The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1878-04-09
T0M LEGaET's GHOST.

"A' shoh "a bhAb kAAAe AAA
made him unpopular by either word or act.
Indeed, Tom would not have willingly
injured h meanest insect that ever crawl.
ed Still, he had his errors-ande excessive
drinking was one Of them.
In Squire Deans store, on O stormy night
in winter. after inviting all hands to drink,
Tom would launch into the greatest maze
of yarns about this, that and the other, ever
heard of. 1t was acknowledged by all that.
when about half tipsy, he could invent
more lies than any other man in town.
On the night when the following story OF
his was told-which l give as near per6atim
pretty well filed with q motley assemblage
of neighbors. Some were seated in chairs
around the stove, others or top of barrels.
and SOME on the lower end of the counter.
Customers were scarce, and the company
present were mainly bent upon the enjoy
ment of their pipes, with a nip now and
then Mt the squire's cider, which contained
something a little stronger than apple juice.
A few feeble jokes had beer gotten off at
somebody's expense in the company, which
were not relished any too well, when Tom
opened with the following i~nterrogatory
81 say, squire, did We ever hear tell of n
genuine ghost about these parts-a real,
downright, out-and- out ghost?"
w. Aohh, L unu uiltSS luut
lame mule of Farmer Jones', which the
boys whitewashed and tied to the church.
bell. was one.
Mary time, squire !" said the unlucky
owner OF that piece of mule flesh, who
occupied one of the barrel heads. "Those
boys got their deserts, and that ere mule
is jest as pretty an animal as ever ye laid
eyes on, now"
Then Tom had better give us his story,
for 1 have never heard that one about the
mule beaten yet. What say the company ?"
The story The story !" they all ex-
claimed.
Tom cleared his throat, adjusted himself
to n more comfortable position in his chair
before the glowing fire, and commenced.
Ye all remember the cold, clustering.
disagreeable weather of last twentieth OF
November, l suppose ? 1t was the night
JEFF Knox's brindled steer died, and all the
ponds hereabout froze up solid. Well, on
night, as some of you well know, l
was seated with you around this stove and
engaged in about the same advertisement
We got rather noisy as the hours wore on,
and at last the squire here turned us oil out
of doors. Didn't ye, squire ="
at was about the hour Of closing, 1
mildly answered the squire.
Yes, and as we stood shivering around
the doorstep, the midnight express came
through the town, and he asked
us all in again for a nightcap. Well, when
reached home that night, some one had
left a light or the sitting room table, with
a mate to it in the fireplace. l thought it
that such a big, roaring FIRE should
have been left for me to go to bed by
quite IN unusual thing. The old people
nave set up later than common 1 thought,
never once thinking of the boys. I sat
down in the big rm-chair in front Of the
fireplace, took off my boots and put them
beside the fender, Inc then lay back and
watched the huge backlog blaze.
"'This is solid comfort thought I.
Here / am, having a nice time Of it, and
outside b weather is cold as blazes u"
II decided to lave a little smoke, and
then retire SO 1 blew out the light and put
feet upon the fender. Very soon after
fell asleep in the chair, with the pipe in
~ mouth. / had a distinct remembrance
f hearing the bell ring one, and of com
the time with our old clock in the
omer. 1t was Just two minutes behind.
When / awoke the hand pointed to three.
had slept two hours. Relighting my pipe
turned my attention toward the fire which
nd got down to embers. Fuel was added,
nd 1 soon had the pleasure of feeling my
Elf growing warmer, for the room had
ooled off rapidly during my sleep.
1t was half-past three o'clock when /
oncluded to retire. rose to get the lamp,
hen my eye fell upon the west window,
'hich looks out into an old cornfield back
{ the house. Was it fancy? Did my eyes
eceive me? Thought as l looked a mans
ace dropped down out of sight. The curtain
ioved as if some one had hit it Intentionally
nd set it curveting from side to side. /
id not see how it could be done with the
-indow shut. While 1 was watching it, and
rying to think where the draft came from,
he object that first gave me the shock
anne into view. 1t stood there looking
traight into the room; a manor at least
mans face.
Heavens and earth! What ails the
nan p l asked myself.
There was in his face such an express
ion Of diabolical wickedness as / never
gan wish to behold. He made no move
merit nor spoke a word to explain himself.
right there under the window, in q
black shiny %broadcloth coat, an old silk hat
hat lad seen many changes in fashion set
auntily on one side of his head, for all
he world like q second edition of the vii
age school-master; his face was wan and
,alc, with high cheek-bones, his chin COW
red with q stubble of short beard. Blu,
most startling of all, and what filed III,
With horror, was his throat cut from ear to
the blood oozipg down drop by drop
'ver a white shirt-front 1t was horrible +!
rh sc dead eyes looking into the room
he nan standing there us if he had been Il
taine cut in stone.
+" There was something SO horrible in his
that for q minute or so l stood by the
hal 5 if struck dumb. Where had l seen
h.. n!ny black coat and old plug hat
sonle mere, it seemed to me, in my own
aniiy. His features, too, were not those
q ranger. Then l named over to my
eli several individuals whom l thought hi
There must be some one-yes.
here was one-my wife's brother 1 had
her say nat n younger brothei
Iad disappeared under circumstances that
ed them to think he had been murdered.
'h.s, then, must be his ghost returned Il
ee IS sister.
-" But pooh ; thought 1, there are no
NC. things as ghosts This must be som,
traveller who has cut himself by acci.
Cl
- al events l made up my mind to
address, him. L took one step forward
md as 1 opened my lips to speak the
igure disappeared. There was no way
ng of the curtain now-nothing to
'how that there had been a ghostly pres
,nce behind it. Outside the wind made
fearful racket round the corners of
he house and among the bare limbs of
,he elms. Occasionally the slam of a
loor reached my ears, telling how the
wind was using it. Presently l distin-
the tramping of horses feet.
IT,. stable was connected with the shed, but,
to tell, the sounds were approach
ng the kitchen, seemingly but a few feet
,way from the very door. In a second
more l was mortified to hear n horses hoofs