►
0
The Invisible Choir
By BROUGHTON BRANDENBURG
(Copyright.)
She was waiting for me when I
rot down to the office that morning.
I remember it was a Monday late in
Mav and mv stenographer had not ar
rived In her place beside the door
1 did not see her immediately, and
onlv her trembling efforts to rise at
tracted mv attention. A whiter nr
rnore ghostly effect than that of her
snowv hair, pallid face and deep-sunk
eves all in relief from a severe black
dress it would be difficult to imag
ine and I confess that I started the
merest trifle as she came forward out
of the shadowy anteroom corner, her
thin hands extended toward me.
■ I hope this is Mr. Lawrence Rand?”
she said, in a low, eager voice.
“No, madam, these are Mr. Rand's
offices’, and I am Mr. Duncan, one of
his partners.”
“I am Mrs. Dwight Stokes Coleman,
and it is concerning a most important
and peculiar matter, which has to do
with my husband, Dr. Coleman, the
pastor of the Fifth Avenue Disciples
church, that I have come to see Mr.
Rand. I must have help at once or I
ehall go mad myself. My family physi
cian. Dr. Bowles, in Seventy-second
street, came to us at our request yes
terday afternoon and recommended me
to Mr. Rand. He says that it is a mat
ter outside the bounds of any profes
sion except Mr. Rand's, which seems
to be the rendering commonplace of
things apparently most extraordinary.”
"Perhaps if you state the case I may
be able to assist you, and I can at
least restate it to Mr. Rand on his
return from Boston to-morrow.”
Relieved of her indirection of state
ment and put in the proper proportion,
her story was as follows: A most mys
terious circumstance was weighing so
heavily on her husband's mind that she
feared he was about to lose his reason,
if it was not already impaired. He had
obtained a metropolitan parish only
that year, was overcoming some bit
ter opposition among his church mem
bers, and was completing the last vol
ume of an important historical work.
Altogether, he was at the critical point
of his career, and. with two sons and
two daughters not yet out of college,
everything was at stake.
On Sunday, the 14th of April, a few i
minutes after he had begun his morn
ing sermon, he heard distinctly a
choir singing an anthem. He thought
it a trifle unusual, there being no
church in the neighborhood from
which the music could come with such
clearness. The music was very good,
and. after the service, he mentioned
it to the organist, who sat in the organ
loft immediately behind the pulpit.
The organist was certain that he had
heard no music, saying there had not
been a sound to interrupt the sermon.
As a matter of curiosity, the organist
and Dr. Coleman together laughingly
questioned the members of the choir.
All were positive that they had heard
no singing. A horrible fear struck a
chill to the old clergyman’s heart.
l\as his mind giving way? Were
the anthem and the unseen choir the
first hallucination, the harbinger of
coming mental confusion, and the first
sign of the horrible night of the mind?
On several succeeding Sundays the
same mysterious music was heard by
the doctor, but by no one else, and he
"as now on the verge of nervous pros
tration.
I assured Mrs. Coleman we would
take up the matter immediately, wired
Rand to insure his return, and gave
him a detailed account of the whole
affair, when he came in Tuesday night.
Bright and early on Wednesday
morning we were at Dr. Coleman’s
‘Ouse, in going over the case again,
however, we found nothing to be in
any way different front the facts al
ready in hand, except that although
e voices were always the same, the
music was different each time. With
a note from the pastor to the sexton.
"ent to the church at 11 o’clock,
an , posing as an interior decorator’s
esumate clerks, we slowly inspected
e'er.v inch of the interior.
It was four o'clock in the afternoon
, e" we left. and all that we had
und can be told in a few words,
he church, more than 30 years old,
talh deadI> comrnonI,lace in its de
r . • 3f tlrCd’ dls£usted, and quite
mcm,J „to believe the old clergyman
ta'ly ""balanced. Hand was bit
determined to go on. Said he:
h.,.* I03,0, 1 am Soing to Ay >n the
im i / facts ill this matter. I pur
]V a -° U,nt ^or ,*le impossible. Kind
!lange to have the Callahan agency
... m<? men at the studio to
tu„ laJ'r morning to gather data on all
'he other churches.”
fact 'i'a-0”1 See ^and l*lat evening. It
till 'o.. 1 not cateh a glimpse of him
whit/ Urday Evening. Then he was
ces*f\W°rn’ tlredi and Plainly unsuc
ln as he came into the club dln
and /,?’ ,where 1 "as awaiting him,
faint , , d0Wn opposite me with a
aint- brief smi!e_
®om?ntt0wd Wlth the table silver a
said „ before he spoke, then he
to tiip'rv’''- y°u So with me
®orniLf1S,C,ples church to-morrow
writ, S tv tbis because 1 have
'hat it , -n Coleman » note saying
So into t be necessary for me to
"an, 16 bnlpit with him, and I
-°u to sit in the first row.”
