Omaha Daily Bee Newspaper, September 20, 1902, Page 9

The Disembodied Spirit By CYRUS TOWNSEND BRADY. uthor of ‘‘Hohenzollern,’ Freedom of the Sea, yright, 1902, by Cyrus Townsend Brady.) Common sense—hard, practical common s & great and important factor in world's concerns. I am not a com- n-sense person myself—though Geraldine | 1l tell you I am a man of uncommon but it is to common-sense people t 1 address myself—people who say, it ever 8o far forget themselves as to d “Rappaccini's Daughter,” for instance that other story by the gifted son of s gifted father, which hides its weird ination under the name of Archibald atmatson, and you ask them If they like the atories “Oh, of course not; I never Beard of such improbable things. Why, Row s it possible for a man—" etc.—it is o these people L write. 1 live in the enterprising western city of Kalamantl. As my family and Geraldine's family have lived there many years, we are ‘well known, and any of my nelghbors, among whom are a judge of the district court, retired major general of the army, & United States senator and other persons _of undoubted varacity, can afirm the truth of the strange incidents, of which I am the principal subject. Geraldine will say that this is not the only case in which 1 . am the principal subject—royally assuming for the once—but I digress. Geraldine says 1 _ always take too much time In getting at the pelnt of the story and, %s Geraldine ia the only critic of whom I am afrald, here 8O 1, James Henry Rettew, commonly called | Harry, was about 26 years old In the year of our Lord, 1901. I was a sleepy and (peo- ple say) a dreamy, abstracted young man. Geraldine thinks I am bandsome. She is alome in her- bellef—unless 1 agree with her in this as in most things. I was pos- sessed of a little fortune and was a well- informed young man of studious bent, hav- ing read largely in a rather desultory way My favorite study was the spiritual essence, or soul of man, especially my own. It s & thing, I belleve, most people have —though Geraldine says you have to take it on falth in the case of A great many peo- ple. What was it? Where was it? This pervading vital force within me? How did Mt exist within my body? What kept it ‘there? Was death the result of a dis sociation of the two? Was no man capa- ble of ever separating the one from the ‘other? These are but a sample of the speculations In which I indulged. And I sctually found myself in the way of solving some of these problems at last. Rummag- ing In the library of a deceased philosopher, I came @cross a treatise on this very sub- Ject by a sage of ancient times, the learned Bgyptian Archidechus. No, jou will not find his name in the encyclopedias. I have purposely altered it, lest anyone should search for the pamphlet and finding it, be- come as I was—but I anticipate, I seized upon the old moth-eaten parchment vol- ume with avidity. This rare—I do not think there was an- Bther copy ia ealstence expect the ome I read—and wonderful book treated of the spirit or essence of life as distinguished from the gross and visible body; the writer held that' it was possible to separate the one from the other, in other words, accord- ing to Archidechus, the spirit might leave the body and return to it at pleasure; in fact, the writer knew of such a case and cited 1t; he also gave minute directions for accomplishing this wonderful feat. 1 shall not reveal them to you, nor to Geraldine, though that is the only secret I do not share with her, so beware how you confide in mes Ot course the thing was ridiculous, no such separation was possible, so 1 rea- soned. There were the directions, how- ever—they fascinated me. 1 was always an imaginative fellow and a great tryer of all sorts of strange experiments, why should 1 mot try this one? I confided my intentions to mo ome, mot even Geraldine I Jocked myself up In my room and de- voured the old book. Great stress was 1aid upon the faith necessary and the con- dition of the mind. It was stated that any violent emotion might be of great assistance at the final moment of—shall I call it dis- solution ? Now I was at peace with all the world except John Haverford. Haverford was in love with Geraldine Holabird, but as 1 felt sure of her affection I was not able to get up amy violent jealousy on his ac- count, Geraldine has since told me {f she bad known I felt so confident of her af- fection she would have supplled me with several emotions on that score of an ex- violent nature. I don't believe it. However, 1 complied with the other di- rections and I even contrived to assume a reasonable amount of faith, but I could not quite manage the separation. I could ap- parently concentrate my vital force on one spot, for instance, but exert myself as I would I could not break the tie. The id possessed me, 1 could think