Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1897-02-04
Saint Maru's Beacon
THR OLD HARDY HOUSE.
A True GHosr STORY.

anu unOLclloc as VIC hCEaV pVhsSA
drawled out in his lazy voice:
Admission =
ooh, am so tired ? Bess said in
such faint voice and with such a
white, tired face that hurried her
into the fly waiting at the dingy
little station.
TO the old Hardy House, /
ordered briefly to the driver as he
closed the door, and even in the
gathering dusk Loo and | noticed
his start of surprise.
depend upon it, the house is
haunted, cried imaginative Loo !;
'the man looked as il he had seen
a ghost
gave her warning glance, but
Bess had not needed f.; indeed, she
seemed to have fallen into doze
which lasted until she was lifted
out and carried into the cottage in
the strong arms Of Anne Duty.
Dismissing the man, Loo and !
fingered outside while trying to
make out something of our novel
surroundings, but beyond the low,
rambling old house we could see
nothing, not even a village light, so
closely were We shut in by great
trees.
Loo shivered lightly.
How dark and weird it looks
she whispered, running into the
brightly lighted front room, where
Anne Duty, having deposited Bess
on the brood, low louge, was al
ready occupied in making tea.
Il wish DIR. Gross had telegraph
ed old DR.. Deering to meet us at
the station it would have been a
little less lonesome grumbled Loo
later on, when Bess had been left
comfortably asleep in the wide,
low-ceiled room on the ground floor
the only one that had been gotten
ready, Anne explained.
Il think DIR. Deering has been
put to enough trouble for US, rent
ing the house and all that was
beginning to demonstrate, when
Anne Duty coming in interrupted
me.
Miss Katherine she began in
what Loo calls her graveyard voice,
Miss Katherine, | don't want that
what / am going to say should
brighten you, but can't noways
reconcile it to my conscience not to
tell you. A ghost walks this old
rattle.trap of a house.
| could not help laughing, her
tone was so sepulchral, but she went
on without noticing my levity,
while Loo listened with wide eyes.
THE man that brought me out
with the boxes this morning said
he had seen it, and you couldn't
hire him to come near the place
after dark that lots Of folks out
late o'dark stormy nights had seen
blue lights burning in the room up
stairs and he said he wasn't the
only one that had seen a white fig
ure fitting through the dark hall,
though nobody has lived in the
house since two years ago, wicked
swearing young fellow died here,
crying out at the last that ne had
sold his soul to the devil for drink,
and it was burning him up.
And Miss Katherine, honey,
would you believe it, every blessed
bit Of furniture that had been sent
on ahead was piled up out there on
the porch. just as they dumped it
down, moi stick put in out of the
weather, and a blessed thing it
hasn't rained.'
Anne paused at last for breath.
Loo looked fearfully around the
cheerful but rather dilapidated lit
tie room. and moving her chair
near mine, she said in low tone as
il afraid of the ghosts overhearing
her:
Il can't imagine what induced
old DR.. Deering to send US to this
horrid old haunted house, anyway.
He might have known
Loo | interrupted stcrnly, for
her voice was beginning to tremble
aud have all a mans horror of
Mysteries, you know we'll enough
DR.. Deering has been kindness it
self. What claim have we upon
him, ] should like to know, except
that we are friends and patients of
cd DIR. Gross? And you as we'll as
l, saw the letter in which lie de-
s,.rihed this old bausa 81 .;l a: