Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1912-04-03


darkness The black shape lifted me
on to the white shape, a glad neigh |
ing greeted my astounded ears and
murmured, 'Cesar!' The animal Quiv-
cred. Raoul, was lying half back on
a saddle and l had recognized the
white horse out of the Profeta, which
had so often fed with sugar and
sweets. l remembered that, one eve
ming, there was rumor in the theater
that the horse had disappeared and
that it had been stolen by the opera
ghost. l believed in the voice, but
had never believed in the ghost. Now,
however, 1 began to wonder, with a
shiver, whether I was the ghosts
prisoner. l called upon the voice to
help me, fer l should never have i'm
agtned that the voice and the ghost
were one. You have heard about the
opera ghost, have you not, Raoul?'
yes, but tell me what happened
whea you were on the white horse OF
the Profeta?"
Il made no movement and let my.
self go The black shape held me up,
and l made no effort to escape. A
curious feeling of peacefulness came
over me and l thought that l must be
under the influence of some cordial.
l had the full command of my senses;
and my eyes became used TO the dark
ness, which was lit, here and there,
by f1ttui CLEANS. I calculated that We
were in a narrow circular gallery,
probably running all round the opera,
which is immense, underground.
had once been down into those eel.
lars, but had stopped at the third
floor, though there were two lower
still, large enough to hold a town.
But the figures of which I caught
sight had made me run away. There
are demons down there, quite black,
standing in front of boilers, and they
WELD shovels and pitchforks and poke
up fires and stir up flames and, if you
come too near them, they brighten
you by suddenly opening the red
mouths of their furnaces.
Well, while Cesar was quietly carry
ing me on his back. saw those black
/ demons in the distance, looking quite
| small, In front of the red fires Of their
/ furnaces; they came into sight, dis
/ appeared and came into sight again,
| as We went on our winding way. At
| last, theJ disappeared altogether. The
shape was still holding me up and
Cesar walked on, unled and sure
footed. l could not tell you, even ap-
proximately, how long this ride last
ed; l only know that we seemed to
turn and turn and often went down a
spiral stair into the very heart of the
earth. Even then, it may be that my
head was turning, but l don't think
so; no, my mind was quite clear. Al
last, Cesar raised his nostrils, smiled
the air and quickened his pace a lit
tie. l felt a moistness in the air anC
Cesar stopped. The darkness haC
lifted. A sort of bluey light surround
ed US. We were on the edge of {
| lake, whose leaden waters stretched
, into the distance, into the darkness
but the blue light lit up the bank anC
> saw little boat fastened to an irol
> ring on the wharf,"
"A boat"
Yes, but I knew that all that exist
ed and that there was nothing super
natural about that underground lax
and boat. But think of the exception
al conditions in which arrived upol
, that shore! l don't know whether tn
effects of the cordial had worn OF
when the mans shape lifted me int
the boat, but my terror began all owe
: again. My gruesome escort must hav
, noticed it, for he sent Cesar back an
heard his hoofs trampling up
: staircase while the man jumped int
. the boat, united the rope that held
and seized the oars. He rowed wit
a quick, powerful stroke; and hi
, eyes, under the mask, never left me
We slipped across the noiseless waite
in the bluey light which l told you of
then We were in the dark again an
| We touched shore. And | was ono
more taken up in the mans arms.
| cried aloud. And then, suddenly,
| was silent, dazed by the light.
Yes, a dazzling light in the midst {
!, which l had been put down. l spran
to my feet. l was in the middle of
drawing-room that seemed to me
be decorated, adorned and furnishe
with nothing but flowers, flowers bot
magnificent and stupid, because of tn
silk ribbons that tied them to basket
like those which they sell in tt
shops on the boulevards. They wei
much too civilized flowers, like thos
which l used to find in my dressin
room after a first night. And, in II
midst of all these flowers, stood II
black shape of the man in the mas
with arms crossed, and he said: Don
be afraid, Christine; you are in /
danger 1t was the voice!
My anger equaled my amazemer
rushed at the mask and tried
= snatch it away, so as to see the IA
OF the voice. The man said, You a
in no danger, so long as you do n
II touch the mask And, taking n
ID gently. by the wrists, he forced n
IA into chair and then went down I
10 his knees before me and said nothil
Ia more, His humility gave me ba
a some of my courage. and the light ]
~ stored me to the realities of life. Ho
at ever extraordinary the adventu
7 might be, | was now surrounded
"a mortal visible, tangible things. T
7 furniture, the hangings, the candle
an the vases and the very flowers in the