The Warner weekly sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1885, 1883-12-14
A DEMONS WORK.

and His Young Wife in q Haunted
House.
l have v felt like speaking of
those strange Incidents" said Paul Ma
comber as he lit the lamp in his cottage
by the Sea, where he and two friends
were spending.a.long vacation, land 1
never shall feel like it."
"But Paul was there a ghost in the
business?" One of misconceptions asked.
I'VE have heard all rnanners of stories
about sou and the performances in that
old barn of a house." he added with a
laugh.
eyes, and probably many things that
were not particularly to my credit" the
host remarked. "But l don't believe
any man with an ounce of chivalry, to
say nothing about human sympathy.
could have done any differently from
what l did. 1t was a bad place for a fell
low, I'll admit, and l wish to heaven l
could have kept out Of it. 1 was a hap.
py-go-lucky devil before that, but since
we'll, since" { ry.a..Hr. .
Don't set yourself up for a misan-
thrope, Paur one of his friends inter-
rupted; "a fellow who has preserved his
reputation for telling the best story an d
has ambition enough TO beat everybody
else fishing is certainly not without his
pleasures"
IT wonder how one of you would feel
if you had been through what / have"
There was a singular speculation in
Paul Macomber's tone and a certain
dreariness which correspondent well with
the darkness and dreariness outside.
"Well, tell us first and then wen tell
vou," was the light reply.
81 will only make one stipulation"
said Paul, as he put some driftwood on
the fire. 81 don't care what you think
or what you say to each other, but you
shall not ridicule or doubt my story to
my face"
"Why, Paul. / would trust the evidence
of your senses as quickly as / would my
own" said one of the gentlemen.
''That's easy to say now" was the
quiet answer, ''but wait and see. / don't
know" he continued. show much Clarke
Hamilton had heard about the reputa-
ton of this house when he took his
young wife to live in it, but | am sure he
hI6W bOIlCsuLIks IL wac hVOIC l1hO u
castle than a house, and the rent was q
nominal affair, which, / judge, he paid
or didn't pay, as he felt disposed. We
met at a friends house in New Haven.
He was bright and entertaining, and
from his apparent popularity supposed
nina to be a good fellow and something
of q nabob. There was some talk at the
dinner table about the house which he
had taken as q residence and which was
situated in the suburbs of the CITY,"
"Of course, no one is superstitious
enough in this party to believe IN
haunted houses" Hamilton remarked
in the course of conversation. Every
body said no, of course, but one guest
suggested that ladies are sometimes
nervous about such matters" 'Oh, my
wife doesn't know anything about 1t,
and she isn't one of the nervous kind,
anyway" Hamilton replied. After this
Hamilton rather followed me up. We
played billiards together a few times
and We drove together, and ct last ac-
cepted an invitation to dine at his house.
give you my word OF honor, boys, that
tered my head till / had been there al
least half an hour; but I had no soone
crossed the threshold than an inde-
scribable feeling of terror came over
me. / think / can say that | was never
afraid in my life"
"What were you afraid of?n one of the
gentleman inquired.
"You may well ask. Nothing that |
could see or feel, but / was as perfectly
conscious of something behind me as l
am conscious that you two boys are
in this shanty. / tell you there was no
connection between what / had heard
of the house and this diaholical sensa-
tion.D As one of his companions seemed
about t make g remark: "The house
was tastefully furnished, but not In q
style to indicate any great wealth. 4
did not meet Mrs. Hamilton until / was
presented to her in the dinning room.
Fom what her husband had said OF
her from time to time | had
formed an idea of a large, rather
coarse, practical woman, who was
at home in housekeeping and cared
nothing for society. Imagine my sur
prise to find a tiny, delicate creature,
with great brown eyas and acomplexion
of childish fairness. She seemed TO
have made a hasty toilet, for her hair
was braided in one long briad and there
was a bit Of blue ribbon tied near the
end. Her dress was q rich black SILK,
with high rutland full lace in the sleeves,
quite out of character with b long braid
and generally childish appearance OF the