of nothing else. Geraldine says 1 was the most intensely unsatisfactory lover at this time that one could imagine, and that she had serlous thoughts of giving me up for John Haver- ford. Our love, which was a secret affair—and none the leas sweet for that, by the way— was vidlently opposed by the heads of both ’our houses, there being some grudgh be- tween them. Although I was devoted to her and she to me, as I now know, though 1 did not at the time, yet I had never dared to take more bf & lover's privilege than a respectful salute upon her hand. Geraldine was & tall and extremely dignified girl, and how she ever came to meet me clan- dostinely and write me those little notes— 1 bave them yet—I don't know. She says she doesn't elther But to come back to my experiment. My want of complete success preyed upon me. I grew thin, lost my appetite, could think of nothing but that. This, 1 imagine, was one of the reasons for my final suc- cess. Geraldine says I ought nét to have said tha it will spoil the denoument. However, it is too late now. Ouve afternoon more than ususlly discouraged at my re- ‘peated fallure, when I. was about to con- sign the volume to the fire as a false prophet, my sister, who acted as our Mer- cury, thréw a note info my room from Ger- aldine. I opened it, I must confess, rather listlensly. Good heavens! Her father had discovered my last letter, he was furlously angry, re she ghould marry John Haverford and she was now locked in ber own room; I would recognize it by the white ribbon hanging on the window silt and I must do something soon, for her father was ter- y angry and she loved me and me only, her own Harry—and you kpow the rest! (Geraldine protests agalnst these unflat- tering allusions to ber notes.) What happened & moment after, or how it Papprned, [am not prepared to state. One thipg I ow, I found myself in the street and without & thought of haw 1 came there, was hurrylog toward Geraldive's house. ‘With reckiess speed I ran beadiong full tilt i8to a lady of my acquaintance. The con- cussicn pearly stunned me. What was my surprise as I hastily took off my hat to apol- ogize for my carelessness (o see the young lady calmy walk past me, apparently un- comscious of my presence and giving no evi- dence of having been in collision with m This rather astonished me, but Geraldine was so much in my mind that I dismissed it add bastened on. It Dot far to her DBouse, and sure enough, there was & white “The Quiberon Touch, “Colonial Fights and Fighters,” ‘For_Love of Country, Ete “For the [ ribbon fluttertng trom the window 1 knew to | be hers In my reckless desire to do something for her 1 opened the gate and walked into the yard; that is, I found myself there and of course could have come no other way. Iam Dot much of an athlete and could not have jumped the fence. These reflections did not " et t but the next thing which happened did astonish me. While I was standing there in the walk, wondering wiit ‘he troat door opened and old Mr. Holabird came out. His face was red with anger and he was armed with a thick club, presumably for me. Now, I am not a very brave man—though Geraldine thinks me a perfect hero—and I confess I trembled. However, I walked up to him and sald, “Mr. Holablrd, your daughter—" He absolutely did not see me, and as ." pacsed me, with excess of courage I laid| my hand upon his arm, but be took no more | heed of that than of my voice. What could | have been the matter? | I began to feel a little alarmed, and gave myself & good pinch to see If I were awdke, the usual recourse of people in & like situ- ation—Geraldine says that no one ever was | in a like situation before. 1 certainly was awake for the pinch hurt me. Marvelling | more and more I decided to go into the | house. The old gentleman was my most dangerous opponent and with him out of the | way 1 felt I could brave the rest of the household. It T could get at Geraldine I hoped to persuade her to fly with me, and d1d not doubt once we were safely married her father would forgive us, or if he would | o uea, rose and dropped fnto a chair, remarking ‘I'll sit here and look at you till you do get up and say something to me: If your father comes in here and kills me' S0 1 waited and watched her she raised her beautiful eyes, red with weeping, fixed them stralght on me and without the slightest sign of recognition, not even the fear that would have filled them had I been a stranger. What could be the matter? 