Mr. Clarke, the jentlmn choazn by Dr. Raymond tu witness the strainj experimnt uv the god Pan, wos a persn in huos carractr causion and cuereosity wr odly mingld; in his soabr moamnts he tthaut uv the unuezual and exentric witth undisgyzd averzion, and yet, deep in his hart, thair wos a wyd-ied inquizitivness witth respect tu all the mor recndyt and esoteric elemnts in the naituer uv men. The latr tendnsy had prevaild when he axeptd Raymonds invitaision, for tho his considrd jujmnt had allways repuedeaitd the doctrs ttheorees as the wyldest nonsenss, yet he seecretly hugd a beleef in fantasy, and wood hav rejoissd tu se that beleef confermd. The horrers that he witnessd in the dreery laboratory wr tu a sertn extent saluetory; he wos consius uv being involvd in an afair not alltogethr repuetaibl, and for meny yeers aftrwrds he clung braivly tu the comnplaiss, and rejectd all ocaizions uv ocult investigaision. Indeed, on sum homeopatthic prinsipl, he for sum tym atendd the saonses uv distingwishd meedeums, hoaping that the clumzy triks uv thees jentlmn wood maik him alltogethr disgustd witth mistisizm uv evry kynd, but the remedy, tho caustic, wos not eficaisius. Clarke nue that he stil pynd for the unseen, and litl by litl, the old pasion began tu reasert itself, as the faiss uv Mary, shudring and convulssd witth an unnoan terrer, faidd sloaly frum his memry. Ocuepyd all day in prsuots boatth seereus and luocrativ, the temptaision tu relax in the eavning wos tu grait, espesialy in the wintr muntths, when the fyr cast a worm glo oavr his snug bachlr apartmnt, and a botl uv sum choiss clarray stood redy by his elbo. His dinr dijestd, he wood maik a breef preetenss uv reeding the eavning paipr, but the meer catalog uv news suon palld upon him, and Clarke wood fynd himself casting glanses uv worm dezyr in the direcsion uv an old Japanees buero, which stood at a pleznt distnss frum the hrtth. Lyk a boy befor a jam-closet, for a fue minits he wood huvr indesysiv, but lust allways prevaild, and Clarke endd by drawing up his chair, lyting a candl, and siting doun befor the buero. Its pijn-hols and draurs teemd witth docuemnts on the moast morbid subjects, and in the wel repoasd a larj manuescript volluem, in which he had painfully entrd he gems uv his collecsion. Clarke had a fyn contempt for publishd literatuer; the moast goastly story seesd tu intrest him if it hapnd tu be printd; his sol plezuer wos in the reeding, compyling, and rearrainjing whot he calld his "Memwars tu Pruov the Existnss uv the Devl," and engaijd in thiss prsuot the eavning seemd tu fly and the nyt apeerd tu short.

On wun particuelr eavning, an ugly Desembr nyt, blak witth fog, and raw witth frost, Clarke hereed oavr his dinr, and scairsly daind tu observ his custemery ritual uv taiking up the paipr and laying it doun again. He paissd tu or thre tyms up and doun the ruom, and oapnd the buero, stood stil a moamnt, and sat doun. He leend bak, abzorbd in wun uv thoas dreems tu which he wos subject, and at lengtth dru out his book, and oapnd it at the last entry. Thair wr thre or for paijs densly cuvrd witth Clarkes round, set penmnship, and at the begining he had ritn in a sumwhot larjr hand:

Singuelr Narrative told me by my frend, Dr. Philips. He asuers me that all the facts relaitd thairin ar strictly and holy tru, but refuezs tu giv eathr the Sernaims uv the Persns Consrnd, or the Plaiss whair thees Extraordinary Events okerd.

