WEBVTT - S04 Episode 10: The Creeping

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<v Speaker 1>Esther had been trying to spit it out all day,

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<v Speaker 1>but knew only too well how ridiculous it would sound.

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<v Speaker 1>Her pained moping about, however, was beginning to get on

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<v Speaker 1>Olive's nerves. As Esther forlornly took a seat on the

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<v Speaker 1>kitchen doorstep to peel potatoes, Olive finally snapped, it's about

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<v Speaker 1>that boy, isn't it. No, it's not, Yes it is.

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<v Speaker 1>It's about Bob McNeill. I told you to stay away

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<v Speaker 1>from him. Nothing but trouble that one. It's not, I promise,

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<v Speaker 1>cried Esther. Well what is it then, Esther thought for

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<v Speaker 1>a moment, Then, just as she was about to speak,

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<v Speaker 1>the sound at the front door opening announced the arrival

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<v Speaker 1>of their sister, Jenny, home early from work. The moment

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<v Speaker 1>had gone. Born in eighteen sixty, the eighteen year old

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<v Speaker 1>Esther Coxe was the youngest of her four siblings, and,

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<v Speaker 1>by all accounts, as is often the stigma attached to

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<v Speaker 1>a youngest child, the one considered the most directionless. Along

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<v Speaker 1>with her three sisters and brother, Esther had been raised

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<v Speaker 1>by her grandmother, her mother having died soon after her birth.

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<v Speaker 1>The children's father, perhaps as a result of grief or

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<v Speaker 1>for more selfish reasons, had abandoned the family soon after.

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<v Speaker 1>As such, the siblings had remained close, and by eighteen

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<v Speaker 1>seventy eight had found themselves living together in the home

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<v Speaker 1>of older's sister Olive and her husband Daniel Tede. The house,

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<v Speaker 1>a modest but well kept yellow cottage, was located on

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<v Speaker 1>Princess Street in the small town of Amherst, Nova, Scotia.

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<v Speaker 1>Sharing four bedrooms between them, the cottage was home to Esther,

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<v Speaker 1>along with her twenty two year old sister Jenny, her

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<v Speaker 1>twenty seven year old brother William, and Dan's brother John,

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<v Speaker 1>as well as Olive and Dan's two sons, Willie and George.

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<v Speaker 1>All in all, the arrangement had been surprisingly harmonious, considering

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<v Speaker 1>the relatively cramped conditions. At least that was until that

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<v Speaker 1>peculiar late summer of eighteen seventy eight when everything changed.

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<v Speaker 1>What follows is an account of what some claim to

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<v Speaker 1>be one of the most terrifying and credible incidences of

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<v Speaker 1>a poltergeist haunting in Canadian history. You're listening to Unexplained

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<v Speaker 1>and I'm Richard mc lane Smith. Though there may have

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<v Speaker 1>been earlier signs of what was later to come most

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<v Speaker 1>traced the beginnings to a cryptic and disturbing nightmare that

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<v Speaker 1>Esther suffered on the night of August twenty seventh. It

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<v Speaker 1>was the details of the nightmare that put Esther in

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<v Speaker 1>such a sullen mood the following day. It wouldn't be

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<v Speaker 1>until late that night, but she finally plucked up the

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<v Speaker 1>courage to tell Olive what exactly had been on her mind.

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<v Speaker 1>With everyone else having returned to work, Esther joined Olive

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<v Speaker 1>in the parlor as she carried out some clothing repairs.

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<v Speaker 1>After making her sister promised not to tell anyone about

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<v Speaker 1>it for fear it might distress them, she proceeded to

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<v Speaker 1>outline the dream. At first, as she explained, she hadn't

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<v Speaker 1>realized it was a dream it having been so vivid

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<v Speaker 1>and lifelike, thinking she had woken up and was merely

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<v Speaker 1>walking downstairs to the kitchen. She soon realized that something

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<v Speaker 1>wasn't right. Although it was the same house, everything about

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<v Speaker 1>it was somehow different. For a start, it wasn't yellow

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<v Speaker 1>outside but green, and all the rooms were in slightly

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<v Speaker 1>odd places. Then Olive and Dan had appeared, only instead

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<v Speaker 1>of their usual all faces, they had bears heads with

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<v Speaker 1>large sharp teeth and huge eyes the color of blood.

