The Yale expositor. (Yale, St. Clair County, Mich.) 1894-current, 1907-03-29

| Doubtless readers of the daily pa.
pers reCsn the mysterious death OF
Jack Varney. which occurred three
years ago. Although the mystery of
his death has never been solved and
never can BE-. |. the only person who
| knows the subsequent events which
led up TO his death. have decided To
disclose my knowledge to the public.
| came TO know Jack Varney
through an advertisement which he
had inserted in the Herald. He wanted
a cheerful, congenial companion. So
|, being at that time out of employ.
ment. answered the advertisement
| found him a big. clean type OF
! young American manhood; but didn't
| like the expression of his face. His
eyes We're continually shifting and
peering around beside and behind him
as if in fear, and there were dark cir.
Giles under the lower lids that told of
sleepless nights. However, there was
something in the man that awoke my
| curiosity and interest. so ] decided to
accept the position of companion, II
suited
After a little conversation he said
| he was certain that / would be per
fectly satisfactory. but before he en-.
gagged me he wanted to tell me some
thing OF himself and the reason why
he had advertised for a companion.
1t seemed that he was a medical
student. and somewhat of a collector
of curios of different kinds In his
capacity of collector he had obtained
| after much trouble, piece of human
skin. from which he had had purse
made. The skin had been taken from
! the left hip OF one of their most inter
esting subjects, an old IIindoo, who
had been found dead in the steets.
and whose body had been left un-
claimed.
From the time that the purse had
been made Jack Narney's life had
been haunted. He lived in constant
dread of some unknown evil. He had
the sensation of being followed by an
unseen being. His sleep was uneasy,
broken by horrible dreams. His very
soul seemed to be possessed by some
evil spirit
| ! thought he might be mentally de-
ranged, but | humored his delusions
and assured him that | was not afraid
TO accompany him anywhere to be
with him at all times. So | was en-
gagged.
For a week he seemed TO improve.
He slept we'll and lost the deep cir
Giles around his eyes, and | felt as
sured that he had only been af-
flicted with some mild form of in
somnia. Then the troubleA began
again, worse than before.
We were at dinner at a downtown
cafe, when the attack came upon him.
We were discussing some event of the
day, when suddenly his eyes dilated
and that wild, hunted look returned to
his face.
Look" he gasped, hoarsely. Can
you see anyone behind my chair?
That same feeling comes back to me
the sensation of some one close to
me! l almost feel some ones breath
on my neck!"
why there is no one there" | as
sured him. Your imagination is run.
ming away with you tonight. You
have probably got a bad attack of in
digestion" l added. jokingly. But he
was i'll at ease during the remainder
of the evening.
That night he did not sleep, but
walked the floor insisting that he felt
some unseen presence in the room. At
times he would tremble violently, and
half cry out, saying that some one
had touched his arm. At last /, in
fuenced by his terror could almost
feel the presence. But | did not admit
this to him
The next morning, while at his bath
he discovered that the skin on his
left hip for a space of about four or
five inches in diameter was badly dis
colored, and it seemed then remark
able coincidence that this spot was
the exact location from which the
skin for the purse had been taken
from the Hindoo's body.
Varney was almost paralyZed with
terror In vain / tried to quiet his
fears by telling him that it was only
q flesh bruise which would be gone in
few days; he would not listen to me-
and the wild glitter in his eyes in
creased
The following day the discoloration
had become of a dark purplish hue
Though ] knew that medical sci
ence could not explain that peculiar
spot, called in a physician, thinking
that This would at least prevent my
own fear from becoming apparent to
Varney.
had a talk with the physician my.
self before / took him TO see my pa
tient, and / told him the unnatural cir
cumstances, asking him to treat the
matter in an apparently light manner
in Varney's presence. and to tell him
that the discoloration was a flesh