Evening star., 1922-02-19
ANOTHER GRIPPING STORY
BY H. BEDFORD,JONES =

readily. and especially when rose in
the morning 1 observed tais stiffness
and lack Of response.
Frightened, not knowing what had
happened or was going on inside OF me,
wired Nevil again and again. He did
not answer. Finally I learned from a
newspaper that he had never been to
the coast at all; on the way he had
fallen i'll and was lying in Denver under
the grip Of influenza. l wired him there
and had reply almost at once.
Oh. the blessed relief of that response
All the while l had fancied terrible
that he would be at home In three days
was an alleviation to all my terrors
Meantime the hair had appeared dis
tinctly over my entire body. Also my
feet which had always been extraordi-
narily small in size, were certainly
changing shape.
Ten minutes after Nevill returned to
this house I was closeted with him.
When he saw me mortal pallor crept
over his face (; he went to work at once
upon me and made q most minute ex-
animation. Then, although he tried to
conceal it, / saw a great flame OF
exultation in his eyes.
Something has gone wrong. Kel-
vin!" he exclaimed. His manner was
quick and nervous: under the surface
he was terribly excited. Il told you
there would be risks. don't know
lust what the trouble is. but well
get after 1t at once"
He managed to give me much re-
assurance, and began to counteract,
as he said, the result Of his first ex-
periments. Counteract? The devil
only knows whether he ever tried to
counteract 1t or not:
For six weeks he worked on me,
but, week by week. noticed q steady
change for the worse in my condition.
had to change my living quarters.
People turned to stare at me on the
street. Tho contour Of my face was
changing. My muscles responded
with moro dificulty-it became an
effort even to speak.
As II all this were not terrible
enough, tho hair-growth became
thicker over my body; although
shaved my face and neck and hands,
my skin was coarsening frightfuliy
I realized that I was slowly becom-
ing a hideous object, and. as the
weeks passed. I became frantic.
At length Nevill told me that he
would undertake heroic measures.
He had. he said, found the trouble;
he would guarantee cure at last,
and would restore me positively to
my natural condition. To this end
1 must come here and live with him.
once again he lulled me into hope.
~ l assented to all that he said.
Late one night I came here and he
admitted me into the house. cot
was ready for me in his laboratory.
There. without the knowledge of
any one else, 1 took up my abode
Even then. I had no suspicion OF
what he had done. or Of the awful
nature Of the change in me.
Again, weeks of mental torture,
ending at last in the realization that
he could not check the thing grow
ing upon me-could not check 1t, or
would not. which? One day I saw
myself reflected in a glass-then. ]
think. l was insane for some days.
For, instead of myself, I saw a mon
key-a gorilla!
When 1 recovered my senses.
found that a large iron cage was
installed in the laboratory and that
was a prisoner in this cage. (This
cage was later found in the gardens
Of my cousins house.-Nevill.)
Then Nevill threw off the mask AL
together. He came and told me
without preamble that I had been
changed into a gorilla, and that the
process could not be checked.
could not answer him. for had be-
come unable to talk. But I could
shake the cage bars, and was as
tonished at the muscular strength in
me. This display Of passion seemed
to amuse and interest him.
Every curious" he would exclaim,
staring at me. "All fleshy and car
tilagenous tissue has been altered in
have not been affected. Now it re-
mains to be seen whether in course
of time the bones will respond to the
cellular energy"
I>verily think that 1 would have
gone mad, would have remained mad,
had it not been for the fearful crav-
ing for vengeance which now en-
veloped me.
True, there was no likelihood that
this craving would be satisfied. The
cage was kept locked. and it was be-
yond my ability to break the bars,
strong as 1 was. Nevill attended me
himself, showed food at me, took all
care of me-yet he never once came
within my reach. Nor did I, after
the first few days. make any display
of my hatred. He came to believe
that my brain had gone with my
body. He experimental much to this
end, and 1 never responded; I re-
manned ever in a lethargic condition.
He never dreamed that my brain was
the brain of John Kelvin.
Then, after I had lost count Of
time, came the end. Nevill was at
work upon some rats, with which he
was experimenting horribly. He
slammed the door of my cage and
departed. Only after some time did
I myself see that the catch of the
lock had not caught. l pushed at
the door and it swung open. I was
free-free!
Had I been the simian seemed,
u would have followed him In that