The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1874-10-08
My Only Ghost.
rom the Aldine for August.

| nature which was unnecessarily lauded at
| the expense of my brothers and sisters,
VINO, having Il more poetical and more
! highly strung organization than myself,
did know what fear was. But | laughed
aloud when my dear friend Mrs. Morton
asked me if | should be afraid to live III
her beautiful house alone during the sum-
mcr months Alone SO tar as companion
| ship went, but with man and his wife to-
| cook and wash tor me, to shut up and open
| and protect the premises. afraid? Never.
SO she gave me ample tiduciaIy powers,
She was going to Europe. l. a poor re-
lation, was only too glad to have such a
| luxurious home. As she took me oven
the house saw her eyes fill with tears rs
| she essayed to open a certain door. re-
| membered that even into this fortunate
| lie had come the inevitable grief. There
was one empty chair, one dead lamb. The
eldest daughter had married, had gone
abroad for her wedding journey, and had
been brought home to be laid in wonder
| church-yard which we could see from the
! windows.
Yes, this was Gertrude's room There
was her portrait on the wall. A straight,
young woman, with protusion OF light
| hair, blue eyes with a tar-oH look q mel
ancholy beauty, tender and twilight, that
face which the French call predestt11ce.
She was dressed in diaphanous white with
| here and there q Blue ribbon and her beau
| titul hands We're clasped on what seemed
| to be Il balcony
| Around the room were costly trltleS, the
spoils OF an European trip The room was
fitted up queerly with handsome firearms,
suits OF armor, boxing gloves, fencing
toils looked to Mrs Morton for an ex-
| planation.
This suite of rooms" she explained,
| II have given up to my son-ln-laW, Mr..
| -Ayscough. During your residence here
| you will have an occasional visit from HIM.
! He comes and goes as he pleases. In
| the adjoining rooms are poor Gertrude's
trunks which neither he nor | have
thoroughly unpacked We have never
| had the courage.
She led me through the spacious ante
| room. linen-closet, and SO, to a large bed
room where were many trunks. Some
| dresses hung in the closet, some bottles
| of perfume, dressing-cases, and little lady
| like things streWed the beleau and tables.
A lady might have Just stepped from her
| toilet it seemed occupied and homelke.
| II was evident tnat the young husband
! found sad pleasure in thus surrounding
himself with the material OF grief. Poor
| Mrs Morton looked about her through her
I tears We retraced our steps, but in pass
! ing again through the linen-closet she
turned. and opening little door disclosed
a garret staircase
Come and see where my children
used to 60 up and down" said She
These were my rooms in the days of
| LnrbnpI and m
odd nursery.
SO we mounted upward into the large,
spacious room, which deserved a better
name than garret, and she led me to a
comfortable apartment whose windows
commanded Il splendid view OF the sur
rounding city. could not help saying
what | have SO often felt: why are not
the disused houses of the rich the summer
homes of the poor" Mrs Morton did not
seem to feel that she was called on to put
these comfortable apartments to any such
use. She only called my attention to Il
gigantic wisteria vine which coiled round
the window, and which was in tull bios
som and reached like ''Jack's beanstalk'
| from the earth, in ever er-ascending, ambi-
tious tendrils, to the chimneys Of this. the
fourth story. We visited the other rooms,
which had the plain, decent furniture of
an opulent and sensible household. There
they were, empty and deserted, but clean
and good We closed the blinds and win
dows came down, and retracing our steps
through Gertrude'S room, we locked the
door behind US. | took possession of the
KEY. to deliver it when he should arrive
to Mr.. Ayscough.
Occasionally | visited these rooms Of his
to air them, and see that no strange mouse
OF other intruder had violated their quiet
loneliness, | was very much attracted by
Gertrude's picture. 1t SO happened that |
had never seen her; her brief hour Of
youthful bloom had been spent before L
returned, an army officers widow. from
my hard life on the Western frontier.
Often | would stand and look at the pic
ture bv the hour-it fascinated me; then
rousing myself from my revery, | would
complete my rounds and 90 back to my
room.
After Mrs. Morton had been gone about
a month, / had visit from Mr.. Ayscough.
He was pale and interesting young man,
very refined and educated, evidently in
huenced by his sorrow He talked inces-
sanity about his wife, and was interested
in my admiration Of her portrait lie took
me in to show me some of the contents of
the trunks To my horror ! found that
some very valuable jeWelry and silver
comprised part of that mysterious luggage
which had never been unpacked.
but, Mr. Ayscough, " exclaimed, ''you
are not going to leave these valuable things
here in this empty house, unlocked and
strewn about in these trunks and no one
but me to take care of them ~
He laughed a sort of empty laugh AS If
he did not care what become of them, ard
cave me no sort of satisfaction. From
that moment, do not know why, l began
to feel troubled | had had the comfort
of seeing all the family silver carried of
to the bank before Mrs Morton went away,
and if had thought of them at all, was
convinced that all burglars were aware OF
that fact and would never trouble me IN
the least. Now | had a sort of uneasy
sensation about Mr.. Ayscough's room
which | would gladly have had removed
in fact it became the focus of many uneasy
sensations.
MI. Ayscough liked to come to the IL
brary and look over the new books which
We're sent to me to criticise. One day he
took up a book on Spiritualism, which
soon fascinated him. | was extremely
sorry when | saw how he fastened to it
and began to drink in a sort Of dangerous
comfort from it. He talked to me about
it, and asked me if had any belief in the
communion of spirits.
lie found most robust unbelever in
me- All my habits OF thought, my rough
experience of life, my anti-nervous tenn
permanent, We're against the theory and
practice OF Spiritualism. He went away
f after few days, and / returned to my
lonely life. Perhaps was not sorry when
heard the unusual sound of a voice ask
inc for me at the front door, and went
down to see my nephew Richard a good
Young fellow from the West, who had
come to the city to make his fortune, and
T who had found me out
Richard was Of course very anxious to
!, gee the sights of the great metropolis, so
we agreed to make tour Of the amuse-