The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-01-20
A GHOST IN KHAKI.
SeasOnabIe Yarn from Correspond
ent i'm South Africa.

Letter in London Graphic.
L have just arrived in England from Cape
Town, and during my stay there l heard a
curious ghost story. which was. and still is,
causing considerable sensation in the place.
The general postoffice, a fine four-storied
building in Adderly street, the principal
thoroughfare, is haunted by a genuine
spook. Most people would consider that
South Africa is too modern and go-ahead
a locality for such old-fashioned vista
tions; but the following is the story, told
by one of the telephone operators, a mem
Der of the Cape civil service:
One night, about the end of October last,
he was sitting in front of his switchboard
the time was near midnight and very few
calls were being made at that hour-when
he was suddenly aroused by a knock. Re
ceiving no answer TO his inquiry of who's
there?'' he looked round and to his aston
ishment saw a strange figure bobbing up
and down on the other side of the glass
partition which separated his room from
another At first he fancied he was dream
ing, but on rubbing his eyes and looking
again, he perceived that the figure pos
sessed the head and body of a man, but
the lower limbs were lost in a sort of mist
The eyes were terrible to behold and
seemed to blaze with red and green fire.
At first the clerk was naturally very
much alarmed, but ne soon screwed up
the first words that came into his head,
which happened to be, What, ho!' The
ghost did not deign any reply, but, glid-
ing through the locked partition, advanced
toward the terrified man and then halted.
In sepulchral tones it now addressed him
with these words: Il want X (men-
the department.. The man was speeches.,
whereupon the apparition, seemingly dis
pleased at his silence, glided nearer and
glared angrily at him. a few minutes
below. met ii shivering individual with his
hair literally on end with fright, and with
difficulty recognized him as B, the tele-
phone clerk. BIS story was entirely dis
believed by the Waterman, but to reassure
him, and out of pity, for his fearful state
of mind, he went up with him to search for
the specter. Nothing, however, was to be
seen.
The next night the same thing happened
and this time the clerk 1e6 in terror from
the building. on the third night he refused
to go on duty without companion. This
was granted him, and the two went on to-
gether. Again the specter appeared, re-
peating his former requst. One of the
clerks thereupon seized a ruler and made a
frontal attack upon the supernatural Wis
itor, but 1t Immediately melted away
through the glass partition and disap-
peared.
A week later, about O'Clock in the even
ing, a Waterman on the first floor saw a
headless man walking about. He gave
chase, but it vanished the other had
done. On another occasion at midnight a
Waterman declares that he distinctly saw
a man dressed in khaki sitting at one of
the office tables. He spoke to him and
asked what he was doing there. The man
thereupon faded away as mysteriousy as
the others. A great many queer noises and
rappings are continually being heard, caus-
ing men to fight shy of night duty in the
postOf1ce, even at the risk of losing their
appointments.
A member of the Psychical Research So
ciety was taken through the building He
heard the noises, and said he would inter
view the spirit or spirits. He changed his
mind, however, the reason he gave being
that ii was a very angry and dangerous
spirit which he would not care to meet
His opinion did not succeed in cOnsolng
the night staff. who declare ii is the ghost
of who was killed during the con-
struction of the telephone department on
the day l left Cape Town thorough ex-
animation of the postoffice was contem-
plated