‘And maybe that’s what he did do Victor. Kill himself!’ Isabella Ramsden looked at her eldest son with a pitying stare. ‘But I don’t think so! We may soon know the truth.’
‘Can we hear more, Freddie?’ Several voices spoke at the same time.
‘That’s okay by me then. I’ve never been one to refuse an audience. Let me just go back and we’ll come to the subject of ghosts in a little while.’
Taking a sip of his drink and following that with an appreciative, ‘Ahh!’ he continued:
’When we are confronted with something insignificant we sometimes label it with a meaning it doesn’t deserve simply because that is what we want to believe. It suits our purpose. The professional magician is an entertainer who, by using the power of presentation or the compelling authority of autosuggestion, sows the seed of doubt in the minds of his or her audience and it is then that the logic of the viewer becomes confused and distorted because they cannot believe what they are seeing. In many situations facts are misrepresented or vital pieces of information are left out and those involved are lulled into disbelieving that they could possibly be wrong. There is always an explanation if we can allow ourselves to see it. But we wear blinkers! Unlike racehorses, who wear blinkers to help them concentrate, we become blinkered and fail to notice essential information that is there for us if we choose not to ignore it.’
The speaker, who was warming to his subject, looked around at the faces in the flickering light and liked what he saw.
‘There are many theories but few explanations for historical facts such as The Marie Celeste, The Bermuda Triangle and The Indian Rope Trick so, when we cannot offer satisfactory explanations, we introduce ghosts. That means we bring in the supernatural which may or may not turn out to be the solution we are looking for. But there is something we might just have overlooked. We might just have accepted the historical fact as being a fact without first questioning its authenticity. We tend to believe what we see, read or hear even though it would appear to be impossible or implausible. It is then we bring in the ghost as the miracle worker. When the truth is eventually revealed the ghost theory is discarded and all ghosts are treated with equal disdain. But we forget that when no logical or acceptable explanation is available we should perhaps give the ghost the benefit of the doubt.’
Sally suddenly jumped to her feet with arm raised like a child in the classroom.
‘I’d like to ask a question. Why, when there seems to be no evidence to support their existence, do we still want to believe in ghosts?’
‘We hear and see what we want to hear and see and although science has explained many of the so called ghostly incidents there are still too many unexplained happenings for us to completely deny their existence and categorise them as total nonsense.’
’I think I hear Doreen coming with the coffee,’ said Laura clearing a space for the trolley. ‘Shall we have a short intermission?’
‘Good idea,’ said Mabel, struggling to get to her feet, ‘I think I’ve got pins and needles in both legs. I’d love an intermission; it reminds me of the movies.’
The door opened and Mrs. Gardner, complete with trolley, was silhouetted against the light coming in from the hall.
‘Goodness me, are you still using the candles?’ she said. ‘George managed to fix the fuses some time ago.’
Laura went over to help. ‘We’ve been talking about the spirits, Doreen, and it makes it more fun without the electric lights.’
‘We seem to be doing more than talking about them.’ Isabella said as she lifted a glass to her lips. ‘Why don’t you come and join us and get George to come along as well. It would be just like old times.’
‘That’s very kind of you. As you say, just like old times!’
‘And with the clocks going back tonight we all get an extra hour in bed! Isn’t that true, Mother?’
‘Yes, if you say so, Conrad. I never seem to remember when they go back or forward.’
‘Quite easy, Mother,’ said Victor placing another log on the fire. ‘Spring...forward, and Fall...back! A good way to remember; talking of which, I believe Giles did fall back earlier today. He took a nasty turn. Didn’t you, Professor?’
‘Yes, I did, Victor. I should have been more careful!’
The two protagonists glared at each other, their eyes smouldering until Giles turned away.
‘I’ll fetch two more chairs from the dining room,’ he said, and gave Doreen Gardner a nod and a smile.
Mrs. Gardner scuttled away with a cheery, ‘I’ll be back in a jiffy!’
Freddie watched the tableau with interest making mental notes until a cup of coffee was thrust into his hands.
In no time at all, Doreen and George Gardner joined the group gathered around the crackling log fire. Introductions were made before The Prof intervened with his nervous cough.
‘Aarrrgh! This reminds me so much of those wartime winter evenings when we sat in this very room and played charades that I would like to try a little experiment, before the evening is through. It is to do with word association; it is very simple and I’d like you all to take part. But before that, if Freddie doesn’t mind, perhaps he would give us an example of what he was propounding so eloquently before our intermission.’
‘So that Doreen and George are put in the picture,’ said Laura ‘Let me try and explain what Freddie was talking about before, as Daddy would have said, “The Wurlitzer organ came out of the floor.” He loved the “pictures", as he used to refer to them, and thought the world of Laurel and Hardy so Mabel’s rendering of A-Haunting We Will Go would have met with his full approval tonight. Freddie was making the point that events and happenings that somehow defy scientific explanation are listed amongst potential ghost stories until, that is, some logical explanation comes along and the influence of the ghost disappears. He was suggesting that everything depends on how we look at the “facts” and whether the so-called facts really stand up to close scrutiny or whether some factors have been left out or misconstrued or lost in interpretation or folklore. Jumping to conclusions, before making an attempt to look at all the evidence, leads to the introduction of the ghost. Would you say that’s a fair summing up of what you were telling us, Freddie?’
