River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1894-02-01
.cATcHiNa a BURGLAR.
The Result of Listening to BIood-Curdling
Yarns Just Before bedtime.

Yarns just Before bedtime.
1t was a cold winters evening, Just
such one as nature gives for the
proper coloring 70 stories of the i'm
aginative character. Ghosts could be
seen dancing and holding high carni-
val on the glistening snowbanks out
side, and fairy forms AMI hobgoblins
seemed to burst forth at every crack
of the bright logs in the big open gate.
1t has been a long time since we four,
my two girl cousins, Minnie and'Flora,
my Uncle Fred. and myself, had been
together, and we were making the
most of the reunion.
AS we sat there in the parlor of the
big farm house, watching the glowing
logs, we fully bent ourselves to the
surroundings and our imaginations
had full sway. Uncle Fred related
long and blood-curdling yarns which
he had heard in the west, the girls
told some wonderful ghost stories,
and fairly let myself loose in anec-
dotes of crime which had come under
my observation as police reporter.
When at last we went to bed our
minds were keyed up to very high
pitch, and | noticed the girls used ex-
ira precautions that night in locking
the doors and windows. The fact that
a couple of suspicious-loolxing tramps
had been turned AWAY earlier in the
evening by my grandfather also tended
make us more than usually careful
The girls retired to V-room, just at
the head of the stairs, a great big
chamber, such as is always set aside as
the spare room, furnished with big
double bed, with four old-fashioned
high posts. My Uncle Fred and l slept
in the low-ceiling chamber in the other
wing of the house. A long, narrow
hall, winding around the top of the
open staircase, separated the two apart
ments.
Uncle Fred and / had been asleep
about two hours when we We're sud
denly awakened by the sound of a
struggle. For a moment we listened,
and then we heard a high soprano,
which we recognized as Flora's, scream
| ing;
"Ielp! helpl There's a man in the
room!''
At the same instance another voice,
which we knew at once was Minnie's.
gave another and even more unearth-
" yell of: "Help! He's killing me!'
| Fred was on his feet in an instant
and as he pulled his pistol out of the
drawer L grabbed the lamp. 1t only
! took us a minute to rush out in the
hall, but in that sixty seconds of space
we heard enough to convince us that
a most horrible sight would meet our
eyes.
| Around the hall we bounded and a
kick from Fred sent the door of the
girls room bounding inward. He
cooked the pistol and | showed in the
| light. AS the rays from the lamp
shone round the apartment we failed
to discern any traces of the man. A
glance at the bed told the story. Both
girls were sitting upright Flora had
tight grip on Minnie's bangs and Min
ME was clutehing Flora's hair with
both hands. Both were screaming at
the top of their voices and both were
sound asleep.
1t didn't take us long to solve the
mystery after getting the girls awake.
! Flora in her slum bers had dreamed OF
! burglars, and tossing about had grab
bed Minnie by the hair. As she did sc
she dreamed she had caught burglar
and yelled. Minnie, who was also
thinking of the ghost stories, instantly
surmised that a robber had her, and in
self-defense she had grabbed Flora 6
hair. Both had pulled for dear life
and had yelled at the same time.
When the matter was explain ed at
the breakfast table next morning
grandfather put an emphatic embargo
on any more ghost stories. Philadel-
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