The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-07-11

portant discovery. When the door swung
open the man started up in alarm and whis-
pered:
Great heavens! Let us be gonen
put my hand on his arm and waited for
the next move. In about a minute we heard
funk! funk funk on the cellar stairs |
know that the sound was made by the oys-
ter can being lowered few inches from The
floor and drawn up again by the string. but
my companions rose to his feet, wheeled half
around, and whispered
Look out for yourself! The cussed thing
| is coming up out of the cellar!n
Keep still-listen" | replied, and when
the can had "tunked" one for each step the
| sound ceased. Then the parlor door slowly
and silently swung to. AS l have told you
was dead sure that all these things were
caused by humaH agency, and yet | felt a
creeping of my flesh, and my forehead was
damp with perSplratlon. The detective with
me was as brave man as ever took up
trail, but such was the effect upon him that
hisface was as white as snow, his teeth chat
tered, and he clutched me and pleadingly
exclaimed
If we stay here another minute we are
both dead men"
/ sat down and drew him beside me, aud
as | did SO the parlor door opened again,
and from the front hall came groans and
signs and dull sounds of a struggle | knew
behind the laths, but my companion could
standno more. He seized both lanterns
and started out, and had to go along
or be left in The dark. When clear of the
house he made run for the highway, and
found him on the farther side of it when |
| came up.
Whats the mattern l asked
Good God, man, but my nerves are all
| gone" he gasped. 81 wouldn't stop in that
house another five minutes for all the money
| In the state!"
| was satisfied that all the noises had been
mado by human agency. Some one had
taken possession OF the house. | had
feeling that it was Kelly. it was just in
line with his other sharp tricks. | did not
tell my companion what l suspected nor
what | intended to do, but | had all my
plans laid before morning. The old house
was two and half stories, and whoever was
hiding there was likely to be in the garrett. 1t
was also likely that this garrett was reached
| from the second story by a ladder. If the
person was Kelly or any other sharpfellow,
| the ladder would be drawn up, or anyone
showing his head above the scuttle would
receive rap. If | got a squad of men and
surrounded the house, the occupant might get
off by some unknown way, or find hiding
place unknown to us. If we failed TO find
anyone, the whole city would hold US up to
rldicule
There was no window in the garnet at the
back end of the house. 1t was hardly day
| light before | approached from that direC-
ton. entered the place with great caution,
and hid myself away beneath the kitchen
stairs. Iexpected the occupant of the gar
| ret would come down before noon, but he
| did not show up II was dark and gloomy
day in the fall, with fragment rain squalls,
and about 2 o'clock in the afternoon | crept
up stairs in my stocking feet, entered a
room near where the garrett scuttle was h.
Gated, and began playing the ghost for some
one else's benefit. | had brought along a
mouth organ, and | sounded and hung on
to a few lonesome notes several times over.
| Pretty soon | heard a slight movement
! overhead Then | took fiddle string
made one end fast to a nail, and when
had hauled taut | picked the string with
my thumb nail. | sent forth complaining
sounds and added few signs and groanS
| The sounds above me became plaiuer, and
| knew that some one was listening at the
scuttle.
| gave him a few more notes, scratched
on the wall and floor, and in few minutes
a ladder was thrust down from the scutte.
A few deep drawn groans on my part
brought man down the ladder, and as he
reached the foot of it | cOllarcd him. 1t
was Kelly. He who had played ghost on
the others had himself fallen into the trap.
He screamed right out at sight of me. and
he did not get his nerve back until | had
him outdoors. He fully believed for the
time that a spirit made the sounds The
case was as | had figured. He had planned
to come to the house, and he intended to re-
main there several weeks. He had affixed
cords to the top of the parlor door to swing
it and had arranged for all the sounds We
had heard If felt elated he felt very
shecpish as an offset, and when sentenced to
two years in State prison for his crime he
said to me:
at isn't that l was caught, but that
was outwitted and bamboozled. Why, man,
had that whole plan in my head for
months, and III have bet a hundred TO one
that I'd get safe off Just think what a
fool | was 10 take up quarters in a
haunted house and then let some one play
the ghost on mer'