Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1913-10-10


darkness OF the upper gallery and saw
gray formless shape drift slowly past
and disappear in the shadows at the |
end.
Dicks hand frightened on Findlay's |
elbow.
Wow, skeptic. what do you say to |
thatf' be breathed hoarsely.
Findiay shook his head.
"she has me guessing" he admitted !
ruefully.
Dick lnughed. "What did tell you. |
old mani You may fatter yourself |
you are some ghost hunter. but the |
Addison ghost has walked for $50
years. and the mystery has never been
solved"
did your father ever see it," asked
Findlay thoughtfully.
"You forget that my father inherited
Roseland from a distant cousin, who
had quarreled with his few remaining
relatives and through some freakish
fancy chose my father as his heir.
That is why my experience with the
ghost dates back to three months ago.
when / came down to occupy the old
place"
And you have seen it how many
times%
about once q week. had quite
forgotten the old story OF Dorothy Ad-
Olson, who had told wicked lie and
so won the man she loved from her
lovely rival. 1t is said that Dorothy
was very unhappy in her married life
and often bewailed her sin. Tradition
has It that the curse Of unrest will not
be lifted from her poor spirit until
some Addison rights wrong or makes
some great sacrifice for another"
$50 your distant cousin did nothing
toward that end" unused Findlay. ibid
he leave any direct heirs?"
Dick Addison hesitated. "You know,
I was at college when father inherited
| the place, and I wasn't deeply inter
| ested, but / have since learned that
Cousin Amos left an adopted son, who
had married against my cousins wish
es and was therefore disinherited. But
father understood that the son was a
rich man, had made fortune in the
west, so that he really was not losing
1 h@N~h "ACh bhC @1oAASOh hOLhC NdLlC ~
my father. It's a tumbledown old
place, as you can see, and, except for
some good old furniture and the fam
lily portraits. isn't worth repairing"
why don't you hunt up this adopted
son of Amos Addison and see If he
doesn't need the placer"
"Do you mean that, Sam?"
Eyes. If investigation shows that
the adopted son and his family are
comfortably fixed, why, suppose, the
place could be left to the bats IL you
wished, but If r. He stopped and
laughed in an embarrf ssed way.
Yes" asked Dick eagerly. "If you
owned it what would you do, SamT'
81 would never close it up. There
are too many homeless wretches in the
world to justify that But am preach
ing now, Dick. I know it would be a
great sacrifice for you to give up the
ancient home of your family to man
who was but an adopted son."
Sacrifice! If I should find him,
Sam, perhaps that is the sacrifice that
is required to lay the ghost of pretty
Mistress Dorothy"
Perhaps it is" Findlay was laugh
ing when he stopped short and point.
ed to a little door. where does
that lead to. Dick" he demanded
sharply.
Dick stared for an instant. ooh, the
door? Why. to some attic chamber,
believe. I've never found a key to Fl
| t, and I'm not anxious to investigate
my more dust holes, thank you"
The two young men returned along
, he picture gallery and swung around
into the corridor from which the bed,
rooms opened on either side. Findlay's
room was the first on the right hand
side, and he babe his friend good night
and entered.
Sam Findlay went to the window
nearest the wall of the picture gallery
On the other side of that wall hung
the pictures, and in this corner neal
his window was the little door thai
} had no key.
He pulled open his closet door and
; held the candle high over his head
, The closet was placed beneath a figh,
J of stairs, for the ceiling slante6
} sharply.
His closet ran underneath the spira
stairway leading to the attic cham
bers. 1t was near the locked door thai
the apparition had vanished. HC
smiled as he turned away.
at is gentle ghost" he murmur
ed. Her little feet cannot disturb my
slumbers. no matter how many timei
: they run up and down the stairsr'
At that moment there came a sound
so slight that It was hardly more thar
the rustic of a leaf; then anothe
sound, a little creak.
That was ALL Flndlay tried 70 per
suade himself that he had mistaken
n scampering mouse for light foot
fall. but he knew that the sound wa
{ nothing else but q footstep on the spl
I .al stair. And the door that led u
!. the spiral stair had no key!
He blew out the candle and went {
bed in the great carved four poste
= that Amt Chloe had polished and rub
bed until the riueapples that SUI
mounted the posts shone as they he
i not doaa for Inanv vaara