1 rushed over to the long swinging mir- ror in the corner determined to look at myself and see what was wrong. I stood directly in front of the glass and glanced at its bright surface to make a last ef- fort to solve the mystery. Reader, I will solemnly assert that when I looked in that mirfor, expecting to see myself, 1 was not ther There was nothing reflected there but the room and contents and Geraldine be- yond, completely oblivious of me. She had taken a small picture of me she had and was alternately looking at it and pressing Presently THE OMAHA DAILY BEE: SATURDAY, SEPT IBER 20, 1902 nstance, was not audible, because when 1 opened my spiritual mouth it was only with the sensation of speaking, and no real sound was made; or, to put another expla- nation before you, my voice had become re- fined In proportion with the rest of me and was pitched In such a sound wave as the human ear was not capable of receiv- ing and concentrating At that moment this seemed very ter- esting to me and I settled myself com- fortably back fn my chair and laughed long and loudly. Of course, 1 could go back into my own body at any time and matters would straighten themselves out at once. 1 sat speculatively contemplating my body. It was an luteresting moment My body was eitting in the chair In ex- actly the same position I had been when 1 1eft 1t, or father, I shoui) say, we had been when I Jeft it. I bent over and touched it or him. He left warm and natural, but not as It acieep. There was no beating of the heart, no rise or fall of the breast as in breathing; the eyes were open and fixed, but not, I should not greatly care, so long as I could have Geraldine, Thinking thus I walked up to the door and, placing my hand cn the bell, gave it a good strong pull. The little silver-plated handle did not move an inch. I rubbed my eyes and tried it once more—no effect! I then sat down to comsider. Was all the world bewitched? I racked my brain until the door opened and one of the children ran out, She came over to the chair I sat in and dropped into my lap. 1 got out of the chair in a second, just how I could not say. I am not over fond of children of that age. “Why, Jennle,” I eried somewhat indig- nantly, “what do you mean by jumping on my lap In this unceremonious manner? Where is Geraldine? Go tell her I want to see her at once.” 1 was getting angry, but would you be- lleve it, that child went on playlng with her doll and completely ignored me! It was too much. I wondered if the whole town were in a conspiracy to drive me erazy. In despair 1 resolved to see Ger- aldine at once and at the risk of being shot for a burglar 1 turned to the door the little girl bad fortunately left open and walked In, As I entered the hall my foot slipped on the marble tiling and I fell heavily against an exquisite bisque head standing on the newel post. When I picked myself up, eufficlently sore from my fall to be con- vinced that it was a real one, the bisque figurehead was standing safely and smiling at me—it was a laughing head—in a way 1 conceived to be particularly exasperating. 1 was so excited by this time that I struck it & furious blow with my fist, and still that infernal head stood and grinned at me! It 1 did not see Geraldine soon I felt that I would go mad, so I marched upstairs until I came to the door of her room. 1 knocked gently on the door—there was no sound. I tried the handle, with the same illsuccess as before. This was the last straw. 1 confess that T stood at that door and shouted and screamed and kicked it— pounded on it until 1 sank exhausted on the floor—and etill no thought of my real con- dition entered my head. It happened in my present position that my eyes were just on a level with the key- hole. I peeped in. There was Geraldine. I could see her plainly and in another mo- ment 1 saw ber take a letter from her pocket, kiss it passionately and burst into & storm of sobs and tears. I was so wrought up by this time that in svite of my fatigue 1 jumped to my feet and in an- other second I found myself by her side. She was clad in some soft white wrapper, ber bair all uobound, and was kneeling with her face in her arms on & chair. I w Inexpressibly touched by her heart- broken attitude. I had never been anything but & very formal lover as I sald before; however, 1 thought the circumstances might warrant me in walving a little ceremony —espectally as she evidently needed & comforter sadly, so 1 walked quickly over to her and laid my hand on her shoulder “Geraldine,” I sald. “My darling, I am here to help you * * * Geraldine, won't you speak to me?" There was no answer and no Intermit to the sobs and tears she was pouring ou my letter. 1 thought this was pushing shyness to a distance, and I had never su pected her of being shy. However, as sbe made no objection to my hand being on her shoulder, I thought that was & good sign, and | knelt down beside her and slipped my arm around ber neck and said: \ Geraldine, dearest do not cry so * courage * * it will be all right * " Pause. “Won't you speak to me? Please, please, just look at me!” Longer pause. “‘Geraldine!” 