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Speaker 1: The Judge's House by bram Stoker. When the time for

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his examination drew near, Malcolm Malcolmson made up his mind

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to go somewhere to read by himself. He feared the

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attractions of the seaside, and also he feared completely rural isolation,

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for of old he knew its charms, and so he

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determined to find some unpretentious little town where there would

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be nothing to distract him. He refrained from asking suggestions

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from any of his friends, for he argued that each

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would recommend some place of which he had knowledge and

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where he had already acquaintances. As Malcolmson wished to avoid friends,

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he had no wish to encumber himself with the attention

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of friends friends, and so he determined to look out

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for a place for himself. He packed a portaminet with

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some clothes and all the books he required, and then

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took ticket for the first name on the local timetable,

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which he did not know. When at the end of

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three hours journey he lighted ben Church, he felt satisfied

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that he had so far obliterated his tracks as to

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be sure of having a peaceful opportunity of purursuing his studies.

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He went straight to the one inn which the sleepy

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little place contained and put up for the night. Ben

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Church was a market town, and once in three weeks

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was crowded to excess. But for the reminder of the

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twenty one days, it was as attractive as a Desertlson

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looked around the day after his arrival to try to

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find quarters more isolated than even so quiet an inn.

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As the good traveler afforded. There was only one place

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which took his fancy, and it certainly satisfied his wildest

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ideas regarding quiet. In fact, quiet was not the proper

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word to apply to it. Desolation was the only term

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conveying any suitable idea of its isolation. It was an old, rambling,

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heavily built house of the Jacobean style, with heavy gables

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and windows usually small and set higher than was customary

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in such houses, and was surrounded with a high brick

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wall massively built. Indeed, on examination it looked more like

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a fortified house than an ordinary dwelling. But all these

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things pleased Malcolmson. Here, he thought, is the very spot

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I have been looking for, and if I can only

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get opportunity of using it, I shall be happy. His

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joy was increased when he realized beyond doubt that it

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was not at present inhabited. From the post office he

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got the name of the agent who was rarely surprised

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at the application to rent a part of the old house.

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Mister Carnford, the local lawyer and agent, was a genial

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old gentleman, and frankly confessed his delight at anyone being

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willing to live in the house. To tell you the truth,

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said he, I should be only too happy on behalf

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of the owners to let anyone have the house rent

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free for a term of years, if only to accustom

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the people here to see it inhabited. It has been

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so long empty that some kind of absurd prejudice has

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grown up about it, and this can be best put

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down by its occupation, if only, he added, with a

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sly glance at Malcolmson, by a scholar like yourself, who

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wants its quiet for a time. Malcolmsen thought it needless

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to ask the agent about the absurd prejudice. He knew

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he would get more information if he should require it

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on that subject from other quarters. He paid his three

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months rent, got a receipt and the name of an

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old woman who would probably undertake to do for him,

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and came away with the keys in his pocket. He

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then went to the landlady of the inn, who was

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a cheerful and most kindly person, and asked her advice

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as to such stories and provisions as he would be

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likely to require. She threw up her hands in amazement

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when he told her he was going to settle himself.

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Not in the judge's house, she said, and grew pale

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as she spoke. He explained the locality of the house,

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saying that he did not know its name. When he

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had finished, she answered, aye, sure enough, sure enough, the

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very place it is, the judge's house. Sure enough. He

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asked her to tell him about the place why so called,

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and what there was against it. She told him that

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it was so called locally because it had been many

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years before. How long she could not say as for

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herself from another part of the country, but she thought

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it must have been a hundred years or more, the

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abode of a judge who was held in great terror

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on account of his harsh sentences and his hostility to

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the prisoners at assizes. As to what there was against

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the house, she could not tell. She had often asked,

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but no one could inform her, but there was a

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general feeling that there was something, And for her own part,

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she would not take all the money in drink Waters

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bank and stay in the house an hour by herself.

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Then she apologized to Malcolmson for her disturbing talk. It

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is too bad of me, sir, and you and a

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young gentleman too, if you will pardon me saying it,

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going to live there all alone. If you were my boy,

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and you'll excuse me for saying it, you wouldn't sleep

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there at night, not if I had to go there

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myself and pull the big alarm bell that's on the roof.

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The good creature was so manifestly in earnest, and was

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so kindly in her intentions that Malcolmson, almost amused, was touched.

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He told her kindly how much he appreciated her interest

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in him, and added, but my dear missus Whitham, indeed,

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you need not be concerned about me. A man who

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is reading for the mathematical tripos has too much to

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think of to be disturbed by any of these mysterious somethings,

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And his work is of too exact and prosaic a

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kind to allow of his having any order in his mind,

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for mysteries of any kind. Harmonical progression, permutations and combinations

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of elliptic functions have sufficient mysteries for me. Missus Whitham

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kindly undertook to see after his commissions, and he went

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himself to look for the old woman who had been

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recommended to him. When he turned to the judge's house

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with her, after an interview of a couple of hours,

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he found Missus Whitham herself waiting with several men and

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boys carrying parcels, and an upholsterer's man with a bed

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in a cart. For she said, though table and chairs

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might be all very well, a bed that hadn't been

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aired for maybe fifty years was not proper for young

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ones to lie in. She was evidently curious to see

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the inside of the house, and though manifestly so afraid

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of the some things, that at the slightest sound she

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clutched on to Malcolmson, whom she never left for a moment,

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went over the whole place. After his examination of the house,

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Malcolmson decided to take up his abode in the great

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dining room, which was big enough to serve for all

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his requirements, and missus Whittham, with the aid of the

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charwoman Missus Dempster, proceeded to arrange matters. When the hampers

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were brought in and unpacked, Malcolmson saw that, with much

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kind forethought, she had sent from her own kitchen sufficient

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provisions to last for a few days. Before going, she

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expressed all sorts of kind wishes, and at the door

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turned and said, and perhaps, sir, as the room is

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big and drofty, it might be well to have one

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of those big screens put round your bed at night.

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Though truth to tell, I would die myself if I

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were to be shut in with all kinds of things

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that put their heads round the sides or over the

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top and look on me. The image which she had

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called up was too much for her nerves, and she

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fled incontentently. Missus Dempster sniffed in a superior manner as

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the landlady disappeared. I remarked that for her own part,

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she wasn't afraid of all the boogies in the kingdom.

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I'll tell you what it is, sir, she said. Boogies

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is all kinds and sorts of things except boogies, rats

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and mice, beetles, and creaky doors, and new slates and

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broken panes and stiff drawer handles that stay out when

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you pull them and then fall down in the middle

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of the night. Look at the way's coat of the room.

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It is old, hundreds of years old. Do you think

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there's no rats and beetles there? And do you imagine

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her that you won't see none of them? Rats as boogies,

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I tell you, And boogies is rats. And don't you

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get to think anything else, missus Dempster, said Malcolm some gravely,

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making her a polite bow. You know more than signor wrangler.

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And let me say that as a mark of esteem

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for your dubitable soundness of head and heart, I shall,

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when I go, give you possession of this house and

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let you stay here by yourself for the last two

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weeks of my tendency for four weeks will serve my purpose.

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Thank you kindly, Sure, she answered, But I couldn't sleep

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away from home a night. I am in green House charity,

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and if I slept a night away from my rooms,

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I should lose all I have got to live on.

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The rules is very strict, and there's too many watching

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for a vacancy for me to run any risks in

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the matter. Only for that, sir, I'd gladly come here

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and attend on you altogether during your stay, my good woman,

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said Malcolmson hastily, I have come here on a purpose

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to obtain solitude. And believe me that I am grateful

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to the Late greenhow for having organized his admirable charity.

