1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:13,360 Speaker 1: Any regular listeners of this show will have gathered that, 2 00:00:13,480 --> 00:00:17,239 Speaker 1: unexplained is rather fond of a good old haunted house story. 3 00:00:18,320 --> 00:00:22,000 Speaker 1: Such stories often have the magical ability to conjure a 4 00:00:22,040 --> 00:00:25,279 Speaker 1: sense of unique and specific places, while at the same 5 00:00:25,320 --> 00:00:28,360 Speaker 1: time leave us feeling as though the hauntings are in 6 00:00:28,400 --> 00:00:32,159 Speaker 1: fact occurring wherever we happen to be, as if the 7 00:00:32,200 --> 00:00:36,879 Speaker 1: story itself were the portal through which distant, ghoulish specters 8 00:00:37,000 --> 00:00:41,440 Speaker 1: can seep into our lives. The story of the Cunian 9 00:00:41,520 --> 00:00:45,239 Speaker 1: Ghost House of Ireland is just one such tale, a 10 00:00:45,400 --> 00:00:48,640 Speaker 1: strange and troubling thing, owing mostly to the fact that, 11 00:00:48,880 --> 00:00:51,520 Speaker 1: despite it often being regarded as one of the most 12 00:00:51,600 --> 00:00:55,520 Speaker 1: compelling supposed true life hauntings, there is so little on 13 00:00:55,600 --> 00:00:59,440 Speaker 1: record with which to support this claim. Much like the 14 00:00:59,480 --> 00:01:02,520 Speaker 1: apparent ghost or spirit at the heart of it, the 15 00:01:02,640 --> 00:01:06,600 Speaker 1: story is a slippery and a morpheous one, seemingly rooted 16 00:01:06,760 --> 00:01:11,800 Speaker 1: in real, tangible things, but existing mostly as fable told 17 00:01:11,800 --> 00:01:15,480 Speaker 1: and retold over the years, passed from one generation to 18 00:01:15,520 --> 00:01:20,119 Speaker 1: the next, never quite keeping still, the facts, never quite 19 00:01:20,240 --> 00:01:25,000 Speaker 1: staying fixed. What we do know is the Murphy family, 20 00:01:25,319 --> 00:01:27,720 Speaker 1: the owners of the home at the time, and apparent 21 00:01:27,800 --> 00:01:32,039 Speaker 1: focus of the phenomena were very much real, appearing in 22 00:01:32,080 --> 00:01:37,039 Speaker 1: a census recorded in nineteen eleven. The house too, very 23 00:01:37,120 --> 00:01:41,120 Speaker 1: much existed, and in fact still stands in the County 24 00:01:41,160 --> 00:01:44,360 Speaker 1: of fir Mana located today just to the north of 25 00:01:44,440 --> 00:01:48,640 Speaker 1: the border in northern Ireland. That we have anything of 26 00:01:48,720 --> 00:01:52,000 Speaker 1: record about it at all is due largely to the 27 00:01:52,040 --> 00:01:55,840 Speaker 1: work of Sir Sean Leslie, a writer with many broad 28 00:01:55,880 --> 00:02:00,000 Speaker 1: and varied interests and avid chaser of supposed true life 29 00:02:00,240 --> 00:02:05,760 Speaker 1: ghost stories. Born John Randolph in eighteen eighty five, the 30 00:02:05,880 --> 00:02:10,760 Speaker 1: son of wealthy socialite Leone Jerome and aristocrat John Leslie, 31 00:02:10,840 --> 00:02:15,000 Speaker 1: the second, Sean Leslie grew up within the palatial walls 32 00:02:15,040 --> 00:02:19,440 Speaker 1: of the family stately home, Castle Leslie, in County Monaghan, 33 00:02:19,840 --> 00:02:24,320 Speaker 1: just twenty miles to the east of Coonian. The castle 34 00:02:24,400 --> 00:02:27,040 Speaker 1: is said by many to itself be haunted, though it 35 00:02:27,120 --> 00:02:29,960 Speaker 1: isn't known whether Leslie, who changed his name to the 36 00:02:30,000 --> 00:02:34,160 Speaker 1: Irish Shan out of affection for his homeland, ever experienced 37 00:02:34,160 --> 00:02:38,120 Speaker 1: this himself. Though Leslie credits his time at the English 38 00:02:38,120 --> 00:02:42,040 Speaker 1: boarding school Eton College with fostering his fascination in the 39 00:02:42,080 --> 00:02:46,040 Speaker 1: possibility of ghosts and the paranormal, it wasn't until his 40 00:02:46,120 --> 00:02:49,800 Speaker 1: time at Cambridge University that his passion for the ghost 41 00:02:49,840 --> 00:02:55,040 Speaker 1: story was truly cemented. There he was introduced to Provost 42 00:02:55,200 --> 00:02:59,880 Speaker 1: Montague Roades James, otherwise known by his pen name m 43 00:03:00,200 --> 00:03:03,800 Speaker 1: R James, considered by many to be the finest purveyor 44 00:03:03,880 --> 00:03:07,680 Speaker 1: of ghost stories that ever lived. It is evident from 45 00:03:07,720 --> 00:03:11,200 Speaker 1: his own fictional writings that Leslie was greatly influenced by 46 00:03:11,240 --> 00:03:16,079 Speaker 1: the prolific Mr James. However, it was potentially real accounts 47 00:03:16,080 --> 00:03:20,480 Speaker 1: of ghosts that Leslie was most interested in. Having spent 48 00:03:20,600 --> 00:03:23,760 Speaker 1: much of his life collecting and recording as many accounts 49 00:03:23,760 --> 00:03:27,440 Speaker 1: of true life hauntings he could find, Leslie would eventually 50 00:03:27,440 --> 00:03:30,919 Speaker 1: collate those he felt especially compelling in his nineteen fifty 51 00:03:30,919 --> 00:03:35,560 Speaker 1: six publication Sean Leslie's Ghost Book. It is there that 52 00:03:35,680 --> 00:03:39,160 Speaker 1: Leslie presents what he describes as the last word on 53 00:03:39,200 --> 00:03:42,640 Speaker 1: the famous series of phenomena known as the Counian Ghost 54 00:03:43,120 --> 00:03:48,000 Speaker 1: from which much of the following story is taken. When 55 00:03:48,080 --> 00:03:52,200 Speaker 1: Leslie asked Mr James shortly before he died what he 56 00:03:52,280 --> 00:03:55,480 Speaker 1: really thought on the subject of ghosts, he is said 57 00:03:55,520 --> 00:03:59,440 Speaker 1: to have replied, depend upon it. Some of these things 58 00:03:59,480 --> 00:04:03,560 Speaker 1: are so, but we do not know the rules. You're 59 00:04:03,600 --> 00:04:15,280 Speaker 1: listening to Unexplained, and I'm Richard mc lean smith. The 60 00:04:15,400 --> 00:04:19,120 Speaker 1: small brick farmhouse stood silhouetted and still in the night, 61 00:04:19,760 --> 00:04:23,880 Speaker 1: a black monolith under moonlight, perched up high on the hill. 62 00:04:25,400 --> 00:04:28,560 Speaker 1: To observe this quiet scene from a distance is to 63 00:04:28,600 --> 00:04:33,000 Speaker 1: participate in the grand illusion of permanence, or the world 64 00:04:33,040 --> 00:04:37,279 Speaker 1: seeming for a moment like a grand tableau fixed in time. 65 00:04:39,000 --> 00:04:42,000 Speaker 1: Should we gaze on this house a little while longer, however, 66 00:04:42,560 --> 00:04:46,120 Speaker 1: it would not be long before our illusion was punctured 67 00:04:46,360 --> 00:04:49,760 Speaker 1: by the distant core of a disgruntled crow, or the 68 00:04:49,800 --> 00:04:53,760 Speaker 1: haunting screech of a fox in the undergrowth, or by 69 00:04:53,760 --> 00:04:57,480 Speaker 1: the movement of a thin mist steadily creeping toward it 70 00:04:57,920 --> 00:05:01,800 Speaker 1: from out of the valley below. In fact, should we 71 00:05:01,839 --> 00:05:04,920 Speaker 1: stare long enough, we would see that even the stars 72 00:05:04,960 --> 00:05:08,359 Speaker 1: above that seem so fixed in the sky are in 73 00:05:08,400 --> 00:05:13,400 Speaker 1: a state of constant shift. Inside the house, a small 74 00:05:13,440 --> 00:05:17,120 Speaker 1: fire cracked and crackled in the hearth, as Bridget Murphy 75 00:05:17,400 --> 00:05:21,160 Speaker 1: and her oldest daughter Anne slept under the soft flickering 76 00:05:21,240 --> 00:05:24,880 Speaker 1: light of the flames. Next door in the bedroom to 77 00:05:24,920 --> 00:05:28,720 Speaker 1: their right, eighteen year old Mary, fourteen year old Bridget, 78 00:05:29,279 --> 00:05:32,640 Speaker 1: nine year old Catherine, and the youngest, five year old Jane, 79 00:05:32,680 --> 00:05:37,280 Speaker 1: Anne slept soundly together in their bed, while twenty three 80 00:05:37,320 --> 00:05:39,960 Speaker 1: year old James had the fortune of a bed to 81 00:05:40,080 --> 00:05:44,120 Speaker 1: himself at the other end of the house. It had 82 00:05:44,160 --> 00:05:47,120 Speaker 1: been only a matter of months since eight had become 83 00:05:47,240 --> 00:05:52,080 Speaker 1: seven after Michael Murphy, the father and Bridget's husband, had 84 00:05:52,120 --> 00:05:55,720 Speaker 1: been violently upended from his cart