"Memoirs of the Hartley Family of Bingley and Staveley,  Yorkshire"
by Minnie Growse (1864-1939),

Foreward
Introduction
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
Low Hall
Notes
Hartley, Staveley
Hartley, Bingley

memoirs Continued 3

The Ghosts of Milton Hall

         She often used to stay with "Madam" Watson her Aunt at Bilton Hall and Aunt Christiana Hartley (the maiden aunt) often came too.

         Oon one occasion Aunt Charlotte was staying there as a young girl in her teens - and my Uncle Bishop (her brother) was with her, There were some bachelor rooms downstairs near the billiard room -two of these were allotted to Aunt Charlotte and  Uncle Bishop,  Aunt Charlotte jumped into bed after shutting the door, feeling a bit nervy downstairs and far away, even from "Bib" her brother.  However, she composed herself to sleep when, swish, came a current of wind blowing the door wide open with a loud rattle.  Poor little Aunt Charlotte thought perhaps she had not pushed the door quite tight, so flew out of bed and rapidly did so - but the moment she lay down it happened again and so on.  Through the terrifying night this went on. Aunt Charlotte managed to drag a bachelor chest of drawers out and push it against the door, but even then the swishing sound came and the door opened as far as it could.  In the morning the old housekeeper came to call her.  "How did you sleep Miss Charlotte?"  "Sleep" cried the poor child, "Not at all - that awful door would not keep shut."  "No miss, it never does unless a Farsyde ."Watson sleeps there."  Oh how cruel to put a poor little girl in that room,

Curiously enough, I met in the train, a nice lady and we got talking about the district - she told me there is a room in Bilton Hall where the door will never keep shut.  Aunt Chris, who got a little light in the head as time advanced, told me that once, she heard the billiard balls rolling about and being hit by the cues and a voice call out loudly, "Damn it Farsyde, that's a good shot."

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