Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1886-06-30
Mrs. Crowle's Ghost.

My sister Deborah had always had a
| fancy for the house, gable-roofed, broad
porticoed old stone house, standing ba 81
from the road in the midst of a square
garden and fruit trees. And so when, in
driving past one day, we saw the notice
eTo Let" posted upon the front gate, we
alighted and walked up to the graveled
pathway to make inquiries.
An old negro woman opened the door
and showed us into the parlor, when the
lady of the house soon appeared. She was
a tall, slender and rather handsome woman,
with bright, jet-black eyes and hair, and a
perfectly clear and colorless complexion
She explained that she was the owner of
the house, and had lived here alone with
one servant since her husbands death,
about two years previous. The house was
too large for her use, and she desired to let
the main portion of it, retaining the wing
of three rooms for her use. The arrange
ment and terms suiting us, We soon caias
to an agreement, and in less than two
weeks thereafter, Deborah and l were
quietly established in our new abode, a
contented old maid and bachelor.
Deborah was ten years older than my
self, and had ever since my motherless
infancy acted towards me maternal part.
We were in what is called Independent
circumstances. had good business in
the city, and, finding my comfort well
| cared for at home, had been very well con-
tented, and reached my forteth year with
out having thought much upon the subject
of changing my bachelor condition. Nor
did such a thought seriously present itself
until may as well confess it-until had
known our landlady, Mrs. Arabella Crowle,
long enough to come under the influence of
her fasciuations.
| Under other circumstances, perhaps, it
might have been different, but being
thrown SO frequently into her presence
seeing her at first nearly every day, in con-
nection with certain proposed arrange
ments and improvements of the place, and
afterwards so often meeting her about twi-
| light accidentally in the grounds, which by
mutual agreement remained open to both
| families-it was not strange, I thought,
that we should have been unconsciously
drawn into closer mutual interest than
might have been the case under ordinary
| circumstances. She was not over 80 at
most was clever and agreeable, and had
many little bewitching ways and express
sions, sometimes lively and sarcastic, some
| times pathetic and tender, which exercise
over me peculiar fascination, almost in
spite of my own will. And so it came to
pass that one evening in the twilight,
after supper, l with some embarrassment
ventured to broach to my sister the subject
of my marrying the Widow Crowle.
| Deborah had never particularly fancied
| her, and she now swept her pet tortoise
shell tabby cat out Of her lap and looked
at me aghast.
"Gracious goodness, Oliver You don't
mean to say that you really-that she-that
you are engaged to marry that woman p
"Not exactly engaged; that is, have
never directly asked her to marry me, but
she knows-ahem there is what may be
called an understanding between us"
Understanding exclaimed Deborah,
Indignantly. ''In my opinion you've no
understanding whatever in the matter
You don't understand that she's an artful,
designing woman, who has probably from
the very first been planning and maneuv-
ering to get you in her power. You don't
| understand what her temper Or disposition
things from the neighbors concerning all
this which scarcely cared to repeat to you,
but which, under present circumstances, it
is of course my bounden duty to in
form you Of"
"What things?" l inquired family.
"First about her temper. She's terma-
CANT Look at her eyes and if you could
hear her some days scolding that old black
woman, you'd know her better. A
nice henpecked husband you'd make y
Why, neighbors say it is more than suspect
ed that her husband committed suicide by
voluntarily taking the dose of morphine of
which he died-driven to it by the life she
led him. And she's quarreled with all her
reIations-which is the reason she happens
to be living so solitary and alone.
I pondered Deborah's words. 1 came to
the conclusion that had been hasty and
imprudent, and had made a narrow escape.
And thencefortA avoided Arabella Crowle.
But she didn't avoid me. Oh, no. On
the contrary, she sought me assiduously.
She met me around street corners; she
waylaid me in the garden-alleys; and f.
nally she went to my office, and directing
the clerk to say that lady wished to see
me on business, followed him into my in
ner Office room, and there majestically de-
manded to know the meaning of my late
conduct.
What could say-or do? Only delicate
ly suggest that she had misunderstood my
intentions. Only hint that though it would
delight me to remain her good and devoted
friend, yet that closer and more intimate
tie would scarcely contribute to the hap
piness of either; and that-But here she in
terrupted me.
"Do I understand" she said looking
straight at me with her black and glitter
ing eyes, THAT, in SO many words, in short,
after all that has been said, after all our
plans and arrangements in regard to the
future, you now decline to keep your
promise to marry me?"
"Pardon me !; but there was no promise,
no positive proposal, on my part. A little
filtration such as ours
And then she interrupted me again, and
startled and appalled, me with an exhibi-
ton of that temper which my prudent and
penetrating sister had attributed to her,
1 will not describe the scene; I will not re-
peat what she said-except the last words:
sYou will find that am not one to be
trifed with, or to tamely submit to an in
suit. I will be revenged AS long as 1
live will haunt your life, and make you
feel the influence of wronged and insulted
woman-'' Here l must have smiled,
for she added with concentrated intensity
of passion-"And even if die before you
do, will haunt you then Remember my
words, and be sure of it y'
| Then she left the office, and 1 never
again saw her-alive.
saw her, however, in her coffin the day
of her funeral, two days after she had
dropped dead of heart disease at q public
concert. Deborah and I, with a few
neighbors, rode to the cemetery and saw
the coffin lowered into the grave and the
sod piled upon it. And then the wing Of
the house in which she had resided was
left shut up and silent, occupied only by the
old negro woman, until, as we understood,
a relative, of hers could come from dis
tant state to look after the property.
used to think Of her sometimes, walk
ing in the garden about twilight, but always
with grateful, trembling sense of the
fate which / had escaped. And if the
thought Of her last threat ever crossed my
mind, it was only to be met with smile
for its childishness and absurdity.
So week or two passed quietly. De-
borah had discharged our last servant, and
was absorbed in the trying and difficult
task of finding new one who would suit.
And one morning returned home won
dering whether the girl just now on trial
| uOu1d hauo rou f,u 70 Gal1u ,pp ,,ro,,o,,