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From the eerie Man in Gray
of Monterey's old Hotel Del Monte to haunted mansions in Pebble Beach,
central California's beautiful Monterey Peninsula is rich in tales
of the strange and unexplained. Ghost Notes is a unique collection
of brief stories gathered over a twenty-year period that involve scores
of spooky happenings in this historic area. Most of these tales are
published here for the first time, many of them based on first-hand
accounts. This book is a "must" for anyone who is interested in the
supernatural as well as for fans of the Monterey Peninsula. Illustrated
with photographs of haunted sites. Softcover 190 pages, illustrated $10.95 |
September 28, 1977 The schoolteacher who experienced the following happening at the Robert Louis Stevenson House was still in awe when she told me about it. A specialist in teaching children with learning difficulties, she frequently worked with students on a small group or individual basis. In working with a ten-year-old boy who showed an interest in things of long ago, the teacher decided that a trip to Monterey's historic buildings would be beneficial. With permission granted, the trip was made. A second student was included in the outing, and the little group made a stop at the Stevenson House. As they were visiting the upstairs section, the boy for whom the trip was planned became excited about the rooms and the furnishings they contained. Talking as if he was very much aware of the people and events associated with this house of history, he proceeded to describe many of the objects that he saw and to tell about some of the things that had taken place within the rooms. Overwhelmed by his inexplicable knowledge, and his sudden spark of enthusiasm, the teacher found it difficult to believe all that she was hearing. When the threesome reached the children's nursery, the dumbfounded teacher became even more amazed as the boy seemed to be "in touch" with long-ago inhabitants of the room. Finally, "after coming back to reality," but still gazing into the nursery, the boy told his teacher about two children who had once stayed in the room (bringing to mind the previously told tale of Mrs. Girardin's grandchildren). Robert Louis Stevenson enthusiasts will be interested in knowing that upon leaving the nursery and seeing the Stevenson bedroom, the lad began talking about a sick man who had once lived there. (Stevenson himself was quite sick during the time he stayed in the structure.) The questions of how the boy knew so much about the building and its inhabitants of long ago remain unanswered. These questions become even more perplexing when one learns that the boy was a non-reader and that he had never before been to downtown Monterey . . . |
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