Project Gutenberg 2012-12-10 Public domain in the USA. 183 Hawthorne, Julian 1846 1934 The Laughing Mill, and Other Stories The laughing mill -- Calbot's rival -- Mrs. Gainsborough's diamonds -- The Christmas guest: a myth. E-text prepared by sp1nd, eagkw, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images generously made available by Internet Archive (http://archive.org) "The Laughing Mill, and Other Stories" by Julian Hawthorne is a collection of supernatural tales written in the late 19th century. The opening of one story transports the reader to a tranquil farmhouse by the sea where a sailor, Jack Poyntz, shares his life with his daughter Agatha and someone who appears to be the story's narrator. The narrative hints at intertwining themes of mystery and the supernatural, particularly through a pearl-shell necklace worn by Agatha, which may be linked to the narrator's family heritage and a long-lost heirloom. At the start of the tale, the narrator reflects on a summer afternoon spent at the Poyntz farmhouse, vividly describing the idyllic setting and characters. Jack Poyntz, a jovial old mariner, enjoys a peaceful moment with his daughter Agatha and the narrator after dinner. The conversation hints at local legends involving the "Devil's Ribs," a dangerous reef nearby, which leads to discussions about shipwrecks and Agatha's peculiar pearl-shell necklace. The narrator feels drawn to Agatha, intrigued not only by her beauty but by the necklace that resembles a family heirloom. As more secrets and stories unfold, notably concerning the mysterious past surrounding the necklace and the ghostly "Laughing Mill,” the opening prepares the reader for a blend of romance and supernatural intrigue. (This is an automatically generated summary.) file:///public/vhost/g/gutenberg/html/files/41592/41592-h/images/cover.jpg Reading ease score: 77.7 (7th grade). Fairly easy to read. en American fiction -- 19th century PS Text Browsing: History - American Browsing: Literature Browsing: Fiction Category: Short Stories Category: Science-Fiction & Fantasy Category: Crime, Thrillers and Mystery 474693 2025-06-16T19:01:43.625249 text/html 495242 2012-12-09T21:59:30 text/html 268927 2025-06-16T19:01:50.488251 application/epub+zip 272709 2025-06-16T19:01:44.976274 application/epub+zip 267564 2025-06-16T19:01:44.250226 application/epub+zip 397487 2025-06-16T19:01:54.942235 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 365437 2025-06-16T19:01:49.838215 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 360995 2022-09-19T04:54:20.464634 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 429871 2023-09-18T07:14:23.143633 text/plain 16016 2025-06-16T19:01:55.098171 application/rdf+xml 14533 2025-06-16T19:01:44.352216 image/jpeg 2263 2025-06-16T19:01:44.301234 image/jpeg 247690 2025-06-16T19:01:43.670240 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia