Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1877-01-18
The PHANTOM LIGHT.
One of the True Ghost storie.

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From the London Society. 'ltiA
Nellie and | were sitting by the bow
window in our drawing-rOom, which
she had thrown wide open. The day
had been oppressiyely hot, but now ii
faint breeze WAS coming in from the
sea, most refreshingly welcome after
the saItry, Sitting heat OF the day. 1t
was quite -dark-that soft, velvety
darkness that belongs only TO a per-
fecily mOonIess starlesS night.
Just down below our window lay the
yard or two of garden, then the long,
straight line of the promenade, with
It's asphalt walk and drive dimly de-
fined by a shadowy row of white posts
connected by ornamental chains. Be
yond The einbankment lay the wide,
desoIate waste Of sands, stretching
away for miles and miles on either
hand.
The tide was far out, so far that only
sort of pale gray CLEAN on the hori-
zon showed where the sea was Just be-
ginning TO creep over the shoals and
sand banks off the Southern coast.
Seven miles away 10 the right, across
the estuary of the Ribble, the steady
light from the Lytham light house
kept vigilant watch and ward over the
dangerous Horse bank, that treacher
Gus, dangerous sheaI, ON which many
good ship has gone to its doom OF
shipwreck aid death. h.ssF
Nellie was looking out OF the vim
dow, her elbow zon the sill, her eyes
fixed onthe misty.soft darkness outside.
sItswss as dark inside asseut; We had no
thought of lightiHg the gas, that long
summer evening"
How stiil it isp she said, dreamily.
sWhat swell solemn silence the
night lays on ererythingp -
% AS ii to contradict her words, faint
sound like far-off voice seemed sud-
denly TO rise from the sands below, and
swept by with q prolonged, mournful
What is that?' she asked, startled.
Some oDe calling down on the sands,
/ said. .sssThe intense stiffness carries
ths sound great distance at night
= Il heard such wild legend, this
morning. she went on, presently,
CONNECTED with those great deserts OF
sand that stretch over toward Lytham.
Old Joe, TO .boatnan, says they are
haunted by phantom voice g.
How thrillingn Ireinarked, skepti-
cally. > hat does it say?' E -
Don't seof, .Iean,' said Nellie, a lit
tie vexedly. 1T is a most pathetic,
dreadful leg end. Years ago; before
there was a Ioan here at all, people
used to cross the sands between here
and LytlIam on horseback. One stor-
my evening, a traveller had crossed, as
usual. and lad almost reached the
shore. when suddenly bright light
appeared, .hovered for a moment over
a suot ward or two away, and then
e vanished At the same moment, a
: piteous unearthly cry echoed all around
The horse became wild with terror,
= and broke loose, throwing his rider to
the ground. When he recovered him
sell. lie found, lying ON the ground at
his feet, the body of beautiful young
girl. She was quite dead, with a
. chastity wound In her side, from which
me blood had flowed all over her white
dress. The traveller staggered away to
the nearest house, got assistance, and
had the girls body laid in an upper
room. That night, an awful storm
arose. A ship was wrecked on the
Horse bank, and only one man, the
captain, eaved. He was taken to the
same house where the traveller had al
ready found shelter, and. by some mis-
tika.. was put into the room where the
murdered girl was lying. AT the slght
of her he gave an appalling shriek ,and
fell down senseless.. When he revived,
ne was questioned, aud confessed that
the beautiful young girl WAS his wife,
whom iu a moment of rage and Jeal-
oasy he had stabbed to the heart and
-sc.,si into the sea. Aud the sea had
given up her dead, and the waves had
cast her ON shore, and the murderer
and his victim was face to face. And
now they say the voice of the murder
ed girl haunts the place where she was
found. Ii seems TO rise from the SANDS,
and goes echoing and wailing along,
calling, calling, as if in mortal agony.
The old boatnan says people nave ioi-
lowed it. believing some one was In
peril. and haye been lured on ana on;
till the tide has overtaKen tnetn, anu
they were drowned, - ~, 1
. what a horrible, e,talep | said, win a
shudder. II wish you had not toid II
to- me.,si.s Esss - irsiashsi s- IA
g and he says went on Nellie, un-
needing my, remark, that whoever
hears the voice is in risk OF great teriI
nr danger, Aor some kind OF sorrow or
.srouble is shout to happen to hun.
NeIlie's voice had uncoi'sclously Ia
ten at one of awe. The still, sombre !
darkness, the midnight hour, ana tne