Burn, Witch, Burn!

"Then," he smiled, faintly, "your judgment was doubly at fault. And my advice doubly pertinent."

There was an awkward moment of silence. He broke it.

"And being who I am, I shall feel much better inside your doors than outside."

I opened the doors. The two men passed through with their burden, and after them Ricori and I. Once

within, I gave way to my professional instincts and stepped up to the man the two were carrying. They

shot a quick glance at Ricori. He nodded. I raised the man's head.

A little shock went through me. The man's eyes were wide open. He was neither dead nor unconscious.

But upon his face was the most extraordinary expression of terror I had ever seen in a long experience

with sane, insane and borderland cases. It was not undiluted fear. It was mixed with an equally disturbing

horror. The eyes, blue and with distended pupils, were like exclamation points to the emotions printed

upon that face. They stared up at me, through me and beyond me. And still they seemed to be looking

inward-as though whatever nightmare vision they were seeing was both behind and in front of them.

"Exactly!" Ricori had been watching me closely. "Exactly, Dr. Lowell, what could it be that my friend has

seen-or has been given-that could make him appear so? I am most anxious to learn. I am willing to

spend much money to learn. I wish him cured, yes-but I shall be frank with you, Dr. Lowell. I would

give my last penny for the certainty that those who did this to him could not do the same thing to

me-could not make me as he is, could not make me see what he is seeing, could not make feel what he

is feeling."

At my signal, orderlies had come up. They took the patient and laid him on a stretcher. By this time the

resident physician had appeared. Ricori touched my elbow.

"I know a great deal about you, Dr. Lowell," he said. "I would like you to take full charge of this case."

I hesitated.

He continued, earnestly: "Could you drop everything else? Spend all your time upon it? Bring in any

others you wish to consult-don't think of expense-"

"A moment, Mr. Ricori," I broke in. "I have patients who cannot be neglected. I will give all the time I

can spare, and so will my assistant, Dr. Braile. Your friend will be constantly under observation here by

people who have my complete confidence. Do you wish me to take the case under those conditions?"

He acquiesced, though I could see he was not entirely satisfied. I had the patient taken to an isolated

private room, and went through the necessary hospital formalities. Ricori gave the man's name as Thomas

Peters, asserted that he knew of no close relations, had himself recorded at Peters' nearest friend,

assumed all responsibility, and taking out a roll of currency, skimmed a thousand dollar bill from it,

passing it to the desk as "preliminary costs."

I asked Ricori if he would like to be present at my examination. He said that he would. He spoke to his

two men, and they took positions at each side of the hospital doors-on guard. Ricori and I went to the

room assigned to the patient. The orderlies had stripped him, and he lay upon the adjustable cot, covered

by a sheet. Braile, for whom I had sent, was bending over Peters, intent upon his face, and plainly

puzzled. I saw with satisfaction that Nurse Walters, an unusually capable and conscientious young

woman, had been assigned to the case. Braile looked up at me. He said: "Obviously some drug."

"Maybe," I answered. "But if so then a drug I have never encountered. Look at his eyes-"

I closed Peters' lids. As soon as I had lifted my fingers they began to rise, slowly, until they were again

wide open. Several times I tried to shut them. Always they opened: the terror, the horror in them,

undiminished.

I began my examination. The entire body was limp, muscles and joints. It was as flaccid, the simile came

to me, as a doll. It was as though every motor nerve had gone out of business. Yet there was none of the

familiar symptoms of paralysis. Nor did the body respond to any sensory stimulus, although I struck

down into the nerve trunks. The only reaction I could obtain was a slight contraction of the dilated pupils

under strongest light.

Hoskins, the pathologist, came in to take his samples for blood tests. When he had drawn what he

wanted, I went over the body minutely. I could find not a single puncture, wound, bruise or abrasion.

Peters was hairy. With Ricori's permission, I had him shaved clean-chest, shoulders, legs, even the head.

I found nothing to indicate that a drug might have been given him by hypodermic. I had the stomach

emptied and took specimens from the excretory organs, including the skin. I examined the membranes of

nose and throat: they seemed healthy and normal; nevertheless, I had smears taken from them. The blood

pressure was low, the temperature slightly subnormal; but that might mean nothing. I gave an injection of

adrenaline. There was absolutely no reaction from it. That might mean much.