A DREAM OF ENGLAND.

Cromwell Argus, Volume XXX, Issue 1513, 10 May 1898, Page 2

A DREAM OF ENGLAND.

Here, where the fig and vine bask hand in hand. And the hot lizard lies along the wall, Blinded I shrink where cypress shadows fall, And gaze upon the far-off mountains bland ; Or down the dusty track Lorenzo planned Watch the slow oxen oscillating crawl Sleek in the sultry glare, and feel withal Half alien still in a familiar land. But when from out the stone-pine elopes that rise In the clear ether, back against the blue, The cuckoo suddenly calls, I close mine eyes In visionary rapture, think of you, Hear the home-music of your moister skies, . And dream that I am drenched with English dew. —Alfred Austin in The World— Careggi, April, 1893. _______

The new observatory now being erected at Mont Blanc will be supported on what are termed ten screws, by means of which the building will be brought back to its normal condition should the movements of the glacier displace it. The roof of the observatory is to form a terrace wiih a parapet suppoi ting the cupola which is to receive the physical instruments.

The Milan Museum has recently come into the possession of a remarkable clock. This unique timepiece is made entirely of bread crumbs. A poor Italian workman made it. Every day ho set apart a portion of his modest meal in order to carry out his curious project. The bread crumbs saved by him he hardened by the addition of salt, aud at last his tedious task is easoplefestU

HOW GHOSTS ARE MADE.

A CHAT WITH AN - ITINERANT ILLUSIONIST. I met the ghost-maker at a country fair. In a field set apart for the village “ feas*” were roundabouts, shooting galleries, cocoanut shies, and the many and wonderful things which make up a rustic saturnalia. Arranged in a semi-circle were booths in which, for a few pence, the villagers were able to see the biggest woman on earth, the only living mermaid, the wonderful twins, and a bewildering army of ghorsls from the spectre of Hamlet’s father to the phantom which haunted old Scrooge. I mounted the steps leading to the ghost show and saw a fat man sitting in (.he paybox smoking a pipe with meditative deliberation. There was nothing spectral or uncanny about him. He was a happy, jolly, good tempered fellow, with a supreme contempt for the spirits which he charmed from the vasty deep. By his side was his buxom wife, a woman of massive figure, who, in the days of youth and beauty, bad played Ophelia in half the barns of England. I wept to think how many times the poor old lady had been drowned. “ Well, bow are the ghosts to-day ?” I shouted, as, with a Paul Pry movement, I pushed my head through the half-opened door.

“Oh, they’re having a rest just now,” chuckled the old man, as he removed his pipe from his mouth and pointed with his finger to a seat. “The spirits have vanished—into smoke,” and he put the wellworn stern between his lips again, and puffed away with supreme content. “How long have you been raising ghosts ?” I asked. “ Oh, a great many years. I have been on the road nigh on thirty years, and I’ve been raising ghosts all that time. Ah, yes ; I’ve got used to them by this time. They’re only flesh and blood, like many a ghost would turn out to be if examined.” “ Yes, 1 daresay. But haven’t your ghosts been taken for real spectres many a time ?” “ Ob, yes, in the early days of ghost shows. You see, the people knew nothing about it then. Now they understand how the illusion is produced. School Boards have nigh on ruined us. Boys and girls don’t come to our show expecting to be frightened—they come bo enjoy a scientific experiment. In the old days they came to the show with fear and trembling—ay,men and women too. They expected real ghosts, and they went away with the impression that they had seen them. Why, one night as the angels hovered over ‘ The Collier’s Dying Child,’ a woman shrieked to them to save the boy.” “ Yes, that part of the illusion is very realistic. You have had many experiences of that kind, I suppose ?” “No, not many. Ours is a very humdrum life. I remember playing Mephisto in an adaptation of i and, when one old fellow fot so angry at the way 1 helped Faust to ill his friend that he threw a heavy walk-ing-stick at my shadow. It struck the plate-glass in front and splintered it. When I saw what bad happened I threw the stage into darkness. The play was over for that night, you may be sure. “Ay ! talking of Mephisto,” the old fellow went on, his wrinkled face smiling with delight as he recalled the stories of his early days, “ I had a curious adventure once. I was playing Mephist oin a country village about the size of this, and all the men and women for miles around came to see me. The ghost show was a wonderful attraction in those days, sir. The country people used to watch the' play with breathless attention. Well, I had finished playing tho part one night when a note came behind the scenes to say that Mr. Verulam, of The Hall, wished to see me. I told the boy to bring the gentleman round, and immediately afterwards a fine, ,'welldressed man came to the corner of the booth in which I was disrobing. Catching sight of the fiery-red robes with which I was usually dressed for the part, he said, excitedly ; “ ‘ Stop ! don’t take them off. I want you to play Mephisto up at The Hall.’ “‘What?’ I cried with an incredulous look, * play Mephisto in a drawing room ? Can’t be done, sir !’ “ ‘ No,no, I don’t mean that,’he returned quickly; ‘come with me at once, and I’ll give you a five pound note for your trouble.’ “ ‘ All right,’ I said, and covered, up my red robes with a big shawl. He had his carriage waiting outside, and we gob into it and drove off in the direction of The Hall.

