Craig leaned over to me and whispered hoarsely, “Keep perfectly still—don't move a hand or foot.”
The old man seemed utterly to have forgotten us. “Is that you, John?” he asked expectantly.
Rap! rap! rap! came the reply.
“Is Mary strong enough to speak to me to-night?”
Rap! rap!
“Is she happy?”
Rap! rap!
“What makes her unhappy? What does she want? Will you spell it out?”
Rap! rap! rap!
Then, after a pause, the rapping started slowly, and distinctly to spell out words. It was so weird and uncanny that I scarcely breathed. Letter after letter the message came, nineteen raps for “s,” eight for “h,” five for “e,” according to the place in the alphabet, numerically, of the required letter. At last it was complete.