THE JUDGE’S HOUSE

By Bram Stoker

Malcolm Malcolmson was a student at college. Malcolm was twenty-one and he was in his final year. Classes had finished and Malcolm was studying hard for his examinations. But Malcolm was unable to study at home.

He lived with his family and the large house was always noisy. ‘I can’t study here at home,’ Malcolm told his father. ‘It’s far too noisy. I’m going to find a quiet house in a small  country town. I’ll be alone there and I’ll be able to work hard.’

His father agreed and Malcolm packed all his books and papers into a suitcase. He took a train to a small quiet town called Benchurch. Benchurch is in the country. Malcolm

had never been there before.

Malcolm stayed the first night in a small hotel. The next morning, after breakfast, he walked round the town. In the quietest part of the town, Malcolm found a large, old house. The garden in front of the house was very untidy and the house looked empty. There was a shop not very far from the house. Malcolm went into the shop and asked about the old house.

‘Does anyone live in that old house down the street?’  Malcolm asked the man in the shop.

‘The house is empty,’ replied the man. ‘No one has lived there for many years. Go to the lawyer in the High Street.

He knows about the house. He’ll be able to help you.’ Malcolm walked back to the High Street. The lawyer’s office was near the hotel. Malcolm went into the office and met the lawyer.

‘That house has been empty for many, many years,’ the lawyer told him. ‘There is a story about the house. People say strange things about it. No one wants to live there.’

‘I am a student,’ Malcolm replied. ‘I want to study hard and I’m not worried about stories. I like that old house and I want to live there. It’s very quiet and I’ll be able to work hard at my studies.’

Malcolm gave the lawyer enough money to rent the house for a month. The lawyer handed him the keys to the house. Malcolm took the keys and walked back to the hotel. He packed his suitcase and got ready to leave.

‘I’m leaving now,’ he told the woman who owned the hotel.

‘Are you leaving the town?’ the woman asked him.

‘No,’ replied Malcolm, ‘I’m going to stay here, in Benchurch. I have found an old house. It’s very quiet and I’ll be able to work hard there. The woman asked him about the house. When Malcolm told her, she looked frightened.

‘You can’t live there,’ she said. ‘You can’t live in that house. That’s the Judge’s House.’

‘Why are you so afraid?’ Malcolm asked her. ‘What is wrong with the Judge’s House? Tell me about it.’ ‘A famous judge lived there a long time ago,’ the woman explained. ‘He was a very cruel man. He had no mercy on any criminal. He ordered the criminals to be hanged.

Many people died because he showed them no mercy.’ The woman’s face was white. She was very, very afraid. But Malcolm was busy thinking about his examinations. He did not notice the woman’s fear.

‘Don’t worry about me,’ he told her. ‘I have my work to do. I’ll be very busy. I have a lot of studying to do and many books to read. I won’t have any time to be afraid of stories.’

Malcolm said goodbye to the owner of the hotel. She looked very unhappy, but she did not say any more.

Malcolm picked up his suitcase and walked from the hotel to the Judge’s House.

Malcolm unlocked the door and went inside. The rooms were very dark. Malcolm pulled aside the dark, heavy curtains. The furniture in the rooms was old. It was all covered with sheets. The dining room was big and there was a large table in the centre. Malcolm decided to live in that one room.

I’ll work in this room and I’ll eat and sleep here, he said to himself. I do not need any of the other rooms.

He moved the chairs in the dining-room to one side. He carried a bed from a bedroom and put it beside a wall. He lit a fire and put his books on the big table. He started studying and worked until the evening. In the evening, he prepared some supper. After supper, it was beginning to get dark. The daylight was fading. Malcolm lit a lamp and put some more wood on the fire. Then he sat down again at the table and continued studying.

He worked until eleven o'clock. Then he stopped and made a pot of tea. He put some more wood on the fire. Outside the light of the lamp and the light of the fire, the room was very dark. There were dark shadows on the walls and behind the chairs. But Malcolm was happy. He was working hard.

