Rhoda looked relieved, and Mrs Lodge rode on. The milkwoman had inwardly seen, from the moment she heard of her having been mentioned as a reference for this man,' that there must exist a sarcastic feeling among the work-folk that a sorceress would know the wbereabouts of the exorcist. They suspected her, then. A short time ago this' would have given no concern to a woman of her common sense. But she had a haunting reason to be superstitious now; and she had been seized with sudden dread that this Conjuror Trendle might name her as the malignant influence' which was blasting the fair person of Gertrude, and so lead her friend to hate her for ever, and to treat her as some fiend in human shape. They crept up the hill in the twilight and entered the cottage. It was built of mud-walls, the surface of which had been washed by many rains into channels and depressions that left none of the original flat face visible, while here and there in the thatch above a rafter showed like a bone protruding through the skin. The figure and action were those of the phantom; but her voice was so indescribably sweet, her glance so winning, her smile so tender, so unlike that of Rhoda's midnight visitant, that the latter could hardly believe the evidence of her senses. She was truly glad that she had not hidden away in sheer aversion, as she had been inclined to do. In her basket Mrs Lodge brought the pair of boots that she had promised to the boy, and other useful articles. It raised questions about morality, friendship, and reaping what you sow. Hardy seemed to punish every single character here, and, flawed as they were, it felt as though the higher hand of judgement had reached a reasonable verdict.

A Tragedy of Two Ambitions" (21 November 1973, BBC2), adapted by Dennis Potter, directed by Michael Tuchner, and starring John Hurt. This story is from Hardy's collection Life's Little Ironies. This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Wessex Tales is an 1888 collection of tales written by English novelist and poet Thomas Hardy, many of which are set before Hardy's birth in 1840. The bulk of the ex-Southern network, however, survived into the 1950s and beyond; the transfer of control from the Southern to the Western Region did not bode well and, during the 1960s, most of the lines – culminating in the closure of the lines to Ilfracombe and Okehampton in 1970 and 1972 respectively – disappeared. Today, passenger services are restricted generally to the Barnstaple and Gunnislake branches but there are hopes that other lines may be restored. Through the medium of nominally independent local companies, the LSWR had reached Lidford (now spelt Lydford) in Devon in 1874, giving it access to Plymouth over the South Devon Railway, and in 1879 it built a branch from Meldon Junction, west of Okehampton, to Holsworthy in north west Devon.I'll clear out the whole lot, and destroy them,' said she huskily, 'and try such remedies no more!' It was in April 1964, that the proposal of closing several lines including the route from Okehampton to Wadebridge was made by the Western Region as part of the Beeching cuts. She could feel her antagonist's arm within her grasp even now - the very flesh and hone of it, as it seemed. She looked on the floor whither she had whirled the spectre, but there was nothing to be seen.

Camelford station (240m 56ch); [26] ( Cornish: Reskammel) ( 50°38′20″N 4°41′14″W / 50.6389°N 4.6871°W / 50.6389; -4.6871 ( Camelford station)) was situated more than 2 miles (3.2km) from the town "at a road junction in wild country almost devoid of trees". [27] The station had a passing loop with the station building (including canopy) and signal box on the up platform. Like the waiting shelter on the down platform, the buildings were constructed from local stone. As elsewhere on the line, no footbridge was provided. Cattle pens were provided on the single siding, with the goods shed on a loop between the siding and headshunt. The road from Anglebury to Holmstoke is in general level, but there is one place where a sharp ascent breaks its monotony. Farmers homeward-hound from the former market-town, who trot all the rest of the way, walk their horses up this short incline.Then do you go to Holmstoke church tomorrow morning: she's sure to be there. Go early and notice her walking in, and come home and tell me if she's taller than I.' Under the terms of the Transport Act 1947 the railways of Great Britain passed into national ownership at the beginning of 1948.