Soldan High School - Scrip Yearbook (St Louis, MO)

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Tragedy ,. OR the last five days that consistent growling and grumbling had been going on through the whole family. This was Q Lg too much for Beno, who, although only seventeen years old, E, seemed to be the center of the attack when anyone became angry. Why should he, by far the most innocent of the four, be picked on so much? Why could not his sister, who was at that time nearly twenty, get some of the blame? Well, he would not stand it much longer. He would give them one more chance and then leave for good. Yes, for good. He would show them. 'Wi 3 Sure enough, the next morning his sister, who always arose late, wanted Beno to get her mail for her. It was only three flights of stairs clown to the mail box. It would not hurt him, she said. Beno, who was just about ready to leave for school, shot back an answer which did not please his sister very much. Why should I get your confounded mail? Get up and get it yourself, you never do anything anyway. You can just hop in the creek! That is what you can do! Beno! came the sharp sound of his mother's voice, The idea of you talking to your sister in such a manner. She asked a very simple question and if you had any respect for your parents at all, you would never talk like that. You two children are getting to be just like cats and dogs. I have never seen the like. Aw, there you go bawling me out again. Why don't you ever bawl her out? That will be enough out of you, young man! Not another word, shot back the mother. Making very funny, grumbling noises deep in his throat, Beno walked to his room. There he picked up his hat, took the remaining eight dollars of his allowance from a dresser drawer, and walked out again. He would show them. They would be sorry. Without another word, he walked out of the house. Where would he go? That was the first question that confronted his blurred brain. For nearly ten minutes he stood at the bottom of the steps trying to think of a place to go. As nature had been good to him, he had grown to a height of five feet, ten inches. He could very easily lie about his age and wander around with the rest of the outcasts. Pulling his hat on a bit tighter he walked away. Good-bye, for a while anyway, he said bitterly. as he sauntered away. For two weeks he wandered until his money gave out. Then an- other question confronted him. How was he to live? His heart was heavy and his clothes were beginning to show the wear of a park bench 119

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2- - - Y V 3 r if A-Y NJTITR A' Y except a thin red line about an inch long on the left side of his throat. There was no blood anywhere, on his clothes, on the lioor, or on the furniture. The sisters stood like statues, so overwhelmed were they at this sudden calamity. They were suddenly jarred back to earth by the grating of the key in the lock, and turning, they saw the door had been shut. The front door slammed and outside a piercing, inhuman wail rose on the wings of the wind and was whipped about among the sway- ing elms, gripping the hearts of the listeners like the icy claw of time. The next day the papers contained an article concerning the suicide of an unidentified man. And that evening the sisters sat up with the body of their brother, the lawyer, which had been placed in the front room of the house. Four candles were lighted, two at the head, and two at the foot, of the casket. Suddenly one of the sisters uttered a scream of horror and pointed, for there on the opposite walls two dark spots were forming. With each passing moment these became larger and darker. In a very short while they assumed the attitude of two men crouching opposite each other and they became very distinct. Thor- oughly horriiied now, the sisters hung drapes before the scene, but the shadows came right through the drapes. Upon seeing this and also that nothing was causing it, they became quite frightened and resolved to move away from the house immediately after the funeral. At last dawn came and with it the shadows disappeared. On the next night everything happened as it had the night before. But on the third night the shadows, after becoming as distinct as on the other two nights, suddenly leapt forward and clasped each other in a death-like embrace. The next morning the funeral was held and that afternoon the sisters left,-never to be heard of again. Since that time live different families, of which mine was one, have rented the house, and each was driven out by those infernal shadows, which have remained, despite the fact that the wall has been repapered for each new occupant, so the owners, for the sisters and brothers had only rented the house, are tearing it down and plan to build on its site a new, modern apartment. Here the foreman ended his tale and I told him I did not believe it. He immediately took me up on my unbelief and we made arrangements to meet that night at nine to go into the house. Fortunately the night was pitch black, and we met at the hour agreed upon, went in, using our flashlights. He knew his way around and so directed me to the front room. Standing on one side of the room he flashed his light on the other, and there, I beheld those grim spectres, the lurking shadows. john Lampe, 8. 118

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,, , K,-.P -- 4,-,,.. k- Y----, , , , and the ground. He was tempted to take small things that did not belong to him. He did not call it stealing. He was just kinda, well, he did not know exactly just what he would call it. Days turned to weeks and the weeks turned into months. Not once had he heard from his parents or had they heard from him. He was out for revenge and they would never find him. It would never do for them to find him now because at the end of the year, as most petty thieves do, he had turned to be crooked. Beno was still young but had grown, in the last year, to be a mas- sive giant in build and like an ox in strength. He had become very good looking but was still a woman hater. Night after night Beno stole things until he reached the time that he was to be dreaded and was a hunted man. Often after a night's work, he would sit in some secluded spot and dream of his home and his parents, whom he had not seen for nearly three years. At last, one night, his conscience got the best of him and he resolved to go home. He had found an apartment a few days before in which he figured he could get a remarkable amount of money. He would work that job and quit. Home! Wouldn't it be wonderful, he thought. Night came and Beno started out. After riding on the cars for nearly an hour he came to the apartment. The house looked easy to him. After feeling in his pockets for his tools and his automatic, he carefully sneaked up the back steps. The door was easy and everything went Fine until he reached the hallway. Here he made a great blunder by stepping on some kind of an animal. A loud meow issued and a cat scampered away. Gee, he murmured. I wonder what will happen now? He did not have long to wait for a dark figure stole out from a doorway and Beno knew it was the man of the apartment. That did not worry Beno. He was trying to think of a way to get by the man. Evidently he could be seen. He saw the man raise an arm which pointed straight at him. Ducking as quick as lightning, and at the same time whipping out his automatic, he fired. Once! Twice! A scream and a thump was heard as the man collapsed and two white figures rushed out of the darkness to the side of the dead man. Lights flashed and Beno gasped! My God! Father! Mother! My son, cried his mother and rushed for his side, but too late. Beno, gasping at the horrible sight of his dead father and his hys- terical mother and sister, realized what he had done, and without think- ing, raised the revolver to his head and sent a bullet crashing to his brain. That was all. just the end of another misspent life. Alton Bookout. 120