The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1929-09-06

with his remarkable combination Oh 1
great muscular activity and great
debility of constitution,
and last but not least-wlth the
odd, subjective disturbance caused
by his neighborhood. This bore
some resemblance to incipient rig
or and was accompanied by a
marked sinking of the pulse. At
the time l set it down to some lido
syncratic, personal distaste, and
merely wondered at the acuteness
of the symptoms; but have since
had reason to believe the cause to
lie much deeper in the nature of
man, and turn on some nobler
hinge than the principle of hatred.
This person (who had thus, from
the first moment of his entrance,
struck in me what I can only de-
scribe as a disgustful curiosity |
was dressed in a fashion that
would have made an ordinary per-
son laughable; his clothes, that is to
say, although they were of rich
and sober fabric, were enormously
too large for him in every meas
urement-the trousers hanging on
his legs and rolled up to keep them
from the ground, the waist of the
coat below his launches, and the
coat sprawling wide upon his Shout
ders. Strange to relate, this Luz
dricous accouterment was far from
moving me to laughter Rather,
as there was something abnormal
and misbegotten in the very es-
sence of the creature that now fac
ed me-something Selling, surpris
ing, and revolting-this fresh dis
parity seemed but to fit in and to
reinforce it; so that to my interest
in the mans nature and character
there was added a curiosity as to
his origin, his life, his fortune, and
status in the world.
These observations, though they
have taken so great a space to be
set down in, were yet the work of
few seconds. My visitor was,
indeed, on fire with somber excite
ment.
"Have you got it," he cried.
Have you got it?" and so lively
was his impatience that he even
laid his hand upon my arm and
sought to shake me.
l put him back, conscious at his
touch of a certain icy pang along
my blood. "Come, sir" said l.
"You forget that l have not yet
the pleasure of your acquaintance.
Be seated, if you please" And I
showed him an example, and sat
down myself in my customary seat
and with as fair an imitation of
my ordinary manner to a patient
as the lateness of the hour, the
nature of my preoccupations, and
the horror I had of my visitor,
would suffer me to muster.
81 beg your pardon, Doctor Lam
yon," he replied, civilly enough.
what you say is very well found
ed; and my impotence has shown
its heels to my politeness. l come
here at the instance of your col
league, Doctor Henry Jekyll, on a
piece of business of some moment;
and l understood" he paused and
put his hand to his throat, and /
could see, in spite of his collected
manner, that he was wrestling
against the approaches of the hys-
teria-"I understood, a drawer"
But here 1 took pity on my Wis
itor's suspense, and some perhaps
on my own growing curiosity.
"There it is, sir, said l, pointing
to the drawer, where it lay on the
floor behind table and still COW
cred with the sheet.
He sprung to it, and then paus-
ed, and laid his hand upon his
heart; / could hear his teeth CRATE
with the convulsive action of his
jaws; and his face was SO CHASTITY
to see that / grew alarmed both
for his life and reason.
compose yourself" said l.
He turned a dreadful smile tC
me, and, as if with the decision Of
despair, plucked away the sheet
At sight of the contents he uttered
one loud sob of such immense re.
lief that l sat petrified. And the
next moment, in a voice that was
already fairly well under control
"Have you a graduated glass ?" he
asked.
rose from my place with some
thing of an effort and gave hin
what he asked.
He thanked me with a smilins
nod, measured out few minimI
of the red tincture and added on,
of the powders. The mixture
which was at first of a reddish
hue, began, in proportion as tn,
crystals melted, to throw off small
fumes of vapor. Suddenly and a
the same moment, the ebullitioI
ceased and the compound changed
to a dark purple, which fadeC
again more slowly to a water,
green. My visitor, who had watch
ed these metamorphoses with /
keen eye, smiled, set down tn,
glass upon the table, and thel
turned and looked upon me will
an air of scrutiny.
"And now" said he, "to settle
what remains. Will you be wise
will you be guided? will you suf
fer me to take this glass in my
hand and to go forth from your
house without further parley? Of
has the greed of curiosity too mucl
command of you? Think befor,
you answer, for it shall be done a,
you decide. AS you decide, you
shall be left as you were before
and neither richer nor wiser, un