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Whatever it is that I am perforce denied the opportunity

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of suffering from such a form of temptation. Saint Anthony

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himself could not be more rigid on the point. The

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old woman laughed harshly. Ah, you, young gentleman, she said,

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you don't fear for naught, and belike you'll get all

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the solitude you want here. She set to work with

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her cleaning, and by night when Malcolmson returned from his walk,

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he always had one of his books to study. As

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he walked, he found the room swept and tidy, a

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fire burning on the old hearth, the lamp lit, and

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the table spread for supper with Missus Whitham's excellent fare.

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This is comfort, indeed, he said, and rubbed his hands.

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When he had finished his supper, and lifted the tray

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to the other end of the great oak dining table.

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He got out his books again, put fresh wood on

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the fire, trimmed his lamp, and set himself down to

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a spell of real hard work. He went on without

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a pause till about eleven o'clock, when he knocked off

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for a bit to fix his fire and lamp and

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to make himself a cup of tea. He had always

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been a tea drinker, and during his college life had

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sat laid at work and had taken tea late. The

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rest was a great luxury for him, and he enjoyed

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it with a sense of delicious, voluptuous ease. The renewed

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fire leapt and sparkled and threw quaint shadows through the

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great old room, and as he sipped his hot tea,

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he ran in the sense of isolation from his kind.

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Then it was that he began to notice the first

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time what a noise the rats were making. Surely, he thought,

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they cannot have been at it all the time I

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was reading. Had they been, I must have noticed it presently.

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When the noise increased, he satisfied himself that it was

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really new. It was evident that at first the rats

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had been frightened at the presence of a stranger and

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the light of fire and lamp, but that as the

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time went on they had grown bolder and were now

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disporting themselves as was their wont how busy they were,

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and hark to the strange noises. Up and down the

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old waned coat, over the ceiling, and under the floor

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they raced and gnawed and scratched. Malcolmson smiled to himself

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as he recalled to mind the saying of Missus Dempster,

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boogies is rats, and rats is boogies. The tea began

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to have its effect of the intellectual and nervous stimuloss,

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and he saw with joy another long spell of work

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to be done before the night was passed. And in

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the sense of security which it gave him, he allowed

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himself the luxuryy of a good look round the room.

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He took his lamp in one hat and went all around,

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wondering that so quaint and beautiful an old house had

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been so long neglected. The carving of the oak on

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the panels of the wain's coat was fine, and on

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and round the doors and windows. It was beautiful and

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of rare merit. There were some old pictures on the walls,

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but they were coated so thick with dust and dirt

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that he could not distinguish any detail of them, though

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he held his lamp as high as he could over

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his head. Here and there he went round, he saw

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some crack or hole blocked for a moment by the

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face of a rat, with its bright eyes glittering in

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the light. But in an instant it was gone, and

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a squeak of a scamper follower. The thing that most

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struck him, however, was the rope of the great alarm

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bell on the roof, which hung down in the corner

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of the room, on the right hand side of the fireplace.

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He pulled up close to the hearth a great, high backed,

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carved oak chair, and sat down to his last cup

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of tea. When this was done, he made up the

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fire and went back to his work, sitting at the

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corner of the table, having the fire to his left.

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For a little while, the rats disturbed him somewhat with

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their perpetual scampering, but he got accustomed to the noise,

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as one does to the ticking of the clock or

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to the roar of moving water, and he became so

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00:18:06,799 --> 00:18:10,440
immersed in his work that everything in the world except

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00:18:10,440 --> 00:18:13,599
the problem which he was trying to solve, passed away

240
00:18:13,640 --> 00:18:18,720
from him. He suddenly looked up. His problem was still unsolved,

241
00:18:19,160 --> 00:18:21,759
and there was in the air that sense of the

242
00:18:21,960 --> 00:18:26,200
hour before dawn, which is so dread to doubtful life.

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00:18:26,759 --> 00:18:30,079
The noise of the rats had ceased. Indeed, it seemed

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to him that it must have ceased but lately, and

245
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that it was the sudden cessation which had disturbed him.

246
00:18:39,519 --> 00:18:43,240
The fire had fallen low, but still it threw out

247
00:18:43,279 --> 00:18:47,920
a deep red glow. As he looked, he started, in

248
00:18:48,000 --> 00:18:54,440
spite of his saying freud. There on the great, high

249
00:18:54,559 --> 00:18:58,400
backed carved oat chair by the right side of the

250
00:18:58,440 --> 00:19:04,920
fireplace sat an enormous rat, steadily gallaring at him with

251
00:19:05,319 --> 00:19:09,559
baleful eyes. He had to motion to it, as though

252
00:19:09,599 --> 00:19:13,440
to hunt it away, but it did not stir. Then

253
00:19:13,480 --> 00:19:17,200
he made the motion of throwing something. Still it did

254
00:19:17,240 --> 00:19:22,960
not stir, but showed its great white teeth angrily, and

255
00:19:23,119 --> 00:19:27,880
its cruel eyes shone in the lamplight with an added vindictiveness.

256
00:19:28,799 --> 00:19:33,440
Malcolmson felt amazed, and, seizing the poker from the hearth,

257
00:19:34,400 --> 00:19:38,880
ran at it to kill it. Before, however, he could

258
00:19:38,920 --> 00:19:41,759
strike it, the rat with a squeak that sounded like

259
00:19:41,880 --> 00:19:47,079
the concentration of hate, jumped upon the floor, and running

260
00:19:47,200 --> 00:19:50,319
up the rope of the alarm bell, disappeared in the

261
00:19:50,400 --> 00:19:54,880
darkness beyond the range of the green shaded lamp. Instantly

262
00:19:55,000 --> 00:19:59,480
strange to say, the noisy scampering of the rats in

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00:19:59,559 --> 00:20:04,359
the way his coat began again. By this time Malcolms's

264
00:20:04,440 --> 00:20:07,799
mind was quite off the problem, and as a shrill

265
00:20:08,279 --> 00:20:12,559
cock crow outside told him of the approaching morning, he

266
00:20:12,599 --> 00:20:16,119
went to bed and to sleep. He slept so sound

267
00:20:16,279 --> 00:20:19,799
that he was not even waked by Missus Dempster coming

268
00:20:19,839 --> 00:20:22,599
to make up his room. Was only when she had

269
00:20:22,640 --> 00:20:25,839
tidied up the place and got his breakfast ready and

270
00:20:26,000 --> 00:20:29,799
tapped on the screen which closed in his bed, that

271
00:20:29,880 --> 00:20:33,680
he woke. He was a little tired still after his

272
00:20:33,880 --> 00:20:37,680
night's hard work, but a strong cup of tea soon

273
00:20:37,880 --> 00:20:42,400
freshened him up, and taking his book, he went out

274
00:20:42,559 --> 00:20:46,759
for his morning walk, bringing with him a few sandwiches

275
00:20:46,920 --> 00:20:51,200
lest he should not care to return till dinner time.

276
00:20:52,039 --> 00:20:55,880
He found a quiet walk between high elms, some way

277
00:20:55,920 --> 00:21:00,279
outside the town, and here he spent the grit greater

278
00:21:00,359 --> 00:21:05,680
part of the day studying his laplace. On his return,

279
00:21:06,200 --> 00:21:10,079
he looked in to see Missus Whitham and to thank

280
00:21:10,119 --> 00:21:14,200
her for her kindness. When she saw him coming through

281
00:21:14,359 --> 00:21:19,160
the diamond paned bay window of her sanctom, she came

282
00:21:19,200 --> 00:21:22,279
out to meet him and asked him in. She looked

283
00:21:22,319 --> 00:21:25,920
at him searchingly and shook her head as she said,

284
00:21:26,640 --> 00:21:30,000
you must not overdo it, sir. You are paler this

285
00:21:30,160 --> 00:21:34,160
morning than you should be. Two late hours and too

286
00:21:34,359 --> 00:21:37,200
hard work on the brains isn't good for any man.

287
00:21:38,039 --> 00:21:42,880
But tell me, sir, how did you pass the night? Well?

