Mike Fletcher by George Moore (ebook pc reader .txt) 📕

Worlds Of God,  The Lord Of The Throne On High And Of Earth Below,  His

Whole Being Will Instantly Blaze Out In His Great Longing To Attain That

Most Exalted,  That Sanctified And Resplendent Station.... The Nature Of

The Soul After Death Can Never Be Described,  Nor Is It Meet And

Permissible To Reveal Its Whole Character To The Eyes Of Men. The Prophets

And Messengers Of God Have Been Sent Down For The Sole Purpose Of Guiding

Mankind To The Straight Path Of Truth. The Purpose Underlying Their

Revelation Hath Been To Educate All Men,  That They May,  At The Hour Of

Death,  Ascend,  In The Utmost Purity And Sanctity And With Absolute

Detachment,  To The Throne Of The Most High. The Light Which These Souls

Radiate Is Responsible For The Progress Of The World And The Advancement

Of Its Peoples. They Are Like Unto Leaven Which Leaveneth The World Of

Being,  And Constitute The Animating Force Through Which The Arts And

Wonders Of The World Are Made Manifest. Through Them The Clouds Rain Their

Bounty Upon Men,  And The Earth Bringeth Forth Its Fruits. All Things Must

Needs Have A Cause,  A Motive Power,  An Animating Principle. These Souls

And Symbols Of Detachment Have Provided,  And Will Continue To Provide,  The

Supreme Moving Impulse In The World Of Being. The World Beyond Is As

Different From This World As This World Is Different From That Of The

Child While Still In The Womb Of Its Mother. When The Soul Attaineth The

Presence Of God,  It Will Assume The Form That Best Befitteth Its

Immortality And Is Worthy Of Its Celestial Habitation. Such An Existence

Is A Contingent And Not An Absolute Existence,  Inasmuch As The Former Is

Preceded By A Cause,  Whilst The Latter Is Independent Thereof. Absolute

Existence Is Strictly Confined To God,  Exalted Be His Glory. Well Is It

With Them That Apprehend This Truth. Wert Thou To Ponder In Thine Heart

The Behavior Of The Prophets Of God Thou Wouldst Assuredly And Readily

Testify That There Must Needs Be Other Worlds Besides This World. The

Majority Of The Truly Wise And Learned Have,  Throughout The Ages,  As It

Hath Been Recorded By The Pen Of Glory In The Tablet Of Wisdom,  Borne

Witness To The Truth Of That Which The Holy Writ Of God Hath Revealed.

Even The Materialists Have Testified In Their Writings To The Wisdom Of

These Divinely-Appointed Messengers,  And Have Regarded The References Made

By The Prophets To Paradise,  To Hell Fire,  To Future Reward And

Punishment,  To Have Been Actuated By A Desire To Educate And Uplift The

Souls Of Men. Consider,  Therefore,  How The Generality Of Mankind,  Whatever

Their Beliefs Or Theories,  Have Recognized The Excellence,  And Admitted

The Superiority,  Of These Prophets Of God. These Gems Of Detachment Are

Acclaimed By Some As The Embodiments Of Wisdom,  While Others Believe Them

To Be The Mouthpiece Of God Himself. How Could Such Souls Have Consented

To Surrender Themselves Unto Their Enemies If They Believed All The Worlds

Of God To Have Been Reduced To This Earthly Life? Would They Have

Willingly Suffered Such Afflictions And Torments As No Man Hath Ever

Experienced Or Witnessed?

Thou Hast Asked Me Concerning The Nature Of The Soul. Know,  Verily,  That

The Soul Is A Sign Of God,  A Heavenly Gem Whose Reality The Most Learned

Of Men Hath Failed To Grasp,  And Whose Mystery No Mind,  However Acute,  Can

Ever Hope To Unravel. It Is The First Among All Created Things To Declare

The Excellence Of Its Creator,  The First To Recognize His Glory,  To Cleave

To His Truth,  And To Bow Down In Adoration Before Him. If It Be Faithful

To God,  It Will Refl Was Very Tall,  With Beautiful Golden Hair. For

A Description Of Her Dress The Housemaid Was Called.

"I Hope," Said Mike,  "She Won't Say She Was Dressed In Cream-Pink,

Trimmed With Olive Ribbons." She Did. Then Harding Told The Porter He

Was Afraid The Lady Was Lady Helen Seymour,  A Friend Of Theirs,  Whom

They Had Seen That Night In A Party Given In Temple Gardens By This

Gentleman,  Mr. Frank Escott. They Were Conducted Up The Desert

Staircase Of The Hotel,  For The Lift Did Not Begin Working Till Seven

O'clock. The Door Stood Ajar,  And Servants Were In Charge. On The

Left Was A Large Bed,  With Dark-Green Curtains,  And In The Middle Of

The Room A Round Table. There Were Two Windows. The Toilette-Table

Stood Between Bed And Window,  And In The Bland Twilight Of Closed

Venetian Blinds A Handsome Fire Flared Loudly,  Throwing Changing

Shadows Upon The Ceiling,  And A Deep,  Glowing Light Upon The Red

Panels Of The Wardrobe. So The Room Fixed Itself For Ever On Their

Minds. They Noted The Crude Colour Of The Brussels Carpet,  And Even

The Oilcloth Around The Toilette-Table Was Remembered. They Saw That

The Round Table Was Covered With A Red Tablecloth,  And That Writing

Materials Were There,  A Pair Of Stays,  A Pair Of Tan Gloves,  And Some

Withering Flowers. They Saw The Ball-Dress That Lady Helen Had Worn

Thrown Over The Arm-Chair; The Silk Stockings,  The Satin Shoes--And A

Gleam Of Sunlight That Found Its Way Between The Blinds Fell Upon A

Piece Of White Petticoat. Lady Helen Lay In The Bed,  Thrown Back Low

Down On The Pillow,  The Chin Raised High,  Emphasizing A Line Of

Strained White Throat. She Lay In Shadow And Firelight,  Her Cheek

Touched By The Light. Around Her Eyes The Shadows Gathered,  And As A

Landscape Retains For An Hour Some Impression Of The Day Which Is

Gone,  So A Softened And Hallowed Trace Of Life Lingered Upon Her.

