Morris tribune. [volume], August 01, 1903, Image 2

About Morris tribune. [volume] (Morris, Minn.) 1880-2000

Image provided by: Minnesota Historical Society; Saint Paul, MN

                
'Pre
I Bowerie Ghost
'TTfrynytUHpl
More than two centuries agone,
when old Petrus Stuyvesant and his
silver banded wooden leg ruled the
destinies of New Amsterdam, there
was a well known place of refresh
ment in that colonial town known
by the worthy burghers as the
Wursthaus. It stood upon the east
side of the old post or Bowerie
road, not far from the present point
of junction with Division street.
The then suburban location of
the Wursthaus made it and its jovial
host, Hans von Schneist, well known
and patronized by the townsmen
and their families.
But a change came o'er the smil
ing features and jocund laugh of
the host of the Wursthaus when his
only son was proclaimed an outlaw.
Some boyish indiscretion of speech
had been magnified by the hearers
and, coming to the ears of the sus
picious old director general, had re
suited in the decree. Young Hans
had received timely warning, how
ever, and was supposed to have
reached the Swedish colony in safe
ty.
Several months passed away, and
one evening young Jacob Twiller re
lated the following weird adventure
to the wondering crowd gathered
around the central table in the
Wursthaus garden:
"I was eel spearing in the Fresh
water pond last evening and by the
time the moon was overhead had
filled my creel. I started to walk
home. I had but passed the Wurst
haus when just ahead of me I spied
a tall figure wrapped in a long gray
cloak. Thinking that no one except
the watch could be abroad at that
hour of the night, except with some
evil purpose in view, I suited my
pace to his, meaning to let him pre
cede me toward the city wall. But
scarce had we progressed in this
manner for a few hundred yards or
so when the figure turned and, hold
ing its hands aloft, made menacing
gestures, as if forbidding me to ap
proach.
"Overburdened with my fishing
traps, I felt powerless and so knelt
on the ground so as to more easily
remove the strap of the creel from
off my shoulders. But as I kneeled
the ghost, for such it surely was
had vanished from sight, and,
though I hunted well about, I could
find no trace except mayhap a smoke
sinelling strongly of sulphur, which
I breathed in my nostrils as I came
near to that part of the ground
from which it had vanished."
Nothing could shake the valiant
Jacob's circumstantial details of the
encounter, and, though the town
cynic sneered, the group gathered
closer together around the central
table and made haste home in good
season.
Within a week Koelof Jans, the
popular butt and scapegrace, added
still more to the mysterious tale of
his predecessor. While agreeing
with Jacob in the general appear
ance of the gray cloaked figure, he
furnished additional details by
which it ^would seem that a long
barbed tail was a feature in the
phantom and that it walked amid
belching clouds of smoke.
And then came the climax. Ad
am Roelandsen stated to the cap
tain of the watch that he had en
countered the gray cloaked phan
tom that it came out from the
Wursthaus, but hastily turned and
re-entered the door ere he could
summon up courage to advance or
retreat.
Here was a pretty condition of
affairs! The habitues of old Hans
von Schneist's place quaked in their
very shoes at the bare supposition
that they had been drinking the
brewings of one who was seemingly
in league with the evil one.
And so it came to pass that the
stout old captain of the watch, at
the head of his little squad, came to
investigate the Wursthaus. For some
reason old Hans did not come to the
door, and when the captain of the
watch entered the big taproom he
found mine host tightening the
hoops of an enormous butt that
stood in the darkest corner. The
crowd of sightseers, at first fearful
of forked tongues of flame and oth
er chronicled attributes of the evil
one, were timorous of entering the
house. But gathering courage from
the assembled military and particu
larly impressed by the gallant bear
ing of the commandant they grad
ually inched forward until very soon
almost every available space was oc
cupied.
"Good morning, Herr von
Schneist," spoke the captain.
"Good morning to you, herr cap
tain, and to you, soldiers and fel
low citizens," answered the sturdy
-old tavern keeper. "What means
this array? Am I accused of trea
son or are you merely come to test
tthe malt in my brewing?"
"It is neither of false brewingnor
of treason you are accused, Herr
von Schneist, nor yet of anything I out halting learned
coming within the oivil oc miiiiug, tifiealty*—Exchaoge.
law. Some there be who say that
you are ki league with the evil one.