288
00:21:42,960 --> 00:21:47,400
I hope, but my heart, sir, I was glad when

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00:21:47,480 --> 00:21:50,599
Missus Dempster told me this morning that you were all

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00:21:50,720 --> 00:21:54,799
right and sleeping sound when she went in. Oh, I

291
00:21:55,119 --> 00:22:00,720
was all right, he answered, smiling. The somethings didn't worry

292
00:22:00,799 --> 00:22:05,400
me as yet, only the rats, and they had a circus,

293
00:22:05,480 --> 00:22:09,160
I tell you, all over the place. There was one

294
00:22:09,359 --> 00:22:13,680
wicked looking old devil that sat up on my chair

295
00:22:14,200 --> 00:22:17,559
by the fire and wouldn't go till I took the

296
00:22:17,640 --> 00:22:21,079
poker to him. And then he ran up the rope

297
00:22:21,119 --> 00:22:24,119
of the alarm bell and got to somewhere up the

298
00:22:24,240 --> 00:22:28,200
wall or the ceiling. I couldn't see where it was

299
00:22:28,240 --> 00:22:32,680
so dark, mercy on Us said missus, whiham an old

300
00:22:32,759 --> 00:22:37,279
devil and sitting on a chair by the fireside. Take care, sir,

301
00:22:37,599 --> 00:22:42,119
take care. There's many a true word spoken in jest.

302
00:22:42,799 --> 00:22:46,079
How do you mean pon my word? I don't understand

303
00:22:46,839 --> 00:22:51,039
an old devil? The old devil? Perhaps there, sir, you

304
00:22:51,160 --> 00:22:55,400
needn't laugh, for Malcolmson had broken into a hearty peal.

305
00:22:56,200 --> 00:22:59,720
You young folks think it easy to laugh at things

306
00:23:00,079 --> 00:23:04,640
that makes older one shudder. Never mind, sir, never mind,

307
00:23:05,279 --> 00:23:08,920
Please God, you'll laugh all the time. It's what I

308
00:23:09,000 --> 00:23:13,240
wish you myself. And the good lady beamed all over

309
00:23:13,359 --> 00:23:17,559
in sympathy with his enjoyment, her fears gone for a moment.

310
00:23:18,359 --> 00:23:22,480
Oh forgive me, said Malcolmson. Presently, don't think be rude.

311
00:23:23,039 --> 00:23:25,880
But the idea was too much for me. That the

312
00:23:25,960 --> 00:23:29,440
old devil himself was on the chair last night. And

313
00:23:29,480 --> 00:23:32,480
at the thought he laughed again. Then he went home

314
00:23:32,519 --> 00:23:37,960
to dinner this evening. The scampering of the rats began earlier. Indeed,

315
00:23:38,000 --> 00:23:41,039
it had been going on before his arrival, and only

316
00:23:41,119 --> 00:23:47,680
sees whilst his presence, by its freshness, disturbed them. After dinner,

317
00:23:48,160 --> 00:23:51,599
he sat by the fire for a while and had

318
00:23:51,640 --> 00:23:55,440
a smoke and then, having cleared his table, began to

319
00:23:55,559 --> 00:23:59,759
work as before tonight. The rats disturbed him more than

320
00:23:59,759 --> 00:24:03,400
they had done on the previous night. How they scampered

321
00:24:03,480 --> 00:24:07,519
up and down, and under and over, how they squeaked

322
00:24:07,559 --> 00:24:12,400
and scratched, and nowed, how they, getting boulder by degrees,

323
00:24:12,920 --> 00:24:16,440
came to the mouths of their holes, and to the

324
00:24:16,640 --> 00:24:20,720
chinks and cracks and crannies in the wains coating, till

325
00:24:20,759 --> 00:24:25,319
their eyes shone like tiny lamps as the firelight rose

326
00:24:25,359 --> 00:24:29,839
and fell. But to him, now doubtless accustomed to them,

327
00:24:30,200 --> 00:24:34,079
their eyes were not wicked. Only their playfulness touched him.

328
00:24:34,720 --> 00:24:38,200
Sometimes the boldest of them made sallyes out on the

329
00:24:38,279 --> 00:24:42,079
floor or along the moldings of the wains coat. Now

330
00:24:42,119 --> 00:24:46,720
and again, as they disturbed him, Malcolmson made a sound

331
00:24:46,839 --> 00:24:50,319
to frighten them, smiting the table with his hand, or

332
00:24:50,359 --> 00:24:55,480
giving a fierce sh so that they fled straightway to

333
00:24:55,640 --> 00:24:59,920
their holes. And so the early part of the night wore,

334
00:25:00,640 --> 00:25:04,880
and despite the noise, Malcolmson got more and more immersed

335
00:25:05,000 --> 00:25:08,480
in his work. All at once he stopped, as on

336
00:25:08,519 --> 00:25:12,880
the previous night, being overcome by a sudden silence. There

337
00:25:12,920 --> 00:25:16,640
was not the faintest sound of gnaw or scratch or squeak.

338
00:25:17,160 --> 00:25:21,319
The silence was of the grave. He remembered the odd

339
00:25:21,359 --> 00:25:24,519
occurrence the previous night, and instinctively he looked at the

340
00:25:24,640 --> 00:25:28,880
chair standing close by the fireside, and then a very

341
00:25:28,920 --> 00:25:33,920
odd sensation thrilled through him. There on the great, old,

342
00:25:34,599 --> 00:25:40,200
high backed carved oak chair beside the fireplace, sat the

343
00:25:40,240 --> 00:25:47,640
same enormous rat, steadily glaring at him with baleful eyes. Instinctively,

344
00:25:47,720 --> 00:25:50,440
he took the nearest thing to his hand, a book

345
00:25:50,480 --> 00:25:54,480
of logarithms, and flung it at it. The book was

346
00:25:54,599 --> 00:25:58,759
badly aimed, and the rat did not stir. So again

347
00:25:58,839 --> 00:26:02,279
the poker performed. Mormans of the previous night was repeated,

348
00:26:02,599 --> 00:26:06,680
and again the rat, being closely pursued, fled up the

349
00:26:06,799 --> 00:26:10,799
rope of the alarm bell. Strangely, too, the departure of

350
00:26:11,039 --> 00:26:15,160
this rat was instantly followed by the renewal of the

351
00:26:15,200 --> 00:26:19,160
noise made by the generro rat community. On this occasion,

352
00:26:19,359 --> 00:26:23,000
as on the previous one, Malcolmson could not see at

353
00:26:23,000 --> 00:26:25,759
what part of the room the rat disappeared, for the

354
00:26:25,799 --> 00:26:28,680
green shade of his lamp left the upper part of

355
00:26:28,720 --> 00:26:32,279
the room in darkness, and the fire had burned low

356
00:26:32,799 --> 00:26:37,000
on looking at his watch, he found it was close

357
00:26:37,440 --> 00:26:41,720
on midnight, and not sorry for the divertisement, he made

358
00:26:41,799 --> 00:26:46,720
up his fire and made himself his nightly pot of tea.

359
00:26:47,400 --> 00:26:49,759
He had got through a good spell of work and

360
00:26:49,880 --> 00:26:53,720
thought himself entitled to a cigarette, and so he sat

361
00:26:53,920 --> 00:26:56,880
on the great carved oak chair before the fire and

362
00:26:57,039 --> 00:27:00,920
enjoyed it. Whilst smoking, he began to think that he

363
00:27:00,920 --> 00:27:05,079
would like to know where the rat disappeared to, for

364
00:27:05,240 --> 00:27:09,880
he had certain ideas for tomorrow, not entirely disconnected with

365
00:27:09,960 --> 00:27:14,640
a rat trap. Accordingly, he lit another lamp and placed

366
00:27:14,680 --> 00:27:17,240
it so that it would shine well into the right

367
00:27:17,359 --> 00:27:20,960
end corner of the wall by the fireplace. Then he

368
00:27:21,039 --> 00:27:24,319
got all the books he had with him and placed

369
00:27:24,359 --> 00:27:28,079
them handy to throw at the vermin. Finally, he lifted

370
00:27:28,079 --> 00:27:31,359
the rope of the alarm bell and placed the end

371
00:27:31,400 --> 00:27:35,200
of it on the table, fixing the extreme end under

372
00:27:35,240 --> 00:27:38,680
the lamp. As he handled it, he could not help

373
00:27:38,759 --> 00:27:43,039
noticing how pliable it was, especially for so strong a

374
00:27:43,160 --> 00:27:46,799
rope and one not in use. You could hang him

375
00:27:46,799 --> 00:27:50,680
man with it, he thought to himself. When his preparations

376
00:27:50,759 --> 00:27:56,599
were made, he looked round and said, complacently, there now,

377
00:27:56,839 --> 00:28:00,359
my friend, I think we shall learn something of you.

