The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-08-27
STRANGE HuMAx MAGNET.
barbara RoschIau Said 10 Attract
Metal Like the Real Thing.

tdD.c physician IN Au-S..tt@f NTtA Alitat4sf
claims to have under his surveillance the
most notable and extraordinary example
of an electrical girl combining in her
small frame the elements Of powerful
magnet and of hrst-class thunderstorm"
The doctor says that medical science
never before had the good fortune to take
cognizance of a case presenting such mar
velous phenomena, but adds that despite
the apparently unprecedented nature of
the thing, all can be satisfactorily eX-
planned.
The electrical girls name is Barbara
Roschlau. she is II years of age, well
built and enjoys COOL health. She IS a
servant in the employ o. a weli-to-do far-
mer, George HOFFMAN. in Kupe, Franco
MIA, is thoroughly uusophlsticated, unlo-
mantle and unlearned Iu the art Of decep-
ton. The doctor lays stress on the fact
that his patient does not incline to hys-
terra and thar she wa a most unwilling
witness, declaring over nd over again
that it's nothing and that the spell will
pass off"
ION July 25," says Dr.. Wolfram, q
happened to call at the farm and was
talking to Mrs. Hoffman, in the kitchen,
when my attention was attracted by
knife flying through the air over Bar
bara's head. The knife struck the floor
close to my foot. / was about TO say
something on the habit OF firing knives
about, when the women began 10 cry and
Barbara ran from the room. Then l was
told that every once I'm a while things like
that happen in the house when the little
maid is around once or twice the girl
was slightly injured about the head and
hands by things that suddenly, by some
unknown motive power, shied at her
things coming off the walls or flying up
from the ground.
AS the story seemed well-nigh incredi-
BILE I concluded TO find out whet her per-
haps somebody was fooHng Barbara and
the other inmates of the house. Farmer
hoffman, said he had no children and
that there were no Youngsters about the
place the family consisting of himself
and wife, Barbara and an old cook.
The cook 1 found TO be an easily fright
ened, very religious woman from whose
mind nothing could be further than ANY
sort of deception liable to upset the usual
order of things. Old Maria is, moreover.
the young girls devoted friend. As to
Hoffman, and his wife they are thor
oughly reliable people, whom have known
a lifetime. They related numerous hap
penngs similar to that Witnessed The
phenomena they said, had manifested
| themselves at different occasions during
the past year or 50.
"All this made me extremely anxious
TO investigate. still felt that any evidence
1 might gather should be corroborated
in order TO meet the opposition it was
sure of provoking, Consequently I called
on several people in the neighbOrhOOd to
assist me, and the school teacher, Herr
Opitiz, a baker named Carl Fischer and
| two other men responded.
Barbara returned TO the kitchen after
she had good cry, as she said and did
not take my eyes off her. We ha1n
1 been watching long when a securing rag
\ Barbara was handling tore itself loose
! from her fist with a sudden jerk and
fell hard upon the floor. At the same
| time the tin pan she was using to wash
/ dishes in began to sway to ana fro, and
| the dish would have fallen if the teacher
being nearest to it, had not grabbed it,
The girl now became frightened and would
not touch the vessel again.
| Calling next day / learned that Bar
! bara had passed good night, and that
| when she entered the kitchen in the morn
| ing porcelain match bowl resting on a
/ shelf near the door came flying after her
while a the same time a small tin sieve
| hanging on a shelf fixed to the opposite
wall fell DOWN, attaching to the folds OF
| her dress. My investigation committee
! thereupOn went on watch at once, and
| this was what we observed during the day
| n key of beer, holding TWEEN liters and
! standing upon he floor in the hall began
! to waver about and shake Violently Wher
| Barbara's ski IS touched ii as the ri
| passed by quickly. A fodder trough, wei h.
| ing at least 100 pounds, shovel s.ratla,
| tendencies. TN pail filled with water
| jumped suddenly from the owe upon the
| floor, flooding il. barbara was standing
| about three feet from the vessel at The
time, while The witnesses fol owed hei
| everywhere. There were zone lut Barbara
| the Hofmanns and the Witnesses in ano
| about The house, and tha OUTSIDE was
watched as well as the inner rooms.
| In the afternoon, when Barbara was
cleaning the hall with an iron scraper, hS
came near being killed hy a peculiar ac-i
! dent namely a child's sledge standing be
/ hind the staircase suddenly raised up IL
the air and aIighted upon Barbara's back
! hurting her severely. l t-ok The 81 dg5
and put it in another part Of he hal
| where we could closely observe 1t. 1t re-
NAMED for about ten minutes, then com
! menctd TO tOtter about for perhaps fife /
| seconds. Then with a bound il jumped W
| in the air, striking the handle of barbara
hoe and knocking il out OF her hand. sti
! LATER we accompanied her to the stable. CT
a shelf fixed to one of the walls stool q
milk kett g, which suddenly 10 e IseI
away and flew through the ar over the
back Of three COWS in the direc ion where
/ the girl was stand ag by my side.
This days invesugatiJns wee Concl d
Ell by a visit TO the potato cellar AS Bar
bara bent over to FIJI her apron with The
vegetables they began 10 jump and dance
in The air.
ION the day following we went witt
| Barbara TO The house of a neighbor, a mas.
ter baker named George Fischer. Tn r.
she worked about the Kitchen for over ar
hour, but nothing out of the ord nary hap
pened. Afterwards we took her to hel
mothers house, only 10 make the same OBJ
serVation Then / asked that Barbara b.
LETT 10 herself for several hours. AZ
o'c.ock in the afternoon she ie9or,ei al
my Office with Mr.. Hoffman,, who a d hC
had some difficulty IN psrsuading h K
come. She sad she was not i'll and did n u
want to be doctQred.
81 went with the girl into the kitchen
and we sat down together on a bench fol-
over an hour, while watchers were sa
toned on the outside. on the staircase anc
in a corner of the room. We waited anc
waited, but nothing happened, even wher
Barbara look up the kitchen utensils anc
worked about Then we went mo Other
parts OF the house with the same negative