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About The new Northwest. (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 20, 1881)
. . , W... n t . ! t r r - X i ! . - 6 THE NEW NORTHWEST, THURSlAYt JANUARY 20, -1SS1. EPIGRAM. Thers nre wm spirit aoUjr jastrtmwarp'd by pelf or pride; Grsi la in taint, bat grenter stilt vbts 4hed by Mi tide; Xby hold ths rank mo hint cm girt, no station ran dls- Kntnrs put forth '..." . pint. ' 1 k - ..." : ..- ,-, her gentlemen, And monarch miwl A MESMERIC EXPERIMENT. , Thirty Christmas nights have come and gone since that one, so memorable In my life, and yet; sitting1 here In my solitary room, a gray-haired, lonely woman, the whole acvnejrtaee aa vividly before me a though it had occurred but yesterdsy. I can aee the comfortably but plainly furnished, low-ceiled,' old-fashioned room I wUh 4 its dark wainscoted walla, and It dim cprneri that the the feeble light of i couple ot composite candle could scarcely Jach Lloj hemW-cI rele of fales gathered round the hearth, looking glowing nnd pleasant in the ruddy glare of the firelfght all except one, that of a man who ant in the cor ner opposite to me, rcould not keep my eye off that face, 'which had for me the fascination of ugliness. As the lights and shadows made by the flickering flame touched the shock of bristly hair that half concealed the low, narrow forehead, the cavernous eyes, sunken cheeks, and huge mouth, half open with a cynical smile, that showed the tusk-like teeth, I could compare it only with a shifting series of gargoyles from some old monkish ' ruin. ' .'.'.. , . .s . We were all member of the. company of the Theater-Hoy al X, and, it, being a non-play night, we were assembled at the Knifings, of oue of our members, a lady, to do honor to her birth day. Our usual theme, the affairs, of the theater, -past, preeeut ana future, iieing exnausieu, me .conversation, I cannot remember how, had turned upon mesmerism and clairvoyance, and I was stoutly declaring my utter disbelief in either? my skepticism, being greatly Intensified by the cir cumstance that Touv Arnold the man 1 have Just described, and who was one of the low Come dians .of bur company tyok the opposite side. There hl always been an antagonism' between us, and, kflbougtrThad no actual cause for such a feeling, a positive dielike upon my part, which I believe was pretty strongly reciprocated upon his. Although 1 was scarcely, twenty at the time, f was what people would have called rather a strong-minded girl, with opinions of my own that I never shrank from asserting, with au obstinacy 4haLno-JUgUmei4uld,pyeri with laid another. Oh It," sdded a lady. "It Is too horrible !" The interruption seemed to exorcise the fiend - pight, excited by a spirit of defiance to my . rUf I expressed tnem witn a bigotry ana contempt that war anything out polite .to inose wno uii- fered from me. ; x - r Uy your poaitivenesa. Mis Grace," sneered Arnold, "I presume you have had a very large ex perience of the trickeries of mesmerists." - . . "Oh, Indeed I have not'X replied harplyi4I was never at anv exhibition of the kind In mv life, and never intend to be. I should not have' patience even to witness such transparent Im poature." c : ' - 'Suppose, he said, and there was a gleam In - his eye which indicated rising temper-"uppoe I could give you ocular demonstration that you are wrong, by placing some one In this room un der mermene influence; I have done the thing often. If 1 aid this J-forr your own eje, when yoq:wotiM be uite assured there could not be IricJi or ,co21uc4oa, would you believe it then T' ! dont know that 1 abduld," I anwerel, dog gedly. lf you have such a power," I added, with contenptuoui emile,- t'why don't you rj it vpoaxueT i .Aiuwu w m wiucuwt wuu suae. I UU UUI thick he dreamed nf-mylaking upiilahallenJP-P lie regarova me lor some aeconas witn a uouotiui. wavering glance, which I met defiantly and inoeklngiy.t "' I w ' 1 wouta 'prefer any one else In ttie rooM7'Jiej .nsi Of course you would, I replied,-with a malK dons laugh; ! am not a good subject ; the mystic tnaoence is powerien over ulsbHirters. On, I know ail the Jargon VI - . -And I east a tnuropnant glance round the com- ,,-yany, who were exceedingly amused at our dis evasion. ' . - Arnold tqrned, alternately-white nd red-wi th , rage and mortification. - -. It ts not