378
00:28:00,559 --> 00:28:05,680
This time he began his work again, and, though as before,

379
00:28:05,960 --> 00:28:09,319
somewhat disturbed at first by the noise of the rats,

380
00:28:09,799 --> 00:28:15,359
soon lost himself in his proposition and problems. Again he

381
00:28:15,519 --> 00:28:20,880
was called to his immediate surrounding suddenly. This time it

382
00:28:21,000 --> 00:28:24,839
might not have been the sudden silence only which took

383
00:28:24,880 --> 00:28:28,519
his attention. There was a slight movement of the rope,

384
00:28:29,039 --> 00:28:32,680
and the lamp moved without stirring. He looked to see

385
00:28:32,759 --> 00:28:35,960
if his pile of books was within range, and then

386
00:28:36,119 --> 00:28:39,640
cast his eye along the rope. As he looked, he

387
00:28:39,680 --> 00:28:42,799
saw the great rat drop from the rope on the

388
00:28:42,920 --> 00:28:47,400
oak arm chair and sit there glaring at him. He

389
00:28:47,559 --> 00:28:51,599
raised a book in his right hand, and, taking careful aim,

390
00:28:51,880 --> 00:28:56,039
flung it at the rat. The latter, with a quick movement,

391
00:28:56,559 --> 00:29:00,680
sprang aside and dodged the missile. And then he took

392
00:29:00,759 --> 00:29:05,480
another book and a third and flung them one after

393
00:29:05,519 --> 00:29:10,680
the other at the rat, but each time unsuccessfully. At last,

394
00:29:10,759 --> 00:29:13,440
as he stood with a book poised in his hand

395
00:29:13,480 --> 00:29:17,960
to throw, the rat squeaked and seemed afrayed. This made

396
00:29:18,000 --> 00:29:21,920
Malcolmson more than ever eager to strike, and the book

397
00:29:22,000 --> 00:29:27,079
flew and struck the rat a resounding blow. It gave

398
00:29:27,119 --> 00:29:32,480
a terrified squeak, and, turning on his pursuer a look

399
00:29:32,640 --> 00:29:38,480
of terrible malevolence, ran up the chair back and made

400
00:29:38,599 --> 00:29:42,759
a great jump to the rope of the alarm bell,

401
00:29:43,839 --> 00:29:48,000
and ran up it like lightning. The lamp rocked under

402
00:29:48,000 --> 00:29:51,319
the sudden strain, but it was a heavy one and

403
00:29:51,400 --> 00:29:55,799
did not topple over. Malcolmson kept his eyes on the rat,

404
00:29:55,960 --> 00:29:58,359
and saw it by the light of the second lamp,

405
00:29:58,519 --> 00:30:02,680
leaped to a molding on the wainscot, and disappeared through

406
00:30:02,720 --> 00:30:05,680
a hole in one of the great pictures which hung

407
00:30:06,119 --> 00:30:09,920
on the wall, obscured and invisible through its coating of

408
00:30:10,039 --> 00:30:14,200
dirt and dust. I shall look up my friend's habitation

409
00:30:14,400 --> 00:30:16,960
in the morning, said the student, as he went over

410
00:30:17,039 --> 00:30:20,559
to collect his books. The third picture from the fireplace,

411
00:30:20,759 --> 00:30:24,559
I shall not forget. He picked up the books one

412
00:30:24,599 --> 00:30:29,079
by one, commenting on them as he lifted them. Conic

413
00:30:29,160 --> 00:30:34,599
sections he does not mind, nor cycloid oscillations, nor the principia,

414
00:30:34,839 --> 00:30:41,720
nor quaternions, nor thermodynamics. Now for a look at the

415
00:30:41,720 --> 00:30:45,519
book that fetched him. Malcolmson took it up and looked

416
00:30:45,519 --> 00:30:48,880
at it. As he did so he started, and a

417
00:30:48,920 --> 00:30:53,599
sudden pallor overspread his face. He looked around uneasily and

418
00:30:53,720 --> 00:30:58,880
shivered slightly as he murmured to himself the Bible my

419
00:30:59,039 --> 00:31:03,720
mother gave me. What an odd coincidence. He sat down

420
00:31:03,759 --> 00:31:07,440
to work again, and the rats in the wainscoat renewed

421
00:31:07,640 --> 00:31:12,000
their gambols. They did not disturb him, however, somehow their

422
00:31:12,039 --> 00:31:15,880
presence gave him a sense of companionship. But he could

423
00:31:15,920 --> 00:31:19,440
not attend to his work, and, after striving to master

424
00:31:19,599 --> 00:31:22,839
the subject on which he was engaged, gave it up

425
00:31:22,920 --> 00:31:26,839
in despair and went to bed as the first streak

426
00:31:27,079 --> 00:31:32,400
of dawn stole in through the eastern window. He slept

427
00:31:32,440 --> 00:31:37,839
heavily but uneasily, and dreamed much. And when Missus Dempster

428
00:31:38,000 --> 00:31:41,480
woke him late in the morning, he seemed ill at ease,

429
00:31:41,880 --> 00:31:44,440
and for a few minutes did not seem to realize

430
00:31:44,480 --> 00:31:49,119
exactly where he was. His first request rather surprised the servant,

431
00:31:49,640 --> 00:31:54,000
Missus Dempster. When I'm out today, I wish you would

432
00:31:54,039 --> 00:31:59,920
get the steps and dust or wash those pictures, especially

433
00:32:00,279 --> 00:32:03,839
that one the third from the fireplace. I want to

434
00:32:03,920 --> 00:32:08,640
see what they are. Late in the afternoon, Malcolmson worked

435
00:32:08,680 --> 00:32:12,200
at his books in the shaded walk, and the cheerfulness

436
00:32:12,240 --> 00:32:14,920
of the previous day came back to him as the

437
00:32:15,000 --> 00:32:18,519
day wore or on, and he found that his reading

438
00:32:19,039 --> 00:32:24,519
was progressing well. He had worked to a satisfactory conclusion

439
00:32:25,000 --> 00:32:28,680
all the problems which had as yet baffled him, and

440
00:32:28,799 --> 00:32:31,759
it was in a state of jubilation that he paid

441
00:32:31,839 --> 00:32:36,160
a visit to Missus Whitham at the Good Traveler. He

442
00:32:36,240 --> 00:32:39,599
found a stranger in the cozy sitting room with the landlady,

443
00:32:40,079 --> 00:32:43,920
who was introduced to him as doctor Thornhill. She was

444
00:32:43,960 --> 00:32:47,359
not quite at ease, and this, combined with the doctors

445
00:32:47,400 --> 00:32:51,440
plunging at once into a series of questions, made Malcolmson

446
00:32:51,640 --> 00:32:55,599
come to the conclusion that his presence was not an accident.

