In one of the chambers--the largest--there were fresh flowers in a vase,
evidently gathered that morning; and, what seemed still more remarkable,
the pitchers and ewers were freshly filled with water. This obliged Miss
Milly to notice another singular fact, namely, that the house was free
from dust, the one most obtrusive and penetrating visitor of Five Forks.
The floors and carpets had been recently swept, the chairs and furniture
carefully wiped and dusted. If the house WAS haunted, it was possessed
by a spirit who had none of the usual indifference to decay and mould.
And yet the beds had evidently never been slept in, the very springs
of the chair in which she sat creaked stiffly at the novelty; the
closet-doors opened with the reluctance of fresh paint and varnish; and
in spite of the warmth, cleanliness, and cheerfulness of furniture and
decoration, there was none of the ease of tenancy and occupation. As
Miss Milly afterward confessed, she longed to "tumble things around;"
and, when she reached the parlor or drawing-room again, she could hardly
resist the desire. Particularly was she tempted by a closed piano, that
stood mutely against the wall. She thought she would open it just to see
who was the maker. That done, it would be no harm to try its tone. She
did so, with one little foot on the soft pedal. But Miss Milly was
too good a player, and too enthusiastic a musician, to stop at
half-measures. She tried it again, this time so sincerely, that the
whole house seemed to spring into voice. Then she stopped and listened.
There was no response: the empty rooms seemed to have relapsed into
their old stillness. She stepped out on the veranda. A woodpecker
recommenced his tapping on an adjacent tree: the rattle of a cart in the
rocky gulch below the hill came faintly up. No one was to be seen far or
near. Miss Milly, re-assured, returned. She again ran her fingers over
the keys, stopped, caught at a melody running in her mind, half played
it, and then threw away all caution. Before five minutes had elapsed,
she had entirely forgotten herself, and with her linen duster thrown