Wall, it probably wusn’t a ½ an hour after that, my pride had a fall. Truly, when we are a-standin’ up the straightest, tottlin’ may come on to us, and sudden crumplin’ of the knees. There I had been a-boastin’, in my proud, philosophical spirit, that there wus no such things as phantoms, and lo, and behold! within 31 moments time, I thought I see a ghost appearin’ to me. I was skeert, and awe-struck. The way on’t wus, I stood there not thinkin’ of no trouble, when all of a sudden, I heerd these words;
“Oh, Doodle! Doodle! If you was alive, I shouldn’t be in this predickerment.”
If I had some hen’s feathers by me, I should have burnt a few, to keep me from given up, and fainting away. And then these words came to me:
“Oh, Doodle! Doodle! You never would have stood by, and seen your relict smashed to pieces before your linement.”
And as I heerd these words, I seen her appearin’ to me. I see the Widder Doodle emergin’ from the crushin’ crowd, and advancin’ onto me like a phantom.
Says I, in a low voice, “Be you a ghost, or be you a phantom? or are you a forerunner, Widder?” Says I, “You be a forerunner, I know you be.”
For even as I looked, I see behind her the form of Solomon Cypher, advancin’ slowly, and appearin’ to me. I felt strange, and feerfully curious.
But within ½ to ⅔ of a moment, my senses came back, for on givin’ her a closer look, I see that no respectable ghost, that thought anything of itself, would be ketched out in company, a-lookin’ so like fungation. I felt better, and says I:
“Widder Doodle, how under the sun did you come here to Dover town?”