447
00:32:56,200 --> 00:33:01,519
So without preliminary he said, Doctor Thornhill, I shall with

448
00:33:01,599 --> 00:33:04,720
pleasure answer you any question you may choose to ask me,

449
00:33:05,240 --> 00:33:09,160
if you will answer me one question first. The doctor

450
00:33:09,200 --> 00:33:13,640
seemed surprised, but he smiled and answered at once done,

451
00:33:14,559 --> 00:33:18,559
what is it? Did Missus Whitham ask you to come

452
00:33:18,640 --> 00:33:23,200
here and see me and advise me? Doctor Thornhill for

453
00:33:23,240 --> 00:33:27,440
a moment was taken aback, and Missus Whitham got fiery

454
00:33:27,519 --> 00:33:30,839
red and turned away. But the doctor was a frank

455
00:33:30,960 --> 00:33:35,720
and ready man, he answered at once and openly. She did,

456
00:33:36,480 --> 00:33:39,559
but she didn't intend you to know it. I suppose

457
00:33:39,799 --> 00:33:43,480
it was my clumsy haste that made you suspect. She

458
00:33:43,759 --> 00:33:46,759
told me that she did not like the idea of

459
00:33:46,799 --> 00:33:49,920
your being in the house all by yourself, and that

460
00:33:50,000 --> 00:33:54,000
she thought you took too much strong tea. In fact,

461
00:33:54,240 --> 00:33:57,319
she wants me to advise you, if possible, to give

462
00:33:57,440 --> 00:34:00,440
up the tea and the very late hours. I was

463
00:34:00,480 --> 00:34:04,119
a keen student in my time, so I suppose I

464
00:34:04,200 --> 00:34:07,680
may take the liberty of a college man without offense,

465
00:34:08,039 --> 00:34:13,400
advise you not quite as a stranger. Malcolmson, with a

466
00:34:13,440 --> 00:34:18,360
bright smile, held out his hand shake as they say

467
00:34:18,360 --> 00:34:22,000
in America. He said, I must thank you for your kindness,

468
00:34:22,079 --> 00:34:25,880
and missus Whittham too, and your kindness deserves a return

469
00:34:26,000 --> 00:34:30,159
on my part. I promised to take no more strong tea,

470
00:34:30,679 --> 00:34:34,320
no tea at all till you let me, and I

471
00:34:34,679 --> 00:34:38,559
shall go to bed tonight at one o'clock at the latest.

472
00:34:38,960 --> 00:34:42,880
Will that do, capital, said the doctor. Now tell me

473
00:34:43,000 --> 00:34:46,639
all that you noticed in the old house. And so Malcolmson,

474
00:34:46,760 --> 00:34:50,320
then and there told in minute detail all that had

475
00:34:50,440 --> 00:34:54,119
happened in the last two nights. He was interrupted every

476
00:34:54,159 --> 00:34:59,280
now and then by some explanation from Missus Whittham, till finally,

477
00:34:59,360 --> 00:35:02,480
when he told of the episode of the Bible, the

478
00:35:02,599 --> 00:35:07,400
landlady's pent up emotions found vent in a shriek, and

479
00:35:07,519 --> 00:35:10,360
it was not tilling a stiff glass of brandy and

480
00:35:10,400 --> 00:35:14,599
water had been administered that she grew composed again. Doctor

481
00:35:14,679 --> 00:35:19,559
Thornhill listened with a face of growing gravity, and when

482
00:35:19,599 --> 00:35:23,679
the narrative was complete and Missus Whittheaden had been restored,

483
00:35:24,000 --> 00:35:26,760
he asked, the rat always went up the rope of

484
00:35:26,800 --> 00:35:30,880
the alarm bell. Oh I suppose you know, said doctor,

485
00:35:30,960 --> 00:35:35,719
after a pause, What that rope is? No, it is,

486
00:35:35,800 --> 00:35:39,000
said the doctor slowly, the very rope which the hangman

487
00:35:39,199 --> 00:35:44,719
used for all the victims of the Judge's judicial orangcoor.

488
00:35:46,199 --> 00:35:49,800
Here he was interrupted by another scream from Missus Whitham,

489
00:35:50,440 --> 00:35:53,880
and steps had to be taken for her recovery. Malcolmson,

490
00:35:54,039 --> 00:35:56,159
having looked at his watch and found that it was

491
00:35:56,239 --> 00:35:59,320
close to his dinner hour, had gone home before her

492
00:35:59,400 --> 00:36:04,360
complete recover him. When Missus Woodham was herself again, she

493
00:36:04,559 --> 00:36:08,199
almost assailed the doctor with angry questions as to what

494
00:36:08,360 --> 00:36:11,559
he meant by putting such horrible ideas into the poor

495
00:36:11,639 --> 00:36:15,199
young man's head. He has quite enough they're already to

496
00:36:15,320 --> 00:36:20,679
upset him, she added. Doctor Thornhill replied, my dear madam,

497
00:36:21,000 --> 00:36:24,079
I had a distinct purpose in it. I wanted to

498
00:36:24,199 --> 00:36:27,880
draw his attention to the bell rope and to fix

499
00:36:27,920 --> 00:36:31,840
it there. It may be that he is in a

500
00:36:32,119 --> 00:36:36,679
highly overwrought state and has been studying too much, although

501
00:36:36,719 --> 00:36:39,239
I am bound to say that he seems a sound

502
00:36:39,280 --> 00:36:43,960
and healthy a young man mentally and bodily as ever

503
00:36:44,000 --> 00:36:47,679
I saw. But then the rats and that suggestion of

504
00:36:47,719 --> 00:36:50,800
the devil. The doctor shook his head and went on,

505
00:36:51,519 --> 00:36:54,840
I would have offered to go and stay the first

506
00:36:54,920 --> 00:36:57,559
night with him, but that I felt sure it would

507
00:36:57,559 --> 00:37:02,000
have been a cause of offense. He may get in

508
00:37:02,039 --> 00:37:06,079
the night some strange fright or hallucination, and if he does,

509
00:37:06,199 --> 00:37:10,480
I want him to pull that rope all alone as

510
00:37:10,519 --> 00:37:13,760
he is. It will give us warning and we may

511
00:37:13,800 --> 00:37:16,760
reach him in time to be of service. I shall

512
00:37:16,800 --> 00:37:20,320
be sitting up pretty late tonight and shall keep my

513
00:37:20,400 --> 00:37:24,360
ears open. Do not be alarmed if ben Church gets

514
00:37:24,519 --> 00:37:28,679
a surprise before morning. Oh doctor, what do you mean,

515
00:37:29,000 --> 00:37:34,760
what do you mean? I mean this that possibly, nay more, probably,

516
00:37:35,280 --> 00:37:37,960
we shall hear the great alarm bell from the Judge's

517
00:37:38,000 --> 00:37:42,320
house tonight, And the doctor made about an effective an

518
00:37:42,360 --> 00:37:46,880
exit as could be thought of. When Malcolmson arrived home,

519
00:37:47,039 --> 00:37:51,679
he found that it was a little after his usual time,

520
00:37:52,360 --> 00:37:56,760
and Missus Dempster had gone away. The rules of Greenhouse

521
00:37:56,920 --> 00:38:00,360
charity were not to be neglected. He was glad to

522
00:38:00,400 --> 00:38:03,639
see that the place was bright and tidy, with a

523
00:38:03,719 --> 00:38:08,119
cheerful fire and a well trimmed lamp. The evening was

524
00:38:08,280 --> 00:38:11,480
colder than might have been expected in April, and a

525
00:38:11,519 --> 00:38:16,079
heavy wind was blowing with such rapidly increasing strength that

526
00:38:16,119 --> 00:38:20,400
there was every promise of a storm during the night.

