A few
days after this, Virginia and her curly-haired cavalier went out riding on
Brockley meadows, where she tore her habit so badly in getting through a hedge,
that, on their return home, she made up her mind to go up by the back staircase
so as not to be seen. As she was running past the Tapestry Chamber, the door of
which happened to be open, she fancied she saw some one inside, and thinking it
was her mother's maid, who sometimes used to bring her work there, looked in to
ask her to mend her habit. To her immense surprise, however, it was the
Canterville Ghost himself! He was sitting by the window, watching the ruined
gold of the yellowing trees fly through the air, and the red leaves dancing madly
down the long avenue. His head was leaning on his hand, and his whole attitude
was one of extreme depression. Indeed, so forlorn, and so much out of repair
did he look, that little Virginia, whose first idea had been to run away and
lock herself in her room, was filled with pity, and determined to try and
comfort him. So light was her footfall, and so deep his melancholy, that he was
not aware of her presence till she spoke to him.
`I am so
sorry for you,' she said, `but my brothers are going back to Eton to-morrow,
and then, if you behave yourself, no one will annoy you.'
`It is
absurd asking me to behave myself,' he answered, looking round in astonishment
at the pretty little girl who had ventured to address him, `quite absurd. I
must rattle my chains, and groan through keyholes, and walk about at night, if
that is what you mean. It is my only reason for existing.'
`It is
no reason at all for existing, and you know you have been very wicked. Mrs.
Umney told us, the first day we arrived here, that you had killed your wife.'
`Well, I
quite admit it,' said the Ghost petulantly, `but it was a purely family matter,
and concerned no one else.'
`It is
very wrong to kill any one,' said Virginia, who at times had a sweet Puritan
gravity, caught from some old New England ancestor.
`Oh, I
hate the cheap severity of abstract ethics! My wife was very plain, never had
my ruffs properly starched, and knew nothing about cookery. Why, there was a
buck I had shot in Hogley Woods, a magnificent pricket, and do you know how she
had it sent up to table?
However,
it is no matter now, for it is all over, and I don't think it was very nice of
her brothers to starve me to death, though I did kill her.'
`Starve
you to death? Oh, Mr. Ghost, I mean Sir Simon, are you hungry? I have a
sandwich in my case. Would you like it?'
`No,
thank you, I never eat anything now; but it is very kind of you, all the same,
and you are much nicer than the rest of your horrid, rude, vulgar, dishonest
family.'
`Stop!'
cried Virginia stamping her foot, `it is you who are rude, and horrid, and
vulgar, and as for dishonesty, you know you stole the paints out of my box to
try and furbish up that ridiculous blood-stain in the library. First you took
all my reds, including the vermilion, and I couldn't do any more sunsets then
you took the emerald-green and the chrome-yellow, and finally I had nothing
left but indigo and Chinese white, and could only do moonlight scenes, which
are always depressing to look at, and not at all easy to paint. I never told on
you, though I was very much annoyed, and it was most ridiculous, the whole
thing; for who ever heard of emerald-green blood?'
`Well,
really,' said the Ghost, rather meekly, `what was I to do? It is a very
difficult thing to get real blood nowadays, and, as your brother began it all
with his Paragon Detergent, I certainly saw no reason why I should not have
your paints. As for colour, that is always a matter of taste: the Cantervilles
have blue blood, for instance, the very bluest in England; but I know you
Americans don't care for things of this kind.'
`You
know nothing about it, and the best thing you can do is to emigrate and improve
your mind. My father will be only too happy to give you a free passage, and
though there is a heavy duty on spirits of every kind, there will be no
difficulty about the Custom House, as the officers are all Democrats. Once in
New York, you are sure to be a great success. I know lots of people there who
would give a hundred thousand dollars to have a grandfather, and much more than
that to have a family ghost.'
`I don't
think I should like America.'
`I
suppose because we have no ruins and no curiosities,' said Virginia
satirically.
`No
ruins! no curiosities!' answered the Ghost; `you have your navy and your
manners.'
