The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-05-03
AS TO STRANGE DREAMS.
Some Remarkable Stories Suggested by a
Clergyman's Recent Essay.

New York Herald.
Four gentlemen were seated, one evening last
week, in a private room of an up town resort
One of them made casual reference to dreaming
and mentioned, incidentally, paper read the
| night previous, by clergyman, on the phenOm-
ena of dreams. Two of the party scoffed at the
| idea that persons ever dreamed of events to
come. They admitted that they seldom had
dreams. but when they did dream, the fancies
had little continuity and relevancy. One gentle
man, however boldly affirmed that he had had
| several demonstrations that the mind did often
| carry out in sleep the designs of the day.
when | was about twelve years old" he said
like most boys of that age. my principal occu-
patton was deviltry of one kind or another. An
old man, heartily detested by all the boys, bad
! died in our neighbornoOd, and every evening
his widow and grown daughter had to pass down
a lane running parallel with our fence, along the
top of which was laid fiat boarding. Noticing
the nightly trips of these two females an idea oc
Cured to me- Keeping my own counsel, laid
my plans. intended, some night when my
| parents were out to wrap a sheet around my
body, and climbing the fence run along it when
the women came by.
'Now here is the curious fact Two days af
| ter and before had had chance to carry out
the plan, all the people about were greatly ex-
cited. A ghost had appeared, and there could be
no mistake as to its identity. 1t walked down
| the lane and distinctly said: 1 am the ghost of
old s. This was sworn to by two witnesses
l wondered who had forestalled me. 1 asked all
the other boys, but none of them, that was
sure knew anything of the matter.
THE next night there battalion of
Watchers l among them. All patiently, some
| tremblingly awaited the coming of the specter
Twelve o'clock, one o'clock passed. but it didn't
| come. Then we all went to bed. The next
morning it was announced that gentleman had
seen the spook later in the night, and heard its
| cry. By this time my soul was filled with envy
! to think of the unknown who was kicking up
such row. A night interviewed without dis
| turbance, but on the following night it was laid
forever and with it the belief of many that souls
can return from the other shore
1.-TWO men had watched. At last they saw the
CLEAN of white at the end of the lane. Sud
denly it occurred to them what was the cause of
| the ghosts great stature. 1t is walking on the
fence. They laid for it, grabbed it by the arm
tore av,2v the sheet, and with such endearing
names - little imp of hell they awoke the
spirit. CHANGING wildly about me, became I'M
conscious. The mystery was solved. The neigh
bors enraged until it was found that l
was really sick from fright. | was sent away to
school soon after and never told until long
years had succeeded that the scheme l carried
out in sleep Matched while wide awake.
Several years afterward made up my mind
| to strike out for myself and leave home Most
of you, no doubt have gone through the expe
| renee so there is need to speak of my home
sickness. had been away two weeks, and had,
| besides some money, stock of attachments for
! sewing machines. but had not the skill OF bold
ness to dispose of them One day | went to the
| Grand Central Depot and took the first train for
home. Arriving at Stamford, Conn, felt i'm
PEELED to stop over. 1t was the first time | had
| ever been in the town, and yet everything
seemed familiar-streets, houses, the very
trees shading the walks At last it all came
| to mel had seen Stamford in dream. Details
returned to my memory, and walking along
| | could tell what was to appear next. l knew
! that in a triangular space, formed by the juno
| ton of two streets, should find brick build
| ing, the lower floor occupied as dry goods
store, with sign over it in black and gold. In
| this store | sold my stock to man whose face
| had never before looked in mine, except in a
dream.
Some time before had had suit of clothes
made by a tailor in q town twenty miles distant
| from my home, and on wearing them found the
| vest did not fit. | decided to return the gar
ment for alterations, and went to bed. In the
morning it was missing, and the most thor
ough search could not find it. About ten
| days after it came to me by express,
with note from the maker, hoping that it
would now prove all right Investigation showed
that in the night ] had decided to return it.
had gotten out of bed at 1890 p NJ, gone to the
express Office and had written note to the
maker stating the alteration to be made, and
then had expressed the package. All the time
must have been sound asleep. In 1881 friend
| of mine went to Wisconsin under engagement to
| manufacturing concern in Racine. Two months
| after [ had dream, in which | fancied myself
on a train bound for Albany Waiting in the de-
pot in Springfield, Mass, saw my friend com
| ing toward me- and. getting down. shook hands
with him and asked him to explain his sudden
! appearance. He said the factory had
burned down two weeks before and
! the firm had refused to continue its contracts
| In a Joking way told the dream next morning
to gentleman who had been offered position
! by the firm named An hour after had re-
| peated it telegram came from Racine announc-
| ing the total destruction of the factory by fire
| the previous night. Subsequently letters brought
the news that the firm had cancelled all con-
! tracts.
I'm the township of Guilford, Conn, lives a
queer character known as 'Sherm' Davls-fsh-
/ 81 :,
fact, which will turn him an honest penny. He
| lives not far from the scene of the Mary Stan
nard tragedy, and most people who Wis
| struck up an acquaintance with
'Sherm' His house is always open, and it is
considered the correct thing when in that vlcin-
ity for the tired hunter, or wet trout fisherman
! to stop there and enjoy chat with Sherms
| family, and after supper, indulge in generous
draughts of punch The night before | was to
make my first visit to Davis, in dream had
the experience to come-all day, in company
with friend. l whipped trout streams, but no fly
was fascinating enough to tempt single fish.
| Tired, wet and hungry we reached Sherms at
o'clock. We found him just emptying dilap-
dated basket containing fourteen trout, the
| largest weighing eleven ounces. He con
doled with over poor luck, and soon,
over nice supper, we forgot the fatigue of the
! day. This the dream. The reality, even to
the yTvight and number of Davis catch, was
precisely as had dreamed on the previous night
| it would be, except that my friend caught two
small fish when my dream had given him no
catch whatever"
The dreamer had finished. Silence reigned
until beer was ordered by one of the doubters.
1t disappeared and then the party broke up. The
dreamer started off in opposite direction to the
rest The third gentleman said to one of the
two skeptics, well. what do you think2"
The skeptic replied, He is remarkable
| dreamer, or a remarkable-.
A C,hamnion SpeIIer