Rappings on the wall.
Cornish village’s ghostly story.
“Spirit of Mrs Peggy Taylor”.
Sounds heard by reporter.
Is there a ghost in the little village of Townshend near Penzance? Happenings there have been so strange during the past few days that responsible residents who at first dismissed the idea with laughter have been forced to take a serious view of the position, and are entirely unable to suggest a cause. Townshend is a hamlet in the heart of the rural area between Penzance and Helston. It is well off the beaten track, it is quiet, or was until recently nocturnal disturbances occurred which have set the whole district talking.
They began just before Christmas, when Mr and Mrs J.H. Allen, a retired miner and his wife living in the village, were awakened late one night by a loud drumming in an interior wall which divides to the two upstairs rooms. They were alarmed, but as the incident was not repeated they decided to say nothing. The remarkable rappings described below were last night confirmed by “The Western Morning News” district reporter, who described strange noises he heard, and bore out what had been told him during the day of responses to tapping signals by the residents of the house and villagers.
On Thursday, Mr Allen told our reporter, the noises began again, starting at about 11 p.m., and continuing until 1 a.m. This was repeated on Friday, and Mr Allen mentioned it to one or two friends, who thought the family had allowed their imagination to play free with them.
On Saturday night, however, the sounds came again, and Mr Allen, determined to get corroboration, called in the local doctor and several other residents. They were incredulous when they arrived, but they could not disbelieve their ears. The hammering inside the bedroom wall was so loud that it could be heard all over the house.
The wall, a lath and plaster partition, vibrated, and a heavy iron bed shook until it rattled, while a light bedside table was spun out of its place. But there was something stranger yet to come. One of those present tapped the wall, giving a well-known miner’s underground signal. His rapping was imitated instantly and exactly. He gave several other different series of taps, and they were also imitated exactly.
Having heard stories of haunted houses, another member of the party said, “Are you beyond the power of man?” and there came a single light rap. He then said, “Does your loud rap mean yes?” A single loud rap followed. “Does your light rap mean no?” Another loud tap followed. Then ensued a whole conversation in this manner which, amazing and fantastic as it may seem, is solemnly vouched for by the doctor himself and by other residents of the village who were present.
The mysterious rapper is declared seriously by all who were present to have conveyed to the listeners that she was the spirit of a Mrs Peggy Taylor, who died in the house on March 19, 1896, at the age of 86. She is said to have stated that she had hidden an important document in the wall of the bedroom, almost precisely where the knockings were heard, and that she would not stop knocking until the wall was opened and the papers removed. All the hearers asserted most sincerely that they tested the matter in every conceivable way.
The suggestions were put forward that the rappings might have been due to rats in the wall, to a piece of loose plaster, to a subsidence underground, and to a slight earthquake shock, but the hearers all said emphatically that this could not be so, as knockings from such causes would be entirely uncontrollable, whereas these knocks responded exactly to the suggestions of those who were in the room.
It is an amazing story, and from less reliable sources it could be dismissed with scorn, but nobody would dream of doubting the word of Dr Charles Hagenbach, who is the medical practioner for that district; of Mr Fred Woolcock, a prominent and highly-respected resident; or of Mr Allen himself, whose character is above reproach.
Telephoning last night, a representative of “The Western Morning News” said: “The house in which the rappings were heard is one of a row of four or five little cottages, not at all of the type usually associated with ghost stories, but substantial, well-built, and well-kept premises.
By about 9.30 last evening there was quite a large crowd outside Mr Allen’s gate. Mr Allen, who has lived in the house twenty years, received me very courteously, and as there were already several people in his house I was taken with a friend to wait in a neighbour’s house until the time when the “ghost” was due to arrive. The appointed time was apparently at 10.30, and only 10 minutes later Mr Allen came across to inform us that the knockings had started. We entered the house, and from the downstairs room sounds of distinct tappings overhead could be heard. We went up to a back bedroom upstairs, and Mr Allen tapped the wall several times. These taps were echoed.
Those of us who were in the room also tapped, and there were responses: Mr Allen and Mr L.C. Mitchell, a well-known local cricketer, repeated some of the questions they put the previous night, and these were answered in a similar manner to that which has been described.
I, myself, put one or two questions in normal tone of voice, and received tappings in a manner according to last night’s proceedings, indicating a negative or affirmative reply. I had the door of the room carefully shut, and whatever I asked in normal tones produced a tap, but when I spoke in a low voice there was no response.
Western Morning News, 12th March 1934.
Is the ‘ghost’ a joke?
Cornish village “visitation”
From one side of the wall!
Residents of the West Cornwall village of Townshend retired to rest last night with the confident assurance of a sound night’s sleep, for the “ghost” had very considerately promised not to walk. Whether it will ever do so again remains to be seen.
According to the residents of the house, the final message of the supernatural visitor on Sunday night was that it would not walk again if the alleged documents were taken from the wall of the house, but that if they were still untouched by today it would repeat its visitation.
