The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1921-03-11

pacing up anu down the waiting rOOW
of DIR. Philip Fosdick. digging nails
into her palms and teeth into her I'M
| derlip in the endeavor to keep from
| giving away to hysteria.
| One glance at her face of suffering
one look into those eyes of pitiful APP
peal-Fosdick drew her into his con-
sultation room. There she collapsed
utterly, going with chiIdlike. trust into
| his arms, hiding her face in his Shout
der, shaken by that tempest of emo
ton against which her last, slight
guard had been beaten down upon his
| arrival.
She told her story eagerly, but in
| fragments only; she was powerless
long to follow any one train Of
thought because, invariably, when she
seemed on the very verge of losing
herself in the interest of narration, a
chill breath of fear would numb her
confidence, her eyes would film with
daze, her voice break In the middle of
a sentence, her relaxing grasp on Fos-
/ dicks hand tighten eonvulsively, her
thoughts falter into momentary in
I conference.
Again ami again he needed to exert
himself to the utmost in order to re-
| store the mean balance of her self
/ command. Only the tenderness and
solicitude of the lover allied with the
knowledge, the patience, the compass
sion of the physician served.
But what am 1 to do?" she de-
manded in calmer phase. Il tell
you, Philip, l can't stand it; 1 can't go
on like this knowing she's in deadly
peril, not knowing what to do. know
ing she needs me, not knowing how to
get to her, to help her 1t isn't
imagination, Philip-it's so. / know
| it's so, that she's in danger, threat
ened, afraid; something in me knows
and shares her sufferings and won't
can't be still Z. Philip, won't
| you help me?"
His head described a slow sign of
regret. Pm doing my best, Priscilla"
Il mean, hypnotism-"
mo"
you must, Philip, you must! I'm
not afraid of being hypnotized by you,
You've explained everything so clear
~, l know it's nothing but the utiliZa-
ton of a natural means to remove the
barrier between the two states of con-
scfOusness, SO that the imprisoned sub
conscious can find expression. Philip,
you won't refuse me this once? You
see what this thing is doing to me, you
know I'll go mad if I don't find re-
lief
He gave gesture of surrender. and
got up from his chair.
''As you WILL" he said. perhaps,
after all, you know best"
He arranged pillows at the head of
! couch. "Lie down here-rest-re-
lax. Remember that, as you've just
declared, you've got nothing to fear
from the hypnotic trance, something
as natural as sleep-even more nat
ural, if what believe of it is true"
I'm not in the least afraid
With readiness and docility which
he thought touching, she suffered Eos
dick to make her comfortable upon
the couch. He was insiStent upon an
| attitude of complete relaxation
supine, the head barely elevated by a
thin down pillow, the ankles together
but not crossed, the hands open at
either side. Further, he babe her
loosen her locked teeth, so that they
no longer touched. And drawing a
chair close to the head of the couch,
he sat down and with his own hands
SmoOthed out the strained, contracted
muscles round her eyes and mouth
and brows.
His touch, his tone, his presence
were all soothing. Already she was
pleasantly aware of slackening nerv.
Gus tension. In her eyes a vague
smile formed.
''Drowsy?'
/ Her lips framed but did not utter
least sleepy, but deliciously at ease
The weight of his hand on her fore.
Shead was like an imponderable force
of obliterating influence. Conscious
ness was slowly retreating into a
boundless space of inertia. She had
no desire to restrain it =.
She did not know that her eyes had
closed of their own accord, and spent
moment in idle speculation concern
ing the singular disappearance OF
Philips face.
He had not moved. she knew; his
hand still rested on her forehead. But
his voice sounded far away:
"Sleep :"
She wondered that he should bid
her sleep or wish her TO. Perhaps it
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