The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-05-08
A Vanished Town in Our
Carolina.
Continued from First Page.)

eyes beheld at every step some new
object of fright, which his STAINED
ina gination brought before him with
i peculiar vividness.
Thus he went for a short distance
without uttering. a sound until he
reached point at which he could
see the cabin toward which he start
ed, with bright light streaming
| from the window. He could then
contain himself no longer, and, with
a long restrained shout, he BURST into
a series of the most piteouS yells
which it was possible for him ito
utter.
The inmates of the cabin started to
| the door to ascertain the cause of
the sudden disturbance; and, as they
recognized the voice of the author
of the sounds, they wondered what, in
all possibility, could have produced
such an effect upon him. Their
cogitations for a moment, however,
were entirely stopped; for, with a
wild bound, he burst through the
| door, and threw himself into the arms
| of the mistress of the cabin with such
force, that both rolled over upon the
| floor. She recovered somewhat from
| this sudden. and not all pleasing sur
prise, and freed from the arms of her
| too affectionate assailant, regained
| her feet; but the boy lay on the floor
| with his face in his hands. grooming
piteousy and trembling from fear
and the reaction following the great
| excitement.
| The woman. with a sympathetic
tone, and yet one which betrayed the
f, highest curiosity, exclaimed, what
all Sam, any way! What in dis roun
wuld been Fostering i'm so! L boun
sumpun draidful done happen. What
be matter wild yer, Sam? Is yer
hu't?" But his efforts to answer were
| unaVailing.
The mystery as to the cause of such
direful effect upon the boy deepened;
and none of the company, for all
| their long experience in life and the
| knowledge of all ordinary happenings
| on the plantation, could find the
least thing to which to attribute the
matter.
| Presently he began to be more COM
posed; and, as the effects of his i'll
| fate seemed to wear off, he was at
| tackled with a volley of questions
| some of which he made the best eff
forts in his power to answer; but the
remembrance of what he had seen
and his rapid, disturbed respiration
seemed to entirely unfit him for any
| conversation.
At length, he tried to fully explain
the matter by saying: II war comm
down de part (gasp) down dere toad
| de ribber, and den-OO-e-e-e! O, my
soul,'-to give place to long-drawn
groan. Here his words stopped.
| "To be sho," interposed the good
] 'sauntie, "cose | know what been all
| i'm. He been seem some ub dem
| ole town folks down dere, Labin
| with a nod to her husband); to be
sho he is. Well, sab, no wonder he
| Skeered. / don blame i'm. Dem
things 'nough to do anybody dataway
OF what | heb is de trufe. Glad
| amt nuver seed IN. Don Wanter
| SEEM
Then, although it was already well
| known. she related the tale which she
| had often heard about the big town
| which stool where the river makes
around the point; how a great storm
arose one night in the early fall and
| swept the whole town away, destroy
| ing its Inhabitants with the exception
of two persons, who made miracul-
Gus escapes, one having floated on
| some timber until she was lodged in
| the top of a large tree, whence she
| was rescued. an 'twar de- sperits
| ub dem folks what libbed dere dat
Sam done see" she concluded.
AS the news Of the ghostly appari-
ton which had appeared to the boy
| spread over the plantation, feVeriSh
| excitement held the simple minds of
| the negroes, who, at all times strange
| " superstitious, grasped With pecu-
| liar qualification at every opportunity
| such as then offered to confirm their
| belief in supernatural appearances.
| Those learned in experiences of many
years attested tOthe reasonableneSS OF
| the idea that the ghostly appearance
was a fact; and to all the subject
| furnished an all-absorbing topic.
| The negroes ofthe plantation-and
there were only negroes dwelling
| there a It that time-Studiously avoided
| the spot thenceforward, and remained
| in the frmcSt conviction that "hantS
| still infested the old town Site This
| in spite of the fact that one of the
men of the place soon afterwards
affirmed that he could offer a full eX-
| PLANTATION of the matter on entirely
natural grounds.
He stated that, on the day of the
ghostly apparition, he had been hired
| by some strange men to assist in
| erecting a hosting device at the
point They bound him to secrecy,
and Informed him that their contriV-
| ance was made for the purpose of
| lifting a heavy metallic chest from
| the muddy bottom of the river. This
| they had learned was there, and was
supposed to contain Il treasure OF
| much value. having been used as the
| receptacle for the royal revenue from
| that section. Their boats were filled
| with ropes and pullcyS ana long poleS'
| the equipment suggesting an enter
prise of no inconSiderable moment
| He remained with them through
| the night in a labor assiduous and
earnest The men spoke only in an
| undertone, and they carefully avoided
| displaying, more than became neces-
Sary, the lanterns which they had
| with them. These were hidden by
overhanging cloth, but ever and anon
| 1,,II oil foil the faces of
| the men with weird effect. This the
laffrighted negro had seen.
| But the chest was not found. The
man did not know whether the search
had been repeated.
Others, however, have since sought
/ the hidden treasure: with what sue
scess it is not known. Meantime,