The morning call., 1892-04-30
THE DISMAL SWAMP.

slave on the plantation but had q startling
experience to relate OF the ghosts that
haunted GraysviIle, one of the most famous
old plantations of Louisiana. Every slave
that ever trod Southern soil is afraid of
graveyards, and the GRANVILLE graveyard
was indeed solemn cid place, and ave-
some enough to those minds superstitiously
inclined 1t was not more than hundred
yards from the back doorstep in full range
of the little windows Of The room that had
been the sitting-room of all my grand
mothers for unnumbered generations.l
1t was not originally meant to be a grave
yard. One of the first Gray women had lost
a babe, and 1t was her desire that the child
might be buried somewhere in sight of her
window, where she might have the comfort
of seeing its lttle grave at all times and
knowing that it WAS not quite alone when
the wind blew at night and the snow fell
over Graysyille.
But the little grave which held the dead
did not by any means help to heal the wound
in the heart of the living, and befors the
flowers bloomed again in the old Louisiana
woods another grave was opened beside the
lonely little sleeper, and Grandmother Gray
went to keep her child company under the
rustIing old liyeoaks. or course grandfathe
was put to sleep beside his wife, and so n
time all the Grays were laid under those
grim old oaks. and the family graveyard"
so TO speak, established within a stones
throw of the back door.
But ii was not the graveyard which made
one afraid of GTaysville. Beyond, more
than mile, and cut of by one of those still,
treacherous lagooDs so common TO Louis
lana stretched for several miles low, wet
strip of timber-land known as the Dismal
Swamp
The place was full Of uncauny associa-
tions-as the hiding place of runaway slaves,
the hotbed of malaria and all manner of Ills
and aches. AT length the GROWING i'll was
put upon II when IL became the abode OF the
Grsysvlle ghost.
True. these stories of the ghost never, for
a long while at least, got beyond the quar-
ters; but there they were rehearsed night
after night with startling and blood-eurd-
ling variations.
1t was said that nothing ever came out of
the swamp alive; even the cattle wandering
within Its deadly limits were either stuDg
to death by the poisonous reptiles there or
else bTUke their necks among the tangles of
bamboo and rattan. crossVine and swinging
MOSES Of the swamp.
l was always mortslly afraid of the
swamp. and no human power could have
persuaded me beyond the separating waters
of the lagoon.
OF the ghosts had DO fear whatever, but
stories of the runaway slaves, the poisonous
atmosphere and the unfortunate cattle had
filed my mind with a horror of the place
which 10 this day l have never been able to
shake off.
NV first recollection of 1t was the time one
OF the men came running in from the field,
painting with fear and declaring that some
thing like big black shadow had run out of
the swamp and chased him home. q
The something" proved to be Crazy
Dick, an old slave who had disappeared
months before and was supposed to be dead
somewhere in the impenetTable depths of
the Dismal Swamp. lie had, indeed. been
there all the while. living upon the wild
.tNxrao nr1dh ns<1~
profusion. He returned TO his hiding place
apd died there, his dead body having been
discovered by seeing the buZZards circling
about it on the farther bank of the lagoon.
Literally torn to pieces by the witches"
they. said in the cabins OF the superstitous
blacks, who repudiRted the existence of the
briers for the more thrilling idea Of
Witches
From that time forward the ghost of Crazy
Dick was said to wander about the swamp
and could be seen almost any night "all in
white" crossing the lagoon and the rice
field and coming on across the lawn to the
graveyard, where he disappeared 'just at
daylight" In his own grave in the far
corner OF the lot, ''oTer todes the great
house" The story was told until it was be-
ieyed by every negro on the plantation,
and when at last the oveTseer himself, re-
turning from the quarters after midnight,
where he had been to ST up with sick
slave, declared that he had with his own
apanic in and about Gray
/ was girl then Of about IL years of age,
and my terror OF the swamp became SO in
tense that would stop my ears and leave
the room at the bare mention of the place.
1t preyed upon my thoughts day and night
At night my dreams were full Of il. l
had wandered along all these mysterious
depths. tram pledeupon the nest OF the COP
perhead and adder. breathed the soft per-
fume of the wild magnolia and brushed
aside. as 1t trailed against my forehead, the
rank, red blossoms of the poisonous oak and
the deadly Ivy. In my dreams l had dipped
my feet into the sleek, still waters of the
lagoon, and followed the path made by the
ghost OF Crazy DICK across the rice field and
the family graveyard and lost myself In the
depths of its dull. dense shadows.
would wake at sunrise, nervous and fe-
yerfsh, and as weary as II l had indeed
made the horrible journey. And even then
would creep under the bed-covers aud try
to forget the horrors of my dream.
Igrew thin and pale and nervous. All
the gold In Louisiana could not tempt me
near the Dismal Swamp. Ny terror ID
creased as / night after night roamed
through its terrible tangle of vine and bri or
In my dreams.
One morning the very climax of wonder
was reached when my father. returning
home just before day from meeting of the
rIce-plapters at village some ID miles dis
tant. himself encountered the Graysyile
ghost returning from It's midnight ramble
through the Dismal Swamp
1t was only half visible In the uncertain
light. but still distinct enough for him to dis.
tinguish a supple, willowy something clad
Ia white and moving without noise Utmost
without motion. he thought-toward the
dismal shadows Of the Graysville graveyard
Then 1t disappeared as usual
Strange to say, while my father was re-
hearsing the story at the breakfast-table I
seemed to have known 1t all and before le
had left of felt sure ] could have gone on
with 1t myself.
This was due, doubtless. to the fact. AZ I
aougnts Oh my having visited tbs swamp SO
often In my dreams.
The same day my mother came to me with
INSTRUCTIONS not TO VISIT In my daily ram
bles over the plantation, certain low sec
lions where was fond Of going for the wild
blossoms ana ripe iruit could not UNDER
stand the restrictions, and said 40 very
freely: She then showed me the boots l had
worn-as she supposed-the day before in
my rambles.
"But did not go ont yesterday" cx-
claimed, no little astonished at the sad con-
dition OF my rubber walking boots, SO neces-
saIy for the low, moist Louisiana lands.
They were found at your door this morn
Ing" she told me. .where you usually place
them to be cleaned"
1t was odd. to be sure. and for many weeks
remained to me an enigma. My mother /
was sure, believed was telling her DELHI
crate faisehood, inasmucb as the very next
morning the boots we're found In the same
place aud Ia precisely the same condition.
At length my mother removed the boots
TO her own closet. and locking the door put
The key in her pocket, saying as she did SO:
NOW We will see who 1t Is that's In the
naDit Oh wearing your shoes. Nobody
knows were the key OF the closet door is hid
except yourself, Elsa"
l must explain that by this time, owing
to my vehement denial as to having worn
the boots, suspicion had fallen upon Louise,
my mothers hnusemaid, a Quadroen girl
about my own size and age.
That night my dreams were terflble-the