St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1874-08-14

ter Il moments embarrassment. he he
gan: Il don't know, Mrs. Martin, but
am sure these are not aS ! left them
] miss nothing, bW they hare been dis
Mrbed! These dresses of Gertrude :
do they not seem to you to have beer
displaced i could almost say WOrR ?'-
he turned pale-''l feel almost as if sh'
herself had been here. There is II Ger
tain perfume in the air which she uset
to use. Could Nancy have been fun
bling amongst these things - We callet
the housekccpcr, Nho owned to havin!
swept. but who WAS above all Charge
us to the wearing of the dresses.
We dismissed poor Nancy, and locke,
over the valuahlcs. They were intact
not Il jewel had been moved; but no
my most asSiduous cloqucnce could in
ducc Mr. Ayscough to remove Ties,
valuahlcs to Il safer place.
| As | WIS looking through the room.
before leaving them, picked up IL littl,
embroidered slipper, of which | coulo
not find the mate. but | showed it to
Mr.. Ayscough, asking him if it could
have fallen ont of one of the trunks
He took it and looked ut it long and
earnestly, and finally said that he
thought it had belonged to il costume
that Gertrude had worn in some private
thcatricalS in Florence 1t did not look
to me exactly like the slipper of Il lady,
hut this explanation seemed to give il
Il place. took it out of the room with
me. abScntlN, and threw il on Il shelf OF
my own closet.
As August, with its dull heat. came
ON. | welded to Richards solicitations
and went with him to the seaside for Il
few DAYS.
When | went back to nv lonely
charge | had great tit of literary in
duStrl I" make up for my long and tn
me unexpected vacation ut the sea
shore. With Il SoIt of sense of duty
neglected. | went. one day. my rounds
over the house. As descended to the
lower regions found Nancy quite agi-
tatcd over Il discovery which she had
made outside the door. The wistcria
vine. which had noticed as carrying
its brave luXuriancc from the ground To
the chimncys. looked faded and cut. ;lS
il some blight had passed over it. 1t
did look faded and broken. Perhaps
some animal had run across it. and had
here and there twisted off Il leaf or Il
tcndril.
Going up stairs. | went to my closet
for the key of Mr.. AySc"ugh's room
and aS did 50, | noticed that the queer
little embroidered slipper was gone !,
In Il moment. all my supcrstitious ter
ror came back upon me.
" entered Mr.. Ayscough'S room.
where the portrait hung. | WAS struck
l., - I
not what. Here WIS the portrait, and
the handsome ornaments of the room
were untouched. looked in vain for
some proof of disorder. soon found
it. The writing table WIS opened.
paper spread about. and Il pen with
fresh ink in it Wa. lling on the silver
ink>tana,
As stood gazing at this incNplicahlc
thing. il door SWING To. and started me
from my >tupor. | went to the inn"r
room through the linen closet. As
did 80. the door leading to the garrct
gently moved. as if hy an invisible
hand. | had mcVc" noticed or thought
of this door before. nor had assembled
to those garrct rooms since Mrs. Nor
ton had taken me thithcr on the first
day of my arrival.
\ sense of infinite horror took pos
session of my soul. | WAS then in the
land of spirits. The dead Gertrude did
haunt these rooms conScciatcd to her.
II was her pleasure tn come back. write
at her table, even arrange the east on
garments she had worn. tn use the per
fumes She had loved in life perhaps to
go up into that play room where she
had PLAYED rs Il child, and whittier |
would follow her.
WAS lifted ont If myself. | went
ON. knew not how, up the garnet
stains; nor WAS much aStoniShcd when
| found on thc topmnst landing the
little embroidered, Span"lcd slipper
which had missed from my closet
shelf.
went on t""ald the pleasant bed
room which WAS crrtaincd hy the wis
tcria vine, and looked in. There She
lay. the golEcn-hairrd Gertrude of the
picture, sleeping on the bed in the
corner. This was no trick of the inn
a%ination. for on one foot waS the com
pani"n slipper To the our held in my
hand. Her breathing was regular and
soft. and the color of youth and health
WAS on her cheek and lip. Fear seemed
t" depart ont of me. approached and
took hold of the hand which Law outside
the light covcrlid. No sooner had |
touched it than il CRASHED mine like =
vice. The being, ghost or live woman.
started up and held me fast.
'Who and what are Won ?" said |.
"A woman. like vourself" answered.
the ghost. "Havc pity ON me-
and why are Won hcrr-wb,t does
il mean -
The creature looked ,t mo with st,r-
inc ewes. inmped from the he'd and
lacked tbo dnni