Then The Facts Of The Case Were Told. She Had Driven Up To The Hotel

In A Hansom. She Had Asked If No. 57 Was Occupied,  And On Being Told

It Was Not,  Said She Would Take It; Mentioning At The Same Time That

She Had Missed Her Train,  And Would Not Return Home Till Late In The

Afternoon. She Had Told The Housemaid To Light A Fire,  And Had Then

Dismissed Her. Nothing More Was Known; But As The Porter Explained,

It Was Clear She Had Gone To Bed So As To Make Sure Of Shooting

Herself Through The Heart.

"The Pistol Is Still In Her Hand; We Never Disturb Anything Till

After The Doctor Has Completed His Examination."

Each Felt The Chill Of Steel Against The Naked Side,  And Seeing The

Pair Of Stays On The Table,  They Calculated Its Resisting Force.

Harding Mused On The Ghastly Ingenuity,  Withal So Strangely

Reasonable. Thompson Felt He Would Give His Very Life To Make A

Sketch. Mike Wondered What Her Lover Was Like. Frank Was Overwhelmed

In Sentimental Sorrow. John's Soul Was Full Of Strife And Suffering.

He Had Sacrificed His Poems,  And Had Yet Ventured In Revels Which Had

Led To Such Results! Then As They Went Down-Stairs,  Harding Gave The

Porter Lewis Seymour's Name And Address,  And Said He Should Be Sent

For At Once.

"I Don't Say We Have Never Had A Suicide Here Before,  Sir," Said The

Porter In Reply To Harding As They Descended The Steps Of The Hotel;

"But I Don't See How We Are To Help It. Whenever The Upper Classes

Want To Do Away With Themselves They Chose One Of The Big Hotels--The

Grosvenor,  The Langham,  Or Ourselves. Indeed They Say More Has Done

The Trick In The Langham Than 'Ere,  I Suppose Because It Is More

Central; But You Can't Get Behind The Motives Of Such People. They

Never Think Of The Trouble And The Harm They Do Us; They Only Think

Of Themselves."

London Was Now Awake; The Streets Were A-Clatter With Cabs; The Pick

Of The Navvy Resounded; Night Loiterers Were Disappearing And Giving

Place To Hurrying Early Risers. In The Resonant Morning The Young Men

Walked Together To The Corner. There They Stopped To Bid Each Other

Good-Bye. John Called A Cab,  And Returned Home In Intense Mental

Agitation.

"It Really Is Terrible," Said Mike. "It Isn't Like Life At All,  But

Some Shocking Nightmare. What Could Have Induced Her To Do It?"

"That We Shall Probably Never Know," Said Thompson; "And She Seemed

Brimming Over With Life And Fun. How She Did Dance! ..."

"That Was Nerves. I Had A Long Talk With Her,  And I Assure You She

Quite Frightened Me. She Spoke About The Weariness Of Living;--No,

Not As We Talk Of It,  Philosophically; There Was A Special Accent Of

Truth In What She Said. You Remember The Porter Mentioned That She

Asked If No. 57 Was Occupied. I Believe That Is The Room Where She

Used To Meet Her Lover. I Believe They Had Had A Quarrel,  And That

She Went There Intent On Reconciliation,  And Finding Him Gone

Determined To Kill Herself. She Told Me She Had Had A Lover For The

Last Four Years. I Don't Know Why She Told Me--It Was The First Time

I Ever Heard A Lady Admit She Had Had A Lover; But She Was In An

Awful State Of Nerve Excitement,  And I Think Hardly Knew What She Was

Saying. She Took The Letter Out Of Her Bosom And Read It Slowly. I

Couldn't Help Seeing It Was In A Man's Handwriting; It Began,  '_Ma

Chère Amie!_' I Heard Her Tell Her Husband To Take The Brougham; That

She Would Come Home In A Cab. However,  If My Supposition Is Correct,

I Hope She Burnt The Letter."

"Perhaps That's What She Lit The Fire For. Did You Notice If The

Writing Materials Had Been Used?"

"No,  I Didn't Notice," Said Mike. "And All So Elaborately Planned!

Just Fancy--Shooting Herself In A Nice Warm Bed! She Was Determined

To Do It Effectually. And She Must Have Had The Revolver In Her

Pocket The Whole Time. I Remember Now,  I Had Gone Out Of The Room For

A Moment,  And When I Came Back She Was Leaning Over The

Chimney-Piece,  Looking At Something."

"I Have Often Thought," Said Harding,  "That Suicide Is The

Culminating Point Of A State Of Mind Long Preparing. I Think That The

Mind Of The Modern Suicide Is Generally Filled,  Saturated With The

Idea. I Believe That He Or She Has Been Given For A Long Time

Preceding The Act To Considering,  Sometimes Facetiously,  Sometimes

Sentimentally,  The Advantages Of Oblivion. For A Long Time An

Infiltration Of Desire Of Oblivion,  And Acute Realization Of The

Folly Of Living,  Precedes Suicide,  And,  When The Mind Is Thoroughly