I have heard all sorts of ghost stories from my nurse and my father's
coachman, Abdullah, who used to be my constant companion in my
childhood, (dear friend, who is no more), as well as from my friends who
are Judges and Magistrates and other responsible servants of Government,
and in two cases from Judges of Indian High Courts.

A story told by a nurse or a coachman should certainly not be reproduced
in this book. In this book, there are a few of those stories only which
are true to the best of the author's knowledge and belief.

Some of these narratives may, no doubt, savour too much of the nature of
a Cock and Bull story, but the reader must remember that "there are more
things in heaven and earth, etc." and that truth is sometimes stranger
than fiction.

The author is responsible for the arrangement of the stories in this
volume. Probably they could have been better arranged; but a little
thought will make it clear why this particular sequence has been
selected.

S.M.

_Calcutta, July 1914._




PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION.