Extraordinary occurrence at Brentford; or, a tale of the marvellous.
On Monday, the townships of Old and New Brentford were thrown into the greatest excitement, by an occurrence, the most marvellous heard of for many years, of which the following are the particulars:-
Mr Wilson, the master of the new Brentford National School, on his arrival at the school house (which is situated in the Ham, at the rear of the church), on Monday morning, was informed by some of the neighbours, that on the previous evening (Sunday) lights had been observed moving about in the school-room. On entering the building, he was astonished to find the boys’ slates (about 80 in number) spread all over the floor, the whole of which were on the Saturday evening previous left hanging up in the school-room. Mr Wilson attached little importance to the circumstance; but about nine o’clock, two of the boys, who had been into the yard at the back of the school-house, came running into the room, their countenances depicting the extreme of fright, exclaiming they had seen a ghost.
Mr Wilson at first refused to listen to their tale, but finding them persist in their statement of having seen a supernatural visitant, he questioned them very closely on the subject, when they stated that as they were crossing the yard towards the school-room door, they observed a very tall object, attired in a white robe, moving towards them from the end of the yard, but being greatly frightened they were unable to state whether it resembled a male or female. When they got to the school-room door, they ventured to look back, when one of them stated he saw the object enter a small building on the left side of the yard, used as a coal shed; but the other declares it must have vanished, as, upon his looking round, he could see nothing of it. Both agreed it had neither shoes nor stockings on, nor any covering on its head.
Mr Wilson for some time treated the affair as a chimera of the boy’s own imagination, but about an hour afterwards he was much alarmed by a loud shrieking at that end of the school-room nearest the door leading into the yard, close to which is a trap-door leading to a cellar about four feet in height, which has been excavated under the school-room flooring for the purposes of ventilation. On reaching the spot, he found the boys much terrified, and was informed by them, the trap-door had been lifted up by the same being the two boys had stated they had seen in the yard.
Mr Wilson considering the circumstance, if true, most extraordinary, took ten of the boys, who had asserted their observance of the fact, and placing them in different parts of the school-room desired them to describe in writing what they had seen, at the same time placing three other boys to watch the trap-door. When the boys had completed their description, Mr Wilson compared their statements together, when, to his great surprise, he found eight of them agreed in every particular; and in a few minutes afterwards, the boys placed on watch shouted out, “Here, here, master!” and at the same moment, the whole of the boys, uttering a simultaneous scream, rushed out of the school-room into the street, followed, it is reported, by their master.
The boys having informed Mr Wilson that the reason of their screaming was their again seeing the trap-door raised, and a thick stick shook at them by the same mysterious being, that gentleman proceeded to the Savings-bank, where he narrated the whole of the circumstances to Colonel Clitherow, the chairman of the bench of magistrates, who immediately accompanied Mr Wilson to the school house; when, on examination, the trap-door was found fastened down. Mr Winkworth, a carpenter, was then sent for, and a large portion of the flooring was taken up, and several boys and men descended with candles into the cellar beneath, which extends the whole length of the building. After groping about for some time, they found a cap (which is reported to have contained a quantity of female’s hair) and a pocket handkerchief marked C.T.; but they could not find any trace of the being stated by the boys to have been seen by them. The bottom of the cellar was covered by wet mud at least six inches deep, but too soft to retain foot-marks.
Search was afterwards made throughout the yard (which is surrounded by a wall upwards of ten feet high), the coal-shed, etc.; but nothing was found to elucidate the mystery in which the whole affair is at present enwrapped. The cellar has no communication with the outside but by the trap-door in the school-room.
Throughout Tuesday the excitement was, if anything, increased; crowds from the adjacent villages coming to view the place, and but few of the boys ventured to enter the school-room – those few being compelled to go by their parents. The township authorities and the magistrates have adopted every means in their power to unravel the mystery, and to find out who the mysterious stranger is, and should they succeed, we trust, whoever it may be, they will meet the reward due to their ingenuity.
The Evening Chronicle, 24th September 1835.