The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1878-05-23
The Warning that Came by . Dream.

ONt winter evening, about fifty years
ago, q post-chaise,- with single gem
tieman inside 1t, drove up to the little
inn on the Pehtland Firth. in the north
of Scotland, where passengers who
were going to cross to the Orkneys
usually spent the night The gentle
man, whom we will call Mr.. MacT.,
was the owner of a large estate, and an
old house which had belonged to his
family for hundreds of years, in the
Mainland, or chief of the Orkney ISL
ands, and was now about to visit his
property. 1t was clustering, stormy
night, but that only made more pleas
ant the cigar and the glass of whisky
and the cracking wood-fire by which
MacT. sat chatting with the landlord,
who was an old friend both of his ia
Their and himself, and who was proud
of entertaining the "young laird" as
he called him, with his widest tales of
adventures on the sea. They did not,
however, sit late, for the Orkney packet
sailed very early in tho morning, and
MacT. soon found himself in his cozy,
well-appointed little bedroom. The
wind was chanting grand Berserker
melody. and the sea was roaring deep
bass accompaniment. MacT. loved
those sounds, for they had often been
the lullaby Of his childhood; and soon
fell asleep. For some hours he slept
without an image or a thought reach
ing his mind: but at length, when the
morning was glimmering gray in the
east, strange dream came to trouble
him. He dreamed that he was Iii the
ancient banqueting hall of his old
house, in the Mainland, sitting at the
head of q very long table. The ban
quoting hall was in reality almost q
ruin, but in his dream MacT. saw it
hung with tapestry and blazing with q
hundred lights. The table was filed
on both sides. and he thought he
glanced curiously down at its length
to see who his guests were. As
he looked he shuddered in his
dream. Those who sat at the table
with him were all his dead ancestors
for many generations back. He knew
their faces and dresses we'll from their
portraits in the picture gallery. Next
to him sat his own father, who had died
about year before. And at the bot
tom of the table sat fair-haired man
in dress of skins, who was a Morse
Chieftain, the founder of the family. 1t
seemed to him that he sat for some
minutes as if spell-bound, while the
specters murmured together in low,
hollow tones. At length they all rose,
and slowly, one by one, in turns, left the
hall. But before they went, each one
paused at the door, and, turning, raised
his hand in a warning attitude, fixed
his eyes on MacT., and said in a deep
voice, the word, Beware "The
packet starts in twenty minutes, sir, u
cried loud voice at the door, rousiHg
MacT. suddenly from sleep. Confused
at first, yet soon remembering where
he was. he sprang out of bed and begat
hurriedly to dress himself. Being 9
bad sailor, his first glance was natural
ly enough at the sea, close to which the
inn stood. The wind had risen in the
night. The waves Numbered on the
shore, and the little Orkney packet was
tossing up and down like a limpet shell
As he gazed, his strange dream rose ur
with sudden distinctness before Met. Z
mind. He was infected with a goot
deal of thorough Scotch superstition
Beside he did not much like the look Of
the sea, and SO he resolved not to q
till tomorrow. That day the Orkney
packet was lost with every man OF
board, and Met. and his little wife
who was left at home with the babies
had to thank that warning dream fol
his life.-Aryosy.