{"id":26090,"date":"1980-12-21T18:22:16","date_gmt":"1980-12-21T18:22:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/?p=26090"},"modified":"2013-07-09T16:37:00","modified_gmt":"2013-07-09T15:37:00","slug":"edward-g-preston-the-recurring-knock","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/?p=26090","title":{"rendered":"Edward G Preston – The Recurring Knock"},"content":{"rendered":"

From\u00a0Bohemian Bouquet<\/em><\/a>, published 1980 by The Bohemians.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Recurring Knock<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cMum, do I have to go to bed yet?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, it\u2019s late already!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut, Mum, I\u2019ll hear that dreadful knocking again. Can\u2019t I stay up till you go to bed?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, go upstairs and control yourself. You ought to be ashamed of yourself, a boy of your age.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut Mu-um.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGet to bed this instant!\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

From the bedroom, five minutes later . . .<\/p>\n

\u201cMum, can I come down and get a drink of water, please?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGet to sleep!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut, Mum, it\u2019s hot and I Can\u2019t get to sleep!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFor heavens\u2019s sake, get the water, and then get to sleep!\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Edwin slowly descends the stairs; slowly runs the water; and even more slowly drinks it. The lavatory is outside the house, so he doesn\u2019t risk asking to go there to prolong things further.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow get back to bed, will you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMum, do I have to?\u201d<\/p>\n

The resolute look from his mother leaves young Edwin with no alternative.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cCan I read a book in bed, please?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I suppose so \u2013 if you must!\u201d<\/p>\n

The book was a discarded copy of the Sunbeam Annual \u2013 discarded by an elder brother. After reading the chestnuts, a new ploy entered the boy\u2019s mind.<\/p>\n

\u201cMum.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAren\u2019t you asleep yet?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMum, will you come up, please?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is it now?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPlease will you come up?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMum . . . little Jimmy said to his mother, do raspberries have legs . . . no, of course not . . . in that case, young Bobby\u2019s eaten a caterplillar.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDid you get me trailing up those stairs just to tell me that rubbish?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot rubbish! Mum, here\u2019s another joke on this page. What kind of vegetable would you think of if a man were cutting his son\u2019s hair?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell then, what?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cParsnips!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood night, Edwin, I shan\u2019t warn you again!\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Half under the blankets, Edwin decides to read an adventure story from the Sunbeam Annual \u2013 not exactly conducive to sleep. In fact, it sets his heart pounding when he sees the picture of the Red Indian chief; and that . . . that pounding reminds him of the knocking.<\/p>\n

He sits bolt upright in bed, convinced that he can hear that noise again. Knock, knock, knock. It\u2019s not imagination \u2013 no, it really has started \u2013 every evening it starts at this time: knock, knock, knock. His eyes travel involuntarily upwards. He\u2019s sure those cracks near the top of the wall weren\u2019t there a few days ago. They must have been caused by that knocking \u2013 but there\u2019s another house between, so surely the sound couldn\u2019t travel that far?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cMum, it\u2019s started.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s started?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat knocking sound.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLie down and try to forget it. It\u2019s your imagination; I Can\u2019t hear anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut Mu-um (in more raucous tones) \u2013 the wall is starting to crack \u2013 Mum \u2013 she\u2019s going to break through soon!!!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLie down, and pull the blankets over your ears; you\u2019ll soon settle down.\u201d<\/p>\n

But lying down did not <\/em>help; for within minutes, Edwin, trying to be brave, felt his face and neck getting red as he became anxious again. Now the veins in his head were standing out, and his whole head seemed to be perspiring. Once more he became conscious of his heart beating; and the heartbeats reminded him of the knocking. But now, he<\/span> wasn\u2019t sure whether the knocking was actual or imaginary. He couldn\u2019t risk calling his mother unless he was sure. So for a while the heartbeats became the centre of concentration. Was his heart beating regularly? Was it a steady beat? N-o! It was, or seemed to be, somewhat erratic, and certainly faster than normal. Did that mean that he was going to die? No, not yet; surely not yet! He sat upright again, and out came the Sunbeam Annual again. He could no longer hear the knocking , and in any case it was no good calling. If he were to call her now, his mother would most likely stop him reading. Better to try to get involved in another story. Ah! What about a different book . . . Warne\u2019s Book of Stories for Boys. Not that he was interested in that type of story; but it might pass the time till he felt tired enough to get to sleep.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Not long \u2013 only about two pages read, and just beginning to doze, still sitting up, when suddenly . . . . . . knock, knock, knock. That was real enough. That was not imaginary, and not just remembered from last night, or the night before. There it was \u2013 knocking on the wall again \u2013 sometimes steady; sometimes quite fast and furious.<\/p>\n

\u201cMum \u2013 it\u2019s started again \u2013 Mu-um . . . Mu-um . . . . . . Mu-u-u-u-um!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhatever is it now, get to sleep \u2013 \u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cMu-u-um, she\u2019s started knocking again. Can you come and listen, please?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy does she keep knocking every night?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the knocking in her brain that starts her off.\u201d<\/p>\n