527
00:38:21,280 --> 00:38:24,480
For a few minutes after his entrance, the noise of

528
00:38:24,519 --> 00:38:28,920
the rat ceased, but so soon as they became accustomed

529
00:38:28,920 --> 00:38:32,559
to his presence they began again. He was glad to

530
00:38:32,599 --> 00:38:35,639
hear them, for he felt once more the feeling of

531
00:38:35,880 --> 00:38:40,239
companionship in their noise, and his mind ran back to

532
00:38:40,360 --> 00:38:44,639
the strange fact that they only ceased to manifest themselves

533
00:38:45,039 --> 00:38:48,679
when the other, the great rat with the baleful eyes,

534
00:38:49,360 --> 00:38:54,320
came upon the scene. The reading lamp only was lit,

535
00:38:54,559 --> 00:38:57,400
and its green shade kept the ceiling and upper part

536
00:38:57,440 --> 00:39:00,800
of the room in darkness, so that the cheerful light

537
00:39:00,880 --> 00:39:04,360
from the hearths, spreading over the floor and shining on

538
00:39:04,440 --> 00:39:07,199
the white cloth laid over the end of the table,

539
00:39:07,400 --> 00:39:11,440
was warm and cheery. Malcolmson sat down to his dinner

540
00:39:11,519 --> 00:39:15,880
with a good appetite and a buoyant spirit. After his

541
00:39:16,000 --> 00:39:19,960
dinner and a cigarette, he sat steadily down to work,

542
00:39:20,480 --> 00:39:24,440
determined not to let anything disturb him, for he remembered

543
00:39:24,480 --> 00:39:27,360
his promise to the doctor and made up his mind

544
00:39:27,400 --> 00:39:30,199
to make the best of the time at his disposal.

545
00:39:31,239 --> 00:39:34,039
For an hour or so he worked all right, and

546
00:39:34,159 --> 00:39:37,440
then his thoughts began to wander from his books. The

547
00:39:37,519 --> 00:39:41,599
actual circumstances around him, and the calls on his physical

548
00:39:41,639 --> 00:39:46,519
attention and his nervous susceptibility were not to be denied.

549
00:39:47,119 --> 00:39:49,480
By this time, the wind had become a gale, the

550
00:39:49,480 --> 00:39:52,559
gale a storm. The old house solid, though it was,

551
00:39:52,679 --> 00:39:56,920
seemed to shake to its foundation, and the storm roared

552
00:39:57,199 --> 00:40:02,159
and raged through its many chimneys and its queer old gables,

553
00:40:02,559 --> 00:40:07,440
producing strange, unearthly sounds in the empty rooms and corridors.

554
00:40:07,920 --> 00:40:11,079
Even the great alarm bell on the roof must have

555
00:40:11,239 --> 00:40:14,440
felt the force of the wind, for the rope rose

556
00:40:14,480 --> 00:40:18,360
and fell slightly, as though the bell were moved a

557
00:40:18,400 --> 00:40:22,159
little from time to time, and the limber rope fell

558
00:40:22,239 --> 00:40:25,679
on the oak floor with a hard and hollow sound.

559
00:40:26,679 --> 00:40:30,280
As Malcolm listened to it, he bethought himself of the

560
00:40:30,320 --> 00:40:34,559
doctor's words, it is the rope which the hangman used

561
00:40:34,679 --> 00:40:39,639
for the victims of the judge's judicial rancor. And he

562
00:40:39,719 --> 00:40:43,159
went over to the corner of the fireplace and took

563
00:40:43,199 --> 00:40:46,920
it in his hand to look at it. There seemed

564
00:40:46,960 --> 00:40:51,639
a sort of deadly interest in it, and as he

565
00:40:51,679 --> 00:40:55,239
stood there, he lost himself for a moment in speculation

566
00:40:55,920 --> 00:40:59,440
as to who these victims were, and the grim wish

567
00:40:59,519 --> 00:41:02,719
of the giant to have such a ghastly relic under

568
00:41:03,440 --> 00:41:07,400
his eyes. As he stood there, the swaying bell on

569
00:41:07,480 --> 00:41:11,920
the roofs still lifted the rope now and again. But

570
00:41:12,000 --> 00:41:15,880
presently there came a new sensation, a sort of tremor

571
00:41:15,960 --> 00:41:19,840
in the rope, as though something was moving along it.

572
00:41:20,679 --> 00:41:25,880
Looking up instantly, Malcolmson saw the great rat coming slowly

573
00:41:26,000 --> 00:41:29,719
down towards him, glaring at him steadily. He dropped the

574
00:41:29,840 --> 00:41:33,920
rope and started back with a muttered curse, and the rat, turning,

575
00:41:34,320 --> 00:41:37,920
ran up the slope again and disappeared. And at the

576
00:41:38,039 --> 00:41:41,760
same instant, Malcolm soon became conscious that the noise of

577
00:41:41,800 --> 00:41:45,280
the other rats, which had ceased for a while, began again.

578
00:41:46,199 --> 00:41:48,920
All this set him thinking, and it occurred to him

579
00:41:48,960 --> 00:41:51,639
that he had not investigated the layer of the rat,

580
00:41:52,039 --> 00:41:56,280
or looked at the pictures as he had intended. He

581
00:41:56,440 --> 00:42:00,679
lit the other lamp without the shade, and holding it up,

582
00:42:01,119 --> 00:42:04,880
went and stood opposite the third picture from the fireplace

583
00:42:05,199 --> 00:42:07,599
on the right hand side, where he had seen the

584
00:42:07,679 --> 00:42:11,639
rat disappear on the previous night. At the first glance,

585
00:42:11,800 --> 00:42:15,840
he started back so suddenly that he almost dropped the lamp,

586
00:42:16,280 --> 00:42:20,960
and a deadly pallor overspread his face. His knees shook,

587
00:42:21,440 --> 00:42:24,960
and heavy drops of sweat came on his forehead, and

588
00:42:25,000 --> 00:42:28,519
he trembled like an aspen. But he was young and

589
00:42:28,559 --> 00:42:32,239
plucky and pulled himself together, and, after the pause of

590
00:42:32,280 --> 00:42:35,639
a few seconds, stepped forward again, raised up the lamp

591
00:42:35,679 --> 00:42:38,920
and examined the picture, which had been dusted and washed

592
00:42:39,039 --> 00:42:43,079
and now stood out clearly. It was a judge dressed

593
00:42:43,119 --> 00:42:47,280
in his robes of scarlet and ermine, His face was

594
00:42:47,360 --> 00:42:53,039
strong and merciless, evil, crafty and addictive, with a sensual mouth,

595
00:42:53,719 --> 00:42:57,800
hooked nose of ruddy color and shaped like the beak

596
00:42:57,960 --> 00:43:00,880
of a bird of prey. The rest of his face

597
00:43:01,360 --> 00:43:05,480
was of a cadaverous color. The eyes were of peculiar

598
00:43:05,719 --> 00:43:10,599
brilliance and with a terribly malignant expression. As he looked

599
00:43:10,599 --> 00:43:14,360
at them, Malcolmson grew cold, for he saw there the

600
00:43:14,480 --> 00:43:18,880
very counterpart of the eyes of the great rat. The

601
00:43:19,000 --> 00:43:22,519
lamp almost fell from his hand. He saw the rat

602
00:43:22,639 --> 00:43:26,599
with its baleful eyes, peering out through the hole in

603
00:43:26,679 --> 00:43:30,239
the corner of the picture, and noted the sudden cessation

604
00:43:31,000 --> 00:43:34,760
of the noise of the other rats. However, he pulled

605
00:43:34,840 --> 00:43:38,719
himself together and went on with his examination of the picture.

606
00:43:39,480 --> 00:43:43,440
The judge was seated in a great, high backed carved

607
00:43:43,800 --> 00:43:47,440
oat chair on the right hand side of the great

608
00:43:47,519 --> 00:43:51,960
stone fireplace, where in the corner a rope hung down

609
00:43:52,039 --> 00:43:56,320
from the ceiling, its end lying coiled on the floor.

