Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1886-09-17
A HOSPITAL MYSTERY.
Tho Attacks OF a Hungry Ghost
Upon q Big Refrigerator.
The Alarm Of Cock aud Head Dish
washer - A Spirit which Carries =
Long CarvInz-Knlfe In Its Right
IIand--Ra ging Doctors.
fPhIlntiolphIn Tlmes.I

Philadelphia TimesI
Every night nearly for the past TIVE
weeks. the big refii .era:or in the base
ment OF the University hospital has been
robbed Of all the food II contained. The
food wasn't carried away, but was eaten
IT n table in the kitchen. and the wrecks
Of tho midnight meal were found every
morning 30 tell the story Of the myste-
fious robbery. The cooks believe the rob-
her 20 be a ghost. One of the dishwash-
ers thinks Il is the ghost OF Hugh Nc
Crackon. who commi ted suicide a little
over year ago by starving himself, and
was brought % the hospital WHOM IL was
TOO late 90 save his life. But the doctors
didn't believe that n ghost cold have
such an abnormal appetite as the thief
who has becn tucking away cold corned-
beef, cold boiled tongues, cucumbers cut
In vinegar, sliced tomatoes, crab salad,
goldfish c-oqucttcs, cold roast beef, Bologna
sausage, sardines, olives, chow Chow, and
lastly n boiled leg Of souihdown mutton.
S,il tho physicinns are a, loss to ac-
count for the disaT pearance Of the ediLles
or how the slverware that belongs up
stairs In tho dining-room gets into the
kitchen or how tho debris Of n meal Is
found on tho kitchen table-cloth at Eve
o'clock nearly every morning. It's n mys-
terry, aud everybody out at the hospital
has got a theory. The vigil Of two physi-
clans on Wednesday night failed to lead
g. the discovery Of the roLber.
Two weeks ago tho cook went 20 the re-
frigerator at six O'Clock in the morning to
got cold Joint Of roast beef that was to
A. a 4 -
eggs dropped into Il. The cook had the
moat-choppor and the wooden dish and
trio potatoes and onions all ready, but
whom she Looked into the refrigerator tho
beef was gone; 20 was the milk. pitcher
and tho butier-dish. She couldn't believe
her eyes until she happened to look on the
table nnd see the milk pitcher empty, the
butter-dish ditto, and only tie bone OF the
COLI joint % beef. There was n Boston
hash for breakfast that morning, but there
was consultation between tho cook and
superintendent Calbury, and then an in
vcstigation, but nothing CT mo Of either.
The next morning the cook was almost
thrown into Mysteries by the discovery
that some sliced cucumbors and an enb of
boiled ham were missing from the hospital
ico-box. Another consultation aud an
other investigation followol, but nothing
turned up. When on the third morning
The cook discovered n lot OF eggshsl!s ON
the table on I tho salt-cellar upset AMI half
loaf Of bread on the floor, she gave q lit
Gle scream and was quickly supported by
by tho head dishwashcr, who bravely
opened the refrigerator door aud peepod
In, while the cook gaspel;
us thin Goldfish croqueties there"
NO. said the head dishwashor, in a
hosrs, whisper, they're gone"
The dishwaghcr was positive that Il was
the work Of rhosts. She toll the cook so,
and they boy cotted tho refrigerator.
Superintendent Cadbury made up his
mind that ho'd put a stop 10 the disap-
pearancc Of tho food from the refrigerator,
20 he had big locks put on tho doors, and
for two nights nothing was disturbed. IL
was believed that tho ghost, or whoever
the robbor was, had been bafIlel. but ON
last Sunday night somebody ate a mid
night meal In the kitchen. The crab salad
that had boon put in the refrigerator was
gone, Tut tho locks on the refrigerator
were examined on Tuesday morning. This
strengthened the belief OF tho head dish
washer that ghosts we're at the bottom Of IL.
10 occurred 20 somebody that II would lie
good scheme TO watch the refrigerator.
IL was watched one night, but nobody
came 20 satisfy their hunger, and the
watchers gave up tho ghost in disgust.
The very next night there was another
raid on tho larder, and bologna sausage
and sliced tomatoes disappeared.
Last Tuesday night the COO X pnt leg
OF boiled Sou.hdown mutton into the re-
frigerator, AMI on Wednesday the bone
was found on the kitchen table. There
was tRble-cloth on the table. Some of
the silvorwNre that belonged upstairs
was on the table. Tue bottle Of Worces-
torshiro sauce had been takcn down
stairs, and four chairs sat az the table and
four dirty plates were In front Of the
chairs. When Drs. Packard and Akev.
heard this they determined TO sit up ON
Wednesday night and catch tho hungry
specter. They sat up. They got sleopy,
but they keTt on sitting up and never
budgod from their dark hiding place, but
no ghost came, neither did any thing else.
and finally tho physicians got tired of sit
ting In tho dark listening to their own
breath and counting tho tickinrs of the
clock. They went TO bed, aud reported
yesterday morning that they had been
unable TO detect the robber or robbers.
Both DIR. Packard and DIR. Akey have cot
their own ideas about the disappearance
OF the delicacies from the ice-box, but the
mysterious part OF II with them Is, how the
robber gets tho things out Of the refrigera.
tor without breaking the locks.
Frederick Helms, the foreman of the hos.
pital, says he saw a dark form in the coal
cellar last Sunday night. He watched II
as u crouched down bohind brick pillar
Cold beads OF preparation stood out on
Foreman Helms forehead. Ho did not
move. ho hardly breRthed. There was a
choking sensation in bis throat. Suddenlv
the dark figure disappeared. There was
arattling Of the coal. Foreman Helms cot
out OF the coal-cellar as quickly AZ bo
could. He took great, long breath when
he was safely out Of the cellar. He told
what he had seen, and when he was asked
Why he didn't catch the dark Acure he
said he WASN'T going 10 monkey with Il be-
cause u had long carving knife I'm IT'S
right hand, aud he thought the best wav
for him 20 keep on one Of the hospital cots
was to say nothing and make his escape a,
soon ss he could.