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<v Speaker 1>Moments later, Jenny, William and John, and even the little

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<v Speaker 1>ones Willie and George had appeared, all of them with

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<v Speaker 1>the same bears heads on their shoulders. Together they turned

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<v Speaker 1>and growled menacingly at Esther, when she was distracted by

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<v Speaker 1>another sound coming from beyond the front door. Venturing outside

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<v Speaker 1>to investigate, she saw a vast stampede of bulls in

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<v Speaker 1>the distance, racing toward the house. As they drew nearer,

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<v Speaker 1>she could see that their eyes were a bright electric blue,

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<v Speaker 1>and their mouths were dripping with blood. And on the

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<v Speaker 1>ground where their hoofs kicked up the dirt, terrific berths

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<v Speaker 1>of fire roared up from underneath them. On and on

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<v Speaker 1>they came with a cacophonous roar, until finally they smashed

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<v Speaker 1>through the front fence and pummeled into the house. Esther

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<v Speaker 1>had staggered back in terror, only to wake up seconds

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<v Speaker 1>later on a cold wooden floor, having seemingly fallen out

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<v Speaker 1>of bed. What do you think it means, she asked Olive, hopefully,

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<v Speaker 1>Seeing that it had clearly been of great concern to

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<v Speaker 1>her young sister, Olive suggested she try to forget it,

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<v Speaker 1>telling her that as long as she kept to reading

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<v Speaker 1>her Bible, she would have nothing to worry about. After all,

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<v Speaker 1>God is more powerful than the devil, she insisted, and

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<v Speaker 1>he will always protect her. Later that evening, after dinner,

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<v Speaker 1>Esther took a seat on the front step of the

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<v Speaker 1>house and gazed at the stars while she waited for

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<v Speaker 1>Bob McNeill to show up. McNeill, who was a local shoemaker,

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<v Speaker 1>had been courting Esther for a number of weeks. Recently, however,

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<v Speaker 1>he had made a habit of arranging to meet her

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<v Speaker 1>only to then fail to turn up. So it was

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<v Speaker 1>with barely contained glee when Esther spied the young man's

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<v Speaker 1>horse and buggy approaching from the top of the road.

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<v Speaker 1>Pulling up outside the house at just past eight. McNeill

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<v Speaker 1>apologized for missing Esther the previous night, but promised to

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<v Speaker 1>make it up to her. Flashing a smile, he invited

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<v Speaker 1>her into the buggy to join him for an evening

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<v Speaker 1>ride into the countryside. It was a little more than

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<v Speaker 1>two hours later back at the cottage, as Jenny was

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<v Speaker 1>heading up to bed when it clearly distrought Esther threw

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<v Speaker 1>open the front door and ran straight to her room.

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<v Speaker 1>Without looking back. For the next week, Esther would cry

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<v Speaker 1>herself to sleep every night, refusing to give any information

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<v Speaker 1>about what exactly had happened with Bob McNeill. It was

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<v Speaker 1>a few days later, on the evening of September fourth,

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<v Speaker 1>that a thick fog rolled into the town of Amherst.

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<v Speaker 1>With the entire household fast asleep, Esther, who shared a

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<v Speaker 1>bed with her sister Jenny, began to stir snapping. Suddenly

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<v Speaker 1>awake with a scream, she leapt out of the bed.

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<v Speaker 1>What's going on, snapped Jenny. Something touched me, said Esther,

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<v Speaker 1>shivering with fright. I can hear it rustling in the bed.

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<v Speaker 1>Fearing it might be a mouse, Jenny jumped out too,

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<v Speaker 1>and hurriedly lit the bedside lamp. With the room now

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<v Speaker 1>bathed in its soft, flickering light, Jenny looked about the

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<v Speaker 1>floor and then peered under the bed, but there was

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<v Speaker 1>nothing to be found save for a small green box

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<v Speaker 1>where they kept sewing materials. Pulling back the bed covers,

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<v Speaker 1>Jenny gasped at the sight of something moving within the

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<v Speaker 1>mattress there. She said, it must be trapped inside. The

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<v Speaker 1>women watched for a moment at the sight of what

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<v Speaker 1>appeared to be a small creature moving through the straw mattress.

