The Washington herald., 1921-03-27

0TAMEs wHITcoMB RILEY believed
- IN ghosts" said Senator New. "Had
he lived in these times he would have been
called q psychic. He believed in ghosts
because he had experiences with them. He
lived those experiences over in relating them
to me. At the end, as ,he lay dead in his
lodgings, there was enacted the final ghost
episode in which the spirit of Riley evidently
participated. / know the facts because
collected the first hand evidence. The
sophisticated may offer theories in explana
ton of these facts. Their theories are but
guesses. My story of Riley and his ghosts
is setting down of Just what happened"
1t was a strange thing to be talking about
during those first busy days Of Congress,
right there in the big. white Office building,
where United States senators hatch the leg
lslation that governs the nation and evolve
plans for the direction of the course of
world events. But Senator Harry Stewart
New, Of Indiana, had been making such a
reputation as a raconteur of mellow, play
full ghost stories revolving around his life
long friend, James Whitcomb Riley, that
asked him for look at some of those yarns
rather than a discussion of governmental
economy or tariff reform.
1t was restful to watch this intimate
friend of President elect Harding drop into
the role of raconteur, so well did it become
him. He is a born story teller. a convivial
spirit who likes his hour in the clOakrOOm
or with his friends of an evening. To be
sure, rumor had been thrusting him into
first one cabinet post after another these
> last two weeks. But, having spent forty
years in active journalism he was unper
turbed in the circumstances. smooth
faced, middle sized, blue eyed, all American
looking man is Senator New, universally
called Harry by his friends and handy
with first names in return.
These blue ribbon stories of senatorial
circles grew out of a friendship with the
Hoosier poet that began way back in 1878.
Harry New was a reporter on the old In
dianapolis Journal when Riley, after fin
ishing many wanderings as a combination
transformer and sign painter, went to work
for the same paper. Both remained news
papermen in Indianaolis for more than
thirty years thereafter and both knew the
men and life of their time as only news
pspermen may.
NUT of these years of friendship grew the
" fact that Harry New sat long by the
bedside of Riley after he had his second
Ftroke and was partially paralyzed. 1t was
A.. l. l.
self entirely clear as to ghosts.
They were talking of the hereafter, dis
crssing the eternal question of the existence
beyond the grave.
Riley took the position that he knew
positively that there was a hereafter" said
the senator in his introduction. ''He said
he had definite proof of its existence. OF
course, this led me to demand the proof,
and he told me of two occurrences in his
life which reached beyond the grave
The first concerned Eugene Field, fellow
poet and intimate friend of Riley When
Eugene Field died, Riley, who loved him
dearly, wrote a bit of verse as a tribute to
him. The verse was widely published in
the newspapers.
Francis Wilson was then a very popular
actor, is still living, and was a friend Of
both Field and Riley. After Field had died
Wilson sent a volume of his poems to Riley
and asked that he write his verse on the
fyleaf and sign it. He directed him to for
ward the book to the Burnett House, in
Cincinnati, where he, Wilson, would be play
ing the next week.
eRiley followed the directions explicitly.
Two weeks later he got letter from Wilson
regretting that the book had not been sent
rs directed, and jogging the poet to auto
graph it and forward it to another address.
"Riley wrote back that he had already