AT CHRISTMAS

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 2, Issue 245, 4 December 1940, Page 6

AT CHRISTMAS

CHANGING CUSTOMS THAT MAKE RESTFUL SOULS. What has happened to the ghosts of yester-year? Stories of ethereal knights in armour, of the clanking of medieval chains, and of the tragic laughter of court jesters, no longer appear prominently in contemporary records of Christmas "spooks." The explanation appears to be that spirits cannot remain earthbound for an indefinite period of time. As soon as tWeir earthly haunts are destroyed, their visitations are at an end. Ghostly visitations, in fact, tend to become modern in charaoter because spooks of earlier years have been released from their earthly bondage. Thus it is not surprising to learn that phantom motor-cars, driven by .spectral chauffeurs, have been seen in various parts of the country. •A very grotesque vehicle is said to have been seen in the vicinity of a downland village;— a .mere cluster of thatched cottages of incredible age, which-' have remained untouched by the onward march of civilisation. A motoring visitor to this village had spent Christmas Eve in the bar parlour of the inn where his modern, views. had not proved popular with the local patrons. He had showed scant respect for ancient beliefs and customs. Leaving the inn, he walked vigorously, and in a manner which seemed to show contempt for his rural surroundings. It was a fine, clear night, and the moon shone brightly. The visitor decided to walk a couple of .mites' before he sought his bed. Soon after he had left the village street behind him, however, he suddenly realised that he was completely out of harmony with the peace and quiet dignity of the countryside. For some obscure reason he began to feel uneasy.

He continued to walk with energetier strides, but his un-

easiness increased. Suddenly with his heart beating wildly, and the veins in his forehead throbbing violently, he dived into the ditch, just in time to avoid an uncanny "something" on wheels which had appeared without warning around a bend in' the road. He only caught a glimpse of it, but he had observed with frightened eyes that it was an ancient automobile:, equipped with heavy wheels, and with no hood or roof to protect the apparently frozen passengers who sat huddled, in rugs on the rear seats. This queer motor-car, moreover, was drawn by four white horses who pressed eagerly forward along the road. The driver, holding both steeringwheel and reins, wore chauffeur's uniform, but he was obviously an old coachman who had loved horses and had lived only for their welfare. On his face there was a demonic expression which seemed to combine fierce, hatred with intense exaltation. The terrified visitor quickly retraced his steps to the village inn where he recounted his experience. Most of the occupants of the bar parlour, however, laughed at him and ridiculed his story. But; a,n old man —the oldest inhabitant of the- village—silenced them and declared that he had seen the same phantom car the previous Christmas. "And/' he maintained, solemnly, "the driver was none other than old Joe Kemp who used to be coachman up at the Hall, Well I remember how indignant he was when the Squire sold his horses and coach, and told Joe that he must learn to drive a motor car.

"I'll never drive those stinking, rattling boneshakers, Joe used to 'say. But he did. And he was never the same man again. He was killed in a motor accident, two years after the horses were sold, and if I know old Joe, he died hoping that there would be a horse for him to drive in Heaven."