Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1857-10-16
BILL WILSON AND THE GHOST.

was almost Harmed out of ther senses by q
ghost what made its appearance every night in
the graveyard The niggers seed it fust, and
they told sich terrible tales about it that the
wimmin and children was fraid to go to bed in
the dark for a month, and you couldn't git q
nigger 10 20 outside the door after dark not for
all GeOrgy. 1t made q monstrOus talk. for
mOre'n ten miles round the settlement, and
everybody was anxious to find out whose ghost
1t was, and what IL wanted. Old Mr Walker.
what had been cheated out of all his property
by the lawyers, hadn't been ded q great while,
aud as ne was mOnstrOus curious old chsp
any how, the general opinion was that the old
man had cum back for something.
Sammy Stonestreet seed it, and Bob More
land seed il, and old Miss Curloo seed it when
she was cumin to town to her daughter Nancy.
the night she had her baby, and they all gave
the same account, the niggers did, bout Its bein
dressed in white and talkin to itself, and cryin
and walkin about among the tOOm stones. Bob
MOrelsnd sed be heard it sneezs two or three
times, jest as natural as any human, and cry
ever so pitiful
A good many of the boys sed they was gwine
to watch for it sam night and speak to it, but
sumhow ther hearts always failed 'em bout
dark, and nobody didn't go. .H.
One day Bill Wilson cum to town, and was
but half eorned down to Mr.. HarIy's store,
when they got to baaterin him bout the ghost
Ding d If i don { see who it is ses Bill;
g Amt afraid of no ghost that ever walked o
nights" . .'...
With that some of EN- offered to bet him FIVE
dollars that he dssent 60 inside of the grave
yard alone, after dark -''
Dun" ses Bill, plank up yer money. But
m to 90 jest as / We = mind to ~ --....
Yes, says the bOys ..-.
And shoot the ghost il see it," ses he
ITO be sure.2
And I'm to have bottle of old Jimna-
ky to keep me companyp' t-HI
Yes, " ses all of EN-.
Agreed" ses Bill. - Put up the stakes in
Mr.. Harly's hand" ~
The money was staked and the bisness all
hxsd N no time.
Now" ses Bill, t' give me par of pistols
and let me load EN- myself, and I'll show you
whether I'm afraid of ghosts
Captain SINNERS big horse pistols was sent
for, and Bill loaded one Of 'em up to the muz-
xle, and after Citing bottle of Ticker in his
pocket, and takin two or three more horns, TO
raise his courage, he waited I'll it was dark.
Every body IN town was wide awake to see how
the thing would turn out, and some of the
wlmmin was mOnstrous consarned for Bill for
fear he'd git carried of by the ghost shore
enuff ="
Jest about dark Bill set out for the grave
yard, with whole heap Of fellers, who went to
see him TO the gate.
Look out now, Bill-you know ghosts is
monstrous dangerous things" sed the boys as
they was bout lesyin him 30 -rr -
g Yeyer you mind" ses Bill. "But remem-
Der, I'm to shoot"
Yes, ses all Of 'em. r4. .- .F
Bill marched into the middle Of the grave
yard, singin &" Shiny Night as loud as he
could, but nonstrous out of tune, and tuck q
seat on one OF the grave stones. ..ssF. =
The grave yard in Pinevflle stands on the
side OF a hill bout a quarter Of mile from
town The fence IL a mOnstrous high post-and
ard khnl lnkt - = IL n
tendin good ways down in the holler on tother
side, whar there Is pine thicket Of bout acre
whar ther aint no graves
The night was pretty dark, and Bill thought
1t was very cold; so he KEEP takin drinks eyry
now and then to keep himself warm, and singin
all the songs and sam tunes he know'd TO keep
awake. SOmetim be thought he heard some
thing, and then his hair would sort o. crawl up,
and ne would grab hold Of his pistol, what he
held cooked in his lap, but it was 50 dark he
could Mt see nothin ten steps of Two or three
times he felt like backin out, but he knowd
that would Mt never do; so he'd take another
drink and strike up another tune Bimeby he
got so sleepy that be couldn't tell whether he
was singing Lucy Neal''.or - The Promised
Land, and bimeby he only sung a word here
and thar, thout bein very pertickler what song
it belonged 10.
He was so boninable sleepy and corned, to-
gether, that he could mt keep awake, and in
Il
Just then something sneezed,
Ugh " ses Bill, % what's that2''
But be soon cum to the conclusion that he
must been sneeIing in his sleep, and after seein
that his pistol was safe and takin another drink,
he was soon in the land Of Nod agin.
Bout this time old Mr.. jenkins gang of gotes
cum out Of the thicket, whar they had cum
thro the gap in the fence, and with old white
BellshaEer in the lead, cum smellin bout yhar
Bill was watching for the ghost
Oid BellshaZsr IS one of the oudaciOus Sc st old
rascaisa 70 but IN all GeOrgy and see Bill
setin thar all alone by himself he goes I'D and
smells at him. Bill nodded TO him In his sleep
Old Bellsbnzar stepped back little ways. and
Bill nodded again. The old feller tuck it for
a banter sbore enuf, and back he went few
steps, and rsisin up on his hind legs n little he
tuck deliberate aim, and sPang he tuck Bill
right between the eyes; nocking him and his
pistol both of at the same time (
Bang goes the pistol, roarin cut on the still
night air like young fTe-pOunder, so evry body
heard il, and the next mint you might have
hearn Bill hOller murder murder, Lord pre-
ssrve me for more u q mile. 4
1he whole town was out of bed in a minit and
evry body that could go was out to the grave
yard as quick as they could git thar
Inar was Bill wilson, layin sprawled out on
the ground, with his nose nSiked as fat as a
pancake, and both his eyes bunged up so he
eouldn . tell daylight from dark
The gotes was scared bad as he was at the
pistol, and was gone fore he fairly touched the
ground; and Bob MOreland and Tom Stallins
what had gone out thar to scare Bill and had
seed his encounter with old Bellshazer, was
standin by him raped up in ther white sheets,
laughin like they would bust ther sides. I
Bill srOre that he was wide awake, and that
when the ghost cum up TO him, he tuck a fair
crack at IL, when all ~ once he was struck with
clap Of thunder and lightnin.
Bob Moreland tried TO explain it TO him. But
it was AL no use. He swOre the ghost was six
foot high, and that he seed the ightnin lest as
plain as he ever seed lightnin in his life
Bill claimed the stakes, and eyry body sed he
ought to have the money. But you may depend
he wOuldn' Z have sieh another ghost fight for all
the money in Georgy. The fence was mended
whar il was broke in the thicket, and ther was
never any more ghosts seed in that graveyard
sense.
LIGHT SUPPEE.-One Of the great secrets Of
health IL light supper, and il is great self
denial. when ia hungry aud fired at the