and fallen head first 85 00:05:55,800 --> 00:06:01,560 Speaker 1: on to a rock, killing him instantly. That night, with 86 00:06:01,680 --> 00:06:05,560 Speaker 1: the fire having all but gone out, Bridget awoke suddenly 87 00:06:05,640 --> 00:06:09,839 Speaker 1: in the dark, alerted to what sounded like something moving 88 00:06:09,880 --> 00:06:14,480 Speaker 1: about in the attic above. Although the room, which could 89 00:06:14,520 --> 00:06:18,120 Speaker 1: only be accessed from a stone stairwell outside, was being 90 00:06:18,200 --> 00:06:21,560 Speaker 1: used as a makeshift barn, she knew only too well 91 00:06:21,800 --> 00:06:27,000 Speaker 1: that it was currently unoccupied. Hearing the sound again, with 92 00:06:27,160 --> 00:06:30,839 Speaker 1: Anne fast asleep beside her, Bridget made a quick check 93 00:06:30,880 --> 00:06:34,200 Speaker 1: of the bedrooms, but found all her children accounted for, 94 00:06:35,920 --> 00:06:39,440 Speaker 1: having just returned to the central room. A tremendous thud 95 00:06:39,800 --> 00:06:43,440 Speaker 1: rang out from behind her, followed by the startled screams 96 00:06:43,440 --> 00:06:46,280 Speaker 1: of her four daughters as they bolted from their bed, 97 00:06:47,640 --> 00:06:51,480 Speaker 1: with James joining them moments later. Bridget urged him to 98 00:06:51,520 --> 00:06:56,400 Speaker 1: investigate upstairs, as the rest of the family huddled by 99 00:06:56,440 --> 00:06:59,560 Speaker 1: the hearth, the sound of footsteps could be heard above. 100 00:07:00,200 --> 00:07:05,080 Speaker 1: James inspected the attic, finding nothing inside but bales of straw. 101 00:07:06,800 --> 00:07:10,960 Speaker 1: No sooner had he returned downstairs, a violent bang echoed 102 00:07:11,040 --> 00:07:16,000 Speaker 1: through the house, than another and another, each one louder 103 00:07:16,040 --> 00:07:20,360 Speaker 1: than the next. Make it stop, cried Catherine, as Bridget 104 00:07:20,440 --> 00:07:23,280 Speaker 1: gathered her in her arms, and they all looked anxiously 105 00:07:23,360 --> 00:07:29,400 Speaker 1: toward each other when finally the banging stopped. It would 106 00:07:29,400 --> 00:07:32,640 Speaker 1: be a few nights later when young Jane Anne woke 107 00:07:32,720 --> 00:07:36,400 Speaker 1: up screaming, having felt the bed move across the room, 108 00:07:36,440 --> 00:07:40,240 Speaker 1: and that something had been pressing down on her from above. 109 00:07:46,320 --> 00:07:51,080 Speaker 1: Over the next few weeks, the terrifying sounds continued, always 110 00:07:51,120 --> 00:07:54,040 Speaker 1: beginning late at night in the children's bedroom or from 111 00:07:54,080 --> 00:07:57,680 Speaker 1: the makeshift barn above, but not once did they see 112 00:07:57,720 --> 00:08:02,960 Speaker 1: any sign of a culprit. Confused and scared, Bridget sought 113 00:08:02,960 --> 00:08:06,040 Speaker 1: the counsel of her friends and neighbors, inviting them round 114 00:08:06,120 --> 00:08:10,160 Speaker 1: to hear it for themselves. Together, they sat huddled in 115 00:08:10,200 --> 00:08:13,400 Speaker 1: the center room as the colossal bangs echoed through the 116 00:08:13,440 --> 00:08:17,880 Speaker 1: walls and rattled the windows, or that strange foot dragging 117 00:08:17,920 --> 00:08:21,200 Speaker 1: sound lurched from one side of the ceiling to the other, 118 00:08:22,400 --> 00:08:27,040 Speaker 1: and soon the rumors began to circulate. One neighbor had 119 00:08:27,040 --> 00:08:30,440 Speaker 1: heard that the Sherry family, the previous owners of the house, 120 00:08:30,840 --> 00:08:35,360 Speaker 1: had only stayed one night before hurriedly leaving for reasons unknown. 121 00:08:36,520 --> 00:08:40,120 Speaker 1: The property had remained unoccupied for six months before it 122 00:08:40,200 --> 00:08:44,640 Speaker 1: was sold. Others told of a man that had hung 123 00:08:44,720 --> 00:08:50,120 Speaker 1: himself in one of the bedrooms many years before. By 124 00:08:50,200 --> 00:08:54,800 Speaker 1: now convinced that something other worldly was taking place, Bridget 125 00:08:55,000 --> 00:09:00,320 Speaker 1: turned to their local priest, father Smith for help. Smith 126 00:09:00,440 --> 00:09:03,040 Speaker 1: arrived at the house late one night, keen to make 127 00:09:03,040 --> 00:09:06,400 Speaker 1: an assessment for himself before deciding what could be done 128 00:09:06,880 --> 00:09:09,520 Speaker 1: to find the family in a state of deep distress. 