106
SHREDS AND PATCHES.
I saw in his face an expression
So dark and prophetic of death,
That I moved with great care the keen weapon
From its place to the drawer underneath!
So dark and prophetic of death,
That I moved with great care the keen weapon
From its place to the drawer underneath!
When I turned he was wholly unconscious
Of me or aught else in the room—
And he held in his hand a dark substance
Which he gazed at in pitiful gloom.
Of me or aught else in the room—
And he held in his hand a dark substance
Which he gazed at in pitiful gloom.
He toyed with it long, and quite fondly,
Then he suddenly rose from his chair,
Spread the substance flat out on the table,
And rushed from the room in despair.
Then he suddenly rose from his chair,
Spread the substance flat out on the table,
And rushed from the room in despair.
And there, as I looked, lay before me,
While the clock ticked and all else was still,
The amount of the wager he bet me,
To wit:—a new ten-dollar bill.
While the clock ticked and all else was still,
The amount of the wager he bet me,
To wit:—a new ten-dollar bill.
