The Appeal., 1900-02-24
GARFIELD'S GHOST HUNT.

ter Of what he saw, or thought he saw.
before him. He said to himself as he
stood there that it must be that he only
thought he saw it. The solid foundation
OF hard sense on which his practical mind
was reared told him that it must be that
he only thought he saw what was before
him. He closed his eyes and rubbed them
hard to brush the hallucination away
But when he opened them again there
was the bright vision still smiling at
him, but with both her hands now busy
weaving a curious filmy lace which rolled
slowly to her feet in sort of feecy
spray which dimmed and melted out of
sight. e--<:a r al. 80 -.s-.-=
Again he started forward and again the
warning finger went up and the lace
weaving stopped. And he noticed that
as the busy hands ceased their work the
little cascade of lace melted away faster
and with it the vision itself grew DINNER.
When he stopped the hands flew back to
the ghostly lace and the vision shone
out stronger and clearer until the very
living presence Of the beautiful girl who
was dead was before him.
Now when a solid manufacturer of pig
iron begins telling stories like this to his
friends in the trade, it is quite easy to
guess what those friends will say, or
at all events, think. They thought it in
this case and said it, but said it only in
pity for grief that had bred such hal
lueinations. But the strange narrative
reached other and more sympathetic ears
and came at last to Mr.. Smalley who
was greatly interested in it. To all the
quacks and sham mediums throughout
the country it came as a trumpet to a
war horse. They rallied in battalions
and phalanxes. The combination was per-
fect-a man Of great wealth with his
mind wide open for manifestations.
And, of course, the manifestations came
Every night there were seances in the
Astoria house. Mr.. smalley was present
at nearly all Of them for several weeks
There was that in the story of the beau
tiful specter with her mysterious lace
weaving which appealed. strongly to his
imagination. He was a writer of much
clearness and grace, Mr.. Smalley, with
very conspdcuously the gift of throwing
about a story that he told an atmosphere
of disinterested reserve which was very
convincing.
He wrote column after column in his
New York paper concerning the events
at the Astoria house-each story verv
striking in it's minute simplicity of de-
tail and quite like chapter out of
"SDirite" in the delicate beauty of the
manifestations. The writer said ne saw
with eyes that were distinctly skeptical.
1t was reported that Mr.. Smalley became
convinced then and there of the truth of
much that sDiritualists assert and that
the faith there born clung to him for
gsss4
= But, however that may be, it will be
guessed readily that he did not fail to
talk with Gen. Garfield on the subject.
Gen. Garfield had then become President
Garfield, but the great responsibilities of
his office had in no way diminished his
interest in the topic he and his friend,
Mr.. Smalley, had so often discussed. lie
president had been greatly impressed by
Mr.. Smalley's printed stories of the
strange doings in the Astoria house and
was SILL mere moved by Mr.. Smallev's
verbal accounts of them. He expressed
strong desire to see something of them
with his own eyes, but how could it be
done? It would never do for the president
of the United States to go openly to a
spiritual seance. All the ghost rappers
and table wabblers in the country would
be making capital Of it, to say nothing
of political opponents. Obviously, it
could never be done.
But Mr.. Smalley did not agree with this
view of the president. He thought it could
be done, and he undertook to arrange to
do it. It had now got we'll on to June.
The president was going in few weeks
to the Williams college commencement.
"Go there" said Mr.. Smalley, "and on
your way back to Washington stop over
night in New York. You will get away
to Astoria in the evening, stay there an
hour and then get back to your hotel.
And nobody will be the wiser, for there
will be absolute discretion on the part Of
everybody who is in the secret at the As
toria house."
SO 1T was all arranged that this should
be done. A particular medium of much
fame was engaged for the evening, and
the iron manufacturer made all plans to
receive his distinguished guest. The pres
1dent himself was looking forward to the
adventure with much eagerness. He
started for Williams college, got as far
as the railroad station in Washington,
Guiteau's shot rang out, and all the world
knows the rest. 49,.
AS for the haunted house in Astoria the
ghost still came and went there. It de-
generated from the beautiful vision first
seen by the unhappy father down through
all the hackneyed gamut of rappings ana
materializations Of Napoleon, Shakespeare
and the rest, with, of course, the MUIR
dered president star figure in the ghost
ly group. The ironmonger lived with un-
shaken faith through it all for many
years, and died consoled witt the belief
chat he had long been in constant COM
munion with his beloved dead he was now
going to join forever.-4,ew York Sun.