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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Clinton News Record, 1931-12-17, Page 5Ba1dist�lle! Christmas Advellture be The Last Witch of Cragraven E. D. •McGee in The Blue Bell 'The eemnmrts of the Baldistetre family left Scotland shortly after - the Jacobite Rebellion. of 179.5: 'Prae- . ticealy all of the menfolk were slain at Culloden, fighting in the hopeless and, perhaps, unholy cause of the pie- turesque and gallant young man who is knewn in -history as The Young Pretender, but who is celebrated in Scottish song and story as The Bonnie Prince 'Charlie. Before the Baldistnnes withdrew from Scotland, so it is said, a cer- tain Tan Baidistone, a very old mart and the sole adult male representa- tive of the family, made a solemn vow that all of his name would re- main in permanent exile, unless the Stuarts were restored. It further said that, for the benefit of any pos- sible ,violator of the vow, old Iaie framed the series of frightful impre- cations contained in the following rhyme: May the storm burst •forth on. the Baidistone, May he die in the drift!n' snaw; May the hungry eorbies peck at his banes, An' his guts may the eagles gnaw: May he never see the licht o' Heaven, Bub in auld c'ootie's cavern craw. If he dishonour the vow that was made When Bonnie Charlie geed awe' There is another verse --I forget its exact words, at the moment—which says, in effect, that the vow was made known, at the time it was sworn, to The Witch of engrave', and that she was charged to co-op- erate in the fulfilment of the curse, in the event of violation. The witch. it appears, readily agreed, not only on behalf of herself ;but !likewise on behalf of all her female descendants; who presumably would also be wit - elms. In due course, the Baldistones set, Med on the American continent. Of their early history in the New World little is known, excepting that they were honest, hard-working and law- abiding. For over a century the 'family vow was religiously observed, partly because the Baldistones re- mained loyal to the unfortunate House of Stuart and partly because they were afraid of the malediction of their ancestor. The last few gen- erations, however, have not taken the matter so seriously. It became a family joke, rather than anything else. It is curious though, that right down to the very recent date the Baldistones stayed in Canada. Just last fall, Malcolm Baldistone, son of Kenneth Baldistone, crossed over to Glasgow on a business trip. It is about 'what befell young Malcolm, while in Scotland, that I wish to tell you! "And see you don't come to grief over there," said old Mr. Baldistone iti his jocular way, as he took leave of his son at the dock, "You• are the fust of ours to go back, you know, since the time of Bonnie Charlie!" "Oh, that's alright, dad," laughed the young man. "I am not a bit scar- ed. If I have time, I'll run -up to the Highlands and see our ancestral borne. What's the name fa the cas- tle; again?" "Auohenvohr. But it wilt be in ruin now or perhaps deme' ished' alitogeth- er. I've marked the location on your map, though." "Well, goodbye, dad!" "Goodbye, Malcolm,, and • goad luck!" Malcohne Bald&stoneereached Gies - Cow in October. .Straightway he be- came engrossed in his affairs and had little or no time to himself 'until Christmas was at 'hand. ' There was a lull in business then, and the young man 'thought it veli to take advan- tege of that and make his trip to the mirth. Accordingly, about noon on December 24, he 'set ont'from iG1as- gow in an automobile—alone. It was of frost in the air. • Auchnrvohr castle, according to the map, was 'situated beyond the Gram- pian monetetins, and close lo a town called Cragraven. Mamba reckon- ed that lie would reach Cragraven in ei'gh't or nine hours. Be planned to put tep there for the night and then spend 'Christmas bay in the haunts of alis forefathers. The first shades of night found the young man on the other side of the Grampian's and well into the stern Scottish Highlands. An hear ago he had noticed a golden eagle hurtling heavily by, headed for ben Nevis. Since then he had seen -no living thing. There was a flurry of snow in the air and it had become intensely cold. He noticed, too, a heavy. blackness in the sky to the north-east. Presently the snow' began to fall heavily; an ominous wind a- rose. TAO() hours later a highland/ storm is raging in all the fullness of its fury. The wind is howling hike some maddened thing; the snow is churn- ing in Wild confusion, And it is night, dark and pitchy! A little car is struggling gamely on, strug, gling blindly,for its headlights can - eat penetrate the 'snow -ladened blackness Suddenly the ear swerves —crack! And it is only a clever manoeuvre on the part of the driver that prevents it front turning tittle! "Rear end gone!" muttered MaI- eolm Baidistone, in disgust. He got out, now stiff with .cold, and investigated as best he rauld. Sure enough, the