The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1899-04-14
THE GRAY TOWER.

In itself, ana there are some things
which make me unwilling to say all
n know, at least in print.
The Gray Tower was the southeast
corner turret of that stone building
which stood until quite recently on
Waycrley place, at the corner of Wash
ington square. 1t had a picturesque
effect as you walked down University
Mace from Union Square, and it was
almost the only romantic building in
New York.
Ny first chapter opens on a winters
day about 1890 or 1892, if l recollect
Rightly. 1t was sE0wing heavily as |
STEPPED into Broa,iWay, and l turned
rp my collar and stood a moment ir-
resolute The old horse cars tangled
Dv with ,-.eir bills mufIled in the
snowy storm; the tall newspaper offices
across City Hall square twinkled and
shone from their thousand windows,
and l was slowly turning toward the
Tark place station, when | saw what
1 guessed, even at that distance 10 be
d familiar figure cross the brilliant
HIGHT of one of the highest windows on
thc other side of the square. 1t was
collins. No one else moved about a
Foom in just that l,ping, darting man.
her | knew it W ; his office, and
knew he was the cry man | wanted
b see before dinner. | hurried over
b Park Row and was shot up to his
Door
"Hullo, old man; busy?"
NO no; come in
Collins sat under an electric light, a
pair of shears in Ills hand and a sea
of papers tossing round him. He part
ed the red hair back from his forehead
Fth his left hard. and looked up
quickly with that childish, gnome-like
smile and the piercing. gittering, blue
eye-light, that hiT friends knew so
well Suddenly he dropped the shears
and ran his long. conspicuous hand
huwidly through the stack Of old pa
pers he had been clipping.
n Look here, look here! This is what
fou ought to see! Where is that copy?"
What are you looking for?"
Something l found this afternoon.
4 S romance; whole story of forty
Years. ago; the most startling piece Of
nctiOn in real life And not a scare
bead to it! o, those fellows didn't
know how to make up "A paper!'
pumbling all the zine and rummag-
hg with that aggressive hand) Now,
! have lost it. Where in the name of
Beven-"
Then he swore feverishly in a high
MINOR cultural.
"Ah, here it is. Look at that, look
ut thatr'
His eyes were like glowing steely
Gmlets, and the perspiration started
u his temples in his excitement. 1t
mas nothing but an old scrap of I'M
hlcyable romance he had unearthed.
y had no possible use to him. But
q was always Undertook of EN-.
husiasm, and fired like a child at
mall things. Collins has no particular
nrt in this story, get | can never dis
spciate him from it. Its strange IN
&plainable quality has a certain kin
ahp with his hai'-canny personality.
80 that / never recall it without feeling
nS eyes burning into me with in
credulity and delight and defiance and
mockery, as he handed me that torn
Bsue of a New York journal of half
century ago.
AS he said, they made little display
Of startling matter i'll those days. and
pe story, as | relHember. was told in
pat brief, sober way which has since
Wcome almost extinct among news
pbper men
8bueIly. it was an account of a
Mlange discovery made by some work
nen who had been repairing one of
nc towers of the old building on
washington square. In making their
RhovationS they had come upon dis
uSed closet. whose door had been
qicked up and roughly plastered over.
W the closet floor, covered with i'm
pp0ble dust, clothed in her silk even
ng dress, lay the beautiful specter
q woman.
say specter, for it seems destruc-
uon mad come upon her so gently, so
Hftlvely, that her body was almost
unmarried, except FOR the dinginess of
Where she lay, or there had been some
une There are records of such ill.,
Aances, showing that dissolution is
~ always swift to follow death. But
whether the present case had been due
the sealing of the narrow room
uemical treatment Of her body and
garments after death, was all surmise.
~ there was the fact On the dusty
'Ror, in little apartment scarcely
:Afger than an ample bath. as if she
mo fallen in a faint, with one arm
Dread abroad and the other hand at
mr throat slept young beauty. arrest
" IN mid pleasure $50 she looked, and
Mid there in duress while the busy
nQlnd of life runibled in the streets
Glow. 1t must have been the very
Nthos and wistfulness of beauty-the
mage of that shadowy loveliness
PATCHED away from the midst of joy
aad gayety, so uniimely, and not ever
ahowed the common boon of oblivion
sNhere was she all this while, the radi
III spirit who had dwelt in that come
Y tenement? Had she herself, too
Ake her frail, inlestructible person
zen held in suspense somewhere
ae Their among the livirg nor the dead.
was white, wIiite silk and a mass
white lace, that she was dressed in
"a under the soilure of dust the pale
90 of her hair was shining and alive
1nt the only clew to her identity was
M small cambric handkerchief, In
PED in one cornPr \. ID.
hen had rea tho article Collin,
"a:
How's that?"
Fine"
Why don't yor Investigate it?
Investigate It? What is there to in.
'sz&gate? This is MI ancient history"
- ell, perhaps. Still, have an idea,
81 Know the building don't your
es, l have seen it. have neveI
IN it. answered.
PEW pnnd - Snid hn IMAM I Irnnru