2
THE TIMES, NEW BL00MFIEL1), 1A., MAKCII 22, 1881.
TRAPPING A GHOST.
CONCLUDED,
NOTWITHSTANDING these bold
words, I must confess that when
A li drew started on Ills message, and left
me alone for the ayah hail gone down
to the village I felt a little uneasy. I
did lint believe In spiritual presences,
hut I did believe in wickedness driven
to desperation. I was bidding defiance
to a foe of whose resources I was utterly
Ignorant. What If my defiance should
betaken up t Mentally I felt strong
enough, physically I was conscious of
being weak, but I set about the per
formance of my household duties, which
occupied me fully till the return of
Andrew.
I took lit in , as Also the joiner and
blucksmlth, into the parlor, and told
them my experiences of the previous
evening. Andrew exhibited symptoms
of alarm ; but I found the Joiner a sensi
ble man, and Inclined, after what I told
him, to take a similar view with myself
of the situation, namely, that we were
being mnde the subjects of some diabol
ical trickery, iu order to drive us out of
the house. He asked about Mrs. Weevil,
and if I had ever beeu In her rooms. I
said I had not. lie proposed at once to
visit them. The door of her apartments
was, us usual, locked ; but the black
smith had little dlfllculty In successfully
picking the lock, and effecting an en
trance for us Andrew being meanwhile
seuttokeepa lookout in the garden,
that no one approached the house un
awares. There was nothing to attractaltenlion
iu Mrs. Weevil's apartments. The Join
er carefully examined them, but no
means of egress from either of the rooms
could be discovered, save the door by
which he had entered, the windows
having iron gratings outside. We took
the utmost care that nothing was dis
arranged ; aud any piece of furniture or
apparel which we had occasion to dis
turb was replaced exactly as found.
Previous to this, I should have mention
ed, both the Joiner and blacksmith had
made a particular examination of the
bow-window of my bedroom ; but had
failed to find anything to awaken sus
picion in the slightest. Our search had
so far been entirely fruitless ; and I was
begluning to feel more perplexed than
ever as, after what Audrew had told me
of Mrs. Weevil, and of her son's former
relations to the owner of the house, I
bad somehow begun to connect her in
my mind with the mysterious appear
ance which had given it such a bad
fame.
We were in the act of quitting the
housekeeper's sitting-room, afraid that
she might return before we had had
time to refasten the door, when I noticed
the blacksmith kneel down on the floor
of the inner apartment, and examine
the foot of one of the bed-poets. It was
an ancient Ellzabethtan, with heavy
faded hangings, aud stood on a floor
covered with a carpet, out of which long
use had extracted almost all traces of Its,
original pattern. At a signal the Joiner
stooped down beside him ; and I then
observed that the caster at the foot of
the bed-post was glistening with oil, as
if it had but recently been lubricated;
aud we all three then noticed that there
was a distinct dark oily streak along the
arpet, as if the bed had been moved
forward obliquely for a few feet from
where it stood, and then moved back
again. The Joiner at once rose, and
taking hold of the bed found that he
could pull It forward easily and without
making the slightest noise, till it was
About a foot from the wall against where
it stood. At this point we noticed that
the bed seemed to dip slightly to one
side, as if something were yielding to
its weight; and at the same moment we
observed a paneling slightly open In
that part of the wall which bad former
ly been bid behind the hangings.
