The Project Gutenberg EBook of Madam Crowl's Ghost and The Dead Sexton
by Joseph Sheridan LeFanu

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Title: Madam Crowl's Ghost and The Dead Sexton

Author: Joseph Sheridan LeFanu

Release Date: March 17, 2004 [EBook #11610]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MADAM CROWL'S GHOST / DEAD SEXTON ***

Produced by Suzanne Shell, Gregory Margo and PG Distributed Proofreaders

MADAM CROWL'S GHOST and THE DEAD SEXTON

By

Joseph Sheridan LeFanu

Both stories were originally published in 1871.

CONTENTS

Madam Crowl's Ghost

The Dead Sexton

MADAM CROWL'S GHOST

Twenty years have passed since you last saw Mrs. Jolliffe's tall slim
figure. She is now past seventy, and can't have many mile-stones more
to count on the journey that will bring her to her long home. The hair
has grown white as snow, that is parted under her cap, over her
shrewd, but kindly face. But her figure is still straight, and her
step light and active.

She has taken of late years to the care of adult invalids, having
surrendered to younger hands the little people who inhabit cradles,
and crawl on all-fours. Those who remember that good-natured face
among the earliest that emerge from the darkness of non-entity, and
who owe to their first lessons in the accomplishment of walking, and a
delighted appreciation of their first babblings and earliest teeth,
have "spired up" into tall lads and lasses, now. Some of them shew
streaks of white by this time, in brown locks, "the bonny gouden"
hair, that she was so proud to brush and shew to admiring mothers, who
are seen no more on the green of Golden Friars, and whose names are
traced now on the flat grey stones in the church-yard.

So the time is ripening some, and searing others; and the saddening
and tender sunset hour has come; and it is evening with the kind old
north-country dame, who nursed pretty Laura Mildmay, who now stepping
into the room, smiles so gladly, and throws her arms round the old
woman's neck, and kisses her twice.

"Now, this is so lucky!" said Mrs. Jenner, "you have just come in time
to hear a story."

"Really! That's delightfu