Year: 1866

sir !" and shut the door in his face.


AS the door closed, the visitor heard
Shirley fall into chair, and utter, with a
species of groan, the singular words,


"The third p


The busybody took his revenge by de-
claring subsequently to all his neighbors
that the young lawyer must "have some
thing on his mind"-his face was as livid
as corpse, and his eyes looked wild.


On the next morning Shirley set out for
the low country, and in three or four days
reached his home without accident.


On the day after his arrival he received
letter from Pauline-long, loving, so full,
indeed of evidences of her affection, that it
made his pale face flush. He had already
written-their mutual promise had been to
write every day.


Two letters came from Pauline. Then
they stopped. Shirley wrote daiy-no an
SwerS came


The effect of this upon the young man
was frightful The darkest forebodings
seized upon him, and a settled gloom took
possession of him, rendering him almost in
| capable of attending to the business Of his
journey. The great irregularity of the
mails at the epoch gave him a faint glim-
mer of consolation but as day after day
wore on, and no more letters came, he alb
ruptly terminated his arrangements, sprung
| upon his horse, and set out rapidly for S.,
which by hard riding he reached before
midnight on the second day-the 10th of
November.


Three months after these events he was
dead. Those who held his dying form in
| their arms heard him describe in faint mur-
murs all that happened to him after COM
ing in sight of the town


As he approached the village, he said a
deeper and deeper gloom oppressed him a
more profound foreboding seized upon him.
A huge black shadow, like the wing of
some gigantic bird of night, seemed to
draw toward him from the far horizon; and
strange dim shapes fitted by him in the
night. The moon had risen like a great
bloody disc, bathing the bleak forest in its
solemn and mysterious light low, moan
ing breeze from the Potomac detached one
by one the last leaves from the Autumn
trees and the wind from the great river,
as it passed on, seemed to the startled
ears of Shirley like the sob of host of
unseen mourners, accompanying some in
visible cortege to the grave.


What follows is given upon his own
statement Entering the town at a gallop,
he pressed on through the deserted streets,
drew up in front of his office, threw the bri-
die over the fence, and hastened toward
Colonel Weston's.


AS he turned the corner leading to the
house of his bride, he remembered looking
at his watch. 1t lCos tlCenty-eigh minutes
past slecen. Hurrying on, he emerged from
beneath long row of oyer-shadowing
trees, nearly stripped of their foliage Col
onel Weston's house was then not more
than hundred yards distant, when sud-
denly he reeled and staggered against the
trunk of one of the trees. His blood was
frozen in his veins his eyes glared at
what he saw shudder after shudder passed
through his limbs-a sort of vertigo seized
upon his burning brain.


In front of Col Watson's house stood
black chariot with ebon plumes nodding
from the roof and attached to the chariot
were six black horses, without heads, a
dusky figure driving with shadowy reins.
Over all fell the the blood-red moonlight,in in
weird and solemn splendor


The young man remained speechless and
without motion Tor about twO minutes, when
all at once hoarse and stiled cry escaped
from his lips, and stretching out his arms,
he fell nsensble to the earth, as if struck
by a thunderbolt.


The door of the chariot had suddenly
but noiselessly revolved upon it's hinges
it opened ; dusky something fitted for an
instant in the moonlight, and the door as
silently closed. The shadowy figure on the
drivers seat had then gathered up the
reins, the vehicle began to move without
noise, and passing within ten feet of the
young man, draw by its headless horses,
dusky as phantoms, had disappeared with
out sound in the darkness.


The road which it took was toward the
village cemetery.


An hour afterward Shirley was discov-
cred insensible upon the ground by DR..
Butler, physician of the village who had
Just come out of Colonel Weston's house
Assistance was promptly rendered him, and
he was put to bed /; but violent attack of
brain fever ensued. Three months after
ward, he was dying but his mind, long
obscured by delirium, had regained its
clearness, and he listened calmly to Paul
ines father, who sat sobbing by his bed.


What happened may be related in a few
words. Three days later after Shirley's de-
parture, the young lady had gone to par
ty in very thin dress and slippers on
her return she had been attacked by pneu-
monia, and this attack had proved fatal.
She would not permit any one to write to
her betrothed, fearing to alarm him un-
necessarily-hence the cessation of the let
ters.


In her last moments she had muttered
family something about warning
of the young man's-a chariot with head
less horses which appeared to him three
times in sleep, even before he had heard
the legend and after this she sank rap
idly.


Pauline had expired at precisely half
past elepen on the night of the 10th of No
vember. The chariot with the headless
horses had waited but taOo minutes


Three months afterward, as have said,
Shirley had gone to rejoin her.


JOHN EsTEN Cooke


An old fellow in neighboring town who
is original in all things, especially egotism
and profanity, and who took part in the late
great rebellion, was one day blowing in
the village tavern to crowd Of admiring
IiS+anarc and hoaStino of his manv bloody