I was in a high state of excitement
and with difficulty could suppress my
feelings, but stood silent as the two men
went round and looked into the opening
thus discovered. They asked for a can
dle, which I presently brought them,
wheu we found that the recess was a
small place, about five feet high and
two deep, and that it was formed of
solid mason-work on all sides but the
.front. A box, large enough to fill the
whole space of the bottom, was attached
to the wall by strong iron staples, as if
to prevent its removal ; but curiously
enough, the box Itself was not locked,
though supplied with a hasp and pad
Hock. The lid was at once lifted, when
we saw stuffed Into it, as if hurriedly, a
mass of white garment, whloh we found
to be an old chasuble or surplice, that
must have formed at one time part of
the ceremonial robes of a priest. We
brought it forth to the light, and exam
ined it; and there, in.the skirt of the"
garment, we found that a piece had
been torn out, which was exactly fitted
by the bit of white embroidered cloth
which I had picked up in my bedroom
on the previous evening. This was
evidence indisputable that, whoever or
whatever my ghostly vision was, here
at least was the garment that had been
worn on that occasion ; the more so,
that attached to the upper part of the
garment was a kind of hood which,
when drawn over the head and face,
would give In a dim and uncertain light
the grim aspeot that I had seen on the
previous evening. I felt within me a
burning Indignation that for years the
peace and happiness of successive fam
ilies lu the house should have been
destroyed by the wretched trickery of
this depraved old woman, In her mall
clous desire to injure the young lady
who owned the house, by depriving her
of the Income that would otherwise
have beeu derived from It.
My first Impulse was to leave things
as they were in the apartment till the
arrival of the old hag, aud confront her
at once with the evidences we had dis
covered of her malevoleut practices ; but
on a second examination of the box, It
was found that it contained a false
bottom, eiiBlly removed, under which
were foiud a pair of loaded pistols. This
struck us as being scarcely in keeping
with the idea that Mrs. Weevil alone
was cognizant of the mlHchlevous opera
tions which had beeu carried on here for
so many years. These were rather the
weapons of a person who was both able
aud willing to use them should an emer
gency offer. And what was still more
puzzling, while we had thus far discov
ered the means by which the ghostly
reputation of the house had been main
tained, there was as yet no trace of the
manlier iu which access was gained,
either to the bedroom which I occupied,
or to any other parts of the house which
had been so mysteriously visited. In
these circumstances, it was agreed at
once to replace everything as we had
found them, except that the blacksmith
took the precaution of drawing the
charge out of both pistols, stuffing the
barrels afterward to the required depth
with paper, so that, on being probed,
they might still appear as If loaded.
This done, the bed was moved back to
Its place, when the paneling of Itself
closed as before. We then left the
apartment, the door of which was,
though not without some difficulty, so
fastened as not readily to excite the
woman's susplon that It had been tam
pered with.
It was now two hours after noon, aud
Mrs. Weevil might return at any mo
ment. The two men therefore departed,
but first arranging with' me that they
should return after dusk, bringing the
village constable along with them, to
await with me the events of the even
ing, as I felt certain somehow that the
"ghost" would again appear, with the
object of driving me from the house,
as other tenants had been driven before.
Like his namesake in " Rob Roy,"
the old gardener, Andrew, was not a
very good keeper of secrets ; hence it
was proposed that the Joiner and black
smith should take him along with tbem
to the village, and keep him under
surveillance till the eveniug. I was
glad when I saw them all out of the
place, without, so far as I knew, being
seen by any one; and still more glad
when the ayah shortly afterward re
turned with the children, as I could not
help feeling alarmed in the bouse by
myself, considering what we had dis
covered, and especially what we had
failed to discover, namely, how the
person playing the ghost (could obtain
access to different parts of the house so
freely as report represented, and as. I
had myself in one instance painfully
experienced.
Unlike her usual practice, Mrs. Wee
vil did not return to the house that day
till far on In the afternoon ; and after
she had entered her rooms I could hear
her bustling about with an activity and
noise quite unprecedented in my experi
ence of her habits. This rather alarmed
me. I was afraid she had suspected,
from the appearance of her rooms, not
withstanding our care in removing all
traces of our presence, that some one
had been there in her absence ; and this
might be sufficient to defeat my hopes
of bringing to light the trickery that had
been so long and so systematically prac
ticed. But I wag still more astonished
when, about an hour after her return,
she sent a message to me by the ayah
that she wished to speak with me, If I
would grant her an interview. At first
I scarcely knew what answer to make,
Were I to refuse to see her, this might
complete the suspicion which she per
haps entertained ; and if I did see her, I
was afraid I might by some word or look
betray the knowledge of which I had
become possessed. I thought upon the
whole I had better see her, and answer
ed accordingly.
