The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1910-07-05
WAS HE
A SPOOKp
BY EDWIN T. GARRISON
Copyright. 1912 BY American Press
Association.

some students were ulhpuung. one
Of the party declared that the psychi-
cal research societies would one day
prove that spiritual bodies revisited
their former haunts. In support Of his
belief he told the following story:
Gilbert Ellison was prodigy at
school. carried of all the prizes in col
lege, could declalm In almost any Ian
guage, was the best shot. swordsman,
whist and chess player. artist, musi-
clan, that the sun ever shone upon. As
for lovemaking, no woman could resist
aim
l was member OF a small social cir
Gle in a place where Ellison spent
some time. He appeared like rising
sun In a very brief period he had
captured every one of us. young men
and young women alike. He came on
the 1st of June. and OH the I'd, by his
expertness IN the water. saved two
girls and a man from drowning. On
the Sd he won the championship at
tennis; on the 4th he beat a profes
sionaI billiard player Then followed
a series Of feats calculated to put 70
the blush the athletic youths Of an
cient Athens.
BY this time every girl in the place
was ID love with him. He was a hand
some chap, with a Byron head and
neck, and could write verses that
judges OF such matters pronounced re
markable one Sunday when par
son was I'll Ellison supplied his pulpit
aud preached the most remarkable ser
mon that was ever heard In that
church.
One girl among those who fell in
love with Ellison seemed to find favor
In his sight. She was Lois Beverly,
quiet, demure creature with large
dreamy eyes. She was not prominent
in any of the affairs going on in the
place. but was held in sort of rev
erence by the others. Had 1t not been
for her retiring disposition she would
have been a belle. for she possessed
beauty IN repose that was very effec-
tive. Many a young fellow on first
seeing her thought he would fall in
love with her but when he came to
talk with her was chilled. Was it her
want OF interest In him or that she oc
cupied plane too far above him2 II
was certainly not her stupidity
When Ellison appeared sNe became
another person She was often seen
chatting with him with great anima-
ton. to say nothing Of flashes OF wit
4 Before long we were all watching this
/ couple. who seemed 70 be the compile
menf Of each other. We agreed that IL
required a universal genius to awaken
her dormant faculties. Every one was
saying. What a pair those two will
makel"
The only difference between Ellison's
| bearing toward Lois Beverly and other
girls was that he seemed TO be intent
upon fascinating her He would when
chatting with her keep his eyes fixed
on hers as though pouring his soul
through her orbs to mingle with her
own soul behind them. At such times
there was an absence of his own bril-
! liancy. He seemed rather to be excit-
ing hers There was a suggestion Of
something plaintive both in him and in
her. Many a time ! have watched
them when they were together, too far
to hear what they were saying. and II
eemed to me that he was playing upon
\ her as he would upon Either.
Then one day everybody was asking
"What has become OF EllisonY No
body knew. He certainly wasn't with
us any more OF course we all turEed
to Lois. All she would say was that
she didn't know any more Of Mr. ELI
sons whereabouts than the rest Of us.
He didn't reappear. and Lois sank
back into her former condition. The
only change was profound sadness
that had settled upon her. and the
dream in her eyes was intensified.
Ellison never returned Some time
after his disappearance the woman
who owned the house where he lived
told ME that at the time he left hei'
she had found a drop of blood on the
hearthstone in his room, asked her
I if any one was with him at that time.
and she said there was no one. He
had gone up to bed at 10 O'clock the
house had been carefully locked-she
was fearful Of burglars-and no one
had been in during the night In the
morning when her lodger didn't come
down she went TO his room. 1t was
empty, the ped had not been slept in,
and drop OF blood was on the hearth
Lois Beverly grew frail and lived
only about six months after Ellison's
going
7 l got it into my head that the fellow
was some sort Of spook. At any
rate. l could never trace his anteced-
ents or his identity after he left us.
One day. having nothing better to do.
wrote out an account Of the case and
sent it to a society for psychical re-
search.
After some weeks ] received reply
from the secretary. IT stated that the
society had discussed the matter Of
Elbert Ellison. but that there was
nothing in it that any one could grasp.
One of the members had made sug-
gestion to which / was welcome. 1t
was this: In the sixteenth century lived