I burst into a hearty laugh at the
idea of Rand’s posing as a clergyman,
but neither the ethical nor humorous
phases of the situation seemed to
strike him.
The next morning Rand appeared
in church in clerical garb. The strick
en clergyman, his white head bowed on
his hand as he leaned on the arm of
his chair, never looked up, after pre
senting Rand as Rev. Dr. Carleton
Smith of Chicago, ' who would read the
morning lesson."
from my seat in the first pew, per
haps 20 feet from the exact spot where
the speaker was standing, I could ob
serve every movement that both he
and Rand might make.
It was fully 15 minutes before any
thing unusual occurred.
Suddenly the old clergyman's voice
took on a momentarily rasping note—
an inarticulate cry of agony and des
peration! He went on speaking me
chanically, with his eyes closed. Rand
sat motionless, but with the manner of
a tiger about to spring. He was lis
tening, and 1 could tell from his face
that he also was hearing what was
beating in Dr. Coleman’s ears—the
rolling anthem of the unseen singers.
As for me, 1 could not catch the
faintest sound beyond a low, confused
murmur. Rand removed the micro
phone, which he always carried for
magnifying sounds, once or twice
after a few seconds, then quietly drew
some sheets, apparently a small set ol
notes, from his pocket, found some
thing, folded the pages, and instantly
was lost in the most profound thought.
Dr. Coleman was staggering, struggling
through his address. I stood ready to
rush to catch him should he reel and
fall forward from the pulpit. There
were evident signs of deep concern for
him in the congregation. Perhaps it
was only two minutes, but it
seemed an hour that this situation
held.
Then Rand, rising unobtrusively,
reached forward and turned off the
desk light. A moment later a look of
relief came over the old clergyman's
face. He opened his eyes, paused a
moment, as if to steady himself, then
went on again. and waited perhaps
t>0 seconds. I knew from the hand to
his ear that he was still listening.
Then he turned on the light once more
and again listened. He next said
something in a low voice to Dr. Cole
man. and, settling back comfortably,
folded his arms and listened to (he
sermon at his ease. He had solved
the mystery.
How I endured the half-hour till
Rand and I were walking down the
avenue, arm in arm, with the happy
old clergyman, I do not know. Dr.
Coleman and he had already had some
explanatory words together, for the
first thing I heard was:
"But. my dear Mr. Rand, how did
you make so wonderful a discovery?
I can hardly realize it is a mystery
no longer.”.
"It was really very simple, after
all, Dr. Coleman," replied Rand.
"Through the Callahan men I col
lected in advance, among other things,
the musical programs from every
church on Manhattan island. By my
microphone 1 discerned that it was
Pfeister’s 'Ave Maria' that was being
sung somewhere this morning, its
echoes apparently audible to your ears
alone. From my indexed notes I
■ found that the only church where this
number was being sung was the
Church of the Revelation, on tile
West side, a mile away, a distance far
too great, of course, for the natural
conveyance of sound. Instantly, how
ever, it flashed over me that this was
one of the old churches in which I had
learned the old sounding-boards of the
Teleautic Company had been placed.
Here were the same music and the
same sounding-boards—but no wiring
had been put in. I looked at the base
of the sounding-board beside me. No
wiring was there now! Yet there
must be a connection. There must
be wires—wireless reproduction being
eminently absurd. As I sat absorbed
in thought I raised my eyes and
chanced to see that the electric wires
to the desk light ran over the top of
the sounding-board. One chance in a
million of a chance connection by the
electric lighting company 1 Rising, I
turned off the light, as you may re
member, and the music ceased to be
audible. 1 turned the light on, and
the 'Ave Maria' could be heard to a
close. You were alone in hearing the
faint sound-waves so clearly, because
your ears were in the exact focus of
the radii of the sounding-board. 1 no
ticed yesterday that the other church
services began at 11:15, and I will
guarantee, without visiting the audi
torium of the Church of the Revela
tion, that the other board is so placed
that the choir sings directly into it.
If you were in the habit of keeping
your desk light burning all through
the service, and if you stood just
where you preach, you would hear
the other sermon and all the rest of
the music,"
We visited the other church after
lunch and found all the details fitted
Rand's theory to a nicety. The mov
ing of a plug in the Edison district
plant one-thirty-second or an inch
forever hushed the voices o* the un
seen singers.
