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A GHOST STORY.

Some friends of mine moved in a house the other day. Nothing strange about that My friends often moved They had moved from Vienna to Berlin, from Berlin to Paris, from Paris back to Munich, and from Munich to - Chicago. You see, there was never ny telling what my firnds would do. They were Germans by birth, and a merry corwd All of them were musicians The dead father had been famous orchestral leader in the Austrian court The mother, who is still living, and is a fine, arrogant and very handsome, Bohemian, has had her trumphs and been hand in hand with the famous personages of the estage of the last generation If I were to tell you the name of the eldest daughter every one would know it She is a woman with an international reputation, and she has won her laurcls by honest work with a magnificent cantralto voice. Her sister is hardly less famous than herself , but her service to the musical world is with the violin Then there are two sons, musicians both, and a friend, who has always been with the family, and who would not dare desert them. He is a man of business. He invests the money these people of genius make. His skill and their gifts enable them all to live royally Their entertainments are already famous in the literary and musical set of Chicago Their punches have never been excelled in that city, and any Sunday evening at their soirees, you may hear six tounges spoken fluently, and pick artistic quarrels with people form the most divergent parts of the globe. The house is one which rings with gayety. They are materialistic, hearty, wholesome people, with treendous appetitcs, and an insatiable love of leisure Aside from their musical ability they are the most unimaginative persons you could imagine

So, when they came to move, they were naturally not in the least dismayed when the neighbors told them the house was haunted.

"What should we care about ghosts,' said the great singer to me when I ventured to call on my last visit to Chicago ' We made up our minds no ghost walking could disturb us. Ghosts'" and she puffed out her great chest in expression of her increduility, "Why, we said/ Bah! the boys simply laughed. Mother passed it by without comment. She disdained remark. We got the house cheap. Well, that suited us. There was a music room, a dancing room-it was just what we wanted. Besides, the boys could play billards on the top floor. It was quite ideal. The neighbors told us a man had been killed in the front room on the third story. The baron, my husband and myself slept there. We were not worried You are? Well, the first night we were there we went to bed carier than usual -say, midnight. At 2 o'clock I was awakened by hearing someone walking about the floor on my room I awakened the baron He called out. There was no answer The steps made hurriedly for the door and descended the stairs. We concluded it must have been one of the boys In the morning we asked No one had left his room, but mother remarked that she also heard the steps We were interested But it passed We never thought of the ghost-never even thought of it. The next night the baron awakened me. "I hear those tootsteps again," said he. Sure enought, there they were. Again we called out Again the steps hirried form the room and down the stairs. The boys who slept on the story below, heard them, also They called up to us to know if anything was wrong We said no Mother got out in the curridon and touched the button, which turned on all the gas There was no one to be seen, but the steps went on, hurrying down the stairs Then we remembered the ghost The boys guffawed with [?] Mother looked dignified and indignant. She had no patience with the idea of a ghost We simply laughed about it It made a good story to tell at our next gathering. Everyone thought it quite diverting We used to wake up in the night and hear those steps and say, :There's our ghost again. What a persistent fellow he is" and then turn over and go to sleep again All would have been very well if we had not noticed after a time that mother was getting thin and that she seemed to be ageing very fast We called a physician to see her He said she was prostirated from lack of sleep. She had not told us that she was losing sleep. But when we came to question her she moke down untterly, and confessed that she could not sleep for those steps-the steps of the ghost of the murder who hurried down from the room where he had done his awful deed She is teribly pround, is mother. It went hard with her to confess all the Well then the matter seemed to be getting serious. We talked of moving, I will ever leave this house,' said mother, while I live. I have never qualifed before the living I will not quail before the dead. Well, we all obey mother Anyone would obey mother We could say no more Her words are always final But we determined to meet that ghost and have it out with him. The baron and the boys and inveself talked it all over I don't say that we might not have delayed if it had not been that when nest the steps sounded on our floor morher gave way utterly and [?] line a maniac Then we all began to love our nerve The baron-I am sorry to confess it hid the head under the bed clothes and shivered But I leaped out of bed and called ot the boys. 'Come, come." I daid it must be now. It must be tonight 'I felt terrible clated-like a man who goes up a fort to meet the enemy's guns The steps had got down to the second story this time, and the boys came out of their rooms. I jouned them, and the three of us followed those steps The ghost appeared ot be making a stand The steps were not hurried as usual. They were slow. As was expressed our derermination to dive him from the house the steps became obsinate, slow and heavy I walked on after them, angrily 'Go go,' I cried 'Go, you icked and murderous spirit, which will not show yourself. Walk your evil way our of this house forever Go, go!' You wouldn't have known the boys They were as white as the dead themselves-Those great hulking fellows. We went on down the second flight of steps, though the the dining room, through the kitchen, the cellar door opened before our eyes wihtout mortal hand to touch it, and we went still on down the cellar stpes, down the coal bin There was a heavy fall, a frightful wind seemed to fill the