The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-12-30
STORY OF Az ARTISTS WORK.
The Grewsome Speeter He Saw at a
Haunted House in Scotland.

44au4LEu 1D4SH In Scotland.
From the Detroit Free Press.
Among the pictures which George Mae
I Donald. n Scotch landscape painter. re-
7 Gently exhibited in Philadelphia. there was
one which appealed TO me particularly on
account OF the weirdness and desolate-
ness OF IT'S subject. II was the picture OF
a cherries cottage surrounded by a dense
and neglected folag4 and although the
theme was commonplace enough, there
was something inexpressibly grewsome
about the treatment which I tried in vain
TO account for Through the perspective
10 the right there was a clearing. in which
one could see the spire Of a village church
but this apparent nearness to civilization
did not tend TO mitigate the peculiar weird
ness which the picture exhaled. / shud-
dered invoiuntarily and felt a chill through
my blood as / gazed upon it. and turning
TO the artist, I remarked:
What striking subject YOU have chos-
en-. l DO not think 1 would care TO live
in that house"
why not2"
7 don't know, except that it awakens a
feeling of uneasinC-7s within me. | am not
believer in the Supernatural. but if there
is such thing as a haunted house should
imagine it looking like the one on The can
4 vas"
Macdonald glanced at his wife in a sig
/ nihcant manner.
Very strange" he said, but that is the
/ picture Of haunted house. ] painted it
from nature, shortly after having expert
/ enced within its walls the most extraor-
! binary incidents Of my life You are tho
/ second person on whom this picture has
had peculiar effect. 1 suppose you are
a medium"
( Not that know of. In fact. do not
TrTf a.. Il
tage located"
1T stood in Scotland near the romantic
/ shores of Loeb Lomond, but il was de-
stroyed by fire the night after l got
through painting it. II you care to lis
ten to the strange story connected with it,
I I will tell it as truthfully and conscien-
tiously as possible"
I signifed my desire to hear it and light
1 ing one of the artists cigars. l settled
down 10 2 recital of the following startling
facts
As they were corroborated by Mrs. Mac
Donald and later on verified by the maid
who had been present a. the time, have
no reason to doubt the truth of the narra-
tive.
ABOUT FIVE years ago." began the
/ painter, my wife, her maid and myself
travelled through Scotland. partly for
study, but principally in search OF health
I ! took some sketches of scenery, when
our way led us TO Loeb Lomond Most Of
that beautiful region has been done to
death by native artists and every inch
of ground is familiar to the tourists who
frequent the place. One day / CHANGED
across this cottage. 1t lay almost en-
tirely concealed in tangled thicket and
presented a dreary ana forlorn appear
ance. Many Of the window panes were
broken and the shutters dangleu from
rusty and broken hinges. The whole
house seemed in an advanced stage OF
decay. Though u1canny, there was some
3 thing picturesque about the place and ! at
once conceived an artists affection for
it, / brought my wife to the spot, and
she, too. took d fancy to II. on account
of its very oddness.
WHAT a delightful place for your stu
do, she said. Lets settle down here,
if the rent isn't too high. 1t will be a
lovely retreat for a month or two"
L readily seconded my wife's ideas and
sought out the proprietor with q view OF
renting the place. L discovered that the
owner, Win McClintock. was an old
school friend of mine, ana after the first
cordial greetings I told him the object of
my visit"
what! Live in the 'cocoonery?' he
cried, in surprise. why, my dear boy,
you would not remain in it four days.
The place is haunted. It's a wonder you
haven't heard of it in the village.
'Bahr l laughed, I don't believe in
such supersttious nonsense. How much
will you take for two months rent?'
you may have it year for nothing
if you VIII only live in it, he answered.
I'll fix it up in habitable condition.
would like TO settle once for all these
silly rumors which for the past five years
have kept the place tenantiess.'
We'll the house was painted, papered,
glazed and otherwise renovated, and a
week later we moved in. My wife had
laughed in amusement ct the idea of the
house being haunted. That night, how
. ever, she ceased her laughter, and looked
at the matter more seriously We had
scarcely gone to bed before We heard
the patter of feet.
This. 1 said. IS the conventional
thing in haunted houses.
Jane cried my wife, is that you
running across the room?'
90 No, ma am answered the maid, who
slept in the adjoining apartment ] hear
something scampering right above me,
but, bless you. I'm not afraid.
There were rappings and sundry noises.
ftful flashes of light and other strange
occurrences. bur Vse gradually grew ac-
customed to them and finally went to
sleep, concluding that rats or rabbits
were holding carnival within the old
place, and ascribiug the rest TO magma
ton.
Next night, however, things became
more serious There were various loud
loud explosion. apparently in the cellar
jumped out of bed. hastily dressed. and
grasping my revolver in one hand and a
lamp in the other, l proceeded, followed
by my vife and Jane, to inspect the house
from garnet to basement. | found moth
ing which could account for the distur-
bance. Doors were opened and closed
mysteriously, but there were no other
1 manifestations worth talking about that
night."
you forget said Mrs. Macdonald, in
terrupting her husband, that cur bed was
wheeled completely around While we
slept"
oh, yes. that's a fact" replied the ar
fist. when we awoke we faced the door
instead of the window, but that was a
mere detail.
AN next day we were out on the lake
skating, and in the evening we again
sought our cottage. The maid concluded
that she preferred company, so we made
up cot for her in our room. near the bed
At II o'clock, just as we were about 10 go
to sleep. the rappings began.
Suddenly my wife sat up in bed and