Kinda of a crossover between "Little House On The Prairie" and ''The Ghost Of Mr. Chicken" that had Don Knott's in at from the Andy Griffith Show.
Something Is Strange Here:
A deactivate and his assistant from England were visiting the Military post at Stoney Pass, When Commander Kaiser asked for their help in solving why the Indian tribes around there were not getting their supplies. It was just discovered by the detective that a small band of renegade soldiers were actually stealing them. With that mystery solved the detective and his assistant said they must be on their way.
The next morning a stagecoach came through Stony Pass and the detective and his assistant boarded it. There was a passenger already on board. The stage set off.
The detective spoke, "Let me introduce myself and my assistant, I'm Inspector Donald Knotts from Scotland Yard and this is my assistant Andrew Griffin. We are visiting this great Country of yours.
The other passenger spoke, "Sorry mate, I'm from Australia my name is Mr. William Aussie. No jokes about the name, mind ya. I'm a big game hunter heading west a way. I heard the American Plains is great.
Inspector Knotts speaks, ''I should have guessed you were not from America but in my business it's never safe to assume."
The stage driver, Frank, yelled back, "Better button down the hatches. Rain probably a storm is coming and it looks like it might be a gully washer."
It was a storm, a gully washer. Wind was picking up thunder, lightning, the horses were getting nervous. Frank spoke again, "We'll never make it to our destination. There's a little place up the road Walnut Grove it's called. Will have to hold up there till the storm passes."
So Frank drove the horses in the fierce weather the best he could. He let the passengers off at the rooms for rent above the Post Office/ Doctor's office. Then he drove down to the Livery.
"Hans," Frank called, "Can I use your Livery to get my horses out of the weather?"
Hans Dorfler, The Livery owner responded, "Sure Frank, come in and get dry by the fire. You must be soaked to the skin."
Everyone settled down for the evening and went to bed. Before retiring himself, Inspector Knotts indulged himself into one of his books.
Everyone was sound asleep. Then about 12:11 in the middle of the night a loud shrill scream. Inspector Knotts threw on his robe and put on his slippers. His assistant Griffin followed. Shortly there after Mr Aussie came outside to were knotts and Griffin were standing, listening and looking around. Nels Olsen also came outside to join them. About 5 minutes later they all heard an Organ play: "Ta, Ta, Ta, Ta, Ta, Tum, Ta,Ta,Ta, Ta, Ta, Tum." Another shrill scream.
The next morning Knotts, Griffin, Aussie and Olsen along with Mr. Ingalls and Mr. Edwards (they also heard the organ and screams at their place and when they came to town they decided they'd join in the search) scooped the area but could not discover what happened.
Later that evening Mr. Edwards had decided he wanted some wild game for supper. It was dark, another storm was approaching. He decided not to get caught in it so he headed for home not quite making it he got caught in the rain. As he was passing by an old run down mansion separate from everyone no neighbors for miles, Mr Edwards saw a light in one of the windows but thought it was strange since it seemed no one lived there.
The organ music played: "Ta, Ta, Ta, Ta, Ta, Ta, Tum, Ta, Ta, Ta, Ta,Ta, Ta, Tum," Another scream.
Mr. Edwards turns toward his left about a hundred feet in a tree Mr Edwards saw what looked like a dead body in the tree. He looked back toward the house and the light seem to rise and move away from the window with no hand moving it. Mr. Edwards got away from there as quickly as he could, and it was a good thing for in the tree there was a pair of glowing eyes looking down on him, perhaps that thing or person would have pounced on him.
Mr. Edwards told everybody what happened.
Inspector Knotts responded, "Something is strange here, I reckon.
The Town goes on alert.
The next day in school Miss Beadle instructs her students, ''Now with the strange occurrences, everyone please be careful we don't quite know what we are dealing with."
"Miss Beadle," States Willie Olsen, I was swimming yesterday afternoon. Laura you know at the pond where you fish alot. I was swimming and that shrill scream, stretched and something in the pond grabbed me. I got away but I tore my trousers.
''Now class," Miss Beadle continues, "Please be safe. I care deeply for all of you."
Laura and Carl or talking after school and Carl said, ''You and me just fished there not two days ago."
Laura responded, ''You think Willie was stretching the truth? Sometimes he does.
''I don't know. I know what Pa said." Carl answered.
Meanwhile, while school was going on Inspector Knotts and Mr. Griffin look into the matter Mr Edwards related to the town. They go to the spot where Mr Edwards said he saw a hanged man and it was a broken branch struck by lightning hanging from the tree. They can tell by the barn marks the damage was done within 24 hours. They also noticed large paw prints around the old abandoned mansion and also prints of a big man both going toward the house. It appears where the paw prints end the man prints begin. "Strange, Mr. Griffin isn't it?" Inspector Knotts remarked.