rear end was brok- en. And what a night. Mnlcdm had to hold on to the car to keep his feet! against the fury of the wind. The snow was. blinding. The headlights of the car had gone out too. Every- thing was blackness. The fabric of the car was ripping and tearing. May the storm burg forth en the Baldistone, May he die in the driftin' gum -- Unconsciously,. young Baldistone found himself repeating the doggerel rhyme at which he had laughed so often. "What's put that into my bead?" he muttered, irritably. "That's rub.. bish!" The storm continued with/ ever in- creasing frenzy. Now the wind would be in crescendo;; a moment later it would sink to a dismal whine. —an errie whine! "I'll hike onwards!" decided Mat- co/'.m, at length. "I cannot . be far from Cragraven." For more that an hour Malcolm Baidistone battled. bravely . on through the enraged elements. .lie staggered and stumbled;; often he fell but on, on he went. Gradually he was becoming weaker—weak and weary and sleepyl How he regret- ted now that he had not remained in the car until the storm abated. He had been a fool not to do that—he had shelter in the ear and -- Suddenly he lurched to the left and felt heavily into a deep ditch. Down he went. Down, down, down. The sow piled over him. The wind bellowed, as if in triumph. The young man. (aught desperately and at length regained his foothold upon the road. He was completely exhausted now,. and he had lost all sense of direction. He was bewild- ered—unnerved—afraid! May the store burst forth on the Baldistone, May he die in the driftin' snaw; May the hungry corbies peck at his ba, An' neshis guts may the eagles gnaw' The very wind seemed to. 'have caught the measure of that old rhyme now—sometimes it is shriek- ing it; 'sometimes it is sighing it. Malcolm turned aimlessly, hope- lessly, and 'es 'he did so •he saw two ghostly discs. approaching. To his now thoroughly confused brain the a fine wintry day, with just etang discs appeared to ' he eyes -gigantic eyes—the eyes of some unearthly monster -7-- - The next instant a snow-covered. Sedan pulled up beside 'the hapless wayfarer. ITu?ilo!" cried a cheery voice, "Been caught in the storm, eh? Was' that your car I.'passed' down there?" And an elderly, kindly, be- spectacled face peered through the partially open door of the car;.. "Yes," replied Malcolm, answering both_ questions at once. - "Was—was on my way to Cragraven. Rear end gone*" "Cragraven? Oh, that's four miles from 'here. My place is close by. You'd better take shelter there' for the night vend continue your journey in the -morning.- :June in! Why, man; you look frozen --let me herr you," • "It's very kind of you," said. Mal- colm, as he sat in the cozy car /be•+ side his new acquaintance. "You are a friend in need, I Mare you a regular- C}ood S,,antarltanl" "Well; that's seasonable enough eu a Christmas Eye, surely," laughed the stranger. "Al, here we ate, and the gate is open—Sandy has seen us coming." The sedan ploughed along a drive, way and pulled up close to some riias- sive steps that led to the door of the house. A servingman approach- ed as the pair alighted, ]41',alcohn noticed with surpiise that :the storm had now ceased,.as if by magic. The wind had dropped altogether and there was ohly a slight flicker of snow in tie air. '"Ask Jenny to prepare a hot tneal,- Sandy," said Malcolnt's companion. "My friend was caught In. the stotln —he is cold and hungry." "I'll tell her, doctor," was the re- ply. "Aiblin's she has a bite ready. 'Cortes, an' it's beeriest awfu nicht-- in swill' nicht foe ony pair sinner tae be abroad in *By the by, doc- tor, there wis a 'telephone messeage frae the hospital a_ wee While sin"', tae say that the witch crater is deid." "Ah, poor sour! Poor soar" An hour later, Malcolm Baldistone, none the worse for his experience in the storm, sant in comfort 'before a crackling open fire—a "cheery ingle," as they say in Scotland. 'lie -had just eaten a hearty meal of wholesome. homely fare. "Good mine b'ost," who had already introoduced himself as Angus Cameron, M.D., sat close by, chatting away in friendly fashion. The conversation drifted from one thing to another as casual conversa- tions do. "Quaint old house this I'm living in, Mr. Baidistone," said the doctor. presently. "1 must show, you round in the morning. It was the ruin of an old castle. As far as I can make out, it fell into decay after the forty-five rebellion. I had it renovated, of course; in fact, rebuilt, but retained as much of its antique appearance as possible. I retained the old name too--+Auchenvohr!" Doctor Cameron busied himself for a moment piling genre .coal on the fire. "Rather a pretty name, isn't it?" he said, when he had completed his Chore. "Y yes," answered -Malcolm, "it —{it is a pretty name.' "Sorry my wife isn't here," resum- ed the doctor, after a little while. "She left for Edinburgh this after.' noon. I was all ready to go with her, when I had an urgent call from the hospital. A