1 shouted savagely, ook at me at once or I'll leave you for- "ever! No movement! What did it mean? I | Geraldine's it to her heart. This evidence of an af- fection for me which I did not think she entertained, was certainly very gratifying and at any other moment would have filled me with happiness, but in the light of the fact that I was not there, where I felt my- self to be, I was too horrorstruck for any- thing else. 1 stood mechanically glaring at Geraldine, and the glass which did not reflect me, and at myself. I could see myself with my own cyes perfectly, hear my own voice dis- tinctly, or touch myself with my own hands, in fact, I could see and feel as well as ever. I resolved to make one more effort. “Geraldine,” I sald softly. ‘“Geraldine, louder. “Geraldine!” In a perfect scream. “1 am going to kiss you this moment!"” She was lying back in a large chalr, her hands listlessly crossed in her lap and her eyes closed. I walked firmly over to her, besitated a second, and then bent over and kissed her upon the lips. She says now it was very ungenerous of me to have taken advantage of her, but I submit that I had given every possible warning of my in- tentions and besides I was wrought up to such a pitch by the events of the afternoon I scarcely knew what I did; so I kissed her again and again, and this did really have some effect upon her. At first she blushed a warm, beautiful crimson, and as I kissed her a.second and a third time, she started, raised ber head, opened her eyes with a little scream, and said: k I must have fallen asleep and dreamed he was here. r 1 suddenly felt a kiss, it seemed. * * * O, Harry, Harry, why do you not come and help your girl And her head sank back in the chair, and tears came again into her eyes. "0, Harry, why are you mot here? I was nearly frantic by this time. “Geraldine,” I said, “I am here. I did you, really and truly, a moment ago.” But she pald no attention, and even while I was speaking kept up her little agonized appeal for me to come and help her. 1 rushed to the window, leaped out on the porch, jumped recklessly to the ground, dashed right into the arms of Mr. Holabird, ran through the streets to my own house, burst into the house, tore up the stairs to my room, and saw—what? Myself, calmy and composedly lying back in the chair, with Geraldine's letter In my hand! This was too awful. I sank dbwn fn the other chalr, and as I did eo my eyes fell upon the.yolume of the learned Arch- tdechus. The mystery was solved! There in the other chalr was my physical body, and in this one I sat, a disembodied spirit! The explanation was so simple and evi- dent it brought great relief to me. Every- thing was explained. Of course no look- ing glass could reflect the spirit of a man; no one could feel him—or it—or hear him or see him; of course, he could not open doors or strike people or lift anything, though, to be sure, no door could prove a barrier to such an ethereal immaterial en- tity as a disembodied spirit That accounted for my finding wyself in room in spite of the locked door, for the child sitting down on my lap, for the bisque head smiling at my buffet, for Geraldine's Ignorance of my presence. As to the kise—well, love was the highest and noblest sensation, love such as we felt for each other, and as nearly a spiritual ethereal feeling as any human one could be, so when I kissed her her spiritual being had responded to mine. This explanation fell easily in with the rese As far as | was concerned I was, to put it plainly and simply, only my feelings and seneations. | was a wandering sensation. | Doubtless my spirit took the same form as my visible body, but it was a thing so utterly immaterial as to be absolutely in- visible to the buman eye. I could talk, see and hear—because | had all my | sensations with me, the gulding essence of wy brain, too; but, really, my voice, for| | physically not glassy; the joints apparently flexible, though, of course, I could not have moved cme to see—in short, my body presented every appearance of suspended animation. I resolved mot to try to get back into my body just at present and was still sitting there wondering about my double self when the door opened and my sister, the one who brought the letter, came in; she was my favorite, and wo were great friends. She glanced at me, and, supposing I was asleep, drew a chair over to the window and waited for me to awaken. The fire was burning brightly in the grate and, as ill-luck would have it, a bright lit- tle coal sprang out and fell on my lap— that is, the lap of my body. It seems that there was yet some sort of a connection be- tween us, because while the coal burnt into the leg of my body it was I who felt the sen- sations. 