OUR SENTIMENTAL GARDEN 



the thrilling appanage of her new home with all the com- 

 panions of her own age who came to stay at the Abbey. 

 It was she who was destined to lay the ghost. One rainy 

 afternoon later in the same summer, the young members of 

 the house-party found themselves stranded together in the 

 great hall, and Rosamund cheerfully suggested table-turning 

 and spirit-rapping to while away the time till tea. It is a 

 never-failing amusement. 



Having produced a satisfactory condition of lurching, and 

 elicited several quite distinct raps from the round 

 mahogany table, she cried out : 

 " Let us call up the ghost/ 7 



Responsive knocks came, loud and marked. A system of 

 communication was promptly established. Two raps for 

 yes, one for no. Then the questioning began. 

 With much laughter and some agreeable tremors, it was 

 ascertained that the monk-ghost belonged to the community 

 which had dwelt so long at the Abbey / that he was dis- 

 satisfied with his present place of burial, which was outside 

 the old monks 7 burying-ground, now a part of the actual 

 garden. 



It is always safe, as I have said, to question a ghost on 

 this point. Now, however, some difficulty ensued when, 

 through the limited medium, the rapping spirit endeavoured 

 to specify the spot of its present abode, and the field was 

 too wide for exactness until a young sailor cousin inter- 

 vened. He had been playing, in mere idleness and utter 

 scepticism, the rather gruesome game. But at this point 

 he roused himself, interested to put the matter to the proof. 

 He fetched pencil and paper, and drew up a scheme of 

 latitude and longitude with reference to the garden walls / 

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