Mr Andrew Paschal, Fellow of Queen’s College in Cambridge, his narrative of three nights disturbance at his father’s house in Soper-Lane, London, in August, 1661.
The first night’s disturbance; There was in family my father and mother, my eldest brother, and one of my sisters with a young maiden Gentlewoman her bed-fellow, (who seemed to be principally concerned) besides a maid that lay in the same chamber.
The Gentlewoman before-mentioned, being in bed with my sister in a chamber within that where my father and mother lay, (the maid lying in another bed alone by) there seemed to her then lying awake, to be one walking in the chamber, by a noise made as of a long gown or some trailing garment brushing and sweeping up and down the room.
By and by, there was a noise of clattering their shoes under the bed, with a scratching and tugging of the mat under the bed likewise. This continued for some time, my sister being awakened heard it, so did the maid. After this my mother being called out of the next chamber where she was up (to prepare a chymical water which required their being up all night) came in, they being in a great fright. My brother went up also, who not gone to bed sat below. A candle was brought, and the noise ceased while they were in the chamber. Presently after they were gone out again, and the light removed, the chamber door (which shuts with difficulty) flew to with a great bounce, it being wide open before, it shook the room where my mother was busied about the aforesaid preparation. After this one of the shoes that was by the bed’s side, was flung over the bed with a mighty force against a press that stood on the other side. This put them to such a fright again, that the Gentlewoman arose. My brother went into the room again, and sat up with them all night.
This I received from my brother, who came to bed to me, (who by reason of some illness had gone to bed first in the family) early the next morning. I was confirmed in it afterward by my mother, upon whose bare assertion I dare confidently believe any thing that shall be related.
The second night’s disturbance; the next evening, as we sat at supper, we all heard a great noise above in the chamber, at the end of the house, as it were flinging of chairs and stools about the room, or removing of great trunks. And going up to see, all was still till we came down again: However the Gentlewoman resolved to go to bed again that night in the same chamber. My sister went to bed with her, and the rest to their lodgings, only my brother and I resolved to sit up some time and expect the event. Within a while after we heard them knock earnestly above, we went both up, they told us there had been the same disturbance as the night before, and soemthing more. For besides the tugging of the mat under the bed, the bed-clothes upon them were often tugged and pulled, insomuch as they were fain to hold them hard with their hands to keep them from being pulled off.
All was quiet for a little time while we were in the chamber with a light, but we were no sooner out of the chamber with the candle, but the noise under the bed, tugging of the mat, pulling of the bed-clothes began again. Moreover something came into the bed, which the Gentlewoman said ran upon her by degrees, and seemed little and soft like a mole. Upon this she skreeked out, and we came in again with the candle, then all was still again. We retired often with the candle, and presently the same disturbance returned, together with a low whispering noise in many places about the bed, but chiefly towards the bed’s head, which we all heard staying in the chamber, and removing the candle into the next room. My father and mother arose, and there were none of us but heard all or most part of this, but nothing appeared to us. The thing was continually moving and stirring in some part or other of the bed, and most commonly at the feet, where it usually came up first.
At last it came to that boldness that it would make the same disturbance while the candle was in the chamber, if but a little shaded behind the door, so that we could sometimes see the clothes pulled and tugged, and we frequently saw it heave and lift up the clothes upon the bed towards the feet, in a little hill or rising, which both my brother and I often clapped our hands upon, perceiving it to move, and withal to make a little clacking noise, which cannot, any more than the former whispering, be expressed in writing. We could not perceive any thing more than the clothes, as often as we saw them so moved and heaved up.
The shoes were laid up upon the bed’s tester, the second night, to prevent the clattering which was made with them the night before, and whilst we were standing talking in the chamber, as I was some distance from the bed, one of the shoes flew off and hit me lightly on the head, my hat being on. And another came presently tumbling down after it, none stirring on the bed. Afterwards the aforesaid little thing came upon the Gentlewoman so frequently, that if we were but the least removed, she could not lie quiet in her bed. Then she sat up in her bed with a mantle about her, which when we retired was pulled up as if it would have been plucked from her. Whereupon she cried out again, and I came into the chamber again, and was desired to hold fast upon the mantle about her, which notwithstanding upon removal of the candle was tugged hard again, which I very sensibly perceived. Whereupon we perceiving no cessation, my brother and I continued in the chamber all that night, till break of day, with a candle in the room. The tugging of the mat under the bed, the heaving of the clothes about the feet, and the other whispering noise continuing by fits till light appeared. There was scarcely any of us, especially she herself, that did not conjure that whisperer, by the most sacred names, to speak out and tell us its intent, but nothing was to be seen, nor any answer made.
The third night’s disturbance; the Gentlewoman resolved now to change her chamber, to try if the disturbance would follow, she did so, my sister still accompanying of her. My brother sat up as before below, expecting again what would follow. The same noise was heard this third night, as the night before above in the chamber. We had not sat long below before we were summoned up with loud knockings again, they were in the same case as before, if not worse. A while after they were in bed in this other chamber, there was a clattering heard at the door; presently after the same noise under the bed, the same heaving of the clothes, and the same whispering, as before. But towards midnight that thing which came into the bed before, came now so often with such ungrateful skippings up and down upon her, that she often skreeked and cried out. It seemed cold and very smooth as she related, and would commonly come in at her feet, and run all upon her by her side to her shoulder. Once she desired me to clap my hand upon her back near her shoulder blade, as feeling it just then come up thither. I did so on a sudden, and there seemed a cold blast or puff of wind to blow upon my hand just as I clapped it on her.
And one thing more remarkable was this, when the whispering was heard at her bed’s head, after we had many times in vain conjured it to speak and tell us the intent of its whisperings and disturbance, I spoke to it very earnestly to speak out or whisper louder. Hereupon it hissed out much louder than before, but nothing intelligible to be heard. At last this disturbance with the thing in the bed being no longer tolerable to the Gentlewoman, my mother arose, (lying in the next chamber, and hearing their perplexity) came into her chamber, and prayed sometime at her bedside just by her. Whereupon it pleased God, within a very short time after, to remove all those noises, and that which disturbed her. After that night I cannot tell certainly that there hath been any thing of that nature heard in the house.
N. B. This narrative, though it was not among Mr Glanvill’s papers, yet it being made by an eye-witness whom I knew to be one of judgment and integrity, I thought it fit to insert it. And the rather, because of that passage, that when he clapped his hand upon the shoulder of the Gentlewoman where the ghost was, a cool blast or puff of air seemed to bear or blow against his hand. Which is like Mr Glanvill’s experiment of pressing the linen bag in which some spirit was moving as a living animal [in Tedworth]. Which are notable instances of their easy percribration through porous boties. This troublesome spirit I suspect to have been the ghost of some party deceased, who would have uttered something, but had not the knack of speaking so articulately as to be understood. And when they can speak intelligibly, it is ordinarily in a hoarse and low voice, as is observable in many stories, and particularly in a very fresh story of the ghost of one deceased that spoke to Jacob Brent, some two years ago, an apprentice then to one Mr Lawrence in the Little Minories; [see Little Minories page…]
From Sadducismus Triumphatus by Glanvill, 4th edition with notes, 1726.