610
00:43:56,960 --> 00:44:01,840
With a feeling of something like horror, Malcolm's and recognized

611
00:44:01,920 --> 00:44:05,400
the scene of the room as it stood, and gazed

612
00:44:05,440 --> 00:44:08,119
around him in an awe struck manner, as though he

613
00:44:08,199 --> 00:44:12,760
expected to find some strange presence behind him. He looked

614
00:44:12,840 --> 00:44:15,719
over to the corner of the fireplace, and with a

615
00:44:15,800 --> 00:44:19,039
loud cry, he let the lamp fall from his hand.

616
00:44:20,039 --> 00:44:24,519
There in the judge's armchair, with a rope hanging behind,

617
00:44:25,280 --> 00:44:30,320
sat the rat with the judge's baleful eyes now intensified

618
00:44:30,800 --> 00:44:35,119
as with fiendish leer. Save for the howling of the storm,

619
00:44:35,519 --> 00:44:41,760
without there was silence. The fallen lamp recalled Malcolmson to himself.

620
00:44:42,280 --> 00:44:45,960
Fortunately it was of metal, and so the oil was

621
00:44:46,039 --> 00:44:49,800
not spilt. However, the practical need of attending to it

622
00:44:50,119 --> 00:44:54,440
settled at once his nervous apprehensions. When he had turned

623
00:44:54,440 --> 00:44:57,639
it out, he wiped his brow and thought for a moment,

624
00:44:58,400 --> 00:45:01,320
this will not do, he said to himself. If I

625
00:45:01,400 --> 00:45:04,320
go on like this, I shall become a crazy fool.

626
00:45:04,559 --> 00:45:08,159
This must stop, I promised the doctor. I would not

627
00:45:08,360 --> 00:45:13,599
take tea faith. He was pretty right. My nerves must

628
00:45:13,599 --> 00:45:17,639
have been getting into a queer state. Funny, I did

629
00:45:17,679 --> 00:45:21,599
not notice it. I never felt better in my life. However,

630
00:45:21,760 --> 00:45:24,360
it is all right now, and I shall not be

631
00:45:25,199 --> 00:45:29,920
a fool again. Then he mixed himself a good stiff

632
00:45:30,199 --> 00:45:34,599
glass of brandy and water and resolutely sat down to

633
00:45:34,719 --> 00:45:38,719
his work. It was nearly an hour when he looked

634
00:45:38,800 --> 00:45:43,159
up from his book, disturbed by the sudden stillness without.

635
00:45:43,280 --> 00:45:47,159
The wind howled and roared louder than ever, and the

636
00:45:47,280 --> 00:45:51,199
rain drove in sheets against the windows, beating like hail

637
00:45:51,440 --> 00:45:56,360
on the glass. But within there was no sound whatever,

638
00:45:56,639 --> 00:45:59,559
save the echo of the wind as it roared in

639
00:45:59,639 --> 00:46:03,880
the gray chimney. And now and then a hiss as

640
00:46:04,000 --> 00:46:07,360
a few raindrops found their way down the chimney in

641
00:46:07,880 --> 00:46:11,639
a lull of the storm. The fire had fallen low

642
00:46:12,400 --> 00:46:15,760
and had ceased to flame, though it threw out a

643
00:46:16,119 --> 00:46:21,760
red glow. Malcolmson listened attentively and presently heard a thin

644
00:46:21,920 --> 00:46:26,320
squeaking noise, very faint. It came from a corner of

645
00:46:26,320 --> 00:46:28,920
the room where the rope hung down, and he thought

646
00:46:29,360 --> 00:46:32,360
it was the creaking of the rope on the floor

647
00:46:32,800 --> 00:46:35,920
as the swaying of the bell raised and lowered it.

648
00:46:36,519 --> 00:46:39,960
Looking up, however, he saw in the dim light the

649
00:46:39,960 --> 00:46:44,519
great rat clinging to the rope and gnawing it. The

650
00:46:44,639 --> 00:46:48,159
rope was already nearly gnawed through. He could see the

651
00:46:48,280 --> 00:46:52,960
lighter color where the strands were laid bare. As he looked,

652
00:46:53,039 --> 00:46:56,039
the job was completed, and the severed end of the

653
00:46:56,119 --> 00:47:01,440
rope fell, clattering on the oaken floor, whilst for an

654
00:47:01,559 --> 00:47:05,400
instant the great rat remained like a knob or tassel

655
00:47:05,800 --> 00:47:08,320
at the end of the rope, which now began to

656
00:47:08,360 --> 00:47:13,000
sway to and fro. Malcolmson felt for a moment another

657
00:47:13,039 --> 00:47:16,920
pang of terror as he saw that now the possibility

658
00:47:17,360 --> 00:47:21,119
of calling the outer world to his assistance was cut off,

659
00:47:21,679 --> 00:47:26,199
But an intense anger took its place, and, seizing the

660
00:47:26,239 --> 00:47:30,480
book he was reading, he hurled it at the rat.

661
00:47:30,840 --> 00:47:34,519
The blow was well aimed, but before the missile could

662
00:47:34,559 --> 00:47:38,000
reach him, the rat dropped off and struck the floor

663
00:47:38,079 --> 00:47:43,000
with a soft thud. Malcolmson instantly rushed over towards him,

664
00:47:43,360 --> 00:47:46,400
but it darted away and disappeared in the darkness of

665
00:47:46,440 --> 00:47:50,719
the shadows of the room. Malcolmson felt that his work

666
00:47:50,840 --> 00:47:54,519
was over for the night, and determined then and there

667
00:47:55,039 --> 00:47:59,360
to vary the monotony of the proceedings by a hunt

668
00:47:59,400 --> 00:48:02,280
for the rat, and took off the green shade of

669
00:48:02,280 --> 00:48:06,000
the lamp so as to ensure a wider spreading light.

670
00:48:06,639 --> 00:48:09,639
As he did so, the gloom of the upper part

671
00:48:09,679 --> 00:48:14,159
of the room was relieved, and in the new flood

672
00:48:14,360 --> 00:48:19,280
of light, great by comparison with the previous darkness. The

673
00:48:19,320 --> 00:48:23,960
pictures on the wall stood out boldly. From where he stood,

674
00:48:24,519 --> 00:48:28,960
Malcolmson saw right opposite to him the third picture on

675
00:48:29,079 --> 00:48:32,559
the wall, from the right of the fireplace. He rubbed

676
00:48:32,559 --> 00:48:35,880
his eyes with surprise, and then a great fear began

677
00:48:36,119 --> 00:48:39,400
to come upon him. In the center of the picture

678
00:48:40,119 --> 00:48:44,480
was a great, irregular patch of brown canvas, as fresh

679
00:48:44,639 --> 00:48:48,480
as when it was stretched on the frame. The background

680
00:48:48,760 --> 00:48:53,039
was as before, with the chair and chimney, corner and rope,

681
00:48:53,239 --> 00:48:57,119
but the fear of the judge had disappeared. Malcolm, almost

682
00:48:57,199 --> 00:49:00,760
in a chill of horror, turned slowly away, and then

683
00:49:00,800 --> 00:49:03,239
he began to shake and tremble like a man in

684
00:49:03,280 --> 00:49:07,440
a palsy. His strength seemed to have left him, and

685
00:49:07,559 --> 00:49:11,960
he was incapable of action or movement, hardly even of thought.

686
00:49:12,320 --> 00:49:17,199
He could only see and hear. There on the great,

687
00:49:17,480 --> 00:49:22,519
high backed, carved oak chair sat the Judge in his

688
00:49:22,800 --> 00:49:29,239
robes of scarlet and ermine, with his belleful eyes glaring vindictively,

689
00:49:29,840 --> 00:49:35,679
and a smile of triumph on the resolute cruel mouth,

690
00:49:36,559 --> 00:49:41,639
as he lifted with his hands a black cap. Malcolmson

691
00:49:42,000 --> 00:49:45,400
felt as if the blood was running from his heart

692
00:49:45,960 --> 00:49:51,880
as one does in moments of prolonged suspense. There was

693
00:49:51,960 --> 00:49:56,920
a singing in his ears. Without he could hear the

694
00:49:57,039 --> 00:50:02,360
roar and howl of the tempest, and through it swept

695
00:50:02,440 --> 00:50:07,239
on the storm. Came the striking of midnight by the

696
00:50:07,400 --> 00:50:12,239
great chimes in the market place. He stood for a

697
00:50:12,320 --> 00:50:17,400
space of time that seemed to him endless, still as

698
00:50:17,440 --> 00:50:23,800
a statute, and with wide open horror struck eyes breathless.

