Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1891-05-15

have been mn evidence In her favor. for the
two So similar pointed to one hand. NV
lady was regarded as n child Of the devil.
md II WAC believed that she had either gone
m the chimney in the form of a black cat,
which was the most generally received ex-
PLANTATION. or had by her tears and witch
cries prevailed on her taller to allow her an
hours liberty. to which version of the af.
fair the Rev. Jonathan leaned. However.
next morning she was safe in her prison,
and though searched for evidence of her
crime. none was found save a little fresh
dried mud upon one of her high heeled
satin boots.
"She went to her death. the minister
said. as saucy ard goddess as she had lived
making a mock of his effort to show her
her sin. Only once was she moved out of
her scornful, naughty Indifference, when
she had inquired of him where her body
was to lie lie knew not, he told her
"rhen, not in the graveyard where the
pious, decent people Of this sanity village
lie in deathY she oueried in bitter wrath.
NO. she was a sinner and a murderess, and
the people in whose midst she had done
her evil repudiated her alive and dead
At this she had broken out in outrageous
anger, and had sworn by him who was her
master that she would walk the town until
her bones were buried in the graveyard
where her husband lay. The diary closed
with the guarded statement that there
were several in the community who
claimed to have seen her, after she was
put to death. walking through the town to
her husbands grave, though, as the Rev.
Jonathan Cravey and tersely put it, he
had not himself seen her.
II looked ZIP from the dim old page with
oil 80
which had something of horror in it, but
the next moment my skepticism rushed
back like an icy stream over my mind and
pushed the book from me with an inn
patient scorn of Its superstition SO thinly
yelled and q wonder at my own monentarv
credulity. As | walked to the window TO
cool my burning, aching head, old Dun
ham came in, CHANGING curiously at me. i
don't believe word of it, said abruptly.
He picked up the book and replaced it on
his shelf. 'NoY he said careessly. Well,
shall we get to business now, Mr.. BrennerY
Not today. The truth is | am not well.
My head aches and I've a roaring singing
in my ears Then, in spite of myself, l
said Who was Ovid Arnold!'
"'To tell you that would be to give you
a sequel to the story of Lady Whitaker,
but to put it briefly, Ovid Arnold twenty
years ago was u young man of these parts,
the son of rich parents, and as handsome
and good lad as lived. One day he fell in
with the woman YOU have seen-thev saw
it is only to those of "A certain temperament
she appears-and went mad about her,
haunted her steps, and one morning was
found in the old graveyard dead with the
print of womans fingers on his throat
"Pshawr | exclaimed, with uncalled
anger and an insane desire to throttle the
old man, whose face seemed to see in a
dream and whose voice sounded long
way Off, faint but clear. | flung myself
out of the Office and rushed into the street,
just in time to see the woman who had en-
thralled me pass on with her firm, graceful
step. followed closely, eager and deter
miued, and yet feeling as if | was some one
else, for the swimming in my head grew
worse and the ground somehow seemed to
rise and fall as | rushed along | caught
the woman as she paused at the gate Of the
burying ground, and put out my hand to
stop her. Stop | cried loudly stop,
say, and tell me who and what you are!
Woman, ghost or devil, which?'
"She turned her wtchng face to me, her
black eyes cleaning with a light unholy,
while her red mouth smiled coldly and yet
invitingly. Then seemed to lose all power
over myself, ana III n frenzy OF madness and
love sprang toward her and wrenched the
high frlll of muslin and lace she wore from
about her throat, and saw across it, white
and beautiful as it was, the cruel. purple
mark of the rope, which had choked the life
from her fair body! Well, well, can t
help the recollection moving me still At
the sight | staggered back the exquisite,
evil face seemed to bend over me closer, and
! than sciousncSS was coma
"Whcn l came to myself my head lay on
!IE my idce' w HcIc - she' WIS my ArSU
.Coo .torl. codr .o.,,rroa .l,, o,1
N"N' 1890 VIZ we