The Argosy — page 46: what you’re looking at

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

238 THE ARGOSY. de Gavarnie we should have come together to the hall of a house in Bays- water, hand in hand as children upon a quest—the man, it may be, more ter- rifed than the woman, yet both in their hearts fearing that the darkness was the shield of some momentous mystery from which the light would send them trembling presently. It was a large hall, wide and lofty, and giving upon a staircase of finer’ proportions than I had looked for in such a house. A glimmer of gas upon the landing showed me many pictures in heavy frames, and a show of swords which caught the feeble rays and made dulled mirrors of them. But the hall itself was in darkness, and such gray light of asummer’s night as the street vouchsafed was here lost to us. I could scarce see the face of the woman ; could distinguish nothing of my surroundings, though the soft car- pet beneath ny feet spoke of luxury and of wealth. In all that great house no sound, save the ticking of a clock and the deep breathing of the woman, whose hot hand touched my own, was to be heard. If a tragedy had been played, assuredly the actors now rested. Yet where should we look for then—where lay the body of him she had spoken of? God be my witness, so scared was I that the thought of stumbling upon the dead man in the darkness of the hall froze my very heart. ‘Do you wish me to enter one of these rooms with you?’’ I asked in a deep whisper while the woman stood fear stricken and irresolute. ‘‘ Was it here that it happened ?”’ ‘Yes, yes, here,’’ she answered quickly, dragging me of a sudden to- wards a door upon my left hand. ‘‘I returned from South Audley Street at half past one and heard them quarreling—my brother and his friend. It happened then—oh, God help me, what shall I do?” My hand was upon the knob when she spoke. I felt her instinctive gest- ure which would have dragged me back from the place as from the scene of dreadful sights, But at the mention of a quarrel—a human thing at the worst—I took heart and began to remember that they had called me.the strongest man in my regiment. After all, if there were but one other in the house, I could very well take the risk of a meeting with him. Yet I would have given much to have had a revolver in my hand ; and when I threw open the door of the room and saw that it was in darkness, my courage went trickling away like water from a cracked jar. ‘‘Madam,’’ I said, standing suddenly and facing her, ‘‘how many are in this house with you?”’ She listened a moment before answering, as though some sound would give her words. ‘“Except my servants, there are none,’’ she whispered presently ; ‘‘I cannot—I dare not speak to them. And I-have no right to ask you You have a woman’s right, which is the best right,’’ I said, feeling in my pocket for a match; ‘“‘if you will remain here a noment I will see what this room has to tell us.”’ ‘You must not go alone,’’ she protested, but I loosed her hand and left her standing, a pitiful figure of fear and distress, in the gloomy light of the alcove. The wan and feeble rays of the wax match aggravated the darkness ve Eomichbooks (E)