The weekly register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]) 1862-1909, 1884-07-02

mass Fhite and bate,
eIhiy Hook like skeleton iing-
gers saidcecie, glancing up, sand
Eit gives me Che horrors ! think
theitree ought to be cut down. II
lalway reminds me Of q graveyard
lorahauntpd house,.
Idid not at the time pay much
attention to her remarks. But
some days after She again suggest
ed that our garden table and. chairs
Ishouid be removed TO some other
lspot
Y don'tgknow why it is,'' she
said, uneasily, tbut / always feel
nervous here. / fancy there is
sometbing peculiar about The
IplaceTin the fustling Of the ivy
land in the very atmosphere i
often find myself starting and look.
ling around with ayagpe sense q
EsoInslhing horrible. / hate the
sig q that tree, with It's distort.
led shapeand bare skeleton arms.'
! rallied her upon being fanciful,
but promised that the Skeleton
arms Of which she complained
should be cut of. She sat silent
for moment, then said, seriously
"gharlie, did iteyer occur to you
that certain objects in nature
trees, for instance-ma have an
individual life Of their own2 l
don't mean the mere vegetable
life, but a sort of mysterious spirit.
ual existence. Now, l can't help
fancying that this tree is con.
scious Of what is going on beneath
ii = that il remembers things
which it has witnessed in its long
life, and, were it able, could tell US
some horrible CHASTITY story of the
past. You may laugh, but l as.
sure you that | never sit under
this tree, even on a sGnny noon
day, without feeling a chill creep.
ing over me, and a sense of some.
thing mysterious and horrible,
which makes me almost afraid"
"of course" l said; having once
imagined that the dead branches
resenble skeleton arms, and asso.
ciated them in your own mind
with the idea OF q 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, 1
will have this bugbear removed,
and We will build a pretty sum.
merhouse on the spot. / will
speak to the men tomorrow, when
they come to take down the wall"
The p,rtion Of the wall to which
/ alluded separated our garden
from that of our next door neigh.
Dor. 1t was Of stone, but the NOR.
tar had fallen out and left it little
more than q pile Of loose stones,
which | feared might at any mo,
ment topple down on the children,
as they played about it. So I con.
cluded to have it pulled down, aud
a light wooden paling placed in
its stead.
Over there, in the next house,
lived an old gentleman aud his
wife, who passed much Of their
time in their garden, cultivating
flowers and small garden fruits, in
which they appeared to take great
delight. They had called on us, a
cheerfully and kindly old couple;
and when the old wall was pulled
down and before the new one was
up, the way lay open to more ia.
miliar intercourse.
One evening, by their invita-.
tion, we stepped over into their
garden 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 neighbors. She had lived
ten years in their present abode,
and in that time had only twice
seen Mrs, GageI
"she wasn't always such re-
Cluse," said the good lady. 81 re.
member that whom she and her
husband first came here, a young
married couple Il was a child them
they were merry,,gay and fond Of
society. 1t was their daughters
fate which SO badly changed them
You have heard the story2"
We had not been long enough in
this town, yet Cecie remembered
to have heard something about q
daughter Of Mrs. Gage running
away to join a lover at u distance,