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<v Speaker 1>Satisfied they had found the culprit and knowing that there

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<v Speaker 1>was little harm it could do from in there, the

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<v Speaker 1>sisters returned to bed. The following night, however, the rustling

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<v Speaker 1>sound came again. Leaping out of bed once more, the

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<v Speaker 1>sisters again searched underneath for any sign of a culprit,

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<v Speaker 1>realizing that this time the noise was coming from inside

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<v Speaker 1>the small green box. Placing the lamp on the floor,

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<v Speaker 1>Jenny squeezed herself under the bed frame and reached in

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<v Speaker 1>to retrieve it, cautious not to let it spill as

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<v Speaker 1>she pulled it out, Jenny pushed it to the middle

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<v Speaker 1>of the room, bracing themselves for the mouse to reveal

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<v Speaker 1>itself at any moment. The sisters sat back, staring expectantly

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<v Speaker 1>at the box as the flickering light of the lamp

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<v Speaker 1>cast ominous shadows on the wall. When suddenly, the entire

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<v Speaker 1>box jumped straight up into the air, landing on its side.

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<v Speaker 1>Esther reeled back with alarm in expectation of a fleeing mouse.

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<v Speaker 1>Only strangely, nothing came out. Jenny moved in for a

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<v Speaker 1>closer look. Tipping the box back over, she peered into it,

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<v Speaker 1>but found only the collection of sewing materials inside. That's odd,

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<v Speaker 1>she thought, as she poked inside the box. She was

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<v Speaker 1>just about to say as much to Esther when the

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<v Speaker 1>box again jumped almost an entire foot into the air.

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<v Speaker 1>Dan and Olive were startled awake by the screams coming

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<v Speaker 1>from Esther and Jenny's room. Moments later, they found the

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<v Speaker 1>two women carrying together on the bed, pointing toward the

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<v Speaker 1>small box on the floor and claiming that it had

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<v Speaker 1>just leapt into the air completely of its own accord.

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<v Speaker 1>Dan could barely hide his irritation as he told them

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<v Speaker 1>both to stop messing about and get back to bed.

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<v Speaker 1>Having reluctantly got back under the covers, the two sisters

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<v Speaker 1>would spend the rest of the night anxiously listening for

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<v Speaker 1>any more peculiar noises, and though Dan had little time

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<v Speaker 1>for whatever it was the two women had witnessed, there

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<v Speaker 1>would soon be little doubt that something inexplicable had crept

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<v Speaker 1>into their home. Are you always taking care of your family?

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<v Speaker 1>Do you often take care of others and not yourself?

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<v Speaker 1>Now it's time to take care of yourself. To make

0:10:25.200 --> 0:10:29.079
<v Speaker 1>time for you you deserve it. Teledoc gives you access

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<v Speaker 1>to a licensed therapist to help you get back to

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<v Speaker 1>feeling your best, to feeling like yourself again. With teledoc,

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<v Speaker 1>Therapy appointments are available seven days a week from seven

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<v Speaker 1>am to nine pm local time. If you feel overwhelmed

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<v Speaker 1>sometimes maybe you feel stressed or anxious, depressed or lonely,

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<v Speaker 1>Download the app or visit teledoc dot com Forward slash

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<v Speaker 1>Unexplained podcast Today to get started. That's teladoc dot com

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<v Speaker 1>slash Unexplained podcast. The following evening, having seemed fine all day,

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<v Speaker 1>Esther became suddenly unwell seeing her sister, so pale Olive

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<v Speaker 1>suggested she head straight to bed, where she was joined

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<v Speaker 1>soon after by Jenny. Having just got to sleep, Jenny

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<v Speaker 1>was shocked awake by a series of horrific screams Jenny

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<v Speaker 1>hurriedly lit the lamp and held it toward the middle

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<v Speaker 1>of the room, nearly dropping it at the sight of

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<v Speaker 1>her sister, who was now yelling for all her life

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<v Speaker 1>that she was dying. Jenny could barely recognize the distressed

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<v Speaker 1>vigor stood before her, the face flushed with blood and

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<v Speaker 1>eyes bulging out. Esther's hair was also changed, appearing as

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<v Speaker 1>if it were standing on end. As her entire body trembled,

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<v Speaker 1>Esther grabbed the back of a chair to steady herself,

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<v Speaker 1>digging her nails into its soft wood. Having woken up

