SUPERSTITIONS AND CUSTOMS.

possibly be that produced the noise, I was informed it was a boggle. In one of Anderson's pleasantest ballads, entitled "Nichol the Newsmonger," we find the hero thus describing an apparition :

A boggle's been seen wi twae heeds

(Lord help us!) ayont Wully car'us, Wi twae saucer een and a tail;

They du say it's auld Jobby Barras.

Yet probably there was no doubt that old Jobby Barras, when alive, had but one head and no tail.

Animal shapes are amongst those most commonly assumed by boggles. Large dogs, white horses, unaccountable cats, and white rabbits, all add to the boggle family; but are expected to appear where they have no business, to vanish through the dark side of stone walls, or to disappear down craggy, steep paths near which no well-meaning animals should be found. "It is said that a farmer at Hackthorpe Hall was led to the discovery of hidden treasure by an apparition in the form of a calf. He had noticed that this spectre always vanished beneath or near to a large trough, which at that time stood in the farm-yard. He had the trough lifted on edge, and found beneath it a hoard of gold, with which he afterwards purchased two estates in Cumberland. There is a somewhat similar story told of Howgill Castle.”*

The potters of the "olden time," before the apparition of policemen in these counties, were particularly well stored with boggle stories of the animal sort, which they related to each round their camp-fire by night. Haunted "plantins" there were in all parts. In some cases a white horse had been seen twinkling through the trees, in others the plantin had been agitated by a furious storm of wind, while no breath of air was stirring outside. One daring potter had run after a huge dog one night, had run, and run, until it disappeared; but he would take care never again to do so, for this dog was an old man who had committed suicide some four or five miles distant. There is a story of a potter who was returning from Staffordshire, and in some part of Westmorland laid down his

Rev. J. Simpson at the Kendal Nat. Hist. Society.

cart, and under it settled himself to sleep. During the night he awoke, and heard such a rattling amonst the pots, that he concluded the place was haunted, and not fit for mortal sojourn. He started up, caught his old horse, and travelled about seven miles further, until he thought he had fairly left the boggle behind. He "loosed out" again, and laid down, when the boggle recommenced. But it was now daylight, so he looked amongst his pots, and there was the secret-a cat he had stolen, had escaped out of the bag in which it was tied. And he had "clean forgetten it."

6

Of the extinct species of apparitions, now included under the name of boggles, the bargheist was perhaps the principal. Originally the spirit that haunted the tomb, or barrow (see page 47), in later times it came to be known by its noise. "To beal like a bargheist,'" Mr. Simpson informs us, "is still applied to crying children, and thou girt bargheist' serves as a term of reproach to any one who makes a bellowing noise, and disturbs the neighbourhood. I was yance,' says a person now living, 'ya neet, comen doon a lonnen, fra seein our Betty, when a' et yance I saw summet afore me. Efter a bit I went on, but it nivver stirred. When I gat near't, I fetched it a skelp wi my stick, and it gev a girt beal oot. I knew then it was a bargheist.' The brag of Northumberland and Durham is doubtless the same with the bargheist, the name being a contraction. An old woman said she never saw the brag distinctly, but frequently heard it.*

"It is a curious fact," says Mr. Simpson, "and well worthy of observation, that most of the places at which any remains of antiquity are found to exist, or any curious or interesting discoveries made, have had the reputation of being haunted. The , story of some fearful tragedy enacted on the spot may have been long forgotten; but from generation to generation the place has had an evil reputation. About thirty years since there were found in a place called Skellaw Warle, in the parish of Morland, eleven human skeletons. It is said that some of them had been buried with rings, apparently of gold, around their wrists, and .some

The Borderer's Table Book, by M. A. Richardson.

SUPERSTITIONS AND CUSTOMS.

brazen ornament upon their temples. But long before this discovery was made, the place had the reputation of being haunted: a man of dark complexion was seen to glide from one point of the rock to another, and silently disappear." A very remarkable cairn at Hollin Stump (near Asby) had a similar ill name. "There is a story told of a man passing this place on his road from Gaythron Hall to Kendal fair, being very much alarmed by an apparition that suddenly crossed his path. He said that there galloped past him a figure on horseback without a head, but wearing upon his shoulders something like a flat board."

6

'Do ye

Whether "bo" ever enjoyed an actual or independent existence I am unable to learn. Jamieson (Scottish Dictionary) defines bu as an object of terror, bu-kow as a scarecrow or hobgoblin, and bu-man as a goblin or the devil. Boggle-bo and boggle-de-boo do not seem to differ from ordinary boggles.* Mr. Simpson gives a good illustration of bo. "At a place lying to the northeast of Kendal, a man and his son were breaking in a mare. think noo,' said the lad to his father, 'et meyar ill nit boggle?' 'Neyah,' said the old man, she'll boggle nin, nit she; but we can try her. Gang thee thee ways, and git ahint a yat-stoop, en I'll git on't meyar en ride her through't gap-steed, en just as I's gangin til't, rear thee oot and shout bo! en if she stands that, she'll stand out.' The lad did as he was told, and the old man rode the mare very quietly towards the gateway. When he had approached within a few yards, out popped the lad with his dirty cap over his head, and shouted bo! Away went the mare across the field, and down fell the old man with a 'soss,' happily not much the worse for his tumble. Od's wile licht o' thee, thoo lile varment,' said he, 'thoo boes with neyah judgment at a'-thoo mud ha kilt thee fadder.'"