Step forward, Adam Eoelandsen,
and tell your tale again, so that this
worthy man will know our busi
ness."
Then came shambling forward the
pedagogue, who, with many pauses
and apologetic utterances, spoke as
follows:
"You have all heard, and some
few have seen, the gray cloaked fig
ure that walks the Bowerie road at
night time. Some there are who
say it hath a tail like unto the evil
one, and divers others aver that it is
surrounded by clouds of rolling
brimstone smoke. I 6pent last even
ing with John Verlocht up at his
gristmill the other side of Corlears
Hook, teaching and explaining to
him the new method ed multiplier
tion. We had scarce half a score
mugs of ale, and my head was clear
as a bell when I saw a gray cloaked
figure hastily enter the door of the
Wursthaus."
"You will agree, Herr von
Schneist, that it is my bounden du
ty to search your premises?" quoth
the captain.
"Assuredly, herr captain," he re
plied, "but before you begin I will
serve you and your men with some
of my new ale." Without giving
them time to answer he hustled to
ward the big butt in the dark corner
and straightway dispensed a gener
ous measure of the beverage to
them. Not having such high opin
ions of the power of his Satanic maj
esty as the citizens, they quaffed it
down, but pronounced it stale and
flat.
Then began a scene of turmoil
and confusion enough to make the
vrouw's heart break with anguish.
But though the iron bound linen
chest was turned upside down and
emptied of its contents in an un
seemly manner, and though closets
were upturned, beds overthrown
and the whole house pulled out at
corners, she never murmured or
complained.
But nothing was found, and,
though the taproom was lightly
passed over, there was no place in it
that a man could hide, except pos
sibly the big butt in the dark cor
ner. That, however, was full of ale,
for had they not drunk some of it
And so the watch marched away
empty handed and left to the host
and his vrouw the task of putting
things to rights.
The gray cloaked demon was seen
several tiirtes thereafter, but no con
certed attempt was made to follow
it up. About two months from the
time of the fruitless search the few
faithful adherents of the Wursthaus
noted that both Hans and his wife
wore very grave faces. In a few
days they announced that a young
traveler |rom Boston was danger
ously ill in the darkened bedroom
upstairs, and the Dutch physician,
who had but just arrived from Hol
land, was sent for. He came again
and again, and the faces of the wor
thy couple showed a deep sympathy
for the youthful guest. Finally the
doctor came in the middle of the
night and stayed till morning, but
the soul of his patient fled before
the dawn.
Heavy grief o'erhung the Schneist
household, and the Wursthaus was
closed till after the funeral. Even
then old Hans showed a settled
grief in his altered demeanor.
Observant neighbors noted that
the big butt in the corner was never
used after the soldiers drank from
it, and when a few months had sped
and comparisons came to be made
it was found that the gray cloaked
phantom had never been seen since
the young stranger was taken sick.
It was also commented upon that
no one came from Boston to inquire
about him. But there was a many
who believed till their dying day
that it was a genuine ghost that had
beep seen by Jacob Twiller et al.
gliding along the old Bowerie road.
Wanted Them Lumped.
At the first commencement of
Washington college after General
Lee was elected its president sixteen
young ijien delivered orations, many
of which abounded in flattering al
lusions to the president general.
General Lee became more and
more restive, and finally asked Pro
fessor Allen how many more of
them were to speak.
"Only four, if you need it, gen
eral," replied the prbfessor.
The general drew up his chair and
whispered: "Could not you arrange
it, professor, for all four to speak
at once? I can't stand quite so
much praise to the face when it's
spun out."
Bright.
''Her children are very bright."
^Indeed?"
*0h, very! The youngest, even, a
boy of four, has already mastered
the rudimentary principles of scien
tific play and is about to enter on
the study of the more abstruse
forms. The teachers at the kinder
garten frankly confess they never
met with equal precocity. Often
children reach the age of ten with
out haiing learned to play scien-
1
Carefully selecting her men some
months ago, she sent them, to the num
ber of five, in the guise of ordinary
travelers through the country to the
capital. Here for a short time they
were placed under a sort of arrest. It
was not long, however, before they ob
tained their freedom. Their next bril
liant move was to embrace Mohamme
danism and become subjects of the
ameer, after which no further restric
tions were placed on their going and
coming among the Afghan people. They
have approved themselves most sedu
lous and devout followers of the proph
et, and, with the judicious backing of
the Russian government to assist them,
this surreptitious crusade has been
prosecuted under the happiest auspices.
