Year: 1874

About the year 1854 was working
for broker, who owned large farm
near the town of N -, where he
used to send his family to spend the
warm weather Mr.. ~ was. at
that time, one of the Wall Street op-
perators and was seldom at his farm.
The family consisted at that time of
Mrs. n and two children, a nurse
and girl of all work, who we will call
Mary. Mary was Irish and a good
Catholic. The men folks consisted ofa
brother Of the nurse about 16 years
old, and the writer, who was at that
time about % years old, and the gener.
al manager of the farm. There had
been considerable excitement about
spiritualism in that part Of the country,
and the nerves of the people were in
the peculiarly susceptible condition re-
sulting from such excitement.


In village three miles away was
singing school, and the nurse, her broth
er and myself determined to go to the
school, We had horses and carriages
Of nearly every description so we could
60 in all kinds Of weather. Mr.. n
had plenty of money, and he spent it
freely for his comfort and the comfort
of all around him. Well, one night
when we were away at the school and
Mary was washing dishes at the sink in
the kitchen, the back door, which was
fastened at the time with bolt on the
inside, commenced to rattle and the
latch to fly up and down at a fearful
rate. Poor Mary ran up stairs to Mrs.
NJ and could not be coaxed or
driven back alone. After making her.
self sure that the children were asleep,
Mrs. ~ went down to the kitchen
with Mary and they made some coffee
and had lunch to get their courage up
to the sticking point. Mrs. N-- was
getting nicely over her scare that Mary
had caused by coming up stairs so un-
tremendously, when the door CON-
menced to rattle and the latch to fly up
and down again as though all the spir-
its from pandemonium were riding on
the piece. I ought to say that they
both Mrs. N--and Mary-were very
careful not to 60 near the door while
in the room, but favored it with many
furtive glances more rapid than low
ing.


Both ran this time up stairs. They
looked out of the front windows and saw
a man going past on the railroad whom
they called to their rescue. He came in
and proved to be one of the track men.
He went to the nearest neighbor for re-
Inducements and got the man to come
and stay. They, the two men, both
went around the house and looked for
tracks without success, and finally fast
ened up the house and sat down in the
kitchen. There we found them when
we got home from singing school. Af:
ter we had taken care of the horses we
went in and talked the matter all over
opened the door, went out too, and made
search by the light of the lantern, but
found nothing that looked suspicious, or
to occasion such a sensation Of our
hitherto quiet family. By the way, the
door opened on to long walk that run
along the back side of big wood shed
and carriage house, the wood being piled
up in the shed made the walk dark in
the day time even and in the night it
was dark as pitch.


Our guards were relieved and per.
mitted to 60 to the quiet Of their own
homes. Our family sat down in the
kitchen and had grand councilot war


For my part could hardly bring NY.
self to believe the story that Mary KEEP,
telling. Of how the door shook anc
trembled, and the latch ratified bu


Mrs. n told the same, cny will