Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1886-10-28
WIDOW VAN GEsEL'S VISION.
PHILADELPHIA Press:

Mrs. Sadie Van easel was found dead
in her bed at her home in Sandy Springs,
W. Va, on the last day of February, and
her death recalls the story of her life,
which was rather remarkable III matri-
monial way. Her fathers name was
Martin, and she was born in Mercer
County about fifty years ago, and went to
Sandy Springs when only fifteen years of
age. She was an unusually pretty and
attractive girl. She married John Burke,
a lumberman. Burke lived only two
years, being killed by falling tree. Mrs.
Burke received attentions from Richard
Rasin and married him. When Rasin
married he was in excellent health, but
after happy union of four years he sue
cumbed to malignant attack of malarial
fever. Rasin had been under the turf
about eighteen months when his widow
married George T. Roberts. The people
in the neighborhoOd began to look upon
Sadie Martin as a very unlucky
woman and it was prophesied that
Roberts would not live long
After being married three years Roberts
was accidentally shot and killed while out
cunning. 1t was several years before the
widow brushed the tears away from her
eyes sufficiently to see love for her in
those of Charles Ingle, a cousin to her
first husband. Ingle drank himself to
death, and quit the claim in favor of
John Bryant, sturdy, strapping back
woodsman, who stood six feet III his
stockings. and was regarded as one of the
most powerful men in the camps. Bry
ant, having married the widow, took her
over into Logan County to a camp called
Beach Greek, where they lived pleasantly
IL i hoI ol,SJ
girls.
Bryant finally got tired of his wife,
however, and disappeared, and was not
hearn of for five years, during which time
Mrs. Bryant supported herself and the
children by knitting socks for the trap
pers and buying skins and sending them
to market. At the end of five years she
received information that Bryant had
been killed la a row On Mississippi
steamer.
This left her once more free and still
comparatively young. She was extreme
ly poor, and her children went around al
most in rags. While things were going
along from bad to worse there happened
along a German peddler named Otto My
er. Myer could talk English to the
Queens taste, and had glib tongue, and
the result was he married Mrs. Bryant.
But the peddler proved inconstant and
skipped, and was never heard of after
ward. Then the widow returned to Sandy
Springs.
Three years ago, after waiting many
years for SONS news of Myer, the peddler,
the widow made her final match with
Samuel Van Gesel, farmer and
widower with four children. There was
violent opposition on the part of Van
Gesel's family, and his children left his
house. The ceremony was performed in
the widows house. She was several years
older than Van Gesel, and her hair was
turned gray. There were wrinkles in her
face, but her black eyes sparkled as bright
as ever, and smile lighted mp her coun-
tenance as she became for the seventh
time wife. Van Gesel passed away
at the end of a year, being literally
crowded into his grave by the hatred ex-
pressed against him by his family and
former friends.
His widow afterwards lived II retire
ment. One day the widow had dream
in which she saw the vision of her eighth
husband. She said she was lying on the
lounge in the sitting room at the time
and the vision appeared before her as
natural as life, and told Der that he was
ueSG1neQ TO marry ne1. ana unless this
event were speedily to happen she would
die. She recognized in the vision James
Turpin, a prominent widower of the ham
let, school commissioner, man of con
siderable property and influence, and a
lifelong Democrat. Mrs. Van Gesel
awoke greatly disturbed over her dream.
Being of somewhat superstitious turn
of mind she placed implicit faith in
what she believed she had seen. She
called to the hired girl and told her
about the vision and counseled her to say
nothing Of it to anybody. The girl, how
ever, told the dream in the village store
the first time she was sent there on an
errand. The storekeeper laughed at the
dream. and when Turpin came into the
store that night chaffed him over it, and
advised him to sell out and skip.
The news of the widows dream flew
rapidly over the village and excited any
amount of comment. Some derided it
as trick, others denounced it as down
right lie, and few acknowledged that
there might be something of prophecy