Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1910-10-14


whispered. trembling. One who has
had charge Of prison sees-sees 80
many things after an execution.
Things that one never dares to make
public. for fear Of being called in
sane. All jailers know Of them. My
wife knew-she sent for the priest.
He knew, too. He tried the exorcism.
but to no purpose"
Nevertheless, wise attempt"
said Brodsky to me. Nothing that
makes for good. as all religion does,
can cause evil"
The last time she awoke she was
wholly insane. She didn't recognize
either me or her mother. She NUT
tered all the time in a strange tongue.
Sometimes there was an English
word, but we couldn't make out the
drift OF it. And the agony of her
struggles-and her dumb-she was
not our child"
He broke down and hid his face in
his hands. Meanwhile the morphine
had begun to take effect; the girl
struggled no longer, but sat watching
US. Alphabetical and hopeless. The
vicious stamp had gone from the face,
leaving the british, melancholy Slav.
YES. you can picture the fathers
suffering" said the doctor. The
murderer awakens-he wants to
come back. He is lonely and cold;
he sees a home, family life, things
which awaken a dumb longing within
his stunted soul. And so this little
girls body is made the scene Of this
tremendous drama. 1t is this strug-
gle of the disembodied to express
themselves in terms Of the flesh that
is the cause of almost all our mental
diseases"
He wheeled over toward the child
suddenly. From his pocket he took
Furnished mirror of bronze, hardly
larger than a quarter dollar. Look
at this" he commanded.
The child turned her eyes upon it
silently.
Look" Broadsky repeated, and
with his finger he gave the mirror
twist that set it spinning upon a tiny
wire which produced a rapid, circula-
tory movement. 1t spun like thread
of light. The child's eyes became i'm
movable. DR.. Brodsky leaned forward
and placed a finger upon each eyelid.
closing them. The girl still sat bolt
upright, but perfectly motionless.
had seen this procedure often in the
mental ward; 1t was the hypnotic
CT hot deb hoI Ind,
l knew that he had put the domi-
nant personality to sleep in order to
call up whatever lay beneath that ex-
ternal stratum of consciousness.
You are asleep" said Brodsky,
softly. You will sleep more deeply.
Now you are gone. You are quite
gone./ Now speak. Open your eyes.
You-Radovitch!"
AS ripple passes over the face of
a still pool, changing its entire as
pect, so the light came back to the ]
expressionless features. Once again
it was Radovitch; but all the cum
ming. the hate, the vileness had been
purged away. 1t was the soul of
Radovitch, stripped Of the emotions,
the passions that had defiled it.
who art thou?" asked Brodsky,
gently, using the familiar Russian
termination.
The eyes opened wider in fear; the
lips trembled.
Thou art with friends" said the
doctor, compassionately. Have no
fear So-thou are Radovitch?"
Yes, / am Radovitch," said the
lips. mechanically.
why didst thou come here?" con-
tinued the doctor.
"Ah, don't drive me away" pleaded
the mans voice from the child's body.
1T is all dark outside. There is no
body-nobody. 1t is all dark and
cold Here it is warm. And she was
my friend"
What did they do to thee, to bring
thee to this extremity" asked Brod-
sky, while the jailer and i. awed into
silence, could only sit, staring and
listening. What did they do to
thee?"
II do not know"
DOol tuOu nOI hAOW tudt Ihou al
dead?"
A spasm of terror convulsed the
lips and the cheek muscles. "Dead?
cried the voice mo; for then
should be in hell"
You are in all the He'll that you are
likely to get. my friend" muttered the
doctor. What dost thou remember"
81 remember remember-they
told me was to de-" the voice NUT
tered. ramblingly. They bound my
arms tightly SO that they panied me,
and they placed me In a strange chair.
Then-I do not know what they did
to me, for I tainted. But when
awoke everyone was gone and 1t was
all cold and dark. So, finding myself
free, l thought: 'Radovitch, thou hast
broken free from the jail. Some
brandy will cure thee, and thou hast
credit at the saloon Then, instantly,
1 found myself in the saloon, but none
needed me when / called, nor seemed
to see me. So l thought Either
thou art escaped and they fear to rec
ognize thee. or thou art dreaming.
Thou shalt awake in prison. And i'm
mediately l was back in the prison.
Then l saw men lowering something
into the ground. and looked, and 1t
was I. Then thought: Thou art dead
Radovitch. and dost wander in purga-