Inspector Knotts takes out his big magnifying glass and looks for clues all around the mansion. He finds black hair on the steps of the mansion and drops of blood. "What is it sir?" Mr. Griffin asks.
"This will take more investigation but one thing I'm sure of is no one was hung." inspector Knotts answers.
Now at the fishing pond where Willie was streaming yesterday. After examining the area they discover a bramble bush in the pond that evidently blown in the pond by the last storm. In the bush they found the torn piece of cloth of the boy's trousers.
Inspector Knotts comments, "Quite obvious, Mr. Griffin the screams are real, the organ music is real but the other is all a fabrication of people's active imagination. I'm sure the set of prints have a logical exclamation as well."
They go back to the folks at Walnut Grove and explain their findings. Mr. Hansen says, "Everyone thought he was dead, no one heard of him or seen of him for 10 years or more. Who's footprints could they be except old man Atmos Pike's? That's his old mansion. He just let it run down."
So based on the theory that Amos Pike may still be alive and perhaps that's where the organ music is coming from. The Town of Walnut Grove wonders about Mr. Pike. Why did he close himself off from the town? Why does he keep playing that haunting tune on his organ? What is that terrifying scream that rips the silence of the night?
Inspector Donald Knotts and his assistant Mr. Andrew Griffin seek to answer these questions. They decide to campout by the Pike mansion. They invite Mr. William Aussie, a big game hunter to join them because Inspector Knotts thinks the screams could be coming from a wildcat and they themselves carry no weapons.
About 10 minutes to midnight they hear the organ music playing: "Ta, Ta, Ta,Ta, Ta, Ta, Tum, Ta, Ta, Ta, Ta, Ta, Ta, Tum," and the terrifying scream. they can feel a fierce presence nearby. They are on alert to whatever may happen. Mr. Aussie has his gun ready to fire. Inspector Knotts and Mr. Griffin have their eyes and ears wide opening listening for any sound at all.
They go inside the mansion and look around. The organ music plays louder and louder another spine tingling stream, then a sound of a thump, another stream. The sound of hands crashing on the keys of an organ. Footsteps closer and closer.
"Who are you?" An angry disturbed voice asked.
Inspector Knotts answers for all, "Something strange is here and we've come to investigate."
An angry disturbed voice answers, "You doing all that streaming and noise?"
Mr. Griffin answers, "No sir, Not us."
Mr. Aussie speaks, "Inspector Knotts, look! Animal paw prints on the dusty floor."
The four follow the tracks and find a crash through the floor to a cellar or something below. inside the hole that was made was a black panther. It lunges toward the men. Aussie aims his gun and shoots and kills the big cat. It was the same cat that was about to pounce on Mr. Edwards a few nights ago.
The angry voice said, ''Now get out! GET OUT! I don't want to see anybody anymore! Now get out, Leave me alone, don't come around here anymore. I don't need people such as you."
Well with most of the mystery solved the three visitors decide to get on the next stage and go on with life.
The next day Laura and her dog Jack were playing and chasing one another without realizing how far from home they come they found themselves near the Pike mansion. Jack sees a tomcat and chases it inside. Laura goes in after Jack. Laura hears the sound of a music box, retrieves Jack and walk up the stairs to where the sound is coming from. She hears a man weeping saying, ''You lied to me! You lied, you never were supposed to go away and leave me alone."
Laura walked into the room and saw the man sitting in a chair with a music globe with a lady dancing inside talking to the lady as if she was real.
"Who are you?" The man sighed exasperated.
''Laura from over the hill, my dog chased a cat in here." Laura responded.
"Let me show you something," The man said.
He took Laura outside around a clump of trees and showed her a grave with inscription: Lilly Baldwin Pike, Beloved wife of Mr. Pike."
"She left me Laura, she said she never would. She lied. Now I will never see her again." Mr Pike said weeping.
"Mr. Pike," Laura said, ''I just learned in Sunday school that Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life and in Him we will see our loved ones again," and she put an arm around him.
Mr. Pike asked, ''You mean, I'll see my Miss Lilly again?"
Laura answered, "In Jesus you can.
Mr Pike responded, "That gives me hope," he pauses and ponders, "Funny how hope can make things seem less strange. Thank you Laura for hope.
He embraces her. Then Laura goes back home with Jack. Mr Pike now socializes with the Town again and sits right behind Laura in church every Sunday never misses.
The End.