e conception of such
incongruity in the one case, and such an omission in the other, is
inconceivable, wholly irreconcilable with the notion of any other than a
mummer of a creator--a mere court fool of a God."

CHAPTER II

APPARITIONS OF DOGS

One of the most extraordinary cases of hauntings by the phantasms of
dogs is related in an old Christmas number of the _Review of Reviews_,
edited by the late Mr. W.T. Stead, and entitled "Real Ghost Stories."

"The most remarkable," writes Mr. Stead, "of all the stories which I
have heard concerning ghosts which touch is one that reaches me from
Darlington. I owe this, as I owe so many of the other narratives in this
collection, to the Rev. Harry Kendall, of Darlington, whose painstaking
perseverance in the collection of all matters of this kind cannot be too
highly praised. Mr. Kendall is a Congregational minister of old
standing. He was my pastor when I was editing the _Northern Echo_, and
he is the author of a remarkable book, entitled _All the World's Akin_.
The following narrative is quite unique in its way, and fortunately he
was able to get it at first hand from the only living person present.
Here we have a ghost which not only strikes the first blow, hitting a
man fair in the eye, but afterwards sets a ghostly dog upon his victim
and then disappears. The narrative was signed by Mr. James Durham as
lately as December 5th, 1890." Mr. Stead then proceeds to quote the
account which he had from Mr. Kendall, and which I append _ad verbum_
from the _Review of Reviews_. It is as follows: "I was night watchman at
the old Darlington and Stockton Station at the town of Darlington, a few
yards from the first station that ever existed. I was there fifteen
years. I used to go on duty about 8 p.m. and come off at 6 a.m. I had
been there a little while--perhaps two or three years--and about forty
years ago. One night during winter at about 12 o'clock or 12.30 I was
feeling rather cold with standing here and there; I said to myself, 'I
will away down and get something to eat.' There was a porter's cellar
where a fire was kept on and a coal-house was connected with it. So I
went down the steps, took off my overcoat, and had just sat down on the
bench opposite the fire and turned up the gas when a strange man came
out of the coal-house, followed by a big black retriever. As soon as he
entered my eye was upon him, and his eye upon me, and we were intently
watching each other as