699
00:50:24,840 --> 00:50:29,519
As the clock struck, so the smile of triumph on

700
00:50:29,679 --> 00:50:34,760
the judge's face intensified, and at the last stroke of

701
00:50:34,840 --> 00:50:40,840
midnight he placed the black cap on his head. Slowly

702
00:50:41,559 --> 00:50:45,960
and deliberately, the judge rose from his chair and picked

703
00:50:46,079 --> 00:50:49,480
up the piece of rope of the alarm bell which

704
00:50:49,639 --> 00:50:53,840
lay on the floor, drew it through his hands as

705
00:50:53,880 --> 00:50:59,280
if he enjoyed its touch, and then deliberately began to

706
00:50:59,320 --> 00:51:03,280
not when end of it, fashioning it into a noose.

707
00:51:04,280 --> 00:51:09,039
This he tightened and tested with his foot, pulling hard

708
00:51:09,079 --> 00:51:13,280
at it till he was satisfied, and then making a

709
00:51:13,400 --> 00:51:17,559
running noose of it, which he held in his hand.

710
00:51:18,559 --> 00:51:22,559
Then he began to move along the table on the

711
00:51:22,599 --> 00:51:27,760
opposite side of Malcolmson, keeping his eyes on him until

712
00:51:28,119 --> 00:51:31,840
he had passed him, when with a quick movement he

713
00:51:32,039 --> 00:51:36,719
stood in front of the door. Malcolmson then began to

714
00:51:36,719 --> 00:51:40,800
feel that he was trapped and tried to think of

715
00:51:40,840 --> 00:51:44,639
what he should do. There was some fascination in the

716
00:51:44,760 --> 00:51:48,760
judge's eyes, which he never took off him, and he

717
00:51:49,000 --> 00:51:54,119
had perforced to look. He saw the judge approach, still

718
00:51:54,239 --> 00:51:58,679
keeping between him and the door, and raise the noose

719
00:51:59,079 --> 00:52:02,559
and throw it towardwards him, as if to entangle him

720
00:52:03,079 --> 00:52:06,079
with a great effort. He made a quick movement to

721
00:52:06,199 --> 00:52:10,079
one side and saw the rope fall beside him, and

722
00:52:10,199 --> 00:52:14,440
heard it strike the oaken floor. Again, the judge raised

723
00:52:14,480 --> 00:52:18,960
the noose and tried to ensnare him, even keeping his

724
00:52:19,079 --> 00:52:23,039
bell full eyes fixed on him, and each time, by

725
00:52:23,079 --> 00:52:27,280
a mighty effort, the student just managed to evade it.

726
00:52:27,760 --> 00:52:32,239
So this went on for many times, the judge seeming

727
00:52:32,360 --> 00:52:38,000
never discouraged nor discomposed at failure, but playing as a

728
00:52:38,079 --> 00:52:42,719
cat does with a mouse. At last, in despair which

729
00:52:43,239 --> 00:52:49,360
had reached its climax, Malcolmson cast a quick glance round him.

730
00:52:50,000 --> 00:52:53,440
The lamp seemed to have blazed up, and there was

731
00:52:53,480 --> 00:52:56,880
a fairly good light in the room, at the many

732
00:52:57,039 --> 00:53:01,719
rat holes and in the chinks, and of the wainscoat,

733
00:53:02,000 --> 00:53:06,480
he saw the rat's eyes, and this aspect that was

734
00:53:06,519 --> 00:53:10,920
purely physical, gave him a gleam of comfort. He looked

735
00:53:11,039 --> 00:53:14,519
round and saw the rope of the great alarm bell

736
00:53:15,039 --> 00:53:19,239
was laden with rats. Every inch of it was covered

737
00:53:19,280 --> 00:53:23,280
with them, and more and more were pouring through the

738
00:53:23,400 --> 00:53:28,239
small circular hole in the ceiling whence it emerged, so

739
00:53:28,880 --> 00:53:32,679
that with their weight, the bell was beginning to sway.

740
00:53:33,519 --> 00:53:38,840
Hark it had swayed till the clapper had touched the bell.

741
00:53:39,400 --> 00:53:42,519
The sound was but a tiny one, but the bell

742
00:53:42,760 --> 00:53:47,039
was only beginning to sway, and it would increase. At

743
00:53:47,079 --> 00:53:50,159
the sound of the judge, who had been keeping his

744
00:53:50,360 --> 00:53:55,639
eyes fixed on Malcolmson looked up and a scowl of

745
00:53:55,840 --> 00:54:02,199
diabolical anger overspread his face. His eyes fairly glowed like

746
00:54:02,320 --> 00:54:06,199
hot coals, and he stamped his foot with a sound

747
00:54:06,239 --> 00:54:10,079
that seemed to make the house shake. A dreadful peal

748
00:54:10,199 --> 00:54:13,880
of thunder broke overhead as he raised the rope again,

749
00:54:14,519 --> 00:54:18,800
whilst the rats kept running up and down the rope

750
00:54:19,119 --> 00:54:23,920
as though working against time. This time, instead of throwing it,

751
00:54:24,320 --> 00:54:28,440
he drew close to his victim and held open the

752
00:54:28,480 --> 00:54:33,599
noose as he approached. As he came closer, there seemed

753
00:54:33,679 --> 00:54:39,320
something paralyzing in his very presence, and Malcolmson stood rigid

754
00:54:39,719 --> 00:54:44,559
as a corpse. He felt the judge's icy fingers touch

755
00:54:44,639 --> 00:54:50,320
his throat as he adjusted the rope. The noose tightened, tightened.

756
00:54:51,360 --> 00:54:55,440
Then the judge, taking the rigid form of the student

757
00:54:55,559 --> 00:54:59,920
in his arms, carried him over and placed him stad

758
00:55:00,719 --> 00:55:05,159
in the oak chair, and, stepping up beside him, put

759
00:55:05,199 --> 00:55:08,840
his hand up and caught the end of the swaying

760
00:55:08,960 --> 00:55:13,079
rope of the alarm bell. As he raised his hand,

761
00:55:13,519 --> 00:55:18,440
the rats fled, squeaking and disappeared through the hole in

762
00:55:18,519 --> 00:55:22,320
the ceiling. Taking the end of the noose which was

763
00:55:22,480 --> 00:55:26,159
round Malcolmson's neck, he tied it to the hanging bell,

764
00:55:27,000 --> 00:55:33,320
and then, descending, pulled away the chair. When the alarm

765
00:55:33,360 --> 00:55:37,079
bell of the judge's house began to sound, a crowd

766
00:55:37,199 --> 00:55:41,559
soon assembled. Lights and torches of various kinds appeared, and

767
00:55:41,679 --> 00:55:45,360
soon a silent crowd was hurrying to the spot. They

768
00:55:45,440 --> 00:55:48,599
knocked loudly at the door, but there was no reply.

769
00:55:49,639 --> 00:55:53,360
Then they burst in the door and poured into the

770
00:55:53,360 --> 00:55:57,880
great dining room, the doctor at the head. There at

771
00:55:57,880 --> 00:56:00,280
the end of the rope of the great alarm bell

772
00:56:00,719 --> 00:56:03,760
hung the body of the student, and on the face

773
00:56:04,079 --> 00:56:07,840
of the judge in the picture was a malignant smile.

774
00:56:08,920 --> 00:56:11,079
And of the judge's house