The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1902-10-06
AUTHENTIC GHOST STORY.
The Strange Premonitions of Death
That Came to Sierra Leone.
(Washington Postl

4sAl Od4uG 10 o4E1la
Washington Post0
In one. only one work of modern skep-
teal literature are spirits described,
though they were as actual as real rocks,
trees or animals.
That work is Savage Africa" written
by Mr.. Winwood Reade. and believers in
the supernatural NAV take all the more
comfort 10 themselves when they come
10 reflect that Reade was of the same
school of skeptical and calculating ma
teriaiEsts as Darwin. Huxley and Lyeil.
Nor Is the matter in question something
concerning the beliefs OF certain Afri-
can tribes. II is thing affecting a num-
Der of white men. educated in the same
school of thought as Reade and Darwin,
ana who were witnesses OF the phenom-
ena which Reade not only relates. but
upon which he comments in the greatest
seriousness. The case referred TO, which
occupies an entire chapter In Mr.. Reade's
work. Is as follows:
Sierra Leone Is the name of one OF
the British possessions on the most un-
healthy section of the globe, the west
coast OF Africa. On a certain very ma
larious part of the coast Of Sierra leone
Is situated Macarthys island which for
many Years. up until about 1870. was the
seat OF very important English trading
post. About the beginning of the year
1860 certain DR.. Beale. the post physi-
clan and surgeon stationed at this point
fell III of malarial fever Realizing that
he could not recover, he notified Mr.
Savage. the trader at the post. of his
condition, whereupon the latter wrote
letter to the firm In Bristol. England.
owning and operating the factories on
the island. stating the doctors condition
and requesting that another physician be
sent out to relieve him The firm re-
sponded. sending a certaln DIR. Campbell
who arrived on the island on the ship
Dover on the dav Beale died.
Dr. Beaie had an assistant. young
physician named Trestrail. who on the
day OF his suDeriors death set about
writing an official report of the case
This he never finished He was sud
denly overcome by a Virulent attack of
malaria and died. declaring he had seen
Beale before he could finish the official
statement Reade saw the account OF
Beale's death that Trestrail tried to
write. and describes il as running along
smoothly enough for several pages, untA
finally serious omissions begin to occur
and the writing grows fainter and fainter
until IL finally stops altogether. More
over. the handwriting OF the last. four
pages of the account was so jagged and
irregular that IL was easy TO see that
the writer had been seized by a chill or
sudden palsy while writing IL.
This was the beginning. Three DAYS
later DR.. Campbell came 10 Mr.. Savage
and asked that his quarters be changed,
he having until then occupied the house
formerly tenanted by Beale and Tres
trail In which both had died At The
same time Savage saw that Campbell was
hooking unusually pale and unWeIl: far
different. in fact. from the condition in
which he appeared the day he arrived.
and asked him If anything was wrong
Campbell replied:
II have seen Beale and he told me that
l would never see nv wife and children
again"
Campbell was so positive in all that he
said that Savage. who was very much
puzzled over his strange assertions could
not talk him out of the notion that he,
too. was soon TO die. Campbell sat down
that day 10 write the official report of
the death of TrestraIl. and. like the for
mer. died before he had finished IT,
With the passing of Campbell. the
company sent to the island two physi-
clans instead of one. so that il one fell
IN the other could take his place. These
were Drs. Bradshaw and Kinds. who on
moving into the house formerly occu-
pied BY Beale. Trestrail and Campbell.
were not troubled with anything super
natural for several months after their
arrival Suddenly one night while they
were sitting talking with Savage. one
of the soldiers doing picket duty along
that part of the house in which Beale
had died ran 10 them fainting with
fright.
When ne came TO his senses he stated
that stranger had approached him from
ienged the Intruder four times; that the
latter gave back no answer. When ne
ran him through with his bayonet thu
weapon passed through thin air. and that
the figure. turning az the same time, he
recognized the liyid features of Dr.
Beale. who went into his former bed
chamber. An examination OF the room
failed 10 verify the soldiers statement
and the two physicians were for locking
him uD for drunkenness until Savage re-
II nj
death OF Campbell and Trestrail. and how
the former had firmly maintained that
he had seen Beale. all of which they had
never heard before. which caused them
TO treat the soldier far differently from
what they had at first intended. This
sentry died the day following of the ef-
fects of fright. such being the diagnosis
OF both Bradshaw and Kinds.
Following this the two physicians be-
gan 10 De annoyed Dy strange noises and
curious phenomena all during the night
and DIR. Bradshawss little son finally re-
fused to sleep in the room where he had
been assigned because the form OF Beale
came to him in the night and pulled his
died the next day. Finally Bradshaw
saw Beale. and in a few DAYS died, and
Kinds becoming thoroughly frightened
resigned his place and returned TO Eng
land.
In place of these two came Drs. Ma
czrthy and Fox. the former a relative
OF the head of the firm. and both ac-
ouaintances Of Mr. Reade- They re-
manned on the island until. owing TO the
unhealthy climate. the post was moved
elsewhere. and 10 a more saiubrious To-
cality. For the short time. therefore
that Drs. Macarthv and Fox remained
on the island and sleeping in the quar-
tiers where so manv had died, they. too
were annoyed BY phenomena which nei-
Their OF them was able n fathoru or ex-
plain. try as they would
Macarthv and Fox were friends and
schoolmates of Reade. and all three ma
terialists of the first water. and in clos
ing his account Of the Macarthy's ISL
and phenomena Reade enters at length
on discussion OF the unknown and IN
seen realm stating his belief that al of
the occurrences above described were
actual and real-related 10 him in good
faith BY Savage. Fox and Mccarthy. men
who we're not in the least superstitioos.
This Is probably the best authenticated
ghost story In the English language
Meeting 1t In a work on travel. explora-
ton and INVESTIGATION. enc cannot heir