Chapter 1 1

Biggs was missing: Biggs had vanished; all the town was in a ferment;

For if ever man was looked to for an edifying end,

With due mortuary outfit, and a popular interment,

It was Biggs, the universal guide, philosopher, and friend.

But the man had simply vanished; speculation wove no tissue

That would hold a drop of water; each new theory fell flat.

It was most unsatisfactory, and hanging on the issue

Were a thousand wagers ranging from a pony to a hat.

Not a trace could search discover in the township or without it,

And the river had been dragged from morn till night with no avail.

His continuity had ceased, and that was all about it,

And there wasn't ev'n a grease-spot left behind to tell the tale.

That so staid a man as Biggs was should be swallowed up in mystery

Lent an increment to wonder-he who trod no doubtful paths,

But stood square to his surroundings, with no cloud upon his history,

As the much-respected lessee of the Corporation Baths.

His affairs were all in order; since the year the alligator

With a startled river bather made attempt to coalesce,

The resulting wave of decency had greater grown and greater,

And the Corporation Baths had been a marvellous success.

Nor could trouble in the household solve the riddle of his clearance,

For his bride was now in heaven, and the issue of the match

Was a patient drudge whose virtues were as plain as her appearance-

Just the sort whereto no scandal could conceivably attach.

So the Whither and the Why alike mysterious were counted;

And as Faith steps in to aid where baffled Reason must retire,

There were those averred so good a man as Biggs might well have

mounted

Up to glory like Elijah in a chariot of fire!

For indeed he was a good man; when he sat beside the portal

Of the Bath-house at his pigeon-hole, a saint within a frame,

We used to think his face was as the face of an immortal,

As he handed us our tickets, and took payment for the same.

And, Oh, the sweet advice with which he made of such occasion

A duplicate detergent for our morals and our limbs-

For he taught us that decorum was the essence of salvation,

And that cleanliness and godliness were merely synonyms;

But that open-air ablution in the river was a treason

To the purer instincts, fit for dogs and aborigines,

And that wrath at such misconduct was the providential reason

For the jaws of alligators and the tails of stingarees.

But, alas, our friend was gone, our guide, philosopher, and tutor,

And we doubled our potations, just to clear the inner view;

But we only saw the darklier through the bottom of the pewter,

And the mystery seemed likewise to be multiplied by two.

And the worst was that our failure to unriddle the enigma

In the "rags" of rival towns was made a byword and a scoff,

Till each soul in the community felt branded with the stigma

Of the unexplained suspicion of poor Biggs's taking off.

So a dozen of us rose and swore this thing should be no longer:

Though the means that Nature furnished had been tried without

result,

There were forces supersensual that higher were and stronger,

And with consentaneous clamour we pronounced for the occult.

Then Joe Thomson slung a tenner, and Jack Robinson a tanner,

And each according to his means respectively disbursed;

And a letter in your humble servant's most seductive manner

Was despatched to Sludge the Medium, recently of Darlinghurst.

You'll also like

A Goddess In Disguise: Divorce, Marriage, Domination

Ara Setti

4.7

Once Alexia was exposed as a fake heiress, her family dumped her and her husband turned his back on her. The world expected her to break-until Waylon, a mysterious tycoon, took her hand. While doubters waited for him to drop her, Alexia showed skill after shocking skill, leaving CEOs gaping. Her ex begged to come back, but she shut him down and met Waylon's gaze instead. "Darling, you can count on me." He brushed her cheek. "Sweetheart, rely on me instead." Recently, international circles reeled from three disasters: her divorce, his marriage, and their unstoppable alliance crushing foes overnight.

Free At Last, Untouchable Now

Cora Wells

5.0

For three years, Natalie gave everything to be the perfect wife and mother, believing her love and effort could finally earn her a place in their hearts. Yet her sacrifices were met with betrayal from her husband and cold rejection from her son. In their eyes, she was nothing but a manipulator, using vulnerability to get her way. Her husband turned his back, her son misunderstood her, and she never truly belonged. Heartbroken yet determined, Natalie left her old life behind. When her family finally begged for a second chance, she looked at them and said, "It's too late."