DO YOU KNOW
WHAT WHITE LEAD IS?
Ita Chief Use and a Method of Deter
mining Good from Bad Explained.
White Lead is the standard paint
material all over the world. It is made
by corroding metallic lead into a white
powder, through exposing it to the
fumes of weak acetic acid and carbonic
acid gas; this powder is then ground
and mixed with linseed oil, making a
thick paste, in which form it is packed
and sold for painting purposes. The
painter thins it down to the proper
consistency for application by the ad
dition of more linseed oil.
The above refers, of course, to pure,
genuine White Lead only. Adulterated
and fake “White Lead," of which there
are many brands on the market, is
generally some sort of composition
containing only a percentage of white
lead; sometimes no White Lead at all;
in such stuff, barytes or ground rock,
chalk, and similar cheap substances
are used to make bulk and imitate the
appearance of pure White Lead.
There is, however, a. positive test, by
which the purity or impurity of White
Lead may he proved or exposed be
fore painting with it.
The blow-pipe flame will reduce
pure white lead to metallic lead. If
a supposed white lead be thus tested
and it only partially reduces to lead,
leaving a residue, it is proof that
something else was there besides
white lead.
The National Lead Company guar
antee all White Lead sold in packages
bearing its “Dutch Boy Painter” trade
mark to prove absolutely pure under
this blow-pipe test, and that you may
make the test yourself in your own
home, they will send free upon re
quest a blow-pipe and everything else
necessary to make the test, together
with a valuable booklet on paint. Ad
dress, National Lead Company, Wood
bridge Building, New York.
GLAD TO HAVE HIM GO.
Toll-Gate Keeper Thought He Had
Visit from His Satanic Majesty.
This is not the only age in which
motor cars have created excitement
and disturbance. In 1S02 such appari
tions were few and far between; at
present they are too frequent to at
tract attention. Mr. Joseph Hatton, in
‘‘Old Lamps and New,” tells of the
fright caused by one of Trevithick’s
steam locomotives, made to run on
unrailed roads in the early part of the
last century.
Now and then one of these extraor
dinary vehicles would be encountered,
snorting and puffing on the highway.
The countrymen regarded them as the
evil one in disguise.
One of the cars, coming to a toll
gate, stopped for the gate to be
opened. The toll-man came hurrying
out. He flung the gate open with
trembling hands, and teeth which
chattered audibly.
The driver asked him how much toll
there was to pay.
“O. nothing, dear Mr. Satan, noth
ing!” hastily assured the man. ‘‘Go
on as fast as you like; there's nothing
to pay.”—Youth’s Companion.
DEEP CRACKS FROM ECZEMA
Could Lay Slate-Pencil in One—Hands
in Dreadful State—Permanent
Cure in Cuticura.
‘‘I had eczema on my hands for
about seven years and during that
time I had used several so-called rem
edies, together with physicians’ and
druggists’ prescriptions. The disease
was so bad on my hands that I could
lay a slate-pencil in one of the cracks
and a rule placed across the hand
would not touch the pencil. I kept
using remedy after remedy, and while
some gave partial relief, none relieved
as much as did the first box of Cuti
cura Ointment. I made a purchase of
Cuticura Soap and Ointment and my
hands were perfectly cured after two
boxes of Cuticura Ointment and ne
cake of Cuticura Soap were used. W.
H. Dean, Newark, Del., Mar. 2S, 1907.”
The Telephone Girl's Amendment.
Said the business man with a grouch
against the telephone central:
"One day I was calling a number
and said, ‘Get me on-four-hundred so
and-so.’ The girl said, ‘Fourteen-hun
dred so-and-so?’ So the next time I
called the number I thought I'd be
forehanded.
“I said, ‘Get me fourteen-hundred
so-and-so.’ And the girl asked, ‘One
four-oh-oh so-and-so.’ ”
Important to Mothers.
Examine carefully every bottle of
CASTOR1A a safe and sure remedy for
infants and children, and see that it
Bears the
Signature of<
In TTse For Over JO Years.
The Kind You Have Always Bought
Tennyson’s Yearly Income.
Tennyson received for his poetry be
tween $25,000 and $25,000 a year.
WESTERN CANADA CROPS
CANNOT BE CHECKED
OATS YIELDED 90 BUSHELS TO
THE ACRE.
The following letter written the Do
minion Government Commissioner of
Emigration speaks for itself. It proves
the story of the Agents of the Gov
ernment that on the free homesteads
offered by the Government it is pos
sible to become comfortably well off
in a few years:
Regina, Sask., 23rd Nov., 1907.
Commissioner of Immigration,
Winnipeg.
