Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1925-08-13
CHAPTER /
In Which Things Happen Near
Barking Creek

Barking Creek
The wind howled dismally round a
house standing by itself almost on the
shores Of Barking creek.
The house seemed deserted. Every
window was suffered; the garden
was uncared for and a mass of weeds
the gate leading on to the road, ap-
parently feeling the need of a deficient
top hinge, prOpped itself drunkenly
on what once had been a flower-bed.
A few gloomy trees swaying dismally
in the wind surrounded the house and
completed the picture-one that would
have caused even the least imagina-
tive of men to draw his coat a little
tighter round him, and feel thankful
that it was not his fate to live in such
a place.
But then few eople ever came near
enough to the house to realize its sin
lister api earance. The road-it was
little better than a cart track-which
passed tie gate, was out of the beaten
way; only an occasional fisherman or
farm laborer ever used it, and that
generally by day when things assumed
their proper proportion, and it was
merely an empty house gradually fall
ing to pieces through lack of atten-
ton. AT night they avoided 1t If pos
sible; folks did say that twelve years
ago some prying explorer had found
the bones of skeleton lying on the
floor in one OF the upstairs rooms with
a widowed rope fixed to one of the
2 beams in the ceiling. And then 1t had
been empty for twenty years
Even now when the wind lay in the
east or northeast and the tide was set
ting in, there were those who said that
you coUlG see a light shining through
the cracks in the shutters in that room
upstairs, and that, should a man climb
up and look in, he'd see no skeleton,
but a body with purple face and star
ing eyes swinging gently to and fro,
and tied by the neck to a beam with
a rope which showed no trace OF
mildew. Ridiculous, of course; but
then so many of these local supersti-
tions are. Useful, too in some cases !;
they afford privacy from the prylng
attentions of local gossips far more
cheaply and effectively than high
walls and bolts and bars.
SO, at any rate, one of the two men
who were walking brlskly along the
rough track seemed to think.
Admirable" he remarked, as he
paused for a moment at the entrance
of the weed-grown drive quite ad-
mirable, my friend. A house situated
as this che is, is an acquisition, and
when it is haunted in addition 1t be-
comes a godsend."
He spoke English perfectly with a
slight foreign accent, and his COM
panion nodded abruptly
"From what / heard about It /
thought 1t would do" he answered.
Personally l think it's a damnable
spot, but since you were so set against
coming to London, had to find some
where in this neighborhood."
81 will explain my reasons in due
course" said the first speaker shortly.
''You may take 1t from me that they
were good. What's that?"
RHSV.
Glutching his companions arm.
Nothing" cried the other irritably.
For a moment or two they stood still.
peering into the dark underground.
''What did you think it was?"
"I thought / heard bush Creaking
as if-as If someone was moving" he
said, relaxing his grip. ut must have
been the wind. l suppose"
He still peered fearfully into the
goomJ garden, until the other man
dragged him roughly toward the house.
"Of course 1t was the wind, "'he NUT
tered angrily. For heavens sake
ZsJoleff, don't get the jumps. If you
VIII insist on coming to an Internal
place like this to transact little per.
fectly normal business you must ex-
pect a few strange noises and sounds
Let's get indoors; the others should
be here by now. 1t oughtn't 10 take
more thai an hour, and you can be on
board again long before dawn"
The man who had been addressed as
Zaboleff ceased looking over his Shout.
der, and followed the other through
broken-down lattice-gate to the rear
Of the house. They paused in front OF
the back door, and on 1t the leader
knocked three times in a peculiar way
1T was obviously a prearranged signal
for almost at once stealthy steps could
be heard coming along the passage in
side. The door was cautiously pulled
back few inches, and a man peered
out, only to throw 1t open wide with
a faint sigh of relief.
IT'S you, Mr.. Waldock, is ItI" ht