Literary cadet and Rhode-Island statesman. [volume] (Providence, R.I.) 1827-1829, 1828-03-15
! enough to open the door, which he

sell 10 his coucil, allcr a paralJtic sort
Of a poke at the lire. Scarce had the
first dozc relaxed his limbs, when he
was awakened by strange Gathering
on the staircase, as If ten thousand
imps were ascending Ia the panic
Of the moment he jumped up, rushed
to the landins.placc, where he dis
tincily heard the said imps clatter
down the broad staircase again, max
ing faint shrie!iIng cries, which died
away with the sounds Of their foot
steps as they seemed to gain the
vaults beneath the house. 1t was
now manifest that there were other
living tenants in his tenement bcsid :
himself; and the remainder of tha,
slcepiess night was spent in gloomy
conjccturcs. With painful anxiety
did he watch the grey morning break
ing in the east and when The day
burst forth, he commenced a most
,crutinizing search every where
Nothing, however was to be dscov-
cred, not even footstep OH the stair
case and he could have sworn that
he really did hear his disturbers as
ccnd toward his room and then de-
part. On his visit to the town that
morning, the previous days inquiries
we're repeated; bat he strenuousIy
denied having been disturbed, for fear
he should be thought coward. To-
wards the next evening. he detcrmin-
ed to ascertain whether any thing re-
ally did ascend the staircase, or
whether it was mere fancy and for
this purpose, he spread thicl; coat
Of sand on every step, imagining,
shrcwdly enough, that, if his tormen-
tors were really substantial, they must
leave some tracks behind them. The
next night was accompanied by the
same extraordinary noises; bat the
supervisor had provided himself with
pistols, and being doubly armed with
a lamp also, he proceeded down stairs
as hard as he could. The imps, how.
ever, were too nimblc for him, and he
could not even get glimpse Of them.
Again did he search in every hole and
corner, disturbing the poor spiders
with the blaze Of his lamp aud Gnd-
ing his scrutiny in vain. he was relrac-
ing his steps, when he rccoilected The
sand, which, in his terrified descent,
he had forgotten ; when 10 /! and be-
hold. he perceived some five or six
tracks! They were too
small for old devils. and much too
large for rats. and therefore he con-
cluded they must BE- supernatural be-
lngs of some sort. The matter as
sumed rather serious aspect, and he
determined to write to his wife for
bidding her arrival until she heard
further from him. All the day long
his brain was racked by conjcctures
as 10 the species of creatures that
could have disturbed his quiet. FiC
ty times did he conclude that it was
perhaps trick, and as often did he
abandon that notion as improbable !:
but, then he could not account for his
not being able to see the authors Of
the tracks; and forthwith be resolved
on another project. He had given up
every idea that rats could have made
such noise or tracks so large, but he
determined to try if a few t-trap,
could solve the mystery. According
ly he procured six which were were
all he could get; and on the fourth
night carefully set them in a row on
one of the steps Of the staircase so
that if the devils ascended in a COL
umn he was sure Of catching one of
them as a curiosity. Still he could
not abandon his pistols or his lamp.
bat he determined to be on guard all
night. About the mystic hour OF
twelve, he again heard the devils
jumping or hopping, as it seemed, up
the stairs, and while hc cooked on.
of his pistols, he heard a trap go off
then another, then another, succeed
ed by appalling shrieks and the same
gathering noise down stairs again.
He proceeded TO the spot, and there
to his infinite astonishment he found,
not a devil, not an imp, not any thing
supernatural, but three fine fat rabbits,
caught 10y the legs in the traps. The
simple fact was, that the inhabitants
of Az adjoining rabbit warren used to
make their way up through the sew
ers into the deserted mansion and
their gambols through. the empty
rooms first gave rise to the story O { the