that, he smrwered quickly,-then paused ; but, evidently stung by my contemptuous laugh, he added, InhUntly : "Very well, be it so, since you desire it." , The prospect of having the discussion' so sum suuiljL tested and adjudged created an immense -, excitement, and I could feel my own cheeks burn lug, and my pulse galloping at fever heat, as Ar nold proceeded to make preparations for the ex-'- pertment. : ! ..... -..... A aniiciunieu iu unuoji pnsscs ana nana-wav- logs, oi wnicn i naa neara ana read, but I soon perceive! that his method was going to be en tirely different, lie began by placing two chairs exactly opposite to one another. In one of which . he reouested me lo be sealed r therhe draped a large black cloak round me, so tbat only my face rose above it ; then a lamp, borrowed from the landlady of the house, was set in such a position that the light should. focus upon my face; after which he took the chair opposite to mine, and de sired me to fix my eye firmly upon his, and not remove them for a second. I followed his Instruc tionsand th next moment I was staring In tently Into a pair of greenish-brown orbs that I .rould feel did not meet mine with equal stead i- seas, "i nere was a proiouna aiience, broken only by little suppressed giggle from the women, and .. occasional . low whisper from the men. . We been thus only a few seconds, when Arnold sprang U, exclaiming t It'a no use: 1 cannot do It." - A shout of laughter hailed this confession of de feat, and, throwing off my drapery, I jumped up And joinea neanny in me cnorua. . t Arnold was white as death and extremely arl " iAted." He made no reply to the "volley of "chaffs that assailed him on all sides, but, again turning o me, puu..in a tone oi intense earnestness ; 'I cannot rnesmerixe you, Kut you can me -those strong, steel gray eyes of yours, with their ineUHIo lu9tre,are far moM potenfTlhaiPmltiew! rbnf. will you try T' ' I did not need the Incitement of hand-clapping And the chorus of "Oh, do 1" that greeted the prop ' csitlon. t) promptly consent. I began to. be deeply Interested In the experiment and, now that I wa myself accredited with poasesslng thisfsome difficulty forced a little of the spirit between occult power, my skepticism began to waver. 'But -before we ro any further," he said. VI must make one -condition and that Is, that should I fall Into a comatose state, you will not put to me any ouestlonof a private nature, as I shall be compelled to answer truthfully; literally, wnaiever it may oe.'-'- . I promUed faithfully not to do so. ; " " ' The previous disposition was now reversed the lamp was set so that the light should shine upon hi race, ana Arnold was euveiopea an tne cloak, as i naa been. -- And how, with all the nerve power I possessed. I fastened my eyes upon Arnold's. White and ghastly looked his face rising out of the blackness or tne urapery,, wnicn gave it aimost tne appear a nee or bein-aiTiiea irom tne uouy ana sus Iiended in space " -TheJ'p-were wide apart,' and tne green Uh eyea were li la tea to their utmost ex? 'tent, with a strained, fascinated look, such as they might have worn under the Influence of a rattle snake. I could scarcely surpreMi a shiver at this uncanny-looking. picture; but a wild spirit took, posses; ow-of me-thatnight-whlch soonswept away all such "compunctious viitmgscr nature." Kvery body fret-med to lietlioroughly imireed by the welrdiiess of the-situation. There was no gl gling, : no wshicperingall was silent as death. After' about a minute ray eyes grew rigid in their intense stare, until It seemed to me- that I no longer had the power to move or close them, or even wink a lid ; gradually I could feel thepu piU djlate tin til they seemea to become two huge, disc glowing with a lambent and metallic fire. I Could see thst everv nerve of the white face was quivering, the breathing was short and labored' and a dull, stony glare came into the staring eye balls, a far-away trance-like look, that told me consciousness was gone, and that the very soul of the man had passed over to my keeping. And I felt a cold, cruel, hard triumph in this, a desire to strain my mastery to the uttnott. I rose from my seat, slowly moved backward, and imperiously beckoned him, never relaxing mv fixed stare, which seemed to scintillate and flash. As I roe, he rose, clutching, the edge of the table to guide