The Royal Ghost

by Linda Stratmann

  ‘None that I have been able to discover. There is his fanatical devotion to spiritualism, which, since it is apparently well-meaning, is tolerated, and attracts many adherents.’

  ‘I cannot believe he is such a paragon. All men have secrets, and whatever Mr Hope’s may be, I will find it out.’

  Mina was aware of one of Mr Hope’s secrets, but the last thing she wanted was for any indiscretions involving her sister to be exposed to the ruinous air of publicity. From Mr Phipps’ comments she deduced that he had been trying to find some way of arming himself against Mr Hope. For all she knew he was having him followed by detectives. She hoped that her warning conversation with Enid had proved sufficient to ensure that no further assignations took place.

  Next morning, Mina, Enid and Louisa were discussing Mr Hope’s forthcoming talk on the subject of spiritualism, which was due to take place in three days. Enid demanded that they all go, and said that she could hardly wait to hear what Mr Hope would say while Mina, more reserved in her anticipation, thought she ought to go as she might learn something of interest. Louisa, however, was adamant that she did not wish to be seen at such an event, and declared that poor Mr Hope was a very misguided man and it was a pity he did not have a sensible wife who could explain things to him properly.

  ‘Mr Hope says that everyone should go as he has an important message we must all hear,’ said Enid. ‘He says people who won’t listen to him have closed their minds to the truth. Even Mina is going, and Mina is only just beginning to believe.’

  ‘Is that true?’ queried Louisa.

  ‘I neither believe nor disbelieve,’ said Mina. ‘All I can say is that I do not believe in anything I have seen so far. I very much doubt that being exhorted by Mr Hope will change that position.’

  ‘Well at least you are going to hear him,’ said Enid, sulkily.

  Mina did not say so but she rather wished that Mr Hope might prove to be his own worst enemy, and, carried away by his great enthusiasm, make claims that would invite ridicule and so weaken his influence. If so, she would like to be there to witness it.

  The conversation was interrupted by the delivery of a note from Mrs Peasgood, announcing that she wished to call. Her handwriting was not as elegant as usual, suggesting unusual haste in the composition, and there was hardly a decent gap of time between the arrival of the card and its sender. Rose showed Mrs Peasgood into the parlour and it was obvious that the visitor was very upset. There was a moment of hesitation as she saw all three women there together.

  ‘Why, what can have brought you here so urgently?’ said Louisa. ‘I do hope it is not bad news. Do you wish to speak to me alone?’

  Mrs Peasgood dabbed her temples with a cologned handkerchief and shook her head. Louisa gestured her to a seat, and told Rose to pour a glass of mineral water and then leave.

  Once refreshed, Mrs Peasgood began to speak.

  ‘I know that Mr Hope is a very important man, and he has such a charming way with him, so he always gets what he wants, but I am afraid that this time he has gone too far. He has just paid me a visit asking if he can hold a drawing room at my house and introduce the Misses Bland to all my friends.’ She pressed the cool glass to her forehead. ‘Is it true that he is a Viscount?’ she asked, faintly.

  Louisa and Enid looked at each other and it was left to Mina to say, ‘He is, but he does not make a great show of it.’

  Mrs Peasgood uttered a sigh that almost became a groan. ‘That makes things so much harder! I would like to oblige him in any reasonable request, but I do not want to have the authors of that disgusting book in my home.’

  ‘But you were at his lecture,’ protested Enid. ‘Surely you must remember – Mr Hope assured us that the authors composed it in all innocence, and cannot be blamed for how others might interpret it.’

  ‘They did not compose it all!’ snapped Mrs Peasgood. ‘Have you seen the Gazette?’

  ‘We have,’ said Louisa, ‘and it does appear that Mr Hope has been misled.’

  ‘Well I don’t believe it,’ said Enid stubbornly. ‘It is a well-known fact that not everything in the newspapers is true. Sometimes they just make it all up.’

  ‘In this case,’ said Mina, ‘I am inclined to believe the Gazette. Such a serious action would never have been taken without some proof. There must be an earlier publication which the Misses Bland copied.’