Mr. Clarke began tu reed oavr the acount for the tentth tym, glansing now and then at the pensl notes he had maid when it wos told him by his frend. It wos wun uv his huemrs tu pryd himself on a sertn literary ability; he tthaut wel uv his styl, and took pains in arrainjing the sercmstanses in dramatic ordr. He red the folloing story:--

The persns consrnd in thiss staitmnt ar Helen V., hu, if she is stil alyv, must now be a wumn uv twenty-thre, Rachel M., sinss deseessd, hu wos a yeer yungr than the abuv, and Trevor W., an imbesl, aijd aiteen. Thees persns wr at the peereod uv the story inhabitnts uv a vilaj on the bordrs uv Wails, a plaiss uv sum importnss in the tym uv the Roamn ocuepaision, but now a scatrd hamlet, uv not mor than fyv hundred sols. It is situatd on ryzing ground, about six miles frum the sea, and is sheltrd by a larj and pictueresk forrest.

Sum elevn yeers ago, Helen V. caim tu the vilaj undr rathr pecuelier sercmstanses. It is undrstood that she, being an orfn, wos adoptd in hr infancy by a distnt relativ, hu braut hr up in his oan houss until she wos twelv yeers old. Tthinking, howevr, that it wood be betr for the chyld tu hav playmaits uv hr oan aij, he advertyzd in sevrel loacl paiprs for a good hoam in a comfrtabl farmhouss for a grl uv twelv, and thiss advertismnt wos ansrd by Mr. R., a wel-tu-du farmr in the abuv-mensiond vilaj. His referenses pruoving satisfactry, the jentlmn sent his adoptd dautr tu Mr. R., witth a letr, in which he stipuelaitd that the grl shood hav a ruom tu hrself, and staitd that hr gardeans need be at no trubl in the matr uv eduecaision, as she wos alredy sufisiontly eduecaitd for the pozision in lyf which she wood ocuepye. In fact, Mr. R. wos givn tu undrstand that the grl be aloud tu fynd hr oan ocuepaisions and tu spend hr tym allmoast as she lykd. Mr. R. duely met hr at the neerest stasion, a toun sevn myls away frum his houss, and seems tu hav remarkd nutthing extraudinary about the chyld exept that she wos retisnt as tu hr formr lyf and hr adoptd fothr. She wos, how-evr, uv a verry difrent typ frum the inhabitnts uv the vilaj; hr skin wos a pail, cleer olliv, and hr feetuers wr strongly markd, and uv a sumwhot foren carractr. She apeers tu hav setld doun eazily enuf intu farmhouss lyf, and becaim a favrit witth the children, hu sumtyms went witth hr on hr rambls in the forrest, for thiss wos hr amuezmnt. Mr. R. staits that he has noan hr tu go out by herself directly aftr thair urly brecfast, and not retrnd til aftr dusk, and that, feeling uneezy at a yung grl being out aloan for so meny ours, he comuenicaitd witth hr adoptd fothr, hu replyd in a breef noat that Helen must du as she choas. In the wintr, when the forrest patths ar impasabl, she spent moast uv hr tym in hr bedruom, whair she slept aloan, acording tu the instrucsions uv hr relativ. It wos on wun uv thees expedisions tu the forrest that the frst uv the singuelr insidnts witth which thiss grl is conectd okerd, the dait being about a yeer aftr hr arryvl at the vilaj. The preseeding wintr had bn remarkably seveer, the sno drifting tu a grait deptth, and the frost continuing for an unexampld peereod, and the sumr folloing wos as noatwerthy for its extreem heet. On wun uv the verry hotest days in thiss sumr, Helen V. left the farmhouss for wun uv hr long rambls in the forrest, taiking witth hr, as uezual, sum bred and meet for lunch. She wos seen by sum men in the feelds maiking for the old Roamn Road, a green causway which traverses the hyest part uv the wood, and thay wr astonishd tu observ that the grl had taikn auf hr hat, tho the heet uv the sun wos allredy tropicl. As it hapnd, a laibrer, Joseph W. by naim, wos wrking in the forrest neer the Roamn Road, and at twlv o'clok his litl son, Trevor, braut the man his dinr uv bred and chees. Aftr the meel, the boy, hu wos about sevn yeers old at the tym, left his fothr at wrk, and, as he sed, went tu look for flours in the wood, and the man, hu cood heer him shouting witth delyt at his discuverees, felt no uneasiness. Sudnly, howevr, he wos horrifyd at heering the moast dredfl screems, evidently the rezult uv grait terrer, proceeding frum the direcsion in which his son had gon, and he haistily tthru doun his tools and ran tu se whot had hapnd. Traissing his patth by the sound, he met the litl boy, hu wos runing hedlong, and wos evidently terribly frytnd, and on questsioning him the man elisitd that aftr piking a posy uv flours he felt tyrd, and lay doun on the grass and fel asleep. He wos sudnly awaiknd, as he staitd, by a pecuelier nois, a sort uv singing he calld it, and on peeping tthru the branchs he saw Helen V. playing on the grass witth a "strainj naikd man," hu he seemd unaibl tu descryb mor fully. He sed he felt dredfully frytnd and ran away crying for his fothr. Joseph W. proceeded in the direcsion indicaitd by his son, and found Helen V. siting on the grass in the midl uv a glaid or oapn spaiss left by charcol bernrs. He angrily charjd hr witth frytening his litl boy, but she entyrly denyd the acuezaision and lafd at the chylds story uv a "strainj man," tu which he himself did not atach much creednss. Joseph W. caim tu the concluozion that the boy had woak up witth a sudn fryt, as children sumtyms du, but Trevor prsistd in his story, and continued in such evidnt distress that at last his fothr took him hoam, hoaping that his muthr wood be aibl tu suoth him. For meny weeks, howevr, the boy gaiv his parrnts much anxyety; he becaim nervuss and strainj in his manr, refuezing tu leev the cotaj by himself, and constntly alarming the houshold by waiking in the nyt witth crys uv "The man in the wood! fothr! fothr!"