his trembling steps. Slowly I moved, he follow-: Ing, seemingly impelled by an Involuntary but resistless Impuhte. -I stopped uddenly ; he J stoped., ' , -;;;T? "What is your name 7" I asjked, Imperatively. In a forced, hollow voice, he rave one. that I afterward discovered was his family name, Arnold being only a theatrical sooriquet' . At this one of the gentlemen broke in, protest ing: ' ... '. ." .: , :". - "No, no; that Is against the bargain ho ques tions." ' . entertain hopes thar he woult erecu te.me.no more. The change that had comtf over hln was a rronstant tubJecTof green-room tomment.' He had always been extreniviy tnin ; now ne seemea to wastetiay by'day, like a man consumed by an In ward JfireJ his cheeks were sunk In deeper. hol lows, and thers were black rims round his eyes. tAfteiutlew dayaujuyJriPhdJ'elurnedlalier own. w The next afternoon, at 1 be usual hour, an enart l wrencneu my gaze irom mat ghaMJy face. As I did so, Arnold, as though he had been dn'ynpheldbymy-eyejs fell upon-lhe floor In strong convulsions. Our experiment In mesmerism spollea the rest of -the evening ; for, although after a copious out ward appiicationLorcoia. water sua a juuicious Inward one of neat bramiy, he soon recovered and tried to laueh off his illness, it left a creepy, dis agreeable depression upon all, which no amount of hot spirits and water and forced' jollity could succeed in dispelling. As It may be supposed, the! effect was strongest upon nw, ana it chfeny -took the form, oi intense annoyance at tne part i naa played.' 1 would have given-anythlnglto have re-. called the past few minutes. ' After ArnoiiTs recovery, by a tacit unaerstana ing, no one made any reference to his strange 111- nesa; Indeed, all seemea desirous lor a time or putting it out of their thoughts and none so much as the principal actor hrlt,-whd" laughed and Jestedlu a feverish" manner and never, allowed-the "conversation "to flag 1ofr single moment, as though he feared the subject might "A doctor," he'echoetl, with a mocking laugh. "Oh; yes, I have at-en a doctor; but be can do me no"1 good. It iytni whore-k11Hug me2- I r I ejaculated, Talntly." - liVes,'' he answered, ''Since the night you tore kvervb.d vIuowever. was " eairerlyriBCtrssing the singular event the next morning at rehearsal. avoided the gossiping groups, for the remem brance of the whom scene was a norror to me: o uiu but he took an exactly opposite course, following me whereer I went, trying to engage. me In con versation, and to catch my ye. a though, some of the fascination of the previous night still sur- rounuea me. . After a rather late dinner, for the rehearsal was very long, I was dozing in my chair, when there came a soft tap at tne door, ana to my sieeny I'comejn" there appeared upon the threshold the tall, gaunt figure of tbeman whom of all others I least desired to see. It gave me quite a shock. It was the first time he had ever called at my lodg ings. In common courtesy 1 waa obliged to ask him to take a seat and draw near the fire, as the weather was cold. In a vague, listless manner he I Placed a chair in such a position that It exactly aced mine, dropped Into it without- word, and tried to fix my eyes. I Immediately shifted them and gazed ifco the fiije. , T Arnold tnade no attempt to account for this visit; he talked -very little, and In an absent manner that betrayed that hi thoughts were not on his tongue about the business of the theater. I felt very embarrassed by hi presence, and "presently rose antf rangrtor-tea; What could 1 do but ask him to remain, and take It with me? He said "Thank you," and kept his seat. I felt quite terrified by the change that had come over him from a noisy, jesting, rollicking kind of leuow, wno naa aiwnys m fiw ii iw. " silent, subdued -man, with those dreadful eyea ever yearningly seeking mine. At length he wni mm. ami ntrrr In mv life did I feel so thankful for anybody's departure. Itut be came the next day about the aame time, and acted in just the same manner, until the lights were brought la ; then all at once he rose from his chair, crossed over to where I was sit ting, and, laying bis hand upon my arm, said in a hoarse wl.iper:. "Mesmerize me I" . ... . I started back and answered, shudderingly : "Not for worlds r , , . "Von rnnt r h answered. Passionately. And nomehow or ether. I cannot tell how, a