1 rushed over to myself and at tempted to brush it off. Of course I could | not. The pain was really unbearable and, forgetting my state, I called to Mary, my sister; of course she did not hear me! This was a worse dllemma than before. I de- cided at once to resume my proper condi- tion, when, horror of horrors, I found that I aid not know how. "It was true—I had been so constantly oc- cupled in endeavoring to get out of myselt as It were, that I had complétely omitted to learn the way to get in! This was worse tban anything previous. I forgot all about the glowing coal which was still burning me, in the dreadful possibility which rose before me. Suppose they should bury me, would I suffer the pangs of suffocation for- ever, or at least until my body resolved itself into its primordial elements? I knew, of course, my spirit would never dle, and if my body did turn to dust, would my spirit g0 with those of other departed beings as the bible teaches us, or would the fact that T had taken my spirit in my own hands, a it were, condemn me to wander forever In my present state? 1 certainly felt my spiritual hair turn gray. What would hecomo of Geraldine? Would I ever see her again or would she ever sce me? Would she at last forget me and marry some one else and force me to stand powerless looking on? I ground my epiritual teeth in rage and anger and clenched my spiritual hands and swore—but what was the use of swearing? I could not do anything. I was too utterly ethereal, too entirely disembodied to even haunt anyone, t00 ephemereal for a ghost even! Oh, her- rer! I thought my brain would give way. I thought of everything I could recall to help { me out 1 bad dabbled a little in hypnotism and had experimented surreptitiously on vari- ous members of my family, principally my sister Mary, and with some effect. Now, hypnotism is the controlling of one will by another. of the spirit; there is nothing gress about it. It s true that the wekest amd most physically imperfect specimens of this two- fold race of ous$ sometimes possess the most powertul wills; plainly, them, body, considered hypnotic force. Apparently I had my will power i better shape for use than at any other time in my corporate body. I had it separated, under command and could con- centrate it more easily and advantageously. 1 would try it 1 got up, made the usual passes and or- dered Mary to come and throw that coal off my leg. She did so at once. 1 was de- lighted. She stood abashed and silent in the presence of the (to her) hidden force controlling her. instant I could cause her to open the vol- ume of Archidechus and turn the pages for me. Joy' No sconer said than done ’ 1 sat beside her and willed her to do as 1 directed. I bastily made her turn to the part which treated of the resumption of the This will is an essential attribute | had nothing to do| with this will power which is the secret of | It flashed upon me in an | |eand times wor relationship. A new disappointment awaited me—the learned Archidechus stated tha the indlvidual in the case he studied hal never assumed his normal condition an that the means of doing so were entir unknown to him. That took away my la hope. Mechanically 1 released Mary from the influence and then walted to sce what she upon me and would do. Her glance fell she looked at me wonderingly “Why sald sleeps!” & rry! Harry!" his face and sereamed The family running in she how long the servants, everyone. death sank b ting, 1 room and waited by our fat cook, who remedles they knew to revive him imagine the sensation o my spiritual one— another chafed my hands; ome wetted a towel and struck me repeatedly with it; the old-fashioned feather was held under my physical nose—imagine my spiritual sensation a thousand times intensified and judge what I suffered. 1 wished they would go away and bury me decently and let me alone; it was too much to endure quietly. I tried to hypno- tize the whole lot. but unavailingly. Finally the futility of their efforts dawned upon them and they sat down to walt while one ‘went for a doctor. Doctor! I thought contemptuously what could he do unless indeed they might find a stray spiritualist who could fulfill his promises and perhaps summon my spirit back Into its earthly shell. Sure, never had I eeemed 80 sweet to myself. It I ever got back to myself again I made a sol- emn vow never to leave myself on any pre- text. Presently the door opened and my father came In. My mother was long since dead; the old gentleman was almost heartbroken; Le sat down beside me and took my phys- feal hand. comfort him. family stood around the room talking in low hushed whispers of the dreadful fate that had befallen me, exchanging reminis cences about me, extolling me for many virtues I never possessed. There was some consolation in hearing what a noble fel- | low I was. I have not heard it before nor have I heard it since—except from Geral- dine. Finally the door opemed and the doctor entered; he could do nothing what- ever, as