The Grange advance. [volume] (Red Wing, Minn.) 1873-1877, 1876-07-12

my hand is so sllaky. o, my God, up
on whom will it fall They say that
often also they that see the ghost are
to die -
''Indeed? Heaven be merciful unto
us'' I'M 49, ~
Il saw only the trail!'' .,%:'F'
"But saw quite near and distinct
ly. l was slumbering-suddenly I
heard something rustic. Iawoke, and
saw the White Lady floating past me
she was terribly tall-and dressed
just the same as on her picture in the
Knights Hall yonder-the white silk
dress, the chain, the frill,. the. gloves
in her hand, the padded sleeves, and
the barret with feathers. God be
with us!'' who is it to be g. Not our
most gracious master, ! hope: Hank
isn't there something stirring in the
corridor yonder ?-There!'' ~:
Jasmin pulled the Chamberlain into
his room and slammed the door. He,
felt that the Chamberlain in a swoon
| was sliding from his arms to the floor,
| and, having a true servant s constitu-
ton, he did likewise. -" = =,
About the same time the room of
the little Prince was ringing with a
confused noise. The Baroness and the
nurse were simultaneously startled out
of their doing by a current of air
that extinguished every light in the
! room. By the light of the moon, shin
ing softly through the lace curtains,
both of them saw distinctly the White
Lady moving away from the cradle of
the child. Dim as the moonshine was,
they saw land later, testified on their
oath) that the ghost WAS dressed exact
ly like the portrait in the Knights
Hall, with the white silk trail. the red
border, the wide sleeves, the big frill,
and the head-dress. The Baroness,
and the nurse flew to each other.
shrieking loudly, and clinging to each
other trembling. Only after the White
Lady had disappeared behind the door
drapery, the two women recovered
their speech.
"La Dame Blanche - said the Bar
oness, crashing her teeth. .
"WhOm does it mean -
''NOt the Prince. hope !"
Both approached, hesitatingly, the
cradle-but the child lay there alive,
only it was whimpering piteously.
They cried for light and alarmed the
whole castle. They came and searched
without being apparently able to de-
tect anything.
Next morning the whole residence
knew that the White Lady had ap-
reared in the castle; and at the same
time the news spread that the little
Prince had been taken i'll suddenly
during the night; the tlourishing child
had within a few hours been turned
into a yellow-faced, sick little thing,
whose features death had altered Ell
tirely, Il real changeling.
That evening the ghostly apparition
was the public talk everywhere, even
in the club-room of the ''Golden Duck
There the chief of the district, Mr..
Felington,. the acknowledged Free
thinker of the residence, declared: All
this talk about the White Lady is sheer
nonsense The Chamberlain probably
quenched his thirst too freely, and the
groom followed his example. The
Baroness Larghetto got the heart burn,
and the nurse is hysteric. The White
Lady is nothing but a piece of stupid
lty You don't even know who she
really is. Some say that her name
is Perchta OF Rosenberg, and that she
is Il Bohemian lady; while others
| claim her to be a certain Agnes of
Orlamunde, a noble infanticide. But
| we know better the true meaning of
all this. The whole story has its ORR
gin in the mythology of our ancient
German forefathers: Frau Perchta,
the white, the brilliant, was the God
dess OF Snow, and her appearance
bodies death to the sovereign of the
world, the summer, and for the reason
The learned Free-thinker was inter-
rupted by the host, who with great
agitation entered the room and cried:
''Gentlemen, the White Lady was
| right! Just now the little Prince
Ernestus died."
And such was really the case. The
little Duke was dead. The healthy
! child of yesterday had faded away sud-
| denly beyond all comprehension. And
now he lay dead on a bed of state,
| decked with silk and velvet. The
poor Duchess could not endure it. An
| apopoletic fit sent her three days later
to the grave, after her child. IN her
last paroxysms she had been crying
constantly: ''A1y child is not dead
it was not my child that died l do
not recognize the body. They have
put dying child into the cradle.
The oldest son of the Countess SAT-
ran succeeded now to the throne. On
the day of investiture, as the old
Countess was walking with long velvet
trail through the corridor of the cas-
tie, the Chamberlain, who just hap
pened to be in waiting again, solilo-