I can work really hard here, he said to himself. I'll do well

in the examinations.

There was an oíd wooden chair beside the fire. The chair had a high back and it looked comfortable. Malcolm sat down in this chair and drank his tea. At first, the house was very quiet. There was no noise in the room at all. But then Malcolm heard a noise. He listened carefully. The noise was getting louder.

Rats, said Malcolm to himself. The light from the fire and from my lamp frightened them away at first. Now they have become used to the light. They are no longer afraid. They have come to look at me. They want to know who I am.

The rats were everywhere. They were running across the floor and over the furniture. Malcolm heard them running under the wooden floor beneath his feet. They ran in and out of holes in the walls. They squeaked and they scratched.

Malcolm was not afraid. Rats did not frighten him. He finished drinking his tea. Then he got up and picked up the carried a bed from a bedroom and put it beside a wall. He lit a fire and put his books on the big table. He started studying and worked until the evening. In the evening, he prepared some supper. After supper, it was beginning to get dark. The daylight was fading. Malcolm lit a lamp and put some more wood on the fire. Then he sat down again at the table and continued studying.

He worked until eleven o'clock. Then he stopped and made a pot of tea. He put some more wood on the fire. Outside the light of the lamp and the light of the fire, the room was very dark. There were dark shadows on the walls and behind the chairs. But Malcolm was happy. He was working hard.

I can work really hard here, he said to himself. I'll do well in the examinations.

There was an oíd wooden chair beside the fire. The chair had a high back and it looked comfortable. Malcolm sat down in this chair and drank his tea. At first, the house was very quiet. There was no noise in the room at all. But then Malcolm heard a noise. He listened carefully. The noise was getting louder.

Rats, said Malcolm to himself. The light from the fire and from my lamp frightened them away at first. Now they have become used to the light. They are no longer afraid. They have come to look at me. They want to know who I am.

The rats were everywhere. They were running across the floor and over the furniture. Malcolm heard them running under the wooden floor beneath his feet. They ran in and out of holes in the walls. They squeaked and they scratched.

Malcolm was not afraid. Rats did not frighten him. He finished drinking his tea. Then he got up and picked up the Malcolm went back to the fire and sat down on the chair. He drank another cup of tea. Then he went back to the big table and read some more books. The noise of the rats continued, but he did not notice it.

Malcolm sat reading for hour after hour. Suddenly he looked up from his books. Something had happened. He listened carefully. The rats had stopped their noise. There was complete silence in the room. Malcolm looked at the fire. He had forgotten to put more wood on and the fire was almost out. Then Malcolm felt a sudden, cold shiver running through his body.

Malcolm looked at the high-backed chair by the fire. Something was sitting on the chair. It was an enormous rat. Malcolm had never seen such a large rat in his life. It was looking at Malcolm and it did not move. Malcolm picked up a book from the table. He raised his arm and threw the book at the rat but the rat did not move. It opened its mouth and showed its big, sharp teeth. Its gleaming red eyes looked cruel in the lamplight.

Malcolm stood up quickly. As soon as he stood up, the rat moved. It jumped from the chair to the rope of the alarm-bell. It ran up the rope and disappeared into the darkness. Immediately, the other rats carne back again. They came out of the holes in the walls. The room was once more filled with the noise of their squeaking and scratching.

Malcolm looked at his watch. It was nearly morning. He lay down with on the bed and fell asleep. When he woke up again, the sun was shining through the windows.

Malcom got up and had some breakfast. Then he went out for u long walk. He took his books and some bread and with him. It was a beautiful day and the sun was brightly. Malcolm felt happy. He walked through I he fields and then he sat down and read his books. At lunchtime he ate the bread and cheese. He sat reading all through the afternoon.

In the early evening, he carne back to the Judge's House. He heard the rats as soon as he opened the door. They were already running about and making a noise. Malcolm lit a fire and made his supper. After supper, he sat down in the chair by the fire and smoked a cigarette. Then he sat down at I he big table and went back to work.