‘I raise my cup of coffee to you! You were doing such a good job, Laura that I was considering linking up with you for a mental telepathy act! Now I want to tell you a story. It is a tale of drama on the high seas that could easily have created notions of the supernatural and added to the myths surrounding the illusionist and escapologist. Before that here’s a footnote to that Laurel and Hardy film mentioned by Laura that illustrates, in a way, what I was saying about looking at all the evidence.’
Freddie appeared to be thoroughly enjoying his spell in the limelight as he looked around at his audience..
‘All my life,’ he said in a voice that hinted at adulation, ‘I’ve been fascinated by the Art of Magic. Knowing the secret of how something is done has never detracted from my enjoyment, simply because of the sheer brilliance of the artist’s performance. That said, the magician Dante is shown in the film A-Haunting We Will Go performing one of the great illusions where he has a lady assistant placed on a table and covered by a sheet. He then makes her rise into the air, shows that she is unsupported by taking a large hoop around her body and ends by pulling on the sheet to show that she has disappeared.’
Freddie looked across at his colleague who smiled and nodded.
‘Giles told me he saw the act performed by a stage magician before he became a historian of magic and he researched for years in libraries until he knew the secret. I am not at liberty to divulge that knowledge to those of you unfamiliar with the act but if you ever have the opportunity to watch the film again I urge you to keep your eyes on the stage floor when Dante pulls on the sheet. It is just possible that you might notice something that gives you a clue because he performs the illusion without the use of mirrors or trick photography. You probably won’t recognise what you see and e
ven if you do you might not be totally aware of its significance. But the point I’m making is that all the evidence is there, in Dante’s act, if we can only put it all in the correct order and not assume things which we think happened but in actual fact didn’t. Now to my little story.’
‘Before you start...would something a little stronger than coffee be to your liking Freddie?’
Laura took his empty cup and saucer and placed them on the trolley. ‘Whisky or brandy?’ she asked.
‘A brandy wouldn’t be out of place in this company. And it is just possible you could all do with one after you’ve heard my story!’
Freddie took the glass offered to him. ‘Thanks!’ he said, his steel-grey eyes sparkling with mischief in the candlelight.
At that point Victor intervened. ‘Can I interest you in a cigarette? Or are you another non-smoker like Giles?’
‘It’s one of the vices I’m not guilty of but Giles has been known to smoke the occasional cigar, though only when he has something very serious on his mind.’ He looked at The Prof who returned the gaze with a slight nod of the head.
Freddie smiled before continuing.
‘My story concerns a deep-sea diver using a commercial diving suit and working from a supply ship. The suit, first invented in early nineteenth century by a German inventor, was in one piece and made of heavy rubberised canvas for flexibility. It had a helmet, with built in windows, that was fixed to the breastplate of the suit by a screw ring and a safety lock and it was completely watertight.’
’The back of the helmet had long flexible tubes attached, supplying air and acting as a communication system. The rate of air going into the helmet was controlled by means of a valve on the side of the breastplate and another valve regulated the air breathed out by the diver.’
‘Now it was necessary for the pressure of air in the suit to be kept above that of the pressure on the outside and in the event of a failure of the air supply or an air hose being accidentally cut a special safety valve prevented air leaving the suit and causing the possible death of the diver. The communication system was, at that time, agreed between diver and surface crew and amounted to a certain number of pulls on the diver’s lifeline.’
Freddie took a sip from the brandy glass and looked at the sea of faces eagerly awaiting the rest of his story.
‘Everything was going according to plan until those working on the supply ship were suddenly alerted by the emergency tugs on the diver’s lifeline and the realisation that something was going horribly wrong with the supply of air.’
‘Desperation set in when the supply crew understood the gravity of the situation and the frantic tugs from below stopped. They knew the diver was either dead or unconscious. They also knew that if they attempted to bring the stricken diver to the surface too quickly they ran the risk of causing the diver to suffer the dreaded “bends” or decompression sickness due to the accumulation of nitrogen in the blood stream. In either case time was of the essence.’
‘They brought the man in the diving suit to the surface as quickly as they could. Only to discover... the man was no longer in the diving suit! He had disappeared. The suit was empty!’
Amidst a shower of sparks a half-burned log fell out of the fire. Someone jumped and a female voice said ‘It’s all right Edgar. It’s nothing to get upset about.’
George moved to put the charred wood back on the fire and said, ‘Will somebody get the lad something a little stronger to drink.’
Isabella Ramsden looked on and, with concern apparent in her voice, said, ‘I’m sure he’ll be fine. Just give him a moment or two.’
Edgar took the glass of brandy that was offered. ‘I’m sorry about that,’ he said. ‘It must have been my over active imagination. I was wondering what a tremendous appeal that would have had to one of the great escapologists. Just imagine, after escaping from a sack and tied hand and foot and thrown into the water, what an encore to escape from a diving suit at extreme depth! You have an explanation I assume?’