The Rise Of The Ugly Luna

Syra Tucker

4.6

Lyric had spent her life being hated. Bullied for her scarred face and hated by everyone-including her own mate-she was always told she was ugly. Her mate only kept her around to gain territory, and the moment he got what he wanted, he rejected her, leaving her broken and alone. Then, she met him. The first man to call her beautiful. The first man to show her what it felt like to be loved. It was only one night, but it changed everything. For Lyric, he was a saint, a savior. For him, she was the only woman that had ever made him cum in bed-a problem he had been battling for years. Lyric thought her life would finally be different, but like everyone else in her life, he lied. And when she found out who he really was, she realized he wasn't just dangerous-he was the kind of man you don't escape from. Lyric wanted to run. She wanted freedom. But she desired to navigate her way and take back her respect, to rise above the ashes. Eventually, she was forced into a dark world she didn't wish to get involved with.

The Cursed Heiress: Now I'm Their Billionaire Nightmare

Ruby Skye

5.0

Nadine reunited with her family, convinced she'd been discarded, rage simmering-only to find collapse: her mother unstable, her father poisoned; a pianist brother trapped in a sham marriage, a detective brother framed and jailed, the youngest dragged into a gang. While the fake daughter mocked and colluded, Nadine moved in secret-healing her mother, curing her father, ending the union, clearing charges, and lifting the youngest to leader. Rumors said she rode coattails, unworthy of Rhys, the unmatched magnate. Few knew she was a renowned healer, legendary assassin, mysterious tycoon... Rhys knelt. "Marry me! The entire empire is yours for the taking!"

Brilliance Unmasked: The Cold-Blooded Tycoon Wants His Vengeful Queen

Renard Jendrock

4.9

Arabella, a state-trained prodigy, won freedom after seven brutal years. Back home, she found her aunt basking in her late parents' mansion while her twin sister scrounged for scraps. Fury ignited her genius. She gutted the aunt's business overnight and enrolled in her sister's school, crushing the bullies. When cynics sneered at her "plain background," a prestigious family claimed her and the national lab hailed her. Reporters swarmed, influencers swooned, and jealous rivals watched their fortunes crumble. Even Asher-the rumored ruthless magnate-softened, murmuring, "Fixed your mess-now be mine."

THE LYCAN KING'S TREASURED LUNA

Jhasmheen Oneal

4.9

Narine never expected to survive. Not after what was done to her body, mind, and soul. But fate had other plans. Rescued by Supreme Alpha Sargis, the kingdom's most feared ruler, she finds herself under the protection of a man she doesn't know... and a bond she doesn't understand. Sargis is no stranger to sacrifice. Ruthless, ambitious, and loyal to the sacred matebond, he's spent years searching for the soul fate promised him, never imagining she would come to him broken, on the brink of death, and afraid of her own shadow. He never meant to fall for her... but he does. Hard and fast. And he'll burn the world before letting anyone hurt her again. What begins in silence between two fractured souls slowly grows into something intimate and real. But healing is never linear. With the court whispering, the past clawing at their heels, and the future hanging by a thread, their bond is tested again and again. Because falling in love is one thing. Surviving it? That's a war of its own. Narine must decide, can she survive being loved by a man who burns like fire, when all she's ever known is how not to feel? Will she shrink for the sake of peace, or rise as Queen for the sake of his soul? For readers who believe even the most fractured souls can be whole again, and that true love doesn't save you. It stands beside you while you save yourself.

Successful Recitations

Contents

Chapter 1 1

Other books by Wei Zhi

True Irish Ghost Stories

Stories of Childhood

Short Stories Old and New

Political Pamphlets

Famous Modern Ghost Stories

English Satires