Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1892-12-29
THE sHADowlN THE MOONLIGHT


THE SHkDOWIN THE MOONLIGHT
Weird story About . Brisa and D.mor.
allied Miner.
You couldn't stop man from stalking
out claim If the ground was not al
ready covered, and so, though none of
us liked the looks of this new chap who
came In on US at Strawberry Hill, we
couldn't gainsay his stalking out and
putting up q rude shanty. We soon dis
covered that his looks did not belle him.
You'd expect to find some bad men in
the mines. but this man, whom we soon
nicknamed Satan, was worse than any
dozen OF them put together.
The way he would curse God and man
was something awful to hear. and we
sometimes wondered why the wrath of
heaven was not visited upon him. We
osFacized and outlawed him, but he
would not go away. Only the fear
that we would string him up kept him
from doing murder, for he had a tenn.
per like wild beast.
One day, after dinner, and after a
spell at cursing and reviling, he went
down into his claim and fred a blast
which blinded him forever. Then he
became worse than before. His ours.
ing and raving became so constant
that We built him a shanty on
the rocks half a mile away and led
him into it Three times a dav
man was sent mp with his meals, and
TINS continued for weeks and weeks
For q long time there was no change in
ms health or disposition. Then he
began to show thin and wan and to
cease cursing. and one evening he asked
OF the man who brought his meals:
Jim. is thar trail leading up here
from camp"
NO" was the reply.
II anybody was comm down the
trail from Top Notch how could they
hit me?'
"Why, strike across about forty rods
above camp"
"And the door faces that way?"
'sYes.n
"How's the nights now, Jim?"
Full moon and bright as day."
That was about all that was said. but
wish to tell You here that when Satan
was blinded his eyelids were closed
fast. He could never open them after
except he used his fingers. There was
An injury to the muscles controlling
them as we'll as to his vision. Day and
night were alike to him.
On that very night, about half an
hour after midnight, a providing wolf
disturbed our camp and routed out
three or four of our men. They were
driving the beast away when they
looked up and saw a shadow on the Top
Notch traa 1t was as light as day, and
there was no question in their minds.
1t was n queer shadow. It had the
shape of a little old woman, bent over
with age. and it fioated about in an un-
certain way. The three or four men
passed from tent to tent and before
long sixty or seventy of us were out
and had our eyes fastened on the queer
thing. By and by it foated over the
rocks and shrubs towards Satan's shan
ty. and every man OF US followed it to
the door and beyond with his eyes.
SITS a woman-an old woman ~
whispered a score of men.
But what can q woman be doing
here?"
One or two suggested that somebody
go up to the shanty, but no one volun-
teered. There was something SO queer
and uncanny that nobody felt like MAX
ing closer investigation. It was per.
haps ten minutes after the figure entered
the shanty before it reappeared. 1t
passed over the same ground in the
same peculiar way. and as it reached
the trail it halted for q moment, as if
looking back. Our eyes followed it up
the plain, broad trail until it grew
fainter and finally dissolved.
what did it look like to you?'' asked
one man of another.
"a little old woman, bent and feeble"
was the reply.
All had seen alike. You may ask why
some one didn't pursue. No man had
ever seen q live woman on that trail, or
expected to. This was q woman, and
yet it was not Its presence cast an
awe upon erybody. Some of the men
returned to bed, and others gathered in
groups and talked in whispers until
daylight came. There were fifty men
who went up in . crowd to Satan's
shanty.
They found him fully dressed and
seated in the door, and he had been
dead for hours Perhaps you expected
that, but let me tell you his eyes were
wide open, his vision seemed to have
returned, and he was looking across to
Top Notch trail just as a living man
would-aye, looking and looking. and
his face had softened and a smile had
crept over it and been held there by the
fingers of Death.
1T was the spirit of his mother
whispered the men, as they looked into
the face of the dead man. and so we
have ever believed.-N. Y. Sun.
II He Onlv Knew.
Young Professor-WhaSc curious plant
NAV I ask. Miss Laura. is that hanging
tn the chandelier overhead?
Miss Laura-O, declare, professor,
had forgotten all about that! 1t Is