not, without wings, have traveled to that spot. Yet, incredible as it may appear to you, nearly about that spot was Tibbers's body found, but so distorted and bloated that but for the clothes no one could have recognized it. I request you to pay particular attention to this. About forty-six miles from his own house, in the county adjoining ours to the southward, and on the lands of Easter Tulloch, there was a body found, which was clothed in Mr. Tibbers's apparel from crown to toe; but farther than this, no man could depose, or even say that there was a likeness between the body found and the one lost. However, the body was taken home and interred as the body of William Tibbers, and his two handsome daughters were declared joint heiresses of, his property and great wealth. The astonishment that now reigned among the country people was extreme, and the saying of old Betty Rieves caused the most amazement of all; and it was averred, without a dissentient voice, that spirits had carried off Willie Tibbers through the air, and tortured him to death, and strange lights were reported to have been seen that day he was lost; but you may conceive how this amazement was magnified, when, immediately subsequent to these alarms, it was confidently reported that the ghost of Tibbers walked, and had been seen and spoke with about his late habitation! I never remember of any sensation like the one that prevailed in our district at that period. I had lived to see the war come to our doors, our chapel burnt, and our cattle driven off with impunity; but the consternation then was not half so great as at the period of which I am writing. I preached against it, I prayed publicly that the Almighty would moderate it; yet I thought that all this only made matters the worse. People actually left off their necessary labor, and gathered in crowds to gape, stare, The talk, and listen about ghosts, and of murdered people returning from the grave and the bottom of the sea, to which they had been sunk with a hundred pounds weight of lead at every foot, to wreak the vengeance of God on a monster of humanity. Matters now went all topsy-turvy at Castle-Gower together. heir was lost-totally lost; for he had never joined his regiment, nor been heard of at any part; and the next heir of entail arrived from Lower Canada to take possession of the titles and emoluments of the estate. The latter of these was much reduced, for all the land had been of late sold, except the entailed part, and that was considerably burdened. But now that Tibbers was out of the way, he had great hopes of reducing the late sale, and recovering the whole of the family property. Accordingly, an action was raised against the heirs of the late Mr. Tibbers, who defended, and the cause was tried in the High Court of Justiciary, among the records of which you will find it; for I do not know the particulars, and can only define the feelings that prevailed here. Mr. Tibbers's two daughters had retired to Edinburgh, to escape the confusion and terror that prevailed at home. They were amiable girls, and as much beloved by the common people as their father was hated. On the other hand, the upstart, Sir Thomas, as he now called himself, was a low-bred, vulgar, and disagreeable person, and was as much hated by the gentry as the commoners; so that the feeling with us was wholly in favor of the two young ladies, and it is amazing what anxiety was manifested on their account. The people said they could not tell whether the defender's late father had played false in his trusteeship or not. His employers had judged otherwise, and, at all events, the lovely and innocent young girls had no hand in his guilt, but had been tyrannized over all their lives. All parties, however, agreed in this, that if Johnie Gaskirk, who had acted as attorney for Mr. Tibbers all his lifetime, and knew of every transaction, stood as true to the cause of the daughters as he had always done to that of the father, they were invincible; but if he was bribed to take the other side, all was lost, and of this every one saw the danger; for the other party had been dangling with him and consulting him. What side Johnie Gaskirk had resolved to take, will never be known. Probably the one that paid him best, had not an incident happened that turned the scale in favor of his old employer. I know nothing about law, or law terms, and the less, perhaps, the better. But the success of the plea turned eventually on the want of a duplicate of a disposition. The pursuers denied the possession of it, arguing, that the one produced by the counsel of the defenders was a forgery, and the latter could find no proof of its delivery. Three times there were cunning men despatched all the way from Edinburgh to our county town, 145 miles, to consult Johnie Gaskirk, but neither of the parties were much the wiser. One night, however, as Johnie was sitting alone in his office with all the late Mr. Tibbers's papers before him, comparing dates, and taking notes, who should enter but Mr. Tibbers himself, and that in a guise which would have struck any man dead, save Johnie Gaskirk, who seems to have had nerves of steel. But be it considered that this frightful apparition opened the door of the office and came in like another man. It was dressed in the deceased's every-day suit, the same in which the corpse had been found, but its features were what Johnie called " unco gast!" "Lord preserve us! Mr. Tibbers!" said Johnie. "Amen! if you be honest," said the apparition, standing straight up with his back to the door, and its eyes turned on the floor. "Honest, sir?" said Johnie Gaskirk, hesitating. "Ye ken the folks said that neither you nor I were very singular for honesty. But God be wi' us, Mr. Tibbers, we thought you had been dead, but it seems you have been only in hiding." "Only in hiding," responded the figure. 