The Alleged Haunting of B---- House, - [best historical fiction books of all time TXT] 📗

1.    Captain B——. 2.    Miss Langton. 3.    Miss "Duff." 4.    Mr. MacP——. 5.    Myself. 6.    Mr. L——. 7.    Colonel C——.

Miss "Duff" writes under this date:—

"Last night I sat late by my fire expecting, but as nothing seemed to be going to happen I went to bed, and soon to sleep. However, I was to have my most startling experience! I was awakened as if by some one violently shaking my bed (I must mention there was a great wind blowing outside), and at the same time I felt something press heavily upon me. I struck out! rather frightened, but remembering again where I was, refrained from striking a light, in order to see the next development of this weird experience. To my disappointment nothing happened, although sleep was successfully banished till daylight."

[On March 28th Miss "Duff" wrote to me: "Mr. —— suggested that I should describe to you more accurately the shaking of my bed, as it was not at all such a vibration as might be caused by a high wind or any ordinary movement occurring in other parts of the House.

"The bed seemed to heave in the centre, as if there were some force under it, which raised it in the centre and rocked it violently for a moment and then let it sink again. I should also have added, that on other nights quite as windy this phenomenon did not occur; in fact, no movement I have ever felt has given me quite the same sensation. The highest point on the 'Switchback' is the nearest to it in my experience. I was wide awake at the time, so it was no nightmare."]

Miss "Duff" thus continues her account of Tuesday, March 23rd:—

"This morning, as I sat in the drawing-room, I heard the low, monotonous voice of some one reading aloud. Knowing that Miss Freer and Miss Langton were writing in the next room, I concluded that Miss Freer must be dictating while Miss Langton wrote for her, although I must say I did not recognise Miss Freer's voice. This went on for about an hour. Soon after Miss Langton came into the drawing-room, and I said, 'Well, you have been busy; I suppose Miss Freer has been dictating to you?' She looked surprised and said, 'No, indeed she hasn't; we have both been writing, and if Miss Freer spoke at all, it was only a few words now and again.'" This low monotonous sound of a human voice I afterwards heard once or twice in Room 3.

March 24th, Wednesday.—Last night I heard a crash as of something falling from the dome into the hall, about twenty minutes to twelve.

At breakfast Colonel C—— said he had heard a loud thump on his door at an early hour—before six, when wide awake.

Mr. W—— also had had an experience. He heard sounds outside his room, and went to investigate. On returning he found the kitten in his room, but, sceptic as he is, he acknowledged freely that the kitten, a wee thing, could not have produced the sounds he heard.

Copy of letter from Mr. W—— to Mr. MacP——.

"March 24th, 1897.— ... In case it may interest Miss Freer to know what I thought of the noises I heard in No. 1 prior to the kitten incident, the following states my recollections shortly: The first noise was about half-past four, and resembled two small explosions, such as a fire sometimes makes. They followed one another closely, and came from the direction of the fireplace or the south-west corner of the room. I got up and looked at the fire, and it was all but out; but I would not like to swear that the noises did not come from it.

"As to the other noise, it occurred about a quarter to six, and was quite loud. It sounded as if one of the large, deer heads on the staircase wall had fallen down and rolled a step or two. I cannot understand how some of the others did not hear the noise, but I heard and saw nothing when I went out of my room to see what it was.

"I should add, that in this case, as well as in the former one, I was awake when the noise occurred. If I had heard these noises in any other house I would not have thought of noticing them, but it might be curious to see if they are the same that have been heard in that room already."

After breakfast I heard of a great excitement among the servants, and taking Miss Langton with me, to serve as witness and to take notes, I interviewed separately the three concerned, as well as the cook, to whom they had told the story also. It is worth while to mention that I have several times heard the kitchenmaid complained of as lacking in respect for her betters—in scoffing at their reports of phenomena. Only yesterday Mrs. Robinson told me she had not mentioned several things (bell-ringing, a knock at her door, &c.) because it upset her authority in the kitchen to exhibit interest in such things.

All the stories were consistent, and no cross-questioning upset the evidence. They were distinctly in earnest.