few minutes afterward we wers sftUng ri-a-r, star- . . . .. .. T . V. . MAlnnf a ing into eacn oiner eyea. iuictiiuuiw there was In his the dull, etony vagueness of In sensibility. : . -v rr';"- f Mr.Mrl mv f.M with TUT hands, but Withdrew them as Trieardngmthiinj-fall heavily u floor, to see him huddled at my reet in cootw sions, the froth bubbllrrg from his lips. I did not call for assistance ; luckily I had some water and some brandy In the room. I knelt down and co piously bathed his head and face, and then with When he recovered. I nearly fainted myself ; but, rallying by an effort, I told him very posi tively that he must not come any more. r "I cannot stay away ; I most come," was his answer; and again the dilated eyes began to wan der rravingly in search of mine. . I cannot describe the horror I felt at these visits and at length I begged a lady friend I bad In the theater toome and stay with me. The following afternoon he strolled in as usual, but, finding I had a companion, he looked very much annoyed, and remained only a few minutes. reveral days passed; and I met him only In bus- ln ilia ma ti nop wu an lion, ilmmtt nule to me4 cauhe of her death.'' at which I.was much relieved, for I now began to i inipioreu mm io release me irom my promise. ttOA as .noiiung goou couiu come oi a marriage con- lodfirinirs. Aruoldcame as before. As soon as the lights ere brought in, be again lesouglit me to mesmerize hlni. I firmly refused;. .but I could not rest niy eves Um him ir a moment wmioui ins iace be ginning toqulver and his pupils to dilate, and the very feeling that I must not look atjiini made the desire almost unconquerable. Matters went on thus for upward of a week.: ;. - " "Hut surely," it will be said, "you could hae deviled some means of keeping him away) You might have rejucsted your landlady to refuse him admittance,":' Truly, I could have done so, but well, I must coufess it in my own defeuse-r-.be had bWuu to throw a strange glamour over hie. I dreaded his coming, yet 1 xjerieneed a vagueyearning when he was absent, t liad fallen myself within the inetdies of the spell I had unconsciously cast uiton Jiim. ' . ' : ' tracted under such auspices ; 'but he only repeated "I Ottimot live without youTtJil.L.Vi'.on't.rj My friendj'who could , jierceive how illlaorted we were, did all in her power to i-ersuade. me to break with Arnold. , ' l . t . 1 . . 1 . . 1 urn ;fc i(.L iff ' 1 1 I rif kAtl t a A. rijl OCX 1 1 ti-c m. ... I. 1 other engagement under -anotlier naine.'1 : Hut 1 felt that I could not break a vow so sol emnly made, and which fate, whether for pood or evil, : had so suddenly callel upon me to fulfill,, ... No; I am wrong... 1 did not love him ; it was a glamour only whether (he result of supernatural -influence or mere sufiersiltion,'' I Cannot pretend to vay. It 5as a mixture of dread,"Tepufipftr and fascination. 4 - ' That day two months was our 'wedding-day. I had striven hard to postpone It to a much later7: date, but he would not give .me a moment's peace until I consented. s . - .She was ray wife only liMiarae," he kept urg lug," ''so what need Is there-of delay ?"- '" ' , Although nheirangeinanner of otir wooing wS unknown to every body, save the friend 1 have Ufore mentioned, it was impossible for, the com pany not to see how matters stood between us (i.fi.ihn I twmenow we naa anrted away from the rest, and . PltVI inrvu s liotu as Jk S v v a w -savs . . w - . w usual. There certainly was some occult sympathy ,? . K,,,1l 11,001 1.ro,u in,c,n' on y an occasional between us, for the moment he entered the room I felt that a crisis had come. He was In very weak health, and he sank down In a chair looking pale and exhausted, and wiped the damps from his forehead, while his breathing was very latored ; and there was a feverish glitter in the restless eyes and a red not in each hollow cheek. "I low .very 111 you look' I said, pityingly;" Viet me give jrou a glass of wine." "No, T want nothing," he said, in a gasping tone. 