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<v Speaker 1>the entire house, Dan and Olive arrived moments later and

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<v Speaker 1>quickly helped Esther back into bed, but Esther seemed only

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<v Speaker 1>to deteriorate, screaming suddenly that she felt as though she

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<v Speaker 1>were about to burst. Dan held a lamp over her

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<v Speaker 1>face and reeled back at the horrific sight of her

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<v Speaker 1>now completely swollen body, her skin appearing as though it

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<v Speaker 1>might rip apart at any moment. Esther writhed about in agony,

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<v Speaker 1>grinding her teeth as spittle bubbled up at the sides

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<v Speaker 1>of her mouth, When suddenly, a monumental clap of thunder

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<v Speaker 1>reverberated around the room, bringing everyone to a complete stop.

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<v Speaker 1>Thinking that the house had been struck by lightning, A

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<v Speaker 1>terrified Olive brushed to check on her son's only to

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<v Speaker 1>find them sleeping soundly in their beds. Returning to Esther

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<v Speaker 1>and Jenny's room, Olive then pulled open the curtain and

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<v Speaker 1>stared at the sky in utter amusement. There was not

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<v Speaker 1>a cloud in it. The thunder, it seemed, had come

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<v Speaker 1>from inside the bedroom. Just then, three loud bangs rang out,

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<v Speaker 1>causing the entire room to shake. Jenny looked Olive in

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<v Speaker 1>utter amazement. The bangs had come from underneath the bed.

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<v Speaker 1>Passing the lamp to his wife, Dan took a look

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<v Speaker 1>under it, but there was nothing to be seen. With

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<v Speaker 1>calm being slowly restored, Jenny noticed that Esther had now

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<v Speaker 1>fallen asleep and was returned to her usual size. Satisfied

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<v Speaker 1>that she had recovered from whatever had been ailing her,

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<v Speaker 1>the others returned to the following morning. Esther, who remembered

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<v Speaker 1>little of the previous night, appeared to have completely recovered

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<v Speaker 1>her health. Four days later, however, whatever it was was

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<v Speaker 1>back that night, Esther's screams once again brought Olive and

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<v Speaker 1>Dan rushing to her aid, only to find Jenny lying

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<v Speaker 1>completely unconscious next to her, and the bed covers in

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<v Speaker 1>a pile at the far end of the room. Esther,

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<v Speaker 1>once again swollen and feverish, lay completely still on the bed,

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<v Speaker 1>petrified of what she had apparently just witnessed. Something pulled

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<v Speaker 1>the sheet off the bed. She cried Jenny had fainted

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<v Speaker 1>at the sight of it. Having no idea what to

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<v Speaker 1>make of it all, Dan checked on Jenny, who had

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<v Speaker 1>started to come round as Olive gathered the covers from

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<v Speaker 1>the floor, laying them back on of Esther and Jenny,

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<v Speaker 1>before of them watched on in horror as seconds later

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<v Speaker 1>they were again pulled clean off the bed and flung

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<v Speaker 1>to the far end of the room. A pillow was

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<v Speaker 1>then launched by something unseen, striking John, who had just

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<v Speaker 1>joined them in the faith. It was followed by another

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<v Speaker 1>cacophony of loud banging, coming again from underneath the bed.

0:15:24.120 --> 0:15:28.040
<v Speaker 1>After another restless night, the following morning, calm had again

0:15:28.160 --> 0:15:31.800
<v Speaker 1>been restored and Esther appeared once more to have recovered

0:15:31.800 --> 0:15:35.760
<v Speaker 1>her health. Though wary of what other people might think

0:15:35.800 --> 0:15:38.520
<v Speaker 1>of it all, Olive and Dan sought the help of

0:15:38.520 --> 0:15:42.720
<v Speaker 1>a local doctor, if not to stop the strange phenomena, then,

0:15:42.760 --> 0:15:45.280
<v Speaker 1>at least to find a cure for Esther's sudden bouts

0:15:45.280 --> 0:15:48.440
<v Speaker 1>of mania. It was all the forty eight year old

0:15:48.480 --> 0:15:51.440
<v Speaker 1>doctor Careite could do not to laugh at the hapless

0:15:51.480 --> 0:15:55.800
<v Speaker 1>couple's ludicrous account of the past few days. A committed

0:15:55.840 --> 0:15:58.880
<v Speaker 1>man of science, especially during a time of such great