Dear Sir:
It is with pleasure that I reply to
your request. Some years ago I took
up a homestead for myself and also
one for my son. The half section
which we own is situated between
Rouleau and Drinkwater, adjoining
the Moose Jaw creek, is a low' level
and heavy land. We put in 70 acres of
wheat in stubble, w'hich went 20 bush
els to the acre, and 30 acres of sum
mer fallow, which went 25 bushels to
the acre. All the wheat we harvested
this year is No. 1 hard. That means
the best wheat that can be raised on
theearth. We did not sell any wheat yet
as we intend to keep one part for
our own seed, and sell the other part
to people who want first-class seed,
for there is no doubt if you sow good
wheat you will harvest good wheat.
We also threshed 9,000 bushels of
first-class oats out of 160 acres. 80
acres has been fall plowdng which
yielded 90 bushels per acre, and 80
acres stubble, which w'ent 30 bushels
to the acre. These oats are
the best kind that can be
raised. We have shipped three car
loads of them, and got 53 cents per
bushel clear. All our grain was cut
in the last week of the month of
August before any frost could touch
it.
Notwithstanding the fact that we
have had a late spring, and that the
weather conditions this year were
very adverse and unfavorable, we will
make more money out of our crop
this year than last.
For myself I feel compelled to say
that Western Canada crops cannot be
checked, even by unusual conditions.
I am, dear sir,
Yours truly,
(Signed) A. Ivaltcnbrunner.
Schoolmaster—Do you wish your
son to learn the dead languages?
Mr. Koffin—Certainly, as I shall re
quire him to asist in my business as
an undertaker.
Giving It the Acid Test.
The clairvoyant was swaying hack
and forth under the severe strain of
her mental connection with the realm
of spirits.
“Xow,” she chanted, "call upon any
soul you will and I will make it speak
to you—yes, even visible to you.” For
she was up to date in the biz.
"Bring me,” asked the masculine
skeptic, “Brevity, the soul of Wit.”
Right here the seance ended.—Cin
cinnati Enquirer.
How’s This?
Wo off<*r One Hundred Dollars Reward for any
case of Catarrh Chat cannot be cured by Hall's
Catarrh Cure.
F. .T. CHENEY & CO., Toledo. O.
Wc, the undersigned, have known F. J. Cheney
for the last 15 years, and believe him perfectly hon
orable in all business transactions and financially
able to carry out any obligations made by his firm.
Waldinu. Kin van & Marvin,
Wholesale Druggists. Toledo. O.
Hall’s Catarrh Cure is taken Internally, acting
directly upon the blood and mucous surfaces of the
system. Testimonials sent free. Price 75 cents por
bottle. Sold by all Druggists.
Take Hall’s Family Pills for constipation.
A Diplomat.
"So you gave your husband a box
[ of cigars?”
"Yes,” answered young Mrs. Tor
kins.
"Did he appreciate them?”
“Indeed he did. He values them so
highly that he is smcking a pipe so as
not to use them up too fast.”
Druggist’s Generous Offer.
"I am sorry to disappoint you,” said j
the old-time druggist, to the suitor for ;
his daughter’s hand. "I can't let you I
have Amy because I’ve promised her I
to the son of my partner. Hut I have I
five other daughters and give you I
something just as good”
WHAT CAUSES HEADACHE.
From October to May, Colds are the most, fre
quent cause of Headache. .LAXATIVE BROMO
Quinine removes cause. E.W.Groveon box 25c
High aims form noble character and
great objects bring out great minds.—
Tryon Edwards.
files cchkd r.v e to 14 pats.
P/.ZO OINTMENT is guaranteed to cure any case
of Itching, Blind. Bleeding or Protruding Idles in
i> to !4 days or money refunded. 60c.
It isn't idle curiosity that prompts
a man to look for work.
Mrs. Winalow'B Soothing Syrup.
For children teething, softens the gums, reduces fiv
flaminution, allays pain, cures wind colic. 25c a bottle.
Many a man gets left by sticking
to the right.
✓V
MADE
FOR
v SERVICE
and guaranteed
absolutely
WATERPROOF
r,SH BW!''
OILED SUITS. SLICKERS
AND HATS
Every garment guaranteed
Clean • Light - Durable
Suits *322 Slickers‘39?
sold bfbist dcalcrs rmrrwniu
CATALOG nta FOR THFAIK/MB
A J Towt» CO BOArO*» UK
- *ta ■mo.ro t
“OUCH”
OH, MY BACK
IT IS WONDERFUL HOW QUICKLY THE
PAIN AND STIFFNESS CO WHEN YOU USE
S-JACOBS OIL
THIS WELL-TRIED. OLD-TIME
REMEDY FILLS THE BILL
25c.—ALL DRUGGISTS.—50c.