Westmorland never produced a more famous boggle-infamous

It may be worth mentioning that Boa is the name of the principal divinity of the northern people (Tungusians, Ostiaks, etc.). But bo, or boo, is more probably an Indo-European word (Sans. bhi, to fear). Boggle-de-boo may be translated "the spirit of fear."

JEMMY LOWTHER AND OLD SHEPHERD.

159

as a man, famous as a boggle-than Jemmy Lowther, well known, for want of a more appropriate name, as the "bad Lord Lonsdale." This notorious character, who seemed the transmigration of the worst and coarsest feudal baron ever imported into England by the Conqueror, became a still greater terror to the country after death, than he had even been during his life. He was with difficulty buried; and whilst the clergyman was praying over him, he very nearly knocked the reverend gentleman from his desk. When placed in the grave, the power of creating alarm was not interred with his bones. There were disturbances in the Hall, noises in the stables; neither men nor animals were suffered to rest. Jemmy's "coach and six" is still remembered and spoken of, from which we are probably to understand that he produced a noise, as boggles frequently do, like an equipage of this description. There is nothing said of his shape, or whether he ever appeared at all; but it is certain he made himself audible. The Hall became almost uninhabitable, and out of doors there was constant danger of meeting the miscreant ghost. In desperate cases of this kind, it appears, there is no assistance to be had, except from a Catholic priest, one reason being that the exorcism must be made in Latin. Jemmy, however-obstinate old boggle!-stood a long siege; and when at length he offered terms of capitulation, was only willing to go to the Red Sea for a year and a day. But it was decided that these terms should not be accepted; the priest read on until he fully overpowered the tyrant, and laid him under a large rock called Wallow Crag, and laid him for ever.

In modern times, when the personality of the boggles is known, it appears that most of them are, like Jemmy Lowther, individuals who enjoyed an unenviable notoriety while living, and for whom there is no sympathy after death. About the latter end of the last century, a man well known in the neighbourhood of Appleby as Old Shepherd, whose life had not been spent in virtuous deeds, became so troublesome as a boggle, that he had to be forcibly expelled the house, and laid. A Catholic priest was the exorcist, and the "material guarantee," under which he was laid, a large stone not far from the door. My informant, who lived in that part

འམ་ ་་ ་་་་་ '

p ༦�་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་ང་་་འ་་་་་་་་་་ 'ར་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་ W་་་་་་ད། ད་ད་ད་་་ད་ད་ད་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་་དདདདད་འབའཨ ་འ བར་ག་ ན་འ ་་ད། ། ་ ་།་དབཏ

of the country about forty years ago, on the occasion of an election triumph, assisted at a bone-fire within a short distance of Old Shepherd's house. Whilst they were enjoying themselves round the fire, and "cracking" of Old Shepherd, lo! the old fellow made his appearance from under the stone in the shape of a large white something; but he turned off sideways, and sailed down the “beck," in which they could hear him splashing like a horse. Encouraged by the shyness of the boggle, they burned out their fire, and removed further down the "beck side," where some wood was known to be lying. Here they made another fire, when Old Shepherd again hove in sight. The second time my informant did not see him, but some one gave the alarm, and all dispersed for the night.

Some incredulous individuals there are who may consider unsatisfactory the evidence on the boggle cases narrated; all such are requested to read the story of the Henhow boggle, the truth of which they may ascertain by a little inquiry. It happened about twenty-three years ago. The man to whom the boggle appeared was living in Martindale, at a cottage called Henhow. His wife had heard some unaccountable noise in or around the house, and informed her husband, but no farther notice was taken. One morning he had to go to his work at an early hour, and having several miles to walk, he started soon after midnight. He had not got above two hundred yards from the house, when the dog by which he was accompanied, gave signs of alarm. He looked round -at the other side of the wall that bounded the road, appeared a woman, keeping pace with him, and carrying a child in her arms. There was no means of escape; he spoke to the figure, and asked her what was troubling her?" Then she told him her story.

66

She had once lived at Henhow, and had been seduced. Her seducer, to cloak his guilt and her frailty, met her by appointment at a certain market-town, and gave her a medicine, the purpose of which is obvious. It proved too potent, and killed both mother and child. Her doom was to wander thus for a hundred years, forty of which were already expired. On his return home at night, the man told what he had seen and heard; and when the