0:15:58.920 --> 0:16:04.920
<v Speaker 1>scientific advance, Careit was not prone to nonsense and superstition. However,

0:16:05.360 --> 0:16:09.040
<v Speaker 1>believing there was some serious cause for concern regarding Esther's health,

0:16:09.760 --> 0:16:12.920
<v Speaker 1>the doctor agreed to take a look at her. So

0:16:13.040 --> 0:16:16.400
<v Speaker 1>it was with some astonishment when late that evening, Doctor

0:16:16.400 --> 0:16:20.520
<v Speaker 1>Careit and the others watched as Esther's pillow again appeared

0:16:20.560 --> 0:16:22.640
<v Speaker 1>to be pulled out from under her head by an

0:16:22.680 --> 0:16:28.240
<v Speaker 1>invisible hand. Moments later, a steady succession of loud bangs

0:16:28.280 --> 0:16:31.960
<v Speaker 1>sent the doctor running toward the door, each bang seeming

0:16:31.960 --> 0:16:35.880
<v Speaker 1>to chase him along the floor, feeling for all the

0:16:35.960 --> 0:16:38.560
<v Speaker 1>world as if something vast and unseen were in that

0:16:38.720 --> 0:16:41.440
<v Speaker 1>room with them. They could only watch with terror and

0:16:41.560 --> 0:16:45.640
<v Speaker 1>disbelief as again the covers flew from the bed into

0:16:45.640 --> 0:16:49.040
<v Speaker 1>the far wall, But this time it was followed by

0:16:49.040 --> 0:16:54.400
<v Speaker 1>something new, A sound like the scratching of claws. Had

0:16:54.440 --> 0:16:56.600
<v Speaker 1>the group, turning toward the top end of the bed

0:16:57.120 --> 0:17:02.000
<v Speaker 1>and gasping in collective horror. There written on the wall

0:17:02.200 --> 0:17:06.840
<v Speaker 1>just above it were the words Esther Cox, you are

0:17:06.920 --> 0:17:12.120
<v Speaker 1>mine to kill. A short time later, a flying lump

0:17:12.119 --> 0:17:14.400
<v Speaker 1>of plaster that nearly struck the doctor on the head

0:17:14.960 --> 0:17:17.959
<v Speaker 1>was followed by another series of bangs, as all about

0:17:18.200 --> 0:17:21.679
<v Speaker 1>the room rattled from the strength of them, all the

0:17:21.760 --> 0:17:26.240
<v Speaker 1>while Esther lay perfectly still in abject terror at what

0:17:26.359 --> 0:17:36.800
<v Speaker 1>seemed to be occurring all around. By morning, with doctor

0:17:36.840 --> 0:17:40.080
<v Speaker 1>Carete having returned to check on her, Esther seemed once

0:17:40.080 --> 0:17:44.160
<v Speaker 1>again to be in good health. Later that day, grateful

0:17:44.200 --> 0:17:47.400
<v Speaker 1>for the distraction of helping Olive with the housework, Esther

0:17:47.640 --> 0:17:50.000
<v Speaker 1>was sent down to the cellar to collect some milk.

0:17:51.400 --> 0:17:53.639
<v Speaker 1>Stopping at the top of the steps, she had the

0:17:53.720 --> 0:17:57.320
<v Speaker 1>sudden sense that something was lurking in the darkness below.

0:17:58.840 --> 0:18:01.840
<v Speaker 1>Telling herself not to be so stupid, she promptly lit

0:18:01.840 --> 0:18:04.239
<v Speaker 1>a lamp, holding it out in front of her as

0:18:04.320 --> 0:18:07.960
<v Speaker 1>she cautiously made her way down, pushing back the dark

0:18:08.280 --> 0:18:13.040
<v Speaker 1>with each advancing step. Having seen the milkern at the

0:18:13.040 --> 0:18:16.240
<v Speaker 1>back of the room, she had just taken another step

0:18:16.280 --> 0:18:20.080
<v Speaker 1>toward it when she heard something moving about behind it.

0:18:21.359 --> 0:18:25.360
<v Speaker 1>Esther slowly lifted the lamp and squinted at the darkness beyond,

0:18:26.160 --> 0:18:28.560
<v Speaker 1>when a plank of wood came flying out of it,

0:18:28.960 --> 0:18:31.800
<v Speaker 1>landing at her feet and sending her scurrying back to

0:18:31.880 --> 0:18:35.560
<v Speaker 1>the dining room. Having been waiting in there at the time.

