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The Oskaloosa Kid cast a wide eyed glance of terror at Bridge His lips moved in an attempt to speak; but fear rendered him inarticulate Slowly, ponderously the THING ascended the dark stairs froe paled a trifle The man upon the floor appeared to have htful expression frozen upon the dead faceupon the supernatural The sound of the THING cli out of the cellar was indeed uncanny--so uncanny that Bridge discovered hi about for so to the second floor

"Quick!" he whispered "Up the stairs! You go first; I'll follow"

The Kid needed no second invitation With a bound he was half way up the rickety staircase; but a glance ahead at the darkness above gave hie to catch up with hi more sloith his burden theof the chain warned them that the THING was already at the top of the cellar stairs

"Flash the lae "Let's have a look at it, whatever it is"

With tree of the swaying and rotting bannister, his finger slipped fro them all into darkness In his frantic effort to find the button and relight the lamp the worst occurred--he fuers, falling over the bannister to the floor below Instantly the sound of the dragging chain ceased; but the silence was even more horrible than the noise which had preceded it

For a long minute the two at the head of the stairs stood in tense silence listening for a repetition of the gruesome sounds from below The youth was frankly terrified; he made no effort to conceal the fact; but pressed close to his coe could feel the tre of the slender fingers and hear the quick, short, irregular breathing A sudden i arm about the boy seized him--an impulse which he could not quite fathom, and one to which he could not respond because of the body of the girl he carried

He bent toward the youth "There are matches in my coat pocket," he whispered, "--the same pocket in which you found the flash lamp Strike one and we'll look for a rooirl"