That night, from the very beginning, the rats were not afair of Malcolm. They ran up and down the room - over and under every piece of furniture. They watched Malcolm mil of I he holes in the walls. Their little, bright eyes shone in the lamplight. But they did not trouble Malcolm. He became used to them. From time to time, he looked up from his hooks and watched them playing their games.

Malcolm worked for hour after hour. Suddenly he looked up (rom his books. Once again, there was silence in the room. It was exactly like the night before. The noise of the rats had stopped completely. There, on the high-backed chair beside the fire, sat the same enormous rat. The rat looked at Malcolm with its evil eyes.

Malcolm quickly picked up a book and threw it at the rat. The book did not hit the rat and the rat did not move. Malcolm stood up and moved towards the rat. The rat ran up the rope in the same way as the night before. As soon as it had disappeared, all the other rats started to squeak and scratch. Malcolm looked at his watch. It was mid-night.

I'll have another cup of tea, he said to himself. Then I´ll get back to my books.

Malcolm put some more wood on the fire and made another pot of tea. He sat down again in the high-backed chair. He drank the tea and smoked a cigarette. Then he looked at the alarm bell rope. He reached out and touched the rope. He lifted up the end of the rope and held it in both hands. It was strong, but it also felt soft and smooth.

Malcolm had an idea. He thought of a plan to kill the enormous rat. He lifted up the end of the rope and put it on the table. Then he piled up some books and put them near him on the table.

Now I am ready for the rat, he thought to himself. When it comes again, I'll see the rope move. And I'll have these books to throw at it. This time I'll hit the rat and kill it.

Malcolm began his studies once again. He worked for about half an hour. Suddenly the rats stopped the noise. The room was silent. He looked up and saw the enormous rat. It was climbing down the rope. It jumped from the rope onto the high-backed chair. It sat on the chair and looked straight at Malcolm.

Malcolm picked up the first book on the pile. He threw it at the rat. The rat moved a little and the book did not hit it Malcolm threw a second book, then a third and a fourth. This last book hit the rat. It gave a loud squeak. Then it ran up the back of the chair, jumped onto the rope and climbed up quickly. Malcolm watched the rat in the lamplight. It bed up and came near one of the big paintings on the wall. Then it jumped from the rope to the painting. The rat disappeared into a hole in this painting. Malcolm looked at the painting carefully. He wanted to remember it.

I'II have a good look at that painting in the morning, he to himself. 'll be able to see it more clearly in the daylight.

It was now very late. Malcolm went to bed and slept well. The next morning, he woke up and felt happy. It was another sunny day.

Good, he thought to himself. I'll get out again for a long walk. I'll read my books in the open air.

While Malcolm was drinking a cup of tea, a woman carne 10 i he house. She was the cleaning woman. She had come to dust and clean the house.

‘I´m going out for a long walk,' Malcolm told the woman, ´ 'You can clean the house while I am out.'  

Before he left the house, Malcolm spoke again to the woman. He pointed up at the painting on the wall. It was Hiked the doctor. It is the one with the hole in the comer. The enormous rat had        disappeared into this hole.

Please clean this painting very carefully,' Malcolm asked the woman ´I want to see it clearly.'

Then Malcolm left the house. Again he walked through then the fields. After some time, he sat down and read more and more. He worked very hard. In the afternoon, the weather changed. The sun went behind some black clouds and it became windy.

I'll go back to the Judge's House now, thought Malcolm,It's going to rain.    

On his way back, Malcolm came to the small hotel. He decided to go in. He wanted to talk to someone. There was     a man sitting in a chair in the sitting-room. The man introduced himself to Malcolm.

'Good evening,' he said. '1 am the doctor in this tow.

And I know who you are. You are the student who is living In the Judge´s House. Are you happy there?

I am able to study gard in the house. ´ replied Malcom. ´That is the most important thing for me. I am studying for my final examinations.´

And nothing troubles you in the house? asked the doctor.

