The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1872-10-25

GOOD, honest gnOst, one that could be
seen and touched, would do more toward
making the world at large believe in
the future life of the soul, than all the
sermons and treatises ever written. In.
deed, the world seems always to have
been in manner conscious Of this.
Hence, the eager fascination with which
mankind, even after being fooled for
thousands of years, still catch at any.
thing like plausible ghost story. In
fact, ghost-seeing has always been one
Of the worlds weak spots.
OF course, nobody believes in ghosts
nowadays; yet, let anything like a
decently probable story get going,
and it is little surprising to see how
curious people will become. Take the
"haunted house" of Boston. for ex.
ample. And almost every town or vii.
lage has its specter, first or last.
well remember the sensation which
came up in the little parish where
used TO live, some years ago. 1t was a
quaint little neighborhood, away back
from the rest of the world-a church
(Baptist) and parsonage, a tavern
some dozen or twenty houses. with a
wild, unsettled region stretching away
on all sides.
At the period refer to, old Elder
Mckay had just died, and the new
Elder" Mr.. Granger, pale, grave.
faced young man, had just come, bring.
ing wife AS pale and grave faced as
himself. Both were of the calm. spiritual
sert-models in all respects.
But in marked distinction from them
was the wife's sister, girl of fifteen or
sixteen, who made her home with them.
Nell Burnha-n, as we soon came to know
her, was of quite different sort. In
parish language, she wasn't "profes.
sor," and most certainly not a professor
OF much OF that somber-visaged piety
more in vogue then than now, perhaps.
In short, without being in any way
bad, Nell was trump among girls
was hail fellow well met with any one
who had spark of fun about him. and
was always bent on a good time some
way.
The young folks liked Nell. uniyer.
sally-all the more from the fact that
she was known to be a subject of the
most profound grief and solicitude on
the part OF the reverend pair at the par.
sonage, as we'll as an object of distrust
among all the deacons and deaconesses
Wherever she went there was sure n no
good time, and something to laugh
over afterward.
This little neighborhood had also an.
other rather unexpected character in
the shape of an old Mississippi negro
known as Uncle Jap Ian abbreviated
form OF Japan. He had come to the
tavern one bleak winter evening, some
years previously-how, nobody knew
exactly had been a passenger on the
=" Underground Railway" probably. sent
an here for safe residence. For those
were the days when Abolition raised
its crest against the Fugitive Slave
law" what an ancient sound tba.s
terms have Uncle Jap's case was
'dimly understood. People sympathixed
with him. He built fires at the tavern.
where an attic had been given him for a
lodging place, and in process of time.
came to be sexton at the church and
dug graves-when anybody died. And
about this time one Martha Wilkins.
spinster, did actually die; and Uncle
Jap had the digging of her grave on
hand.
1t was a late October evening. moon.
light, and the old fellow had gone up to
the churchyar to see something about
it. One OF my boy friends, Zeke Ed.
wards, and were playing "backgam.
mon" down in the bar room, at the
tavern, with several others looking on,
when, all at once, in rushed Uncle jap.
bareheaded, and with countenance
frescoed with terror.
Hello Uncle Jap! What's the
matter? What is it?" we all ex.
claimed.
he had fairly leaped behind the stove
IN ms fright, and was turning the whites
OF his eyes toward the open door.
"De Lord sabe US ~ was his frat
ejaculation.
"Why, Uncle Jap what is it?r
DE Lord knows but 'spects it was
spook"
"A spook what's a spook? ?"
"A spook or bogey,' cried the old
darkey, shivering. ode Lord knows
which,"
"Why, where have you been? Where
were your" asked Zeke.
up to de church. yard only. Was
.jes looking long de side of de Wilkins
lot, thinking how hard de frozen groun'
would be to break up for ole Martha TO-
morrow, when the spook riz right up all
white, and mos cotched me-"
This was the sum and substance Of
his story; the main point of which was
that something had frightened him
nearly to death, and Zeke and ran out
to see what Il was. There was noth;rc