The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1895-03-21
TEE DEVIL HOUSE,.

For four years the house was empty In I7o
bamuel Chapman, who was not q Quaker con
eluded 10 try bis luck with the curse. and tool
bis family there. In 1903 he was joined at m,
house by his sister, Betsey Chapman. who was :
Etrong-minded young woman OF great persona
beauty and who bad dashing STYLE that made
her fayOrite with the naval officers stationed
there. She created for the Devil House lis
name The pious QHakers wagged their head.
wofully when they heard her FREQUENT remark
am going TO enjoy my life If the very devil
himself stands at the door" Her goings on
shocked the Quakers still more. Finally. she
fell IN love with steady Young man from
stonington named Luke DriskeI, and seemed
20 be converted.
But she took TO her bed delirious To the
terror Of the Quskers she began raving abou,
the devil coming TO carry her away bodily
ruby 5O persons were IN aud around the Devil
House, and TO their superstitious fears it seemed
ss ~ some power Tor evil were shaking the old
oak-framed building. The venerable psstor
Timothy Wsterhouse. was sent for. and he
prayed long and earnestly at the bedside of the
raTing woman. This contest Of his with the
devil for the possession of Beisey Chapman il
one Of the legends Of Quakertown. To the ex.
cited people it seemed AS IL dark shadow
lowered over the house. Betsey Chapman cried
out that great black bird was carrying her of
bodily, and that his gistening talons were
piercing her sides Her shrieks could be heard
far off BY this time several officers Of the
Westinghouse had also reached the house, and
they, too. began praying. At last the old pss-
Tor called out to girl:
not prevail"
20, God cried the girl. "plunge thy hands
into hell and pluck me out"
The legend says that as soon as the mama NJ
God was uttered by the girl the crisis seemed
20 he passed.
Betsey hung between life and death for
weeks. bat she ultimately recovered. Her
brother was soon after seized with the melan.
choiia of the house. and wandered away insane
and was never seen again.
IN December OF that year Betsey was married
70 Driskel, and four weeks later she was killed
bv fall down the we'll
The next Spring 1909 her husband sold the
farm 10 Amos Waterhouse, a relative OF the old
Quaker pastor, and then went into the far West.
Amos Waterhouse had two sons Their names
were Amos and jesse. The latter became in
sahe when be was nine years old and d led in an
asylum. Amos, while youth, broke through
tne earthen crust of a charcoal pit which his
father was burning, aud was smotbered To
oeatn. he mother OF the boys fell into melan-
cboiiR and died after few months of illness
She was aid at the side of her bows.
Amos Nsterhouse married again; this time
70 daughter Of the Qpakertown COLONY. De-
Nfe iloRefs. nooh after her marriage she was
stricken with brain foyer and became a bed.
RIDDEN invalid, remaining so for wears. until
1873 when she, too, died One of the niainest
marked Of the old brown stone grayestones
among the rank growth Of grass and briers ON
south Hill notes her last resting place. Amos
Materhouse never rallied from the shock oc-
cssloned by the death Of his wife, and In 1915
BIO died.
Now comes period of 10 years. when data
ifaa et.
She Quaker records. Ii is known. however