Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1897-12-03

last 1ulnt Streak OF Dawn cleaning
through the window treasured me in IA
measure. l got up and into my clothes
and went out of that house like one In h
dream.
How managed TO attend TO my work
that day don't know. hardly remem-
Der one incident of the 12 hours.
was overwhelmed with dreadful antici-
pations of events to transpire during
the coming night. The third night.
The third night was the additionally
fated night
Twas tempted to unbosom myself toa
friend and get him to go and sleep with
me, but was too much ashamed OF my
pusilanimousness Better suffer any
thing at the hands of u spook than have
myself the laughing stock of all my
friends,
This time was determined to see 1t
out. would sit up all night to watch
that clock and see with my own eyes
how it was managed and by what
means,
accordingly made arrangement for
a big fire to be kept up all night, sew
eral extra lights, something to eat and
drink, my pipe and plenty OF books
Then l shut my windows, dragged
down the shades SO that the light would
not be conspicuous from the outside,
and prepared myself for the ghostly on
slaught.
That should have lived to encounter
real ghost! | must have been born
under the necessarily peculiar circum-
stances qualifying me for supernatural
encounters. devoutly wished other
circumstances had been employed.
BY this time was alphabetically i'll.
could neither eat, drink nor smoke. l
could only think, and my mind was in a
perfect whirligig of confusion.
How the hours dragged, as hours will
that are unemployed. l almost thought
time loitered with malice aforethought.
When ones head is on the block they
say it is relief for the AK to fall. Ibe-
| lieve l could have anticipated and suf-
fered decapitation less disagreeably.
At ten o'clock wound and set by my
watch my precious alarm, and placed 1t
in its customary place upon The mantei'
1t was capricious little affair at best,
and lately had to be laid upon its back
in order to keep proper time-in fact,
to run at all; SO turned it on its back
as usual, and sat down to watchit The
rain had cleared up, but the wind con-
tinued to howl around in u hideously
unpleasant manner. / don't think /
have ever heard wind blow as it did
upon that particular night. Imagined
it to be thick with inky devils that bel
lowed and groaned and laughed and
shrieked all in breath. The branches
of sycamore tree scraping against the
roof made my flesh creep, while the
wind surging through the wild orange
trees created queer whistling sound
which / never heard before or since.
Oh, the interminable time Isat there,
sick at heart, worn out in mind and
body watching and waiting for-l knew
| UOU WHdO-Duch AuuSiooho bhOoe W
come and take it out of me. A sweet
state l had worked myself into, truly.
How would it end? What would he do
to me? Fall upon and belabor me?
A small matter. / was not afraid of
what any human could do to me; l
could yield up my life with as much
grace as the next man; but a ghost,
what means would he employ? Icould
not anticipate it, ! would have to see
it, have to experience 1t.
l glanced up at the little clock, and
If knife had been plunged into my
heart the emotion could not have been
otherwise than it was when saw that
it had moved! The clock had moved
Acertain ornamental point which had
noted matched with certain figure in
the mantel lambrequin upon which
had rested my eyes had Enthusiastically
moved. broke into cold sweat. My
throat hurt me horribly, and felt my
hair rise upon my head. Twas power
less to change the position of a finger
1t had moved! There was no chance
for doubt. 1t was a fact.
l gazed spellbound, all my senses alb
sorbed into that of seeing. For hours
, and hours / sat in state of half con
seriousness watching the clock move
Slowly, slowly, to the left, almost too
slowly to be perceptible, until it hat
|, turned entirely round. Then slowly
, slowly, round again. Round and round
again andagain, winding my poor braiI
, into very Gordian knot, while the SLOW
: hours dragged by, and the fire burn
, lower and lower and went out; and tn,
| wind subsidized, and the cold crept in ant
numbed my corresponding body. Thei
: all at once I saw the clock tip over tn,
edge Of the mantel, and come crashin,
to my feet. had just strength enough
y left to examine the position Of tn
: hands. Twenty minutes after thre
: o'clock! l fell back into my chair in
: deep swoon.
/ had spell of serious sickness afte
that. think was in condition TO
t it anyway, and that nights vigi
e brought it to a climax. l was i'll TO
? several weeks. But was not GONZALES
1 cent many days before I solved tn
/ clock mystery. got the idea one da
n while lying upon my bed, and later
q putting it to the test, found / wa
9 right in my calculation. BY placin
j the clock upon its back, the thumb
: piece (for winding) was brought in cor
!. tact with the mantel shelf, and, natura
Y ly, the clock unwinding turned ;sself t.
Y ward the left; round and round, eac
p time coming little nearer the edg
d until it toppled over.
t And being set every night at te
n o'clock, and put in the same place,
t took just five hours and twenty mil
| ufac m xunrly ifcaIf oM {oy,oo Jaoo,