The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1895-02-13
IN THEIR OWN TRAP.

1 g. UElftNA BpAliif IL ~ ANNAAAA~N
ON a lower branch of big sycamore
tree ''they are getting good deal too
uppish. To-day Christina told me that
the girls she knew were far Drawer than
the boys"
"Oh!we'H soon see to that, " decided
Bob.
"What shall we do, thought" ques-
toned Ted.
There was silence for some minutes,
while the sun blazed down, and the
four boys gave themselves up to think
ing.
"a ghost" suggested Hugh at
length.
ooh, YES; ghost would be fine,
! chuckled the others. AT any rate, We
| can try that first.
Every year Uncle Theophilus Pix
ington invited his nephews and nieces To
stay with him at his country house for
a month. Eight OF them there were
four boys and four girls, brothers and
/ sisters and cousins. IL was "A splendid
place to stay at and when Hugh sug-
/ geSted ghosts a. the best way 10 scare
/ '.the girls" the others felt he was right,
! for IL was the very hOuse where ghost
might be expected, and 1.-THE girls
would never doubt it, being a real one
For an hour the boys strobe about the
grounds suggesting plans and places,
sounds and signs, for the ghost which
was to convince the girls that they were
/ but towards after ali. At length, -
they went through the hall on their way
to tea in the diniug-room, . brilliant
idea struck Hugh.
"WcH have four ghostsr' heexeiaim-
eli ..wc'H each be = ghcst."
cone Is more than We've clothes or
room for, snapped John, who was hun
CRY, and rather tired of planning; ''how-
ever can we manage four?'
Easily enough returned Hugh.
There's the armor-just the very
thing-wc'II each get behind a suit. The
girls are sure To come chattering secrets
! here in the evening, and Wen scare
: them half out Of their lives
That's a good idea, - agreed Bob; Il
vote We do i.
Until tine light faded the boys went
about in state of forced quietness,
pretending to be occupied a. usual, yet
| longing Cor the time topass. At length,
when evening came, and the grown
ups" were settled in the drIwing-room,
the four plotters left pretended amuse-
ments and erept away to the dim hall.
1T Is awfully ghOstly,' whispered
Hugh II shouldn't b. 4 bit surprised
to see a real one myself
They looked up at the suits Of armor
as he spoke, and they did look rather
uncanny.
"Hush - whispered Ted; | heard
something"
'.NensenSe." f" retor,eI Bob.
But they listened, and surely there
came a sound resembling breathing or
signing and it seemed quite near.
at can't be anything, really" whis-
pered John; do you ali hear it?''
.Yss, they returned; what can it
be?''
a cat, l expect" shuddered Ted /;
little beast -
"But Bob, whose eyes had been fixed
on the armOr. said suddenly, IL do be-
lieve he moved"
"Who?" they demanded.
zone Of the suits"
''Get out, you donkey, Everything
seems to move if you look long enough. y
Were buffers To 90 on like this, y
declared Hugh; ''the girls will come
in minute. Lets make haste and
get in our places"
II can't understond that noise,
though, persisted Ted. ''If were the
only one who heard it, it might be just
fancy; hut its odd we all hear the
same"
"Bosh - returned John; 'don't be a
donkey"
80 they tiptoed across the hall and
stepped up to the suits of armor, But
the place looked horribly ghostly.
Light, and life, and the cheerful draw
ing-roon seemed very far off, and that
queer sound went on in most uneom-
Portable manner.
SnIl,,,I,- a.. .t,.,- ',p,l tho fiernra.
there was another sOJnd, hollow and
louder Then pause
"Did you hear that22' shuddered Ted;
and each boy felt his heart thumpup in
his throat, and his hair stiffen on his
scalp.
Il helievc the place is haunted" de
clared Hugh.
Rubbish - said John again, though
he felt very faT from being brave. ''Get
into the aFm0r, unless you are towards;
the girls will be here directly"
With big effort each boy CROPPED bS-
hind his special warrior. The light was
gone, only tine moons rays fell ON tO the
floor. Then each erept closer and
stretched his hand before him to clutch
the cold armor, but to their horror each
at the same moment elutched some
thing soft and warm and terrible in
stead. IL moved under the grasp! il
swayed it struggled and with confus-
ell cries and shaking limbs the boys
started back i'm honest terror, and jump
ed quickly down again T. the floor.
Then there was a rush, a scuiiie, and
down jumped four other figures. IL was
an awful moment there in that shad-
Owy hail. Then, To their great relief,
T there came peals of laughter which they
knew we'll The ghosts were only "tho
girls" after all
Chow funny that you should have
thought of it tOor' gasped the girls
when their laughter had tired them;
1--WE thought we'd try to frighten you y
And the boys laughed with them at
the idea; but they never confessed hos
nearly the girls had succeeded