In corss uv tym, howevr, the impresion seemd tu hav worn auf, and about thre muntths laitr he acumpaneed his fothr tu the hoam uv a jentlmn in the naibrhood, for huom Joseph W. ocaizionally did wrk. The man wos shoan intu the study, and the litl boy wos left siting in the hall, and a fue minits laitr, whyl the jentlmn wos giving W. his instrucsions, thay wr boatth horrifyd by a peersing shreek and the sound uv a fall, and rushing out thay found the chyld lying senssless on the flor, his faiss contortd witth terrer. The doctr wos imeedeatly sumnd, and aftr sum examinaision he pronounssd the chyld tu be suffering form a kynd uv fit, apparrntly produessd by a sudn shok. The boy wos taikn tu wun uv the bedruoms, and aftr sum tym recuvrd consiusness, but oanly tu pass intu a condision descrybd by the medicl man as wun uv vylnt histerrea. The doctr exhibitd a strong sedativ, and in the corss uv tu ours pronounssd him fit tu wauk hoam, but in passing tthru the hall the paroxizms uv fryt retrnd and witth adisionl vylnss. The fothr prseevd that the chyld wos pointing at sum object, and hrd the old cry, "The man in the wood," and looking in the direcsion indicaitd saw a stoan hed uv grotesk apeernss, which had bn bilt intu the wall abuv wun uv the dors. It seems the owner uv the houss had reesntly maid alteraisions in his premises, and on diging the foundaisions for sum ofises, the men had found a cuereus hed, evidently uv the Roamn peereod, which had bn plaissd in the manr descrybd. The hed is pronounssd by the moast expereanssd arkeolojists uv the district tu be that uv a faun or satr. [Dr. Philips tels me that he has seen the hed in questsion, and asuers me that he has nevr reseevd such a vivid prezentmnt uv intenss eavl.]

Frum whotevr caus arryzing, thiss secnd shok seemd tu seveer for the boy Trevor, and at the preznt dait he sufrs frum a weekness uv intelect, which givs but litl promiss uv amending. The matr causd a good deel uv sensaision at the tym, and the grl Helen wos cloasly questsiond by Mr. R., but tu no prpuss, she stedfastly denying that she had frytnd or in eny way molestd Trevor.

