St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-04-19

more of her. jim, don't think me fool,
but tell you l loved that woman. Yes,
and somehow | believe at times 1 love
her yet, or at any rate, she closed my
heart against all other women, for L
have found none that warmed my heart
as she did with that one bright, sudden
smile.
That there was some mystery sur
rounding her ! could not doubt, for
| could learn nothing of her. Most of
those OF whom ] made inquiry declared
there was no such person living in the
neighborhood, but several of the older
inhabitants responded only to my queS-
ton with shake of the head and a
meaning look, which eXasperated me
beyond measure. What do you mean
by that" / asked old Paxton one after
noon as joined him on the road to
town. The old fellow shook his head
again, but possibly feeling freer with
his sharp-eyed wife away, took his pipe
from between his lips and said: Did
you never hear of the ghost woman of
Wye, sir? That's she you're talking of,
you'll have no more to say of her. 1t
fares i'll with them that wicked Lady
Whitaker smiles upon, as all the peo-
pie about will tell you. Ask some one
to tell you of yonng Ovid Arnold
Tell me YOURSELF | urged.
"'No, indeed, l won't. Eve said
more'n enough Of her as it's Leaving
him, went direct to Josiah Durham,
who had been absent for some days.
Before we begin to talk business l
said, tell me who and what is Lady
Whitaker, The Old mans shrewd
gray eyes looked back at me from be-
meath his bushy browS like two points
of fire. That's hard question, sir, to
| answer, but | can speak for myself and
say, 4 don't know There's many an
other who has tried to find out besides
you, Mr.. Bremen, and to my knOWl
edge none of them ever did. Some of
the people about, the wise young ones.
will tell you the whole things uon-
sense; some others will declare she's a
wicked spirit doomed to haunt the
scene of her evil earthly life, while l
and such as have seen her will say
frankly that she is a mystery not to be
solved
"'Tell me the Whole story [ urged.
THAT, sir. you'll find in this book
He rose and handed me an ancient
leather-bound book filled with yellow,
time-Stained leaves covered with dim
old writing. This is the diary of my
great grandfather, Jonathan Durham,
who was minister here in 1705.' |
glanced at the book he offered me and
then at him, when he laughed invoiun-
tarily. Excuse me, Mr.. Brenner,' he
said, but your look of amazement and
Incredibly made me forget my manners.
! am going to leave you now for a little
while, if you do not mind. and you may
read what Jonathan Durham had to say
i'll 1906 of the fair lady to whom you
seem to have lost your heart
'lmpoSsible!' | exclaimed, veXed at
the garrulous old fellow, whom L sup
posed 10 be making fun OF me.
Well, read, read and satisfy your
self. You WON'T believe the story at
first. | did not, but lis true for all that.
When l saw her first l was even
younger man than you and | was mad,
"a about her. However, that passed
aIter read that old journal and 1 have
seen nothing of my lady for nearly sixty
years"
"AS soon as he was gone, opened
the quaint old diary with an eagernesS
| was little ashamed of, and as it fell
easily apart at a certain page, | read
the topmost line. Il have been to-day
to visit my Lady Whitaker Well, of
course, L cart give Rev. JOnathan'S
words, but the story | gathered was
this: In 1106, a gentleman calling him.
! self Lord Whitaker, and his wife,
Lady judith, had come to make their
home in the colonial village of Wye.
From what the minister said there must
| have been much speculation among the
townSpeOple as to the reason so young
and fashionable a pair could have had
for leaving England for quiet Ameri-
can village, but the reasons seems never
to have transpired. Lady Judith Rev.
Jonathan described as beautiful
woman, saucy and witty and reckless
in speech and manner, so much so, in
deed, as to be scandal to the quiet
purltancal community, which ShreWdly
cOnjectured that it was because of her
Lord Whitaker had fOrSaken home and
friends for obscurity.
After while even graver disappro-
baton of her began to be felt, and final
ly the little town rang with d story of
how young Maurice Langley was fairly
mad ABOUT the beautiful stranger, whose
smiles upon him were so warm as to
seem TO utterly crush her husband, who
went about the place with cOunte-
nance SO 'grueSome and WOeful as to
touch the very heart, the minister said.
At last the end came, and the most
dreadful tragedy the law-abiding town
had ever known thrilled it with hor-
ror and fear, for Lord Whitaker was
found dead in his bed one morning, with
the marks of cruel fingers on his throat.
while across my lady'S brow Il black
bruise told of some blow given her in
sudden deadly anger. The frightened
servants told of Il fearful quarrel the
twain had had the night before. and one
testified that she had heard her mistress
say in tones that turned her blood to
ice. a blow for a blow, my lord! Look
to yourself when repay it, And that
then the husband, in great grief and
modification, had beSought her pardon
for his unmanly act. though vowing she
had stung him to it, bat to this hum,
bling OF himself my lady had replied
only with bitter, chill laughter.
Upon this testimony she was ac-
cused of the murder of her husband,
and condemned to die. In the mean
while she lay in prison, where not one
came to inquire of her, not even Maui
rice Langley. and at last she questioned
her jailer of him. Was he sick? No,
he was not sick. Thus treasured the
fair Judith burst out laughing fear
! some to near, and few mornings after
fresh horror confronted the villagers
and a mystery as we'll was there 10 veil
their sober minds. Maurice Lang lex
had died in the night, even as Lory
| Whitaker with purple prints of lond
strong fingers in his throat. Could thig
be the work of her who languished bes
hind prison doors? 1t seemed impossi-
BILE, and in any other age this second
murder would have been an evidence
| in her favor, for the two so similar
pointed to one hand. My lady was re-
! garded as a child of the devil, and it
was believed that she had either gone
up the chimney in the form of black
cat, which was the most generally re-
ceived explanation. or had by her tears
! and witcheries prevailed on her jailer
| to allow her an hours liberty, to which
version of the affair Rev. Jonathan
leaned. However. next morning she
was safe in prison, and, though searched