an and ravished her one by one. Luckily,
she did not live to mourn her shame, but died the same night. The
children were unmolested, and are now in Melbourne under proper
guardianship, and derive their support from the same station, which is
carried on by a shepherd who has been there for many years.

"Word was sent to me the day after the transaction, and I made an
investigation, but the perpetrators of the outrage were never
discovered. There is a tradition, however, and many shepherds in this
district believe it, that on certain nights the ghost of Buckerly is
seen wandering on the banks of the Loddon, with a winding-sheet covered
with blood, and that those who look upon the apparition are sure to be
overtaken by misfortune of some sort.

"I don't put much faith in the story," Mr. Brown said, edging towards
me, for the night was beginning to grow quite dark, "but still I must
confess to a feeling of superstition at times, and why should we not?"

Not knowing why we should not, I merely said, "Ah, indeed, why not?" and
as the latter part of the story had awakened me as thoroughly as the
first portion had set me to sleep, I refilled my pipe, lighted it, and
endeavored, by puffing forth volumes of smoke, to compose my mind, and
banish all recollections of ghosts and murders. The effort was futile,
for Mr. Brown liked to discuss such matters.

"What is to prevent Buckerly and his wife from visiting this world, and
wandering around the scene of their death?"

I hazarded a guess, and thought, that want of breath, and a difficulty
that they would experience in getting out of their graves without
assistance, would prevent, all such attempts.

"You know that their spirits live, and if that is the case, why can't
they enter the body and walk about the earth without difficulty?"

Never having studied the subject, I could not enlighten Mr. Brown as
well as I should have desired to; but he apparently was more busy with
his own thoughts than my answers, and continued,--

"If Buckerly should make his appearance before us while we were digging
for gold, how would we treat him?"

"By giving him a drink from our private bottles," I answered, promptly.

"If he should speak to us, would it be well to answer him? I have read
that if you exchange a word with a ghost, the unfortunate can be dragged
off without the power to struggle."

"What splendid assistants they would make for private lunatic asylums.
Patients could be carri