  ‘Well, even if they did, it wasn’t deliberate,’ argued Enid. ‘You’ll see; there will never be a court case and they won’t have to pay a penny piece.’

  ‘I don’t see how that could be at all,’ objected Mrs Peasgood. ‘And even if they simply forgot that they had read the other book, the one they have shamelessly stolen – one which I understand was wholly above reproach, to which they have added their own offensive insinuations – they have still committed plagiarism and will have to pay the price!’

  ‘But they did not read it and never have!’ exclaimed Enid.

  Mrs Peasgood stared at her suspiciously. ‘How do you know that? You seem to be unusually well-informed.’

  Enid blushed. ‘Mr Hope told me. I chanced to meet him in the street when I was out walking with Anderson and the twins, and we conversed on the matter. I mentioned the Gazette article and he said to take no notice of it as the accusation would be shown to be all lies.’

  ‘But how could they have copied a book they have never read?’ asked Mina.

  ‘Because it came to them in a dream. They have always shared their dreams and one night they found they had both dreamt the same thing, so they wrote it down. Dreams are very important things and we should always pay attention to them.’

  Louisa looked misty eyed. ‘I often dream of Henry as if he were still alive,’ she sighed. ‘He was a dear man.’

  ‘I can well understand that you would dream of father,’ said Mina, soothingly. ‘I dream of him, too, and the wonderful conversations we used to have. But I do not see how anyone could dream of the words of another person’s book.’

  ‘Perhaps the person who wrote it dreamed about it?’ suggested Enid.

  ‘That is not impossible,’ Mina agreed, ‘but can one person’s dreams enter the head of another?’

  ‘I trust they cannot,’ said Louisa, looking alarmed.

  ‘Did Mr Hope, in your fascinating conversation with him, elaborate on how it occurred?’ Mina enquired of Enid.

  ‘Not exactly, and I am sure it is a very strange matter which I would not be able to understand. But I suppose the Misses Bland have special brains, which allow it to happen. You must know about it, Mina, you divined where mother hid her brooch just from her thoughts.’

  ‘I guessed where it was, and explained afterwards exactly how I did so. I can assure you I cannot read minds, whatever Mr Hope might like to imply.’

  ‘Well, he says you can, only you do not like to admit it.’

  ‘Mr Hope places a great deal of reliance on what was no more than a simple parlour game,’ Mina explained to Mrs Peasgood.

  ‘But you only think that because your mind is closed to the truth!’ said Enid accusingly.

  ‘I think,’ said Louisa, ‘that Mina may have a better appreciation of the truth than you do. No arguments, please.’

  Enid frowned hard.

  ‘The fact remains,’ went on Mrs Peasgood, ‘that nothing will persuade me to have those women in my house, and neither will I enter any house they may be visiting. I have so informed Mr Hope. Anyone with the slightest pretensions to respectability will, I am sure, feel the same and do the same. I believe I make my meaning clear?’

  ‘Abundantly,’ said Louisa.

  ‘All of my dear friends are bound to agree with me. Which reminds me, I will be holding a musical and poetry evening a week next Wednesday. I shall very shortly be distributing invitations.’

  With that singular threat, Mrs Peasgood departed.

  ‘What a perfectly horrid person that Mrs Peasgood is,’ said Enid. ‘She thinks herself so grand that she can order other people who the
y might invite into their homes and where they can visit.’

  ‘I regret to say that she does hold some power in Brighton society,’ said Louisa, ‘if only because she has a drawing room ideally suited for entertainment and chooses to use it so. But she has had a great horror of anything that might be deemed suspect ever since she allowed that dreadful Miss Foxton to perform there. I am very pleased that I did not attend that event. I am told that she produced an apparition that was quite naked. Fortunately for the morals of the town, the woman has left Brighton. But our way is clear, I am afraid. If Mr Hope wishes to bring the Misses Bland here, they cannot come.’

  It crossed Mina’s mind that Mr Hope was not above using a subterfuge, and introducing the sisters under another name. She further realised, although she did not say it, that she had the advantage of almost everyone in Brighton since from her correspondence with Mr Greville she knew something of the appearance and character of the sisters. More importantly, no one else, least of all Mr Hope, knew that she had this information.

