Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1871-11-15
Phantom Armies.

A folio of Apparitions and Wonders,
preserved In the British Museum,
records that at Durham, on the 9th of
September 1903, when the evening sky
was serene and full Of stars. strange
and prodigious light spread over its
northwestern quarter, as if the sun it
self was shining: then came streamers
which turned to armed men ranked on
horseback. J. Edmonson, the writer
of the Broadsheet, adds: cit was
thought they would see the apparition
better in Scotland, because it appeared
a great way north the same" he con-
tinues gravely, twas seen in the latter
end of March, 1904, " and the battle of
Hochstadt followed it, This must re-
fer to the second battle fought there,
which we call Blenheim, when Marshal
Tallard was defeated and taken prison
Ell by Marlborough. But this wonder
full light which turned to armed men at
Durham was outdone by marvel at
Churchill, Oxfordshird, where lin the
same collectiOn) we find that, on the
9th of January, 1705, four sons were
all visible in the air at once, tsent for
signs unto mankind adds the pub
Usher, Mr.. Tookey, of st. Christopher's
Court, ''and having their signi6ca-
tions of the Lord, like the handwrit-
ing unto his servant Daniel"
In TIA, man named d. Stricket,
when servant to Mr. Lancaster, of
Biakehills, saw, one evening about
Z o'clock, a troop of horse ride leisurely
along Souter Fell, IL Cumberland.
They were in close ranks, and ere long
quickened their pace As this man had
been sharply ridiculed as the solitary
beholder of d spectre horseman in the
same place in the preceding year, he
watched these strange troopers fol-
some time ere he summoned his master
| from the house to look too. But ere
Stricket spoke of what was to be seen
g Mr. Lancaster discovered the aeria
troopers" whose appearance was as
plainly visible to him as to his servant
g These visionary horsenen seem
ed to come from the loves
pat of Souter Fell, anC
became visible at place named Knott
they moved in successive troops Co
squadrons) along the side Of the Eel
till they came opposite to Blakehills
where they went over the mountain
| They thus described Il kind of curvili
near path, their first and last appear
ances being bounded by the mountain.
They were two hours III sight; ant
81 this phenomenon was seen by every
person present twenty-six in number)
in every cottage within the distance o
a mile, according to the statement at
tested before magistrate by Lancaster
and Stricket on the Dist OF July, 1745
During the middle of the last centu-
ry, toll-keeper in Perthshire affirmed
on oath, before certain Justices of The
peace, that an entire regiment passee
through his toll gate at midnight; bu
as no such force had left any town IL
the neighborhood, or arrived at any
other, Or in fact, were ever seen any
where but at his particular turnpike
the whole story was naturally treated
as delusion though the Highland
ers sought in some way to connect the
vision with the unquiet spirits of those
who fought at Culloden, fol
there, the peasantry aver, ha
Gin the soft twilight of the summer
evening, solitary wayfarers, when pas
sing near the burial mounds, have sud
denly found themselves amid the smok,
and hurry burly Of q battle, and could
recognize the various clans engaged by
their tartans and badges On thos,
occasions, a certain Laird of Culduthi
was always seen amid the fray, on
white horse, and the people believe
that once again a great battle will bt
fought there by the clans but will
whom, or about what, no seer has ven
tared to predict"
Shadowy figures of armed men wer,
seen in Stockton Forest, Yorkshire
prior TO the war with France as TIL,
Leeds Mercury and local prints record
and SO lately 1912, much curiosity anC
no small ridicule were excited by til,
alleged appearance of phantom army
in the vicinity of bard-working, prosai
! Leeds, and all the newspapers ant
magazines of the time show how mucl
the story amused the skeptical and oc
cupied the attention of the scientific