The Open Door, and the Portrait.: Stories of the Seen and the Unseen.Oliphant, Mrs. (Margaret)
Science
The Open Door, and the Portrait.: Stories of the Seen and the Unseen.
Oliphant, Mrs. (Margaret)
Manners and customs -- Fiction
That night at eleven I met Simson at the gate. He had come by train, and
I let him in gently myself. I had been so much absorbed in the coming
experiment that I passed the ruins in going to meet him, almost without
thought, if you can understand that. I had my lantern; and he showed me a
coil of taper which he had ready for use. “There is nothing like light,”
he said, in his scoffing tone. It was a very still night, scarcely a
sound, but not so dark. We could keep the path without difficulty as we
went along. As we approached the spot we could hear a low moaning, broken
occasionally by a bitter cry. “Perhaps that is your voice,” said the
Doctor; “I thought it must be something of the kind. That’s a poor brute
caught in some of these infernal traps of yours; you’ll find it among the
bushes somewhere.” I said nothing. I felt no particular fear, but a
triumphant satisfaction in what was to follow. I led him to the spot
where Bagley and I had stood on the previous night. All was silent as a
winter night could be,--so silent that we heard far off the sound of the
horses in the stables, the shutting of a window at the house. Simson
lighted his taper and went peering about, poking into all the corners. We
looked like two conspirators lying in wait for some unfortunate
traveller; but not a sound broke the quiet. The moaning had stopped
before we came up; a star or two shone over us in the sky, looking down
as if surprised at our strange proceedings. Dr. Simson did nothing but
utter subdued laughs under his breath. “I thought as much,” he said. “It
is just the same with tables and all other kinds of ghostly apparatus; a
sceptic’s presence stops everything. When I am present nothing ever comes
off. How long do you think it will be necessary to stay here? Oh, I don’t
complain; only when _you_ are satisfied, _I_ am--quite.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account