Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1893-03-04
nEARp 4 PHANTOM.
4 Coach That Regularly Drives Up -
tine Door az nm Irish Msnsion and Zee
There's No Coach There.

Some years ago l received and ac.
cepted an invitation 10 spend few
weeks with some friends at their resi-
dence, Mount Coote, County Limerick,
ireland.
arrived one evening just as that
function known AS afternoon tea" was
taking place. and was in the full en-
joyment OF q cup OF the beverage and
an accompaniment Of hot cakes when
heard carriage approaching. the
house at rapid rate. and finally drew
up at the front door.
Thinking that was in no condition
to meet strangers. for my hostess had
insisted on my sitting down TO tea In
my travelling suit, which was . rough
tweed. / said:
"Mrs. Rogers. IL you will permit me
TO escape before your visitors come In
/ would like TO go aud change"
"Pray, don't disturb YOURSELF she
answered, "that is only the phantom
COACH
"Thc phantom coacn," | repeated,
thinking either that had not heard
Alright or that she was joking.
LES. tnC Ao~
snre you that there is nothing there. .
"But," l s.nmmered. IL can hear the
horses paving the ground and champ
ing their bits" and. moreover, the
door bell had scarcely ceased 10 ring.
"Well," she said, "if you won't be-
| lieve me, go and look for yourself,
and, taking advantage Of her permis-
sion, for / was thoroughly mystitied
and equally incredulous, / went and
opened the front door.
Sure enough, as Mrs. Rogers had
/ told me, there was nothing TO be seen,
! and all the while the sounds OF jingling
! harness were distinctly heard.
closed the door and returned TO
J the parlor. My hostess, no doubt
/ amused at my startled expression,
asked me il ! was satisfied. Iadmit-
ted that in sense | was; that is, as
! far as the correctness OF her assertion
was concerned, but said:
Surely you don't believe in phan-
tom coach driving up TO your door?"
Believe IL? OF course do. Why,
every one in the neighborbood knows
all about it, and you see that the sery-
ants are so accustomed to the circum-
stances that they never even tronbls
/ to answer the door"
Shortly afterward her husband came
In, and, on being told of il, laughed
heartily at my discontinue, adding:
"Oh. don't let that worry you. You
will soon get accustomed to it,
soon did get accustomed to it, but
nevertheless the matter worried me
very considerably.
/ puzzled over it again and again,
and thought that had solved the mat.
ter by the theory of an echo, but in.
vestigation proved that no one for
miles around was possessed Of any.
thing more pretentious than one.
horse trap. for, large as some OF tie
estates were. none of their owners
could afford to keep anything better.
Moreover the fant af The door bell
being rung remained.
The same thing occurred al irregu.
lar intervals, but always at the same
time-between and 6p. m.-and so
real and unmistakable were the sounds
that. in spite OF previous dcm0nstra.
tions to the contrary, l could not per.
suade myself that a carriage was not
actually at the door. and would repeat
edly open 1t TO assure myself of the
fact, my eyes being always rewarded
with the same empty space and my
ears greeted with sounds which appar-
emily proceeded from nothing ut all.
In this story have quoted the act
ual name OF the house and locality
and, improbable as it may appear,
have exaggerated no single fact. but
stated the case exactly as it no doubt
occurs to this day.-St. Louis Globe