ereature, known hereabout as The Watch of Cragrav- en, bad been admitted, suffering from an unusual malady. Rather an interesting case, from a medical standpoint, but it was hopeless. She died, it appears, shortly after I left the hospital—must have been about the time I met you on the roadl— you, are you cold, Mr. Baldistone?'l "No. no, doctor," replied Malcolm, hurriedly. "As I say," continued the doctor, "this creature was reputed to be a witch. Her mother was a witch and 5o was her grandmother. As a mat- ter of fast, the witches iaf. Cragraven; if we are 'to believe what we are told, go back to the middle of the eighteenth century. The line ends now, however, for this old lady had no progeny—she was s the last Witch of Cragraven! Just then the clock in . the hall struck twelve. It was Christmas ltfornieg and the two men conform- ed to a grand old custorn, a custom that has been in vogue now for over nineteen hundred years—they wished each other a Merry` Christmas. "You look tired, Mr. Baldistone," said the daetoi•, presently. "Come, I'll show you to your room." 'Maleoli' rose, smiling a little wan- ly. "I am a little tired," re replied,, "By the way, doctor, may I use your telephone?" he added. 'SCertain]y, certainly! It's in the hall here:" "'Thames, Malcolm, thanks!" said old Idr, . Baldistone in Toronto. "A Christras Greeting from Auehenvohr• is something worth entering _in the. diary. Very thoughtful of you to get on the line, for we miss you a lot, you know, at this season. About that other matter: the 'storm" and the witch—that's nothing; ' •nty boy.' You'll laugh at it in the morning. •. 11 was a coincidence, a mere coincidence. -Well, 'bye-bye, my boy!—'—.But .: a darned strange coincidence"l 'added" old Mtr. Baldistone when he hadhung THE CLINTON NEWS -RECORD• immzolsol=ott===ok p HOW MY WORLD WAGS'. :0sr 0 By That Ancient Mariner 0 Dean D. Hurnndy. 0 Railway engineers in Vancouver' op- pose cut in wages. No cut and run for them. Civil servante in the Parliament Buildings, Toronto, 'aren't to have their salaries cut, but must contribute a portion during the economic dry spell.. Cut and dried arrangement. "A:ppropria,tions for bridge discus-, sed at the Canipbellton, N!B., Board of Trade." Be calm, friends! Thin does. not refer to contract bridge, but merely to the building of a traffic }ridge. , - - 1 That Yankee House of Cards There's a lot of money put up on that Culbertson -Lenz contract bridge contest. fl'or the losers it may be a Bridge of Sighs, It is rumored that tfrs. Culbertson, whose first name is given as Jose- phine, was really Christened Bridget, and that her husband calls her Biddy for short. - We asked our detitistifhe was fol- lowing the bridge battle by newspa- per reverts. "No," he burbled, "I've got too much bridge work already." Epitaph 'Twas only once that Haney Toot, Was what you'd call a brave gent, For Mrs. Back -seat -driver. Toot geld Toot in strict enslavement. But now they're both pedestrians; They walk the Angel Pavement. 'Twas all because Toot turned his head, And to his 'feelings gave vent. 'On the Spot The Russian Professor Tehijevsky declared at the Biological Conference in Toronto that wars and periods of tinanici'al depression coincide with the appearance of sun -spots. This seems like a ease of putting the world "on the spot," or, shall' we say "in the espotligilit?" ' That must be the reason why, at such times, there is a little difficulty' alboui, the matter of spot cash. j Won't somebody please hire a spot •ter to nose around and see what cat) be bone about it? Decorous Language "Darn it" and "hang it" and "cuss it" Are known as unladylike talk; But, if Eve had a silk stocking run,; ne,•, At "darn it" I don't think she'd balls. And if she was •hanging a picture, Doon. And hammered her pink: pretty thumb, Would Eve, the first lady of Eden, Say "hang it" of just remain: dumb? - That jellies don't jell I'm aware, but Do custards not cuss now and t ? If so,hen Mother Eve might say "cuss . it" And be quite forgiven of 'nen, fine arts. , Show its relation to the Workineri's Compensation Act. ' 4. Cffectt of gum-chtwig -on the ductless .glands of stenographers; with X-ray photograPhs. Christmas Recitation The boy stood on the burning deck, With Santa Claus beside him there, And Christmas boxes by the peck, But not a place to hide 'em there, "Beware the Wockerjab so sly," Said Santa, speaking through his chin "You are a better man than I," The boy routes to ^Ganga Din. liMaxewelton's ' braes are Bonnie Eddyeashtn I'yfe, of • Queen's University, has been discussing the large an- nual crop of Bachelors of Arta; in Canada and has had some objections to voice about it. But the trouble• is that the business bosses•seern to ex- pect their employees to have a col- lege training for' even the most trife ling jabs. You must have higher education to possess hire education, The universities in the States are meeting this situation frankly.. A, meg the thesis topics for degrees in Chicago and .Columbia we find: "Cycles of styles for ladies lingerie," and "A comparison of the time and energy required by the four methods used for washing dishes in the mod- ern restaurant," these to be worked out by known mathematical formul- ae. With becoming diffidence we sue - nut a few additional topic's for sim- ilar use in Canadian unversities: 1. Should time -and -a -half for over- time be allowed while playing peek, a -boo with baby? Furnish full stat- istics. 