The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1947-01-23

She had come down to Ke,
West from Bar Harbor with he,
aunt and uncle before the war
and again in the early fall of 1916
while anchored off-Shore the Gil
braltar OF the Caribbean in thei
luxury yacht 'Sprite' and visiting
tne' sparkling island city at the
TIP % Florida with its dazzling
streets. weatheUed West Indiar
houses, ehalky blue harbors anC
crystal sapphire sea, she wanted
more than anything in the woric
10 have permanent roots here
roots that would hold her and lie
her u house, q garden. com
munity and neighbOrS.
Bar HarbOr was fine. Moatauk
was Interesting. the Potomac was
impressive. and Charleston anc
Savannah We're truly beautiful
but she knew this was the place
she wanted 20 settle IN &c
cal Home.
With wars end. the cruising or
the Sprite' mad started al owe,
again With formal dinners anc
parties when visiting military and
business G!gnlta-IeS and the pTup-
a. s,Clal perSOnSgeS were IN thS
vicinity Ana this life. as Shc
Was wing 70. Was becoming now
more than Priscilla could bear
Sre ssnle6 psrmaneRce wear
'.ound friends
- Sae considered Ire old house
BIZ sae must hsVs some Nay
O. -ye ... Some excuse .. Be
cause she knew rhag ne. aunt and
uncle Woy id Eeyes willingly agEee
o. neT le1v.ng thera
Now q fabusoUS. postwar. re-
tired aviation Usgnats. Fler uncle
was truly concerned with ne. fll-
ClgC nod selected any num-
Der a brilliant Young executives
whom ne considered eligible FOR
q nephew
Bul Priscilla fnpze Up each t.ne
Sne Was Pot on display and knew
that she succeeded on'v n ap-
peagIng a prig. drip
And her ianguoroCS. glanlorOuS
aunt heT Uncle's second wife.
treating Priscilla as q child no,
Vet capable 81 hanging heg own
affairs, found 10y in dismissing
a. immature any original ideas
Priscilla had for her own enjoy
mcnt or future.
So Priscilla knew there was
only one thing to do. Make uL
her min6. Stick TO il Make hel
plans so that there could be NJ
turning back
90 Cape Cod ancestry. she haC
wanted house with a ghost. But
the owner. now showing hel
about the cobwebby rooms ano
up the narrow staTcases and tc
the open rafters of the top floor
then up onto the roof with It's
narrow white railing, evaded the
subject every time she preached
o. But she had other ideas.
She had heard of the old 'Pi-
rates Den of Greenwich Village
early days She had heard of the
play The Spider She had seen
'Hellzapoppin'
All Of those thingS-where eX-
clteuent continued on down into
the audience 10 the custom
ers-had made money She had
listened IN 10 a few of the broad
casts where audience participa-
ton was largely instrumental in
inc programs success.
Why not-slnce everyone loved
il-why not This, then, in Key
West2 In the most comfortable
the most beautiful Setting9
II the Old house didn't actually
have a ghost, at least one with
whoU the owner was on speaking
terms. well, then perhaps she
could devise something There
could be chains rafting, doors
banging, shutters Tapping
The house had been built in
pirate days when mercilesS buc.
cancers loamed the coast. wher
ship wreck salvaging was the
leading industry of Key West
and when many of the present.
day families had their beginnings
ana built Their stately homes.
From Virginia, South Carolina
New England they had come anc
>"eilcd their fortunes. The Ba.
hannah houses We'd with southern
and New England colonial il
grandeur Ana the widow walks
me prim, low picket fences. the
classic doorways. were for Pris
ella something of her background
udnsplan,ed here in this tropit
isle
80 SHE made plans. She ex
p.o'ed the grounds. She got con
tractors 10 make her bids.
She had the money her mother
had left her. and from her month
" income from this, and will
what she had saved during tn,
war wears when she and her aun
lived quietly Al hotels while he,
uncle made planes for the gov
eminent she knew. when she fig
ured costs of renovation of III,
house, adding plumbing, Lighting
painting estimates. that she couiC
swing A. She considered decor