As she entered the room with a basket
on her arm, ehe dropped a courtesy ;
and from the flow of words with which
she at once opened the conversation,
she seemed to put on a frankness of
manner which I had not before observed
in any slight intercourse I had had with
her.
" Yes, ma'am," she went on, " I were
just a-comiu' ma'ain, to say as I would
be goln' from the 'ouse for a few days;
my son, as is steward to Lord II ,
being took very badly last night,
ma'am ; as he have no one to wait upon
him, It holds as I, ma'am, as hls moth
er, must do my dooty yes, ma'am."
All this she said without once stop
ping to take breath ; and I could not
help observing that she was slightly
flurried In my presence, and seemed to
keep talking as much to hide her
uneasiness as to enlighten me regarding
her errand. I said I was very sorry to
hear that her son was 111, and that It
was very proper she should, In the cir
cumstances, attend to him. " But,"
I asked, " has he no servant in the
house V"
"Not presently, ma'am," she answer
ed ; "leastways, the 'ouse-mald have
gone away over to Brookford for a few
days to see her mother, who stays there,
ma'am yes, ma'am ;" and she courte
sled again in the excess of her civility.
After I bad dismissed her I did not
know what to think. This was an in
terference will) my plans on which I
had not counted. I had no one to
advise with me, and felt much perplex
ed. As evening approached, and the
gloom of twilight, I had a strange,
nervous feeling, such as I had only once
before experienced, and that was In
India during the terrible days when the
mutiny was at Its ' height, and every
footfall mnde us start as If next moment
were to be our last. As the dusk deep
ened, my anxiety Increased ; and when
at length the ayah conduted the Joiner,
as I had before instructed her, to my
room, I was almost too overpowered to
speak. Andrew and the blacksmith
were for the time detained lu the kitch
en, as I wished to talk the matter over
with the joiner, as the most intelligent
of the three.
As he entered my room, I was sur
prised to find a second person behind
him, whom he introduced to me as Mr.
Burrows, the district Inspector of 1'ollce,
who had been on an official visit to the
village that day, and who, when he
heard the story, volunteered his services
in place of the constable. Ills presence
ut once gave me relief; and this was
enhanced when I found he had had long
experience in the London detective force
aud was entering with the enthusiasm
of his profession into our plans. He
had heard already from the joiner what
had passed that day ; complimented me
highly on the presence of mind I had
displayed on the previous evening and
expressed acquiescence iu everything
that we had since done.
When, however, I mentioned to him
my unexpected interview that afternoon
with Mrs. Weevil, and that she had left
the house, he was a good deal taken
back. He questioned me closely as to
her manner and appearance when she
was in my room, and as to whether she
seemed much affected by her son's ill
ness. I answered his several questions
to the best of my ability ; and he, after
thinking awhile, paced up and down
the room, turned to me and said :
" Let everything be carried out as you
formerly proposed. Bee that your fam
ily retire to rest at their usual time, and
with a little appearance as possible of
anything unusual going on. If the
woman has taken alarm, nothing will
be lost by waiting till to-morrow, when
her rooms can be more carefully exam
ined by daylight. In the first place,
will you show me the bedroom in which
you were disturbed last night V"
I conducted him thither, the joiner
following; and after he had ascertained
where, to use his own expression, I had
first seen the "party," and where and
how the party had disappeared, he at
once intimated his plans. He said I
was to retire to my room as usual, seat
myself in my chair by the fire as on the
previous evening, and either sleep or
appear to Bleep, as was most agreeable to
myself. Beyond the window stood a
large wardrobe, In which, after the
house was all quiet, he and the joiner
would conceal themselves, the black
Bmlth and the gardener being sat as a
guard upon the door of the housekeep.
er'a room below. The village constable,
be had arranged, would keep watch on
the outside of the house, but so as not to
be readily discovered.
, The duties of the household, in the
absence of my servants, fell somewhat
heavily on the ayah and myself, and the
time passed quickly for me as I bustled
about, seeing the ohildren put to bed,
after which the ayah also retired. Dur.
lng all this time, everything had oeen
carried on in our customary way. Mr,
Burrows and the rest of his helpers
betook themselves for the time to
distant apartment up stairs, and the
house had resounded all the evening
with the mingled sounds of laughter
and noise iuseperable from a large family
of children such as ours. But now all
was silent; the men bad slipped quietly
to their different posts ; Mr. Burrows
and the joiner were, I knew, in the
wardrobe at the other end of my bed.
room ; and I was seated in my loung
ing-chalr, as. on the previous evening.
