Year: 1871

certainly not. An hour more, and
Harry Leigh, my wife's young brother,
would come to seek me-would come,
unconscious of the danger, until a
bloodhound at his throat would choke
the brave young life out of him for
ever.


listened, in the intervals of the now
fitful storm, to hear if he was breathing
near me- | waited for the neat lull


1t came--that deep hush that follows


the gusty wind. put my soul in the
sense of hearing, but no human shadow


of sound greeted it.


When the storm swclled again, |


drew the bolt and looked into the


night; black pail hung over the earth


and sky | had as good a chance to


pass him in the obscurity as he had to
catch me. With my knife between my


teeth, and the massive thigh bone of a


nlgger to slay him with if | must, |
drew eff my shoes, and stepped out into


the darkness. 4 sudden whirl of the


tempest almost took me off my feet,
and brick. dislodged from one of the
ehimneys, grazed my head in its pas
sage, aud broke in halves before me on
| the pavement.


With batcd breath, and step like
the tread of panther scenting his
prey, parted the thick darkness, and
turned my face towards the hospital.


He might be either here--at my step
along the passage-or hidden in the
angle Of the wall at the door through
which | must enter. This seemed the
most probable but there was another
door known only to the doctors.


thought | would elude him. With
infinite caution, began to scale the
high wall. dreading horribly lest some
sudden break in the sky might reveal
me to the wild eyes that watched for


me--but no.


Safely passing the summit, threw


my leg over for the descent, aud felt


my foot seized 1t was but the tendril


Of wild vine skirting the wall. Grasp


ing my knife in my right hand | crept


along the bushes for about fifty yards,


then struck across the lawn for the side


entrance, The darkness perplexed me,


but | thought was steering straight.


Suddenly my foot struck bricks. " hat


was this? [ tried to recollect There
was no pavement round that part of the


hospital.


| pushed on uncertainty, and feeling


weight in the air, put out my hand
to grope for some clue to my wherea~
bouts. | was in an alley, fanked with
, stone walls far above my head gave
, sudden turn. In an instant | knew
, | was in the subterranean passage of
= the asylum. Turning to retrace my
t steps, the Opaque density of some heavy
4 body crouched between me and the
| outer air. | heard its stihcd breathing
l its stealthy tread approaching me


Just heavens a struggle for life with
| madman in these narrow, gloomy
vaults-to lie IN a pool of ones own


hearts blood in this undiscovered
t tomb-and my young wife Constance
: it was maddcning!


t For an instant my brain was on fire.


Then thought that there might be an
| exit-other devious windings in which
| | could elude my deadly pursuer. Co
t ing deftly backwards, turned the
s angle III the wall, and then plunged at
: the utmost speed of young and active
man along the back passage. Instantly
A [ knew | was being pursued, Meeting
e another crossed pathM struck into it u
an opposite direction The maniac
instantly followed me. What race
e through those cavernous depths of the


madhouse What tragic pitfalls might
1 lurk at every step what black and
$ stagnant pools lie waiting to engulph
4 me what deeper depths of icy black
! ness into which to fall-and fall for
! ever.


Y The passage grew narrower. We
s were, perhaps, under the very centre of


the building, and farthest from the
r outer air. ! had tried to breathe noise
! lessly; the effort exhausted me. knew
2 nothing of the labyrinths--could only
!, guess at our position by the distance
4 from the entrance. | had counted the
n turDings we had made Thought
e could retrace them. My strength was
: failing. | was fcetest, but he was
}. most enduring.


d Presently he would run me down. i
g would be terrible venture, but the
v necessity was imminent. | would try
s it. Gathering all my force. | darted OF


like an arrow into the darkness. The
:, suddenness of my increased speed baf
fled him. | succeeded in putting fifty
It yards between US, gained and turned
K the next angle, then, drawing mysel
t against the wall. with every nerve ant
k muscle strained into preturnatural ten
sion, with the mighty heaving of m,
I spent chest crushed into silence by al


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