The new era. (Walden, Colo.) 1906-19??, 1907-10-10

was expressed sudden ,orror ths
seemed a half mixture with sratlfica
ton. 1t was pain and joy, fear and
delight, resistance and love; AID
such face!-my own heart offered ii
self a willing sacrifice at the altar Ct
such beauty.
The man crossed hurriedly to the
girls side, seized her in his arms
and caressed her passionately. And
now the door opened for a second
time, and the face that appeared, like
that of the Medusa. seemed to petrify
the scene before it. But presently the
chime of a clock in the corner broke
the stiffness. There were II strokes,
and saw the tall, old clock of my
grandfather, just as | had seen it in
my room for weeks past, the dial fig
ures being clearly outlined in the
moonlight. The man released the girl
from his embrace and recrossed the
floor, passed the tall woman in the
doorway, and was gone. Not lip had
moved in speech, but the very silence
was pregnant with the tragedy of
three lives.
The tall woman had come no far
ther than the doorway, and had turned
back, closing the door behind her,
after the man had departed. The girl
fell upon her knees by the bedside
and, with clasped hands, turned
white face toward the heavens.
And now, as the first had faded.
this scene too, passed from my Wis
ion But the interval of darkness
seemed only to point lapse of time,
though whether of hours. days or
weeks l could not tell. At any rate.
it was the girls chamber which again
came into view. The dial of the old
clock in the corner showed that it was
near midnight and the moonlight re-
vealed the girl lying asleep on the
bed The hall door opened slowly and
softly, and the figure OF the tall. an
gular woman glided into the room.
She crossed quickly to the sleeping
girl and by a few swift movements
had bound her wrists and ankles Sc
curely, before the victim realized what
was taking place.
A look of intense horror awoke in
the girls eyes when she saw the face
that was bending over her. A band
age which the woman had supplied
was now tied about the helpless girls
lips. This placed her completely at
the mercy of the woman, who now
proceeded with the diabolical work
which the ingenuity of her jealous
rage had planned. Sitting at her
back she spread apart the arms and
i . ;ets, 81
girls knees and to her ankles, where
they were made fast to the ankle
thongs. Then she passed strap
about the neck and under the lower
limbs and thus drew her victims chin
down to her knees. Then she went to
the old clock and in some mysterious
manner removed the front panel in
the lower cabinet, exposing to view
hollow space inside. And 1t was
now that the full horror of her pur-
pose fell upon me, for the victim was
lifted bodily from the bed by the wo-
man and was forced into the empty
cabinet of the clock in her cramped
posture. Then the panel was deliber.
ately replaced.
The awful horror of the scene
aroused the stoutest indignation of my
soul, and l strove with the strength of
madness to burst asunder the bonds
which seemed to restrain me. in order
that | might so TO the rescue OF tha
fatally beautiful girl. And the effort
did burst the bonds of my singular
trance. for awoke as from dream,
although the chime of the cid clock in
the corner of my room still vibrated
from the last stroke of twelve. and 7
was nationally sure that those twelve
strokes indeed had fallen.
The next day | found among some
miniatures of my family one that re-
sembled the man had seen in my
vision; and with it went to my
aunt.
ut is the miniature of your greal
grandfather" she told me.
What is his history" | asked
"He was lost at sea about so years
ago. He had married a second wife
with whom he was not congenial
This wife objected to his guardian.
ship of the orphaned daughter OF
friend, who was said to have been
wonderfully beautiful And, too, this
second wife was Objectionable to all
the children of his first marriage
She had been serving woman OF
low degree and had nursed MIN
through long illness. And through
his gratitude for this service he had
married her. 1t was some time afte
this marriage that the orphaned girl
came into his charge. But from the
day of her introduction it aipelrs a
spirit of jealousy had been agous ID In
the wifes bosom. 1t is said my grand.
father acquired interests in South
America in order that he might spend
much of his time abroad The vessel
on which he last sailed for that com
f,.x, itc