As I sat In this position thinking, I
could not help observing to myself bow
near we were all making ourselves
ridiculous. The old woninn whom I
had suspected wag out of the house; no
one else but the ordinary members of
the household aud the watchers could
possibly be In ; and here was I, Bitting
at my bedroom fire, making believe to
sleep, with my two men concealed in
the wardrobo, all hoping to catch we
did not know what. The humor of the
situation bo strongly affected me at one
time that I could scarcely refrain from
bursting Into laughter. But the thought
of Mr. Burrows having put himself to
so much trouble on my account, com
blned with a remembrance of what I
had experienced durlug the past twenty
four hours, gradually sobered my feel
ings, and I shortly found my thoughts
floating away In dim remembrance to
my life In India to my distant hus
band; to our long separation; to the
terrible nights and days of that fearful
mutiny, whose horrors still rose up be.
fore me ; to
There was a thud on the floor, and I
sturted. I had been asleep, and In my
slumber had knocked a book ofr the
small table at my elbow. The fire was
burning low, and I rose In a confused
state to trim It, when my eyes fell upon
what I had seen on the previous even
ing. In the Imperfect light it seemed
taller and more ghastly-looking than
before, aud was approaching me from
behind. As my eyes fell upon It I gave
a loud shriek, and caught hold of the
chair to support me. As I did bo, I saw
the figure gradually recede from mo,
and the room seemed to grow suddenly
darker. I am certain that, left to my
self, I should at that moment have
fainted right away, for the whole thing
bad been so sudden, and found me so
unprepared, that in my confusion I
forgot all about the business of the
night. But just as the white figure
seemed to be approaching the curtained
windows, I saw two dark figures dush
quickly upon it from behind, then a
sharp and violent struggle, in which all
three rolled on the floor, as if locked
together in a deadly embrace. The
white figure had managed to wrench
one arm loose, and in another moment
there was the sharp click of a pistol.
Thanks to our forethought, the weapon
was harmless. By this time the noise
of the struggle that was going on had
brought the blacksmith and Andrew up
to my apartment, and with their help
the white figure was in a few seconds
manacled and led forward to the light,
his white garment an old surplice
hanging In tatters about him. He was
at once known to the majority of the
company it was the steward! He
turned his back on me with a stifled
oath.
Leaving him, now helpless, with his
bands fast behind his back, In charge
of the blacksmith, Mr. Burrows led the
way to the housekeeper's room below,
the door of which was found to be
locked. It was at once burst open, and,
taking a candle with us, we Entered.
The outer room was in the same condi
tion as I had seen it during the day, but
the inner room showed the bed drawn
forward, and the paneling of the recess
which we had discovered standing open.
Nobody was there. Taking the candle
forward to examine the recess, Mr. Bur
rows found that the box bad a movable
bottom, in addition to that which we
bad discovered, and that by its" removal
an opening sufficient for one person at
a time led down a trap-stair into the
cellars below. Mr. Burrows and the
joiner at once descended, taking the
light with them, the rest of us waiting,
as directed, in the outer apartment, or
the lobbies that led to it. In a few
minutes I heard sudden footsteps in my
bedroom, and, rushing thither, found
that Mr. Burrows and the joiner had
reached It from the cellars, into which
the trap-door led, the whole of the
wood-work of one side of the window of
my room being Ingeniously made to
move back upon binges like a door, yet
bo constructed that it could not be open
ed by any one in the room. When the
steward was searched there was found
on him, besides the pistols, a bunch of
duplicate keys, which could open any
chamber or any other lock-fast place in
the house.
The constable having been called in
from the garden, the steward, who bad
hitherto stood silent and sullen, with a
dark expression of malice and revenge
upon his face, was handed over to bim
and be was instructed by bis superior to
convey bim to the local Police office and
place him in a cell. The blacksmith be
ordered to accompany the constable, and
see that the prisoner did not effect an
escape.