I had foreseen—he actually pro- nounced me dead—and a few hours later I found myself neatly laid in a cofin in the parlor—that is my physical body was. I took the most comfortable chair, when no one else wanted It, of course, and waited for further developments. This was growing interesting and I had become omewhat resigned to the hopelessness of my situation. I noted several curious facts. After a while 1 got very sleepy, intensely 80, and lay back in my chair and closed my eyes and tried to sleep. It was no use, I could mot. And yet I mever so longed to g0 to sleep in,my life. The fact was a spirit could not sleep, and it was my body there in the coffin which felt sleepy—but 1 must suffer for it. It was the same way with hunger. I was hungry, I actually got s0 desperate as to go out in the pantry and look at the cold chicken and bolled ham there, I could easily smell them. but as to eating—Oh, it was horrible! I do not know how I got through the night The next day I could do nothing but sit and look at the people who came to see me and hear what they had to say. I have forgotten to mention that in my condition 1 seemed to have as one of its attributes a peculiar faculty of divining the real thoughts of the people who came to look at me. Among them was John Haverford. He was actually glad to see me, so at least 1 read his thought. Geraldine thinks I must have been mistaken—at any rate the sight of him filled me with so much rage that I rushed over to him. I threatened him; 1 did more, I struck him, kicked him, nothing of which he was sensible. It was too bad. Geraldine did “mot come. I walted heartbroken for her. Would she come? The old man surely would not keep her. He was a pretty good fellow, after all— he is devoted to our youngest daughter now. 1 thought he certainly might bring her. I 4id pot go out. 1 could not bear to leave my lonesome looking body in the coffin. I had mo heart for further adven- tures, anyway. 1 was intensely cramped trom lying so long In one position—when I die I am going to be cremated; no more coffins for me. My wife, says, however, she will not hear of thats Geraldine told me afterward that she passed the day in longing for me to come and take her away, and wondering why I did not; beside being continually im- pressed with a premoniticn that something golng to happen. Finally toward nigh on the second day of my anomalous sit- uation, Mary—good and faithful Mary—be- thought herself to go and tell Geraldine. On hearing the news that noble grl, promptly fainted. She recovered self, however, and, through Mary's aid, managed to get out of the house and come down to see me. I was looking at myself very dejectedly in the parlor, half dead from loss of sleep bunger and thirst, and wholly erazy from loss of love and all my dreaded prospects— I surmised they would bury me tomorrow— when I heard the outside door open, & familiar and yet nervous step sounded in the hall, and then the parlor door opened 1 had recognized the step. It was Geraldine but how changed! 1 forgot myself and my trouble, and as she threw herself down on ber knees and clasped me in her arms and Kkissed me, I suffered for her ggony & thou- than for mine. Great Harry e touched him on the shoulder. | and then she looked in came They filled my little room, and after narrowly escaping belng crushed to hysterically k in the chalr in which I was sit< walked over to ihe corner of the They picked him up and 1aid him on the bed and tried all the simple One poured brandy down my physical throat— | I would have given worlds to Different members of the 1 [heavens! Was ever man in such a predi t|cament? I bent over her in despair, and as 1|she turned her face up in praver I kiessd 4 | her lps again. She sprang to her feet and screamed “Oh, he is not dead felt him kiss me! 1 cannot be Mary, send for papa, and teil him to bring his newest and most powerful storage bat tery along. 1 am sure Harry is not dead Hurry! hurry! 8o was from Geraldine herself that this new iden of torture emanated. Oh why could they not iet a disombodied spirit alone in its peaceful misers! An electric battery could do mo good, and it would he worse than the burnt feather. 014 Mr. Holabird was an electrician and |an enthusiast. He weuld have sacrificed his beet friend to an experiment and con sequently did not hesitate to come and try upon me, whom he had hated so bitterly previous to the unfortunate dissolution of partnership between my body and spirit followed after him with the battery. He was angry and astonished at secing Ger- aldine, but his experiment was too engros- sing for much time to be wasted upon her. Having obtained the consent of my poor least my spiritual entity did—my physical body, 1 must confess, betrayed no evidence of shame at the exposure, and before Ger- aldine, too! Mary and father and the rest little apparent faith. Geraldine stood be and gazing at me as 1f not to lose the faint- est sign of life I might show. Her father, with a reckless want of ceremony, I thought in wretchedly bad taste. 