The Montgomery tribune. (Montgomery City, Mo.) 1892-1910, 1909-04-02

night. b that and ghosts.
Ghosts, hey? Did you dream OF
ghosts?"
'That I did. I could ear 'em groan-
ing"
Twas yourself that was %groaning,"
says I. "a Teller that took aboard the
cargo OF supper that you did hadn't
ought to sleep on ~cornhusks."
II didn't sleep; not a 'ealthy Chris
tan sleep, l didn't. say. Pratt, did
you ever ear that this old 'ouse was
'aunted?"
WELL" says 1, II don't know as ]
ever heard that exactly. But old Mrs.
Berry died in 1t ald then Marcellus
lived here alone till he died. Seems to
me he died in that room Of yours,
come to think Of It," says /, cheering
him up.
He turned pale, instead OF the vel
low he'd been lately.
"'Oly Moses!" says he. you cant
mean It."
Il can mean more than hat without
half trying" I says. YES, l remem
Der now. He did die there and they
say he died hard. Maybe that was on
account of the bed. though"
He was mighty upset. Commenced
to tell about a friend of his over in
| "the old country" who had been butler
| at a place that was haunted. l asked
II his friend had ever seen any of the
| spooks.
mo-" says he, "'e never saw 'em
! 'imself, but it was a tradition in the
family. Everybody knew 1t. 1t vas a
white lady, and she used to trip about
the 'ouse and over the lawns nights"
he says
white, was she?" say I. well l
suppose IL she'd been black they
wouldn't have been able to see her in
the night. Never heard Of a colored
ghost anyway, did your"
Il mean she was all dressed in
white" he says, scornful. And they
say twas 'orrid to see her a-gliding
around over the grass"
Want to know" says 1. We'll, If
you see old Marcellus gliding around
the hummocks outside call me, will you?
I'd like to see how he manages to navi.
gate through the sand. That's a job
for a strong, healthy man, let alone
a dead one"
l guess he see / didn't take much
stock in his ghost yarns, S o he quit
and went to getting the things or the
breakfast table. But he was nervous
and broke a dish and sprinkled forks
and spoons over the floor like he was
sowing EN-. Pretty soon he had to
stop and hustle upstairs, for the
Twins was shouting for their buds. Fol-
grown men they was the most helpless
critters; his lordship was a sort oil
nurse to 'em. as you might say.
After a while he had EN- dressed
and ready and they come down tC
breakfast. Nate had brought over
feather beds for them, so they slepI
pretty well. Van Brunt was rugged III
special because he was going to East
witch that forenoon to see his girl.
I'd cooked a whopping big breakfast
but twas only just enough. Van was
a regular famine breeder and Hartley
want far astern of him. The Natura,
Life was agreeing with both Of ZEN
fine so far. Martins cheeks was filling
! out and him and his chum was sun
burned to brick red.
After breakfast they went out fol
their usual promenade. BY and by
heard EN- hailing me from the bacl
of the house. When l reached EN-
they was standing by the barn, witt
their hands in their pockets, and look
/ ing as happy and proud as if they't
discovered America.
. Come here, skipper" say Van
do you see this?"
!, He was pointing at a kind of fla
place in the lee Of the pig sites. 'Twa
. a sort of small desert, as you Nigh
: say: A bunch or two of beachgrass II
the middle Of It and the rest povert,
grass and sand.
Il don't see much" says l. "Wha
l do you mean?"
Il mean the location" says he
. Here's where we'll have our garden.
l looked at him to see If he wa
joking. But it appeared he want.
0 Gardens" says /.
Sure" he says. ITS an ideal spot
Sun all day long"
D You could make a garden here
couldn't you, Sol?" asks Hartley.
Maybe l could" says 1, IF l du
Q through to Chiny and hit loan o
t'other side. Otherwise you couldn
b raise nothing in this sand but bli'
o ters."
t "Scudder could bring us loam," say
d Van. We've thought of that"
Starting a garden in JULY" says
e What do you callate to raise-Chris
mas trees?"
Late vegetables, of course" say
r Van. Martin and / intend to stay a
through September. Think of 1t, Ma
a tin; green corn from our own plant;
ton. And cucumbers In the mornin,
x,tth %hA Haur NV ,ova - A..