Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1878-01-29
machine went buzzing across the room.

lnder the feather bed" which | found
vas so. In few minutes she called
I'm smethering." She had the quilt
pinned around her head so that it bent
he pin double to tear it loose. In a
ew more minutes she called '.I'm chok-
ng and something is on nv legs" Her
stocking was tight around her neck and
elastic around both legs above the knees.
We lOosed her once more and I went to
nv ironing again. She called again"
Something is over my head" A hole
was torn in her skirt, and her head thrust
through the hole. We freed her again.
when her drawers were taken off and
1rawn over her head. Her father is
sitting by her and sees the locks of hair
pulled out and the marks where she
gets pinched but cannot see any body do
it. She gets pinched on the ears, legs
and arm, but nothing is visible but the
marks. There is something more strange
still than has ever happened. Rosa
said: "Pa, here lies a letter on the
bed" 1t was sealed and address to
James w. Dunn. He tore it open and
it cont ined Family Guide and Memo.
from Merritt & c mpany.
1t was from Kingston and was new. 1t
was thrown there, but how 1t came there
is mystery to US. Her father sits by
her. She has just been thrown out of
the bed, and splitting, said: 'SOmething
Is in my mouth" 1t was ravelling of
something. Now she is slapped in the
face. She is sleepy and half crying.
She acts as if she was crazy. Now the
clock key has dropped down. 1t is now
morning. In the night the light was
put out, the clock stopped, and the piv-
OF. the rim and the minute-hand taken
off. We found them and put them on
again. The rapping was in my mothers
room towards morning. She has gone
away again. / tried to persuade her not
to go, but she made no reply. 1 talked
to her until she was out of the doors,
but she would not speak even good by.
This is more than / can bear. She laws
it to me and the children. [ must leave
it in the hands of "higher power"
He can avenge my wrongs. If I am to
blame. let me he punished, but / am
not. Last night some saddler's silk
and lock of one of my dead children's
hair were thrown into the room coming
through three closed doors. When
you get tired of "Lillie" and
"Iny,' send them home. Good by for
the present. MARY D. B. DUNN.
Aside from natural enthusiastic
bias awakened in me by what 7 had
heard of it, and In point of fact. the
Dunn house is not prepossessing. It is
dreadfully bare and forlorn. with no trees
abou; it, several windows broken out,
and a squalid barn and hen coop of ma
tural wood blackened by the weather to
contrast with its form dable colors. But
it is good in being just like all the other
houses which spirits take to--rectangu-
lar, uncomfortable, cheap and all that.
Mr. Dunn was smoking pipe i'm the
yard when introduced myself, black
ish sort Of man with dark mat of a
beard spIashsd down the middle with
yellowish white. He went into the
house and after while came out again
and asked me to go in. The house was
not disappointing in the matter of dilap
idstion. The entire family was gather
ed in the kitchen-seven children, who
seemed twice as many from their rapid
manner of getting about, the father aud
mother, and several eats and a dog eat
ing scraps under the table. Mrs. Dunn.
who said the life was almost worn out of
her with staying awake nights for the
purpose of rescuing her offspring from
feather beds and carriers which resolved
themselves into hangman's nooses, was
frying buck wheat cakes for break fast
a very thin, tall woman, with a calico
sack of Indifferent fit and an apron
which demonstrated its purposes on the
face of it; and the two possessed chill
dren, Rosa and fna-one dark and pref
tv, and the other blonde and with, Mrs.
Dunn said, the ''gawiter in her neck
were engaged in a sturdy battle for the
possession Of the baby, who promised to
come liz two under the ardent struggle.
After long conversation. was permit
ted to experiment with the girls. We
all went into the next room, where Mr..
Duna sat on the floor. by the stove.
smoking his pipe and where Mrs. Dunn,
having eaten her own breakfast, pro-
ceeded to furnish the baby with hers.
In a little while. as nothing few and
my anxious and ambitious eye remain
ed intact. asked leave to tie the girls
up aud blindfold them. This was per
mitted me. l tied Rosa first, and while
[ was so doing Mrs. Dunn cried Gina ~
and made rush for the buttery door,
Didn't tell you not to go near that
door," she said to Ina, who had leaned
against il 6 moment. With that she
opened the door ard "There," she said.
'.there's the milk AID fls salt bucket on
the floor" She grsvely put fhssa Articles
on the shelf, having thus certainly
drawn the inference that the "powers"
fiiE0ugh Ina had taken them down and
shut the door After had tied Rosa
very looseiy-l put q handkerchief over
her eyes and slowed her 2way on a
chair in her grandmother's bedfnom i;
and then, remembering the milk pan,
stepped to the buttery door and opened
it. Mrs. Dunn was inside reaching up
to the shelves. She had gone in through
a second door from the kitchen. ''It's
me-" she said, so came out and devot-
ed myself to Rosa. thinking Mrs. Dunn
would take care of the closet, put my
ear to the bedroom door, and after ten
minutes heard her call out to sfCoMe
in" / opened the door and found her
under the he'd, and the cord with which
had tied her on the floor She said
she had been rolled under the bed.
asked her Why she didn't come out. and
she said she would. So she did.
Then I tied Ina. l Cora plicated the
knots about her wrists with ali my skill
blindfolded her and put her in the bed
rooTn on a chair. After listening for
nearly half an hour outside heard her
call and went ia. She was lying on the
floor covered up witt. led clothes. and
asked her if she was united She said
no, that she was not united, hut tnat she
was smothering. OF course I had' to be
conkented with that. I took the bed
clothes of her and united he- myself.
Then took Rosa with me into a dark
closet and held boiL her hands tight
She said was frightened. I asked her
why she thought so. She said she beard
my teeth chatter / told her it was T,sy
starched shirt collar rubbing against the
bosom of my shirt, but she continued to
urge the theory that my teeth were
chatteTing, and then all of a sudden gave
a scream and sat down. She said some
thing had hit her on the head and
knocked her down so opened this door
and found that she had been stricken
by a work basket weighing five ounces.
which in jumping she had knocked off
the nail where it hung Just above her
head. | am sorry for her, and took Ina
in neSt. She said she was very much
frightened and that sombody was kick
ing her legs, After while had to let
her out. as she insisted upon my doing
so and fell to kicking my legs violent