A Sizewell Ghost Story.
During the past seven weeks the usually quiet little village of Sizewell has been in a great state of excitement through the stories afloat that a cottage occupied by a man named Booty was haunted. Knockings were reported to be heard at various intervals, both night and day; doors would fly open, tables and chairs turn over, and even the fire irons would leave the fender, and take up their position in other parts of the room.
Agreat number of people from time to time have visited the spot, some even sitting up till the small hours with the object of unravelling the mystery. However, in almost all cases, “the ghost” did not go through its performance while the visitors were present.
Last week young Sizewell burnt an effigy representing this terror of the neighbourhood, but all in vain. Its reappearance was heralded with tremendous knocking against the boards and wall, insomuch that even a very deaf man was startled, while others were so alarmed as to declare that they dare not visit the spot again.
Another amusing episode was that recently a boarded fence was erected at the back of the house, and in digging the post holes it was rumoured that the diggers came across some bones of a departed smuggler. This, however, turned out to be only a joke. A few bones were certainly unearthed at one corner of the yard, the remains, probably, of a member of the porcine tribe.
Things at last reached such a climax that Inspector Grimwood, who had visited the place several times determined to fathom the mystery if possible. Suspicion was attached to Booty’s girl, aged about 13, and a younger boy. Accordingly Inspector Grimwood closely examined these two juveniles on Saturday and they ultimately acknowledged to have been the cause of all the apparent freaks of the Ghost.
The boy, it appears, opened the chamber door by kicking at it from the top of the stairs, and then stealthily retiring under the bed. The rapping was done chiefly by the girl, and the table and chair delusions by the combined strategy of the two.
Booty has occupied the cottage upwards of 20 years, and never heard anything of the kind till recently, and great credit is due to Inspector Grimwood for his perseverence in bringing this disagreeable matter to light, to the immense gratification of the villagers, and especially to the owners of the property.
Yarmouth Independent, 14th March 1885.