Johnstown High School - Spectator Yearbook (Johnstown, PA)

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SPECTATOR lit Mystery Manor Anna Swanson, 22 Between the Fletcher and Fleur-de-lis mountains, in the valley that God had forsaken, nestled the little town of Shadow City, inhabited by an ignorant and superstitious class of people-knowing little and caring to know less! Here also stood the old villa known as Mystery Man- or, rising majestically above its surroundings, with Black Pine Forest as a background. The gray outline of the old mansion, with its overhanging vines and long grasses, com- bined with the weird tales of the superstitious villagers, gave one a feeling of fear, while the strange noises made by imprisoned bats, creaking shutters, and crackling under- brush, added horror and dread. lt was here, tradition holds that the ghosts of dead men appear to frighten in- habitants and suppress evil doings. Many years ago this mansion had marked the dwell- ing place of a proud old Spanish family of Castillo, superior over all, paying homage to none. Felepi Castillo was the black sheep of the fold. It was he who had mingled with the inferior villagers, and he, too, had squandered the Castillo fortune. One night news ran like wild fire through the village that the Senora Castillo had been killed and that the Senorita Momano was dying. That same night Felepi disappeared and no trace of him could be found save a pair of blood stained gloves said to have been worn by the Senor on the previous day. ' Several weeks passed, yet the strange occurrence had not been forgotten and opinions ran high. There were those who were sure that the Senora had been foully mur- dered by her worthless son, while still others believed that Fate had brought down vengeance upon this family to re- duce its pride, yet each villager agreed that it was his duty to find the Senor, dead or alive, at any cost. Continuous searches were made, each searcher returning, weary and discouraged, from a fruitless hunt. At last, the party under Hans Brandon, a man who would not give up nor lose hope, and who was called the fire-cat of the village, returned. With him, came the body

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12 SPECTATOR , Grey who opened the window and greeted them with a smile. After making them Welcome, he explained the cause of his former sternness. He told them that he and his wife and children had been living in India, how an urgent busi- ness affair had called him home, and how he had later sent for his family but the ship on which they had sailed was re- ported missing. After years of investigation and inquiry he had given them up for dead and in his unhappiness he had come to the old house to live alone. But today he had received a cablegram telling him that they were among the few survivors of the ship-wreck who had reached an island and were now on their way to him. He was leaving imme- diately to rejoin his long lost family. When he had finished, the older members of the party expressed their happiness in his good fortune and they all returned home with a feeling of good will toward Mr. Grey. Thus We Arrive CApologies to Edgar A. Guestj It's the everlasting plugging that gets you to the top It's the everlasting pounding at the task you'd like to drop, It's the everlasting pushing that will put you to the front, It's the everlasting hoping that takes away the bump. It's the everlasting striving with all your might and main, It's the everlasting holding to the prize you want to gain. It's the everlasting climbing to the distant goal you seek, And the everlasting efforts that puts you on the peak.

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14 SPECTATOR J of Senor Felepi and the solution of the vexing murder. The Senor had been found, and, as Brandon told his story, the villagers stood aghast, moving only to faintly comment on the weird tale. Senor Felepi had been found in the thickest part of the forest, slowly dying from wounds and exposure, having been dragged from his home by the now dead panther, at his side. The panther had been killed after a violent strug- gle with Senor Felepi. It was the panther that had been responsible for the deaths of Senora and Senorita Romano, and now Felepi Castillo. Contrary to the supposition of the villagers, Felepi's name was cleared because of his brave struggle in trying to defend his mother and sister. The blacksheep of the Castillo family had been proved a hero and, though dead, he was honored by his fellowmen. As years Went on, the Castillos were never more heard of, save in stories told by the villagers and carried by travel- ers and strangers to the outer World. The old Manor still stands as a Warning against evil and as a ratification of the Weird, and often false, tales current in that locality. 4 l 4:13. Xi a Cliff Il' 1: x si -