. . . \u2018But how can I hear what\u2019s happening in her brain?\u2019 thought Edwin.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut you can hear it, can\u2019t you, Mum?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I can hear it . . . but you just settle down. I\u2019ll stay till you go to sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n

And so it continued, seemingly endlessly, night after night, week after week.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

When you met her out in the street, she seemed a little strange; but only a little; and she still produced the customary threepenny bit for Edwin. Some weeks later, however, the insanity became more obvious in the daytime. She would be seen in the street, waving one arm about and suddenly thrusting it up in the air, almost like a Nazi salute; but not with the same purpose, as became apparent later. The next development was that she started shouting out; \u2018I\u2019ll kill her, I\u2019ll kill that Dorothy!\u2019<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Now Dorothy occupied the house between Edwin\u2019s and Ruby\u2019s; so when Edwin heard Ruby at night, the knocking sound was penetrating two walls and all the space between. It must have been a powerful knock.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The climax came one morning when Edwin was ready for school. He had just said goodbye to his mother who was going to the local shops. Just as he was about to cross the road, Dorothy called him; only to say a word or two. However, at that precise time, Ruby came out of her house shouting: \u201cI\u2019m going to get her; I\u2019ll kill that Dorothy!\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It seemed but a flash as Dorothy dragged Edwin into her house and locked the door. Next moment, Ruby was knocking on the street door. Now she was hammering with her fist, and hammering so violently, all the while shouting:<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going to murder Dorothy Purkiss. Let me get at her \u2013 I\u2019ll murder her.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both Dorothy and Edwin were in quite a state; in fact Edwin at least was terrified; especially when the door began to split with the force of Ruby\u2019s knocking.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, Edwin\u2019s mother returned within a short while, and having a much stronger personality than Dorothy, she had the presence of mind to try to humour Ruby. This enabled Dorothy to open her door fractionally to allow Edwin to slip out and get off to school.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

That was a strange morning at school. Everything seemed strange because Edwin felt so tense. He wasn\u2019t normally tense in the daytime. He enjoyed school . . . well he enjoyed the lessons. He didn\u2019t much care for the silly games which most of the other boys seemed to engage in. He was relieved when dinner time came; and at home once more, he was told the sequel to the morning\u2019s events.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

His mother had telephoned for the police to come. They in turn had called Ruby\u2019s doctor and the mental welfare officer. Ruby was certified insane, and sent to Springfield asylum. This came as welcome news to Edwin initially, though he did wonder about the asylum; and the very mention of the word Springfield sent shudders down his spine for years to come. However, the afternoon at school was almost normal for him.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The sense of relief when he got to bed that night was marvelous to begin with . . . no knocking . . . or . . . was there? What if Ruby had escaped from the ambulance . . . perhaps she was back home now . . . perhaps she would be even more violent now, after they had tried to take her away . . . perhaps she would break down the wall into Dorothy\u2019s, and then break down his<\/em>wall to murder him <\/em>for his part in siding and abetting Dorothy Purkiss in her purpose of getting her put away! But . . . no, there was no real knocking tonight \u2013 only imagined and remembered knocking from previous nights. But many nights had elapsed before the imaginary knocking ceased. When, if ever, would the remembered knocking die out?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Some years\u2019 later, Edwin, now a grown man with a wife and child of his own became tense when his elderly neighbour grew frail. The neighbour\u2019s wife called upon Edwin and his wife to give a helping hand any time when the old man was not feeling too grand. The tension arose out of the elderly neighbour\u2019s elderly wife knocking on the wall when they needed attention. Edwin tried to overcome this. After all, he was a man now! But he was not quick enough on this occasion. His wife suddenly noticed his face and neck becoming red; the veins in his head stood out; and his whole head seemed to be perspiring.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s wrong, Edwin?\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWho said anything was wrong!\u201d responded Edwin tersely, annoyed that his secret dread was going to be discovered.<\/p>\n

\u201cNobody. It\u2019s just that you look rather tense.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, just that knocking on the wall \u2013 so unexpected \u2013 it rather gave me a surprise. I\u2019m alright now thanks.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Perhaps it\u2019s not so strange that Edwin still shudders when he hears knocking on a wall \u2013 any wall \u2013 when he cannot see who\u2019s doing the knocking!!!!!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Edward G. Preston<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From\u00a0Bohemian Bouquet, published 1980 by The Bohemians.   The Recurring Knock \u201cMum, do I have to go to bed yet?\u201d \u201cOf course, it\u2019s late already!\u201d \u201cBut, Mum, I\u2019ll hear that dreadful knocking again. Can\u2019t I stay up… Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[243,109],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26090"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=26090"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26090\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26993,"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26090\/revisions\/26993"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=26090"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=26090"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.bohemiavillage.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=26090"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}