129 00:09:10,720 --> 00:09:13,640 Speaker 1: Asking for them all to gather in the central room, 130 00:09:13,840 --> 00:09:17,600 Speaker 1: Smith solemnly made his way around the house before being 131 00:09:17,679 --> 00:09:22,760 Speaker 1: led upstairs by James to inspect the barn. Returning back down, 132 00:09:23,360 --> 00:09:28,520 Speaker 1: Smith requested permission to stay the night. As the family slept, 133 00:09:28,880 --> 00:09:33,160 Speaker 1: He took a seat by the fire and waited. And 134 00:09:33,280 --> 00:09:37,160 Speaker 1: then it came. It was like the sound of straw 135 00:09:37,240 --> 00:09:41,440 Speaker 1: being rustled from the room above, followed by a tremendous thud. 136 00:09:42,640 --> 00:09:45,880 Speaker 1: As the others ran screaming from their beds. The sound 137 00:09:45,920 --> 00:09:49,360 Speaker 1: only intensified until it was as if a horse was 138 00:09:49,440 --> 00:09:54,960 Speaker 1: kicking at the walls. Without thinking, Smith gathered them together 139 00:09:55,360 --> 00:10:00,440 Speaker 1: and hastily recited Mass. As the family held hands and 140 00:10:00,600 --> 00:10:05,200 Speaker 1: clutched each other tightly, Smith's forthright voice rose over their 141 00:10:05,320 --> 00:10:10,000 Speaker 1: quiet whimperings, and slowly the sickening noise began to dissipate 142 00:10:10,840 --> 00:10:18,120 Speaker 1: until it stopped altogether. Are you always taking care of 143 00:10:18,160 --> 00:10:20,640 Speaker 1: your family? 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As 159 00:11:25,240 --> 00:11:28,440 Speaker 1: Smith relate his findings back to the church, a different 160 00:11:28,520 --> 00:11:31,880 Speaker 1: set of rumors were beginning to circulate in the nearby towns. 161 00:11:33,200 --> 00:11:36,560 Speaker 1: When the girls attended their crochet lessons, others in the 162 00:11:36,640 --> 00:11:40,040 Speaker 1: class would move away from them, pointing and whispering from 163 00:11:40,040 --> 00:11:43,720 Speaker 1: a distance that the family had the black Art and 164 00:11:43,800 --> 00:11:47,319 Speaker 1: had used it deliberately to invite a demon into their home. 165 00:11:49,320 --> 00:11:53,480 Speaker 1: Others rejected the nonsense entirely, believing instead that the family 166 00:11:53,679 --> 00:11:57,480 Speaker 1: were just making the whole thing up. Having spoken to 167 00:11:57,559 --> 00:12:02,319 Speaker 1: Father Smith, the regional bishop instructed local reverend Eugene Coin 168 00:12:02,679 --> 00:12:07,520 Speaker 1: from nearby McGuire's Bridge to get a second opinion. Since 169 00:12:07,520 --> 00:12:12,160 Speaker 1: Smith's visit, the disturbances had steadily intensified and were already 170 00:12:12,200 --> 00:12:15,520 Speaker 1: in full swing. When Coin arrived late one autumn night, 171 00:12:17,480 --> 00:12:21,920 Speaker 1: with an anxious Bridget hurriedly showing him into the children's bedroom. 172 00:12:22,080 --> 00:12:25,440 Speaker 1: Coin looked on aghast at the terror on the faces 173 00:12:25,480 --> 00:12:28,560 Speaker 1: of the girls lying down on their bed as a 174 00:12:28,640 --> 00:12:33,679 Speaker 1: series of bangs rattled out around them. Turning to two 175 00:12:33,720 --> 00:12:35,920 Speaker 1: men in the room who had also come to help, 176 00:12:36,559 --> 00:12:39,600 Speaker 1: Coin told them to take hold of the children's arms 177 00:12:39,600 --> 00:12:42,560 Speaker 1: and legs to make sure they weren't the source of 178 00:12:42,559 --> 00:12:47,560 Speaker 1: the disturbances. At the next break in the bangs, While 179 00:12:47,600 --> 00:12:50,640 Speaker 1: being careful not to hurt the children, the men did 180 00:12:50,640 --> 00:12:55,120 Speaker 1: as they were told and held them down. Satisfied they 181 00:12:55,120 --> 00:12:59,160 Speaker 1: were sufficiently