“It doesn’t have to rhyme. Write anything you choose. It is supposed to be your message from the Land of Ghosts.”
“Do we have to be women?”
“No.”
The names pinned on represented many centuries and countries. Helen of Troy, Cleopatra, Queen Victoria, Mary Queen of Scots, Mrs. Browning, Florence Nightingale, Louise of Prussia, Marie Antoinette and Xantippe mingled with George Washington, Julius Caesar, Ulysses and other gentlemen of like fame. Five minutes were allowed for the messages, after which cups of “ambrosia” were to be passed for refreshment. The ghost who made the announcements suffered much difficulty in not lapsing into their natural tones. Cathalina was sure that she recognized both Eloise and Juliet. Cathalina had decided to be Xantippe, for she thought the girls would not suspect her choosing that character. With great enjoyment she wrote:
“When on earth, Xantippe, I!
Couldn’t bake the worst of pie;
Scolded Socrates,—O my!—
Till he filled the cup,—to die!”
“Each ghost will read her own verse, standing, and may be asked any questions by other ghosts. Remember that your laugh or some motion may betray you! If you are a sad spirit, give a groan as you complete the verse; if a happy spirit, a laugh.”
“Suppose you don’t know where these ghosts have gone to—what then?”
“Guess at it! If your identity is not guessed before the verses are finished, there will be other tests. The final unmasking,—or unveiling will come just before the feast. Next come the ghost stories in the moonlight.”
Several of the girls were discovered in the merriment over the verse and had to write their names under the assumed one on the tag. Then the light was turned off again and ghost stories began. Eloise was in the midst of a thrilling one, “And as she lay there in the moonlight, the French window swung softly open, an icy breeze seemed to enter and a cold hand was placed on her forehead,”—when one of the ghosts gave a little jump, said in a whisper, “Please excuse me a minute,” and slipped out of the door.
“Was she scared, do you suppose?” asked Eloise, pausing in her account.