The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1910-06-07
MyDouble
A Girl Graduate Sees Herself In
Another Body on Three
Occasions.
By DONALD WALLACE.
Copyright. 1910. by American Press
Association.
By DONALD WALLACE.

III iii
remember well the night received
er that affected me more than this one,
but in a different way. The first was
in the nature of surprise; the second
was a terror.
was but eighteen at the time and
was going home to my aunt, with
whom l lived, having just finished my
education The journey was a long
one, and had somewhat broken down
my nerves from hard study. l did not
like to stay overnight at hotel alone,
but did not feel like taking a sleeping
car ] was rather a imid girl any
way and had not been used to going
about without protector.
/ reached the hotel about 9 o'clock
and went Immediately to bed and to
sleep. l was awakened in the night by
a noise in the hall. Several persons
passed hurriedly and were talking rap
idly. l have always been afraid OF
fire. especially in hotel. got out of
bed. went to the door and opened it.
At that moment / received my first
shock.
Standing III the open door of the
room directly opposite mine stood a
girl in her nightdress peering out anx-
iously, just as | was doing. The cor
ridor was lighted, and l could see her
plainly. The marvellous feature was
that she was myself. There was not
the slightest difference between us.
We were both In nightdresses. the hair
of both was worn in braid hanging
down the back, and her face and figure
were replicas Of mine.
Both gave little scream of surprise,
and both drew back into our respective
rooms. l shut my door and CROPPED my
way to my bed All thought of dan
ger was put out of my head in this re-
markable apparition Of my other self.
The physician in charge of the SEM
mary i had attended had warned me
that If did not give up study would
break down. But, DESTROYS Of being
graduated with the class as well as
at the head of 1t, had disregarded his
warning Now. 1t seemed to me, was
paying the penalty of my obstinacy.
NY mind must be giving way. 1t was
long past midnight when l bethought
myself that on opening my door must
have looked into a large mirror.
would have got out of bed and salts
fed myself Of this, but feared to find
the contrary. and If did would not
get any more sleep. So | comforted
myself with the assurance that l would
in the morning find a mirror opposite
my door and dropped into slumber.
/ was called early for the train. and
when / left my room looked for the
mirror. Alas. there was no mirror
there, but door just as l had seen it
in the night. l had no time to make
investigations. needing to go down to
breakfast and to the station.
By the advice Of my physician
spent July and August that summer at
the seashorp. By September l was
much improved and spent the month
In the mountains This restored my
health. but did not relieve me of an
uncanny feeling at having seen myself
or my other self at the hotel during
my homeward journey. Two years
passed during which l had gradually
driven the matter out Of my mind when
| saw the vision again.
Singularly enough. saw 1t under
| circumstances somewhat similar to
| those connected with its first appear
ance. 1t was the second summer after
the one during which 1t had first APP
peared to me. when ! was at -
| Springs. had a room in an extension
| of a hotel, facing another extension.
| One morning on arising went to a
window, and there at another window
| In the other extension stood my dou-
BILE. We were both, as before, in night
dresses and wore our hair plated on
our backs.
Nothing could have induced me to
remain at that hotel for another day.
was with friends and surprised them
by announcing that would leave by
the next train. They wondered. ex-
postulated. pleaded. but to no purpose.
One of them. girl of my own age.
with whom | was very intimate. beg
ged me to tell her why / was leaving
and what was the matter with me, for
it was plain that | had received q
shock of some kind. | would not have
told her for the world. | declined to
tell any one but my physician, and
wished to consult him as soon as pos
sible. | was sure that suffered from
some kind of mental breakdown. and
l only hoped that he would find means
to arrest its progress
On reaching the city sent for him
to come to me at once and told him OF
this second vision of myself He tried
to reassure me by telling me that had
seen some one who looked very like
me- / refused to be comforted had
seen myself or my exact counterpart
l told him that only one of my own
flesh and blood could so closely resem
BILE me and that had no sister or even
cousins so far as knew. Besides, II
this vision were a real person would
see her In different dress from my
own The doctor explained this by
saying that as had seen her at NIGH
and in the early morning ! would nat
urally see her in the dress wore my
self. both of us wearing nightgowns
/ tried TO consider this within the limit
of coincidence, but 1t was impossible
for me to believe that two persons
could be go Identical In appearance
that they should meet twice and both
times see each other in a nightdress.
No; had seen this vision first at a
time when my physician had warned
me that / was breaking down. l had
been overstrained What had / been
straining? My mind; therefore 1t was
my mind that had been giving way.
This temperance of the vision would
naturally denote that my mind was
again giving way. / shuddered.
saw myself confined in lunatic asy-
Ium, a mental wreck.
My friends to whom my malady be-
came known used every argument to
disabuse my mind. some of them assur-
ing me that my vision was real per-
son closely resembling me. Others
averred that people in a disordered state
Of the system were liable to see all
sorts of things. A theosophist declared
that / had seen my spiritual self at
moments when 1t had been lifted out
Of my bodily self. To this person l re-
piled that when / had seen the vision
was very well fixed in my own body.