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The Floating Press - Sheridan Le Fanu

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29 pages

English

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Irish writer Sheridan Le Fanu gained fame as a master creator of horror stories. Indeed, many critics cite Le Fanu as being central to the skyrocketing popularity of the genre during the late Victorian period. The two short stories collected in this volume highlight Le Fanu's formidable talents in evoking all things eerie, spooky, and uncanny.

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Publié par	The Floating Press
Date de parution	01 juillet 2014
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781776581238
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0064€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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MADAM CROWL'S GHOST AND THE DEAD SEXTON
* * *
SHERIDAN LE FANU

*
Madam Crowl's Ghost and The Dead Sexton First published in 1871 Epub ISBN 978-1-77658-123-8 Also available: PDF ISBN 978-1-77658-124-5 © 2013 The Floating Press and its licensors. All rights reserved. While every effort has been used to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the information contained in The Floating Press edition of this book, The Floating Press does not assume liability or responsibility for any errors or omissions in this book. The Floating Press does not accept responsibility for loss suffered as a result of reliance upon the accuracy or currency of information contained in this book. Do not use while operating a motor vehicle or heavy equipment. Many suitcases look alike. Visit www.thefloatingpress.com
Contents
*
Madam Crowl's Ghost The Dead Sexton
Madam Crowl's Ghost
*
Twenty years have passed since you last saw Mrs. Jolliffe's tall slimfigure. She is now past seventy, and can't have many mile-stones moreto count on the journey that will bring her to her long home. The hairhas grown white as snow, that is parted under her cap, over hershrewd, but kindly face. But her figure is still straight, and herstep light and active.
She has taken of late years to the care of adult invalids, havingsurrendered to younger hands the little people who inhabit cradles,and crawl on all-fours. Those who remember that good-natured faceamong the earliest that emerge from the darkness of non-entity, andwho owe to their first lessons in the accomplishment of walking, and adelighted appreciation of their first babblings and earliest teeth,have "spired up" into tall lads and lasses, now. Some of them shewstreaks of white by this time, in brown locks, "the bonny gouden"hair, that she was so proud to brush and shew to admiring mothers, whoare seen no more on the green of Golden Friars, and whose names aretraced now on the flat grey stones in the church-yard.
So the time is ripening some, and searing others; and the saddeningand tender sunset hour has come; and it is evening with the kind oldnorth-country dame, who nursed pretty Laura Mildmay, who now steppinginto the room, smiles so gladly, and throws her arms round the oldwoman's neck, and kisses her twice.
"Now, this is so lucky!" said Mrs. Jenner, "you have just come in timeto hear a story."
"Really! That's delightful."
"Na, na, od wite it! no story, ouer true for that, I sid it a wi myaan eyen. But the barn here, would not like, at these hours, justgoin' to her bed, to hear tell of freets and boggarts."
"Ghosts? The very thing of all others I should most likely to hearof."
"Well, dear," said Mrs. Jenner, "if you are not afraid, sit ye downhere, with us."
"She was just going to tell me all about her first engagement toattend a dying old woman," says Mrs. Jenner, "and of the ghost she sawthere. Now, Mrs. Jolliffe, make your tea first, and then begin."
The good woman obeyed, and having prepared a cup of that companionablenectar, she sipped a little, drew her brows slightly together tocollect her thoughts, and then looked up with a wondrous solemn faceto begin.
Good Mrs. Jenner, and the pretty girl, each gazed with eyes of solemnexpectation in the face of the old woman, who seemed to gather awefrom the recollections she was summoning.
The old room was a good scene for such a narrative, with theoak-wainscoting, quaint, and clumsy furniture, the heavy beams thatcrossed its ceiling, and the tall four-post bed, with dark curtains,within which you might imagine what shadows you please.
Mrs. Jolliffe cleared her voice, rolled her eyes slowly round, andbegan her tale in these words:—
