A TASTE OF MAINE BIRCH 111 



next to a rude partition that divided the cabin into 

 two rooms. At his head there was a door that 

 opened into this other apartment. Late at night, 

 Uncle Nathan said, he awoke and turned over, 

 and his mind was occupied with various things, 

 when he heard somebody behind the partition. He 

 reached over and felt that both of his companions 

 were in their places beside him, and he was some- 

 what surprised. The person, or whatever it was, 

 in the other room moved about heavily, and pulled 

 the table from its place beside the wall to the mid- 

 dle of the floor. "I was not dreaming, '^ said Uncle 

 Nathan; "I felt of my eyes twice to make sure, 

 and they were wide open.'' Presently the door 

 opened; he was sensible of the draught upon his 

 head, and a woman's form stepped heavily past 

 him; he felt the "swirl" of her skirts as she went 

 by. Then there was a loud noise in the room, as 

 if some one had fallen his whole length upon the 

 floor. "It jarred the house," said he, "and woke 



everybody up. I asked old Mr. if he heard 



that noise. * Yes, ' said he, * it was thunder. * 

 But it was not thunder, I know that ; " and then 

 added, "I was no more afraid than I am this 

 minute. I never was the least mite afraid in my 

 life. And my eyes were wide open," he repeated; 

 "I felt of them twice; but whether that was the 

 speret of that man's murdered wife or not, I can- 

 not tell. They said she was an uncommon heavy 

 woman." Uncle Nathan was a man of unusually 

 quick and acute senses, and he did not doubt their 



