Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-08-21
WHAT WAS ITs

A True Story of a HnllOw Fen Night
In the City of Washington.
In one of the suburban graveyards Of
Washington there sleeps today a young
woman of twenty-five, who two years ago
was the life and light of a large circle Of
friends. She was engaged as a clerk In
one of the largest stores in town and was
as great a favorite with her employers and
her fellow clerks, as she was with patrons
of the house. Her closest friend was the
sister of a young fireman. whose home was
not far from LIE Droit Park, and this
chronicle deals with occurrences which
took place there. the sister being her
brothers housekeeper.
In October. 1895, the two friends deter
mined that they would celebrate Haiiow
Fen as 1t should be celebrated, by the
usual weird and ghostly proceedings, and
they met at the young firemans house to
carry out their purpose. BY 1! CLOCK
when they intended to call up the spirlts,
they were the only occupants OF the mouse
and they had begun to get nervous. HOW
ever, they did not propose to be frightened
out of their designs on the sD.r1ts, SO
going to the room which they had selected
for their incantations. they locked the
doors and fastened the windows and began.
Just what they did to call I'D the spirits
may be left to the knowledge OF those who
have tried it at Hallow Fen. but suffice 1t
results and in the midst of their work
they were startled by steps on the stairs
leading up to the door of the room IN
which they were AS the whole house be-
low stairs had been locked uD and there
was no noise of any kind previous to the
footballs on the stairs, this noise was the
more disturbing to them, but they 1eit sa1e
enough. for their own doors We're iockeo
and neighbors were near in case the IN
truGer proved to be mortar Oh eNi III
tent. ..
AS it was the young clerks fortune
which was being told, of course, she was
the center of attraction, and as the foot
steps approached the door, though the two
girls rather suspected that the fireman had
come back to Brighten them, they conun-
ued their call on the spirits as the manual
directed Then before they had thought
whether the footsteps had stopped at their
door or not, the door slowly swung open
and a coffin of full length appeared sitting
on end in the doorway, which immediately
began swaying in and out as II bowinP.
The lid was removed. showing the occupant
to be a dead man, whom neither OF the
young women knew Both saw 1t dis
tinctiy. and as suddenly as 1t appeared 1t
went out again. leaving the door locked as
II was in the beginning.
The effect upon the girl whose fortune
was being told was much more serious
that 1t was upon her friend, and while the
latter screamed. the former fell over In
dead faint. Some other HallOw Fen merry
makers not far away. heard the screams
and getting into the house found one girl
stretched on the floor as If dead and the
other in Mysteries. Explanations were
given after the young women had suftic-
iently recovered to be coherent. but from
the night of the mysterious appearance of
the coffin, with the dead man in it, who ap-
parently bore no relation, whatever to eth
er of the girls, the young clerk began to
fade as a flower might Her merry spirit
was subdued, the sparkle of her eye was
gone, her step was heavy. she never spoke
of the vision of that night, and before an
other Hallow Fen she had gone into the
shadowland, whence had come that which
had darkened her life.
a simple white slab of marble marks
the spot where size sleeps, and on 1t with
her name is the Inscription! And there
shall be no night there"