A 19thC Cornish supertition that the soul of a dying person cannot pass easily if the body is lying across the directions of the floorboards.

Perhaps the strangest notion of all concerning death was the idea that that the soul could not 'pass easily' if the body lay 'athurt the planshun' (i.e. across the direction in which the floorboards ran. On one occasion, many years ago now, an old woman had lain for a great while upon the point of death, but to the surprise of all, the hour of her dissolution was still delayed. At length a consultation took place amongst the relatives and various sympathetic neighbours. 'Well,' said one,' she edn't gone yet, nor edn't like to, by what I can see.'

'Poor, dear saul,' said another, 'she wisht and slow, sure enough.'

'I tell 'ee, soas,' chimed in the older woman, 'tes my belief she wean't never pass as she is, for her body's lying athurt the planshun.'

'Why, ais, that's so,' exclaimed the daughter of the house, 'I never thoft upon it before. Come awver steers and just help me move here round a minute, will 'ee?'

By dint of much straining and effort the party at length succeeded in shifting the cumbrous old–fashioned bedstead in the tiny room. Some hours later the doctor called to see his patient.

'She's gone, doctor!' cried the daughter as she met him on the threshold, 'we just shifted her bed round, and she went off like a lamb!'

This might be a Cornish verision of feng–shui because it supposes that there is an adverse influence on the soul by being in opposition to the geometry of the house, and its flow of energy.