stay at night in
the room, which she enters by a Gothic doorway leading from the crypt.
Few have ever ventured to sleep there, but not long ago a guest was
prevailed upon to do it, and next morning at breakfast he told his
story: "Having entered the room, I locked and bolted both doors,
carefully examined the whole room, and satisfied myself that there was
no living creature in it but myself, nor any entrances but those I had
secured. I got into bed, and, with the conviction that I should sleep as
usual till six in the morning, I was soon lost in a comfortable slumber.
Suddenly I was aroused, and on raising my head to listen I heard a sound
certainly resembling the light, soft tread of a lady's footstep,
accompanied with the rustling as of a silk gown. I sprang out of bed and
lighted a candle; there was nothing to be seen and nothing now to be
heard; I carefully examined the whole room, looked under the bed, into
the fireplace, up the chimney, and at both the doors, which were
fastened as I had left them; I looked at my watch, and it was a few
minutes past twelve. As all was now perfectly quiet, I extinguished the
candle and soon fell asleep. I was again aroused; the noise was now
louder than before; it appeared like the violent rustling of a stiff
silk dress. I sprang out of bed, darted to the spot where the noise was,
and tried to grasp the intruder in my arms: my arms met together, but
enclosed nothing. The noise passed to another part of the room, and I
followed it, groping near the floor to prevent anything passing under my
arms. It was in vain; I could feel nothing; the noise had passed away
through the Gothic door, and all was still as death. I lighted a candle
and examined the Gothic door, but it was shut and fastened just as I had
left it; I again examined the whole room, but could find nothing to
account for the noise. I now left the candle burning, though I never
sleep comfortably with a light in my room; I got into bed, but felt, it
must be acknowledged, not a little perplexed at not being able to detect
the cause of the noise, nor to account for its cessation when the candle
was lighted. While ruminating on these things I fell asleep, and began
to dream about murders and secret burials and all sorts of horrible
things; and just as I fancied myself knocked down by a knight templar, I
awoke and found the sun shining brightly."

This ancient house was originally the home of a lodge of Knights
Templar, and the