Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1889-06-22


Ichabod priasd himself upon his dancing.
idle; and to have seen his loosely hung
frame in full motion and Gathering
about the room, you would have thought
st. Vitus himself, that blessed patron Of
the dance, was figuring before you in
person. He was the admiration of all
the negroes, who, having gathered, Of
all ages and sizes, from the farm and tho
neighborhood. stood forming pyramid
of shining black faces ut every door and
window, gazing with delight at the
scene, rolling their white eyeballs and
showing grinning rows Of ivory from
ear to car. How could the hogger Of
urchins be otherwise than animated and
joyous? the lady of his heart was his
partner in the dance and smiling gra-
ciously in reply TO all his amorous
oSlings; while Brom Jones, sorely smit-
ten with love and jealousy, sat DroodinS
by himself in Que corner.
When the dance was at an end, Ichabod
was attracted 10 a knot of the sager folks,
who, with old Van Tassel, sat smoking ut
one end of the piazza, gossipinS over for
mer times, and drawing out long stories
about the war.
This neighboraood at the time Of which
! am speaking, was ono OF those highly
favored places abound with chronicle
and great men. The British and Ameri-
can line had run near it during the war;
it had, therefore, been the scene OF
marGuding, and infested with refugees,
COWBOYS and all kinds of border chivalry.
Just sufficient time had elapsed to enable
each story teller to dress up his tale with
a little becoming fiction, and, in the in.
distinctncss OF his recollection, to make
himself the hero Of every exploit.
There was the story of DoiIue Martling,
large blue bearded Dutchlnan, who had
nearly taken a British frigate with an old
iron nine polnder from mud breastwork,
only that his gun burst at the sixth dis
charge. And there was an oldsgentieman
who shall be nameless, being too rich o
mynheer 10 be lightly mentioned, who, IL
the battle Of White Plains, being an excel
lent master of defense, parTiad a musEct
ball will small sword, insoinuch that
he absolutely felt il Shiz round the
blade, and glance off at the hilt; in proof
81 which he was ready ut any time Ia
show the sword, with tine hi!t q little
| bent. There were several more that had
been equally great in the field, not one
OF whom but was persuaded that he bad
q considerable hand in bringing the war
TO happy termination.
! But all these were nothing TO tie tales
of ghosts and apparitions that succeeded,
The neighborhood is rich in legendary
! treasures of the kind. Local tales and
superstitions thrive best in these uhcl
tered, long settled retreats, but arc
trampled under foot by the shifting
| throng that forms the population Of mos,
Of our country places. Besides, there IL
no encouragement for ghosts in most oi
our villages. for they have scarcely had
time TO finish their first nap and turn
themselves in their graves, before theil
surviving friends have Travelled away
from the neighhorhood, so that when
they turn out al night to walk theil
rounds, they have no acquaintance ief'
TO call upon. This il perhaps the reasor
why We SO seldom hear of ghosts eXCcp
in our long established Dutch comnuni
les.
! The immediate cause. however. of th'
urevalencs of sRnernatural xtarias II