´There are hundreds of rats in the house,´ replied Malcom. ´But they not trouble very much. I am not afraid of rats. However, there is one enormous rat´ added Malcom. It´s sit on chair and looks at me evel eyes. I want to kill big rat.´

Malcom told the doctor all about the enormous rat. He described the high-backed chair and the rope od the alarm bell.

´Does the rat always come down and go up that rope?´ asked the doctor.

´Always,´replied Malcom.

´Do you know what that rope is?´

´It´s a very strong and a very soft rope,´ replied Malcom. ´But I don´t know anything more about it´

The doctor looles at Malcom for few moments. Then he spoke quietly and slowly.

´When the judge was alive, he was very cruel. He condemned many criminals to death. That was the rope that the handgman used. The handgman made a noose at the end of the rope. The noose was put over the criminal´s was dead. The rope by the fire is the hangman´s rope.

Malcom and the doctor talked about the Judge´s House for about an hour. The Macom walked back to the house.

The weather had now changed completely. It had become cold and a strong was blowing. When he was inside the house,  Malcom heard the wind blowing round it.

The cleaning woman had some supper. Then he went and studies once again. Before he stared reading his book, he looked round the room. He notice the rope hanging between the high-backed chair and fireplace. He thought about the doctor´s story. This was the rope used by the hangman. Many men died this rope round their necks.

Malcolm stood up and walked over to the rope. He took, it in his hands. While he was holding the rope, he felt it move. He looked up and saw the enormous rat. It was climbing slowly down the rope. The rat suddenly saw Malcolm. It turned round and ran quickly up and disappeared into the hole in the painting. All the other rats immediately began running around again, squeaking and scratching.

Malcolm picked up the lamp and walked towards the' high-backed chair. He stood behind the chair and held the lamp high above his head. He looked at the painting. The cleaning woman had worked hard. She had cleaned off all the dust and dirt from the painting. Malcolm was able to seo the hole in the corner where the rat disappeared.

Suddenly Malcolm felt terribly afraid. His face went white. He now saw that it was a painting of a judge in his robes. The judge's face was cruel and his eyes were evil. The eyes of the judge were like the eyes of the enormous rat

Malcom held the lamp higher. Now he was able to see the whole painting. In the painting, the judge was sitting in a wooden , -backed chair. The big chair was beside a fireplace. A rope was hanging down between the chair and the fireplace. It was a long rope and in the painting it looked strong and soft.

Malcom understood. It was a panting of the room in which he was standing. The wooden, high-backed chair was the same. The fireplace was the same. The strong, soft rope was the same.

Malcom looked round the room. He looks at the fireplace and the at the rope. Then he looked at the chair. He gave a loud cry. The lamp almost fell from his hand.

The enormous rat was sitting in the chair. The rope was handing down behind it. The rat´s eyes were staring at Malcom. They were the same eyes as the judges in the painting.

Inside the room, everything was completely silent. Outside, the wind was blowing strongly. The wind made Malcom remember the town outside the house.

I am becoming foolish, Malcolm said to himself. I must forget the doctor's story. I will go back to my books and study  hard. I must be strong or I will go mad. I must stop thinking about the judge and the hangman's rope.

Malcolm looked again at the chair. The enormous rat was no longer there. It had disappeared. Malcolm sat down again at the table and began to study. He worked for about an hour. As usual, the other rats ran round the room over and under the furniture. Malcolm listened to their squeaking and scratching. Then suddenly, the noise stopped. Malcolm listened. The room was silent. The rats had disappeared. But outside, the wind was blowing more and more strongly. The rain was beating against trie Windows Malcolm looked at the fire. It was nearly out. The room was cold.

I must put more wood on the fire, he said to himself.

He stood up and suddenly he stopped. He had heard a noise in the room. It was a very quiet scratching noise. Malcolm looked round the room. He saw nothing. Then he looked up at the hangman's rope.