'Aye, aye! Ye war ay a queer man a' your days, an' had queer gates," said Johnie. "But this is the strangest manoover of a'. This alters the case very materially." Yes, in so far as that, if you dare to pursue your present plans, I'll hang you ;" said the apparition. "That duplicate-Dare you for your neck, for you never set your soul at a farthing's value, deny the subscribing and delivery of that paper in this office?" "A man may be allowed to forget a thing, ye ken, sir," said Johnie. "And truly, though I think it natural that there should have been a duplicate, else the transaction wasna worth a doit; yet I canna say that I remember aught about it." "You do, you dog. It was signed by you and James Anderson, now in Montrose, and given to Mr. Baillie, who now thinks proper to deny it, and who has likely put it out of the way. But your three oaths will prove its existence. If you shuffle and decline doing this, I will first hang you, and then produce the paper in court to the proper authorities." Having said this, the stern and haggard figure of William Tibbers withdrew, and left his little attorney in an indescribable state. He declared till his death that he was not frightened, believing it to be the real William Tibbers, but that he was awfully confused and stupid. When he learned, a few minutes thereafter, that the street door had never been opened nor unbolted, then did his flesh begin to creep, his hairs to stand on end, and he knew not what to think. The first idea that then struck him, was that the hideous figure was concealed in his own house, an inmate of whose weening them at the time a little vicinity he little approved. The ghost of Tibbers, or himself, continued frequently to be seen; for, till this day, I cannot calculate with certainty whether it was the one or the other. I certainly would have judged it to have been an apparition, had it not been for the most extraordinary scene that ever was witnessed in this or any other country; and of which I myself was an ear and eye witness, and even that was no decisive proof either ways. It was as follows: There were some official men sent from Edinburgh to take a precognition relating to facts before our sheriff, to save expenses to the litigants. Fifty or sixty were summoned that day, but in fact the main evidence depended on the statement of Johnie Gaskirk, and it being that day quite the reverse of all his former statements, and decisive in behalf of the Misses Tibbers, the deputy advocate and the sheriff got both into a high fever at his inconsistency, and persisted in knowing from whence he had got his new light; insomuch, that after a great deal of sharp recrimination, Johnie was obliged to tell them flatly that he had it from very good authority. -from Mr. Tibbers himself! They asked him if it was from his ghost: he said he could not tell; he took it for himself at the time. He came into his office and conversed with him, and brought facts clearly to his remembrance. The sheriff and his compeers laughed Johnie Gaskirk to scorn; and the pursuers' counsel said they would have none of his dreamy evidence related at second-hand. If the said William Tibbers had anything of that sort to communicate, he must come into court himself, or answer by his deputy from the other world. The sheriff acquiesced, and granted rule, half out of spite at the equivocation of Johnie Gaskirk. The counsel wrote out the summons, of the words of which I have an indistinct recollection, blasphemous. The name was three times called in court by the proper officer, who then read the summons aloud. "In the name of God and the King, we their liege subjects and lawful officers, warn, summon, and charge you, William Tibbers, to appear here in court, either in your own person or by proxy, to answer upon oath such questions as may be asked of you.' The man had scarce done bawling or the crowded assembly with laughing at the ludicrous nature of the summons, nor had a single remark been made, save one by Johnie Gaskirk, who was just saying to the sheriff, " Ods, sir, ye had better hae letten him alane. He was never muckle to lippen to a' his days, and he's less sae now than ever.' Ere this sentence was half said, Tibbers stepped into the witnesses' bench! But such a sight may human eyes never again look on. No corpse risen from the vaults of a charnel house-no departed spirit returning from the valley of terrors, could present a form or a look so appalling. It is impossible to describe it. A shuddering howl of terror pealed through the house. The sheriff, who was well acquainted with Tibbers, flung himself from his seat, and on his hands and knees escaped by the private door, while the incorrigible Johnie Gaskirk called to him to stay and take the witness's evidence. A scene now ensued, the recollection of which still makes my heart cold. The court-room of our old town-house is ample, but illlighted. It was built in days of old, for a counsel chamber to the kings of Scotland. The entry is dark and narrow, and from the middle of this entry a stair as dark and narrow leads to what is still termed the ladies' gallery. The house was crowded, and the moment the horrid figure made its appearance, the assembly made one simultaneous rush to gain the door. They were instantly heaped above each other to suffocation. Yells and cries of murder! resounded from every quarter. The rush from the stair quite overwhelmed those beneath, and trode them to death. Such scenes have been often witnessed, but never by me; and when the ominous cause was taken into consideration, it was a most impressive and judgment-looking catastrophe. The one half of that numerous assembly were wounded or maimed, many of them for life, and nine were killed outright, so that it was with us a season of lamentation, of mourning, and great wo! From that hour forth, the appari tion of William Tibbers was no more seen on earth, that ever I heard of. But it was the general impression that it was the devil who appeared that day in court, and wreaked such vengeance on the simple and credulous natives. William Tibbers was indeed a Samson to us, for at this his last appearance he did us more evil than all the rest of his life. His daughters gained the property, but I cannot say they ever enjoyed it. The old adage seems to be realized in their case, that "a narrow gathering gets ay a wide scattering," for their great wealth appears to be melting away like snow from the dike.