The three maids and a temporary servant, M——, belonging to the district, went up to their rooms about 10.30. The two housemaids sleep together [in z], Lizzie, the kitchenmaid, separately, in a room adjoining [in y]. Directly after getting into bed all heard knockings, and they called out between the rooms to each other. Lizzie stayed awake, and looking up towards the ceiling had what sounds like a hypna-gogic hallucination, of a cloud which changed rapidly in colour, shape, and size, and alarmed her greatly. Then she felt her clothes pulled off, but thought this might be accidental, and tucked them in. Then she was sure they were pulled off again, and screamed to the other maids. Neither dared go to her, her screams were so terrifying; but they finally opened the door of communication between the rooms, and Carter went to fetch the temporary assistant from the other end of the corridor, "because she was such a good-living girl" (particular about fasting in Lent, I gather). The three then returned for the kitchenmaid, and all spent the night in the housemaid's room.

The upper housemaid went to Miss Langton's room this morning, I hear, much upset and crying, and there can be no doubt of the conviction of all the maids.

For the future they wish to occupy one room.

The cook, sleeping on the ground floor below No. 3, heard footsteps and knockings, and awoke her husband, but he heard nothing. She diagnosed it as being "about the door of Miss 'Duff's' room (No. 3 above). She thought it was outside of her door, but was not sure. It was just after midnight.

Miss "Duff" writes on the same day:—

"Last night I had just got into bed, when I heard footsteps, so, always on the alert for phenomena, I listened and was relieved (? disappointed would be better!) to hear Mr. —— cough, so I settled down to sleep. A quarter of an hour or twenty minutes later (about twelve o'clock) I again heard steps, but this time they came from the back-stair and shuffled past my room, and then I heard a loud fall against what seemed to me the door of room No. 1, which is practically next door to mine.[E]

"I went to listen, but not a sound was to be heard, and I saw no one. It could not have been the gentleman who was occupying that room [Mr. W——], as I heard him (with others) come up a quarter of an hour later and go into his room. Although the fall seemed against the door of No. 1, I must add that the depth and quality of the noise was as if a large body had fallen far away, of which we only, as it were, heard the echo, but that quite distinctly on the door of No. 1."

[Miss Langton testifies to being disturbed by the same sounds in No. 2, the dressing-room between Miss "Duff's" room and Mr. W——'s.]

Miss "Duff" continues:—

"March 25th.—Last night I felt my bed shake, as if some one had taken it in both hands, but as there was a high wind, I did not take much notice of this. I have had my bed shaken violently in that room once before, however, when there was no wind at all."

Mr. MacP—— and Captain B—— left. The only phenomenon to be noted under this date is the following record by Miss Langton:—

"I heard a loud thump at the door of communication between Nos. 1 and 2 when dressing for dinner, but on going into No. 1 found it quite empty. A curious point about these noises is that the knocks on the door between Nos. 1 and 2 have been audible in this room, No. 2 (in my experience) only when No. 1 is empty, and in No. 1 only when No. 2 is empty."

March 26th, Friday.

  . . . . . . . .  

Miss "Duff" writes on the same day:—

"As I was talking to Miss Langton at the door of her room (No. 2) on my way to dress for dinner, a double bang on the door came from the inside of room No. 1, which was the one Captain B—— had occupied, and where he had heard nothing. At the same moment Miss Langton called out that there had been a bang on the door between her room and No. 1. For a moment I hesitated to go in, but a housemaid came down the corridor at that moment to see what the noise was she had heard, and we investigated together, but to no purpose."

Miss Langton writes further under this date:—

"I heard three distinct bangs at the lower part of the door of my room leading into the corridor. I described it to myself as a person coming along the corridor towards No. 2, walking in an unsteady way, and as if he could not see where he was going, and then walking straight against the door of my room and banging his foot against it. Miss 'Duff' this morning acted at our request as I have just described, and the noise she made was an exact reproduction of what I heard last night. The bang occurred at three intervals—at 11.35, 11.45, and 11.50."

March 27th, Saturday.—Mr. —— and Miss "Duff" left. Miss Langton and I are now alone.

Miss "Duff" was undisturbed last night.

  . . . . . . . .     . . . . . . . .  

There was very little wind last night, as I happen to know in the following connection. Carter twice over, about 11.30 and again after midnight, heard the sounds of reading, which she imitated to me this morning—like the monotoning of a psalm. She