The log cabin Democrat. [volume] (Conway, Ark.) 1901-1982, 1908-07-30

a crank. He is entirely unlike the
common herd that eat by rule, swear
by note and sleep just because the
sun does. For br sakfast he always
has soup and ice cream, for his lunch
nuts, for dinner eggs on toast and
breakfast food When he swears he
does not yell out the old standard for
mula for profanity, but instead speaks
gently, beseechingly and originally, SO
that those who hear his voice and
not his words think he is blessing
them. AS for sleeping simply be-
cause it is night, he considers that
merely a fad He always gets to bed
at eight o'clock in the morning, rises
at six in the evening, and says he
feels better for it.
But about the house. 1t had once
been a vain place, with four lightning
rods, kennel, a summer kitchen and
a laundry, but the kennel had gone
to the dogs, and the rods were eaten
to the core with hungry rust, and the
kitchen and laundry had been boarded
up and padlocked so long that the
memory of man runneth Lot to the
contrary.
The outside walls were blistered by
the sun, the gate squalled if one even
looked at it, and the lawn badly need
ed haircut. But Fox liked the place
all the better for those reasons, and
when his furniture came he put the
cook stove in the parlor, the organ in
the bathroom, and fixed for himself a
coy chamber in the kitchen. Then
he was ready to begin housekeeping.
He rose promptly at six o'clock in
the evening of the second day, ate his
breakfast, and, taking q chair, went
out and prOpped it against the laun-
dry to superintend the rising of the
moon. This function called for the ac-
compartment of a quiet smoke, and
drawing a cigar from his pocket and
lighting the butt, Fox placed the other
end in his mouth and began to enjoy
it. You probably have no idea, he says,
how much better a cigar tastes when
smoked in that manner. While he
was wondering why people will insist
upon burning them the other way, the
moOn-round, yellow. and looking like
the bottom OF a FURNISHED copper ket-
tle-arose and started west as fast as
she could 60 Fox sat watching her
until she got over his head and he
was left in the shadow of the building
and then-a very unusual thing for
him at that hour-he grew drowsy.
h., !, I, Il, - lot
but no more. The moon and stars had
vanished, and it was as black as the
wing of crow.
He sat peerng about, that moth
ing might escape his eyes, and with his
ears set to catch the slightest noise
when of sudden from behind MIN
and inside the laundry came most en-
trancing sounds! First, there was a
series of low swishes, like a snake
crawling across leaves, and after that
long, soul-felt, quivering sigh. Deep
ly interested at once, he pressed his
ear against the clapboards and lis
tened with dilated eyes to the sounds
that came from within. For a time
all was silence; then they came again
and with them a moaning and grOan
ing, clank and rattle, the low scuf
fling of feet, whispers, giboerish-
another sigh.
All night long he sat there listening
listening to those uncanny sounds
within, and the sobbing wind and Stat
ting sheets OF rain without. Then, just
before the sun sat up in bed and
thrust one red eye above the rim OF
the world, the clouds dried their eyes
and the wind died with a gasp, and
within the room was nothing but q
throbbing silence. AT this Fox threw
open the door and by the morning light
scanned the room anew.
Chairs, tubs, boiler and wringer
were undisturbed, and he could dis
cover nothing that he had not noticed
before, except that the walls had been
covered with an oxide of chrome yellow
evidently intended to be but an under
coating, yet which, for some reason
had never received covering.
Much perpleXed by the mystery, but
fully determined to meet his suffer
ing tenant face to face, Fox went for
an electrician, who put big arc light
in the center of the ceiling and push
button on the wall. Then, when night
again settled over the world with
broad pinions spread, he took his chair
into the room and patiently sat the
night through, hearing not so much
as the echo of groan to cheer him
And for the four succeeding nights
he sat in similar unhappiness, but on
the fifth-just one week from the first
occurrence, a MOnday-the ghost came
again, and for an hour they groaned
and sobbed in unseen comradeship
Then, just at one o'clock-as a rooster
crew, cat squalled, the toads croaked
and the cianking reached its height
Fox, feeling a hang-dog shame at his
treachery, pushed the button and the
room was instantly a-daZzle with light
Eagerly he swept his gaze around.
Agile as the electric current was
the ghost was quicker. Already it had
vanished, riding upon the last depart