Chapter IV: An Explanation From the Tomb (3)

The ghost, if ghost there is, is undoubtedly the spirit of this unfortunate and nameless young woman. A _World_ reporter watched the Bleecker street ruins with the crowd last night and was there at the midnight hour, but never a sign of a ghost did he see. There were those in the crowd, nevertheless, who thought or pretended to think that they did. Once there was a rattling sound in the ruins, which caused a commotion among the lookers-on, but it was only because a small boy had shied a brick at the old wall. The living spirits boomed the liquor business in the saloons of the vicinity. A skull and cross-bones over one of these bars was surmounted with the somewhat appropriate legend freshly painted:

"In the midst of life we are in debt."

* * * * *

FOOTNOTE:

[1] Transcriber's Note: The original is missing text following this mark. Both it and a reprint of the same were searched and were printed in this way.

* * * * *

Transcriber's notes:

Obvious printing punctuation errors were repaired.

On pages 50-51, the top paragraph had a printing problem in the
page gutter. From the letters that were left, the following changes
were made in the text. (Changes noted by **)

Nothing more chanced for the rest of the night. Nor, indeed,
had I long to wait before the dawn broke. Nor till it**
was broad daylight did I quit the haunted house. Before
I did so, I revisited the little blind room in which my servant
and myself had been for a time imprisoned. I had a**
strong impression--for which I could not account--that

On page 51:

nothing in refutation of that conjecture; rather, I suggest
it as one that would seem to many persons the most
probable solution of improbable occurrences. My belief
in** my own theory remained unshaken. I returned in the
evening to the house, to bring away in a hack cab the things
I** had left there, with my poor dog's body. In this task I
was not disturbed, nor did any incident worth note befall
me, except that still, on ascending and descending the stairs,
I** heard the same footfall in advance. On leaving the house,
I went to Mr. J.'s. He was at home. I returned him the
keys, told him that my curiosity was sufficiently gratified,
and was about to relate quickly what had passed,
when he stopped me, and said, though with much politeness,
that he had no longer any interest in a mystery which
none had ever solved.

I determined at least to tell him of the two letters I
had** read, as well as of the extraordinary manner in which
they** had disappeared, and I then inquired if he thought
they** had been addressed to the woman who had died in the

Page 62, "weding-party" changed to "wedding-party": (so merry a
wedding-party)

Page 63: "sad" changed to "said" (and said, in a suppressed tone)

Page 72: "hed" changed to "had" (had ever passed his lip.)

Page 73: "woful" changed to "woeful" (woeful condition)

Page 102: "frace" change to "face" (from his face)

Page 147: "be" changed to "he" (But he kept his title?)

Page 172: "breathd" changed to "breathed" (she breathed heavily)