Headless Cabbie

The Legend of the Headless Cabbie is a scary story told by Arnold at a sleepover in the TV series Hey Arnold. It’s about a mysterious woman who hires a carriage to take her through the park, in search of her missing dog.

This is the tale of the Headless Cabbie. A hundred years ago on a misty, foggy autumn night, just like tonight, a lonely cabbie was driving his carriage.

Suddenly, a mysterious lady hailed the cab. She said she had lost her dog in the park. It was cold out, and the lady politely offered her red scarf to the cabbie.

They had no sooner reached the woods, when the lady sat up, and said, “What’s that sound?”

The Cabbie looked around, but saw only the dark trees in the fog.

“That sounds like my dog!” said the woman. “My poor little baby! Follow him. Hurry. Hurry!”

The Cabbie didn’t want to go too fast because it was getting darker and foggier the farther they went into the park. But the sound of the dog’s barking grew louder.

“Faster, please, I implore you!” said the lady.

It was getting darker, colder and foggier by the minute. The wheels on the carriage made a crazy echoing sound as they rattled on the cobblestones, but all the time, the dog kept barking and the lady kept yelling, “Faster, do you hear? Faster, I say! We must save my doggie!”

“I see him!” the lady screamed. “He’s just ahead of us!”

The dog’s barking echoed like crazy, and horses hooves were clambering on the cobblestones. The Cabbie hung onto the reins as the horse pulled the carriage as fast as he could go. And now, he could see the gaslights at the end of the tunnel.

Suddenly, the lady stood up and screamed, “Watch out!”

It was a man with a huge, golden hook for an arm! And they barely missed him! They swerved at the end of the tunnel and off the main road and down a steep hill. The Cabbie hung onto the reins and tried to pull up his horse.

“That’s him!” screamed the lady. “My doggie’s down the hill! Go down there! Hurry! Hurry!”

The lady beat him on the shoulder, and yelled, “Faster! Faster! My doggie! My little Scottie doggie!”

No one saw the low branch hanging over the path until the Cabbie’s red scarf twisted around, and caught onto it! And then, of course, it was too late. The horse kept pulling the carriage, only now the reins were held by…the Headless Cabbie!

People say that to this very day, when the fog comes down on quiet autumn nights, you can still hear the barking of the demon Scottie dog. You might also hear the rattling of the carriage wheels on the cobblestones. And then, it won’t be long ’til you hear the laughter of the horrible ghost lady, and the next thing you’ll see, coming at you out of the fog, will be the haunted carriage, driven by…THE HEADLESS CABBIE!