The Athens post. [volume] (Athens, Tenn.) 1848-1917, 1850-05-17
THE STRATFORD MYSTERY,

credulOus, and minislerng to the general
love of the marvellous. The wonderful
things told of it exceed even the maryels Of
the Rochester spirits. The story Of the
Cock Lane ghost, that DR.. Johnson claimed
the credit of exercising, is verified, and all
the mysteries of mesmerism and calrvoy-
ance stand esrablished-ii we may credit
the testimony of "many people of the high
est responsibility Then the character OF
the family in which these wonderful scenes
are enacled-lhat Of the Rev. DR.. Phelps,
Secretary of the American Education So.
ciety-is said to preclude the suspicion of
its being party to fraud.
Yet we are required to credit stories ,hat
exceed in incredlb,i'y the widest visions
of delirium lremens. and Of which the least
incredible, perhaps. is the story that nI"e
female ghosts appeared in a room Of the
haunted house, kneellng over Bibles, each
open at some text, indicating by a turned
down leaf or slip of pape:, Divine authority
for all other impossible things. These fair
in'aneib!es we are gravely told were cloth.
ed in dresses belonging to the ladies' Of the
family; and it is argued, that because those
dresses were hanging up in closets wihln
short time before the discovery o! the
figures, they could not therefore, have been
adjusted with that precision in which they
were lound by any other than supernatural
means.
The Derby Journal, published in the
vicinity OF these marvellous dolngs, appears
to have been brought by hablual observa-
ton to fall belief in their Supernatural
origin, and carefully chronicles The mcI-
deuls as they occur from day TO day with
historic soiemnily. We give an extract
from the latest and least marvellous Of its
reports:
In yesterdays paper, we were speaking
about the brushes that were thrown around
the room, and apparently at US, and the
gentleman who was with us. Without
further comment, we proceed.
Alter those brushes had been thrown,
and every effort made on opr part detect
the source from whence they camr, we
proposed TO our companion TO 90 out ot the
room, and in our stocking feet 10 listen CT
the hail door. and see II we could not hear
| rustling OF the beiclothes, or some TRIVIAL
! circumstance whereby we could tasten the
rick on the Young lady. Just as we turned
! our backs, down came another brush; soon
after, a large comb fell near one OF the
| ladies' heads; piece OF soap was lound on
the -four, and loud rappings heard, We
picked up the brushes and put them IN our
pocket, and took our place near the door IN
the hall-Our trend being a, this time on
the garrett STAIR with his eye skinned, at
Ientively listening to the sounds. The rap'
pings now were loud and bois'erUus--so
much 80 that Two gentlemen who came
with us, sleeping IN room thirty leet DIS
,art, (Eerhaps More,) were aroused, and
came where we were. Here then. were
four individuals, with sound minds, l.s,en-
Ing 10 the mos, horrible rappinsS ever
heard, racking their brains to ascertain from
whence they emana,ed. We had no heen
IN this position bat a nome, WHEN some
thing came against the door with great vlo
Ience, and making a loud noise. Instantly
every maa sprang into the room, and las>
tened his eyes on The persons IN The bed
the writer grasplLg The hands OF the young
lady, that he n got not be deceived thai
she was moi the cause. We found her m
a very nervous state, and she told US that
her cheek had been struck, which upon
exan,inarron, We perceived was very red
The cause Of the noise was a larg" white
pitcher that stood some four feet irum the
bed, near the foot and nea,lr in one corner
OF the room and which had been flung with
force which no delicate female could
possibly possess, against the door breaking
off the handle, and leaving an ind.ntaiinu
IN the clap boards Of not quite quarter Of
an inch deep. Thls last staggered our
senses-we could not behave II, ard enters
ed into a discussion on line spot. To show
how unreasonable II is to suppose that the
ladies' threw il, we would state tha, TO have
done ii. they must have got out OF bed
Now the moment it was done. we were
beside the bed aud The ladies' hands were
under the clothes. No srirr'ng OF the hands
were vIsible-nothn, whereby we could
arrive at the conclusion that the females
were the actors.
Let us also state that # the pitcher came
IN a straight line from where 1t STOOD, II
would according 10 a natural law OF gravity,
have struck IN a corner OF the room. and II
II went directly across the room, 1t wonid
have struck the bureau: but IL did neither,
and must have taken semi-circuIsr course
10 have reached the place ii dad. This ap-
pears foolish, absurd and ridiculous; but we
are stating facts, as they took place IN the
presence OF four individuals. Our readers
can form their own opinions.