The secnd event witth which thiss grls naim is conectd took plaiss about six yeers ago, and is uv a stil mor extraudinary carractr.

At the begining uv the sumr uv 1882, Helen contractd a frendship uv a pecuelierly intimit carractr witth Rachel M., the dautr uv a posperus farmr in the naibrhood. Thiss grl, hu wos a yeer yungr than Helen, wos considrd by moast peepl tu be the pritier uv the tu, tho Helens feetuers had tu a grait extent sofnd as she becaim oldr. The tu grls, hu wr togethr on evry availabl oprtuonity, prezentd a singuelr contrast, the wun witth hr cleer, olliv skin and allmoast Italien apeernss, and the uthr uv the proverbeal red and whyt uv our rurl districts. It must be staitd that the paymnts maid tu Mr. R. for the maintenenss uv Helen wr noan in the vilaj for thair exesiv liberality, and the impresion wos jenerel that she wood wun day inherit a larj sum uv muny frum hr relativ. The parrnts uv Rachel wr thairfor not avrss frum thair dautrs frendship witth the grl, and ravn enkerajd the intimasy, tho thay now bitrly regret having dun so. Helen stil retaind hr extraudinary fondness for the forrest, and on sevrel ocaizions Rachel acumpaneed hr, the tu frends seting out urly in the morning, and remaining in the wood until dusk. Wunss or twyss aftr thees exkerzions Mrs. M. tthaut hr dautrs manr rathr pecuelier; she seemd langwid and dreemy, and as it has bn expressd, "difrent frum herself," but thees pecuelearitees seem tu hav bn tthaut tu tryfling for remark. Wun eavning, howevr, aftr Rachel had cum hoam, hr muthr hrd a nois which soundd lyk supressd weeping in the grls ruom, and on going in found hr lying, haf undressd, upon the bed, evidently in the graitest distress. As suon as she saw hr muthr, she exclaimd, "Ah, muthr, muthr, why did yu let me go tu the forrest witth Helen?" Mrs. M. wos astonishd at so strainj a questsion, and proseedd tu maik inquyrees. Rachel told hr a wyld story. She sed --

Clarke cloasd the book witth a snap, and trnd his chair twords the fyr. When his frend sat wun eavning in that verry chair, and told his story, Clarke had interuptd him at a point a litl subsequnt tu thiss, had cut short his wrds in a paroxizm uv horrer. "My God!" he had exclaimd, "tthink, tthink whot yu ar saying. It is tu incredabl, tu monstruss; such tthings can nevr be in thiss quyet wrld, whair men and women liv and dy, and strugl, and concr, or maybe fail, and fall doun undr sorrow, and greev and sufr strainj fortuens for meny a yeer; but not thiss, Philips, not such tthings as thiss. Thair must be sum explanaision, sum way out uv the terrer. Why, man, if such a caiss wr posabl, our urtth wood be a nytmair."

But Philips had told his story tu the end, concluoding:

"Her flyt remains a mistery tu thiss day; she vanishd in broad sunlyt; thay saw hr wauking in a medo, and a fue moamnts laitr she wos not thair."

Clarke tryd tu conseev the tthing again, as he sat by the fyr, and again his mynd shudrd and shrank bak, apalld befor the syt uv such aufl, unspeekabl elemnts entthroand as it wr, and tryumfnt in huemn flesh. Befor him strechd the long dim vista uv the green cauzway in the forrest, as his frend had descrybd it; he saw the swaying leevs and the quivring shadoas on the grass, he saw the sunlyt and the flours, and far away, far in the long distnss, the tu figuer muovd tword him. Wun wos Rachel, but the uthr?

Clarke had tryd his best tu disbeleev it all, but at the end uv the acount, as he had ritn it in his book, he had plaissd the inscripsion:

ET DIABOLUS INCARNATE EST. ET HOMO FACTUS EST.