The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1878-08-15
THE GHOST IN THE OLD MILL.

AN not, as Il general rule, easily
frightened. Especially has it ever been
my nature to laugh to scorn all those
who, in my presence, have declared
that they believe in the reality of
ghosts. And Yet 1 have always list
ened attentively to ghost stories, thus
proving, l imagine, that my disbelief
in them was not SO thorough after all.
remember well that when a small boy
used to listen respectfully, and with
great Interest, to those which my grand
mother told me; but shocked her sense
of propriety when at the conclusion
would laugh and say that l didn't be-
lieve there were such things as ghosts.
Then she would tell Inc that she didn't
either till she saw one, and that .see-
Ing is believing"
AS the years passed by and l grew
up TO manhood my disbelief became
more marked, and l would tell her |
was afraid that | would never sec a
ghost rs long as lived. Then grand
mother would shake her head and say:
You need never want to see one,
my boy"
The only reason can assign for not
being afraid in the dark is that my par
ents never tried to brighten ME by tell
ing me that 1.-The dark would catch
me- In fact they never tried to make
me afraid of anything that is really
harmless, in order to keep me from do
ing something that they did not want
me to do; and the consequence has
been that, though naturally of timid
or excitable disposition, the number of
times that l have been really frightened
in my life can be counted on my fingers.
Once, when walking along a road
after dark, saw beside it huge OBJ
ject that caused the hair to raise up
straight on my head. 1t was a large
animal of some kind, supposed, and
so slipped along the fence on the OPP
poSite side of the road till l got well
past it. and then ran for dear life.
The next morning returned to the
spot to see what kind of tracks it
made. and was disguised to find only Il
big log!
What puzzled me most was that
had frequently travelled that road and
had never noticed it until that dark
night.
On another occasion, when passing
by the country graveyard not very far
from my fathers home, began to think
of things that ought to have kept out
of my mind.
was going toward home. and had
emerged from a heavy belt of timber
in which there were wild animals
though none which were considered
dangerous to mainland as approached
the City of the Dead and the darkness
began to gather around, the mischiev-
Gus thought entered my head that some
dangerous wild animal was following
my footsteps. CHANGING backward l
imagined | could see dark object
near the roadside. Then it was that
my footsteps quickened into run; and
it was only when near home and out of
breath that halted, and began to think
how foolish it was to get SO frightened
at nothing.
These. however, were about the only
times, when a boy, that was fright.
cned when there was really no danger;
and tatter myself that not many boys
come off as well as that in the way of
frights.
At the time Of seeing the ghost in
the old mill was full-grown man,
and had entered Upon the stern and
unpoetical realities of life. Everybody
believed that was in love with the
miller's daughter, and most people also
thought we would soon be married.
Alas for me she did not seem to recip-
rocate my love, and l was forced to ad-
mire and love her as rich treasure
beyond my grasp. She was friendly,
and even sisterly to me; but l felt con-
WINGED, almost from the first, that she
cared nothing for ME in the way did
for her. Perhaps she did not even
know that l loved her; for she was a
beauty and had SO many admirers that
she thought the homage paid her was
hers of a right, and meant nothing more
than that was able to recognize and
appreciate beauty and worth whenever
saw them.
Beside l was only a poor engineer,
and why should she have thought that
l really aspired for her hand.
Well do l remember the night saw
the ghost. The day had been cloudy,
the air damp and rather disayreeable.
AS twilight grew into the darkness OF
night, the dry leaves rustled in tho
wind with that noise which thew can
only make when the weather has been
dry, followed by damp air, and, prob.
ably, rain.
Several events had transpired that
day which were, when taken as a
whole, well calculated to shake One's
nerves, though afiording no grea,
cause for excitement when taken scpa.
rately.
One was that Il man had been found
dead on the railroad track, not fal
away, that morning. All theories as
TO whether he was killed and put on
the track, or whether he had commit.
ted suicide, or was intoxicated and
asleep upon the track, and was thus
run over, were accepted and rejected
in turn as failing to account for all the