Daily tobacco leaf-chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1890-1895, 1892-03-15


vines trailing In the path. The SCREAMS
grew louder and came apparently from 8
woman who was no doubt being murdered
The house and grounds were enveloped in
total darkny IS. Trying the door, he found
it unfastened and walked in the now APP
parently deserted kitchen. Only low
moaning could now be heard, and before
proceeding further Subofficer Hamael took
out his matches to make a light, The
first one sputtered and went ont. The sec
ond one did likewise The third cracked a
little, but stubhornly refused to light. All
was now quiet, the heavy fog made breath
ing difficult and Hamael sought the outer
air.
A strange cracking sound suddenly per
vaded the air and some unseen person lifted
his helmet from his head. Looking around
strange spectacle met his gaze. An I'M
clothed skeleton stood by his side and on
its brainless skull rested his helmet Being
brave man the officer tried to think of
what he had last eaten to produce such a
startling optical delusion, and finding him
self sober he attempted to take the hat
from the skeleton, but every time his hand
came close to the grinning, open jaws his
right arm was seized with a sensation as If
he had received an electric shock. Draw
ing his locust club he struck the apparition
a vicious blow, but the club passed harm
lessly through the phantom, while green
ish blue fame rolled from the end of his
club and he found himself unable to longer
hold it in his hand.
A strange feeling of dread as if some i'm
pending danger was about to materialize
caused him to shrink away from the place,
leaving his club glowing with greenish
blue fame lying on the graveled walk.
But to his surprise the bony skeleton fol-
lowed close on his right side and seemed to
indulge in low chu l1le, Going around
to the front of the house new trouble
arose. The skeleton stopped, andpointing
one long bony finger to one of the upper
windows again uttered that low chuckle
as of fiendish delight. Looking up at the
window the officer saw the room was Lit up
by brilliant light, and the cries of baby
being strangled could distinctly be heard.
The bareheaded sub made another at
tempt to enter the house, and was closely
followed by the helmeted skeleton. At the
foot of the stairs the skeleton offered the
sub his helmet, but on attempting to re-
place it on his head he found it had grown
too small, and his short hair stood out so
1t would not stay on. Throwing the hat
aside he was astonished TO find it commence
ing to ascend the stairs a step at time
and turning completely over at every other
step.
Officer Hamael and the skeleton followed
the hat, and when they had reached the
first landing the hat began to descend
step at n time in manner the reverse Of
that in which it had gone up. Determined
to regain his helmet he started down after
it, but could not quite touch it. Up and
down stairs the hat, skeleton and officer
went many times until great beads of cold
perspiration stood out, not alone on his fore
head, but all over him. Again the screams
of woman in distress reached the officers
ears, and he determined TO go back to the
station house at Belgrade and Clearfield
streets to summon assistance. He pro-
ceeded on q run while the skeleton kept
close by his side
At last the marble steps at the entrance
to the station were reached. Politely hand
ing the now thoroughly astonished and
sub his helmet the skeleton dis
in the dense fog. On entering the
hearing room of the station the sub was
most universally guyed by his brother Off
GERS until the battered and damaged he'll
met was offered in proof of the truth of his
strange story. After the fog cleared up
the next day the locust club was found
lying on the graveled path leading around
the old mansion to the kitchen, but no
marks on it were left to show where it had
struck the rafting bones of the skeleton
Times.