Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1877-06-28
Startling Phenomena.

Wm. McComas highly respectable and
wealthy farmer, with one son, lad of 1S
years, and q wife, lives four miles west of
Bridgeport on the Cadiz pike, in one of the
handsomest new residences in the county, and
is withal one of the most reliable men in his
community, truthful and fully responsible.
He has recently moved into his elegant resi-
dence-yet not fully finished. About aSeek
ago young girl in the employ of the family
went to the cellar, and soon thereafter spig-
OF in barrel of fine cider in the cellar gave
way; calling for help Mrs McComas respond
ed but found not only that it was impossible
to stop the waste of the cider but that the
spigots from four barrels of vinegar had also
flew out and the contents of the five barrels j
were run upon the cellar floor. This incident
unimportant in itself at the time assumed
so ne significance in the peoples eyes in the |
light of recent events which are measurably |
charged to it. On Monday, after dinner, Mrs. |
McComas heard a disturbance in her large
pantry, stored full of good things, and sup
posing it to be rat attempted to hunt it out
and discovering large number of things
tumbling and tumbled from her shelves, called
in the assistance of her son, who also failed
to discover his ratship, and becoming little
at the way things were acting in
the pantry; started to blacksmith shop near
by for his father who speedily came to find
him-inexplicable doings in the
pantry, fruit cans, jelly cups, TIN ware, but
ter crooks, indeed everything in the room,
seemed on the move toward the floor. From
an adjoining cupboard dishes were flying to
the tioer in groups and pairs; some large
crooks containing family buffers were turning
.npsy turvy and spilling their contents on the
iOor. The tnp-crnst was flying from pes
and large number of freshly baked loayes of
bread we're breaking into flakes and crumbs
md flying about ,promiscuousy until the light
caves were broken to bits Mr. McComas at {
,nce summoned some of his neighbors to wit {
hess the strange frelks-a number of whom, |
including Isaac Taylor, Thomas Majors. Eli
Bailey and Israel Steer, came and witnessed
he mysterious pranks, among which were the
Ollowing: A large featherbed was carried i
rom the farthest side of q second room up
tairs across that and another room and down
winding stairway and deposited in the room
below. The family Bible was thrown q num- 9
,er of feet upon the floor. A piano stool was
orcibly thrown well across a room and the /;
,iaDo suddenly moved from the wall toward !.
he center of the room. A large sewing =
Machine was overturned on the floor. Eight
arge hams hanging in an unfinished room
we're number of times loosened from their
looks and thrown upon the floor. A tea
.ettle filed with water and a large crock filed =,
With fruit we're tossed from the stove to
he floor. All the beds in the house were
brown on the foor-some a number of
lines after being replaced. A large tank of
ream and several crooks of milk
we're o'erturned in the cellar. Ward @
obes filled with winter clothing had
in, thaI
ooms. After the apple and other butter
rocks had turned upside down a number of
lines they were set in tubs to protect them,
nd some of the heaviest of them leaped clear
t the tubs and turned mouth down on the
round. Bureau drawers, after being again
nd again replaced, jumped from their places,
lighting, in some instances, number of feet
#. One large upper drawer had made one
lmp too many and was badly wrecked. The
oors were generally closed when the demon
trations began, and MIR. McComas says they
'ere forced open in every instance. One bed
ad jumped to the floor number of times,
nd was replaced by Mr. Bailey-meanwhiie
ne large pitcher and bowl on a wash stand in
ne room went crashing to the floor, spilling
ne water without breaking the vessels, while
he stand moved from the wall and its draw
r wen flying to the floor, followed by the
ed One bunch of plates made number of
ips to the floor without breaking, though a
umber of others were. Some of the bed |
eads were number of times moved about
risky. Chairs, tables and furniture were
and upset all over the house q
lmber Of times-with general tossing up p
de down of everything in the house. Tops E
ew from fruit cans, and their contents min
ed with the mass of displaced articles on the
Dor of the pantry. A valuable clock down
airs and another up, were thrown from the II
antels TO the f1Oor-the most valuable one ~
ling out straight from the wall to the floor, -
yhting on its face. These things occurred 4
under the eye of some one of the observers CT
esent, and commenced on Monday after At
nnar and otonned ot7 on1 heTor on , eli
M Tuesday, and closed mainly at noon of r.
at day. Large numbers of people visited :.
e premises on Monday and Tuesday, the ci
terest being intense. Our correspond !
It was on the ground Tuesday
ternoon-saw the Debris of the af- -
ir and ts attendant confusion, whit
ally was sorrowful enough to behold. Mr..
cComls is a man of much more than ordina-
good sense, and takes the thing quite
affordng at the same time
e fullest facilities for all to help fathom the ID
ystery. He is somewhat inclined to give y
edit to some noxious vapors arising from OF OF,
e vinegar and the peculiar soil in which it GO
nix for the strange developments But the
luton will doubtless be found in peculiar
sctric condition obtaining at the time, WITH So,
rhaps, some peculiar magnetic influence un- pr
rlying the house, creating a commotion in
e electric world. Be what it may, the RI,
,cts as stated, are fully attested by some of =
e best people in Belmont county. During
onday night all was quiet on the Potomac
e family remaining in the house. Future =
will be duly noted.
Will some wise man rise and explain?
needn't apply. That part van
led when the cider ran away.
A VERY pleasant family reunion
n, h old of tho ra,i lama nf .