0:18:36.080 --> 0:18:40.159
<v Speaker 1>Doctor Careit scrambled down immediately to investigate for himself, but

0:18:40.280 --> 0:18:45.399
<v Speaker 1>found the room completely deserted. Careit then invited Esther to

0:18:45.440 --> 0:18:47.920
<v Speaker 1>come and see that it was only her imagination playing

0:18:47.920 --> 0:18:51.840
<v Speaker 1>tricks on her. Moments later, having joined the doctor in

0:18:51.880 --> 0:18:54.720
<v Speaker 1>the cellar, a hail of potato shot out from the

0:18:54.720 --> 0:18:58.080
<v Speaker 1>back of the room, narrowly missing them both and leaving

0:18:58.080 --> 0:19:00.720
<v Speaker 1>the doctor in little doubt the desk had not been

0:19:00.760 --> 0:19:06.080
<v Speaker 1>mistaken after all. Later that night, the doctor returned to

0:19:06.119 --> 0:19:09.399
<v Speaker 1>administer a sedative to the young woman, who by now

0:19:09.640 --> 0:19:13.160
<v Speaker 1>was once again in agony and bedridden, complaining that her

0:19:13.160 --> 0:19:16.879
<v Speaker 1>body felt as if electricity were surging through it. The

0:19:16.920 --> 0:19:21.240
<v Speaker 1>bangings had commenced again soon after, and so it would

0:19:21.240 --> 0:19:25.120
<v Speaker 1>continue for the next three weeks until one night there

0:19:25.160 --> 0:19:36.160
<v Speaker 1>came a startling revelation, with the family once again gathered

0:19:36.160 --> 0:19:39.240
<v Speaker 1>around Esther's bed to help calm her as the doctor

0:19:39.240 --> 0:19:45.040
<v Speaker 1>administered his medicine, the banging started once more. Suddenly Esther

0:19:45.200 --> 0:19:50.639
<v Speaker 1>was momentarily gripped by seizure before becoming completely still. Then,

0:19:50.760 --> 0:19:54.280
<v Speaker 1>as if in a hypnotic state, she started to talk

0:19:54.760 --> 0:19:58.560
<v Speaker 1>and slowly but surely began to reveal what exactly had

0:19:58.560 --> 0:20:03.560
<v Speaker 1>occurred on that fateful night with Bob mc neill. As

0:20:03.560 --> 0:20:07.159
<v Speaker 1>she went on to explain, shortly after he'd arrived to

0:20:07.200 --> 0:20:09.880
<v Speaker 1>pick her up, they had proceeded to take a ride

0:20:09.880 --> 0:20:13.920
<v Speaker 1>into the country, just as they had planned. Having made

0:20:13.920 --> 0:20:17.199
<v Speaker 1>it to the outskirts of Amherst, mc neill suggested they

0:20:17.240 --> 0:20:22.520
<v Speaker 1>take a quiet back road towards some nearby marshes. Soon after,

0:20:23.040 --> 0:20:26.440
<v Speaker 1>while making their way through a local forest, mc neille

0:20:26.560 --> 0:20:29.560
<v Speaker 1>pulled the horse to a stop and leapt from the carriage.

0:20:31.320 --> 0:20:34.960
<v Speaker 1>Taking a revolver from his pocket, he pointed it at Esther,

0:20:35.600 --> 0:20:39.840
<v Speaker 1>demanding she get out immediately. As the heavy rain began

0:20:39.840 --> 0:20:45.159
<v Speaker 1>to fall. The courageous Esther steadfastly refused. Terrified at what

0:20:45.240 --> 0:20:47.679
<v Speaker 1>had suddenly come over the man she assumed to be

0:20:47.720 --> 0:20:51.639
<v Speaker 1>her sweetheart, she screamed for him to take her home, immediately,

0:20:53.000 --> 0:20:56.720
<v Speaker 1>becoming more enraged as the rain pelted down ever harder

0:20:57.480 --> 0:21:00.879
<v Speaker 1>mc neill attempted to grab Esther from the car when

