Join us on a literary world trip!
Add this book to bookshelf
Grey
Write a new comment Default profile 50px
Grey
Subscribe to read the full book or read the first pages for free!
All characters reduced
Animal Ghosts - Animal Hauntings and The Hereafter - cover

Animal Ghosts - Animal Hauntings and The Hereafter

Elliott O'Donnell

Publisher: Sai ePublications

  • 0
  • 1
  • 0

Summary

In opening this volume on Animals and their associations with the unknown, I will commence with a case of hauntings in the Old Manor House, at Oxenby.
 
My informant was a Mrs. Hartnoll, whom I can see in my mind's eye, as distinctly as if I were looking at her now. Hers was a personality that no lapse of time, nothing could efface; a personality that made itself felt on boys of all temperaments, most of all, of course, on those who—like myself—were highly strung and sensitive.
 
She was classical mistress at L.'s, the then well-known dame school in Clifton, where for three years—prior to migrating to a Public School—I was well grounded in all the mysticisms of Kennedy's Latin Primer and Smith's First Greek Principia.
 
I doubt if she got anything more than a very small salary—governesses in those days were shockingly remunerated—and I know,—poor soul, she had to work monstrously hard. Drumming Latin and Greek into heads as thick as ours was no easy task.
 
But there were times, when the excessive tension on the nerves proving too much, Mrs. Hartnoll stole a little relaxation; when she allowed herself to chat with us, and even to smile—Heavens! those smiles! And when—I can feel the tingling of my pulses at the bare mention of it—she spoke about herself, stated she had once been young—a declaration so astounding, so utterly beyond our comprehension, that we were rendered quite speechless—and told us anecdotes.
 
Of many of her narratives I have no recollection, but one or two, which interested me more than the rest, are almost as fresh in my mind as when recounted. The one that appealed to me most, and which I have every reason to believe is absolutely true,[1] is as follows:—I give it as nearly as I can in her own somewhat stilted style:—
 
"Up to the age of nineteen, I resided with my parents in the Manor House, Oxenby. It was an old building, dating back, I believe, to the reign of Edward VI, and had originally served as the residence of noble families. Built, or, rather, faced with split flints, and edged and buttressed with cut grey stone, it had a majestic though very gloomy appearance, and seen from afar resembled nothing so much as a huge and grotesquely decorated sarcophagus. In the centre of its frowning and menacing front was the device of a cat, constructed out of black shingles, and having white shingles for the eyes; the effect being curiously realistic, especially on moonlight nights, when anything more lifelike and sinister could scarcely have been conceived. The artist, whoever he was, had a more than human knowledge of cats—he portrayed not merely their bodies but their souls.
Available since: 01/04/2017.

Other books that might interest you

  • Maxim Gorky - A Short Story Collection - Nominated for the Nobel prize in literature 5 times Gorky was a truly special short story writer we implore you to see why in this collection - cover

    Maxim Gorky - A Short Story...

    Maxim Gorky

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0
    Alexei Maximovich Peshkov was born on 28th March 1868, in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia. 
     
    Better known as Maxim Gorky he was orphaned at 11 and ran away from home at 12.  At 19 he had already attempted suicide and thereafter travelled, by foot, across the Russian Empire for 5 years. 
     
    His first book ‘Essays & Stories’ in 1898 was a sensation and so began a long career as an author of short stories, novels and plays.  Gorky saw writing as a moral and political act that would help to change the unjust world around him.  He was an ardent early advocate of the emerging Marxist movement and publicly opposed the Tsarist regime leading several times to his arrest.  
     
    In 1904 he began his own theatre but the censor banned every play and Gorky was forced to abandon the project. 
     
    But Gorky was a financially successful author, editor, and playwright and gave monies to political parties as well as for civil rights and social reform.  The brutal shooting of workers, which set in motion the Revolution of 1905, pushed Gorky more decisively toward radical solutions.  
     
    In 1906 he went to the United States to raise funds for the Bolsheviks. Those experiences including a scandal over travelling with his lover and not his wife deepened his contempt for the ‘bourgeois soul.’ 
     
    Gorky now moved to Capri in Italy, both for health reasons and to escape the increasingly repressive times in Russia.  
     
    An amnesty for the 300th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty saw him return to Russia in 1914. His politics remained close to the Bolshevik cause.  But soon, after the 1918 revolution, his essays referred to Lenin as a tyrant for his senseless arrests and repression.  He was soon appealing to the outside world for food aid after the catastrophic crop failure. 
     
    In October 1921 Gorky returned to Italy, now in Fascist hands, and settled in Sorrento until 1932.  His health worsened with the onset of tuberculosis. 
     
    He wrote several successful books there but now decided to find an understanding with the communist regime. Stalin invited him home and his return was hailed as a major propaganda victory.  He was decorated with the Order of Lenin, and a province, a park, and various streets re-named in his honour. 
     