'There's quite-fire enough within me now ; I am being slowly burned up." t "Have you seen a-doctor?" I asked, growing very nervous. the heart and soul out of my body, I cannot live without you ana 1 won't I" - -r I was very much lerrl fled by his wild, excited looks, but replied, with a great show of firmness : "lou talk nonsense, Arnold. Why, you are a married man already." "' I did not know at the moment that It was really so, out there was a vague impression among the company that such was the case, and It waa upon that authority that I spoke. "How did you know that you questioned me when I was under f our influence V ' he retorted, sharply "I did not ; but I find it Is true. And under such circumstances, how dare you address me in such terms?" I exclaimed,-. growing very indignant, perhaps more In seeming than in reality. , "Ye," he repliel, dejectelly, "I am married to w woman I hate to a woman i left at the church door. I was forced Into It by my friend mindwhy that would nolinterest you." He iaused for a moment ; then. laying his trem bling fingers uiton my arm, he added ;. tian name "if anything were to hSpen to her ir sue were to aie wouia you.be my wire .7 fJMn't talk like that 1 It's too horrible I" I ex rmtrjarfc3tatlnjFWww; ltut he followed me, and again grasped my arm, and said: ' - --Av , ; ("Alice, I told you Just how . that I cannot live without you, and that I will not, and I swear be fore God that if you do not give me this promise, when I leave this house I will throw myself over tne oriuge into tne river l swear it I ' Men and women, too say these things in mo ments of strong passion without keeping their words; but I knew that he would keep his. The mysterious sympathy that had been created be tween us told me so told me that if he left me with that thought in his heart, he would not be a living man within the next hour. . It was nearly dark, just between the lights, and his face gleamed out of the shadow white and terrible, and then I thought how it would look' when It was drawn out of Ihe water with the long dank hair clinging about it. : - . ' . "It Is not mucht6ask of you," he went on, pleadingly. " Why, she may outline us both ; more than likely. There is nothing allocking in it she is nothing to roe.' never has been, only the mockery of a ceremony links us." -Jd-"flut what 1 the use of such a pledge? What satisfaction can it be to your' I said, still with my face covered, for I dreaded to meet his eyes. "I don't know," he answered. - "It would give me a sort of hope that I can't live without, that I won't live without." IWell, J gave him the promise. 1 daresay you wyi consider it very wicaea, or me- to-do eo I think so myself. But I thought it was almost Im possible that I should ever be called upon to fulfill It, and how could I hesitate when a man's life seemed to be at stake ? The following morning, as I wis seated at break fast, I caught sight of Arnold's dark figure passing my parlor window, and the next moment 1 heard his now well-known knock at the street door. I put down the cup of coffee that I had raised half way to my lips, while an unaccountable dread stole over me. One glance at his countenance as he entered the room told me that something had happened.. He did not' look at me, nor even ex change a greeting, aa-he laid down his hat and took a chair. ' "I have strange news to tell you, Alice," he saidrin a-Toiee thick atd-tfKlitiaetwith agitation.- "For Clod's sake, don't tell me that T" " I could not complete -tha.ottc ranee of-my fear. My voice died away in my thmnt, and, with part ed lip and rigid eyes, I .could only await the ex planation. - . ; Meantime he had .faken from his breast-pocket a letter, which he rose and offered me. It had a I would not t deep black border. J shrank back ; touch It; I knew Its contents. - "You knew what was going to happedTyou have cruelly entrapped me I" I bitterly exclaimed" i - He threw himself upon his knees at my feet '.'I swear roost solemnly," he cried, "I did not! It was very sudden, as the letter will tell you--heart disease. Her .friends had scarcely a tno ment's warnihgT' -n-. --: There was thaTin his tone" I could not disbe lieve, and when, after a while. I brought myself to read the fatal letter, 1 found his assertions were there fully confirmed. i This makes it all the' more horrible,"! cried ior m. iww icei mm muugu wen iu wiumbb Way th hint, or innuendo, or sly look, told us of their ob-t scrvation. I know we were the constant theme of conversation and wonderment, but I do not think" that anyone ever dreamed it would be a match. " We were botluequally desirous of keeping our approaching marriage a - profound secret. My friend, and one of the actors whom Arnold bad