0:21:00.920 --> 0:21:03.800
<v Speaker 1>the sound of wheels were heard approaching from further up

0:21:03.800 --> 0:21:08.000
<v Speaker 1>the road. Sensing his opportunity for whatever it was he

0:21:08.040 --> 0:21:11.640
<v Speaker 1>had planned to do was now gone, McNeill jumped back

0:21:11.640 --> 0:21:15.080
<v Speaker 1>into the carriage, and within seconds they were thundering through

0:21:15.080 --> 0:21:21.080
<v Speaker 1>the forest back towards town. Having finally arrived home, Esther

0:21:21.400 --> 0:21:25.800
<v Speaker 1>jumped straight from the buggy and ran inside. McNeill was

0:21:25.840 --> 0:21:31.840
<v Speaker 1>never heard from again. A moment later, Esther appeared to

0:21:31.880 --> 0:21:35.560
<v Speaker 1>come around from her peculiar state, with no recollection of

0:21:35.600 --> 0:21:39.480
<v Speaker 1>what she had just said. On being told, she burst

0:21:39.480 --> 0:21:45.000
<v Speaker 1>immediately into tears and confirmed that it had all been true. This,

0:21:45.240 --> 0:21:48.400
<v Speaker 1>at least is the version of events as recounted by Esther.

0:21:49.480 --> 0:21:52.199
<v Speaker 1>Some have speculated, however, that there is a part to

0:21:52.240 --> 0:22:02.480
<v Speaker 1>the story that she did not wish to recount. With

0:22:02.560 --> 0:22:06.400
<v Speaker 1>gossip running rife among the townspeople and local newspapers even

0:22:06.480 --> 0:22:09.960
<v Speaker 1>beginning to pick up the story, focus inevitably turned to

0:22:10.000 --> 0:22:14.960
<v Speaker 1>the family. Few in that newly enlightened age, having only

0:22:15.000 --> 0:22:18.440
<v Speaker 1>so recently been presented with such wonders as Darwin's theory

0:22:18.440 --> 0:22:22.840
<v Speaker 1>of evolution and Edison's phonograph, were prepared to believe that

0:22:22.840 --> 0:22:26.680
<v Speaker 1>that Little Yellow House had really been taken over by spirits,

0:22:27.880 --> 0:22:32.360
<v Speaker 1>amongst them local Baptist clergyman, doctor Edwin Clay, having been

0:22:32.480 --> 0:22:35.840
<v Speaker 1>especially troubled by reports that the family might be orchestrating

0:22:35.880 --> 0:22:41.040
<v Speaker 1>the entire thing, decided to investigate for himself, But after

0:22:41.080 --> 0:22:44.480
<v Speaker 1>spending only a few hours in Esther's presence, Clay was

0:22:44.520 --> 0:22:49.480
<v Speaker 1>soon convinced that the reports had been entirely genuine. However,

0:22:49.680 --> 0:22:53.080
<v Speaker 1>as a man of the church but also of science, Clay,

0:22:53.520 --> 0:22:57.280
<v Speaker 1>just as doctor Carrete had begun to suspect, was unconvinced

0:22:57.280 --> 0:23:01.119
<v Speaker 1>that spirits were to blame. It was his belief that

0:23:01.280 --> 0:23:04.800
<v Speaker 1>perhaps Esther had been so affected by Bob McNeill's horrific

0:23:04.800 --> 0:23:09.480
<v Speaker 1>actions that it had somehow unleashed a mysterious power within her.

0:23:11.119 --> 0:23:15.480
<v Speaker 1>Soon after, Reverend Temple, another local pastor, also claimed to

0:23:15.520 --> 0:23:18.960
<v Speaker 1>have witnessed a number of peculiar events for himself, and,

0:23:19.080 --> 0:23:22.480
<v Speaker 1>together with doctor Clay, wasted no time in vouching for

0:23:22.560 --> 0:23:25.320
<v Speaker 1>the integrity of the Ted and Cox family to his

0:23:25.400 --> 0:23:30.239
<v Speaker 1>local congregation. Before long, half the town had turned up

0:23:30.240 --> 0:23:33.919
<v Speaker 1>at the Little Yellow Cottage to witness the spectacle for themselves,

0:23:35.320 --> 0:23:38.080
<v Speaker 1>and so it would continue on and off for the

