The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1915-02-23
GHOSTS, OR NO GHOSTS?
BY WADE CALDWELL

0AA" AihoiAy 1OtkoIIS AIIO
his notions and knowledge have got
mixed in such a way as to render his
beliefs rather difficult for other peo-
pie to appreciate.
said to him one night: "Uncle
Alb. do you believe in ghosts?"
Certainly. certainly" he replied.
Don't your"
"No I DON'T said I.
Nov locke here. young man" he
began, that's what l call flynn in the
face o Providence. It's a straight up
and down, fiat-fOoted denial Of the
Scriptures; for the Bible speaks O
ghosts iii Genesis 40 and 33. Job 10
and Is, Jeremiah Is and 8, Hosea 6
and 3, Matthew 81 and so, II and %,
Ia and 1O-nO lesS'n seven times.
And Shakespeare, which is kind
of a weekday Bible. is as full O.
ghosts as the Gaderene was of evil
spirits.
why, most every thing has a
ghost. To my notion the moonshine
is the gohst O. the dead day. Even
hope leaves a ghost when it dies.
When two fellows with motor ears
are going to see a girl, and a fellow
with a mule puts in, the people O. the
community say, That fellow with
the long-ears amt got a ghost of a
chance That means not only hope is
dead but wen the ghost O hope is
against him"
THAT all sounds well enough"
protested. But it don't make me be-
lieve in ghosts"
|, How come it don't?'
Because I amt never seen one"
you believe a lot Of things you
amt never seen. You Amt never seer
the wind. nor a current of lectricity
and maybe not the girl you're going
to marry, nor your own brains. Vel
you believe all these things exist
though in the latter case you may bs
mistaken"
: And Jerry Stopped Preaching.
Ghosts, when eXamined,' l con
tended, generally turn out like tn
one that rode Jerry Cox through tn
slough. One pitch-dark night Cicer'
Dinkin was crossing a fot-lOg over
slough down by the river. Just a
he started across he heard Jerry Cox
who was a preacher. coming down to
ward the slough from the other way
preaching as he came. Near the mid
die Of the slough, and close to TIL
foot-log, stood a large gum. Whe
Cicero got to this gun he stepped o.
behind it and waited for Jerry. Ant
Just as the latter passed the gum CiC
ero struck him across the back with
n small walkin-cane. Jerry yelled, He
and d~amn-nation' and lit about tWent
% feet out into the slough. He neve
l. stopped running until he got hom
E where he told his old lady that
e. ghost had rode him through TT
VA slough
"Ail trades have their tricks" con
mented Uncle Abner; "and that WI
a trick on the trade Of ghosts.
"But If ghosts lint ghosts" he COZ
tinued, what makes you walk
hasty and light-footed when passir
a place ghosts are likely to be seer
Yes and if a cricket was to chirp {
- such an occasion when you got non
you'd say you heard a lion oar dow
the road. l expect you're kinder lii
the atheist who contended the
~ wern't no hell, yet kept praying a Ii
-. tie on the sly in fear there might
~: after all. Yes, sir, ee, when in go
~ company and the sun is shining sor
fellows can talk mighty brave DO
not believing in ghosts. But VIII
ha passing q graveyard on a dark mig
49, it's rather hard to tell the disbelie
ers from the believers.
at Eyes indeed, ghosts are not or
We ghosts. but they have so much OF
personality some of the character
it tics are down in the records, and do
ay can even run their tracks. Most a
in old hunter will tell you that on CO
mo tain times Of the moon it Amt hare
worth while going n the woods
of night, dogs run ghosts SO bad.
ice And 1 can prove to you by a doz
to men in this community. men VINO
red members of the church and who a
or. never been in Jail for retailin', tt
zen one fall all the dogs in this sett
TT ment like to have run themselves
vas death running ghosts. In a great
rye pack here they'd go just hard as TT
ties could clip it, straight from n gra'
ere yard to another, then up and do
OBJ the road, nearly all night long.
"Yet you contend there amt
ed, ghosts? Next you'll be contend
ted YOU AIM had no parents, but like
Jail pumpkin, just growed.
his well. just you keep on contendi
inns and keep on ~travelin' by day and
one night and sooner or later your S
will find you out. Yes, the ghosts
lalf going to make it so warm for you
hat denyin' them that you'll about "
hey vour grandmother had never b