There is much, therefore, affecting
the present relations of India with Af
ghanistan which in nowise can be said
to tend toward the continued mainte
nance of the close connection which has
subsisted since Lord Roberts marched
from Kabul to Kandahar and discov
ered thousands of pounds in Russian
gold, even in those days a conspicuous
element in Afghan politics.
While the ameer is, through his peo
ple, accepting Russian hospitality in the
north and is himself admitting Rus
sians to residence in Kabul, he is ar
resting and imprisoning British officers
on the Indian border line. It is an un
pleasant conjunction of circumstances
which cannot but presage a fresh de
parture from the settled order of things
in this direction which in so many
parts of the world has borne witness of
late to the instability of human affairs.
(Vovel Way to Get Money For Church.
As a means of obtaining money for
his church a clergyman of Jefferson,
Pa., has announced that he will wed
the most successful solicitor of funds
In his congregation.
THE MORRIS TRIBUNE, SATURDAY, AUGUST 1. 1903.
RUSSIA IN AFGHANISTAN!
A Plan to Increase Her Influ-|
ence In That Country.
FRIENDLY ADVANCES TO AFGHANS
Distrust of the Muscovite Said to
Have Acquired a Leas Restrained
Acerbity Under Present Ameer's
Policy—Brilliant Move of Czar's
Agents to Obtain Representation at
the Afghan Capital.
According to a late arrival from In
dia with large trading connections in
the northern provinces, it is interesting
to notice how the Russians in spite of
their preoccupations in north China ar«
doing the utmost that lies in their pow
er to permeate Afghanistan with their
influence and subvert that hitherto ex
ercised by Great Britain in the country,
says the Pall Mall Gazette.
Their opportunity undoubtedly came
when death removed the Ameer Abdur
rahman, who, jealous as he was ready
to show himself of every fancied Brit
ish encroachment, was nevertheless an
inveterate opponent of the aggressive
power on his northern borders, whose
offers of amity he so well knew how to
estimate at their true value. When he
died the dread and hatred of the Rus
sian to a great extent lost that vitality
in Afghan policy with which it had al
ways been inspired by Abdurrahman's
intimate personal acquaintance with
the methods and aims of his former
jailers.
Consequently those points of discus
sion with the Indian government which
were always subordinated to the su
preme distrust entertained for the Mus
covite have under his successor acquir
ed a less restrained acerbity. Propor
tionately, too, the increasing friendly
advances by the Russians, to the Af
ghan government in particular and to
the people generally, have not of late
encountered anything like the same un
compromising attitude as in former
times.
Everywhere in the bazaars of India,
those mysterious receptacles of news,
there is talk at the present moment of
increasingly strained relations between
the Indian government and the ameer.
And there is now little doubt in official
circles that the recent seizure and de
tention of Colonel Yate was due to
di­Mil
rect inspiration from Kabul or that the
incident forms a very unpleasant indi
cation of the disposition of the present
ameer toward the Indian government
While this feeling of hostility has
been developing fortune proved sig
nally favorable to Russian attempts
at closer intimacy. The recent increase
of famine in the northern districts of
Afghanistan afforded an excellent op
portunity, which the Russians have not
allowed to pass, of posing in the guise
of generous benefactors of the people
in their hour of need.
They have thrown open their stores of
grain to the starving people and pro
vided them with the necessities of life
free of all charge. That such highly
politic action will go unrewarded by a
corresponding inclination of Afghan
sentiment is highly improbable. The
gratitude of hungry men is not largely
swayed by considerations of high policy
which they do not altogether under
stand. And Russia may congratulate
herself on an achievement which is
likely to bear excellent fruit.
But this is not all she has been doing
in this direction. For some time she
has persistently endeavored to obtain
representation at the Afghan capital.
Hitherto she has failed, but that by no
means implies an abandonment of the
attempt. Russia abandons nothini
The desire to establish a Russian em
bassy in Kabul, apart from the suspi
cion with which It was always regard
ed by*the late ameer and in a second
hand fashion by his son, is a project
which England could never permit.
But that by hook or by crook her agents
should go to Kabul, whether officially
accredited or not, Russia was fully de
termined. Accordingly she has set
about it in her own characteristic way.
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