isa-normaladvance-1915-00096

Description:	96THE NORMAL ADVANCEBy HILDA HATHAWAYT T was in the fall of the year, and the dead■*■ leaves lay on the ground in heaps aroundthe lonely house. The bare limbs of the treescreaked in the wind, and stretched out theirlong arms in a vain appeal.Slippery Jim tip-toed slowly around thehouse to the lighted windows in the rear. Therehe halted, and carefully raised his eyes to alevel with the sill. The room within was ahall, and the dim light burning in it was evidently to be left there during the night. Hegave a little grunt of satisfaction, and pushedon the window. To his surprise, it opened.This seemed rather suspicious to him, and hewaited a few minutes, but nothing happenedso he climbed cautiously into the house.He opened the first door in the hall, andpassed into a dark room, probably a library.He drew out his spot-light to make sure, andthrew a ray of light across the room. Suddenlyhe heard a little snap of an electric button anda lamp flared up near him. His eyes wereblinded for an instant, then he looked beforehim in astonishment.Seated in a large throne-like chair across theroom was a huge man, his face partially covered by a long, rough beard, above which hisdark, sunken eyes gleamed. On one side of himhung a long bony skeleton, a mute memorial ofwhat had been. On the other side was thecold metal gleam of knives and daggers, arranged in eager readiness.Slippery Jim looked and his gaze was lostin the silent stare of the man. Thus they remained. Suddenly Slippery Jim thrust out hisarm and knocked over the lamp. He held hisbreath a minute in the darkness that followed,but no sound other than the crash of the lampreached his ears, so he slowly moved his handbackwards to the door. As he reached theknob, he gave it a sudden jerk, but the doordid not open. He tried again, with no moresuccess, and then suddenly stopped in terror.The figure across the room had laughed—hadgiven one short, cruel laugh. Slippery Jimdrew his hand away from the door, and let itfall at his side, nerveless. An interminable silence followed, and then, slowly, gradually, asthough it grew out of the very atmosphere, asound came to his ears. The man was rising.Then Jim heard a scratch, scratch and a matchflickered and lighted up anew the face of theman.Suddenly another light flared forth, a redlight, coming from a lantern closed on one side.TJie man held the lantern up and let its raysfall on the form of the skeleton. Then heturned it towards the other side of his chair,and picked out with great care a long knife,resembling both sword and dagger, from anumber of such instruments there, emitting,as he did, a peculiar whining grunt. Then heturned the light towards Slippery Jim, and letit fall full upon him. Slippery Jim felt weakand trembling, yet it seemed as though he couldnot sit down. But presently the red light wasturned away from him, and he slid to the floor,and remained crouching in the darkness.Slowly the light began to move. The mansfeet, shoeless, made a pad, pad as he startedto follow the wall of the room towards SlipperyJim. Slippery Jim, always keeping his eyeson the red light, pulled himself away from thewall to the center of the room.Then the man laughed once again as he hadlaughed before. He continued to follow thewall of the room, the lantern in one hand, theknife in the other. The light flashed now onthe wall, now on the knife, and once in awhileon Slippery Jim, who kept his eyes upon it in
Source:	http://indstate.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/isuarchive/id/34914
Collection:	Indiana State University Archives

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