The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-07-12
HUNTERS SEE A SPOOK.
Murdered Girls Ghost HauntS the
Mississippi River.


Murdered and Thrown Into the
River-Specter Is Seen Rowing a
skiff-River Pilots Have Guided
Steamers Through a Strange Graft
Occupied by Female Figure.
From the Chicago Times.
Dallas City, ILL.,, July Fully twenty
wears have passed since Lizzie Clark, an
orphan with a heritage, disappeared from
A hotel in this town as completely as if
the earth had swallowed her up. In all
this western country there has never been
a stranger case than the disappearance of
poor Lizzie Clark and, too, there has never
been a greater ghost mystery than has
been and still is occasioned by the evi-
IDENTIFY disembodied spirit of the girl.
Dallas City ''straddles" the counties of
Hancock and Henderson. Two railroads
run through the place, and the majestic
Mississippi rolls by on the west. An isl
and cuts the town off from the main body
of the river. Burlington lies sixteen
miles north, historic Nauvoo only short
distance away, with Fort Madison and
Keokuk below.
The story of Lizzie Clark has been
county history. She was an orphan and
had some property and money A guar
dian had been appointed, and Lizzie, be-
ing ambitious to add to her little store,
set about to work in a hotel hard by the
rivers edge Through the dining-room
of this hotel runs the line between Han
cock and Henderson counties, so that
often guest reached from Hancock into
Henderson county when after butter. A
country swain and his lass. if seated op-
posite each other al this board are in
different counties. Many a man wanted
tor some offense in Hancock county has
SIT at this table in Henderson county and
grinned at the sheriff of Hancock county.
Uncle Bill Scott, formerly state senator,
kept this hosiery for long time, but he
was not the boniface when Lizzie Clark
disappeared.
FIRST APPEARANCE OF THE GHOST.
1t was one afternoon about twenty
wears ago that Lizzie Clark, who had
been washing dishes in the kitchen,
stepped out into the yard of the hotel.
She was seen to leave the kitchen by sew
eral people working around the house,
who paid no attention to the girl. But
that was the last ever seen of Lizzie
Clark Those who saw her step out into
the yard heard no scream, no stified
moan, no struggling But there are peo-
pie yet living who believe that the girl
was suddenly seized. strangled, concealed
into the dark river. Be that as it may,
the murderers, if. they remained in the
same locality long. have been amply tor
mented since 1t is said that the murder
ers did not leave the locality for some
time thereafter. And yet, again, others
say the girl was never murdered, but
drowned herself and that her ghost is
not one of murdered persons, but one
of a suicide, All one can gain from the
different stories and theories is that the
girl was dealt with foully in some manner
and that her ghost still hauntS the To-
cality. OF course every effort was made
to ferret out the mystery. Detectives
hunted high and low, money was spent to
no purpose, and finally the guardian of
the girls estate turned her money and
property over to the county authorities,
in whose hands it remains to this day,
because there is no kith or kin to claim it,
The girls ghost was first seen in De-
cember. 1887 when party of duck hun
tiers were returning to Dallas City from
the islands. An excursion steamer had
become disabled late in the season and
was lying on the bank Of the island across
the bay. She was in rather bad fix; il
was expected to leave her there during
the winter. AS the hunters neared the
craft form in white was seen to run out
upon the upper deck. 1t was young girls
figure and she was evidently being pur-
sued for from across the water came
screams and then the following words;
Leave me alone, leave me alone, or l will
drown myselfp With that the spector
flung itself into the river. There was
splash and the cold water closed over the
white body. Several times during that
winter the ghost of Lizzie Clark was
seen at night and at early candle light
around the disabled steamer. When the
steamer was taken away the next spring
workmen and steamboatmen heard pitt
full screams from the windows on shore
as the boat moved away The spirit did
not leave the island, and it is believed
now that she was buried on the island
after the murder.
ENCOUNTERS A GHOsTLY CRAFT.
OF later years, however. the girls
ghost has been seen in skiff at night
and it was only few evenings ago Jnat
one of the St. Louis and St. Paul fast
steamers ran into the spectral thing. The
pilot did not see the ghostly craft until
too late. He says he saw boat of white
tnat looked more like floating fleece than
anything else. In the boat was a young
girl in white raiment, but there were
cIotS OF blood on the white dress. she
was rowing swiftly. When the prov of
the steamer struck this frail craft it cut
through 1T like mist. The ghOstly Occu-
pant only laughed a sort of Uncanny
laugh, half scream, and when we had
passed saw the spectral craft dancing
on the waves behind l doubt if an or
binary skiff could have lived in the waves
OF our steamer, right under the paddles.
mus spake the pilot and he is man OF
few words and sterling integrity.
Have you seen Lizzie Clarks boat2" is
now the question that goes from one
mouth to another during the summer sea-
son. The question is not asked so often
IN winter, from the fact that the poor
girls spirit does not seem to roam so
much. Hunters haYe come into Dallas
shaking with fright and calling for a
Dram to brace their nerves. saying that
while coming down from the Islands
ABOVE on the ice they had met Lizzie Clark
walk rapidly toward them. She always
wears that white dress, and the blood
stains on the neck are plain. The girl
eyes are always staring wide open, as if
she were being suffocated. Her spirit
mas been known to step out from behind
clump of dead trees at the head of the
Island and face passers-by. She will give
Them terrible look and then scream
Plteously. In an instant more the spirit
Il mas disappeared.
Those who have seen the girl in her
4 spectral skiff say that she seems to be
rowing as if some murderer was after
Her. She bends 10 the oars vigorously,
ana II boat appears in sight she makes