Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1903-08-27
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Ghost
BY HENRY CLEVELAND WOOD.


nULCIAlER, are you not afraid
IL to trust those two men in a
boat together?" asked my wife, with
meaning laugh, as her niece waved
farewell from the front gallery.
Certainly not" answered Dulci-
mer, lightly.
We were eating the bread Of idle
ness at one of the smaller resorts on
the Florida coast. Closely attached
10 our little party were two others,
Horace Mum and David Barrister,
the former a young eastern broker,
the latter a successful orange grow
er, whom Dulcimer had met the sum
mer before. In Duleimer's treatment
Of each there seemed no Partially
shown.
l had an engagement with Musn
and Barrister for Christmas day to
take a small boat and fish, but with
the morning came a persistent head
ache, which compelled a change OF
plans. / gave the two a lunch that
had been prepared, and a small flask
of orange wine, which Barrister put
in his pocket, and they pulled Off
without me.
Along toward noon my wife was
reading from a popular novel. Dulei-
mer was busy with her embroidery,
and / was listening and doing al
ternately in a hammock, when hasty
footsteps suddenly claimed our at
tention, and almost before we recog-
nized the intruder a shadow fell
across the gallery. Horace Mum
stood in our midst, his garments
dripping with sea water, his face
strangely pale. his eyes filed with
somber tidings.
"The boat overturned-I swan
ashore" he faltered, and seemed al
most exhausted.
"Good Heavensi" I cried, springing
10 my feet. 'Where is Barrister."
Mum looked first at Dulcimer then
at me. She had risen, and stood with
ewes fixed on him ia a gaze of fasci-
mated terror. while She shook yio-
lently, al with a chill. In that mo-
ment I understood it was the other
one she loved best.
"Where is Barrister2" ! repeated.
81 tried TO save himl" Mum cried,
brokenly. "but he sank at once and
was carried out TO sea. | had hard
work to save myself, the waves"
The speaker suddenly swayed and fell
unconscious at Dulcimer's feet.
This tragic termination Of the days
outing was a very great shock to US
all. especially Duleimer, and on
Christmas night, beyond the mid
hour, she came TO my wife the pic
ture Of alright
She insisted that David Barrister
had appeared at her bedside, his gar
ments dripping with salt water, sea-
weed tangled in his hair, and a death
like pallor on his face. He carried
in his hand q small wicker flask that
had long been in the water, and held
il out TO her, but when she reached
forth to take it the form vanished.
I'VE must get Dulcimer away from
here" said my wife, concernedly, a
day or so later. "She needs change
of scene"
We went to st. Augustine. The
evening while sitting in the open
square OF the hotel listening 10 the
music, Dulcimer, who sat next TO me,
suddenly began to tremble, and as
| arose TO throw a wrap about her
shoulders, l caught sight of Horace
Mum coming through the archway
Of the entrance. Dulcimer's back
was toward it, and she had not
turned around
"Are you ill?" l asked of Duleimer,
in alarm.
1T is nothing" she answered, in
a low tone. Il am better now"
While she was speaking Horace
Mum presented himself He bad
only reached ST. Augustine that even
ing. As Dulcimer turned 70 speak to
him, saw that my wife was COW
ertly watching the effect of the
meeting.
"You must not be too hard on
Dulcimer." l ventured, when in the
privacy Of our room. 1T will take
some little time for the shock OF Bar
/ rister's death to wear of.
Dulcimer and Horace Mum did not
meet again until the following win
ter. and a second peculiar cireum-
stance attended this meeting.
While at the theater, some late ar
rivals came in at the beginning OF
the second act, and all at once Dulci-
mer began to tremble. l glanced
back Of me, and, as | had suspected,
saw Horace Mum just then appear
AZ the curtained entrance of the cor
ridor leading to the parquette.
Horace Mum remained in the city
about a fortnight, and in that time
We saw him frequently l think my
wife began to be very hopeful, when,
after Christmas night, her plans were
shattered by Munn's abrupt depar-
ture. and Dulcimer's fearful confess
sion that she had rejected him.
"You must not censure mel she
cried "for last night there came once
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