restrained, Coin took a seat at the end 182 00:12:59,160 --> 00:13:02,640 Speaker 1: of the bed, but almost as soon as he'd sat down, 183 00:13:03,080 --> 00:13:07,680 Speaker 1: the thumping started again, continuing for ten minutes until the 184 00:13:07,720 --> 00:13:11,200 Speaker 1: other two men leapt suddenly from the bed, crying out 185 00:13:11,240 --> 00:13:16,160 Speaker 1: in horror. Something had pushed them off, they cried. Having 186 00:13:16,200 --> 00:13:20,600 Speaker 1: felt nothing himself, Coin resisted the urge to move, but 187 00:13:20,760 --> 00:13:24,400 Speaker 1: just moments later, with his eyes firmly on the children, 188 00:13:25,080 --> 00:13:29,520 Speaker 1: became the most peculiar sensation at his back, as if 189 00:13:29,559 --> 00:13:33,440 Speaker 1: something else in the room had drawn right up to him, 190 00:13:33,480 --> 00:13:38,920 Speaker 1: and then the bangs started again. Just then, a Collie, 191 00:13:39,160 --> 00:13:43,520 Speaker 1: the family farm dog, wandered into the room, giving Coin 192 00:13:43,679 --> 00:13:48,000 Speaker 1: an idea. Picking the dog up, he placed it under 193 00:13:48,000 --> 00:13:52,600 Speaker 1: the bed. Whatever is there, he said, I ask you, 194 00:13:53,360 --> 00:13:55,880 Speaker 1: if you have the power to do it, pushed the 195 00:13:55,920 --> 00:14:01,840 Speaker 1: dog back out. A deafening cacophony of engulfed the room 196 00:14:01,960 --> 00:14:06,160 Speaker 1: like nothing they'd heard before, sending the dog leaping and 197 00:14:06,280 --> 00:14:08,680 Speaker 1: yapping from out of the bed in a fit of terror, 198 00:14:09,200 --> 00:14:14,000 Speaker 1: before scurrying out of the room altogether. As Father Coyn 199 00:14:14,400 --> 00:14:17,480 Speaker 1: later explained to Bridget, though he regretted to be the 200 00:14:17,520 --> 00:14:21,320 Speaker 1: bearer of such disturbing news, there was no doubt in 201 00:14:21,360 --> 00:14:24,840 Speaker 1: his mind that they were sharing their home with something 202 00:14:24,880 --> 00:14:36,720 Speaker 1: malicious and most likely diabolical. In the following days, Father's 203 00:14:36,800 --> 00:14:40,520 Speaker 1: Coin and Smith continued to visit the house, often together, 204 00:14:40,960 --> 00:14:44,040 Speaker 1: as they attempted to bring comfort to the family, but 205 00:14:44,200 --> 00:14:48,200 Speaker 1: also with talk of performing a possible exorcism, it was 206 00:14:48,280 --> 00:14:50,920 Speaker 1: vital for them to get a better understanding of what 207 00:14:50,960 --> 00:14:55,520 Speaker 1: they were dealing with. On each occasion, after the children 208 00:14:55,520 --> 00:14:58,480 Speaker 1: had been put to bed, the knocking would start up, 209 00:14:59,440 --> 00:15:04,880 Speaker 1: sometimes instantly, but other times a good hour later. One night, 210 00:15:05,400 --> 00:15:09,040 Speaker 1: with the children fast asleep and the house completely silent 211 00:15:09,440 --> 00:15:11,680 Speaker 1: save for the sound of the fire in the hearth, 212 00:15:12,640 --> 00:15:15,840 Speaker 1: Coin requested to hear more about the strange noises that 213 00:15:15,880 --> 00:15:19,720 Speaker 1: seemed to emanate from the attic room. As father Smith 214 00:15:19,760 --> 00:15:23,240 Speaker 1: stayed with Bridget by the fire. James lit a candle 215 00:15:23,800 --> 00:15:27,280 Speaker 1: and led Coin into the second bedroom, the gentle light 216 00:15:27,320 --> 00:15:30,280 Speaker 1: of the candle pushing the shadows away as they went. 217 00:15:31,520 --> 00:15:34,920 Speaker 1: The room was sizeable, with blinds pulled down over both 218 00:15:34,920 --> 00:15:38,560 Speaker 1: its windows, and in the corner a bed covered with 219 00:15:38,600 --> 00:15:43,880 Speaker 1: a white quilt. Together, they stood for a moment and listened, 220 00:15:44,680 --> 00:15:47,400 Speaker 1: their faces bathed in the orange light of the candle 221 00:15:47,800 --> 00:15:52,560 Speaker 1: as the rest of the room was shrouded in darkness. There, 222 00:15:52,640 --> 00:15:56,600 Speaker 1: said Jane, suddenly, pointing to the ceiling. Do you hear it? 223 00:15:58,200 --> 00:16:03,240 Speaker 1: