The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-07-15
The Origin of the
Oesfchester Ghost Story
n Frightened Girl, Ovid imagination, and a 6Jhife
Spectre BY Pond

For over week hundreds of the resi-
dents of Westchester have spent their
evenings ghost hunting. Ever since
the night of June 26, when Bud Camp
bell, foreman's assistant on the estate
of the late Coils p. Huntington, met
a tall white lady," who disappeared
into the ground by the side of Penny
field pond, "the ghost" and the haunt
ed pool have been the chief topics in
the village.
Men by the score have ridden over
on wheels or trudged over afoot and
have lain in wait for the white lady,
some of them with the avoWed if I'M
gallant intention of putting a bullet
in her on sight. Perhaps this is why
the lady has not deigned to reappear.
There are those in the crowd in whom
skepticism is a leading trait, and these
are the ones who go armed for those
who really believe in the white lady
know that bullets would trouble her
not in the least, would pass through
her in fact as through so much mist.
OF course, were only the word of
Bud Campbell to vouch for the lady's
existence, she would have been long
ego relegated to the realms of imag-
ination, for even Bud now says, doubt
ingly, that possibly, possibly, you
know, l may have only thought saw
her." but there are others who are even
more insisted that she has walked
by the pool" There is Sergeant Ward,
of the Westchester police station,
whose testimony no one in PennyfieId
would dare to doubt; Bryan Gallagher,
lately returned from the Philippines;
Neil Gallagher, Bryan's father who
has been called the "truthfullest man
in Pennyfield."
Now let it be said that the ghost
really exists. She wasslaid by Visi-
tor, who, however, did not hunt her
with gun. He went up to her stamp
ing, or rather rising, ground and, aft
er several hours weird detective work
and with the help of the Westchester
police, he ran her to cover. 1t was an
interesting task, which solved a mys-
terry of seventeen years standing and,
for the peace of the Pennyfieldian
mind, let it be said that this descrip-
ton of it will surely come to the eyes
and ears of the white lady, and that
in consequence she will never walk
again.
On the way to Westchester the peo-
pie in the cars were talking ghost, and
one of them asked the visitor if he had
seen it. When told that he was look
ing for it and meant to ask the police
about it two men took him aside sep
arately, and each whispered eau
tiously:
when you get to the station
4AOOoC, lOOh Jul LII 0SiHy wv
why" he replied, cautiously, what
is the matter with the sergeant 2"
"Oh," replied each, "he is the man
who sprung the flying fish story some
years ago.
But when pressed. for an explana-
ton neither would reply other than to
shake his head mysteriously. Sergeant
Ward, when asked about the ghost,
replied solemnly that he knew her
we'll In fact, he had made her ac-
quaintance when boy.
"Oh, yes" he Said, 1--WE seen her.
She's old in years now if she does not
grow older in appearance. I've de-
seribed her many a time to the people
hereabouts, and whenever they've seen
her she always answers the descrip-
ton. She always looks just as I tell
them she will-tall, seven feet high,
white, like a dressed up statue and
wearing big Gainsborough.
You are only allowed one look. II
you look twice she disappears. You