Evening star., 1922-03-09

| by rapping, and on each night MS
! control has given him message
ence. l attribute the whole thing to an
overwrought imagination. The orig
! inal rappings may have been a mere
coincidence with the fact of the con-
dition of Mrs. Vandam. However. |
! give this to you for whatit is worth.
Craig said nothing. but, as was his
habit. shaded his eyes with the tips
I of his fingers, resting his elbows on
the arms of his chair. Il suppose"
| he said, you can give me the neces-
! house and look at the scene of these
| hsppeningS?"
Certainly" assented the physician.
+, but you will find 1t queer place.
There are spirit paintings and spirit
photographs in every room. and Van
/ Its creepy. that's all l can say"
AND also l suppose you have per-
formed an autopsy on the body and
will allow me to drop into your lab
oratory tomorrow morning and salts
| fy myself on this morphine point?"
Certainly" replied the coroners
physician. "at any time you say"
At 10 sharp. then. tomorrow.
, shall be there said Craig. "It is now
$3.50 Do you think I can see vandam
| tonight? What time do these rap
| pings occur?"
| why. yes; you surely will be able
to see him tonight. He hasn't stirred
| from the house since his wife died
He told me he momentarily expected
messages from her direct when she
had got strong enough in her new
| world. I believe they had some kind
OF a compact to that effect. The rap
pings come at 1890"
! "Ah," then l shall have plenty of
| time to run over to my laboratory
before seeing Mr.. Vandam and get
/ some apparatus 1 have in mind. No,
! doctor, you needn't bother to go with
| me. Just give he a card of introduc-
ton. I'll see you tomorrow at 10.
Good night-oh. by the way. don't give
out. any of the facts you have told
me-"
Jameson" said Craig. when we
were walking rapidly over toward
the university. this promises to be
an uncommonly difficult case"
"As l view it now l said, Il have
suspicious Of everybody concerned in
| it. Even the view of the Star, that
1t is case OF suicide due to over
wrought nerves. may explain it,"
1T might even be natural DEATH"
Craig added. "And that would make
it a greater mystery than ever-a
! case for psychical research. One
thing that am going to do tonight
| will tell me much. however"
| AT the laboratory he unlocked a
glass case and took out little instru-
| ment which looked like two horizon
tai pendulums suspended by fine
| wires. There was large magnet
near each pendulum, and the end of
each pendulum bore a needle which
touched a circular drum driven by
clockwork. Craig fused with and ad-
justed the apparatus. while 1 said
nothing. for I had long ago learned
that in applying new apparatus to
doing old things Craig was as dumb
as an oyster until his work was
| crowned with success
We had no trouble in getting in to
| see MIR. Vandam in his seance room.
! His face was familiar to me. for
| had seen him in public a number of
! times. but it looked strangely altered.
| He was nervous and showed his age
very perceptibly.
1t was as the coroner's physician
had said. The house was Uttered with
reminders Of the cult. books. papers.
curious daubs of paintings "hand-
somely framed and photographs-haZy
overexposures. I should have called
them-but Mr.. Vandem took great pride
IT. them, and Kennedy quite won him
over by his admiration for them.>
They talked about the rappings.
and the old man explained where
and when they occurred. They pro-
ceeded from little cabinet or closet
at one end Of the room. 1t was evil
in them and in the messages they
conveyed.
Craig carefully noted everything
about the room and then fell to ad-
miring the spirit photographs. IL such
they might be called.
! "The best of all / do not display:
they are too precious" said the old
man. would you like to see them""
Craig assented eagerly, and Van
dam left US for moment to get
them. In an instant Craig had enter
ed the cabinet. and in dark corner
on the floor he deposited the mech
anism he had brought from the lab
oratory. Then he resumed his seat.
shutting the box in which ne had
brushed by me: know sno. nc now hdh that ,sft It
anything about the room.
Artfully he led the conversation
along lines that interested the old
man until he seemed to forget the
hour. Not so Craig. He knew it was
nearing half past IL. The more they
talked the more uncanny did this
house and room of spirits seem to me.
In fact. l was rapidly reaching the
point where I could have sworn that
once or twice something incorporeal
brushed by me. I Know now that is
was purely Imagination. but it shows
what tricks the Imagination can play
on us.
Rap. rap, rap! rap! rap!
Five times came a curlousiy hoilo"
noise from the cabinet. If it had been
possible / should certainly have fled,
It was so sudden and unexpected. The
hall clock downstairs struck the nan
hour in those chimes written by Han
del for st. Paufs.
J Craig leaned over to me ana WINS,
pered hoarsely, Keep perfectly still
move hand or foot
| The old man seemed utterly to have
foreotten us. "Is that you, John?'
he asked expectantfS.
| Rap! rap! rap. came the reply.
| as Mary strong enough to speak
to me tonight?
4 RAP. rap!
| "Is she happy"
Rap! rap!
| "What makes her unhappy? What
does she want? Will you spell 1t
out?'
l Then. after a pause. the rapping
started slowly and distinctly to spell
out words. 1t was SO weird and un-
canny that I scarcely breathed. Let
ter after letter the message came
nineteen raps for 49," eight for 'h.
five for "e." according to. the place
required letter. At last it was COM
plete:
asks you to have that prescription
filled again"
morning. Is there anything else?"
Rap! rap, came back family.
"John, John. don't go yet" pleaded
the old man earnestly. 1t was easy
to see how thoroughly he believed
in "John," as perhaps well he might
after the warning h1a, OF his f wfes vo,, death
swer one other question:"
Fainter. almost imperceptibly, came
For several minutes the old man