LITERATURE.

Globe, Volume XXIV, Issue 2652, 6 October 1882, Page 4

LITERATURE.

A SPECULATIVE SPIRIT.

[‘ All the Year Bound.'3

( Concluded .)

4 One day my partner told me he was going to tho North of England on some private business. There was very little doing on the Exchange at that time, or 1 am sure no private business would have called him away, 4 Better not operate until my return,’ he said 4 unless yen hear from me. If I think anything worth doing, or pick np any news, I will wire,’ ‘All right,’ I said, 4 pleasant journey to you.' And so he went out of tho office, never to return. Poor old Bobbett!’ Hopkins seemed almost in tears, and we, who had never given him credit for such tender feelings tempered our surprise with sympathy, * The next day but one came a telegram—from John Bjfihett, Crosilelgh road station. It contained these simple words : 4 Sell 30.000 Marthas.’ I was thunderstruck as I road it,’ ’Wait a minute,’ said Blair; ‘you are going beyond ns again. What did he mean ? Were you slave jobbers aa well as stock jobbers ?’ 4 We call slock by nicknames. Caledonian deferred era 1 Clara*,’ Brighton deferred are 4 Berthas,’ Northern are ‘Norai,’ so that Manchester and Dandees are 4 Marthas ’ 4 1 see,’ said Blair ; 4 what ingenuity.’ 4 I was thunder struck, I say; and as I read the telegram my first thought was, it must be a-forgery, but a secret word, known to ns alone, pnt its authenticity beyond a donbt. And yet, in spite of my high opinion of Bobbett’s cleverness, I hesitated for some minutes. I could see no possible reason to expect a fall in the stock named. The traffic return was good, and a large dividend was naturally expected. All rails were high, and all the knewieg people said must go higher. There was lota of public money for investment and the outside dearly loves to bay on a rising market, and yet, with all these fsots before me, I am proud to say I trusted my old partner, although it was with a heavy heart I followed his Instructions. I sold at the best price 1 oculd get, and just as I had placed the last 5000, became aware of great excitement in the market. You will scarcely credit it, bat telegrams came in running so ; ‘ Terrible accident on Manchester and Dundee line. Two trains completely wrecked. Fifty persons killed and wounded.” It was an awful smash np, and nearly swamped the dividend on the deferred shares for that year.

* As soon ns the first excitement subsided I begva to think of Bobbett I knew he was somewhere up that way, and for the moment felt anxious about him, and then I laughed at my fearo as 1 remembared the telegram I had received a short time before. He, at least, must be all right, or he could not have sent me that line; but what an artful old rascal—fellow, I mean—to manage to forestall everyone in the intelligence I Ho must have sped to the nearest station, despatched h?a message, and perhaps bribed the telegraphist to keep back the official news until I had time to complete the transaction. However ha had managed it, It waa very clever, and ought to be a lot of money In onr pockets, and thankful 1 was 1 had trusted him.

*1 dare say yon two in your hearts think this very wrong, but it is diamond oat diamond on the London Stock Exchange, I can tall yon.’ Frank and I made polite disclaimers, and aa we were growing rather Interested in this iniquitous exploit of Babbett’s, pressed Hopkins to go on without fear of wounding onr susceptibilities, ‘ Of course, I was very sorry for tho poor people killed, but I could not help feeling as I went bach to my office that I had done a very good day’s work. ‘I won't close,’ I said, ‘until Bobbett returns. I should think, with this transaction open, he is sure to get back to-morrow,’ Even as I made this resolution a clerk put a telegram in my hand. It came from some railway official, and informed me that John Bobbett had been killed in tbe smash. My surprise at the first message waa nothing to what I felt now. It was utterly Incomprehensible—it was Impossible. How could Bobbott be dead when his telegram lay before me ? When be sent that he must have been alive, and, what is more, have had all his wits about him. It waa barely possible he could have got anyone else to send off the message, and died afterward from injuries. I waa greatly puzzled and alarmed, so decided that the best thing 1 oould do to elucidate the mystery was to go myself to the scene of the accident and ascertain the truth, I started by the night mail, travelled all night, and early in the morning reached Crossleigh road, a little station of no importance, The accident had happened some miles farther down the line, and when I reached the place I was oondnoted to a large barn which stood near tho side of the railway ; and there, laid out on the deal boards, I saw, side by side with many a ghastly object, the corpse of poor old Bobbett, mangled and battered almost beyond recognition. After the emotion 1 felt at seeing my old partner In this state had subsided, a feeling of intense fear replaced it, 1 saw at