CONQUERS
. PAIN
tw
LN\s
Good Coffee
You can secure that fine, de- M
licious. full flavor and mellow- JH — w y^<(
ness which we all admire so Ih/| K& m BLI ff * j
much in hotels and restaurants E at If | w i 1
from the coffee you are now * ** • • • » I
using by simply mixing with it a little genuine
FRANCK CHICORY
The Famous Coffee Addition
It is simply a preparation of Chicory which we have been
making in our 18 European factories for nearly a century.
It is used in the finest Continental Hotels and Restau
rants. and is the secret of the really good coffee they serve.
These people do not try to save money, but they know what
brings out and improves the rich coffee flavor and aroma.
You can do the same and save money too.
Franck Chicory — the Famous Coffee Addition
makes the coffee richer and mellower, and it neu
tralizes the bad effects some people suffer from
drinking straight coffee. <#
Ask your grocer for Franck Chicory — the
Famous Coffee Addition and try it for yourself.
Look for the little Coffee Mill trade-mark.
Or buy package coffee pre
pared with Genuine Franck
Chicory. See that it’s plainly (
xnarked‘‘Franck Chicory.”
,r
r
HEINRICH FRANCK
SOHNE & CO.
Flushing, N. Y.
American Branch
Heinrich Franck |
Sohne & Co., of
Ludwignburg,
Germany.
FRANCK |
MEN. BOVS. WOMEN, MISSES AND
v*£Tp= W. L Douglas makes and aella more
**£? men’s $2.50, $3.00and $3.50shoes
than any other manufacturer In the .
88^ world, because they hold their
shape, fit better, wear longer, and
go» are of greater value than any other «jstn&
ahoea In the world to-day.
W. L. Douglas $4 and $5 Gilt Edge Shoes Carrot Be Equalled At An; Price -.
or t’AUTIORT. W. Tj. Donglaa name ami price is stamped on bottom. Take \o Substitute,'
Bold by the best shoe dealers everywhere. Shoe® mailed from factory to any part of the world. JUoa»
tiated Catalog free to any address. W. L. DOIGLAS, Brockton, Jklem.
Fast
c of or
Eyelet*
Used
Exclusively,
unwcute?
Will stop and permanently cure that
terrible itching. It is compounded
for that purpose and is absolutely
guaranteed.
It is a never failing cure for ec
zematous affections of all kinds,
including:
Humid Tetter
Salt Rheum
Heat Eruption
Ring Worm <
Herpes
Prurigo
Flavus
nd Scabies iitch)
11 This last named disease is characterized by scaliness of the skin, eruption of pimple9,
vesicles or sometimes pustules. It is not due to inflammation like other skin diseases,
but to the presence oflittle parasites which burrow under the skin. These minute in
sects multiply with astonishing rapidity, and within a short time after their first ap
pearance will be found in nearly every part of the body. The itching they produce is
so intense it is often with difficulty the sufferer can refrain from tearing the skin with
his nails. Hunt’s Cure is an infallible remedy for this aggravating trouble. Applied
locally.
H Sold by all first class druggists. Price, 50 cents per box, and the money will be
refunded in every case where one box only fails to cure.
MANUFACTURED ONLY BY
A. B. RICHARDS MEDICINE CO., Sherman, Tex.
M 1
gWL leati
WEAR SHIELD BRAND SHOES
The Womans’ Congress Gaiter—elegant patent
leather trimmed fine kid* vamps—easy as a slipper.
Price, S3.00. If not at dealers ask us.
ELLET-KENDALL SHOE CO. MFCS.
Kansas City, Mo.
If you are in pain, you should remember that there is a remedy, especially
adapted to womanly ills, and should take Cardui. * Cardui is composed of vegetable
drugs that act in a medicinal manner upon the.womanly constitution. It will
relieve womanly pain, and prevent its recurrence. /
Wine of Cardui
has been found to build strength, to revitalize, and restore to health, weak, sick, mis^
erable women of all ages. Mary Bagguley, of Syracuse, N. Y., wrote: “I had
been very sick, until I took Cardui. Wow I am a strong woman.” Try it.
WRITE FOR FREE ROOK
Wow I am a strong woman.
Write for Free M-page Book for Women, giving symptoms, causes, home treatment and
valuable hinta on diet, exercises, etc. Sent free on request in plain wrapper, by mail
prepaid. Ladies’ Advisory Dept., The Chattanooga Medicine Co. Chattanooga. Tenn.