and sa
en- him. his dead lips said quite distinc
" w: Good evening, comrade. "
IA travel far and fast 1t may be NOR
- ing to you, but it is evening to me-
'A' for ever!' And then, with wave
the hand, inviting me to resume
'un seat. he sat down in the corner ne
the window and turned his dead IA
'ei towards me, his eyelids never on
90 lifting. and his head, Jared by Z
movement of the train, rocking u
" steadily upon his shoulders. Once
ne nut I'D his hand to steady 1t, and
10 l his fingers touched that red line abo
Jus his throat, The trademark OF Nc
sage sieur de Paris he said, with ghast
utes movement of the lips which. in |
eyes ing man, would have been a smi
Vi He guillotined me at dawn this MOI
ing"
men, The Cornishman stopped short a
un' l saw his eye travel to the window.
Along the vapor-smeared surface
MS the glass a faint glow OF light
ppeo creeping-a light which presen
own hurst into the compartment with 81
ping ou 49, and h,;nding glare that for
eA instant l could see nothing. Thel
INC became conscious that we were out
uue the tunnel, and that the German '
m still sitting huddled up In his corr
:, 80 with gaping lips and wide-opened ey
r,,eh The Cornishman rose. lifted
a 80 portmanteau out of the rack. lool
tr;,s down at me and-winked.
have Il reckon I've won that fve-po'
r,np note hands down." he said, with
laugh. Our friend from the Fatf
land never slept wink. nor snore
~. snore. the whole way through"
,laer well, I'm dashed:" | managed
man gasp at last, and pulled my purse
dish view.
IN to mo. don't pay 1t to me-" he
sup hastily. i've won 1t. ! know. bt
donation IN Dr Rarnarf