Tom Ossington's Ghost

"'Listen! Can't you hear him cryingnow? Can't you see the ghost?'"CONTENTSCHAP. I. A NEW PUPIL.II. THERE'S A CONSCIENCE.III. TWO LONE, LORN YOUNG WOMEN.IV. IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT.V. A REPRESENTATIVE OF LAW AND ORDER.VI. THE LONG ARM OF COINCIDENCE.VII. BRUCE GRAHAM'S FIRST CLIENT.VIII. MADGE ... AND THE PANEL.IX. THE THING WHICH WAS HIDDEN.X. MADGE FINDS HERSELF IN AN AWKWARD SITUATION.XI. UNDER THE SPELL.XII. TOM OSSINGTON's LAWYER.XIII. AN INTERRUPTED TREASURE HUNT.XIV. THE CAUSE OF THE INTERRUPTION.XV. THE COMPANION OF HIS SOLITUDE.XVI. TWO VISITORS.XVII. THE KEY TO THE PUZZLE.XVIII. MADGE APPLIES MORE STRENGTH.XIX. THE WOMAN AND THE MAN.XX. THE FORTUNE.CHAPTER IA NEW PUPILThe first of the series of curious happenings, which led to such a surprising and, indeed, extraordinary denouement, occurred on the twelfth of October. It was a Monday; about four-thirty in the afternoon. Madge Brodie was alone in the house. The weather was dull, a suspicion of mist was in the air, already the day was drawing in.Madge was writing away with might and main, hard at work on one of those MSS. with which she took such peculiar pains; and with which the editors for whom they were destined took so little. If they would only take a little more--enough to read them through, say--Madge felt sure they would not be so continually returned. Her pen went tearing away at a gallop--it had reached the last few lines--they were finished. She turned to glance at the clock which was on the mantelshelf behind her."Gracious!--I had no idea it was so late. Ella will be home in an hour, and there is nothing in the place for her to eat!"She caught up the sheets of paper, fastened them together at the corner, crammed them into an envelope, scribbled a note, crammed it in after them, addressed the envelope, closed it, jumped up to get her hat, just as there came a rat-tat-tat at the hall-door knocker."Now, who's that? I wonder if it is that Miss Brice come for her lesson after all--three hours late. It will be like her if it is--but she sha'n't have it now. We'll see if she shall."She caught up her hat from the couch, perched it on her head, pushed a pin through the crown."If she sees that I am just going out, I should think that even she will hardly venture to ask me to give her a lesson three hours after the time which she herself appointed."As she spoke she was crossing the little passage towards the front door.

About the Author

Richard Marsh (12 October 1857 - 9 August 1915) was the pseudonym of the English author born Richard Bernard Heldmann. A best-selling and prolific author of the late 19th century and the Edwardian period, Marsh is best known now for his supernatural thriller novel The Beetle, which was published the same year as Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897), and was initially even more popular.

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