The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1885-05-14
A CURIOUS STORY.

|
The writer was sitting few DAYS
ago in the Office of the Hotel Martin,
Lancaster, Ohio, conversing with an
! Old resident of that city on various
topics relating to the past history of
| the place, when he inquired:
Did you ever hear the story of Jacob
! Humbarger, the haunted coffin-mak-
! er?'
Never. Is it out of the ordinary?"
| Yes. 1t is a curious story, and |
! hesitate about telling it for fear people
viii think | am trying to humbug them
with ghost story"
IN accept it as the gospel"
"As | have already remarked. it is a
strange story and had the effect of
making me believe in supernatural
manifestations-yo will, no doubt,
call it superstition. | was well-grown
| boy when the thing Occur which [
am about to relate. ami tney made
such a vivid impression on my mind
! that they are as fresh III my recolec-
| ton as they were over a half century
| ago.
Jacob Humbarger was of Pennsvl-
vania Dutch stock and came here from
Lancaster, Pennsy ylvania, three-quar-
ters OF a century ago. When | first
knew him this city was a village with
less than a thousand population. He
was a cabinet-maker, and made the
| rough and substantial furniture in
vogue among the pioneers whose sons
| have since been congressman, COVER
! nors, senators, cabinet ministers and
| generals.
'.He was frugal and industrious, and
| left some property behind him. In ad-
| dtion to making furniture he made,
| when occasion demanded it, collins for
| the people of all this region. There
were no hearSes and splendid under
| taking establishments in those da s.
The dead were placed in plain home
| made collins and carried to the little
grayeyards in farm wagons, or by hand
| when the distance was not too great, eX-
| cept in rare instances, when there was
little more show and Ostentation, and
an old-fashioned carriage was used in
| place of the modern hearse.
People would come from a distance
| to Humbarger's shop with the dimen-
| sions of coffin. and wait until it was
| finished, and then take it home in a
wagon or on horseback, as the case
might be.
Zone night, or rather one morning,
| an hour or two before daylight, Hum
barger, arose, and leaving his wife in
| bed, proceeded to his shop, and light
ing a tallow candle set to work. When
! Mrs. Humbarger awoke at the usual
| hour she was surprised to hear Jacob
| hanmering away in his shop, and sup
posing that he had some Job that must
| be finished early III the day, set about
| preparing breakfast and when the meal
! was ready she called her husband.
| :" Vail, Cnacob, w for you 20 to
', ,,nrk so gwick the day?" inquired Frau
Hun, parger.
".yv Katharine, did you not hear
dot man who comes OF der colin by
.Nein. nein, trfaaoob, you make
foolish of me-.
II not make foolish, K, K.,,tharlne;, DOT
man come of three o'clock on o@t 'ool
an say | must has dot coffin I" Veh
o'clock, and he gif me the measure o.
dot work bench. und l 60 of work un1'
hat him now half mate.
katharine was incredulous and
Jacob was firm in his asSeverations.
Certain it was that he had the coffin
well under way and by ten o'clock it
was finished, and Jacob was waiting
for his customer while he smoked
pipe.
Between ten and eleven o'clock a
gentleman appeared at the shop door,
and Hunt mbarger greeted him with:
y l,,+1, l,,{
Z" Not very late, considering that |
have ridden from near Somerset since
half-past seven
:. Wy for did you go back home after
you wake me up?'
- L didn't. l have just got to town
. But you come OF mine door last
nide und called me oud OF mine bed to
make dis coffin
g On, no, my friend, put it looks as
though it would suit my purpose. Let
me measure it
The stranger measured it, and it
was Just the size of a coffin he had
been sent to procure, and he asked
Humbarger if he could have it to take
back Immediately.
Dot was your coffin anyway, since
you order him und leaf der measure,
promptly responded Mr.. Humbarger.
The price OF the coffin was agreed
upon, it was paid for. and the farmer
took it away in his wagon. Jacob re-
lated the circumstance to his wife, who
said mischievously:
4 told you. Chacob dot no one
woke you up of der nide. You have
been haunted
''Humbarger, however insisted that
he had been called out of his house
during the night and that he had readi-
ly recognized the man who subsequent
ly got the coffin and pretended that he
had not ordered it.
''Of course, the story soon circulated
throughout the village. and the gossips
added TO 1t. A month later lumbar
ger had another nocturnal visit. and a
child'S coffin was ordered. TO be finished
in the afternoon. Later in the day a
farmer. living few miles west of the
town called on Humbarger to secure
his services, one of his children having
died.
. oh, yes; / know dot. You come
of der nide und told me, and mark de
size on dis workbench