    But he had his faults too.  In 1933, Gorky co-edited a book on the White Sea-Baltic Canal and denied even a single prisoner died during its construction, but thousands had. As well, knowing that some Nazis were homosexual, a phrase was attributed to him that said ‘exterminate all homosexuals and fascism will vanish’.  Although he was himself was quoting another he was decidedly homophobic. 
     
    With the increase of Stalinist repression in 1935 Gorky was placed under unannounced house arrest. 
     
    Maxim Gorky died on the 18th June 1936 from pneumonia.  He was 68. 
     
    Stalin and Molotov were among those who carried Gorky's urn of ashes at his funeral. 
     
    01 - Maxim Gorky - A Short Story Collection - An Introduction 
    02 - Twenty-Six Men and a Girl by Maxim Gorky 
    03 - One Autumn Night by Maxim Gorky 
    04 - In The Steppe by Maxim Gorky 
    05 - Her Lover by Maxim Gorky 
    06 - Chelkash - Part 1 by Maxim Gorky 
    07 - Chelkash - Part 2 by Maxim Gorky 
    08 - Chelkash - Part 3 by Maxim Gorky
    Show book
  • Tales of Terror: Robert Louis Stevenson - cover

    Tales of Terror: Robert Louis...

    Robert Louis Stevenson

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0
    Robert Louis Stevenson. In the Scottish canon to be placed alongside Burns is high praise indeed but it’s a rightful place for one of Scotland’s finest novelists.  Born in 1850 he managed to cram much into his 44 years travelling widely to France, the United States, Samoa and the South Seas.  Of course he is widely feted for his classics Dr Jeckyll & Mr Hyde, Treasure Island and poetry volumes such as A Child’s Garden Of Verses.  Here we concentrate on his short stories Olliah and The Body Snatchers.  Both offer compelling examples of narration and suspense superbly reduced to their essence.  This volume is brought to your ears by Richard Mitchley and Robbie McNab.
    Show book
  • Three Novellas - cover

    Three Novellas

    Joseph Roth

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0
    This collection showcases the renowned author’s “genius for metaphor, his compassionate irony, and his historical and psychological insight” (The Wall Street Journal). 
     
    Austrian author Joseph Roth was one of Europe’s most powerful and perceptive literary voices during the turbulent period between WWI and WWII. This collection presents three of his most enduring works of fiction. “The Legend of the Holy Drinker” tells the story of a dissolute vagrant who is uplifted for a short time by a series of miracles. Written in the final days of Roth’s life, it is a novella of sparkling lucidity and humanity. “Fallmerayer the Stationmaster” and “The Bust of the Emperor” are Roth’s most acclaimed works of shorter fiction.
    Show book
  • The Offshore Pirate - cover

    The Offshore Pirate

    F. Scott Fitzgerald

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0
    This short story begins on a yacht anchored off the Florida coast where a young woman, Ardita, and her Uncle are engaged in a heated discussion about her dating decisions. Ardita, independent and stubborn, is set on marrying a young man who her uncle believes does not have the highest character values. She refuses to leave the yacht they are on to go to town with him and meet someone who he believes is a better match for her. So she stays behind. 
    But while he is gone, the boat is overtaken by a band of pirates. Ardita is unwilling to surrender the vessel so they take her to sea with them and that is where the rest of the story unfolds.This short story is from the book "Flappers & Philosopers"
    Show book
  • The Short Stories of John Buchan - World renowned Scottish author and politician during the early 20th century - cover

    The Short Stories of John Buchan...

    John Buchan

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0
    John Buchan was born on August 26th 1875. After a brief career in the legal profession he began a twin career as writer and politician. He was a prodigious writer not just of fiction but of such acclaimed works as a 24 volume history of World War I. It was during the war, where, as a sideline writing propaganda he wrote his most famous works ‘The Thirty Nine Steps’. Its hero, Richard Hannay, continues his story in other Buchan novels, most notably Greenmantle (1916) and Mr Standfast (1919). After the war he became a Member of Parliament and in 1935 was appointed as Governor General of Canada. This title was added to his other very impressive collection: 1st Baron Tweedsmuir PC GCMG GCVO CH. He occupied the post of Governor General and continued to write until his death on February 11th 1940. In all he wrote 100 works including 30 novels, short stories, poems, biographies and many volumes about military history 
     This volume comes to you from Miniature Masterpieces, a specialized imprint from Deadtree Publishing.  Our range is large and growing and covers single authors, themes, and many compilations.
    Show book
  • Tiny Story Book - cover

    Tiny Story Book

    Anonymous

    • 0
    • 0
    • 0
    Short and sweet stories for children. (Summary by Dr. Heather A. D. Mbaye)
    Show book