The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1871-08-04

OF their blood having been sucked by
vampires. Some of the neighbors re-
membered having heard Arnold say
that he had often been tormented by a
vampire; and they jumped to the con-
clusion that the passive vampire had
now become active. This was In &C.
cordance with kind of formula or the.
orem on the subject that man who,
when alive, has had his blood sucked
by vampire, will, after his death,
deal with other persons in like manner.
The neighbors exhumed Arnold Paul,
drove stake through the heart, cut off
the head, and burned the body. The
bodies of the four persons who had re-
Gently died were treated in similar
way, to make surety doubly sure.
Nevertheless even this did not su flee.
In 1872, soven years after these events,
seventeen persons died in the village
near about one time. The memory of
the unlucky Arnold recurred to the
Villagers; the vampire theory was
again appealed to he was believed to
have dealt with theseventeen as he had
previously dealt with the four; and
they were therefore disintered, the
heads cut off, the hearts staked, the
bodies burned, and the ashes dispersed.
One supposition was that Arnold had
vamperized some cattle, that the sew
enteen villagers had eaten of the beef,
and had fallen victims in consequence.
This affair attracted m uch attention
ut the time Louis the Fifteenth di-
rected his ambassador at Vienna to
make inquiries in the matter. Many
of the witnesses attested an oath that
the disinterred bodies were full of
blood, and exhibited few of the usual
symptoms of death indications which
the believers in vampires stoutly main
tained to be always present in such
cases. This has induced many physi-
clans to think that real cases of catalep-
sy or trance were mixed up with the
popular belief, and were supplemented
by large allowance of epidemic fanat-
icism.
Mr.. Pashlcy, in his Travels in Crete,
states that when he was at the town of
AskylO, he asked about the vampires s
or katakhanadhes, as the Cretans called
them--of whose existence and doings
he had heard many rectals, stoutIy
corroborated by the peasantry. Many
of the stories converged towards one
central fact, which Mr.. Pashley believ-
ed had given origin to them all. On
one occasion a man of some note was
buried at st. Georges Church ut Kali
kraft, in the island of Crete. An arch
or canopy was built over his grave
But he soon afterwards made his ap
pearance as vampire, haunting tn,
village, and destroying men and chill
dren. A shepherd was one day tend
ing his sheep and goats near the church
and on being caught in shower, wen
under the arch and took shelter from the
rain. He determined to pass the night
there, laid aside his arms, and stretch.
ed himself on stone to sleep. In
placing his firearms down (gentle shep.
herds of pastoral poems do not want
firearms; but the Cretans are not gen.
tie shepherds), he happened to cross
them. Now this crossing was always
believed to have the effect of prevent
ing a vampire from emerging from the
spot where the emblem was found
Thcreupon occurred singular debate
The vampire rose in the night, and re.
quested the shepherd to remove the
firearms in order that he might pass, as
he had some important business to
transact. The shepherd, inferring frem
this request that the corpse was the
identical vampire which had been do
ing so much mischief, at first refused
|; his assent; but on obtaining from the
vampire a promise on oath that he
would not hurt him, the shepherd
moved the crossed arms. The YAM
pire, thus enabled to rise, went to a
distance of about two miles, and killed
two persons, a man and a woman. On
his return, the shepherd saw some in.
dication of what had occurred, which
caused the vampire to threaten him
with II similar fate if ,livulged what hi
had seen. He coura geously told all
however. The prizes and other per
sons came to the spot next morning
took up the corpse (which in day time
was as lifeless as any other and burn
it. While burning, little spot O
blood spirited on the shepherds foot
which instantly withered away; bu
otherwise no evil resulted, and thu
vampire was effectually destroyed
This was certainly very peculiar vam
pire story for tho GOODNESS with which
the corpse and shepherd carried on thei
conversation under the arch was UNIQUE
enough. Nevertheless, the persons VIII,
narrated the affair to MIR. Pashley firm
ly believed in its truth, although slight
ly differing in their versions of it.
, Modern vampires in Western Eu
rope seldom trouble society, so far a
f narratives tell but across the Atlanti
d. something of the kind has occupie,
public attention within the limits Q
the present generation. In 1854 Ih
9 Times gave an extract from an Amer
. can newspaper, the Nor'cich C0urie,
). concerning an event that had just OF
{ Cured. Horace Bry, of Griswold, die
5 of consumption in 1916; two of h
e children afterwards died of the sam
o complaint; eight years afterwards,
n 1854, a third died. The neighbors, ev
|. IDENTIFY having the vampire theory
l their thoughts, determined to exhum
0 the bodies of the first two children, an
# burn them under the supposition tn
/, the dead had been feeding on the Ii
|. ing. In what state the bodies were r
Q ally found we are not told; but the
d were disinterred and burned on the s,
!, of June In the abOye- named wear