The daily monitor leader. [volume] (Mount Clemens, Mich.) 1942-19??, 1943-02-24

pidSil, Wiutc VdpOIouS SuOStaiiSs
not unlike mist normally pre-
cedes the return Of a departed
spirit is accepted by the highes
authorities.
May such instances have beer
recorded. But perhaps the mos
spectacular OF all is the case o
Douglas Cotterby, a farmer liv
ing near a lonely moor in tn.
west of England.
Douglas Cotterby was alleged
to have murdered his wife, An
astasia, with a meat cleaver. Blu
at the local assizes a jury, con
sidering the evidence insuffic
lent, returned a verdict of no
guilty. Douglas Cotterby walk
ed out free man.
Beat da rap, HUH" mutterec
the Cracker, more interested
now. He was finding Dougla.
Cotterby a sympathetic charac
ter.
But one stormy night, a year
later, as Douglas Cotterby sal
before the fire in his isolated
farmhouse, he was suddenly af
flrted with a weird feeling. |,
was as if something, a presence
were with him in the room.
"Geez," exclaimed the Crack.
er, and, unconsciously, he reach.
ed up and felt the hair on hi.
own neck. In SO doing, .his hanc
inadvertently brushed against g
knob on the cameralike machine
that stood on the low table. But
the Cracker didn't notice. He
was enthrailed by Douglas Cot.
terby and somewhat befoggec
with Old Smoky.
At that juncture the Cracker
glanced at the title of the book
Through the barrage of mist tina
Old Smoky had laid before hi:
eyes, he made out the words
CAN THE DEAD RETURN? The
late Mrs. Calvin Meggs, dabblel
in spiritualism, had spent many
happy hours pouring over thi.
volume.
Joe the Cracker shifted un.
easily and turned a page. Wha'
he read next was not reassuring
THE windows had been closed
against the storm. Yet-incredi
BILE circumstance!-one of the
long dark curtains was moving
ripping. And suddenly a dry
scream tore itself from the back
of Douglas Cotterby's throat.
Something white and insub
stantial, like a ghostly feeler
was emerging from behind the
curtain. 1t seemed to leap acros:
the room, wavering tenuously ir
the uncertain light from the
fireplace. Douglas Cotterby, hi.
face CHASTITY, could only watch
as, slowly and inexorably, the
thing resolved itself into a spec.
trail and reaching hand.
Joe the Cracker gasped, anc
grabbed for Old Smoky. He took
prodigious drink. But, about te
set the bottle down, he paused
His vision was cloudy and hi
brain slightly benumbed. Ever
SO, he was aware of light in tn
room, more light than coulc
come from a partially BACKED
out pocket torch.
Wonderingly, the Cracker
turned his head. The next in.
slant he gave a hoarse yell anc
leaped up. A spectral hand wa:
reaching toward him.
Like the tabled lotus, Ole
Smoky had the power to induce
forgetfulness. The libations tina
Mr.. Slyncnlski had taken haC
obliterated from his mind al
memory of the movie screen; Of
the camera on the low table
Further, he was quite unaware
that his hand had brushed a lit.
tie knob in the camera and sci
in operation the working mode
of a device known as the Ter.
rible Eye. And he could not, oil
course, have been expected tC
know that the Terrible Eye
strangely enough, was bringing
in a picture of the arm and hand
of Miss Meath. stretching snak.
lily for $4,000 tiara from be-
hind a curtain in the den OF
Henry l.. Claiming.
None of this formed part Of
M. Slyncniski's working knowl'
edge. All he knew was that the
same thing that had happened to
Douglas Cotterby, adept with q
meat cleaver, was now happen.
ing substantially to him. Ano
there seemed but one thing tc
do about it. That, in the words
Of kipling, was to arise and gel
hence.
Mr.. Slyncniski had already
arisen. Now he got hence.