Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1915-08-13
A

By F. A. mitchell


he was walking thus in a quaint old
town in New England. There were
houses in the place fully 200 years
old. Billings was an educated man
and appreciated the antiquity about
him. He fancied one house to be the
old tavern and that the bar was still
there concealed by a curtain. An
other house must have been that of a
nabob, for the front door was elabo-
rately made.
Billings wandered about in the moon
light wondering about the different
places and occurrences that might have
taken place in them. Apart from the
rest was a house which both from it's
construction and tumbledoWn appear
ance must have been older than any he
had yet passed Whether it was oc-
cupied or not he could not tell, for like
all the rest of the houses it was dark.
Billings stopped before the front door
to admire it, its side lights, its arched
lights above and the antique bead
work on it, wishing that he could re-
move it and use it on his own house
in his home city.
Suddenly the dHor opened. There
was no sound from the old hinges and
it seemed that the door moved of itself.
But in another moment face appear
ed in the opening, the face evidently
of a young girl, though since she was
in shadow Billings could not see her
Iic+ip &o
did not speak. He drew near her and
she whispered:
"a tragedy has occurred here. A
man has been stabbed. l and my sis
ter are alone. | wish you would come
In and help u.s."
Billings had no inclination for what
was asked of him, but the girls voice
was so soft, nearer view showed her
so comedy, that he entered the vesti-
bule. There was no light, and when
the door was closed behind them it
was pitchy dark. The girl took Bill
lings' hand to guide him, and cold
chill followed her touch, which was icy
cold.
"Will you strike light?" he asked.
'Oh, no. l would not attract the at
tention of the watch for the world"
Billings would have retreated, but
was ashamed to do so. Besides, the
cold grip on his hand would not be
easily shaken off. He suffered himself
to be led through spacious hall and
up winding staircase. On reaching
an upper hall the girl opened a door
and led the way into q bedchamber.
The windows were open, and the
moon, which was an hour high cast a
food Of light into the room, illuminat-
ing with its pale light a four post bed
stead with canopy overhead and val
ance beneath. Beside it knelt a wo-
man, and on it lay a man, who ap-
peared to be dead. The light of the
moon gave a CHASTITY hue to his fea-
lures, and he was stiff and stark.
1t seemed to Billings that the CO.'S
tunes of both the women correspond
ed with the antique furniture Both
wore white caps on their heads and
kerchiefs around their shoulders and
across their bosoms. Billings stood look.
ing on the scene in wonder and horror
I'VE must remove the body before
day." said the girl.
why SOP" asked Billings, scarcely
knowing what he said.
He was killed He who killed him
was a near relative. He has fled, but
should the tragedy be discovered he
would be pursued, and if captured we
should have to endure another death.
Feeling that we must have man to
help us and seeing you from the win
dow about to pass the house, stepped
down and called you You will not be-
tray us, will your
Certainly not. But
"Oh, don't say that you will not
help us. We are two women with no
man to rely on. You and | can carry
the body to a secret closet. We can
put it in there for the present, and it
can be removed later"
Billings brain was in a whirl The
girl went to the bed, drew away the
woman kneeling beside it and, taking
the lower part Of the body, mOtioned
to Billings to take the heavier part.
Then the two carried it to an adjoining
wainscoted roHn. The girl touched a
spring in the wall. A panel rolled aside,
revealing an empty space. They threw
the body in, closed the panel and left.
The next thing Billings remembered
was standing without the door of the
house, hanging on to an iron railing.
He seemed to have awakened from a
dream. He staggered into the street
and looked up at the house. 1t was
dark and silent Then he ran as IL to
leave his frightful experience behind
him. On reaching his hotel he went
to his room and threw himself ON the
bed. In the morning he awakened,
feeling as IL all his strength had oozed
out during the night.
During that day he made inquiries
about the house he had visited and
was told that 1t was called the Berwick
house, from the family that had lived
In 1t a century or more before. II
had been empty for years.
Billings related his experience to sew.
eral persons and persuaded them to
20 to the house with him and force an
opening to the closet where he had
helped deposit the body. They did SO
and found the skeleton of a man.
What the tragedy had been no one
knew, nor had any one ever heard
Evidently 1t had been concealed. There
was, however, a tradition Of one OF
the Berwick family who had mysteri
cusly disappeared, 49,