E-text prepared by Delphine Lettau
and the
Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Canada Team
(http://www.pgdpcanada.net)
TO MY NIECES, |
LILIAN AND GEORGINA MOLESWORTH. |
| 5th December 1887. |
| CONTENTS | |
|---|---|
| I. | Lady Farquhar's Old Lady |
| II. | Witnessed by Two |
| III. | Unexplained |
| IV. | The Story of the Rippling Train |
"One that was a woman, sir; but, rest her soul, she's dead."
I myself have never seen a ghost (I amby no means sure that I wish ever to doso), but I have a friend whose experiencein this respect has been less limited thanmine. Till lately, however, I had neverheard the details of Lady Farquhar'sadventure, though the fact of there beinga ghost story which she could, if shechose, relate with the authority of an eye-witness,had been more than once alludedto before me. Living at extreme ends ofthe country, it is but seldom my friendand I are able to meet; but a few monthsago I had the good fortune to spend somedays in her house, and one evening ourconversation happening to fall on thesubject of the possibility of so-called"supernatural" visitations or communications,suddenly what I had heard returnedto my memory.
"By the bye," I exclaimed, "we neednot go far for an authority on thequestion. You have seen a ghost yourself,Margaret. I remember once hearingit alluded to before you, and you did notcontradict it. I have so often meant toask you for the whole story. Do tell itto us now."
Lady Farquhar hesitated for a moment,and her usually bright expression grewsomewhat graver. When she spoke, itseemed to be with a slight effort.
"You mean what they all call the storyof 'my old lady,' I suppose," she saidat last. "Oh yes, if you care to hear it,I will tell it you. But there is not muchto tell, remember."
"There seldom is in true stories of thekind," I replied. "Genuine ghost storiesare generally abrup