Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1867-03-22
THE HAUNTED HOUSE
BIZ GEORGE H. cooMER.

By GEORGE II. CooMER.
speaking of spirit bell-ringings and
rappings" said grandmother 81 listened to
something quite as startling years before
spirits resolved themselves into an institu-
ton. Then every ghost was independent
Not one of them thought of coming at set
times to read, write and attend lectures ;
but whenever one did appear, at such
irregular hours as suited its convenience, 1T
created a sensation. A spirit of this kind
would not down at the bidding of ever
so many Macbeths.
when was eighteen, Mr.. Marvin, one
of our ncighbors, owned a farm in Gray
Owl DELI couple of miles from his
HOMESTEAD He generally had tenant
upon the place, but in the year 10 which
have refe renee, having found no one will
ling to ps.y so high rent as he demanded,
he had al owed the houseto remain empty,
his boys, his hired man or himself going
over occs sionally to attend to the farm
1T requires no great knowledge Of hui
man nature to assure one that a house
standing remote from all Others in a lone
some and shadowy dell, could not remain
long untenanted by humanity without
acquiring the reputation of being haunted
The feline tribe is infinitely associated
with ideas of the supernatural, and cats,
astonishing in size and number, began to be
seen about the premises of Gray Owl Dell
The birds of Minerva, too that perched
now and then on the decaying buildings,
were suspected of wearing their feathers
merely as cloaks of deception, while the
witch-spirit looked mockingly out from
their great, round YES
"Win Ashley, who had attended Mar
garet Rivers from singing-school to her
home on the back road, affirmed that while
returning across lots, for shorter cut, he
had seen an owl as large as bIr. Marvin's
brindle OK, sitting on the chimneytOp of
the old farmhouse. This bird was no
doubt the incarnation of witch spirit !,
and however much Wits dilated eyes may
have magnihed its proportions. ii was
lucky for poor old Polly Ruggles, the scold
Of the neSghborhood, and an abominable
bag altogether, that Salem fashions had
lost their predominance in New England
The uncomfortable dame might out scold
the north wind, but unlike those of her
profession 10 earlier days, she stood no
chance of being dragged at ropes end
across river, or pressed between two
planks till she should acknowledge her
iniquity-after confession, the pressing to
60 ON worse than ever. Sad encourage
ment TO penitence.
"0ne wav and another, the opinion be-
came prevalent that something evil lowered
about the place Widow Stebbins, who
hired the privilege of fastening her cow
there. testified that the cream yielded by
this domestic animal was upon certain
occasion beWitched. The pious widow
caurned long In vain Then she prayed !;
then she churned again. But the familiar
spirit had not been exercised by her de-
votions- she Lad lacked faith.
Finally, she heated horse shoe, till il
glowed like the star ArcturuA and all
flaming as it was, dropped il into the
cream. Such Kissing and screaming
said the gooc. widow, you never heard
and the butter came at once No doubt
some incautious witch was sadly burned
the Kissing and screaming directly pointing
to such a conclusion, especially with the
blacksmith's shop.
During the summer, however, weyoung
people were In little dread of the super
natural and as the old place had tempting
raspberries and apples, we often visited it,
yet kept at good distance from the house
But when winter had set it, putting imagi
nation in shadow, and the days appeared
like dim windows between the long, dark
nights, think we took pleasure in the full
indulgence of credulity. Who cares for a
July ghost, or looks for withered witch
in field of blooming corn? The Thane
of CLAIMS met the weird sisters upon q
blasted heath and the idea Of evil spirits
is ever associated with desolation and
darkness. rt4ss.ls
"Iwen recollcct the advent, about this
time, Of . mysterious animal that oul
towns people called a tiger cat We felt a
Of rod r,lea in, heliovip If no,
wholly of earth; and, indeed, there was
much in its nightly operations to warran,
such an opinion. It seemed an enemy OF
nothing but dogs, and it became a usual
occurrence for a farmer on going out in the
morning to find his dog dead on tie door
step, yet without any discoverable wound
MY cousins. Thomas and John Conway,
lived then with their father, who was a
neighbor of ours and remember hearing
John call to his brother one bitter cold
morning, saying:
atom, Tom the tiger cat has killed
Cupid meaning their little dog.
Sometimes on frosty evenings, when
'the stars shot down WI sklentin' light
belated traveller would be startled by a
momentary glimpse of some underlined
ball, and he felt that he had seen the tiger
cat. As one of our neighbors was return.
ing at late hour to his home, weird
strange object shot between his feet and
instantly disappeared. The frightened man
ran with all his might, and no logic could
have convinced him that old Dame Ruggles
had not darted between his boot tops in the
shape Of q monstrous cat.
"A being half of this world and half OF
world unknown, always appears more
terrible to US than thewholly supernatural
in which is no mingling of earth Bat
about this so-called tiger Cat, there was
certainly something unsccountahle. That
such being existed, I have not the least
doubt; yet why it killed the dogs. or how
it could effect its purpose and still leave no
outward Sign Of injury, cannot imagine.
There was, and still is, at the entrance
of the seaport village near which We lived,
stone bridge, upon which it became usual
to find in the morning number of dogs, all
slain as by pestilence, like the warriors of
Sennacharib. One night, Mr.. Manches-
ter resolved to watch at this place. He
had taken unusual care in the preparation
of his gun-had screwed in the lock new
flint that would make the sparks fly In
showers. Moreover, be was cool, res6lute
man, and one whose word was accepted by
the villagers almost as readily as the evil
dence Of their own senses.
"As the clock struck twelve, the tiger