The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1895-04-30
A NAVAL YARN


ther was retired army officer of some
means, and they were travelling for pleas
ure. They took fancy to Tien-tsin and
decided to settle there for awhile. Looking
about for house, they were much attract
ed by one just outside the city, which
stood near the waters edge and command
ed beautiful view of the harbor. Their
friends, and more especially their Chinese
servants, cried out aghast, ttThey must
not think of such a thing" The house
was haunted. No one had lived in it fol
years. 1t was as much as ones life was
worth even to pass it after nightfa1l. The
Englishmen, however, were not to be
frightened off by any such silly stories
They rented the house and moved in.
For several months all went well Both
father and son were delighted with the
place and finally decided to buy it. One
evening the son, who had been dining in
town, came home quite late. AS he opened
the front door he heard what seemed to be
a scufae in his fathers room. Before he
could reach the top of the stairs a soul
piercing shrek rose high above the con.
fused din. Then all was silent. Rushing
into his fathers room, the young man
found him lying on the floor in pool OF
blood. There was no one else in the room,
nor was there any apparent way for any
one to have left it without passing him in
the hall. A knife was sticking in the
breast of the wounded man, wicked
looking Malay knife, with a curiously
carved handle. The young man stepped
into the hall to call the servants to his IA
theirs assistance When he stepped back
into the room a moment later, the knife
had Disappeared
The wounded man never rallied. He
lived several hours, but was not able &c
speak. His face was distorted by an ex.
preston of unutterable terror, and he died
with the look still in his eyes.
The associations of the place. were too
painful for his son to remain there longer
He offered large reward for the discovery
of his fathers murderer and left minute
description of the knife that had SO mys-
terious1y disappeared. Then he packed up
his belongings and returned to England.
The house stood vacant, of course, more
dreaded than ever.
Months passed, perhaps years. I do not
know, but after certain lapse of time one
of our men-of- war visited the harbor Of
Tien-tsin. Several of the officers were
ashore one night dining with party OF
foreign residents at the club Some one
told the story of the haunted house and
the murdered EngliShman, adding that
the natives said that the murder was re-
enacted every night at the same hour. Oul
officers expressed lively interest in the
narrative.
''Lets visit the house some night" one
of them suggested, land see the show"
"Why not tonight?'' exclaimed a young
Dane whom we will agree to call A. eve
have plenty of time, and the steward OF
the club has the keys of the house. The
EngIishman left them with him when he
went away"
The men were all young and keen fol-
adventure. Perhaps the excellent club
punch had made them even drawer than
usual. Anyhow the suggestion was re-
ceived with accIamations. The keys were
called for. Some one produced lantern.
The rest filed their pockets with matches
and candle ends. When they were ready
to start they looked about for A. He was
nowhere to be found. The party set forth
without him. One Of our officers could
not refrain from expressing some amuse-
ment that the organizer of the adventure
should prove the only one afraid to carry
it through.
GA afraid9'' cried one of the club mem
bers. "You don't know him. He doesn't
know what fear means. I'll wager he's up
to some deviltry at this moment. Proba-
bly, he has gone on ahead to put on a pill
lowcase and play ghost for u.s.
They had to hurry to reach the house at
the intended hour.
''There it is, - some one said at last, and
Lieutenant B., who carried the lantern,
looked at his watch by its light and an
nounced that they had just three minutes
to spare. The door was unlocked with
difficulty, for the fastenings had grown
rusty from disuse.
''By Georger' cried the first man who
stepped into the hall, ''there's something
going on up stairs. P"
cts A. said his friend, laughing,
and they all started up stairs, Mr.. B.
walking ahead with the lantern.
A cry of agonized despair startled the
smiles from their lips and quickened their
| steps to a run. B. pushed open the door
of the room from which the sounds had
come. AS he did so, and before he could
see anything, the lantern was dashed from
his hand and the door slammed behind
him. He stood still in the darkness for
few awful, terror stricken seconds. Then
he took step forward and tripped over
something on the floor. He stopped over,
and his hand encountered pool of warm,
oozing liquid. 1t flashed on his mind that
/ this was blood and that the thing he had
stumbled over was a mans body. His
! heart almost stopped beating. He was
/ afraid to move, afraid to breathe. The in
stants during which his friends in the hall
/ were striking light and opening the door
seemed an eternity. Lieutenant D. is now
! the gray haired father of a family, but he
! says the horror of that moment is as fresh
as though it had all happened yesterday.
i At last the door was opened. The young
men crowded IN with their candles. There
at their feet lay poor A. with the Malay
knife in his heart.
Explanations are always an anticlimax.
But the explanation of the foregoing trag-
edy is too curious to omit, though its pre-
tensions to being ghost story are thereby
I destroyed. After this second murder the
authorities were aroused to a display of
tardy activity. The house was carefully
searched, and the discovery made that the
walls were double containing secret doors,
staircases and storage chambers. One Of
these secret doors accounted for the muir
derer's escape and his return to get the
knife, which he evidently felt would be a
dangerous clew. In the secret chambers
were found a considerable supply of arms
and large quantity of valuables of the
most varied description. 1t was evident
that the place had been used as a refuge
and storehous5 by Chinese pirates its prox-
unity to the water making it the more con-