The Northern Pacific farmer. [volume] (Wadena, Minn.) 1878-1885, 1880-11-11
THE WHISPERING GHOST.


I'll show you, if you put me in mind of
it, the old house on Asylum street
where it all happened. The first floor
is made over into shops and the upper
rooms are used for storage; but twenty
years ago it was boarding house, and
Jane Duncan and her two daughters
kept it. Your mother remembers Jane
Duncan. She was at school with us at
the Pratt street seminary, when Gather
Joe Beecher taught there. It was a
pity about Jane, too, for she was like
ly girl and belonged to good family,
but she threw herselfaway on a worth
less fellow and had to support him for
the rest of her natural life.
Girls, take one piece of advice from
your old maid aunt. Don't marry for
the sake of being married. That's
what Jane Duncan did. She got to be
twenty-four or five years old and began
to be afraid she should be an old maid,
so the silly thing took up with her first
offer. 1t wasn't that she loved Jim
Curtis,or thought he would make her a
good husband. She knew as we'll as
anybody that he was lazy, dissipated
fellow but he could save her from the
disgrace, as she though it, of leading a
single life. So she married him, and
poor stick he proved to be, spending
half his time walking Main street in his
fine clothes, and Jane and her two girls
shaving at home to keep him in bread
and butter.
Well, when she moved into this
house on Asylum street, she found
room in the attic locked, the key-ho}e
stuffed with cotton and no key to be
found. The landlord said the last ten
ants hadn't made much use Of the
room, but Jane Curtis with all her
boarders needed it, so got key to fit
the lock and furnished it for Molly
Morgan, her servant, to sleep'in. Molly
was girl Jane had taken for charity
from the town house, where she had
been abused and put upon because she
was unidentified; but in James hands
she made good servant, strong, will
ling and obedient.
She took possession of her new room
one night, but about eleven o'clock
came down to her mistress. She could
not sleep, she said; there were noises in
her room. "What kind of noises" Jane
asked, s'Gke rats?' ''No, not rats" the
girl said, she shouldn't mind them
there were thousands at the stone house
-Molly's name for the town house-it
was worse than rats. "What, then ?"
Oh, something whispered, and kept
whispering; she was afraid, she couldn't
stay there; might she slice that night
ON the floor at the foot of Miss Curtis
Ded? mo, indeed" Jane told her she
must have had bad dream. No,
Molly declared she had not closed her
eyes, 1t wouldn't let her. IT." Jane
repeated. ''The ghost, marin. Oh! I'm
sure it's ghost, and can't stay there"
But Jane had no patience with such
fancies, and Molly was sent back to her
room in a hurry. In the morning she
was found curled up in a corner Of the
kitchen. "Miss Curtis, you can send
me back to the stone house for not
nlinding," she said, ''for I can never,
never stop in that room another night.
I'd rather be beat to death by live folks
than scared to death by ghostesses."
Another room was found for Molly.
and Kate and Nell, James two daugh-
tiers, took the attic chamber the next
night. They thought it would be fun
to watch for the ghost. They chatted
awhile after they were in bed as girls
will, then said goodnight, and Kate
was just dropping off to sleep, when
Nell asked if the window was open.
"No; why?' said Kate.
because I feel such a cold wind"
In moment she reused her sister
again. CHOW stop, Kate, you've kept
that noise going long enough. I'm Try
ing to get to Sleep"
"What noise?" said Kate. Pm not
making any noise"
Glow dare you tell such story?
You know you've been whispering
close to my ear for the last five min
utes."
Indeed she had not, Kate declared.
"Weli, something whispered"
Then the girls listened and this time
Kate cried out that a cold wind was