San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1888-06-12
Van DeckeT1nann'S Bargain.
By M. THEED.

knew the folly and credulity in which such
stories originated, but we knew too the ras-
cality which not unfrequently took advan
taSe of such weakness to answer its own "''-'
pose, and It would be well to ascertain that
there had been 40 such agency at work in
the present instance, or if there had, to dis
cover it.
II do not say that have reason to distrust
either old Minchin or his wife," added Mr..
Van Deckernann, "but my loss has been their
gain ell these years. and human nature is
weak. The old woman was shaking in her
shoes the day took your wife over the
house. end she would not have been behind
hand in putting SPOKE in the wheel, had
the opportunity been given her, on the bare
suspicion of the real facts of the case. If
there has been any roguery at work, it is for
you, in your own interest as well as in mine,
to get to the bottom of it. You are not to be
scared by the fear of the supernatural-that
bugbear of the ignorant and the superstitious
for you do not believe in it, and will see
that you have the means of turning the ia
bles upon any clumsy impostor who may try
his hand at frightening you"
The words Were CHEEKY and confident
enough, but there was a certain eagerness in
the utterarce of them, and the old mans
keen eyes had a curious shiftineSS of express
sion had never remarked in them before,
as he thus addressed me. l could not help
thinking he was trying to convince himself,
as well as me, of the force of what he was
saying. That the whole thing appeared to
him less commonplace than he wished to
make it out felt as certain as that l myself
was not, really and truly, going to the in
vestigation of it in the proper daredevil
spirit. I did not believe in ghosts or ghost
lore, that maintain; but if had ever had
much of the spirit of adventure in me the
mUnotony of business life had knocked it
out of me, and had come to regard good
nights rest as one of the best things in life.
Still the stake was well worth the playing
for, and did my best to look pleasant over it.
One thing did ask my host. What was
the story attached to the house, and what
form did the apparition take
He tapped his snuffbox and shook his
head
mo, no." he said, 81 am not going to put
things into your head. How can | answer
for the state of your digestion, or your prob
able immunity from nightmare, as it is!
You know too much-that is too say, you
would know too much, supposing you were a
man of weak nerves or vivid imagination,
already. If l could have kept YOU in utter
ignorance the test would have been a surer
one, but that l could not, and l have to re-
quire of you, on your honor, that you neither
seek nor accept at the hands of any one the
information | withhold from you. You will
not seek-of that | am satsfied-what | wish
you distinctly to promise me is that you will
refuse TO lend an ear to any one who may try
to enlighten yOu-the woman Minchin, for
example"
gave him my word that l would respect
his wishes, and an hour or so later found me
in possession of the room which had been
assigned me at the Cedars. Mr.. Van Decker
mann had not himself faced the cutting cold
of the moonlit December night, but the old
couple were on the lookout for my appear
ance, and things had been made more COM
Portable than | expected. Some of the old
furniture, of which my host had spoken when
he first entered upon the subject of the house,
had been brought down from the garrets,
and disposed in what would appear to
have been its original quarters, while
a bright fire burned froStily in the
old fashioned CRATE. l observed, with a
certain remorseful appreciation of thought
fulness for my comfort for which | should
not have given her credit, that Mrs. Minchin
had not limited her provision for my accom-
mediation to absolute neceSsaries. OF the
two windows, the one nearest to the bed was
closely and carefully curtained-for the
other, as she took occasion to explain there
was no curtain forthcoming, and an arm
chair and footstool, with the faded coverings
of which the moth had long since made ac-
M haH Hravx fO no fra
The old woman seemed indeed to have re-
membered everything even to the night
light in a saucer on the mantle piece, to ignite
which was her last care before leaving me
for the night. For the rest she was as tact
turn as her employer could have wished.
She received my thanks in silence, and,
having ascertained at what hour she was to
call me, left me to myself with all possible
celebrity.
When she had turned her back proceeded
to take a minute survey of the room.
That it was, or had been at some
time, the scene of whatever mystery
was connected with the house, l
could not reasonably doubt, seeing the object
with which had been sent there. The first
thing for me to do then was to discover in
what way-if any-it was likely to lend itself
to the preparation of fraud.
Briefly, could find nothing in it to reward
my inquiries. 1t was a large room, almost
square, with nothing remarkable about it.
There were, as 1 have said, two windows,
and there was one Of the closets my wife's
heart had delighted in. Iopened the door of
this and looked in. II was empty, as it had
been, in common with the rest, on the occa-
sion of my previous visit. The bedstead,
which bad been brought down from the
attiGs, was Of mahogany, minus poles or hang
ings. Nowhere YVES there any ambush for