Meantime, the gardener, who, since
the "ghost" bad been discovered to be
but flesh and blood like himself, bad
become as bold as a lion, volunteered to
stay in the bouse with us all night and
help me to soothe the fears of my poor
terrified children ; while Mr. Burrows
accompanied by the Joiner, proceeded to
the bouse of the steward. I need not
burden the reader with details, but
may mention that in answer to a quiet
tap at the window, the door of tbe bouse
was immediately opened, and old Mrs,
Weevil was at once In tbe grip of the
officer. She wag absolutely thunder
struck, and quite lost her presence of
mind. Without telling her anything of
what had happened, Mr. Burrows asked
for her son, the steward. At first she
hesitated, then said he was 111 In bed.
"No," said Mr. Burrows, "be is not
in bed, but he is safe enough by this
time In the Police office; so you had
better Just tell us all about It."
At this Mrs. Weevil entirely broke
down and confessed all. It is unneces
sary to repeat at length what the reader
can guess In great measure for himself;
but the sum of her story was this :
The mother, equally with her son,
bated Miss Roupel for despising his
addresses, and took the means we have
Been In order to drive each successive
tenant out of her bouse. Blie also ad
mitted that after tbe sudden death of
Mrs. Roupel It was they who bad spread
the stories charging foul play against
the daughter. In answer to a question
from Mr. Burrows, she confessed that It
was she who had played the ghost on
the previous evening; but she had
never before shown herself to any one
who did not at once flee and quit tbe
bouse. My attempt to get bold of her,
therefore, had bo alarmed her that she
had great difficulty in escaping j and
next morning had gone to her son, and
told him she durst not play the part of
ghost any longer, as the present tenant
was likely to stand her ground, and they
would In that way be found out. They
were both enraged at thus being at last
ba filed in their long cherished course of
malicious practices against Mrs. Roupel ;
and her son determined to take out bis
revenge upon me that night by first
frightening me and then robbing the
bouse, after which they were resolved to
take the first opportunity of quitting
that part of the country. Their cupidity
had been aroused by the sight of some
trinkets in Indian jewelry which I
possessed hence the design to rob me.
In order to cover their purpose, the
old hug was sent to me with the story of
her sou being ill ; and as he had a secret
means of access to the house, he readily
affected an entrance after he supposed
the family asleep. It was her son who
bad first put her upon these evil prac
ticeshad brought the old surplice from
Lord B 's house, In Which either of
them as occasion offered, was in the
habit of terrifying the inmates, and thus
depriving the object of their hatred of
her chief means of livelihood.
Mr. Burrows did not trouble to appre
hend the' old woman at that time; but
be took care that she should not leave
the country till after the trial of her son
for house-breaking and felony, when
she bad to appear against bim as a
witness. He was found guilty and sent
to a penal settlement. Mrs. Weevil,
Bshamed to show her face in the neigh
borhood, departed, nooneknew whither.
As for the ghost story, as soon as Its
salient points were known in the neigh
borhood, tbe house not only lost its bad
character, but I became for the time
quite a kind of heroine, everybody prais
ing my courage and sagacity. I bad the
pleasure, some weeks later, of entertain
ing In tbe house Mrs. Richard Egerton,,
tbe former Miss Roupel, whom the
neighborhood, conscious of unjust con
demnation, received with open arms.
After the term of my tenancy expired
the charming bouse let for a more suita
ble rent, and ever since I believe it has
formed an adequate source of income to
it worthy owners.
Compensation asked for by a Convlot.
About two years ago John Roberts,
at that time proprietor of a restaurant
in New York, and living in Brooklyn,
was arrested and charged with being
oneofthe Astoria masked burglars.
On the testimony of a woman, who
swore that by the light of a lamp
she saw his eyes and, although he was
masked identified him, Roberts was
convicted. Heserved twenty-one months
in the State Prison, and then having es
tablished bis innocence, was pardoned.
Roberts now applies to the Legislature
for compensation, and he ought to have
it.
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