Whether or not the walls will be opened is as yet uncertain, for Mr J.H. Allen, the “victim” of the visitation, has by no means decided whether he will embark on the expense with the expectation of finding nothing for his trouble. In the meantime one-half of the district is laughing and the other half wondering.
Not all the people who were present in the house on Sunday night were scared by the mysterious noises. Among them was “The Western Morning News” representative who volunteered to listen to the ghost. Giving a more detailed account than was possible so late on Sunday night, he says: “I fully anticipated that I should hear something, because so many independent people could not possibly have imagined the incidents of the preceding night. I was not disappointed. The rappings certainly had the audibility of physical force. Having established the noses there remained the question of their causes, and this is where the difficulty arises.
“I had hoped, with the help of three friends who were with me, to have been able to watch the “haunted” partition from so many points of vantage simultaneously that the “ghost” would either have to remain silent, or speak up and be caught. Alas, I was disappointed, for the female occupants of the front room, which is on one side of the partition, were already in bed, and though it was possible for one, at the expense of some embarrassment all round, to stand just inside the door, nothing that could be called an investigation was possible, and with the investigators so handicapped, even the most inexperienced “ghost” could have got away with its pranks. Whether any further opportunity for investigation will be afforded I do not know, but I am convinced that it would result in a discovery of nothing very alarming.
“What can be the causes of the extraordinary occurrences? Are they natural, are they supernatural, or the family the victims of some practical elaborate joke? The taking down of the wall offers one way to discovery. The other is an impartial investigation. Which of the two courses will be adopted in the event of the reappearance of the “ghost” depends entirely on what action Mr Allen decides to take.”
Western Morning News, 13th March 1934.
Crowd’s vain wait for rappings.
Publicity damper.
Townshend ‘ghost’ no longer busy.
A large crowd assembled outside the house of Mr and Mrs J.H. Allen at Townshend last night, and waited in the road for some time, but there was no repetition of the mysterious rappings that had been heard on the four preceding nights. Mr Allen, who was interviewed by a “Western morning News” representative yesterday, said he wished to have no more to say on the subject. “Too wide a publicity has been given in this matter already,” he said, “and we are quite tired of it.”
In reply to further questions, he stated he had not taken down the wall in which the documents were supposed to be hidden, and does not intend to do so as yet. “If the rappings come on again,” he added, “we will let them go on and await events. We are not frightened.”
Western Morning News, 14th March 1934.
Ghostly visitation at Townshend.
An amazing story.
Conversation with an alleged spirit.
Penzance, Monday.
An amazing story of an alleged psychic visitation – a spirit returning from the dead and carrying on conversations with the living – comes from Townshend, a village on the Penzance-Helston road, via Goldsithney and Relubbus.
The spirit is said to manifest itself by rappings on a wall, and these rappings are heard not only by the inmates, but have been also heard, and the residents’ story verified by the village doctor and other neighbours.
The scene of the mysterious occurrences is the cottage in this village occupied by Mr J.H. Allen, his wife, and two daughters. Mr Allen, who is a retired miner, states that he first heard the rappings just before Christmas, when they were awakened one night by a loud knocking which appeared to come from the interior of a lath and plaster partition which divides the two bedrooms. They were naturally alarmed at the time, but as the sounds were not repeated, they said nothing, fearing that the neighbours would laugh at what might not unnaturally be attributed to superstition.
On Thursday last, however, these sounds began again, and Mr Allen then became convinced that something out of the ordinary – in fact, something supernatural – was happening.
The rapping on the partition continued from about 11 p.m. till one o’clock next morning. The large iron bed in the room shook and rattled, and everything in the house seemed to shake and rock. Fear that the neighbours would laugh at his superstition, deterred Mr Allen from mentioning the occurrence when first it happened, but this recurrence of what seemed to him a supernatural event prevailed upon him to reisk teh incredulity of his friends and reveal to them in detail what he had experienced.
Story of an independent witness. It appears that Mr Allen’s daughter, Miss Margery Allen, is employed by Mrs J.B. James, at the Post Office at Townshend. On Friday morning, Miss Allen related to Mrs James and her family the occurrences of Thursday night. On Friday night, between 10 p.m. and 11 p.m., when Mrs Allen’s son was just going to bed, Mr Allen came down and told him that the rappings had re-commenced, and asked young James if he would come up to the house and witness for himself what was taking place.
A representative of this paper, this (Monday) morning, had an interview with Mr James. “What happened when you got to the house?” I asked. “The knockings had started,” replied Mr James. “I could hear them from downstairs. I went upstairs and the noises seemed to be coming from the partition. I stayed in the room till quarter past eleven, and the noises continued the whole of that time. The bed was shaking violently. I tried to stop it but could not. I was told next day that the noises kept on till 1.30 on Saturday morning.”
