The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe
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own fantastic yet impressive superstitions .

it_was, especially, upon retiring to bed late in_the night of_the seventh or eighth day after_the placing of_the lady Madeline within_the donjon, that I experienced the full power of_such feelings . sleep came not near my couch - while the hours waned and waned away .I struggled to reason off the nervousness which had dominion over me .I endeavored to_believe that much, if_not all of what I_felt, was due to_the bewildering influence of_the gloomy furniture of_the room - of_the dark and tattered draperies, which, tortured into motion by_the breath of arising tempest, swayed fitfully to and fro upon_the walls, and rustled uneasily about_the decorations of_the bed . but my efforts were fruitless . an irrepressible tremor gradually pervaded my frame ; and, at_length, there sat upon my very heart an incubus of utterly causeless alarm .Shaking this off with a gasp and a struggle, I uplifted myself upon_the pillows, and, peering earnestly within_the intense darkness of_the chamber, harkened - I_know not why, except that an instinctive spirit prompted me - to certain low and indefinite sounds which came, through_the pauses of_the storm, at long intervals, I_knew not whence . overpowered by an intense sentiment of horror, unaccountable yet unendurable, I threw on my clothes with haste ( for I_felt that i_should sleep no more during the night), and endeavored to arouse myself from_the pitiable condition into which I had fallen, by pacing rapidly to and fro through_the apartment .

I had taken but few turns in_this manner, when a light step on an adjoining staircase arrested my attention .I presently recognised it as_that of usher . in an instant afterward he rapped, with a gentle touch, at my door, and entered, bearing a lamp . his countenance was, as usual, cadaverously wan - but, moreover, there_was a species of mad hilarity in_his eyes - an evidently restrained hysteria in_his whole demeanor . his air appalled me - but anything was preferable to_the solitude which I had so_long endured, and I even welcomed his presence as a relief .

" and you_have_not seen it ? " he_said abruptly, after having stared about him for some moments in silence - " you_have_not then seen it ? - but, stay ! you shall ." thus speaking, and having carefully shaded his lamp, he hurried to one_of_the casements, and threw it freely open to_the storm .

the impetuous fury of_the entering gust nearly lifted us from_our feet . it_was, indeed, a tempestuous yet sternly beautiful night, and one wildly singular in its terror and its beauty .a whirlwind had apparently collected its force in_our vicinity ; for there were frequent and violent alterations in_the direction of_the wind ; and_the exceeding density of_the clouds ( which hung so low as_to press upon_the turrets of_the house) did_not prevent our perceiving the life- like velocity with_which they flew careering from all points against each_other, without passing away into_the distance . I_say that even their exceeding density did_not prevent our perceiving this - yet we had no glimpse of_the moon or stars - nor was there any flashing forth of_the lightning . but the under surfaces of_the huge masses of agitated vapor, as_well as all terrestrial objects immediately around us, were glowing in_the unnatural light of a faintly luminous and distinctly visible gaseous exhalation which hung about and enshrouded the mansion .

" you_must not - you shall_not behold this ! " said I, shudderingly, to usher, as I led him, with a gentle violence, from_the window to a seat ." these appearances, which bewilder you, are merely electrical phenomena not uncommon - or it may_be that they_have their ghastly origin in_the rank miasma of_the tarn . let_us close this casement ; - the air is chilling and dangerous to your frame . here_is one of your favorite romances . i_will read, and you shall listen ; - and so we_will pass away this terrible night together ."

the antique volume which I had taken up was_the " mad Trist" of sir Launcelot Canning ; but I had called it a favorite of usher's more in sad jest than in earnest ; for, in truth, there_is little in its uncouth and unimaginative prolixity which could_have had interest for_the lofty and spiritual ideality of_my friend . it_was, however, the only book immediately at hand ; and I indulged a vague hope_that the excitement which now agitated the hypochondriac, might find relief ( for_the history of mental disorder is full of similar anomalies) even in_the extremeness of_the folly which i_should read . could I_have judged, indeed, by_the wild overstrained air of vivacity with_which he harkened, or apparently harkened, to_the words of_the tale, I_might well have congratulated myself upon_the success of_my design .

I had arrived at_that well- known portion of_the story where Ethelred, the hero of_the Trist, having sought in vain for peaceable admission into_the dwelling of_the hermit, proceeds to_make good an entrance by force . here, it_will_be remembered, the words of_the narrative run thus:

" and Ethelred, who was by nature of a doughty heart, and who was now mighty withal, on account of_the powerfulness of_the wine which he had drunken, waited no longer to hold parley with_the hermit, who, in sooth, was of an obstinate and maliceful turn, but, feeling the rain upon his shoulders, and fearing the rising of_the tempest, uplifted his mace outright, and, with blows, made quickly room in_the plankings of_the door for_his gauntleted hand ; and now pulling therewith sturdily, he so cracked, and ripped, and tore all asunder, that_the noise of_the dry and hollow-sounding wood alarummed and reverberated throughout_the forest ."

at_the termination of_this sentence I started, and for a moment, paused ; for_it appeared to_me ( although I at once concluded that my excited fancy had deceived me) - it appeared to_me that, from some very remote portion of_the mansion, there came, indistinctly, to my ears, what might_have_been, in its exact similarity of character, the echo ( but a stifled and dull one certainly) of_the very cracking and ripping sound which sir Launcelot had so particularly described . it_was, beyond doubt, the coincidence alone which had arrested my attention ; for, amid the rattling of_the sashes of_the casements, and_the ordinary commingled noises of_the still increasing storm, the sound, in itself, had nothing, surely, which should_have interested or disturbed me .I continued the story:

