Kingdom Of Shadows:Thus Spoke The Mongoose/Hairy Hands Of Death.

The world of the paranormal is by it’s very nature strange and unusual which is probably why many folks, including professional sceptic groups look at the claims that are made by seemingly normal people and say, “Nope, no way and no how.” However just because these supposed learned experts make these these proclamations of fakery does not make the experience any less significant in the lives of those who experience them. Those who experience something that lives way outside the box be it the unsuspecting hillbilly hunting oppossum in the Appalachin mountains who gets taken on a wild ride in a UFO or an English Lord who claims that his manor home is haunted by unseen presence that watches him pee. Whatever the case may be sometimes weird shit happens.

Sometimes though, even weird things happen that is so far outside the box it even leaves the so called experts in the paranormal scratching their heads and when they can not figure it out even they have been known to cry, “Foul” which is something that proves my rather unconventional argument that when it comes to the paranormal there IS NO SUCH THING AS AN EXPERT. The following tales that come to us from across the pond proves this argument as well, and makes us all scratch our heads and wonder, “WTF?”

Thus The Mongoose Spoke

Children the world over have been known to have imaginary friends oftentimes it occurrs when a family with a small child either lives in a neighborhood without playmates for their little boy or girl or when the family lives in a isolated area where there is not another soul for miles in each direction. Trust me folks if you child has an imaginary friend it is completely harmless and soon or later they will grow out of it. However on a small farm called Cashen’s Gap on Britians Isle of Wight what seemed like an innocent game of imaginary friendship turned into perhaps one of the strangest cases of poltergeist phenomenon known in the annals of the paranormal.

From 1932-1936, Cashen’s Gap was owned by the Irving family and their young teenage daughter, Voirrey. Cashen’s Gap was perhaps the most isolated farm on the windswept island and the Irving’s were known as very stern parents who did not allow their daughter to have many friends which is probably why, Voirrey struck up a friendship with a mongoose named, Gef who allegedly had the ability to talk. Oftentimes Mrs. Irving would go to her daughter’s room to call her for dinner and would hear her girl talking to another person, another person who responded with a squeeky voice that could not possibly have come from her daughter. When Mrs. Irving opened the door she would catch a fleeting glimpse of a small furry animal run out the window. Basically, Mrs Irving shook it off thinking that her eyes and ears were playing tricks on her that is until the entity known as Gef began to make his presence known to the whole family.

At first the incidents that were allegedly caused by Gef was something that could be easily dismissed, such as leaving the lights on in the house or forgetting that you left your keys in one place when you actually left them somewhere else. However, the antics played by Gef the mongoose started to get turned up a notch. Heavy stones rained down on the house, heavy furniture began to move of it’s own accord and dishes were breaking so often the family began to just eat off the table. At first Voirrey was blamed for the antics, her parents believed that perhaps she was just bored and took this boredom out on her parents in the form of mean spirited pranks. Of course this was believed until the imaginary friend Gef, began to speak to the family.

At first the voice of Gef, manifested as a squeeky voice making unintellegible sounds as if it were trying to form words. Then over time Gef the Mongoose, proved to be quite the intelligent conversationlist. Gef, immediately took the rap for the phenomenon that occurred in the house saying that Voirrey was not to blame. Gef, also appeared to be quite the expert on many scientific disciplines as well as being well versed on current events that occurred as far away as London. Gef, also appeared to have a sense of humor telling very dirty jokes oftentimes laughing at them when no one else found them funny. A few folks in the nearby village believed that the family, specifically Voirrey, was involved in witchcraft and this talking mongoose was her Familiar, a manifestation of a demon in the form of an animal who was the helper of the witch. Thank God, this poor girl did not live a few centuries earlier otherwise she would have been burned at the stake. Thankfully there were some forward thinking folks who lived in the village and they contacted Great Britian’s premiere paranormal researcher and ghost hunter extradonaire, Hary Price. If price could not get to the bottom of this phenomenon than no one could.

Harry Price was perhaps the first paranormal investigator who sought to prove claims of the paranormal using the scientific method famous for investigating the hauntings at Borley Rectory, used cameras and early recording devices to either capture an entity on film or catch a disembodied voice, all modern paranormal investigators owe Harry Price a debt of gratitude. Price arrived at Cashen’s Gap with his companion a Captain Macdonald who had heard of the strange goings on at the farm and despite being highly skeptical, he wanted to experience the paranormal for himself.

While at the Irving farm, Price and his companion claimed to have seen the elusive talking mongoose and Captain Macdonald claimed to have captured a strange whistling sound that he had attributed to the talking mongoose. The strange poltergiest phenomenon that had occurred before their arrival to the farm was no more which led many to believe that the affair was dreamed up by a bored little girl or the demented ramblings of a mad family effected by the isolation they suffered.

When one considers the strange case of Gef the Talking Mongoose, it wouldbe easytodismiss it, however the events at Cashe’s Gap, has the hallmark signs of a true outbreak of poltergeist activity. Moving items, strange noises and the presence of a young person on the verge of adulthood points to this possibility and the talking mongoose could have been just an added bonus to the manifestations experienced at the farm. One interesting tidbit to end this strange affair, in 1947 the owner of the farm claimed to have shot a strange large animal that appeared to be a mongoose, Gef perhaps?

Hairy Hands of Death

In 1921, an article in The Daily Mail warned drivers to be wary of a lonely stretch of road between the towns of Two Bridges and Postbridge in the Dartmoor Devonshire, countryside. A strange entity of terrifying proportions was attacking motorists causing them to crash their cars as they drove down the road. The enity was not the normal ghost that most Brits were familiar with, the entity manifested itself as large pair of hairy hands that would grab the steering wheel and force the driver into the trees lining the road. It would be easy to dismiss these claims as an Urban Legend, if it were not for the fact that several people experienced these ghostly hairy hands and the hairy hands were responsible for a few deaths.

In the 1950s, a medical officer from Dartmoor prison was taking a leasiure ride with his kids sitting next to him in a sidecar when tragedy struck. When rescuers came to the aid of the man and his children the children had a few scrapes and bruises however the medical officer told a strange story before he died, he claimed that as they were riding along a large pair of rough looking hairy hands appeared and grabbed the handlebars forcing him to crash his motorcycle into the trees. This was perhaps the first death attributed to the ghost of the hairy hands.

Apparently the hairy hands does not limit it’s murderous antics to motorcycles. Years later a truck driver claimed that as he was driving down the lonely stretch of road a pair of hands, larger than normal hands exceedingly hair appeared in his cab. The truck driver claimed that fought the hands which seemed to be going for the steering wheel, sadly the truck driver lost his fight with the hairy hands crashing his semi into the trees.

Even today in our technologically advanced world, the hairy hands still make their presence known to those unfortunate enough to find themselves driving down this street in Dartmoor. Many have claimed that the hairy hands appear in their cars and try to grab steering wheel on other occassions the hairy hands just appear to follow the car before they dissappear.

If the hairy hands do exist the it begs the question who did they belong to and why are they on a murderous rampage on this lonely road in Great Britain? No one really knows for sure I have a theory though, whoever they belong to perhaps in life they were a huge fan of you know, polishing the bishop.

Rick E. Hale

t_seeker@hotmail.com