* FIRST ATTEMPTS TO COLONISE FLORIDA. FROM "The History and Topography of the United States," the first part of which has been brought forward in a handsome style by several enterprising publishers in England and America, we select the following description of the attempts made by the French Protestants, soon after the middle of the sixteenth century, to colonise Florida. "We must now advert to some of the most interesting but lamentable events that the history of colonisation affords, in which the deadly poison of religious bigotry was deeply intermingled with the hostility excited by commercial jealousy. The decided indications of a violent spirit of persecution, on the part of the Catholic priesthood of France, induced the brave Coligny to make an experiment, which might have issued in the provision of a safe retreat for a considerable portion of the oppressed Protestants. He formed a party of Huguenots, among whom were several of high respectability, who sailed under the com mand of Ribault, an officer of considerable spirit, with the intention of colonising Florida. After a favorable voyage, he arrived at the entrance of a river, which he called May, from the month in which he reached the coast. He here erected a fort, and then imprudently sailed for France, to bring out a reinforcement. Albert, to whom he delegated his authority during his absence, appears to have been both. unworthy and incompetent for so important a situation. From his extreme severity and ill-management, the colonists formed an inveterate hatred against him, which terminated in his death. In the excitement of internal dissensions the settlers had paid little or no attention to the production of food, and were compelled, after exhausting nearly all their stores, to make the desperate attempt of recrossing the Atlantic with the small remainder of their provisions. Being detained by a calm, they had commenced preying upon one another, when * The date of the above letter is 1749, and supposed to have been written by the Rev. R. Walker, of the Episcopal communion, to a brother in office. If so, it must have been from some chapel in Morayshire, for undoubtedly Elgin must be the county town alluded to. The distance from Edinburgh; the ancient town house in the middle of the street, with the village and quay, five miles down the river; all these, with other coinciding circumstances, fully warrant such a supposition. The original letter is directed to the Rev. J- S-n-n, Carrabluns Close, Edinburgh. 34 ATHENEUM, VOL. 5, 3d series. they were providentially delivered from their unhappy condition by an English vessel, which conveyed them to their own country. During the abode of these unfortunate men in Florida, Coligny had been so deeply engaged in the dissension at home, which had ripened into an open rupture and a civil war, that he was prevented from sending his intended reinforcement; but no sooner had peace been concluded, than he despatched a fresh expedition, under M. René Laudonnière, who arrived in the river May on the 25th of June, 1564. After sailing northward about ten leagues, he returned to the May, and erected a fort, which, in honor of his sovereign, he styled Fort Caroline. He proved, however, inadequate to the difficult task of presiding over a number of spirited young men, in a state of great excitement from the disappointment of their expectations, which had dwelt upon the prospect of golden harvests and unbounded wealth. Plots were formed against his life, and he was on the point of leaving, with the remains of his colony, for Europe, when a new expedition, under the command of Ribault, entered the river. That officer superseded Laudonnière, only, however, to experience still more melancholy disasters. Scarcely a week had passed after his arrival, when eight Spanish ships were seen in the same river, where several of the largest French vessels were lying at anchor. As the Spanish fleet made towards them, the French cut their cables, and put out to sea. Although they were fired upon and pursued, they escaped; but, finding that their enemies had landed on the shores of the river Dolphin, about eight leagues distant, they returned to the May. Ribault now called a council at Fort Caroline, which decided that they ought to strengthen the fort with all possible diligence, and be prepared for the He was himself, however, of a different opinion. Apprehensive of the defection of the friendly and auxiliary natives, if they should discover that, at the first approach of the Spaniards, they should confine themselves to their camp and fortifications, he judged it best to proceed against the enemy at once, before they should collect their forces and construct a fortification in their vicinity. To strengthen this view, he produced a letter from Admiral Coligny, containing these words: While I was sealing this letter, I received certain advice that Don Pedro Menendez is departing from Spain, to go to the coast of New France. See that you suffer him not to encroach upon you, and that you do not encroach upon him.' It was, indeed, the fleet of Menendez, which had just arrived on the coast, and given the alarm. Philip II. had given him the command of a fleet and an army, with full power to drive the Huguenots out of Florida, and settle it with Catholics. Fixed in his purpose, Ribault instantly took all the best of his men at Fort Caroline, and set sail in pursuit of the Spanish fleet, leaving Laudonnière in charge of the fort, without any adequate means of defence. Most unfortunately he was overtaken by a tremendous storm, which destroyed all the vessels, the men only escaping. Menendez now began to consider what advantage he could take of this state of affairs. It appeared to him, that, by pushing across the country, he would have every chance of reaching the fort before. circumstances would admit of Ribault's return. He set forth immediately with five hundred of his best troops, and, after overcoming the formidable obstacles of swamps swelled by torrents of rain, on the evening of the fourth day arrived within view of the fort. At daybreak, Menendez mounted the hill, and saw no appearance of any watch, and before Laudonnière could muster his little garrison, the Spaniards had rushed in, and begun an indiscriminate massacre of men, women, and children. Laudonnière, |
