The Press., 1915-08-11
! Dr'. Edr1lOndS' Patient A Tale of a Haunted House.
By CLARISSA MACKIE

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 A severe thunderstorm was raging when the telephone bell tinkled softly.
 Dr. Edmonds' man. Josiah, reused himself from slumber on the office sofa and reached apprehensively for the receiver
 .'I don't like techin' telephones no ways when de ightning's kyooting around" muttered Josiah. Hello. dar!' he called timidly. "Ya-as. sah. dis am de doctor's-ya-as. sah Hen come right away"
 Josiah hung up the receiver and went up to the doctors bedroom on the sec. ond floor. The doctor came out-a tall. 1.-the. red bearded man, rubbing his eyes sleepily.
 What is 1t. JosiahY' he yawned "Mr. Dixon got another bad spell?'
 Josiah's eyes rolled affrightedly.
 ..No. sah; it was d call from de Ged- ney place."
 'Gedney place! You've made a mis- take. It's been unoccupied for years"
 Oats what he said. Tell de doctor he's needed at once at de Gedney place on de Hollow road" -----
 "Humph." muttered the physician Well. you better go out and harness Daisy and get out my raincoat.'
 1t was dreary ride to the Gedney place.
 Josiah, huddled in one corner of the buggy. was shaking with fear of the approaching ordeal Dr. Edmonds was puzzling over the strange summons To his knowledge the Gedney place had been unoccupied for the past ten years As family the Gedneys had died out all save one son. the black sheep of his generation William Ged- ney was serving life sentence ill pris- on. convicted of killing man in a quarrel The plea was self defense and Gedney had escaped with his life
 The village people had gossiped ever since the last funeral at the place ten years ago. It was said that the spirit of the murdered man. Tom Collins. haunted the rooms of the fine old man sion on the Hollow road. Lights had flickered there at midnight. and men home between midnight and dawn had declared that a mans dim form restlcssly paced the pine grove that was growing up around the neg lected house But little credence was given to such tales.
 Here we am, doctor." quavered Jo siah. "I'll jest git out and open de gate"
 The long unused gate creaked open, and the doctor turned into it. trusting more to Daisy's instinct than to any thing he could see Josiah did not re turn to the buggy. He tramped be side the doctor. muttering charms un der his breath.
 They were in the protection of the front porch now. Dr. Edmonds brought out his electric torch and found the doorbell. He pulled it wig orously. and a resonant peal rang through the house.
 There was no answer.
 Again and again the doctor rang. and at last he impatiently turned the door knob To his amaZement it responded to his pressure.
 The door was unlocked!
 They entered complete darkness
 Hello. therer shouted the doctor. case that wound up into darkness Anybody here?"
 In the silence that followed they dis tinctly heard the distant striking of the town clock in the valley below
 It struck the hour of midnight. and on the heels of the last stroke there came a sound in the Gedney house
 It was a cry. moaning cry. that sent shudder through the doctors strong frame.
 Josiah almost sank to the floor.
 "De ghos'!" he gibbered
 Dr. Edmonds recovered his nerve poked Josiah in the ribs with the au tomatic pistol he always carried at night and brought the darky to his senses
 "Some one is upstairs" he said stern ly. 'Some one who is hurt and needs me. Understand! Take my bag and follow me. If you try to run away. re member. I'm a dead shot!"
 Josiah mutely fell into step behind the doctor as they mounted the stairs He would have been more terrified than ever if he had remotely guessed why the doctor had handed him the medicine case. It was that both his own hands might be free to grapple with any danger that menaced them in the deserted house.
 The cry had come down from the upper regions of the house. They the second floor and found it save by spiders and scut- ting mice. Here, as in the lower rooms. the furniture was covered with dust.
 Now the moaning cry was repeated It came from the third story under th.. roof
 They reached the narrow upper hall went down its carpeted length to the southwest chamber The door was ajar The doctor pushed it open and | r:ked 1t with the light of his torch.
 The light revealed several startling | facts
 TAre was narrow cot on the car Deted floor. Il pine bureau filtered with bottles and dishes and crusts of bread l nd battered tin coffeepot stood on n oil stove. There were heavy blan cts hung before the three windows. nd besides one or two rocking chairs | here was d pile of books from the H. l rary downstairs and mans black | ned pipe on the deal table. Like lightning the doctors keen eye | the room and then went back l Q the space in front of the cot. A | 1an's body lay there inert
 Hold this torch commanded the octOr. and. bending down, he lifted | he mans emaciated form to the cot. The ragged coat fell back. revealing limpse of a broadly striped garment 
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