The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-01-03

dercd mc to Wake up! The devil wants
your
"Yo"nccdn't laugh, gentlemen. when
lteli you ran; an sod You if you'd
been thar. l Was certain the devil had
come for mc-la:e but surc-an' /
didn't wait for him TO ask for ray
ticket"
Tom Pops 1T This point broke into q
stentorian laugh.
IF, gentlemen, you'd seen Sandy
come firing into the car where l was
sitting, Jon would never stop laughing.
You may not believe it, but his brown
face was as white Us your shirt fronts,
and his eyes were us big MS billiard
balls. He dashed down the aisle and
whispered in my car:
Tom! Tom! come with mc!'
whats the matter, Mac? l said.
What ails your
-" Tom, the devils in my car He's
been a-cutting up for half an hour, an
I'm most crazy. If you're my friend
come with me =
He wasn't drunk, because he doesn't
drink 1t wasn't religious enthusiasm,
because sandy has no religion.
II almost believe he meant what he
said, and that he had been called for.
got up in Il hurry and followed him.
Il hadn't more than got inside the
baggage car when, from among the
trunks, something sung out: Shut that
door and pull down your vcstr
Sandy wanted to fight, then" con-
tinued Tom. 'IIe danced around that
car like IL prize-fghtcr in the ring.
parrot"
AN then the parrot told you you
lied" asserted N1cTougal.
Yes" says Tom, chcerfully.
and then you said-do you remem-
Der what you said?"
No, Mac; but wasn't at your side
when VIC got into the next coach q Sec
ond latcr?"
1--WE came back with two bral,emcn,"
McTougal remarked, continuing. lone
OF Them brakemen looked on top of the
car, an under it, an in it. lie stuck to
it that there WAS Il ventriloquist about,
but gave that idca up when he couldn't
find nobody"
I'VE flung those trunks right and
left in Il lively style" observed Pope;
but not Il thing did we discovcr-no
human living or dead thing-not a
place from which the noise came.
I'VE We're puzzled, You may believe,
and if the search had stopped there The
road might have warehouscd that
coach, for no railroad man would have
Travelled in Il car that was haunted.
But the end came. While we were
looking into each others faces. and
frightened in being blocked in that sort
Of way the voice spoke again. II said
very distinctly: Let me out! lam dy.
ing-dy ing""
'lt Was under my arm the voice
was" Sandy exclaimed, lin big trunk
that had come from camp-mceting.
sung ont for Jake to run for a doctor if
there was one on the train an Tom
an me put that trunk on the floor as
gently us if twas glass.
"'Twas light enough. We thought
the poor thing must be almost a slicl-
eton. l got hold OF the slcdgc hammer.
Keep up your courage, ma am shout.
ed, an we'll have you out in Il jffy.'"
You should see Sandy at that mo-
ment, said Pope, enthusiastically. He
looked like {; hero, every inch OF him.
He gave that hammer four sweeping
swings. Crash! crash! Rip! tear! OF
came the top, and it was flung clean
across the car. A pile of light, neecy
stuff followed.
"a dozen faces looked anSiously IN.
to that trunk, expecting to see the
body of T. dying or dead woman. Sandy
seemed beside himself with anxiety.
1--WE crowded around the trunk and
the doctor l.nelt down beside it.
Gle pulled out lot of rags very
carefully, run his arms down on a
prospecting tour, lifted up great wad
of cotton took good long look
under it, rose to his feet and began to
curse everybody, and call 'cm pack
of fools. Then he changed his tune
and began to laugh.
81 asked him 4 little angrily what he
was making such fuss about, and il
he proposed to take out the body.
Body! body! ha, ha, ha, ha! See
here, gentlemen and he tossed out The
cotton from the trunk, showing q
funny-looking machine at the bottom.
This is Stringfellow's phonograpb
that he's had down to camp meeting,
the doctor said. He took one and
rugged it up SO as to go by cIockwork.
The shaking of the car set it in mo-
tion.
"'Its been repeating, parrot like,
only what has been told to it by the
saints and sinners. Very simple, you
see. ! won't charge you anything for
my visit, conductor. Good night and
off he went
Sandy, our friends here want to
know how that dream of yours over
that trunk ended"
"Oh! they do, do they? Wal, gentle.
men, had to pay the cost of that
trunk, an trunks cost. 1t took a
months salary to do it, which isn't
complimentary to the road.