" but the good champion Ethelred, now entering within_the door, was sore enraged and amazed to perceive no signal of_the maliceful hermit ; but, in_the stead thereof, a dragon of a scaly and prodigious demeanor, and of a fiery tongue, which sate in guard before a palace of gold, with a floor of silver ; and upon_the wall there hung a shield of shining brass with_this legend enwritten -

who entereth herein, a conqueror hath bin ; who slayeth the dragon, the shield he shall win;

and Ethelred uplifted his mace, and struck upon_the head of_the dragon, which fell before him, and gave up his pesty breath, with a shriek so horrid and harsh, and withal so piercing, that Ethelred had fain to close his ears with_his hands against the dreadful noise of it, the like whereof was never before heard ."

here again I paused abruptly, and now with afeeling of wild amazement - for there could_be no_doubt whatever that, in_this instance, I_did actually hear ( although from what direction it proceeded I_found it impossible to_say) a low and apparently distant, but harsh, protracted, and most unusual screaming or grating sound - the exact counterpart of what my fancy had already conjured up for_the dragon's unnatural shriek as described by_the romancer .

oppressed, as I certainly was, upon_the occurrence of_this second and most extraordinary coincidence, by a thousand conflicting sensations, in_which wonder and extreme terror were predominant, I still retained sufficient presence of mind to avoid exciting, by any observation, the sensitive nervousness of_my companion . i_was by no means certain that he had noticed the sounds in_question ; although, assuredly, a strange alteration had, during_the_last few_minutes, taken place in_his demeanor . from a position fronting my own, he had gradually brought round his chair, so as_to sit with_his face to_the door of_the chamber ; and thus I_could but partially perceive his features, although I_saw that his lips trembled as_if he were murmuring inaudibly . his head had dropped upon his breast - yet I_knew that he_was not asleep, from_the wide and rigid opening of_the eye as I caught a glance of it in profile . the motion of_his body, too, was at variance with_this idea - for he rocked from side to side with a gentle yet constant and uniform sway .Having rapidly taken notice of all this, I resumed the narrative of sir Launcelot, which thus proceeded:

" and now, the champion, having escaped from_the terrible fury of_the dragon, bethinking himself of_the brazen shield, and of_the breaking up of_the enchantment which_was upon it, removed the carcass from out_of_the way before him, and approached valorously over the silver pavement of_the castle to where the shield was upon_the wall ; which in sooth tarried not for_his full coming, but fell down at his feet upon_the silver floor, with a mighty great and terrible ringing sound ."

no sooner had these syllables passed my lips, than - as_if a shield of brass had indeed, at_the moment, fallen heavily upon a floor of silver - I became aware of a distinct, hollow, metallic, and clangorous, yet apparently muffled reverberation .Completely unnerved, I leaped to my feet ; but the measured rocking movement of usher was undisturbed .I rushed to_the chair in_which he sat . his eyes were bent fixedly before him, and throughout his whole countenance there reigned a stony rigidity . but, as I placed my hand upon his shoulder, there came a strong shudder over his whole person ; a sickly smile quivered about his lips ; and I_saw that he spoke in a low, hurried, and gibbering murmur, as_if unconscious of_my presence .Bending closely over him, I at_length drank in_the hideous import of_his words .

" not hear it ? - yes, I hear it, and_have heard it . long - long - long - many minutes, many hours, many days, have I heard it - yet I dared not - oh, pity me, miserable wretch that I_am ! - I dared not - I dared not speak ! we_have put her living in_the tomb ! said I not that my senses were acute ? I now tell you that I heard her first feeble movements in_the hollow coffin .I heard them - many, many days_ago - yet I dared not - I dared not speak ! and now - to- night - Ethelred - ha ! ha ! - the breaking of_the hermit's door, and_the death- cry of_the dragon, and_the clangor of_the shield ! - say, rather, the rending of her coffin, and_the grating of_the iron hinges of her prison, and her struggles within_the coppered archway of_the vault ! Oh whither shall I fly ? will she not be here anon ? is she not hurrying to upbraid me for_my haste ? have I not heard her footstep on_the stair ? do I not distinguish that heavy and horrible beating of her heart ? madman ! " - here he sprang furiously to_his feet, and shrieked out his syllables, as_if in_the effort he were giving up his soul - "_Madman ! I tell you that she now stands without the door ! "

as_if in_the superhuman energy of_his utterance there had_been found the potency of a spell - the huge antique pannels to_which_the speaker pointed, threw slowly back, upon_the instant, their ponderous and ebony jaws . it was_the work of_the rushing gust - but then without those doors there did stand the lofty and enshrouded figure of_the lady Madeline of usher . there_was blood upon her white robes, and_the evidence of some bitter struggle upon every portion of her emaciated frame . for a moment she remained trembling and reeling to and fro upon_the threshold - then, with a low moaning cry, fell heavily inward upon_the person of her brother, and in her violent and now final death-agonies, bore him to_the floor a corpse, and a victim to_the terrors he had anticipated .

from_that chamber, and from_that mansion, I fled aghast . the storm was still abroad in all its wrath as I_found myself crossing the old causeway . suddenly there shot along the path a wild light, and I turned to_see whence a gleam so unusual could_have issued ; for_the vast house and its shadows were alone behind me . the radiance was_that of_the full, setting, and blood- red moon, which now shone vividly through_that once barely- discernible fissure, of_which I_have before spoken as extending from_the roof of_the building, in a zigzag direction, to_the base . while I gazed, this fissure rapidly widened - there came a fierce breath of_the whirlwind - the entire orb of_the satellite burst at once upon my sight - my brain reeled as I_saw the mighty walls rushing asunder - there_was a long tumultuous shouting sound like the voice of a thousand waters - and_the deep and dank tarn at my feet closed sullenly and silently over the fragments of_the "_House of usher ."

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