Barling Magna Parish Council

The East facing side of the New Village Sign highlighting All Saints Parish Church

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The Baker Who Hanged Himself

This extract is from a Book by Herbert Winckworth Tompkins published in London in 1904 titled ‘Marsh-Country Rambles’. The entire book makes an excellent read and is not in copyright. It has been made available by University of California Libraries. The Book is in PDF and many other formats and is available for download here.

“I was told how, many years ago, there lived near Barling a somewhat eccentric baker. He prided himself upon his professional skill: he could make and bake a loaf better than any man for miles around, and Barling folk were wont to say that he would be a baker for pleasure even if he came into a fortune. Now, this worthy man either committed some great crime or imagined he had done so local tradition is not clear upon the point. His guilt, whether real or imaginary, preyed upon his mind so greatly that one evening he wandered out to a lonely spot and there hanged himself from a tree. It was a bad day for Barling when he did this, for his perturbed spirit found no rest, and the countryside was much troubled by his post-humous vagaries. Sometimes, on windy nights, persons who passed near that tree would hear his heels knock together as though his body still hung from the branch. Or, when the moon shone brightly, you had only to run round that tree a hundred times, and, lo! there was the baker at his work, kneading his dough energetically, with his back to the trunk, as plain as a pikestaff! My friend at Barling had heard of a man who was determined to see this apparition, even if he died in the sequel. So one night the man went quietly to the fatal tree, and, in order, as he thought, to watch more thoroughly, went alone. It was dark when he reached the tree, but, nothing daunted, he commenced to run round it in the approved fashion. Ninety-nine times he went round, and then slipped and sprained his ankle. The accident was looked upon as a salutary judgment from above, for he had derided the local belief and it was right he should smart for his folly. The whole story is foolish enough; but Southey would have loved it and turned it into a ballad.”