one glance that by no possibility could he have moved a foot after the accident, and aa I stood wondering, a doctor who waa mar me said * He was more fortunate than many j hia death was instantaneous.' « 1 obtained further particular* from tfce people about, and learned that his body had been ex'ricated from tha wreck of the carriages, where it lay with about a ton of wood and iron on top of it. ‘A nd yet I had his teleg-am sent from Cross'eigb road, a station, as I told 3ou before, at least fire miles from the scene of tha collision, and I received that telegram nearly an hoar before any news came of the accident.’

Hopkins knocked the ashes ont of his pipe and wna silent. The man’s talo bad been told so simply, so c'rcumetsntiilly, the time and places staled so distinctly and apparently truthfully, that Frank «nd I for the moment were nnablo to suggest any explanation. Hopkins replenished his pipe with the air of one who baa nothing farther to say. At last I asked ■— * But did you not enquire at the telegraph office P’

*Oh ye*. But I hardly like to tell yon the result of my Inquiries, it seems so strange. I Interviewed the man who worked the machine. As I did not want to get a marvelous tale spread about, I merely enquired what messages he had sent off the day before. At first I oonld get nothing out of him, but I noticed, when I asked him whether he could remember any strenge occurrence just before the accident he seemed troubled and hesitated a little $ so I pressed him further, and at last got this statement from him ; —Some time, abont an hour he thinks, before he heard of the accident down the line, be was standing In the office with his back to the fire engaged In cracking nuts, eating apples, or some other device that clerks with plenty of leisure employ to while away the time, when he felt a breath of cold air aa if soma one had entered and left the outer door aj »r. He turned aronnd to remonstrate with the careless Intruder, and to his surprise saw the door waa shut. As ha glanced round the room he heard the familiar oliok, click, ollok, and he waa quite prepared to swear he saw the hands of the instrument working rapidly on Us own account, and evidently sending off a message somewhere. He was so taken aback, and, indeed, frightened, that for some moments be oonld not move, and when at last ho recovered himeelf sufficiently to spiing forward the movement of tfc*handle had ceased and the message, whatever it was, was speeding to i's destination. He was sure, from the short time it took in sending, the message was one of a very few words, and I need not say that, aa telegraph clerks are unaccustomed to seeing their instruments worked by invisible agency he was very much pnaz'ed,' but decided not to report the occurrence for fear hie superiors should think ho bad been drinking, I gave him a couple of sovereigns, and begged him to say nothing abont it Afterward I enquired at the other end, and found the message had been forwarded in an ordinary way bo tbat in spite of my disbelief in anything supernatural I could only come to one conclusion.’

*lt Is very strange,’ said Frank. So yon think—’

‘ I think that poor old Bofebett’e ghost flew at once to the telegraph office and managed to aend off that important message to hi# old partner and friend Bobbett was a very clever man, and no donbt bis ghost was cleverer than other people’* ghosts ’ ‘So that in the general confusion it managed to evade pnrsnit for a few moments P’

JH opkins made no reply. 4 But,’ I asked,’ 4 have yon any reason for thinking that ghost# in general, or Bobbett’# ghost in particular, are endowed with a knowledge of the Morse alphabet ?’ * I have told yon before,’ said Hopbine with a crushing solemnity, ' that Bobbett was a clever man, and knew most things.' 4 Well, what about the wbat-d’yo cail-ems —the young women, the Marthas?’ asked Frank.