`Good
evening; I will go and ask papa to get the twins an extra week's holiday.'
`Please
don't go, Miss Virginia,' he cried; `I am so lonely and so unhappy, and I
really don't know what to do. I want to go to sleep and I cannot.'
`That's
quite absurd! You have merely to go to bed and blow out the candle. It is very
difficult sometimes to keep awake, especially at church, but there is no difficulty
at all about sleeping. Why, even babies know how to do that, and they are not
very clever.'
`I have
not slept for three hundred years,' he said sadly, and Virginia's beautiful
blue eyes opened in wonder; `for three hundred years I have not slept, and I am
so tired.'
Virginia
grew quite grave, and her little lips trembled like rose-leaves. She came
towards him, and kneeling down at his side, looked up into his old withered
face.
`Poor,
poor Ghost,' she murmured; `have you no place where you can sleep?'
`Far
away beyond the pinewoods,' he answered, in a low dreamy voice, `there is a
little garden. There the grass grows long and deep, there are the great white
stars of the hemlock flower, there the nightingale sings all night long. All
night long he sings, and the cold, crystal moon looks down, and the yew-tree
spreads out its giant arms over the sleepers.'
Virginia's
eyes grew dim with tears, and she hid her face in her hands.
`You
mean the Garden of Death,' she whispered.
`Yes,
Death. Death must be so beautiful. To lie in the soft brown earth, with the
grasses waving above one's head, and listen to silence. To have no yesterday,
and no to-morrow. To forget time, to forgive life, to be at peace. You can help
me. You can open for me the portals of Death's house, for Love is always with
you, and Love is stronger than Death is.'
Virginia
trembled, a cold shudder ran through her, and for a few moments there was
silence. She felt as if she was in a terrible dream. Then the Ghost spoke
again, and his voice sounded like the sighing of the wind.
`Have
you ever read the old prophecy on the the library window?'
`Oh,
often,' cried the little girl, looking up; `I know it quite well. It is painted
in curious black letters, and it is difficult to read. There are only six
lines:
When a
golden girl can win
Prayer
from out the lips of sin,
When the
barren almond bears
And a
little child gives away its tears,
Then
shall all the house be still
And
peace come to Canterville.
`But I
don't know what they mean.'
`They
mean,' he said sadly, `that you must weep with me for my sins, because I have
no tears, and pray with me for my soul, because I have no faith, and then, if
you have always been sweet, and good, and gentle, the Angel of Death will have
mercy on me. You will see fearful shapes in darkness, and wicked voices will
whisper in your ear, but they will not harm you, for against the purity of a
little child the powers of Hell cannot prevail.'
Virginia
made no answer, and the Ghost wrung his hands in wild despair as he looked down
at her bowed golden head. Suddenly she stood up, very pale, and with a strange
light in her eyes. `I am not afraid,' she said firmly, `and I will ask the
Angel to have mercy on you.' He rose from his seat with a faint cry of joy, and
taking her hand bent over it with old-fashioned grace and kissed it. His
fingers were as cold as ice, and his lips burned like fire, but Virginia did
not falter, as he led her across the dusky room. On the faded green tapestry were
broidered little huntsmen. They blew their tasselled horns and with their tiny
hands waved to her to go back. `Go back! little Virginia,' they cried, `go back!'
but the Ghost clutched her hand more tightly, and she shut her eyes against
them. Horrible animals with lizard tails, and goggle eyes, blinked at her from
the carven chimney-piece, and murmured `Beware! little Virginia, beware! we may
never see you again,' but the Ghost glided on more swiftly, and Virginia did
not listen. When they reached the end of the room he stopped, and muttered some
words she could not understand. She opened her eyes, and saw the wall slowly
fading away like a mist, and a great black cavern in front of her. A bitter
cold wind swept round them, and she felt something pulling at her dress.
`Quick, quick,' cried the Ghost, `or it will be too late,' and, in a moment,
the wainscoting had closed behind them, and the Tapestry Chamber was empty.
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