The daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1848-1851, 1850-05-08

70 imltdte mano4hny, irom which facts think
should have seen the paper had Il been n the pose
ton found il, for minute before ssw i on fire.
An instant before the alzrn and the fash r wwg
looking upon the bed, and noticed the covering :
spread up smooth to the boy's head, and his face
turned toward me. Had his hand been out OF bed
he could scarcely have reached the paper from tie
position 10 which he then wa& After fhe occus-
renee, the boy got up, and passed the night in tho
same bed with me, and when there, in reply 70 my
questions to how he knew Of the FIRE 20 soon and
why he jumped 50 suddenly, he said it burned hinx
that his hand was in the blaze--and yet he wap
equally sure that his hand was under the coverIsf.
Ihe next morning, soon after breakfast, and with
out the least Pfe-arrangement that could discover,
went, N company with the daughter and second
lady who had spent several days in the family, 10
make discoveries in the attic and azrret In Eam-
bling about several articles 81 apparel which had
been missed Tor a week or more, were found Tbs
last room examined was store room under tho
slope Of the roof, and after looking cnreluIV over
every thing there, about % retire from Il. :.
when the brass knob Of door lock, with the iron
in i, struck the floor, with violence, about thrss
feet behind me-
Previous this the ladies', who were then stand
ing the door Of the room, and in very strong
Light, had been joined by the boy and gentiemsn
who resided in the place. As the boy nearer 2
70 me when this happened than any else, told
him he ought not % do such things, for had the
knob struck my head the injury would have beeH
very severe. AT the same time II appeared to me
| impossible that he could have thrown Il witheut
| uttNfc1H
knob, with my hat in my hand and my head bent
over to avoid bumps against the rafters and be WAS
some eight feet from, and directly before me-
Before he could reply, the gentlemen called out
that If any one threw it. did il myself for he had
his eyes strongly liked upon the other folks when it
fell, and Tor two three minutes previously The
boy denied any knowledge Of this in the same con-
! vincing manner that he did the match bnx af{zir
| the night before.
During the same forenoon, was engaged in
| conversation with the daughter and the lady who
had made one OF the party Of discovery up stairs
We were in the dining ROOM / stood with my
back to the window, and about five feet frnm IT,
| Ihe ladies' stood facing the window and me, and
about six feet from me- They were side by side
and about two feet apart No else was in the
room. The daughters right hand rested against
her right side, her elbow projecting towards her
companion and her left hand and arm were hang
| ing nearly straight down
Suddenly the daughters right arm straighteneds
| InflctiBg an apparently severe blow on her com
panious right arm, just below the shoulder, and at
1 the same time she cried out, / am pinched I"
| The sleeve Of her dress being turned up a little,
there was plainly visible mark closely resembling
| severe pinch freshly made, and such would be-
| made by iron plyers- The shape Of the mark was
similar to the letter v. Two or three moments
l-afterwards; examined the same mark, and ehly
found very faint outline out OF IL Five or ten
minutes later swelling had arisen as though the
part affected had been stung by wasp or some
similar insect In the evening there was quite
I
II The four instances above related tssF the edi-
tors Of the Sum- bot the drop in the bucket
thousands Of equally, and some far more, unae-
countabe things having occurred in different parts
OF the same house, very many Of which are aitested
by persons of the greatest respectability, having
no connection whatever with the family. In
stating these, the writer admits OF surmise ard
gives no testimony from any person connected
| with the family, although he cannot avoid again
expressing his belief that they are each and al as
far removed from any just suspicion Of deception,
as could be the most upright family with whein he
is acquainted ~
He makes no alusion to " knackings on npises
upon the doors, and in other parts Of tho house. not
because he has not heard them, but because, irem
his position at the time, he could not know by him.
self and beyond peradventure, that they were not
effected by the contrivance and management Of the
/, family or some other person. Sometimes occur
rences have assumed lareical appearance leading
directly the conclusion that they were got ups
and sometimes II has been evident 10 the senses
!, that they were actually done BY members cl ths
family at others 1t had been cerain THAI thef had
o not, and could not have any control over whak
d transpired. When so done by the family Il has,
TO the witnesses, been perfectly evident that they
were merely unconscious agents, and that the ac-
tons OF their bodies done without the knosvI
edge of their minds. In this way they have charged
each other, as have also friends who were with
2 them, upon the evidence Of sight, with throwing
things about the house.
But for every instance Of this kind there have
been five hundred Of which there remained no en-
PLANTATION whatever and the fact that their bodies
Ito say the least did DO certain things and coazZ
do great many more, does not in any way,
lessen impair the strength of the evidence that
many other things treye done, entirely without their
or any other human known natural agency,
Throughout the whole affair the fallibility OF human
nature has, in many things, been clearly perceiv-
able. The apparently cunning contFivance- OF one
occurrence has been offset against the Careless
ness manifested in another. So, too, in regard TO
the knockings. The communications made have,
at times, shown the wisdom of a thoughtful man,
and at others nothing more than the nonsense of a
fool. There has been every variety OF action and
motion seen in inanimate objects, but in such q
random way perplexes alike the coolest Teasonar
and the veres simpleton, in the attempts to assign
1 a cause -
To the writer there is nothing supsrhuman in
what has transpired. He believes in nothing like
ghosts or hobgobns of any kind and although
the communications themselves assert that they
are made by the spirits Of deceased persons, he
disayows, entirely, the saperhnman, the ghost tho
hobgoblin and the spirit, and presents theory in
which he and one other gentleman, who has with
him witnessed these phenomena, are agreed.
This theory ia, that there exiss in nature an eIe-
ment asyet unknown to the scientific world, tbs
mysterious workings of which are apparent. while
the workman and his tools lie hid in the nists OF
ignorance. In this they find their only explanation
OF what they aud Others have Witnessed at which
the human mind does no, entirely revolt and they
can thus better than by any process of ratocnation
ON other basis square every action and account Cor
every movement which they have seen OF which hns
been satisfactorily aitesaed TO Them
From numerous Reenliarites aud trifies, many Of
which, in themselves. as ligtit as air. they in
cline TO the supposiion that the eemen, alluded to
bears strong releli0nio electricity and animal mag
netism, parIaking very strongly of both. Time
and observation will alone discover the truth fall
siy Of these surmises, and to that powerful opera
tor they look for discovery Of the means byNhich
the new element, if ascertained TO exist, may be
governed and controlled by and AT the pleasure Of
! man.
To some these observations may seem astound-
ing, and to others ridiculous; but we are disposed
to think they will attract the serious attention Of
those who in the habit OF reasoning with an Ilr
I vestigating spirit, upon the progress Of human
= knowledge-past, present and future. The loea OF
the existence of new and heretofore undiscovered
element in the natural world not more ridiculous
at the present day than il was hundreds OF years
| ago.
4 When the visible power Of the load-stone was
e first discovered its workings and effects were not
less mysterious than the things have treated Of
nj and Il was long before The beautiful regularity and
svSeYn Of its actions and properly app1a-
ciated and applied. 1t not many years since the
+. bare idea of q bottled lightning would have made
Q each particular hair OF many professedly scientific
. men stand on end. $50 to Albany in a boat
! AGAINST wind and tide and without nrof,e "A hur