4 1 waited some days before Inclosed the account, hoping that Bobbett might send me instructions about them somehow, but as I heard nothing from him, I bought them back at 19 per cent, less.' 4 That, I suppose, means a satisfactory conclusion, and yon netted something ?' 4 Three thousand pounds bad I dared to wait, for they fell fifteen before they stopped. Perhaps,’ added Hopkins, tbongbtfnlly and regretfully, 4 had I waited till then, Bobbett would hove sent me a message to olose.’

He said this in such serious good faith that we stared at one another. When we recovered from our astonishment, I asked—

‘That profit, of course, went into the partnership account P’ ‘Of course it did, sir,’replied Hopbine, almost angrily. ‘ After deducting my travelling expense# I passed his share to bis credit.’

‘ And I hope,’ said Frank, with a solemn face, ‘you paid the company the shilling for the telegraphic message which Mr Bobbett sent without their permission.* Hopkins rose with a manner almost dignified.

‘Mr Blair,’he said, ‘this ia the one subject I never jest npon. I have told you, ia the simplest language, a strange, but a true tale, and will now wish you gaod night.’

So saying ho went. Frank, rather buffed at hia last words, only shook hands with onr departing guest, but I conducted him down stairs and saw him out. As I closed the dcor I heard a tremendous grunt; indeed, so loud was it 1 thought It mutt be a summons for readmittauce. 1 opened the door again, and, to my surprise, saw Hepkina leaning against the railings with ererA muscle of his broad back in motion. I was quite alarmed, and said hastily :

* Are you 111, old follow?’ The quivering motion ceased, and Hopkins turned round and looked up at me, and his great face, under the lamplight was empty of expression ns ever. * No ; only the recollection of those things I told you always upsets me. Good night, Poor old Bobbett 1’

‘Strange tale, Frank,' I said, when having closed the door on Hopkins’ departing sigh, we settled down once more. * Very ; had any one eke but Hopkins told it, I shouldn't have believed a word of It ; but he could no more Invent it than he could paint my ‘ Alexander and Thais.’ ’ * How do you account it ?’ 'Can’t account for it. The only explanation 1 con see is that Bobbott, who must have been no end of a rascal, laid some plan for wrecking the trains, and arranged to have the telegram sent off previously. But then, he was in the train, and was smashed up himself, so that won’t do.’ ‘ I have it asserted, ’ I said, ‘ in a book on spiritual Influences that a person dying, and thinking of someone at a distance, has been able to make a sort of resemblance of himself appear to that someone. Bobbett'a thoughts, directly the smash oame, may have tamed to his one passion—speculating, and aotad somewhat In the same way.’ ’Nonsense!’ said Frank; 'that won’t hold water. I oan’t account for it. ’ ‘ Neither can L’

And we nevor did, Hopkins declined to talk any more npon the subject, which, he said, waa a painful one to him, so we soon ceased to think about it.

And yet there is one thing that puzzles me. Some years afterward I spoke about Hopkins and his peculiarities, or rather lack cf peculiarities, to a mutual friend, when suddenly remembering his tale, I said—

‘By-the-bye, did you know his lata partner, Bobbett?’ ‘ Oh, yea, very well—sharp man ha was, too I’

* Killed In a railway aooldent, I believe ?’ ‘No; he died in his bed, like other people, and left a lot of money behind him.*

Now this piece of Information, ooupled with the recollection of Hopkins as I saw him, leaning against the railings outside the front door, quivering with strange emotion, oanaed a feeling of uneasiness in my mind, and sometimes now. In spite of his unmeaning features and commonplace demeanor, I ask myself, in confidence—' Were we wrong, after all, and did Hopkins possess imagination f

"Too look cheerful, Mr Spiser,” said a friend who met the old gentleman ambling down the street. " Yes,” said the interrogated, "1 have just had a troublesome grinder palled :’’ and when the sympathising gentleman asked him if it hurt him maoh, Seth cheerfully responded, "Nat a bit; it was an organ-grinder, and a policeman pulled him."