Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1908-02-21
THE HOUSE OF
A THOUSAND
CANDLES
BY MEREDITH NICHOLSON
Author Of THE MAIN CHANCE" ZELDA
CAMERON" Etc.
Copyright 1905 By Bobbs-MerriI Co.
CHAPTER x.


read in the library until late, hear
ing the howl of the wind outside with
satisfaction in the warmth and COM
fort of the great room. Bates brought
in some sandwiches and a bottle of
ale at midnight
"If there's nothing more, sir"
THAT Is all, Bates" And he went
off sedately to his own quarters.
/ was restless and in no mood for /
bed, and mourned the lack of variety |
in my grandfathers library. l moved |
about from shelf to shelf, taking down |
one book after another, and while thus
engaged came upon a series Of large |
volumes extra illustrated in water col |
ors of unusual beauty. They occupied
a lower shelf, and l sprawled on the
floor like a boy with new picture
book in my absorption, piling the
great volumes about me. They were
on related subjects pertaining to the
French chateaux.
In the last volume found sheet
of white note paper no larger than
my hand, forgotten book mark, l as
sumed, and half crumpled it in my fin
gers before / noticed the lines of a
pencil sketch on one side of it. car
ried it to the table and spread 1t out.
1t was not the bit of idle penciling
It had appeared to be at first sight.
scale had evidently been followed and
the lines drawn with a ruler. With
such trifles my grandfather had no
! htraoa1p Thnrn VIZ q
long corridor indicated, but of this
could make nothing. l studied 1t for
several minutes, thinking 1t might
have been a tentative sketch of some
part of the house. In turning 1t about
under the candelabrum l saw that In
several places the glaze had been
rubbed from the paper by an eraser,
and this piqued my curiosity. l
brought a magnifying glass to bear
upon the sketch. The drawing had
been made with hard pencil and the
eraser had removed the lead, but a
well defined imprint remained
was able to make out the letters,
N. w. ~ to Ca reference clearly
enough to points of the compass and
ulSIdHCGs 1nO MOIu IdNtuS was
scrawled over a rough outline of a
doorway or opening of some sort, and
then the phrase:
THE DOOR OF BEwTLDERMENT
Now l am rather an imaginative
person; that is why engineering cap
tured my fancy 1t was his efforts
to make an architect "a person who
quarrels with women about theiJ
kitchen sinksD of boy who wanted
to be an engineer hat caused me to
break with my grandfather. Fate was
busy with my affairs that night, for
instead of lighting my pipe with the
little sketch | was strangely impelled
to study 1t seriously.
| drew for myself rough outlines oil
the interior of Glenarm House as II
had appeared to me, and then l tried
to reconcile the little sketch with ev
cry part of it.
THE Door of Bewilderment" was
the charm that held me. My curiosity
was thoroughly aroused as to the hid
den corners of the queer old house
round which the wind shrieked tor
mentingly. l went to my room, pu
on my corduroy coat, took a candle
and went below. One o'clock In the
hour for exploring the dark recesse!
of strange house, but had resolved
to have a look at the ravine openint
and determine, II possible, whether /
bore any relation to THE Door of Be
wilderment."
, All was quiet In the great cellar
| only here and there an area window
J ratified dolorously. | carried a tape
4 line with me and made measurement
) of the length and depth of the CORR
| dor and of the chambers that were Sc
. off from It. These figures entered L
/ my notebook for further use, and sa
Q down on an empty nail keg to refleci
l. The place was certainly substantial
b the candle at my feet burned steadil
8 with no hint of draft; but | saw n
s solution of my problem. was losin
$ sleep for nothing; my grandfather
Q sketch was meaningless, and l ros
5 and picked up my candle, yawning
l. Then curious thing happened TIL
candle, whose thin fame had risen III
wayeringly, sputtered and went out q
' sudden gust swept the corridor
!. l had left nothing open behind m
e but some one had gained ingress
n the cellar by an opening of which
ID knew nothing.
| faced the stairway that led up
the back hall of the house when,
my establishment, steps sounded b
Is hind me, and, turning, saw a ms
ie carrying a lantern coming toward m
marked his careless step; he W
N undoubtedly on familiar ground As
u watched him he paused, lifted the la
tern to level with his eyes and /
gan sounding the outer corridor W;
with a hammer.
Of Here, undoubtedly, was my friel
We Morgan-at gain! There was the sal
to periodicity in the beat on the W
30 that had heard In my own room
"a He began az the TOP and went methC