almost sworn to secresy, were to be the only wit nesses, so that when oh that" bright March morn ing we entered the quiet suburban church, only a few strange loiterers were there. -We were dressed In our ordinary costumes, and no one who bad . met us would have suspected our purpose. ..When . he passed the ring over my finger; his hand was , like Ice ; so were his lips, that just touched mine at-tke-emlnf -the ceremony; and I saw no joy in -tite-Uvid facet that was-as ex lut'sslonlcssmythougir"" carved in stone. .' ' We walkel back from the .church to my-Iodg-Ingx, where we were to be domiciled for the'pres ent. Jlle scarcely spoke the whole way. -lie left . me at the door, saying that he was obliged go -somewhere, but that he would return lutime for dinner, which was arranged for three o'clock Z I ran up stairs to my bef broom, mynieart ready to burst with mortification, and had a good cry . My friend did all she could to console me, aud urgcii me to put a cheerful face on matters.' After ' a while I rallieil a little, went down stairs, sat j-down to the piano, and played and-sang to pas ) iiie iime. Three o'clock came and passe!, and still he did . not return. Theu his friend, who had remained with -us, went In search of him. In about half an' hour he came back, bringing Arnold with hint, He afterward told me that he had found him play ing card and recklessly treating .everybody who entered the room at a tavern used by the actors. I never 4 always possessed a great deal of self-cotUrol, and I - sept m.vsell quite traiKjuil. It hut been arrange! I lint we should sun atTiiy" rriena s lodgings, and thither, after .The perforra- Aiicv112 iilM were only four oi us the four present at the cere" mony. Arnoia was dull and sulienand at times 'seemed 'scarcely conscious of where he was, for,. l-startand look vacantly about him, like one suddenly aroused from a doze. . It was. WVll toward morning before we turned our-faces homeward. -rMIeittly he pursuel his way ; and I was too proud to speak. Hut oh, the , agony, ttie shame, the humiliation I endured that night I '-When we arrived at our lodging the fire- T was mt-It was a very chilly night, and he com- - !lalnedof being cold, and said he would rekindle j t. While'' he weni-away seeking some wood in the kitchen, I ran up stairs to my room and. vent t to bed. At last "my aching, swollen eyes ckweoy and I fell asleep. r When I awoke, the cold gray dawn of the fprtngv-r morning was just stealing across the darkness of my room. . I awoke with a start and sat bolt up , right, with a sense of Ineffable horror.-- Had I been dreaming? I could not remember Yet there was uixu me all the terror which is left byj some ghastly nightmare. ' 1 leaped out of bed, huddled on a dressing-gown, and with bare feet hurried down the stairs.' it . was an Impulse, nothing more, for I had no thought In what I was doing. I opened the parlor door and looked In. All was dark and silent. HeJMtfr-gone tgslecp upon the sofa, reneciion. My woman's pride prompted me to return to niy -chamber, but some other feeling held me rooted tv the spot. The chinks of the shutters were penciled with faint lines of light I crossed the room, an barred and threw them open, and looked up at the sky.The waning moon waa high In the heavens, over which a faint roseate flush was just stealingr and a wild chorus of birds in the trees close by alone broke the deep, stillness of the early morn ing. I stood gazing upon the picture for some sec onds, not because I felt its beauty, but because I dared not turn my head. When, after a time, ! summoned up resolutUnt to do so, it was slowly, and by degrees. First myv eyes fell upon the sofa; that was empty V then they traveled toward the hearth. Tbeflre ud burned Into a great hollow, gray, and brown withjh, black above. I could see only a portion of the gfate, as an easy-chair was drawn In front of it. There was something In the chair, something lolling sideways; and there was a coat-slce' -with a hand dangling across one arm. Icoulo feel-my halrlstlead-my-heart-tsnd still ssl crept up to It, and saw a hud.tlml hean of clothingr in whichjw haJthuried-aii vldr hair-strewn fac It was my husltand dead. . . . ' ' .; '. ; NoTK.-VThIs story Is not-only founded upon fscts, but th events happenet almost exactly -n wieyare reiatea nere. 1 etnnltt liar. . - r-.jc------ 4, 1 r ,