  Twenty-Seven

  Later that day, at a conference held by Dr Hamid’s cosy fireside where Anna was wielding a toasting fork, he told Mina that Mr Hope had called on him once again. ‘It is rather like being haunted, only by a living man. I am sure there are ghosts that give far less trouble.’

  ‘He keeps trying to charm me with flattery,’ said Anna, ‘he thinks he can charm all ladies.’ Her expression showed that Mr Hope’s efforts had been met with icy distaste. She stabbed a crumpet with more than the usual force.

  ‘Perhaps you could have him exorcised?’ Mina suggested with a smile.

  ‘I wish I could, but I am not sure how Reverend Godden would take such a request,’ said Dr Hamid. ‘It is still a matter of surprise to him that we attend church.’ He glanced fondly at a portrait of his parents, the Bengali father and Scottish mother who had raised their children in the Christian faith.

  ‘I assume that Mr Hope is still trying to obtain a statement from you?’

  ‘He is, but at your suggestion I am using the controversy over the Misses Bland to put him off. Of course no sooner had I mentioned them then Mr Hope, who is quite shameless in his espousal of every halfway plausible charlatan, asked if I would host a small gathering to introduce the Misses Bland to my friends. That, I refused outright. I felt quite safe in doing so, citing the alleged indecency of the book and the accusations of plagiarism, and pointing out that a doctor has to be above reproach. I think no more will be said on that subject. Is it true that they are already in Brighton?’

  ‘It is, and under Mr Hope’s protection. But I have some information about them, which Mr Hope does not know I have. I will tell you this in the strictest confidence as I would not want anyone outside this room to know it, but you may need it for your own protection in case he tries to introduce you to them by some subterfuge. I have discovered that one of the ladies in question suffers from a defect in her countenance, such that she will only appear in public if she is heavily veiled. I do not think it is simple modesty or a veil for protection against chills. There is some compelling reason why she does not wish her face to be seen.’

  To her surprise Dr Hamid and Anna looked very uncomfortable at this news and glanced sharply at each other.

  Mina understood at once. ‘Has this lady been to the baths for treatment?’

  Anna hesitated, then nodded. ‘She has, although she did not use the name Bland and I did not know it was she. I cannot, of course, discuss with you the nature of the medical condition or the treatment she received.’

  ‘I would not embarrass you by asking,’ said Mina. ‘I would very much like to speak to her. Will she return, do you think?’

  ‘It is very possible that she may do so since she felt some benefit from the treatment.’

  ‘Then I may well chance to see her here. Will you be attending Mr Hope’s talk on Monday?’

  ‘We will not,’ said Anna, before her brother could speak. ‘Given the subject matter it would be very unwise.’ Dr Hamid nodded agreement.

  ‘My sister is intent on going and I will accompany her,’ said Mina. ‘I will let you know if I learn anything of note.’

  The audience at the Town Hall for Mr Hope’s address on spiritualism was not only far smaller than had assembled for the lecture on Africa, but was differently composed. Many of the worthies of Brighton and their wives who had previously crowded to see the great man were notable by their absence. Louisa had, despite Enid’s entreaties, remained firm in her resolve not to attend but had asked Mina to let her know if the man showed any signs of coming to his senses. She, Miss Whinstone and Mrs Bettinson were going to a recital at the Dome. There was a scattering of young men present, some of whom were probably from the newspapers, while others looked as though they were happy to attend any kind of entertainment that did not include the warblings of a mature soprano. The bulk of the audience was made up of ladies of all ages and classes, many of them veiled, some of them in the company of embarrassed-looking husbands. By some dexterous manipulation, there was a goodly gathering of invalids in bathchairs, or accompanied by medical attendants. Mr Ronald Phipps was there, as was another gentleman with whom he exchanged some words, and who Mina felt sure must be the senior partner interesting himself in the Bland case, Mr Laidlaw. He was accompanied by a plumply pretty lady who, she guessed, was Mrs Laidlaw.