Coin strained to listen. It was barely perceptible at first, 224 00:16:03,720 --> 00:16:07,600 Speaker 1: as if a small animal were burrowing into straw, Yet 225 00:16:07,640 --> 00:16:10,560 Speaker 1: it was clearly moving from one side of the room 226 00:16:10,600 --> 00:16:15,800 Speaker 1: to the other. Asking James to stay put, Coin took 227 00:16:15,800 --> 00:16:18,640 Speaker 1: another candle and slowly made his way out of the 228 00:16:18,680 --> 00:16:21,920 Speaker 1: house and up the stone steps to the attic door. 229 00:16:23,360 --> 00:16:28,120 Speaker 1: Pushing it open. Coin peered into the darkness, lit his candle, 230 00:16:28,680 --> 00:16:33,440 Speaker 1: and stepped inside. As he stood in the silent room, 231 00:16:33,480 --> 00:16:36,960 Speaker 1: pushing the shadows back with the candle light, he saw 232 00:16:37,000 --> 00:16:42,720 Speaker 1: nothing but bundles of straw. Moments later, Coin returned to 233 00:16:42,760 --> 00:16:46,000 Speaker 1: the bedroom, where once again he could hear that peculiar 234 00:16:46,080 --> 00:16:50,600 Speaker 1: sound coming from the room above, having asked James to 235 00:16:50,680 --> 00:16:55,320 Speaker 1: repeat the test. This time, Coin stood below as James 236 00:16:55,400 --> 00:17:00,000 Speaker 1: went upstairs to investigate, with the priest carefully listening out. 237 00:17:00,600 --> 00:17:04,560 Speaker 1: Despite clearly hearing James enter the room, not once did 238 00:17:04,560 --> 00:17:14,480 Speaker 1: the other noise desist. As soon as James joined Coin 239 00:17:14,600 --> 00:17:19,800 Speaker 1: back downstairs, something even more peculiar occurred. As both men 240 00:17:19,920 --> 00:17:22,600 Speaker 1: would later go on to a test, It felt as 241 00:17:22,600 --> 00:17:26,520 Speaker 1: if something had rushed down from above, shooting past them 242 00:17:26,520 --> 00:17:31,080 Speaker 1: like a gust of wind, straight down into the floor. Unnerved, 243 00:17:31,480 --> 00:17:34,639 Speaker 1: Coin ordered James to lift up the blinds, and in 244 00:17:34,680 --> 00:17:37,680 Speaker 1: an instant the room was bathed in the hazy light 245 00:17:37,720 --> 00:17:42,119 Speaker 1: of dawn. Then, turning to look back into the room, 246 00:17:42,440 --> 00:17:46,440 Speaker 1: James gasped in horror, Pointing a finger toward the bed, 247 00:17:47,640 --> 00:17:55,760 Speaker 1: Coin slowly turned around. The quilt was moving softly, billowing 248 00:17:55,800 --> 00:18:00,800 Speaker 1: about as if being blown by the wind. Coin stepped 249 00:18:00,800 --> 00:18:04,320 Speaker 1: forward and brushed his hand over it, and felt, for 250 00:18:04,359 --> 00:18:07,320 Speaker 1: a moment as if a barrel of eels were squirming 251 00:18:07,359 --> 00:18:12,600 Speaker 1: about underneath it. Stepping back, he watched with alarm as 252 00:18:12,640 --> 00:18:17,840 Speaker 1: the amorphous sheet seemed gradually to fix into shape, outlining 253 00:18:17,840 --> 00:18:21,560 Speaker 1: what appeared to be some kind of figure lying underneath. 254 00:18:23,119 --> 00:18:26,280 Speaker 1: At the point where a chest might be. Coin watched 255 00:18:26,280 --> 00:18:29,760 Speaker 1: with amusement as the quilt began to rise and fall, 256 00:18:30,200 --> 00:18:33,760 Speaker 1: as if that chest were heaving up and down, struggling 257 00:18:33,760 --> 00:18:39,320 Speaker 1: to breathe. And then suddenly the entire quilt began undulating violently, 258 00:18:39,880 --> 00:18:42,520 Speaker 1: as if whatever was under it were in the final 259 00:18:42,640 --> 00:18:47,920 Speaker 1: throes of death. Wasting no more time, Father Coin broke 260 00:18:47,960 --> 00:18:52,440 Speaker 1: immediately into mass, directing it toward that shape, as a 261 00:18:52,520 --> 00:18:56,400 Speaker 1: steady din of what sounded like a hideous gurgling flooded 262 00:18:56,440 --> 00:18:59,480 Speaker 1: the room, as if something were dying right in front 263 00:18:59,520 --> 00:19:03,840 Speaker 1: of them. All the while he kept on spitting out 264 00:19:03,840 --> 00:19:07,560 Speaker 1: the words with ever increasing intensity, as the bed began 265 00:19:07,600 --> 00:19:11,200 