midnight
`` His grandfather , he said , was a frequent guest here in the old days . The man who built this house came over from England , it was said , to escape scandal . Very wealthy , handsome , and of noble birth , to all appearances he was a gentleman , having a very gracious way about him ; but in reality he was wayward , headstrong , and dissipated . He entertained lavishly , and his parties were the talk of the countryside -- especially the dress-ball which he gave every New Year 's Eve , starting at midnight and continuing throughout the next day and night . It was after one of these New Year 's parties , which was particularly riotous , that he disappeared as mysteriously as he had come . Friends who called at the house several days after the event found that the servants and the furniture had vanished , no one knew whither , and the house completely empty . Naturally , this gave rise to much speculation on the part of the townsfolk , who invented many stories ; some said that he had repented of his evil ways and fled into retirement ; others that the devil had carried him off for a companion in wickedness .