  Mina looked about to see if there was any lady in the audience with a more than usually heavy veil, but there was not. Enid was glowing, as if her unspoken happiness was enough to make her rise up and float above the company like an apparition. Even if her meetings with the commanding Mr Hope had been wholly innocent, a reputation could be destroyed in a few whispered words and more than ever Mina wished there was some way she could remove his influence from their lives.

  Hope took the platform and acknowledged the applause, his eyes moving carefully over the audience, nodding and smiling at those he recognised. Always an impressive-looking man, there was something especially compelling about him that night. His hair, dark with flecks of grey, was shaped like wings to frame a countenance that promised nobility, courage and strength. Everything about him inspired confidence, the very shape of his head implied the possession of a powerful mind, and told the audience even before he spoke that here was a man to be listened to, trusted and followed.

  ‘My dear friends,’ he began. ‘I am happy to see so many of you here tonight. We live in an extraordinary world where almost daily great discoveries are being made which will benefit mankind, and our understanding of the mysteries that surround us is growing faster than we can appreciate. We are emerging from the darkness of ignorance and superstition into a great and glorious light. We have machines that do the work of men, devices that capture light to create pictures, cures for disease. If a hundred years ago you had predicted that we might speak to men on other continents by means of a cable, you would have been derided as a fool, yet now the electrical telegraph beneath the Atlantic Ocean is a fact. What a wealth of knowledge we have, and who knows what marvels the future might bring. But science is only one kind of progress. How empty we would be without spiritual awakening. The good news for you is that we are at this time in a period of intense spiritual advance that has been unknown since the lifetime of Jesus Christ. And just as Christ was initially derided and rejected by all but a blessed few so the spiritualists who are ushering in this new movement are being attacked and ridiculed, when we should be hanging on their every word. Sad to say those men of science who have pronounced on phenomena that have been proven again and again to be real, have with a few notable exceptions done so from a stance of blind scepticism in which they ignore all the evidence that does not suit them, and then assert that everything is a fraud. Truly, I pity them. The subject on which I wish to speak is too great to cover in one evening, so I will proceed to tell you very briefly something of the history of the movement and its principal exponents.’

  Mr Hope then went on to describe the careers of those in
dividuals who had ushered in the new age of spiritual enlightenment. Many of the names were known to Mina from her recent reading. Some of these men and women were undoubtedly sincere – visionaries whose value to mankind would only become apparent with time and who for the present were either viewed as prophets or delusional depending on the preconceived notions of the listener. Hope reminded his audience of how the great prophets of the Bible had been received in their lifetimes and contrasted this with the way that they were now revered. Other individuals he named as the current leaders of the movement were, however, table-tippers or producers of raps and clicks, who Mina felt were less worthy of consideration.

  ‘There is a lady,’ he went on, ‘whose name I cannot mention, since there is a court case shortly to be determined.’ There was a stir of discomfort in the audience, some raised eyebrows, and a few frowns. ‘I see that some of you here are gentlemen of the press if your busy pencils are anything to judge by, and you may well have been present at an event which took place in Brighton a few months ago, which I am certain will soon prove to have been a monstrous misunderstanding. Prepare yourselves, in only a few weeks from now, for some miraculous revelations. That is all I have to say at present on that subject.

  ‘And now I come to the celebrated Misses Bland. I am sorry to say that many in this town have misjudged them on account of a circumstance that in my opinion only goes to prove their innocence. To the pure, all things are pure and it was beyond their imagination that anything they wrote could be seen in an indelicate light. I appeal to you on their behalf to receive them into your homes at small select gatherings and then you may make your own informed judgment.’ Mina glanced about her but saw little enthusiasm for this proposal amongst any but the newspapermen.

  He paused. ‘Ladies and gentlemen. Let us consider what the message is I am bringing to you. What is my name – my name is Hope and hope is what I bring. Over the years our religious leaders have given us little insight into the world of the spirit. For true knowledge and certainty we must turn to men and women of advanced intelligence who have been graced with the rare ability to see the wonders that lie in store for us.