‘Oh, yes! But it illustrates what I was suggesting before. That jumping to conclusions can be very misleading and unproductive!’
‘When the diving suit was pulled to the surface and found to be empty it was assumed that the diver had left the suit or that ghosts had spirited him away. The reason for that was that he was simply no longer where he was when the crew had last seen him. He had moved to another spot in that confined space where he temporarily remained hidden.’
‘You see, when logic took over, the whole grim reality of what had taken place dawned on the crew. When the air supply had failed the return safety valve that should have prevented the escape of air from the suit also packed up. With no air going into the suit and all the air coming out, the enormous pressure of the water on the rubberised suit had crushed and squeezed the entire body of the diver into the helmet! A gruesome reminder of an experiment that can be partially demonstrated in a science laboratory.’
‘Well I’m blowed!’ said George. ‘Does that mean that you don’t believe in ghosts, Mr. Oldsworth?’
‘Please don’t put words in my mouth, George. I can call you George, can I? And you can call me anything you like, but please, not Mr. Oldsworth! I was merely making the point that many incidents that appear to involve the influence of things beyond our control can often be explained naturally if all the evidence is taken into account but, and this is the important thing, that still leaves some that cannot be explained by all reasonable means, and that is when we must consider the possibility of ghosts!’
‘Spooky, spooky, spooky!’ A familiar voice exclaimed. ‘The whole thing is quite spooky!’
‘I’d like to ask you something, George.’ said The Prof stirring from, what had been for him, a long period of silence. ‘You mentioned earlier that you had been in the cellar, this afternoon, checking the heating. I thought I’d heard something. How did you get in without me seeing you?’
’Sorry to disappoint you. No magic trick involved, I’m afraid. You see, when Mr. Ramsden had the system installed he had steps built at the rear of the house leading down to a back entrance. That gave me access without having to enter the house.’
‘You haven’t disappointed me. I was hoping it might be something like that.’
The Prof got to his feet, went over to Laura and whispered in her ear. As she left him and moved to the writing desk he turned towards Mrs. Gardner.
‘You’ve been very quiet, Doreen. Tired?’
‘I usually am at this time of year. I was thinking of dear Jack as I was listening to Freddie’s story and I couldn’t help wondering if ghosts could be ruled out when he was shot or if an explanation would ever be found to put our minds at rest. I suppose it’s natural to think of him as we approach Hallowe’en.’
‘I’m sure we’re all agreed on that,’ he said. ‘But before the evening gets any older and some of you decide to leave I wonder if you would indulge me. I wish to try a little game. It’s a game about word association.’
Laura passed around the group and handed each a sheet of paper and a pencil.
‘I want each of you to put your name at the top. Christian name will do!’
‘Like the exams all over again!’ exclaimed an excited Mabel.
‘Now, let me tell you what I want you to do. I will give you four or five words, one at a time. As I give you each word will you write down the first thing that comes into your head when you hear that word? No matter how ridiculous it may seem please write down your thought even if it makes up a short sentence. If nothing comes to you quickly leave a blank. As an example, if I say Night you might write Day or Club or Dress depending on what you associate with the word I give you. Are we ready? Now make your minds go blank!’
‘My mind has been blank for ages.’ Edgar’s remark brought hoots of laughter.
‘Here we go then! The first word is Black!’
The Prof gave everyone time to finish writing.
‘The second word is Fire!’
The
crackling of the burning logs and the scribbling noise of pencils were the only sounds in the room.
‘The next word is Shot!
Giles noticed several upward glances and raised eyebrows before his audience put pencil to paper.
‘The next word is Thirteen!’
Giles glanced around the room. All but one seemed genuinely involved in making a contribution.
‘I used to sail through exams but this is.!’ Victor left his mild outburst unfinished.
‘The final word is Boston!’
When the writing had finished Giles collected the papers and Laura took the pencils back to the writing desk. Everyone started to chatter in groups like students used to do at the end of exams. Isabella, Doreen and George decided it was time for bed. Conrad and Mabel and Edgar and Sally said they would have a final chat before turning in. Laura offered to show Freddie upstairs and Giles agreed to accompany Victor for a short walk outdoors.
The house gradually became quiet, keeping its secrets...at least for the time being.
Chapter 8
DEAD MAN’S SHOES
The extra hour in bed that marked the ending of summertime on that last Sunday of October was a total waste of time as far as The Prof was concerned. He was glad to arise from his fitful attempts at sleep after a night when slumber never came close to providing relief from the gnawing feeling in his stomach.
Wearing the clothing that Laura had left in his bedroom he slipped out of the still silence of the big house and headed for the stables. The sense of excitement and foreboding, at the prospect of getting back up on a hunter again, was heightened by the surge of adrenalin combined with the chill in the morning air.
He paused as he reached the south-facing windows of the library. The curtains were drawn but these were the windows he’d seen the face peering in at him as he wrestled with the problem of the safe - the windows that “old” George had patrolled on the night of the fatal accident. It was clear that, by staying beyond the southeast corner of the library, the windows on the east side could also be watched for signs of “jiggery-pokery".
The Statue of Three Lies Page 9
