Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1879-01-01
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~ What | am going to do is simply to give
- some instances in which what might have
;, made capital ghost story, proved to be
y nothing of the kind, and to draw from
~ thence the inference that all such stories
= could, If only we were acquainted with all
= the facts, be accounted for by natural
y causes.
G l have myself been sorcly puzzled to
f account for what | have seen. On one
: occasion was passing by cemetery on
[ my way TO distant part Of my parish.
@ Ihe night was dark and foggy; and as |
q walked along the road close 10 the iron
, fence, | perceived within the inclosure
apparently but II few yards off body of
, dim light that seemed to come up from
the ground. Now my impressions were
all in favor of ghosts, and if my judgment
also had been equally in favor, Should
have had II ghost story to tell about that
place. But | was determined to seek an
explanation Of the phenomenon; so went
up to the railing and looked hard at the
light, bat could make. nothing of it At
the same time became conscious of Il dull
sound proceeding from the ground where
ii stood. | could moi understand it; and
there | stood peering in until my ears
suddenly gave me clue to the mystery,
for | iancied detected the thud of IL mat
tock. And such it was. The sexton was
working against time TO dig for large
vaut,an the mysterious light was nothing
more or less than that of his lantern, some
few feet below the surface, which threw
up into the loggy air volume of strange
misty brightness. But really it made IL
very creditablc ghost.
Another adventure | had was more
laughable. but not less perplexing at the
time. The night was very dark indeed;
and us | took IL sudden turn in the road, |
saw II feebly Illuminated figure moving
slowly some distance in advance and in
the same direction with myself. Ny first
impression was that some one was going
to irighten me; so grasped my stick,
intending us the boys say, " to whack in -
to the lprit But rs | drew nearer, tho
figure stopped and in 4 moment or two the
| lllum inatlOn became somewhat brighter.
got close up 10 it, prepared to strike, but
lor the life OF me could not tell what it was.
| passed it close, and looked around into
it, and found it was an old woman going
home from days washing. She had on,
poor soul. Il very attenuated cloak through
which the light of the lantern which she
was carrying feebly penetrated, and when
she had stopped to snuff the candle with
her fingers, the light of course burned
brighter. She was very deaf, and had not
heard my footsteps so that when | spoke
| frightened her, fear more than she had
frightened me.
Talking of not hearing footsteps in the
dark, remember once alarming neigh
Dor most unintentionaly; and had he not
discovered the true cause, he might to
this day have had tale of mystery to
unfold on the subject. | was walking
briskly home one night with map
mounted with rings for hanging it to
wall-under my arm and goloshes on my
feet. The rings kept up II sort of clinking
noise as | went, while the goloshes caused
me to glide along the damp lane with the
nosclessness OF u cat But ! never
though of either circumstance till after
ward. Hearing footsteps in front, fan
cied it might be my neighbor, it being
about his time for coming home, so, l
pushed on. But the quicker went the
farther off he seemed. | went faster still,
but still came not up with him; until,
determined to overtake him, | set off run
ming at IA brisk pace and only reached him
as he was passing into his gate, having,
beyond the possibility of doubt made run
for it himself. Whether he took the click
ing OF the rings, unaccompanled by the
SOUND OF footsteps Tor the clicking OF
pistol or the mysterious rattle OF tancied
ghost, / cannot say; but tins Is certain,
that if he had only stopped or even not
run away, he would have found out the
cause of what was undoubtedly curious
accompaniment on dark night.
A gentleman living in country house
which had once inhabited, wrote TO ask
me whether during nv residence there
had ever heard any reports of its beinq
" haunted" He did not believe in such
things himself, he said. but he always
liked when he heard of any thing of the
kind, to investigate the matter as far as
possible. 1t was very sensible thing to
do; and | was able to give him Il satisfac-
tory explanation. Ii was news to me
that the house had this evil reputation;
but when | heard of it, it Immediately
occurred to my mind how ii was to be
accounted for. 1t so happened that a GER
tian mischIevous female member of my
family had, toward the latter part of my
stay IN that house, been guilty Of the cru
city OF terrifying the servants almost out
OF their wits. She appeared one night in
their room covered over with sheet,
which sheet was raised high over her
head by means of stick, to the end of
which was fastened II bulls eye lantern
a ghost of commanding stature and terrific
gaze. 1t is very wrong TO play such
tricks rs the consequences might be seri-
Gus to some weak minds. In this case.
however, no harm was done, except that
the servants were unalterably settled in the
persuasion that they had seen ghost, and
that they had as matter OF course, inoc-
ulated the village with their own firm
belief that the house was haunted.
Little things are apt to be magnifed,
and the simplest things frequently become
mysterious in. the stiffness and dark
ness of the night. When living in Lon
don, l was one night aroused by nv sister
coming into nv room to tell me that
some one was trying to break into the
house by the front door. looked out of
the window, but could see no one, though
low iarring noise could be heard. The
st,tu+or,, ,,roooee;on ,y,, for,,od E;,r.