The Indianapolis sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1880-1904, 1885-03-07
1HY SARPY GHOsT.

mony TO the truth O, .h.s ghost story also |
to the fact that, previous TO seeing the ghost.
lie did net believe there could be such n |
thug. Although the owner OF farm. he 10 |
not farmer in one sense Il the word, but |
desotss his time TO buying and selling stock.
This often nscessitates long rides into the |
surrounding country, and sometimes far
inio the y sht
one prominent trait in Mr.. sarpy's
shsacler must not 90 unmentioned. he
vas always cefsiuI q impress upon his
frtsncp that he wns an oct and out temper.
snce man. lie believed IN temperance, bat
not "a intemperance. The spiritual COM
msnd ".ey e temperate In ell things,n he
considered applied TO eating and sleeping as
well as drinking. On the other hand TEN.
peTance did not mean total abstinence. This
ne was certain OF, and In accordance with
this belief kept q jug OF the best bourbon In
his cellar, aud IL was fact that cobwebs
rarely, II ever, grew over the mouth OF the
jug.
he drank very little, he said and never got
drunk. Ia fact, be bad profound contempt
for man who would get drunk. like Jim
Benton, on the adjoining farm. He had a.
various times lectufed jim on the vics Of in
ismpersnce.
Why. JIM" he would say. why don't
YOU stop when you have dram or two, and
not make q beast of Yourself? i can take a
dIirk, and can Let IL alone, just as please.
Ifyou co that, you'll get along all right"
jim could make no answer TO this argu
nen' for while be knew he could take
drink when he pleased, he knew be could
not let II alone when he pleased.
Lees than year before the advent OF the
ghost Dir sarpy had to the surprise OF every.
body, married the belle OF the neighborhood,
Mis- Mary Parrige- To the surprise. say.
Tor Mr. Ssrpy was little past the prime OF
life and n OF very prepossessng man In the
main, but Mary apparently saw good 10 him
and married him In spite OF the warnings OF
her friends with reference TO his habits OF
taking dram.
She wonld break him OF 1t she said, bat
she found her ipfuente powerless on that
sccre great As his love seemed 10 be for her.
He would listen attentively to her argu
enis. and laugh at her fears, but he would
tab 9 his dram just the same, promising that
wten he saw 10 was injuring him he would
Thus time ran on. and the occasional dam
gave the otherwise happy wife great deal OF
~ easness She tried various expedieats 20
ccnvire him OF his danger. but he had pro.
icu faith in his own ability to stop wnsn
MS Judgment dictated. and would not be
conyiIot
Ii was one bitterly cod winter night that
the ghost came, and It's coming was the
IN the CITY that kept him away until late
honr. and Mrs. Ssrpy sat by the fire waiting
for him. Sbe could usually hsar the sound
OF the horses feet on the stable fioor IA he
went in. but The wind was blowing aud
moanif so On this night that she Gould hear
nctbieg but il.
The clock on Toe mantel had Just struck -
when Mrs. Ssrpy heard, above the wind, the
crack Of pist)i from the direction OF the
barn. She ran TO the window and looked
ont hrrf mo rf Inns ha Id
Again The pistol cracke y, and she knew 1t
was inside the barn. Again she heard Ii,
sJd again, until she had counted seven
sbofs
She knew hat was the number OF cham.
uers in MIR. Ssrpy's revolver. but could not
imagine what he was shooting at, unless 1t
might be . tramp as they often lodged in
the barn, and he had had trouble with one
Of them not long ago.
While she was still sonderlpg and an Y ious,
Mr.. Sarpy came running across the yard and
burst into the room exclaiming: Give me
TIE lantern. Mary; there must be ghost in
the barn. I've put seven bullets into 1t and
IL didn't bulge"
This news both astonished and alarmed
Mrs. Sarpv. who hurriedly lit the lantern,
saying: "Why, Joseph, what is it?H
That's more than l can tell. It's Some
thing that looks like man no on one of the
nigh timbers,. and it keeps moving all the
time like as II it was hurt. heard it the first
thing when / went in after oats for the
horse. thought it was some crazy tramp
had gotten up there, but, By George, il was
He had by this time reloaded the revolver.
and, jerking up the lantern he hurried of
toward the barn.
Now. it happened that Mrs. sarpy was an
> unccmmoEly shrewd little woman. She
had netioed an unnatural light in Mr.. Sarpy's
eye, and that his hand tremblsd greatly as
ne loaded bis pistol. This, however, might
have been due to the excitement OF seeing
The ghost
she threw shawl around her shoulders
and hurried after him, determined to see
the ghost too. Mr.. Sarpy WAS cautiously
entering the barn door when she came in
sight. and she waited outside, listening for
tie crack CT revolver, bur none came. She
looked tltmblingly within, and there saw
sarpy standing up in the haymow, holding
great perplexity at some hing on one OF the
crcss-timbers near the roof.
what is it?" Mrs. Sarpy asked.
"Plsgued il can tell what it is It's no
ghost, that's suiel Come up and see if you
CAL ieli!n
Mrs. sarpy had no need to climb into the
now. She instantly recognized the ghost
and exclaimed: why, that's nothing bat
Pile OF sacks you put up there to keep the
rats from fnswing them"
That's So guess said Mr.. Ssrpy, In as
constituent: but what was that sound
heard There 1t is now
Inats nothing in the world y said Mrs.
sarIy. shaking with laughter, "but the wind
blowing through that broken widow. You
STOW II always means that way when the
Wind hlcV hard from the north y
Mr.. Ssypy climbed down from the NOW,
asying: | don't know what's the matter
with ne 10 night / must he cut of my
hsfd. I've shot all these wheat sacks full
Of holes
Mrs Starry deity thrust her hand into bis
rocket. ard drew out Task nearly empty.
Fer face became sober Ia an instant and she
aid: That's what's the matter, joseph,
You took one dram too many at lastr,
Mr. Serpy made 10 reply. He went off 70