The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1876-01-31

1ilinais ssl,osf.


An Kiliuofs Gaosf.
WHOSE UNEASY sPip r. .w.,xrn
rur nARIH"--A FRIGHTEEsr r.nwppl
cHosrry STORY AND IT'S SEC ,rsr "a TOLD 70
"sxrREss" REPORTER.
! fErom the Terre Iiar 10 rxnres
A gentleman from thf vicinity Of Anuapo.
lis, ILL.,, yesterday rel .,ed \ very strange oc-
currence to on Erpr ess representative. The
story runs IKE mis-: Some ten or fifteen
years ago az ECO >dlshman and his family came
to an Illinois DOWN, and after living there
couple OF ears bought very large farm
six or eigr q miles from Annapolis, aud moved
on 1t. After quiet life Of four or five years
the EaSIlshmsn @as one morning found oeao
In ais bed, and his family, consisting OF DIS
wife, two sousanti daughter, were very mucn
astopished and griere3. Their LAMENTATIONS
were loud and deep, and an tue Simple ng,gn'
hors looking on said, "Pcor people! HOW
Searlv the; loved their re;ative!" The kng-
i;shn;an was quietly buried, and the faa,ily.
aner living on this farm awhile, sold !, aud
MAYED sway, no one ksowing whittier they
went. The house, watch was large, old
frame one, built as frsne houses OF The past
were built, was shct up By the .ew pur-i
cbsser and allowed to remain uEoccupied. /
Not long since. however, the owner rented
his farm. and consequently the house, to O
f,ysner from Ohio The famiysaoved in AID
settled down as comfortably as possible.
The first nighSr two TIE house was quiet
cnougs. with the txceptioH%hat the family
was awakenede.a the night 10y bearing soft
footsteps passing and repas9ng the bed and
long drawn Sf2ns, apparently underneath
the bed where the farmer end bis wife slept.
They arose end looked az about the house.
but found rothipg at al out OF TIE way.
The doors were closed and loekes, and the
windows secured, fastened as they dao oeeh
when the family retired.
. Nothing more than this was heard Tor the
first TIVE nights, bu. fon the third, about l
O'Clock IN the morring, the family was
awakened by' measured sound, recurring NJ
frequent intervals, u r-stairs, until it came TO
the head OF the stM"s leading 60 the lower
floor room, in 'whict they slept AS 1t beSar
descending they distinguished it as mans
step. end the farmer arose and waited TOR the
door from the stases into the Bedroom 10 De-
opened. He bsE q revolver. ana Thinking
il either thief o. practical joker, was de-
term,ned TO put an end to ttE sc pranks. But
the step came eD, measured ana SLOW, ana
came into the room without any door
being opeped, and went INTO Tue corner
of the room where was TIE bed, and, APP
parently going into the wall, was heafo
no more. Sorely perpkXed, the farmer
again went to bed, but Sept no more that
niyht. Next morning thorough search was
made, and still nothing was found. The
fourth night was repetition. The nth
night the farmer watched and waited. as
nervous, a. was ever Hamlet before Els-
more waiting for bis fathers shade. 1t
came. This time I'M pilpable form. The
stair: door noisek ssly opened, and white.
clad figure started forth. Brave ghost! Un.
fortunate farmer. The latter bad forgotten
TO take bis pistol to bed with him. The
sprite walked, or rather glided, to the centre
of thefoor, turned about, and although the
front door was securely locked, it swung 81
lently open, and the figure rushed as II sat
Growing Of the COCK" ParalyZed with hor-
ror the farmer lag, scirce daring to breathe,
until the morning light flsmed up
the, Orient gates. The next two weeks
were repetitions Of the first four nights,
sometimes the ghost. walking, other nights
being invisible, yet making himself heard.
The: children cried themselves to sleep. The
farmers wife hid her head all night in the
bed-clothes. The farmer shivered and shook
through the night, and thought and wonder
ed through the day. dreadiDg the nights ap-
proacb. But he was fully convinced that
the ghost wplktd for purpose. And he
was not wrong. AT aaSt one night, when
after the witching' hour the shade made bis
appearance, he pointed to board In the
floor and then disappeared. The idea seized
on the farmers mind, might be not find the
cause Of the spirits perturbation and let
him rest. 10 the morning he arose and took
I'D the board, and found small box with
some empty bottles in it. A musty-looking
paper had some words trsced on 1t thus: 81
am the ghost of the EDglisbman. My fam
ily. poisoned me i haunt this house until
they are found, and the law executed"
This.w too much for the farmer. 10 the
first place he hadn't known "the English
man, His family might be 10 Guinea, for
all he sknsw; and even if they were caught
and the crime proven, il is mighty hard to
convict in these days, and especially bard to
hang,anybody where Beveridge is Governor.
Life was too short. 1t was cheaper to vacate
and give the ghosts bis apartments. de dld
so, left the farm, and TIE house, and In the
spring willgo on another.less ghostly place.
Ssauel--Tbe-"g ghost is well fixed. He
was healthy aeighbor mar, 'who, liking the
farm and the advantages, concluded to get
his neighbor out at all hazards. The
idea struck him, and he accepted it. He
fastened in thesysa near theWindow OF the
bedroom an empty bottle, which made the
signing sounds when the wind blew. He
climted to the attic by ladder and came down
the stairs, opening the star-doors quietly.
The. "s,eps" heard crossing the goom when
he did not make bis appearance was pro-
duced by confederate who erawled under
the house through hole in the snder-wall,
and The bax with the scrollwas put In from
the lower side. The front door was opened
by akeyvwhich was 10 the hands of tie con.
federate. No cards. Sorry to spoil good
ghost story. but for the truth Of history, you
know, we must.