“ I was puzzled to know what he wanted me for, but my doubts were quickly allayed. It seems that his wife had lost a beautiful diamond bracelet, and suspicion had fallen upon one of the maids. The mistress of the house had good grounds for her suspicions, although they were not such as would warrant an arrest. The girl’s boxes had been searched, and every nook and corner of her bedroom examined. Nothing, however, was found. Mr. Verulam’s wife persisted in thinking that the girl had stolen the jewel, and hidden it until the matter had been forgotten. That night he ascertained that the girl had gone to see Faust with her fellow servants, and he hit upon a lucky idea. He knew how superstitious the maid was—in fact, all country girls were just then—and he resolved to take advantage of it. To do so he had invited me to The Hall to play the part of a ghostly detective. As soon as we reached The Hall he smuggled me through a side door into the library. There he disclosed his plans. He wanted mo to remain there in the dark until the maid arrived from the show. As soon as she came in he would ring for her in the usual way, and request her to light the lamp in the library. As she did so I was to make my appearance, cut off her retreat, and, in my most sepulchral tones, question her about the missing iewel. ” “ How diet the expedient succeed ?” I asked, much interested in the showman’s recital.

“ Oh, capitally,” and the old fellow chuckled again at the recollection of the incident. “ The maid arrived about half-an-hour later, having, of course, to walk all the way to The Hall, and shortly afterwards I heard the master give directions for the library lamp to be lighted. I stood in my red robes in a curtained recess near the door, and, as soon as the lamp had been fully lit and the girl was about to leave the room, I slowly emerged from my hidingplace and faced her. Well, you never heard such a scream, but luckily for me she didn’t faint. She simply yelled and shut her eyes. Then, in a sepulchral tone, I demanded the jewel for which she had sold her soul. Of course, coming after a play like Faust , in which jewels form an important part, the effect was very strong. The gTI shivered from head to foot, pointed to a large book on the third shelf of the library, and screamed louder than ever. I advanced to the table on which the lamp stood, blew out the light, and disappeared in the darkness. “ When the master of the house came up I indicated the book which the girl had pointed cub, and behind it we found the missing jewel. I got the five pound note ho had promised me and another in addition. Ay ! ” and the old man sighed as he leaned back, pensively, in his chair, “that was the best stroke of luck I ever had.” “ Well, now, for a little trade secret. How are these ghosts made ? ” “ I can show you best in this way. See” —and here he took up a little model of the stage he had made in his leisure hours, “ here you see how the whole thing is done. In the front of a ghost show stage you will always see—if you look carefully—a large sheet of glass. It is generally decorated at the edges and joined on to the ordinary stage, so that it is difficult to see it. Also —if you look carefully— you will observe a wide gap between the actual stage and the audience. That is the ‘ oven ’in which ghosts are made.” “ You don’t bake them, surely ?” “ No, but we roast them pretty well. When I want a ghost to appear at a certain pub ol bjhs tflay, ths original of the ghost

lies down on the lower platform, and a strong.light is thrown upon him by means of gas jets or an oxyhydrogen lamp. In that position he throws his hands and feet about as required, but seldom walks—because he can’t. When I want him to walk he is pulled along a trolley, and then, by moving hi? feet, the ghost is seen to be walking on the stage.” “ Then, how does the ghost disappear ?” “ Oh, easily enough. The oven lights are turned down and the footlights are turned up at an equal rate. Then the figure disappears.” •• “ You make the ghosts sing occasionally. How is that managed 7 ” “ Well, if you are near to the stage, you will perceive that the sound comes from the ‘ oven,’ and not from the stage. The men have to sing on their backs.” “ But how do you make the little cherubs float about,”

“ Merely optical illusion. The figures of the performers only are visible on the stage. All the apparatus necessary for their extraordinary attitude is draped in block so that although it is reflected on the stage, it is not visible to the people in the show. That is the way wo make the spirit’s hand write, and how we put heads on the stage without bodies. All the rest of the performer is carefully hidden with black cloth.— Million.