The Arm Chair Library No. 79: The Haunted Homestead — page 15: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

"THE HAUNTED HOMESTEAD. 13 party who were going out to dine. The dinner was followed by a. dance, and the dance by a moonlight sleigh ride home. But through all the ex- citements of the day, the image of the dark woman haunted my mind. And again, it was very late when I retired to bed. As usual, Mrs. Legare and Mathilde saw me to my room, and, as before, I locked the door behind them, and: lis- tened until I heard them leave the house and secure the hall entrance. Then I hastened my preparations, got into bed, and, thoroughly worn out with fatigue and loss of rest, soon fell into a deep sleep. And a third time the dream, or vision passed before me. Methought I was awakened by a voice calling my name. I opened my eyes and saw—first the door stretched wide open, and then, standing in the middle of the floor, the beautiful and majestic woman of my former visions, but this time more sad and stern in aspect than before. Fixitig those wild, mournful eyes upon mine, and holding my gaze, as it were, by a mesmeric spell,she slowlyand severely pointed to the spot beneath my feet, and saying, as it were, “Look!” passed in measured steps from the room. Once more in agony I started up to call and stay her, but with the effort I awoke. The door that I had care- fully locked stood wide open as be- fore. It was the same hour as that of my awakening upon the two previous Mornings. The day was flushing _ redly up the eastern horizon beyond the mountains, and nature was awak- ening everywhere. I could not now so readily shake off the influerfce of my dream. There was something that I wished to ascer- tain before my little maid should in- terrupt me; the reiterated gesture by the woman of my dream determined me to examine the spot upon which she had stood and pointed, to see if, — really, her action had any meaning. So I arose from my bed, and, first securing the door, and turning the key straight in the lock, that my little maid, should she come, might not spy my doings, [ removed the hearth-rug, took a pair of strong scissors, drew out the tacks and turned up the car- vet. : Reader, I had an attraction to the supernatural, but a mortal antago- nism to the horrible, and nearly swooned on seeing the spot to which the dark woman of my vision had pointed deeply marked with a san- guine crimson stain! The very heart in my bosom seemed frozen with hor- ror, and I felt myself, as it were, turning to stone, when a leud knock- ing at my door aroused me. It was my little maid, whose coming I, in my deep and fearful abstractions, had not heard. I hurriedly replaced the car- pet and the rug and went and opened the door. . “Yer sleeped soun’ dis mornin’, Miss Agnes, ma’am,” said little Jet, smiling as she entered. “I feared I scared you out’n your dream,” she added, noticing, I suppose, my horror- stricken face. “You certainly startled me, Jet,” I said, evasively. And while she light- ed the fire I returned to bed to try to compose my nerves. Between the horror I felt at the idea of sleeping another night alone in an accursed room, where, it seemed, a crime had been committed, and my intense desire to elucidate the mys- tery, I was at a loss how to act. Only one thing I decided upon—to keep my own counsel for the present. “De fire is burnin’ fus’ rate now, Miss Agnes, so you can get up an’ dress, if you likes, as break’as’ is mos’ ready,” said my little attendant. And taking her hint, 1 arose and hastened Eomilcbook: