Year: 1873

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A SINGULAR STORY FROM NEwBURYpoRT.


In Newburyport we have school.house
that the school committee have been
forced to advertise as closed to visitors
because curious crowds awaited within
and without, to see the mysterious form
OF ghost boy, who has been trottinc
around there for more than a year, seen
frequently by the .eacher-who is not
spiritualist-and by most of the whole
fifty pupils, who are too young-primary
scholastic mystify and deceive the
people.


The school house is on Charles st.. a
one story building. that would be the last
place in town for a spirit from any happy
abode to wish to renew its childhood in.
1herelis an entry to the building, there is
a flight OF stairs to the attic and a window
looking into the school-room. The teach.
er's desk brought her back to the window,
where the pupils told her strange boy
was playing his tricks, sometimes putting
his head up to the glass and at other
times looking in. They described him,
and when seen, he has always been in the
same dress aud appearance. To verify
statements she changed her seat to face
the window; and by and by the face ap-
peared-thc JackFrost upon the window
pane. Not doubling but it was really a
boy, she took her ruleri''-the emblem
OF her authority-and made for the entry.
and there she found him standing quietly
in the corner-one of the prettiest faces
she had ever seen, with a smile on his
beautiful lips, and needing kiss more
than blow. His body dressed in neat
white clothes, bore the appearance of one
Just passing his first decade of years
His hair was almost whitc--a little tow
head his face was older than his years,
and he had the appearance of wisdom
beyond his age. She advanced to him.
and he lodged to the attic stair. She
followed-is now near enough to take
hold OF him-reaches for lin but he is
not there. He seemed to sink through
the stairs, and and where she would grasp
person her hand struck the floor. He
was gone.


Now wo have veritnble gho>.-what
is to be done? The police thought they
could capture him. They arrested u lad as
the author of all this commotion-the
town through and he bad his choice to
confess or take his chances for the reform
school. 1t was not only the old witch.
craft, but the nId test. Throw her into
the river, sal they of olden times, and
we shall fn1 ut whether or not she be
witch. If Sir Is innocent she will drown
it she swits w.' II hang her." The boy
partially coat but be was not pun.
ished, hccs.i a 'racher and all the pu-
pills and hi .'.o'. knew that he was
not i"r slro' hat looked in at the
window. nr = continued to reap
pear "a'n ta ,way.


Next L a.aira.,t was sent to nail up
the passaga To ihe attic; but if love
laughs at locks, much more do ghosts.
The littIr t1w head even made more noise
than before He turned the attic into
carpenter shop, where he, too, sawed
and pounded and nailed; and as if to
demonstrate the futility OF human force
to shut him out, he put his head down
OF the schour: :"Ht0qtnr and took survey
been frightened, and one day one of them
tainted, but few of them are excited about
it, The teacher has spoken to him and
he only laughed from his happy face.
The children looked at him, whom not
one of them ever saw before, and he re-
turns their glances with love in his soft
mild eyes but as yet he has not told us
who he is, whence he comes, or what his
mission. This comes the nearest to
real ghost-a daylight ghost-of any
thing we have had in this city for years


SHORT OF MEAT-A Deacon being in