2. Have piano movers got sous, and are they moved by piano music? Supply Bertiliion measurements and photographs. 3. Historical development of radio - crooning, and its place among the Let's plinky plunk the Anvil Chorus, For curfew shall not ring at noon," Wept Santa telaus, with feet sonor- ous, "Call- spirits from the vasty deep," The boy psychologized in vain, "Call spirits, pile them in a heap, Methinks it debutantes like rain. " And while they played with Cupid's darts 'Twas this year, next year, some. time, never— The Queen of Nowhere ate the tarts' And sang the Maple ,Leaf Forever.- -Dea DH d' ..SOME MENU FOR ALL C.N.IL.... SHIPS Soup From Luckless Tropical Turtles is Feature of Nautical Meal For Christmas Passengers. One menu has been prepared for all passengers who will spend Christ- mas Day aboard various Canadian National ships this year, These din- ers will include travellers aboard the "Lady" liners, the . "Prince" ships and the Canadian Pathfinder and Canadian Skirmisher, two freighter - cruisers of the Company's fleet. The menu comprises 26 items, in- cluding Green Turtle soup and Mad - ere; Mushrooms Saute Doria; Roast Turkey; Virginia Ham au Vin de Champagrfe;' Christmas Pudding; Minee Pie; Cheese,Ramequins. Particularly interesting is the tur- tle soup. It will be made from the famous Bahamas turtles. These tur- tles are unceremoniously turned on their backs as they nap in the trop- ical sun on beaches near Nassau. They are then powerless to right themselves and are collected later at the turtle -hunter's convenience. PAGES Doings in the Scout World kipl ng's:"Jungle Books" provide the, psychology • and much of the programme of the Wolf Cubs, the Junior ' Boy Scouts. The French Government /has de- corated M. Andre Lefevre of the. Scouts of France with the insignia of Chevalier of the Legion of Tion-' British Boy Scouts are assisting in the "Buy British Goods" cam- paign, one of England's efforts to restore the balance of exports and imports. Hungarian Park for World .Scout Gathering The next woeld gathering of Boy Scouts, in Hungary, in 1983, will be held at Godollo, the former estate of Emperor Francis Joseph L The pails was placed at the serviee of the Scouts by Admiral Horthy, the Re- gent of Hungary. . Scouts Become Doctors Records at Ottawa headquarters show that 50,880 Boy Scouts have taken first aid training, and that 15,681 have qualified for -the advan- ced first aid "Ambulance Man? badge. For a number of boys the training has proven the first stets. to medicine. Stout Statues on Governmeir Building Two Boy 'Scout statues appear ov- er a corner window of -,the new Con- federation Block, Ottawa. They corn, memorate public servree rendered by Scouts, including location and deem. - aeon of the graves of the Fathers of Confederation, for the Diamond Jubilee of 1927. Boy Scout Cowboy Makes Good When unable to capture a horse that had been on range all summer to farmer applied to Boy Scout district headquarters, Ottawa, for a Scout roping expert. The boy was taken out to the farm, and promptly las- soed the horse. The farmer had seen an exhibition of Scout lariat work at the Ottawa fair. Ilero's a Little Story for ILERS RET A young tailor complained bitterly about his poor business. "I make just as good, clothes as 's do," he said, "and 1 sell them for less, yet 's get most of the business of this district." This young tailor -felt that Wren ought to find all about him—that they should search him out. Ne didn't see that it was his job to make known to all men the fact that he made good clothes and sold them at attractive prices. 's, on the other hand, advertised their business, and, of course men went to thein for their clothes. It's the same all the world over—buyers go 'where they are invited to go. They buy, in larg- est numbers, from those who give then informa- tion about their business, service, goods, prices This is exactly as it should be. Why shouldn't the most aggressive seller get most business? The world likes to buy from keen sellers — retai}ers who pay thein the cornplimeut of telling them about what they have to sell and about their desire for their custom. Dumb retailers may be fine men, may give good values, may be first-class store keepers, but the buying public prefers to go where advertise- ments in their newspapers direct thein to go. The wise retailer runs his business in line with what buyers want, because it is profitable to do so. It costs a retailer far more not to advertise than to advertise.