The Barguest was a goblin said to haunt the streets and lanes of Yorkshire towns and villages at night, and to see it foretold a death or some other disaster. Hone’s correspondent told how Joe Brown the church watcher and his partner dressed up as the Barguest to frighten people out of their homes. The terrified householders fled leaving doors and gates open, and the two robbed the houses.
The Barguest
Printed under 25 April · Yorkshire
Lore and belief
the "Barguest" is an out-of-door goblin, believed by the vulgar to haunt the streets and lanes of country towns and villages
From Hone's Every-Day Book, vol. 2, cols. 551-552. Read the original
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