The weekly times-record. (Valley City, N.D.) 1912-1922, 1913-08-21
.. CHAPTER 4.
! Meet q Playful Ghost.

l. "06 NV yet ~ y CIUCk, duU WA0
dismayed at the thought of being
left to my own devices in this big
country house. at an hour when
the talk at the Hare and Tortoise usu.
ally became worth while. I sat down
and began to turn over the periodicals
on the library table, but l was in no
mood for reading. '~'1 .a r
The butler appeared and offered me
drink, but the thought of drinking
alone did not appeal to me. l repelled
the suggestion coldly, but after had
dropped my eyes to the English review
I had taken up was conscious that he
stood bis ground. .. ..m..
beg pardon, SIR"
"WellY'
Hits bit bod about the chimney,
SIR"
The professional man in me was at
once alert. The chimney's conduct was
tnexplicable enough, but was in no
humor to brook the theories of a stupid
servant. Still. be might know some.
thing, 70 l nodded for him to 60 on.
He glanced over bis shoulder and
came step nearer.
'They say in the village, sir, that the
'ouse Is 'aunted."
"Who say It. James?"
THE liveryman told the coachman,
and the 'ousemaid got hit from seam
stress. Hits very queer, SIR"
Rubbish, James. I'm amazed that
a person Of your station should listen
to a nveryman's gossip. There's the
chimney, it's working perfectly. Some
shift Of air currents causes it to puff
a little smoke into this room occasion.
ally. but those things are not related
to the supernatural. Well find some
way of correcting it in a day or two"
VERY good, sir. But begging par.
don, the chimney hain't hall. Hit
walks, If I may SO hexpress hit"
walks" I exclaimed, sitting up and
throwing down my review. what
walks?"
you ear bit, sir, hin the walls. Hit
goes right through the solid brick
most hunaccountable."
You hear mouse in the walls and
think it's ghost! But you forget
James. that this is new house, only
year or so old, and spooks don't fire.
que such places. If 1t were an old
place it might be possible that the
creaking of floors and the settling Of
walls would cause uneasiness In nerv-
GUS people. The ghost tradition usual
" rests on some ugly fact But here
nothing Of the kind is present"
Hit was one Of lis majesty's hordl-
GERS, SIR" he answered hoarsely.
It flashed over me that this big stol-
i'd fellow was out of his head; but,
sane or mad he was clearly greatly dis
turbed. 1t was best, thought, on
either hypothesis to speak to him per.
emptorily, and rose, the better to
deal with the situation.
"What nonsense is this you have in
your head? You're in the United
States, and there aren't any majesty
soldiers to deal with. You forget that
you're not in England now"
but this ere country used to be
Henglish, you may recall, sir. The
story the coachman got hin the village
goes back to the hold times, sir, when
the colonies was hin rebellion, If may
80 call bit, sir, and is majesty's troops
was putin down the rebellion hin
these parts. Some American rebels
chased a British soldier from hover
near White Plains to these ere woods
as they was then, and they 'anged i'm,
sir, right where this ere 'ouse stands,
If may make SO Free
YOU'D better 60 to bed, James. And
don't encourage talk among the other
servants about this ghost. l know
something about the building Of houses
and I'll give these walls good looking
over. Good night"
made myself comfortable for al
hour, smoking a cigar over an article
on English politics, and while l read 9
big log placidly burned itself to ashes
I found the switch and snapped Out
the library lights. When had gained
the second floor turned of the light:
in the hall below, and, as looked
down the well to make sure l hal
turned the right key, the third flool
lights suddenly died and was left u
darknccS. This was the least bit dis