The herald., 1896-12-26
time he does not blind himself as to the


facts.
How can they be accounted for? 1t is
puerils to make the individual mind the
standard of the worlds knowledge, and
failing to understand a thing ascribe it
to the power of disembodied spirits.
BY the time the narration Of what hap
pened at the ghostly gathering had end
ed every one was nervously expectant.
Somebody offered to turn the lights up
but there was a chorus of voices raised
in opposition. The room, lit only by the
fire-gleams, was too deliciously spooky
to be disturbed.
Then some one told the well authen-
ticated story of the three warnings Civ
en- to Napoleon by the Red Man. the cir
cumstances of which are recorded bv
Rapp with great gusto. Another told
the story of a remarkable incident in
the life of Samuel Wilberforce. bishop of
Oxford. and later of Winchester, which
is not generally known and is worth re-
peatng. 1t is absolutely authentic and
the good bishop many times rehearsed
the story to his friends.
On a certain occasion he was guest
al a country house not far from London.
Entering the drawing room previous TO
dinner, on the evening of his arrival, he
noticed a priest sitting by the open fire
and taking no part in the general con-
versat;on. The bishop was surprised at
not being presented to. the priest ana
his astonishment was increased when,
some moments later, dinner being an
nounced, the guests retired, leaving the
priest at his place by the fire. The host
ess having assigned Bishop Wilberforce
the seat of honor at her right hand, as
soon as an opportunity of referring 10
the subject offered. he remarked: Il peg
your pardon, madame, but may inquire
who was the priest we LETT slttlng apart
in the drawing room?"
"Oh, YOU have seen him, then?' re-
piled the Lady. at Is not everyone who
has that privilege. ! cannot tell you
who he is or from whence he comes.
For many years this specter has haunted
the house and grounds-it has In fact,
been a tradition in the family. He seems
to do no harm. and although he appears
only occasionally, we have become ac-
customed to our friendly ghost"
How singular" remarked his Eord-
ship. But have you never addressed
your priestly specter?"
Indeed l have had no opportunity
nor the desire, for that matter" re-
marked the hostess.
May 1 take the liberty now?" in
quired the dignitary.
with all my heart, your lordship,"
replied the lady.
The bishop arose and, returning to
the drawing room, found the guest
where he had left him few moments
before. Without betraying any fear the
bishop said kindly:
who are you, my friend, and why
are you here?'
The ghost sighed deeply and mur-
INJURED as though to itself. "At last!"
Then, In a hollow voice, addressing the
bishop, it continued: II am the spirit
of a priest who left this world some
eighty years ago. and l am here to i'm
part to anyone who will receive it
secret which died with me. / could not
rest in my grave while a great wrong
was being done which it was in my
power to right. have been returning
all these years in the hope that some
one would address me, for it was not
given to me to be the first to speak.
All men have Stunned me until now,
and it is your mission to do my bidding.
l was a priest of the church and was
called to this house to receive the con-
fession Of dying man. He was the
sole possessor of a secret, the knowl-
edge of which would alter the entail
of this estate, and in his death the man
wished to repair the wrong he had
brought upon his kin. At his request
1 wrote down the confession, and when
he finished had barely time to admin
lister the sacrament of the church before
he expired. 1t was very important that
] should return to London that night
and in passing through the library to
, leave the house / concluded 1t would be
safer not to carry the paper on which
was written the confession away with
ms, but to place it in some secure spot
/ where / could obtain it the following
| day and deliver it to the person for
whom it was intended. Mounting the
steps to the bookshelves, 1 took out q
| copy Of Young's Night Thoughts which
was the first book upon the uppermost
shelf nearest the window, and inserting
! the paper between the leaves, I re-
placed the book and departed. A horse
was awaiting me at the door, but ere
we reached the entrance of the grounds
he took fright. was thrown and in
stantly killed. Thus died the secret
of my penitent with me. No one has
disturbed the book in all these years.
and no one has had the courage to ad-
! dress this messenger from the unknown.
| The paper will be found as I have stated,
and it now remains for you to correct
the injustice which has so long been
| upon this noble family. My mission is
over. and I can rest in peace"
AS the speech was over the ghost
! faded gradually and the bishop was left
gazing into space. Recovering himself,
Bishop Wilberforce went at once to the
library and found the book exactly as
indicated by the ghost. There was the
document, just as described, but now
faded and yellow. the secret of the
confession never became known to the
world. The good bishop regarded it as
| n confidence, and always ended the
story with the assurance that the priest
iy specter was never seen again.
1t is a fact, however, that shortly
after this extraordinary occurrence the
fine estate passed into possession of a
remote member of the family, who, un-
til then, had lived in obscurity.