A JUDGES GHOST STORY. The Apparition of a Reporter at the Moment of Death.

Te Aroha News, Volume II, Issue 70, 4 October 1884, Page 5

A JUDGES GHOST STORY. The Apparition of a Reporter at the Moment of Death.

We will add but one further case~a case so strange that it will need the high authority on which it comes to satisfy the roader that he has not passed unawaro into the region of romance. We roceivod it from Sir Edmund ITornby, late chief Judge of tho Suprome Consular Court of China and Japan, who describes himself as " a lawyer by education, family and tradition, wanting in imagination, and no believer in miracles." He first narrates how it was his habit at Shanghai to allow reporters to | come to his home in the evening to get his written judgment for the next day's paper. They generally avail themselves of the opportunity, especially one reporter, who was also the editor of an evening paper. Pie whs a peculiar man, reticent about himself, and, I imagine, had a histoi'y. In appearance he was also peculiar. I only knew him as a reporter, and had no other relations with him. On the day when the event occurred, in 1875 or 1876, I went to my study an hour or two after dinner, and wrote- out my judgment. It was then about 11.30 o'clock. I rang for tho butler, gave him the envelope, and told him to give it to the reporter who should call for it. I was in bed before 12 o'clock. lam a very light sleeper, and my wifo a very heavy one. Indeed, it is difficult to rouse her out of her first sleep The bed— a French one— faced the fireplace ; on the mantel-peice was a clock, and the gas in the chandelier was turned down, but only so low as to admit of my seeing the time at any time of the night, for— waking easily and frequently — I often smoked a cigarette before I went to sleep again, and always desired to know the hour. I had gone to sleep when I was awakened by hearing a tap at the study door, but thinking it might be the butler— looking to see ii tho fire were safe and the gas turned oft' — I turned over with the view of getting to sleep again. Before I did po I heard a tap at my bed-room door. Still thinking it might bo the butler, who might have something to say, I said " Come in." The door opened, and, to my surprise, in walked Mr . I sat up and said, "You have mistaken the door ; but the butler has the judgment, so go and get it." Instead of leaving the room ho came to the foot edge of the bed. I said, "Mr , you forget yourself ! Have the goodness to walk out directly. This is rather an abuse of my favour." Ho looked deadly pale, but wa3 dressed in his usual dress, and was certainly quite sober, and said, " I know I am guilty of an unwarrantable intrusion, but finding that you were not in youv study I have ventured to come here." I was losing my temper, but something in the man's manner disinclined me to jump out of bed to eject him by force. So I said simply, "This is too bad, real|y ; pray leave the room at once." Instead of doing so he puthandontho footrail and gently, as if in pain, sat down on the foot of the bed. I glanced at the clock, and saw that it was about twenty minutes past 1. I said, "The butler has had the judgment since half-past 11 ; go and get it." He said, "Pray forgiveme ;if you knew all the circumstances you would. Time presses. Pray give me a precis of your judgment, and I will make a note in my book of it," drawing his reporter's book out of hisbreast pocket. I said, "Iwill do nothing of the kind. Go down stairs, find the butler and don't disturb me, you will wake my wife ; otherwise I shall have to put you out." He slightly moved his hand. I said, "Who let you in?" He answered, "No one." " Confound it," I said. " What the devil do you mean V Are you drunk ?" He replied, quietly, "No, and never shall be again ; but, I pray your lordship, give me your decision, for my time is short. " I said, "You don't seem to care about my time, and this is the last time I will ever allow a reporter in my house." He stopped me short, saying, " This is the last time I shall ever see you anywhere. " Well, fearful that this commotion might arouse and frighten my wife, I shortly gave him the gist of my judgment in as few words as I would. He seemed to be taking it down in short-hand ; it might have taken two or three minutes. When I finished, he rose, thanked me for excusing his intrusion and for the consideration I had always shown him and his colleagues, opened the door and went away. I looked at the clock ; it was on the stroke of half -past 1. (Lady Hornby now awoke, thinking she had heard talking ; and her husband told her what had happened, and repeated the account when dressing next morning.) I went to the court a little before 10. The usher came into my room to robe me, when he said : " A sad thing happened last night, sir. Poor was found dead in his room." I said, " Bless my soul ! dear me ! What did he die of, and when?" "Well, sir, it appears he went up to his room as usual at 10 o'clock to work at his papers. His wife went up about 12 o'clock to ask him when he would be ready for bed. He said, * I have only the Judge's judgment to get ready, and then I have finished.' As he did not come, she went up again about 12.45 o'clock to his room and peeped in, and thought she saw him writing, but she did not disturb him. At 1.30 o'clock she again went to him, and spoke to him at the door. As he did not answer, she thought he had fallen asleep, so she went up to rouse him. To her horror, he was dead. On the floor was his note-book, which I have brought away. She sent for the doctor, who arrived a little after 2 o'clock, and said he had been dead, he concluded, about an hour." I looked at the note-book. There was the usual heading. •' la the Supromo Court, before the Chief Judge

vs. 11 The Chief Judge gave judgment this morning in this case to the following effect"— and then followed a few lines of indecipherable short-hand. I sent for the magistrate who would act as coroner, and desired him to examine Mr 's -wife and servants as to whether Mr had left his home, or could possibly have left it without their knowledge, between 11 and lon the prexious night. The result of the inquest showed he died of come form of heart disease, and had not, and could not have, left the house without the knowledge of at least his wife, if not of his servants. Not wishing to air my " spiritual experience " for the benefit of the press or the public, I kept the matter at the time to myself, only mentioning it to my puisne Judge and to one or two friends ; but when I got home to tiffin I asked my wife to tell me as nearly as she could remember what I had said to her during the night, and I made a brief note of her replies and the facts. (Lady Hornby has kindly confirmed the above foots to us, as far as she was cognisant of them.) As I said then, so I say now— l was not asleep, but wide awake. After a lapse of nine years my memory is quite clear on the subject. I have not the least doubt I saw the man— have not the least doubt that the conversation took place between us. I may add that I had examined the butler in the morning— who had given me back the MS. in the envelope when I went to the court after breakfast— as to whether he had looked the door as usual, and if any one could have got in. He said that he had done everything as usual) adding that no

one could have got in if even ho had not locked the door, as there was no handle outside— which there was not. I examined the coolies and other servants, who all said they opened the door as usual that morning —turned the key and undid the chains, and I have no doubt they spoke the truth. The servants' apartments were separated from the house, but communicated with by the gallery at the back, some distance from the entrance-hall. The reporter's residence was about a mile and a quarter from where I lived, and his infirmities prevented him from walking any distance except slowly ; in fact, he almost invariably drove.— BmiDNit Hobnhy.— ".Nineteenth Century."