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Speaker 1: And unbidden guest by W. Bob Holland. My cousins Kate

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and Tom Howard, married at Trinity at Easter time, concluded

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to commence housekeeping by taking one of those delightfully expensive

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furnished unfurnished cottages with which the fashionable watering place of

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w abounds. From those rear windows one might almost take

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a plunge into the surf, the beach being at the

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back door. They went down quite early in May, being

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in a great hurry to try their domestic experiment, and

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as the evenings were still cold, they spent them about

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the open fire, spooning. It was upon one of these nights,

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about eleven o'clock, that they were startled by a noise

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as of some small objects falling, soon followed by the

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sound of heavy footsteps, and then quiet reigned again. Supreme

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at once, Tom, poker in hand, boldly started in search

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of the burglar, followed by Kate wildly clutching his coat tails.

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In a state of tremor, they looked upstairs under the

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various beds, Kate suggesting that in novels they were always

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to be found there. The dining room was next explored,

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where all seemed well, and lastly the kitchen, where they

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found what was evidently a solution of the mystery. The

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burglar had entered by the back door, which was found

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to be unlocked and slightly ajar the first excitement subsiding,

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they returned again to the dining room, where Tom, upon

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closer inspection, then discovered that one of a pair of

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quaint little pepper pots wedding gifts, was missing, and other

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small articles on the sideboard had been slightly disturbed. The

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next morning, when Kate mildly remonstrated with the Queen of

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the kitchen for her carelessness, she received a shock by

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being told that it was her usual custom to leave

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the door open so that it could be asy convenient

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loki for the milkmaid. They parted with her, and a

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new maid was engaged, whose chief qualification for the place

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was that she was most faithful in the discharge of

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her duties, especially in locking up. While they mourned the

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loss of the pepper pot, it still seemed so trifling

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when they thought of that lovely repose salad bowl sent

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by Aunt Julia, which stood nearby, that nothing was said

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of the loss outside of the family and the little

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household settled into its normal state once more of billing

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and cooing. About a fortnight later, Tom started out one

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night with an old fisherman, one of the natives had

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a local character to indulge in that delightful pastime so

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dear to the heart of man, known as ealing, And

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as the night was dark, the eels were particularly sporty,

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so that it was well on towards the way small ours.

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When Tom at last returned to the cottage, he found

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all excitement within. Kate was in hysterics, and the new maid,

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also weeping, was industriously applying the camphor bottle to her

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mistress's nose. The burglar or ghost, as they had now decided,

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the windows and doors being found to be securely locked

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this time, had been abroad again and had succeeded in

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purloining nothing. His royal ghost ship had amused himself, apparently

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by simply walking about. Oh Tom, he had on such

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heavy boots and was so dreadfully bold about it, said

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Kate tearfully. From that time, Kate became nervous and refused

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to be left alone. Tom started whenever the door creaked

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and the treasure departed, hurriedly, saying faith the house is haunted.

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Sure after that, Kate spent her days in girl hunting

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and her nights in answering shadowy advertisements that never materialized.

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They tried Irish, English, Dutch, and the Heathen Chinee with

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a sprinkling of colored ladies to vary the monotony. They

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seemed about to become famous throughout the length and breadth

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of the land as the family that changes help once

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a week. When they landed Treasure number two, shortly after

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her advent, we were all asked down to w to

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help celebrate their happiness, and incidentally, to christen the new

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dining set. We were not a little surprised to find

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Kate so pale and Tom rather distrait. However, after a

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delightful dinner that should have filled with pleasure the most

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exacting bride, we adjourned the the piazza, leaving the men

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to the contemplation of their cigars. We were enthusiastic in

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our praise of the house and congratulated Kate in securing

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such a prize, when, to our horror, she burst into

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tears and said, oh girls, it's a dreadful place. It's haunted,

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and then tearfully proceeded with the details until we all

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felt creepy and suggested the parlor and lights. It was

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not long afterward that Kate discovered that Tom had also

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related the ghost story to the man that evening, to

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which Ned Harris had said laconically rats and bob Shaw

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laughingly remarked, come, old Chap, you really shouldn't take your

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nightcap so strong. About the first of July, the climax came.

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The ghost walked again, this time taking not only the

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remaining pepper pot but also a silver salt cellar. Evidently

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he had a penchant for small articles, But unlike former times,

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everything on the sideboard was in the greatest disorder. Aunt

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Julia's salad bowl was found on the floor, and not

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far away the cheese dish, with its contents scattered. About

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this time, one of the windows was found half open.

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A week later, a note came to me from Kate

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saying that she and Tom had gone to Saratoga to

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spend the remainder of the season with her mother. The

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following spring, Tom received a note and parcel from mister

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b the owner of the house at w which read

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as follows, Dear mister Howard, I send you by express

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three articles of silver, which my wife suggests may belong

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to you, as they are marked with your initials, namely

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two silver pepper pots and a salt celler. They were

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found the other day during the process of spring house

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cleaning in a hole behind the sideboard. I forgot to

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have the hole stopped up last spring, or to caution

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you against the water rats. The great fellows will get in.

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You know. Kind regards to missus Howard, yours truly, John B.

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The next season, the Ghost Club was organized, the badge

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being a small silver rat bearing proudly aloft a tiny

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pepper pot. We thoughtfully offered Tom the presidency, but he

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declined with offended dignity, from the effects of which I

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think he will never fully recover. The End of the

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Unbidden Ghost by W. Bob Holland