Under such circumstances, of course, it was impossible to keep the matter a secret. The news spread, and on Saturday night there was quite a company present, among them being Mr Fred. Woolcock, Mr L.C. Mitchell (well-known in local cricket circles), and Mrs Mitchell and their four children, and Mr Redvers Rutter.
When the company were assembled, the noises again began, and whilst they were in the act of listening, Dr Hagenback came along the road. It should be stated that the house is situated on the main road, and is attached to other houses. Some one asked Dr Hagenback to come in and see what was taking place, and he did so. Undeterred by the gathering, the mysterious visitant, invisible to human eyes, continued its hammering. It should be explained that the noises always occur at night, lasting from about 11 p.m. til one o’clock in the morning.
Under such circumstances, if a person were alone in the house, it can be readily imagined that fear would grip his heart and his mind might naturally exaggerate events. Company, however, often lends courage, and someone conceived the idea of rapping the wall in response. Imagine the feeling that sprung up in the hearts of the assembled company when this was replied to, and imitated exactly. It was a well known miner’s underground signal that was employed.
But not only were rappings replied to, but actual questions. One of the company – like Hamlet on the appearance of his father’s ghost – addressed it personally. “Are you beyond the power of man?” he asked, and immediately in responses came a single light rap. “Does your loud rap mean yes?” was the next question, and in confirmative answer there came a loud rap. Another question immediately suggested itself, and was put as follows: “Does your light tap mean no?” and this was answered by a light rap. Having got thus far, the basis of a possible conversation was laid.
Then there followed an extraordinary sequence of question and answer. Mr Mitchell became the interlocutor. “Are you a supernatural?” he asked, and a loud knock intimated the affirmative. “Are you a male?” which received a gentle tap. “Are you a female?” was replied to with a loud knock, and the question, “Have you a message for us?” was answered with a loud knock. Then came the poser of finding out the nature of the message. It will be observed that there was no vocal response from the ghostly visitant. Had there been, as the ghost said to Hamlet, undoubtedly there would have been unfolded a tale that would have frozen up their souls and made the hairs of their heads stand on end like the quills on the back of the fretful porcupine. It was therefore left to the inspiration of the questioner to discover the nature of the message the mysterious personage so insistently endeavoured to convey but could not place in words.
The house of mystery was occupied many years back by an old lady named Peggy Taylor, who died there in March, 1896, when she was nearly 90 years of age. The name came to Mitchell, and he asked “Are you Peggy Taylor?” This must have been a happy thought, for immediately there came a vigorous knock in response. This opened up a train of questions. “Have you bad news?” asked Mr Mitchell, and there came a slight tap; but “Have you good news – ” was answered with a loud knock. Names of the older inhabitants of the village appeared to be familiar to Peggy, but later residents were unknown to her. By this method of procedure it was learned that there was something left in the wall, which should be taken down in order that it might be recovered.
Our representative had a conversation with Miss Margery Allen, who bore out the whole of the above story, and added, “The tappings on the wall always seem to be intended for me and me alone.” “What do you mean by that?” I asked, and Miss Allen replied.
“When the question was put: ‘Is it any benefit to the house?’ there came back a loud knock. Then the question was asked: ‘Will it benefit Mr Allen?’ and there came a soft knock. ‘Will it benefit Doris?’ (Doris is my sister, Margery explained) and to this there was a soft knock. But when he asked: ‘Will it benefit Margery?’ there was a very loud knock.”
I asked Miss Allen what her father was going to do about the matter, and she replied he hardly know what to do. “Does he own the house?” I asked, and Miss Allen replied that he did. “Then he is at liberty to take down the partition,” I said, to which she assented.
The occurrence was repeated on Sunday night. News of it had spread abroad, and many people had assembled. The wide publicity given it to-day will doubtless increase the interest. Psychists from all parts of the country will be attracted by it, and if the visitations are prolonged Townshend will acquire a more than national reputation.
We give the above story as it was related to us and entirely without comment, awaiting developments.
Cornishman, 15th March 1934.
“Ghost” fails to keep its promise.
No more rappings.
Crowd disappointed at Townshend.
The “Ghost of Townshend” has not kept its word. Though it had issued repeated warnings that unless the wall in the house in which documents were alleged to have been hidden was opened and the documents removed by Tuesday it would recommence its knocking, nothing further has been heard since sunday night. The wall remains untouched.
From the first the rappings on the wall indicated that it must be opened on Tuesday. On Sunday the message was repeated, with the addition that it would not call again provided the wall was opened on Tuesday, but that if the wall was not opened it would continue until the instruction was carried out.
The whole district was interested in the events of Tuesday night. Large crowds assembled at Townshend in the evening, and a resident told “The Western Morning News” that over 100 cars were drawn up along the road.
But not a sound was heard. How long will the ghost delay carrying out its threat to continue to disturb the household?
Western Morning News, 15th March 1934.