Year: 1876

In whisper, mind--in the gentlest, the
most sighng of whispers-I tell you this.
In fear and trembling, too, all the time, for
it might hear me.
You observe, say it for / cannot apply
actual distinction to the weird little entity
that torments me. At the same time, though,
find that have often called it him, and in
a misty, wandering way associated the thing
with the tricksy- looking sprite who stands
with.his.hands upon his hips in the Landseer
pictures of Midsummer Nights Dream"
The fact is, have been haunted for the
past five years., the simple-minded, calmly
living, seventhrate literary man who pens
these lines and my innocent bachelor life
has been made torment to me by some
thing. of which, as you see, L only dare
speak in whisper.


You are shaking your head Don't say
you are not, for can feel it mentally and
| my perceptions are now those of the most
acute. Let me hasten, then, to reassure you
to enlighten you upon the point you are
quietly discussing. ..........


No; there has not been the slightest man.
Hesitation of insanity in my family.


Again my pulse gives, with calm regu'
larity, the proper number of beats to the
minute.


My blood is of the normal temperature.


1t is not incipent delirium tremens, for
was never inebriated but once in my
life, and then / was so dreadfully i'll the
next day that made vow, which l have
religiously kept. and am always considered
an abstemious man.


So, once more, in calm whsper,I declare
to you that l am haunted-bewitched
wished-evi-eyed- d--over-looked-or in somt
way suffering from spell. In fact, ther,
must be something in the matter not hereto
fore dreamed of in my philosophy, and
trembe lest i'll should come of it,
But let me explain-let me give you Q
sample of the kind of annoyance to which
I am subjected, and during which it always
seems to mo that can hear the slvery tinklt
| of vcrv small kind Of laughter floating
about the room.


1t was only yesterday that required my
daily remembrancer-the diary in which
record The triAes Of my life and note my
engagements 1t was gone


That book lies on my study table, and
was put out by its loss searched the
bookcase, drawers, in folios, among papers
turned out my desk, got into violent pers
piration, went aud bullicd the servant, ros,
into a towering rage, and at last, quite ex
haustcd, aud fuming with annoyance, threw
myself into my chair-and found tina
diary.


Where did find it?


I'll tell you That book lay in its usua
place upon the study table.


Now, you may argue fsr a week, and yol
will not convince Inc that soma sprite hat
not hidden that book away until it was treC
of laughing at me, when the book was re
placed,


Another specimen


have custom, drilled into me in child
hood, of carefully folding my clothes be
fore retiring to rest. never kick one thinl
here and another there, after the habitude o
the reckless, but place each garment read!
to be donned in the morning. Now, l an
ready TO make affidavit that those thing
are all right at night but when | have lef
rising till the last moment, just leaving my
self sufficient time to dress and catch tn
train by which am going with a friend
there is invariably something wrong. No,
it is button off my trousers. If get then
on, and find them all right, the tongue
gone from my brace buckle. Or it may b
a stud dropped from my shirt the button
hole split off my collar or, more likely,
button grown oyerripe and ready to drop
swinging only by one thread from the mos
prominent portion of my coat.


At another time / hear the servant com
up with my boots as ! lie in bed She bump
boots down as servants will bump boots dow
and IN that pleasant, semi-unconscious wa
: in which one lies on morning, before ris
| ing, seem to see those boots and wonder
they have been carefully dried, for the pre-
vious day was wet, aud have had horrc
of damp boots ever since l read, somewher,
that they were prolific cause of catsrrl
Then wonder, too, why 1t is that servant
ihsve such peculiar notions respecting tn