0:23:38.160 --> 0:23:41.920
<v Speaker 1>next year, as an increasing array of strange occurrences appeared

0:23:41.960 --> 0:23:46.480
<v Speaker 1>to coalesce around Esther. When fires started breaking out in

0:23:46.520 --> 0:23:49.840
<v Speaker 1>the house seemingly without reason, she was sent to live

0:23:49.840 --> 0:23:52.119
<v Speaker 1>with a series of neighbors in the hope that it

0:23:52.240 --> 0:23:54.800
<v Speaker 1>might put an end to it all, only for the

0:23:54.840 --> 0:23:59.520
<v Speaker 1>trouble to follow her wherever she went. After hearing of

0:23:59.560 --> 0:24:03.960
<v Speaker 1>the extra ordinary events, actor Walter Hubble traveled to Amherst

0:24:03.960 --> 0:24:06.760
<v Speaker 1>to interview the family and stay with them in the

0:24:06.840 --> 0:24:12.640
<v Speaker 1>hope of observing the bizarre phenomena for himself. Hubble published

0:24:12.640 --> 0:24:15.239
<v Speaker 1>his full account of the family story and what he

0:24:15.320 --> 0:24:18.359
<v Speaker 1>himself witnessed, of which much of this account was taken

0:24:18.720 --> 0:24:22.879
<v Speaker 1>in eighteen seventy nine, titling it The Haunted House, a

0:24:22.920 --> 0:24:28.520
<v Speaker 1>True Ghost Story. Published alongside it were a number of

0:24:28.600 --> 0:24:33.160
<v Speaker 1>letters and sworn Athor David's from all involved, including fifteen

0:24:33.320 --> 0:24:38.960
<v Speaker 1>separate townspeople, doctor Kvite, and county court clerk Arthur Davison,

0:24:39.359 --> 0:24:44.760
<v Speaker 1>attesting to the peculiar events they had seen. At one point,

0:24:44.920 --> 0:24:48.000
<v Speaker 1>when Esther had been working for Arthur Davison, a fire

0:24:48.040 --> 0:24:50.840
<v Speaker 1>had broken out in his barn, burning it to the ground.

0:24:52.119 --> 0:24:54.960
<v Speaker 1>Esther was accused of arson and sentenced to four months

0:24:55.040 --> 0:24:59.000
<v Speaker 1>in prison. Davison noted later, though he was in little

0:24:59.040 --> 0:25:02.360
<v Speaker 1>doubt that Esther had started the fire, she had done

0:25:02.400 --> 0:25:08.639
<v Speaker 1>so by some extraordinary and mysterious means. Esther was released

0:25:08.680 --> 0:25:12.040
<v Speaker 1>from prison, having only spent a month in custody, after

0:25:12.080 --> 0:25:16.679
<v Speaker 1>which all the strange phenomena ceased. Little is known of

0:25:16.720 --> 0:25:19.680
<v Speaker 1>what became of Esther's later life, aside from her being

0:25:19.680 --> 0:25:23.960
<v Speaker 1>twice married and having two children of her own, dying

0:25:24.000 --> 0:25:28.760
<v Speaker 1>in Brockton, Massachusetts, in November nineteen twelve at the age

0:25:28.760 --> 0:25:37.280
<v Speaker 1>of fifty two. If you enjoy listening to Unexplained and

0:25:37.320 --> 0:25:39.879
<v Speaker 1>would like to help supporters, you can now go to

0:25:40.000 --> 0:25:45.560
<v Speaker 1>Unexplained podcast dot com forward slash support. All donations, no

0:25:45.600 --> 0:25:51.080
<v Speaker 1>matter how large or small, are massively appreciated. All elements

0:25:51.080 --> 0:25:55.480
<v Speaker 1>have Unexplained are produced by me Richard McClain smith. Please

0:25:55.520 --> 0:25:58.680
<v Speaker 1>subscribe and rate the show on iTunes, and feel free

0:25:58.720 --> 0:26:01.280
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0:26:01.320 --> 0:26:04.520
<v Speaker 1>the stories you've heard on the show. Perhaps you have

0:26:04.560 --> 0:26:08.119
<v Speaker 1>an explanation of your own you'd like to share. You

0:26:08.240 --> 0:26:12.200
<v Speaker 1>can reach us online at Unexplained podcast dot com or

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