Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1877-05-30

in calling for it; but never mind,
never mind. Let me see the
amount, and I'll settle it; II not
to-day, some other day."
The two men drew back.
81 have no bill, SIR" said the un-
dertaker; but hearing a report
that-that-"
"That Peggy had seen my ghost,
I suppose" said Choker. Every
well, sir, draw your own conclu-
sions; but you deserve to be paid.
You buried me very respectfully,
very respectfully, indeed /; and
your jury gave correct verdict,
Mr.. Coroner. 1t was apoplexy.
Ah, well, don't go; don't be in o
hurry, gentlemen
But his visitors had retired.
at is Choker," said the under
taker to the Coroner, "yet / buried
him, and he was dead man then"
ats Choker, but he was a dead
man when / held an inquest over
him." said the Coroner.
They hurried away, and the
crowd hurried away too.
That day the grave was exam
ined.
It was empty; even Choker's
coffin was gone.
After that every one believed the
story but the clergyman and o
scientific gentleman.
The former declared that it was
wicked to believe in ghosts; the
latter, that there were no such
things as ghosts.
"Chocker is not at the house at
ALL" he said, "and his body is in
the grave; but your imaginations
have been so worked upon that you
fancied you saw him in the house,
and you believed that you did not
see him in his grave. When q
man is dead and buried that is the
end of him"
"But go to the house and see for
yourself" said some one. "Alive
or dead, Choker is there"
"Sir," said the scientific gentle
man, "neither alive nor dead can
he be there. A body can not burst
its own coffin lid, arise through
the turf, and walk around through
the town as before. If / should
see Mr.. Choker l should not be-
lieve / saw him. My common
sense tells me that l can not see
him, and I never allow my senses
to contradict my common sense.
The house is empty. There is no
one there. 1t is all Imagination"
However that may have been,
every one else in Grabtown saw him
sooner or later.
The lamp burned bright in the
window at night.
The garden prospered under his
ghostly tillage. He drew his money
at the bank as usual.
AS ghost, his silent, reserved
conduct seemed very suitable to
his condition.
AS ghost, it seemed very proper
that he should have no friends and
no kindred.
People avoided his house of
nights, and boys ran scampering
away when they saw him plodding
along lonely lanes by moonlight,
and old folks shook their heads and
said it was curious but there was
Choker, a fact to every one but the
scientific gentleman, who, when he
passed him, muttered to himself,
"Optical Illusion" and whether he
was q ghost or q man endowed
with the power of defying death
and the undertaken, no one felt
prepared to answer.
He was known sometimes as
"Choker's ghost" and sometimes as
"Choker that came to-" but no one
doubted for o moment that some
how he was Choker, and the very
Choker they had seen dead, sub
jected to an inquest and buried /;
and all this went on for ten good
years, and people had grown used
to it, when one cold winter morn
ing q small note was brought to the
doctor, bearing these words:
"Come to me. Pm iii.
CHoKER.v
"Don'tgo, DEAR" said the doctors
wife.
"I must" said the doctor, and he
went accordingly.
He found the door OF Cboker's