MADAM CROWL'S GHOST
"I'm an ald woman now, and I was but thirteen, my last birthday, thenight I came to Applewale House. My aunt was the housekeeper there,and a sort o' one-horse carriage was down at Lexhoe waitin' to take meand my box up to Applewale.
"I was a bit frightened by the time I got to Lexhoe, and when I sawthe carriage and horse, I wished myself back again with my mother atHazelden. I was crying when I got into the 'shay'—that's what we usedto call it—and old John Mulbery that drove it, and was a good-naturedfellow, bought me a handful of apples at the Golden Lion to cheer meup a bit; and he told me that there was a currant-cake, and tea, andpork-chops, waiting for me, all hot, in my aunt's room at the greathouse. It was a fine moonlight night, and I eat the apples, lookin'out o' the shay winda.
"It's a shame for gentlemen to frighten a poor foolish child like Iwas. I sometimes think it might be tricks. There was two on 'em on thetap o' the coach beside me. And they began to question me afternightfall, when the moon rose, where I was going to. Well, I told themit was to wait on Dame Arabella Crowl, of Applewale House, near byLexhoe.
"'Ho, then,' says one of them, 'you'll not be long there!'
"And I looked at him as much as to say 'Why not?' for I had spoken outwhen I told them where I was goin', as if 'twas something clever I hedto say.
"'Because,' says he, 'and don't you for your life tell no one, onlywatch her and see—she's possessed by the devil, and more an half aghost. Have you got a Bible?'
"'Yes, sir,' says I. For my mother put my little Bible in my box, andI knew it was there: and by the same token, though the print's toosmall for my ald eyes, I have it in my press to this hour.
"As I looked up at him saying 'Yes, sir,' I thought I saw him winkin'at his friend; but I could not be sure.
"'Well,' says he, 'be sure you put it under your bolster every night,it will keep the ald girl's claws aff ye.'
"And I got such a fright when he said that, you wouldn't fancy! AndI'd a liked to ask him a lot about the ald lady, but I was too shy,and he and his friend began talkin' together about their own consarns,and dowly enough I got down, as I told ye, at Lexhoe. My heart sank asI drove into the dark avenue. The trees stand very thick and big, asald as the ald house almost, and four people, with their arms out andfinger-tips touchin', barely girds round some of them.
"Well my neck was stretched out o' the winda, looking for the firstview o' the great house; and all at once we pulled up in front of it.
"A great white-and-black house it is, wi' great black beams across andright up it, and gables lookin' out, as white as a sheet, to the moon,and the shadows o' the trees, two or three up and down in front, youcould count the leaves on them, and all the little diamond-shapedwinda-panes, glimmering on the great hall winda, and great shutters,in the old fashion, hinged on the wall outside, boulted across all therest o' the windas in front, for there was but three or four servants,and the old lady in the house, and most o' t' rooms was locked up.
"My heart was in my mouth when I sid the journey was over, and thisthe great house afoore me, and I sa near my aunt that I never sid tillnoo, and Dame Crowl, that I was come to wait upon, and was afeard onalready.
"My aunt kissed me in the hall, and brought me to her room. She wastall and thin, wi' a pale face and black eyes, and long thin hands wi'black mittins on. She was past fifty, and her word was short; but herword was law. I hev no complaints to make of her; but she was a hardwoman, and I think she would hev bin kinder to me if I had bin hersister's child in place of her brother's. But all that's o' noconsequence noo.
"The squire—his name was Mr. Chevenix Crowl, he was Dame Crowl'sgrandson—came down there, by way of seeing that the old lady was welltreated, about twice or thrice in the year. I sid him but twice allthe time I was at Applewale House.
"I can't say but she was well taken care of, notwithstanding; but thatwas because my aunt and Meg Wyvern, that was her maid, had aconscience, and did their duty by her.
"Mrs. Wyvern—Meg Wyvern my aunt called her to herself, and Mrs.Wyvern to me—was a fat, jolly lass of fifty, a good height and a goodbreadth, always good-humoured and walked slow. She had fine wages, butshe was a bit stingy, and kept all her fine clothes under lock andkey, and wore, mostly, a twilled chocolate cotton, wi' red, andyellow, and green sprigs and balls on it, and it lasted wonderful.