Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1901-11-25
THE DAILY
SHORT STORY.
His Own Ghost.
BY BARRY PAIN.


"Well," he said. continuing his story
of his experience in the haunted room,
''in the middle of the night woke sud
denly. The bolts which 1 had fastened
We're creaklng back again. Then the
catch of the door went with a click,
and heard heavy steps enter the room.
My hand was already on the switch,
and in an instant 1 had the whole room
flooded with the electric light. There
was no one to be seen. The room look
ed Just as it had done when l switched
off the light on getting into bed, with
this exception-the door was standing
wide open and the bolts which l had
pushed to had been pushed back again.
Mind, when l fastened these bolts l
had previously assured myself by a
careful examination from floor to cell
ing that there was no one in the room
but myself, and before that 1 had ex-
amined the walls OF the room with the
aid OF n practical builder. l offer no
explanation. Nobody can. 1 simply
state facts
ITO the best of your knowledge and
belief" added the stolid man.
"Of course" said the curate. Per
haps so distinguished u man of science
can help us to a solution" There was
q shade of irony in his voice.
I'VE needn't use so big a word as
science" said the doctor.
1.-The spirit was on the outside, and
the bolts were on the inside. Ii could
not enter until the door was unbolted
and opened. Then how did it get
through TO draw back the bolts?'
well. I've only TO say that the spirit
could pass through the closed door"
I'm that case why did it draw back
the bolts and open the door,
The curate paused Il moment.
''If it were not a supernatural power
that drew back the bolts, who was it?'
lit was you yourself"
WHAT the curate exclaimed. Re
ally this is too preposterous. Perhaps
you will tell rs exactly how the thing
happened. You were not there. but
don't let that hinder YOU
Il won't" said the doctor good tenn
percdly. But let me first of all point
out that i'm sleep and I'm states ap-
oachinG sleep we lose all right con-
ception of time. \ lazy man sets an
alarm at g o'clock. intending to he up
at that time The alarm goes off and
more or less fully wakes him. He de-
cides that he will get up in 4 couple Of
minutes. He seems to himself to have
just begun to doZe OFF. and then, with
a sudden squirt OF energy. he jumps out
OF bed. The sound of the alarm is still
fresh in his ears. but when he comes to
look at the clock he finds that it is not
u o'clock, but s. In state of sleep he
has misjudged the two minutes and
finds that they have become two hours.
Something similar to that is n not I'M
common experience with most men.
Now, il / may say so. you are of
nervous temperament, and you had
taken this investigation very seriously
and earnestly. In somnambulistic
state you got out of bed, unfastencd
the bolts and opened the door. You
then returned to bed. When you awoke
suddenly, the sound of the creaking
bolts seemed so recent to you that you
assigned that as the cause Of your
waking. Possibly an hour had elapsed,
but I'm sleep one does not judge time
accurately. OF course you had and still
have no recollection of unfastening the
door. That is what one would expect.
You switched on the light, and you
found things just as you had left them.
the bolts drawn back and the door
opened"
But the heavy steps-how do you
explain them?"
'You were barely awake, and your
mind was in a state of expectant at
tention. Many men find it difficult to
locate sounds and classify them accu-
rately, even when they are wide
awake, and there is no preconceived
idea to pervert their judgment. You
heard something probably-the creak-
ing of a wicker chair or the tapping
of the blind at an open window-and
your mind converted it into the sound
of footsteps"
But 1 don't walk in my sleep"
you sleep in a room alone?"
Always"
Then you are not In n position to
speak as to that. I'm sorry If it an
noys you at all. but there can be no
reasonable doubt that you were your
own ghost. But IL you prefer to be-
lieve that a ghost walked straight
through a solid door shut and drew
back the bolts In order that he might
return and walk through it opened
you can, you know. Sorry can't join
you"
The curate muttered that there were
many things which we could not ex-
pect to understand and left the room.
BLACK and White.
An Eloquent Advocate.