1 must confess I hoped from the result of this experiment but faintly; however, there might be some- | thing in it, g0 I stood with my arm around Geraldine and my head resting upon her | shoulder—spiritually, of course—as the con- | nection was made. 1 was quiet enough for just one-millionth | ot a second till I felt the power of the cur- rent. It awful. Worse than any other experiment; I groaned in anguish while that | fiendish old man made the current stronger |and stronger and that miserably placid bydy of mine lay there as calm and as unfeeling as a log, while I was in torment. 3 flew at the old man, clenched my hands in his hair, grasped him around the throat, did everything and yet had to bear a current strong enough to have killed a dozen men, .|added to which was the anguish of feeling my last hope vanish. I was doomed. The scientific fervor ot old Holabird was at last satisfied, and he allowed the ~urrent to die down to one of much less intensity, merely keeping, as he said, a little on in case of an emergency. A little! I felt like ten tooth aches run into ome, but was so much less than before that it seemed almost like & caress in the first moment of rellef. While I was standing there helplessly wondering what they would do with mu the old man walked up to Geraldine, who stood wringing her hands, looking at me, with her last hope gone, too, poor girl, and sald “Come, Geralding, we must go, the man 1s dead.” “Idar'” T shrieked. but no one heard me. “And there is no.use of staying here,” he continued, “I tell you you must come! I promised John Haverford that you would see him tonight, he asked for your hand and I consented today Oh, T could have begged him to turn on the electricity again; each pang fate had in store for me was worse than before. Ger- aldine answered glorious! “But I have not consented.” ‘What difference? I say you shall marry him!" he sald, grasping her wrist. “And I say I will not. I will be faithful to my dear dead Harry here.” “Nonsense; you shall marry Haverford; you must."” At this moment a strange thing oc- curred. Geraldine wrenched herself away from her father, threw herself upon the physical half of me and whispered, “I'll die with him, first Something passed over me as a blinding lightning flash and behold! the body in the coffin struggled, sat up, clasped a trembling arm about Geraldine and ex- claimed: “I am not dead, Geraldine, and you, you infernal old villain, get out of my sight! Take off the battery and give me something to eat and drink.” The spirit had entered my body again. My love for Geraldine and her love for me had wrought the miracle, just as anxlety for her and love for her had wrought the first change. Aye, through love the world is made and destroyed. There is nothing more to tell. My story was 9 circumstantial people generally belfeve It, in spite of the learned doctors, who hold it to have been merely a case of suspended animation. In my mind and Geraldine's, however, there is no doubt atout it. Besides, does mot the learned Archidechus say—but never mind, If it were not for this affair Geraldine says she might Pave been years finding out her heart, as she did when she thought me dead, and her father mever would have consented to our marriage as he did. He is very kind to us now, and we are very happy, and have only onme anxiety, lest my spirit should ever take to wan- dering off again. Geraldine says If it does she will marry ‘John Haverford—who Is etill pining for her—but I know that is only a threat to prevent the dissolution of part- nership, as she confesses in private that she would never marry anyome but me— never! I am very fat and weH now, and have burned up the parchments of the learned Archidechus, and am training myself to utterly disbelieve such things. The mem- ory seems like & faint dream, in the light of our present happiness, for Geraldine is the lovellest and sweetest of wiv and she says I am the best of husbands. And glving her that last word, I lay down the pen. BOSTON CLUB WOMEN WORRIED. Caused n Hotel to He Closed and the for $50,000. Club women all around Boston, as well as the temperance workers in the district, re- lates the Boston Post, are considgrably stirred over the fact that the closing of the Albany house at Brighton this spring through the representations of a number sulted in the bringing of suits demanding $60,000 damages from these women, and the husband of ome of them, by Timothy F. . Buckley, lessee of the hotel Mrs. Francls B. Horobrooke, one of the defendants, sald concerning the sult: “We were asked by members of the Bright helmstone club of