Speaker 1: to rock back and forth, lifting the legs inches from 266 00:19:11,200 --> 00:19:15,159 Speaker 1: the ground, And then, as quick as it had begun, 267 00:19:15,720 --> 00:19:26,680 Speaker 1: the quilt dropped down and the mayhem ceased. As were 268 00:19:26,840 --> 00:19:29,520 Speaker 1: traveled far and wide at the apparent hauntings in the 269 00:19:29,560 --> 00:19:32,879 Speaker 1: Murphy's home, more and more people requested to come and 270 00:19:32,920 --> 00:19:37,080 Speaker 1: observe it for themselves. One evening, a well known horse 271 00:19:37,200 --> 00:19:39,480 Speaker 1: dealer arrived at the house to see what all the 272 00:19:39,480 --> 00:19:43,679 Speaker 1: fuss was about. Sitting next to his driver as they 273 00:19:43,680 --> 00:19:46,640 Speaker 1: approached on his pony and trap, there was no doubt 274 00:19:46,760 --> 00:19:50,080 Speaker 1: some apprehension as they caught sight of that small stone 275 00:19:50,119 --> 00:19:53,680 Speaker 1: house perched high up on the hill before them, its 276 00:19:53,720 --> 00:19:58,200 Speaker 1: windows like eyes flickering ominously with the candle light from within. 277 00:20:00,359 --> 00:20:03,119 Speaker 1: All was quiet as the driver brought them to a 278 00:20:03,160 --> 00:20:08,000 Speaker 1: stop outside. James, who had been expecting them, greeted the 279 00:20:08,000 --> 00:20:11,879 Speaker 1: horse dealer before showing him inside, while the driver was 280 00:20:11,920 --> 00:20:17,199 Speaker 1: instructed to wait alone under the moonlight. It was some 281 00:20:17,320 --> 00:20:20,480 Speaker 1: time later, as the driver blew into his hands to 282 00:20:20,560 --> 00:20:23,679 Speaker 1: keep them warm, that he noticed the silhouette of a 283 00:20:23,760 --> 00:20:27,000 Speaker 1: figure walking toward him from out of the distant dark. 284 00:20:28,600 --> 00:20:31,639 Speaker 1: The driver watched it as it drew closer and closer, 285 00:20:32,080 --> 00:20:35,920 Speaker 1: until eventually it passed him by and disappeared into the night. 286 00:20:37,240 --> 00:20:40,120 Speaker 1: It was strange, he thought, since there was some distance 287 00:20:40,200 --> 00:20:45,199 Speaker 1: from the nearest neighbor, or village for that matter. Thinking 288 00:20:45,280 --> 00:20:48,000 Speaker 1: nothing more of it, the driver had just turned his 289 00:20:48,080 --> 00:20:51,480 Speaker 1: attention back to keeping warm when he caught sight of 290 00:20:51,520 --> 00:20:55,120 Speaker 1: another figure approaching from out of the same direction as 291 00:20:55,119 --> 00:20:58,560 Speaker 1: the one before, only for them to again pass straight 292 00:20:58,560 --> 00:21:04,160 Speaker 1: by without a word and then vanish. Grabbing a torch light, 293 00:21:04,760 --> 00:21:08,120 Speaker 1: the driver held it out behind him and squinted into 294 00:21:08,119 --> 00:21:13,040 Speaker 1: the dark, but saw nothing. Turning back, he jumped at 295 00:21:13,040 --> 00:21:15,960 Speaker 1: the sight of yet another figure emerging from out of 296 00:21:16,040 --> 00:21:19,760 Speaker 1: the distance, again from the same place as the other two. 297 00:21:21,200 --> 00:21:24,760 Speaker 1: Calling out, the driver demanded to know their business, but 298 00:21:24,960 --> 00:21:28,639 Speaker 1: got nothing in response, as all the while the figure 299 00:21:28,920 --> 00:21:33,639 Speaker 1: drew nearer and nearer, walked past the cart and vanished 300 00:21:33,800 --> 00:21:37,240 Speaker 1: back into the night. Just then, a heavy gust of 301 00:21:37,280 --> 00:21:40,640 Speaker 1: wind swept across the hill, blowing out the driver's light 302 00:21:41,040 --> 00:21:44,520 Speaker 1: and throwing the pony into a frenzy, neighing and stamping 303 00:21:44,720 --> 00:21:47,480 Speaker 1: and raising up on two feet before the driver could 304 00:21:47,480 --> 00:21:51,920 Speaker 1: bring it under control. It was with some relief when 305 00:21:51,920 --> 00:21:54,920 Speaker 1: his employer emerged moments later from out of the house 306 00:21:55,560 --> 00:22:05,040 Speaker 1: and demanded to be taken back home. Though both father 307 00:22:05,160 --> 00:22:08,280 