Christmas Ghosts

FINALLY, HERE IS A mournful little tale that has been used by generations of parents to frighten generations of reluctant students. It concerns William Hoby, the son of Sir Thomas Hoby, who lived in the time of King Henry VIII.

The boy's parents were both brilliant and energetic people, though his mother had always been considered rather odd. Aside from being a scholar in several languages, Lady Hoby had also been described as "a pest of outstanding quality." Poor William inherited none of his family's intellectual gifts. Not only was he a slow learner, he was sloppy as well. During his lessons he became so nervous that he always made ink blots in his copybook. Lady Hoby was severely disappointed in her son, and the blotted copybooks never failed to enrage her. William was frequently beaten because of his poor work. One day Lady Hoby became so enraged that she completely lost control of herself and beat the boy to death.

The place where William died is called Bisham Abbey. It was said to be haunted not only by poor little William's ghost, but by the ghost of Lady Hoby. This ghost was seen washing her hands in a basin which floated before her. According to one account, the ghost was seen "in negative" that is, with a black face and hands and wearing a white dress.

In the nineteenth century, renovations were made at Bisham Abbey. Behind one of the walls was found a number of badly blotted copybooks. According to tradition, these were the very books which drove Lady Hoby into her murderous fury.

After World War II, the abbey was taken over by a sports organization and converted into a gymnasium and hostel for students. The ghosts have not been reported since that time.