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

intensity to produce a perceptible vibration at the earth's surface.

It would seem that in districts such as Comrie in Perthshire, East Hadden in Connecticut, Pignerol in Piedmont, Meleda in the Adriatic, &c., sounds without shocks are common during intervals, which may last for several years. Remarkable sounds, not apparently accounted for, are reported to proceed from Lough Neagh in Ireland.

See Nature, Oct. 1895, and following numbers; articles by M. van der Broeck in Ciel et Terre (Belgium), Dec. 1, 1895, and following numbers, also Geol. Mag., vol. ix. 1892, pp. 208-18.

CONSPECTUS OF AUDILE PHENOMENA AT
B—— HOUSE RECORDED IN JOURNAL

Recorded under Date. Heard in Room. Witness. Description of Sound. Feb. 4 No. I. Miss Freer
Miss Moore Loud clanging sound, as of metal struck with wood
Voices in conversation No. III. "Mac," the maid Voices, footsteps, things dragged about Feb. 5 Attics Two housemaids Continuous reading Feb. 7 No. VII. Miss Moore Reverberating bang close to bed Drawing-room Hall Mac
Miss Moore Noises and footsteps
Clanging sound upstairs Feb. 8 "Butler's room" Mac Footsteps and sounds on door No. VII. Miss Moore Reverberating bang Miss Moore
Miss Freer Noises percussive or explosive The Glen Miss Freer
Mr. C—— Voices in conversation Feb. 9 No. VII. Miss Moore
Miss Freer Noises percussive or explosive Feb. 10 No. I. Miss Moore Clangs. Voices in conversation No. V. Mr. W—— Knockings. No. VIII. Colonel Taylor Footsteps overhead Feb.13 No. I. Miss Moore Clanging noise Miss Moore
Miss Freer Crash No. V. Mrs. W—— Knockings Feb. 15 No. IV. Miss Langton A loud crash Feb. 16 The Glen Miss Langton
Miss Freer
Miss Moore Voices in conversation Feb. 17 Drawing-room Mrs. W——
Miss Langton
Miss Moore
Miss Freer Footsteps overhead in disused room Drawing-room Col. Taylor
Mrs. W——
Miss Langton
Miss Moore
Miss Freer Clanging noise, four times repeated Feb. 18 No. VIII. Miss Freer Banging sounds No. VIII. Miss Moore
Miss Freer Sounds as of an animal's movements in the room in daylight The Glen Miss Langton
Miss Freer Voices in conversation The Glen Miss Langton (later) Voices in conversation Feb. 19 The Glen Miss Langton Voices in conversation and footsteps Feb. 20 No. VIII. Miss Moore
Miss Freer Sounds of active movement of an animal in the room Feb. 21 No. VIII. Miss Moore Footsteps of an old man shuffling in slippers Miss Moore
Miss Freer
Dog Movements of animal Miss Moore
Miss Freer Bang on wall near No VII. Feb. 25 Wing Mr. "Endell" Clang noise "like a pavior's hammer dropped" No. I. Mr. Garford Violent banging on door of Nos. I. and II. No. III. Mr. "Q." Groans; "a greatly magnified edition of sounds I have several times heard in the drawing-room" Feb. 26 No. I. Mr. Garford Detonating or percussive noise like "a wheel-barrow on a hard road" March 1 No. IV. Mr. MacP—— Loud clanging sound in the room March 2 No. VIII. Miss Freer
Miss Moore Movements of animal in the room Miss Freer
Miss Moore Heavy fall No. III. Miss "N." Thud, sounding from below March 5 No. VIII. Miss Moore Movements of animal in the room Attics Two maids Monotonous reading No. I. Mrs. B.C. Monotonous reading (also mentioned by Mr. Garford as occurring in No. I.) Mrs. B.C. Bang on door of room Attics Mrs. Robinson (cook) Voices in conversation
Bangs on the wall of room March 7 Attics Robinson (butler) Heavy body falling in the room No. II. Mr. C—— Movements of heavy body in the room
Footsteps as if descending stairs
Loud rapping on doors of Nos. I. and II. March 8 No. II. Mr. C—— Noises in No. I. (empty room) March 10 No. VIII. Miss Moore
Miss Freer Animal moving in the room
Heavy fall March 13 No. VIII. Miss Moore
Miss Freer Loud bangs Attics Robinson, and Mrs. Robinson Loud bangs No. IV. Miss Langton Loud bangs March 15 No. VIII. Miss Moore
Miss Freer Vibrating bang No. IV. Miss Langton Vibrating bang Wing Colonel Taylor Vibrating bang [Miss Freer was absent for four nights, and no Journal was kept.] March 20 No. I. Miss Moore
Miss Freer
Miss Langton Metallic sound in room "like the 'giving' of a large tin box" March 22 No. IV. Mr. MacP—— Heavy footsteps overhead No. III. Miss "Duff" Resounding crash at door
Resounding crash in room March 23 Drawing-room Miss "Duff" Monotonous reading (also mentioned as occurring in No. III.) March 24 No. V. Miss Freer Crash of something falling under dome No. VIII. Colonel C—— Loud thump on door of room No. I. Mr. W—— Explosive noises