Brighton to aid in abol- ishing & nulsance there, known as the Al- bany house. Fifteen of us, including reps resentatives of the Watertown and Allston clubs, together with five from the New- ton federation, early in June walted upon Governor Crane. There was no written petition drawn up, or anything of the kind. Mrs. Bates of Brighton simply told the governor the situation In & few words and we all seconded it. Three days later we saw by the papers that the Albany bouse was closed, and from that time until this 1 have thought nothing of the matter; in fact, I had completely forgotten the in- cident This is really too ludicrous to talk about,” continued Mrs. Hornbrooke, smil- ing; “why the man won't dare to take the case to the courts; if he d'd, he will be cut- ting bis own throat. We have all the facts I am sure of \t. 1| mistaken! | He was soon in {he parlor and the servant | old father he began taking off my shoes ' and then my socks—I blushed crimson—at | of the family looked on with anxlety and | | all business and energy, attached the wires | of club women to Governor Crane has re- | Gold Medal At Pan-American Exposition. Unlike Any Other ! The tall flavor, the delicious qui ity, tho absolute Purity, of Lowe. ney’s Breakfast Cocra dlstinguish 1t from all others No “treatment” with alkalles; no adulteration with flour, starch er grovnd cocoa shells; nothing but the nutritive and digestible product of the choicest Cocoa Beans. Ask Your Dealer for It. &lde me resting one hand against my breast on our side; this waen't started In & hurr; flurry, sentimental sort of wer, vou under- stand; we went at the wiping out of this place in a systematic, business manner “It was simply a hearing before the gov- ernor of the state; a private hearing, In which a few women desired to tell the of- ficlals of the commonwealth just what was going on at Brighton. The governor lis- tened to us, with the result that the Albany 1s at present mot running. 1 think Mr. Buckley, or whoever the man is, had better sue Governor Crane—that {s the man he wants to deal with."” Mrs. C. M. Wilson, president of the Water- town Woman's club: “I was delegated t» represent my club when representatives of other clubs met ours. The Young Men's assembly protested against the liquor license being granted, and the women were against the hotel license on purely moral grounds.” Mrs. Electa N. L. Walton, honorary pres- ident of the West Newton Educational club: ““We went before the governor to glve our moral support. We felt that a p such as was described to us should not ex- fst. We were glad to learn afterward that it had been closed.” Miss M. Caroline Wilson, president of the Watertown Woman's club, said that their protest was not against Mr. Buckley, but against the Beston & Albany railroad forporation, as they were the owners of the property in question. When asked why the women of Water- town Interested themselves in a Brighton hotel, Miss Wilson replied, because the place was near the Watertown line, and als> because the Brighton women had setel their ald in the fight for morality. Chairman Clark of the police board re- fused to discues the case. So did Governor Crane. Mr. Buckley said “Yes, I have entered suit for $50,00) against these women; $40,000 for Injury to business, and $10,000 for personal damages to reputation.” POINTED PARAGRAPHS, Chicago News: To err is human and to lie about it is more so. Intelelctual fmprovement s apt to warp a woman's shape. Even the pessimist is momentarily happy in his unhappiness. This would be a gloomy old world for cats it women conld pur. The string tied around a man’s finger 18 merely a forget-me-knot Some music hath charms to hold a man it he is chained to the spot Speaking of home, rule, what's the mai- ter with that of the first baby? In matrimony ope and one make one, but in divorce one from one leaves two. “Fair and warmer” Is the prediction the weather man lays up for a rainy day. Girls should never flirt in public until after they have a strangle hold on the art. Some men don't know they are beaten until long after other people make the dis~ covery. S If the beauty of the average man's mind isn’'t more lovely than his face it is entitled to sympathy. There is no objection to a woman ha ing a great command of language if she knows when not to use it. | When a small boy gets Into trouble there's generally a stick in it; when he grows up and trouble gets into him there are generally several “sticks” in it. WHEN LIFE'S AT STAKE The most timid man will take any chance of escape, The slender rope dropped down the precipice, the slip- pery log over the abyss, anything that offérs a chance of life, is eagerly snatch- ed at. The end the man seeks is safety. He cares nothing for the means to that end. 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