Speaker 1: Smith and Coine urged the church to grant permission to 308 00:22:08,280 --> 00:22:11,639 Speaker 1: conduct an exorcism, in the end it was decided not 309 00:22:11,800 --> 00:22:15,840 Speaker 1: to take such drastic measures. Perhaps one of the most 310 00:22:15,920 --> 00:22:20,159 Speaker 1: unusual incidences occurred shortly before Father Coyne was due to 311 00:22:20,200 --> 00:22:25,200 Speaker 1: transfer to another parish. On one afternoon, while out visiting 312 00:22:25,240 --> 00:22:28,159 Speaker 1: a sick neighbor of the Murphys, Coin was passing the 313 00:22:28,240 --> 00:22:31,520 Speaker 1: Murphy household when he decided to check in on the family. 314 00:22:32,960 --> 00:22:35,600 Speaker 1: Little had changed since he last saw them, but on 315 00:22:35,640 --> 00:22:38,960 Speaker 1: this occasion he had a holy pix with him, containing 316 00:22:38,960 --> 00:22:42,960 Speaker 1: the consecrated host wafers of bread, which are considered in 317 00:22:43,000 --> 00:22:47,439 Speaker 1: Catholicism to be the body of Jesus Christ. As more 318 00:22:47,480 --> 00:22:52,400 Speaker 1: of an experiment than anything else, Coine entered the children's bedroom, and, 319 00:22:52,600 --> 00:22:55,359 Speaker 1: holding the pics aloft, made the Sign of the Cross 320 00:22:55,400 --> 00:22:59,440 Speaker 1: with it. This moment was followed immediately with such loud 321 00:22:59,520 --> 00:23:02,800 Speaker 1: bangs every one else present through themselves to the ground 322 00:23:02,840 --> 00:23:07,399 Speaker 1: in fear of what might happen next. Panicking Coin was 323 00:23:07,440 --> 00:23:09,639 Speaker 1: then said to have placed the picks on the floor, 324 00:23:10,040 --> 00:23:13,159 Speaker 1: at which point the sound seemed to travel through the 325 00:23:13,240 --> 00:23:17,400 Speaker 1: wall down toward the small holy container, before dropping under 326 00:23:17,440 --> 00:23:20,480 Speaker 1: the floor below it, moving deeper and deeper into the 327 00:23:20,560 --> 00:23:25,320 Speaker 1: ground until it could no longer be heard. In the end, 328 00:23:25,760 --> 00:23:30,400 Speaker 1: Unable to escape the strange phenomena, Bridget Murphy eventually decided 329 00:23:30,440 --> 00:23:34,400 Speaker 1: to pack up and move the family to America. Though 330 00:23:34,400 --> 00:23:37,200 Speaker 1: it isn't known what happened to them after their arrival 331 00:23:37,320 --> 00:23:40,320 Speaker 1: in America, or if they continued to be plagued by 332 00:23:40,359 --> 00:23:44,679 Speaker 1: similar hauntings, some have reported that passengers traveling on the 333 00:23:44,720 --> 00:23:47,840 Speaker 1: same boat as them heard peculiar noises coming from the 334 00:23:47,880 --> 00:23:52,280 Speaker 1: family's cabin late at night. As for the clergyman that 335 00:23:52,359 --> 00:23:55,119 Speaker 1: had spent so much time with the family, as Shawn 336 00:23:55,160 --> 00:23:59,040 Speaker 1: Leslie noted, their involvement apparently was said to have led 337 00:23:59,080 --> 00:24:04,400 Speaker 1: to two of them suffering spinal meningitis and facial paralysis, respectively, 338 00:24:05,359 --> 00:24:15,960 Speaker 1: while a third suffered a complete nervous breakdown. Unexplained. The 339 00:24:15,960 --> 00:24:19,520 Speaker 1: book and audiobook, featuring ten stories that have never before 340 00:24:19,600 --> 00:24:23,280 Speaker 1: been covered on the show, is now available to buy worldwide. 341 00:24:23,560 --> 00:24:26,960 Speaker 1: You can purchase through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Waterstones, 342 00:24:27,119 --> 00:24:32,119 Speaker 1: among other bookstores. All elements have Unexplained, including the show's music, 343 00:24:32,200 --> 00:24:35,760 Speaker 1: are produced by me Richard McClain smith. Please subscribe and 344 00:24:35,840 --> 00:24:38,720 Speaker 1: rate the show wherever you listen to podcasts, and feel 345 00:24:38,720 --> 00:24:41,120 Speaker 1: free to get in touch with any thoughts or ideas 346 00:24:41,160 --> 00:24:44,159 Speaker 1: regarding the stories you've heard on the show. 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