The New Orleans crescent., 1868-12-20
sHORT LE9EHD OF NEW or

tell you was related to me many years ago BY my
grandmother. q pure and noble Q soul q God
ever created; she has gone now to the realms of
the good and truthful. Although am more
inclined to be skeptical than credulous or SUPER
sttious, was 90 impressed with the narrative st
the time, that the smallest detail has remained
engraven in my memory, and until this day must
admit that do not recur to It without being per.
vaded with feelings of unpleasantness. II was
during the Spanish occupation of the territory of
Louisiana. .-,r. esta
My grandfather, together with several Of bis
country trymen-Castilians, like himself-having in
volved themselves In some political affairs in their
country. their property was confscated, but their
lives spared on condition that they should accept
free transportation to the American possessions
of Spain, there to remain during the pleasure Of
their government.
Among the number there was a young man
named Ramon de Ortiz, just entering into man
hood, accomplished in all the branches of science,
handsome as Antinous. refined and possessed OF q
gentle nature, which fitted him for the ele
giant society amid which he had been raised.
Being cast pcnniless In foreign country, his in.
dustry secured him comparatively comfortable
living in keeping the accounts of certain govern
ment contractors. His occupation brought him into
contact with my grandmothers father, govern
ment employe, an Acadian of the purest Breton
stock, who himself was refugee from the political
and religious prosecutions in Nova Scotia about
the year 1855. In course of time Ramon and my
grandfather became boarders at my great grand
fathers house, and in after years my grandfather
married but 1t was during bis wifes girlhood that
my story occurred.
In those days superstition reigned supreme and
many are the stories remembered BY our old
creoles of toup gdrous, vampires and phantoms,
gibbering at midnight through the streets. clank.
hair and ufuhf xut<b q ekos~
howls and shrieks. to the discontinue Of timoreus
watchmen or serenos, and the CONSERVATION of the
good inhabitants who universally closed their
doors after csndle.ligh and covered their heads
turbed by the rompings of the extravsgant and
erriDg spirits out doors. tItt7
One afternoon Ramon, whose intelligent and
fearless nature was not affected by the halIucins
tions of other people. was walking out of town as
was often his wont, when the thoughts of La
Potrid, and mayhap of fond love over the
seas, rushed too painfully to his mind, his lips
muttered the word T" money" with which be had
ties opposing his return to his mother country
in fact, the idea seemed to have always troubled
him his eyes fell upon the ground and he stopped
to pick up what proved to be an intricately and
beautifully wrought silk purse, containing Curl
ously devised medal or piece Of gold. glittering Ia
the sunshine and veing in brilliaucy with the null
ticolored threads of the purse. Strangely enough,
the purse was tangled up like skein Ct silk. the
unravelling of which would have been reluctantly
child, and the attempts of Ramon to bring it back
to its normal shape did not meet with success, but
on the contrary, as is usually the case under such
circumstances, 1t seemed to become more and
more mixed up as he persisted in his efforts to
disentangle it. Good humoredly he placed his
trourdiue in his pocket and returned home.
The house occupied by my ancestors was stu.
ate on the north side of Rampant street, outside OF
the Notifications, near its intersection with Cont
0fr fo uordo froru hov ofo1A a. <Io
church of st. Anthony, commonly known as the
" Chdpeae Mortudire." through which, since it's
erection. the cofined remains of thousands of our
population, comprising the nobleet and the low
iiest. have passed on their way to the grave.
Ramon entered his room but said nsught to any
one about the purse he had found, possibly think
ing IT not worth the while but he again set him.
self trying to disentangle it. No more success at
tended him that evening than previously, and he
went to bed after putting the purse away. His
mind had been so occupied with the disentangling
process that he slept little that night; at day
break he was again at work, and to his great
satisfaction, by dmt of patient perseverance, his
efforts were partially crowned with success.
Business, however, calling him away, he post.
poned the completion Of his sef-assumed task.
On his return in the afternoon, full of hope, he
took up the purse, but to his great dismay found
it in a worse condition than ever. Instead Of fly.
irg into q passion, after ascribing the cause to
some meddlesome child about the house, Ramon
resumed his work. and was delighted to accom-.
plish further excellent results. Ii was growing
late and the purse had to be put up, but this time
under lock and key. Next morning there was the
purse, but rolled up in the shape of ball, and
tangled 50 that it took all Ramons selfcontrol to
refrain from using an oath, such Spsniards only
can use. Undaunted, however, he now deter
mined that he would not eat. drink or sleep until
he had accomplished his object, and was finally
under the influence Of a monomania to disentan.
gle the mysterious purse, which seemed to be pos.
sessed with some inexplicable charm. But his re-
solution was baffied at every step of the olsen
tapgiing process. No sooner would half dozen
mesbes be extricated from their chaotic state,
and while bis delicate fingers operated upon
others, than some unseen power would cause them
to slowly but steadily recoil into the body of the
purse, to his great astonishment and vexatiou.
His determination grew more intense as his task
became more difficult At all hours of the day
his resolute mind, bent upon success, would i'm
pei him 10 leave the most important business,
even the dinner table, to repair to his room and
work assiduously for hours at the purse.
One night, as usual sitting by log fire of those
good old times, after repeated vain attempts to
regulate the harmony of the silken threads which
still persisted in resuming their mixed-up con
dition; dsgusted with his folly, he threw the
purse into the fire, with the exclamation E" Tayd
al diablor 1t was soon enveloped by the flames
leaving the dark ashes of the elk, in the
midst of which shone still more brilliantly the
coin which Ramon had not even thought to take
out OF the purse. Seizing the tongs which lay
against the broad mantel frame, he made q grasp
p for the piece of gold, but although few
seconds only had elapsed since il fell on the Goals
the shafts of the toDgs touched 1t, it disappeared
in molten streamlets through the creases Of the
embers, leaving Ramon perfectly perplexed at
this sudden dissolution. Just then he thought he
heard burst of sharp, sarcastic, unearthly laugh
, ter emanate from under the tiles of the hearth.
which startled him and made the blood run cold
through his veins; but. recovering from his first
impressions he heartily laughed at his super
siition and went TO bed much relieved since
he had destroyed the spell which had already ma
terially interfered with his life.
During the night he was suddenly awakened
from profound sleep by harsh and imserative
voice saying these words: "Give me back my
purse :" close to his pillow that the impression
made this time was real and did not provoke q
laugh. Yet he resumed bis sleep, and woke up 10
the morning with scarcely recollection of the
events of the night. But that night the strange
voice twice disturbed his sleep, and night after
night from that time the demands were increased
in number and tone, TO his great distress and hor
ror. s Ill not word did he breathe TO any one
about bis strange adventure. But Ramon's gentle
disposition now became acrimonious, his temper
irascibe, bis health impaired, his ruddy cheeks
sunken and pallid, and acquired a salow and
sckly hue /; his large black eyes, which gave such
expression to his countenance, gradually grew
dimmed and half closed under his dropping eye.
lids his whole frame became emaciated by care
and sleepless nights: in fact, he became, as nv