Crash of something falling under dome Attics Two housemaids and kitchen-maid Loud knockings Butler's room on ground floor Mrs. Robinson Footsteps and knocking on door of No. III. No. III. Miss "Duff" Shuffling foot steps outside room No. II. Miss "Duff"
Miss Langton Fall against door of No. I. March 25 No. II. Miss Langton Loud thump on door between I. and II. March 27 Attics Carter (housemaid)
Under-housemaid
Kitchen-maid Monotonous reading March 29 Library Miss Freer
Miss Langton Footsteps in locked-up room overhead March 30 Library Miss Freer
Miss Langton Footsteps in locked-up room overhead Corridor Mr. and Mrs. M——
Miss Langton
Miss Freer Rappings in No. II. (empty).
(See Mr. M——'s account) March 31 No. VIII. Miss Langton Shuffling footsteps in the room
Knock near the wardrobe No. I. Mrs. M——
Mr. M—— Metallic clangs in the room like "tuning a kettle-drum"; later, "terrific noise," "like treble rap on a hollow panel,"--like "the lid of a heavy coal-scuttle let fall" Drawing-room Mrs. M—— Voices in library
Detonating noise (like a distant cannon) April 1 No. VIII. Mr. M——
Mrs. M—— Voices and footsteps in room overhead (empty) Drawing-room Mrs. M—— Voices and footsteps overhead In the garden Mrs. M——
Miss Freer
Miss Langton Detonating noise Drawing-room Mrs. M——
Miss Freer
Miss Langton Limping footsteps overhead
Voices of a man and woman April 2 Library Miss Freer
Miss Langton Heavy blow on table Mrs. M——
Miss Freer
Miss Langton Heavy blow on table (heard in dining-room) Dining-room Miss Freer
Miss Langton
Robinson (butler) Footsteps overhead in empty room April 3 Library Miss Langton Violent hammering on door in daylight Dining-room Miss Freer
Miss Langton
Mr. T——
Robinson (butler) Footsteps overhead in empty room April 4 No. V. Miss Freer
Miss Langton Crash under dome April 5 No. I. Mr. T—— Monotonous reading April 6 No. I. Mr. T—— Thuds on floor above, and on door of room
Voices in conversation April 7 No. V. Miss Freer Crash under dome No. I. Mr. T—— Crash under dome
Voices in conversation
Raps at foot of door April 8 Various parts of the house Household generally Crashes and bangs and footsteps heard during the day Smoking-room Miss Freer
Miss Langton
Mr. T——
Dog Shuffling footsteps in the room
Voices outside door No. IV. Miss Freer Crash under dome No. VIII. Miss Langton Shuffling footsteps No. I. Mr. T—— Voices No. IV. Miss Freer Thuds on lowest panels of door
Footsteps of many persons [No Journal kept between April 8 and April 29. During this period Professor Lodge's notes testify to "knocks on the wall, a sawing noise, a droning and a wailing, ... some whistling, and apparent attempts at a whisper, all up in the attic.] May 3 No. I. Mme. Boisseaux Monotonous voice from No. III.
Voices in argument No. V. Mrs. "F." Knocks at door May 4 No. V. Mme. Boisseaux Knocks at door May 5 Drawing-room Mme. Boisseaux
Mrs. "F."
Mrs. M——
Miss Freer
Rev. MacL—— Detonating noise in empty room overhead (No. I.) in daylight Billiard-room Gardener, butler, cook and others Crash in the room May 6 No. V. Mme. Boisseaux "Room resounded with knocks" Library Miss Freer
Miss Moore Bangs on table May 13 No. I. Mr. "Etienne" [?] Detonating noise

NOTES

[Compare Plan of House.]

1. The rooms spoken of in the text as "the library," and the "upstairs," or "wing" smoking-room, are those marked in the Plan as the "morning-room," and the bedroom to the extreme east in the wing.

2. Most of the maid-servants slept in rooms Y and Z, over 1 and 2, until the alarm of March 25, when they moved to the rooms on the other side the house (X and W), thus leaving those over Nos. 1 and 2 empty.

3. Robinson and Mrs. Robinson (butler and cook) occupied room W till March 13, when both moved into the butler's room off the hall, which during the first month had been occupied by Mac the maid, who became ill and returned south.

4. Opinions regarding the noises, and experiments as to their origin, will be found on the under-mentioned pages of the Journal.

Opinions, pp. 92, 111, 113, 120, 124, 128, 133, 143, 144, 147, 153, 154, 159, 162, 166, 168, 173, 179, 187, 198, 201, 207, 215, 219, 234, 242.

Experiments, pp. 109, 129, 140, 160, 175, 180, 218, 220.

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