St. Landry democrat., 1890-06-07
A Country Ghost.

a country JnoSr.
WHAT WAS SEEN BY A MAN ON HIS
WAY HOME FROM A ARTY.
News of one of the most interesting
ghost stories ever heard in upper Dekalb
county has been brought to light here.
The facts are about as follows Tuesday
night a young man, returning from a
neighboring dance about l o'clock, took
the lonely road for home, which runs
through a dark woodland. surrounded by
deep Wales and lofty peaks, and overhung
with huge Gifts, whose submits are
crowned with giant pines. Not a clear
ing disturbs the thickness of the wood
land, save one solitary spot almost over
grown with vines and shrubs, where stands
Wondering an old stone building, with
decayed and ruined walls and lofty towers
almost resembling the old haunted Kirk
Alloway, so famous in "Tam O'Shanter."
All these scenes combined could not
daunt the courage of the young mountain
eer as he marched on with quickening
pace. But just as he was approaching the
old haunted building, which has for many
years been frequented by the ghost of a
mysterious old lady, who many years ago
suddenly disappeared, as an old Preside
legend has it, and took up her abode in the
vaults of this old building, which was
anciently used by q band of exiled monks,
and thought to have been built by them at
least a century ago, and which has for
many years been hidden from public notice
unyisited for q long time by any human
being, there, suddenly rising from the
ground, like the ghost of Banquo,
appeared before him a tall, dark appari-
ton with outstretched hands and glowing
eyes revolving in their fiery sockets, and
t~angled9gray hair, wearing a loose, black
robe descending from the shoulders to the
feet.
The boy stood amazed, motionless and
dumb. This scene lasted but for a mo-
ment. The ghost, as suddenly as it ap-
peared, disappeared. Recognizing his
situation, the boy Immediately made a for
ward double quick at an almost incredible
rate. CHANGING over bis shoulder, he saw
the old monastery lighted up by candles,
which were held in the hands of a solemn
procession of monks in their religious
| attire, as they treaded noise]essly around
an iron coffin in the center of the floor.
| Upon the coffin were two candles, one
upon the head, the other upon the foot.
Each monk carried a cross of his order,
and they were chanting an old English
tune.
Upon the head of the coffin was a golden
cross, and as each monk passed the cross,
he made a low bow and uttered some
words of prayer. Suddenly all was dark,
and the vaulted doors of the interior part
of the old monastery were heard to open
| and creak upon their rusty hinges, and
hen began a clicking OF chains and a chaos
| of ghostly noises, which were soon hushed
| H. ro,1ta1 Ioopc atncinn with q St2m
All was now silent and the owl again
began his hooting and the wind was heard
signing through the pines.
No consideration could, have kept the
boy long on this lonely spot. He rushed
onward and reached home almost uncon-
scious. He aroused the family by his ter
rife cries, and it was not until several ap-
plications of camphor were made that he
was able to tell his story.-NashoiNe
american.
The End of the World Calculated.
A French statistician who has been
studying the military and other records
with a view of determining the height OF
men at different periods, has reached some
wonderful results.
The recorded facts extend over nearly
three centuries. 1t is found. that IN 1911
the average height of man in Europe was
1.75 meters, or say 5 feet 9 inches. In 1870
it was 5 feet 6 inches. In 1920 it was :
feet 5 inches and a fraction. At the pres
ent time it is 5 feet 3 inches and three
quarters. 1t is easy to deduce from these
figures at a rate of regular and gradual
decline in human stature, and then to ap-
ply this, working backward and forward.
to the past and to the future.
By this calculation it is determined tina
the stature of the first men attained the
surprising average of 16 feet 9 inches
Truly there were giants on the earth II
those days of Og, and Goliath was quite
degenerate offspring of the giants. Com
ing down to later times we find that at the
beginning of our era the average height Of
man was 8 feet, and in the time of Charlie
magne it was 5 feet s inches, a fact quite
sufficient to account for the heroic deeds
of the Paladins.
But the most astonishing result of thii
scientific study comes from the application
of the same memorable law of diminutlo1
to the future. The calculation shows tina
by the year 1000 A. D. the stature OF thu
average man will be reduced to ffteer
inches. At that epoch there will be onl1
Liliputians on the earth. And the conclu
sion of the learned statistician is ~irresisti
BILE that ''the end of the world will c~ertainl.
arrive, for the inhabitants will have be-
come so small that they will finally disap
pear"-"fnish by. disappearing" as tb'
French idiom expresses it--''from the ter
~restrial globe. "-Philadegphaa Times.
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