Malcolm was horrified. In the dim light of the lamp, Malcolm saw the enormous rat. It was holding on to the rope. It was about halfway between the high ceiling and the floor. And it was biting at the rope with its sharp, cruel teeth. It was slowly biting through the rope.

Malcolm watched in horror. As he watched, the rat went on biting the rope. Suddenly the bottom half of the rope fell on to the floor. The rat had bitten right through it.

Now the rat was holding on to the top end of the rope. Malcolm picked up a book and threw it at the rat. The book nearly hit the rat. The rat dropped from the rope and landed on the floor. Then it ran away into the darkest corner of the room.

Malcolm was now terribly afraid.

If I am in trouble, I will not be able to ring the alarm bell, he thought to himself. If anything happens to me, I will not be able to call for help.

Malcolm sat down at the table, but he was not able to read his books. The room was still silent. He looked up again at the painting. He shut his eyes and rubbed them. Then he looked at the painting once again.

'It can't be true,' he shouted out loudly in the empty room.

He looked at the painting. The fireplace and the rope were still there. And the high-backed chair was in the too. But the high-backed chair in the painting was empty. There was no one sitting in it. The judge in the painting appeared.

Malcom slowly moved his eyes from the chair in the painting to the real chair in the room. His heart stopped beating for a few moments. His whole body felt like ice. The judge was sitting in the big, wooden high-backed chair.

The Judge's eyes were evil and his mouth was cruel. His were looking straight at Malcolm. A clock somewhere in the house struck twelve. It was midnight. Slowly the judge stood up and picked up the rope from the floor. He the loft, strong rope in his hands. Slowly he twisted the rope into a noose. He started to walk towards Malcolm.

The   judge   came   slowly   nearer.   Malcolm   moved Suddenly the judge tried to throw the noose Malcom head. Malcolm moved his head to one side. The noose missed Malcolm and the rope fell to the floor.

The judge slowly pulled the rope back. He picked it up. Once again, the noose was in his hands.

Suddenly Malcolm heard a noise. It was the alarm bell on the roof of the house. It was beginning to ring. But it was not ringing loudly. Malcolm looked up. The end of the rope which was hanging from the high ceiling was covered with rats, More and more rats were coming out of a hole in the. They were climbing down the rope. The rats were to help Malcolm. They were trying to make the alarm bell ring. But it was not yet ringing loudly.

The judge heard the alarm bell. His face twisted with anger. He came nearer to Malcolm. His eyes were looking at Malcolm. Malcolm's body felt like ice. He was to unable to move. The judge slowly came up to Malcolm. He put the noose over Malcolm's head and round his neck. He pulled the noose tighter and tighter.

The judge carried Malcolm to the-high backed chair. He stood Malcolm on the chair. Then the judge disappeared. The enormous rat suddenly appeared once again. The rat picked up the end of the rope on the floor. It ran up the wall holding the rope with its teeth. It jumped from the wall to the other end of the rope. The rats on the top end of the rope fled away in terror. They disappeared through the hole in the ceiling.

The enormous rat tied the two ends of the rope together. Then it jumped from the roper into the painting. It disappeared into thecorner of the painting.

The judge appeared once again. He stood beside Malcom. Malcom was now standing on the chair with the noose tightly round his neck. The rope went from Malcom{s neck right up to the ceiling. The judge knocked the chair away from under Malcom´s feet. Malcom´s body swung from the end of the rope. The alarm bell began to ring. It rang louder and louder.

The alarm bell rang out loudly over the small town d Benchurch. The noise woke the people up. They came running to the Judge's House. They knocked loudly on the door. But no one opened it. Then they knocked the dooJ down and went into the house.

They found Malcolm in the dining-room. His body was hanging from the end of the alarm bell rope. A man pointed up at the painting on the wall. It had not been cleaned for many years. For the first time, they were able to see the painting clearly.

'Look,' the man cried. 'It's a painting of the judge.' They all stood and looked at the painting. The judge in the painting was sitting in the big, wooden high-backet chair beside the fire. There was a smile on the judge's face It was an evil smile.