Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1884-06-20
ways reminds me of graveyard ol
O haunted house,

WAY lOhlAnNo hAO Va -
a haunted house,
I did not at the time pay much
attention to her remarks. But some
days after she again suggested that
our garden table and chairs should
be removed to some other spot.
Il don't know why it is,' she said,
uneasily, 'but l always feel nervous
here. 1 fancy there is something
peculiar about the place-in the
rustling of the ivy and in the very
atmosphere; 1 often find myself
starting and looking around with a
vague sense of something horrible.
1 hate the sight of that tree, with
its distorted shape and bare skele-
ton arms
I rallied her upon being fanciful,
but promised that the skeleton
arms of which she complained
should be cut off. She sat silent
for a moment, then said, seriously: {:
Charlie, did it ever occur to you
that certain objects in nature
trees, for instance-may have an
| individual life of their own ? | don't
mean the mere vegetable life, but
sort of mysterious spiritual ex-
istence. Now, 1 can't help fancy
ing that this tree is conscious of
what is going on beneath it-that
| it remembers things which it has
witnessed in its long life, and, were
it able, could tell us some horrible
ghastly story of the past. You
may laugh, but l assure you that |
never sit under this tree, even on a
sunny MONDAY, without feeling a
chill creeping over me, and a sense
of something mysterious and hor-
rible, which makes rue almost
afraid
OF course 1 said; 'having once
imagined that the dead branches
resemble skeleton arm, and asSOci-
ated them in your own mind with
the idea of a graveyard, you will
be haunted with all sorts of dismal
thoughts and fancies in connection
with the tree. But since you don't
like it, Cecie, l will have this bug
| bear removed, and we will build a
pretty Summer-house on the spot
l will speak to the men to morrow,
when they come to take down the
WALL
The portion of the wall to which
alluded separated our garden
from that of our next door neigh
bor. 1t was of stone, but the mgr
tar had fallen out and left it little
more than pile of loose stones,
which 1 feared might at any mo-
ment topple down on the children,
as they played about it. So l con
cluded to have it pulled down, and
a light wooden paling placed in its
stead.
Over there, in the next house.
lived an old gentlemen and his
wife, who passed much of thelI
time in their garden, cultlvating
flowers and small garden fruits, in
which they appeared to take great
delight. They had called on us, a
cheerful and kindly old couple
| and when the old wall was pulled
down and before the new one was
up, the way lay open to a more
familir intercourse.
One evening, by their invention
we stepped over into their garder
to see a collection of roses upon
which Mr.. Warren prided himself
These duly admired, the old lady
expressed to Cecie her pleasure in
having neighbors who were neigh
bors. She had lived ten years IL
their present abode, and in tina
time had only twice seen Mrs
Gagel
'She wasn't always such a re
cluse,' said the good lady. :
remember that when she and he
husband first came here, a youn|
married couple Il was child them
they were merry, gay and fond o
society. 1t was their daughter
fate which so sadly changed them
You have heard the story?
We had not been long in thi'
, town, yet Cecie remembered t.
have heard something about
daughter of Mrs. Gage running
, away to join lover at a distance
and being never afterward hear'
, of.
Her name was Emily said Mrs
Warren, 'and she was the hand
/, soonest girl in the town. She wa
an only child, and had been all he
life petted and INDUCED, and al
Ilowed to have her own way. Sucl
children don't generally turn out
as we'll as they should do; ant
Emily Gage rejected many good
offers, to fall in love with a hand
some and dissipated fellow, wht
made his appearance here for a