Supernatural Seacoast Stories (continued)

" Sometime also being in America, (in His then Majesty's service,) I was lodged in the said George Walton's house, a Planter there, and on a Sunday night, about ten o'clock, many stones were heard by myself and the rest of the family, to be thrown and (with noise) hit against the top and all sides of the house, after he said Walton had been at his fence-gate, which was between him and his neighbor one John Amazeen an Italian, to view it; for it was again (as formerly) wrung off the hinges, and cast upon the ground; and in his being there, and return home with several persons of (and frequenting) his family and house, about a slight shot distance from the gate, they were all assaulted with a peal of stones, (taken we conceive, from the rocks hard by the House,) and this by unseen hands or agents. For by this time I was come down to them, having risen out of my bed at this strange alarm of all that were in the house, and do know that they all looked out as narrowly as I did, or any person could, (it being a bright moon-lightnight) but could make no discovery. There upon, and because there came many stones, and those pretty great ones, some as big as my fist, into the entry or porch of the House, we withdrew into the next room to the Porch, no person having received any hurt, (Praised be Almighty Providence, for certainly the infernal agent, constant enemy to mankind, had he not been over-ruled, intended no less than death or maim) save only that two youths were hit, one on the leg the other on the thigh, notwithstanding the stones 'came so thick and so forcibly against the sides of so narrow a room. Whilst we stood amazed at this accident, one of the maidens imagined she saw them come from the Hall next to that we were in, where searching, (and in the cellar down out of the Hall, and finding nobody, another and myself observed two little stones in a short space successively to fall on the floor, coming as from the Ceiling close by us, and we concluded it must necessarily be done by means extraordinary and preternatural. Coming again into the room where we first were, (next the Porch) we had many of these lapidary salutations! but unfriendly ones; for shutting the door, it was no small surprise to me to have a good big stone come with force and noise (just by my head against the door on the inside; and then shutting the other door, next the Hall, to have the like accident; so going out again, to have another very near my body clattering against the board wall of the House; but it was a much greater, to be so near the danger of having my head broke with a mall, or great hammer brushing along the top of roof of the room from the other end, as I was walking in it, and lighting down by me; but it fell so, that my landlord had the greatest damage, his windows (especially those of the first mentioned room) being with many stones miserably and strangely battered, most of the stones giving the blow on the inside, and forcing the bars, lead and hasps of the casements outward, and yet falling back (sometimes a yard or two into the room; only one little stone we took out of the glass of the window, there it lodged itself in the breaking it, in a hole exactly fit for the stone, The pewter and brass were frequently pelted, and sometimes thrown down upon the ground: for the evil spirit seemed then to effect variety of mischief, and diverted himself at this end after he had done so much execution at the other. So were two candlesticks, after many hittings, at last struck off the table where they stood, and likewise a large pewter pot, with the force of these stones. Some of them were taken up hot, (and it seems) coming out of the fire; and some (which is not unremarkable) having been laid by me upon the table along by couples, and numbered, were found missing; that is, two of them, and we returned immediately to the table, having turned our backs only to visit and view some new stone-charge or window breach, and this experiment was four or five times repeated, and I still found one or two missing of the number, which we all marked, when I did but' just remove the light from off the table, and step to the door and back again.

"After this had continued in all parts and sides of the first room (and down the chimney) for above four hours, I weary of the noise, and sleepy, went to bed.

"In the morning (Monday morning) I was informed by several of the domestics of more of the same kind of trouble; among which the most signal was, the vanishing of the spit which stood in the chimney corner, and the sudden coming of it again down the chimney, sticking it in a log that lay in the fire place or hearth and then, being by one of the family set by on the other side of the chimney, presently cast out of the window into the back-side. Also a pressing iron lying on the ledge of the chimney back, was conveyed invisibly into the yard. I should think it (too) not unworthy the relation, that, discoursing them with some of the families and others, about what had past, I said, I thought it necessary to take and keep the great stone, as a proof and evidence, for they had taken it down from my chambers; so I carried it up and laid it on my table in my chamber, and locked my door, and going out upon occasions, and soon returning, I was told by my landlady that it was, a little while after my going forth, removed again, with a noise which they all below heard, and was thrown into the ante-chamber, and there I found it lying in the middle of it; there upon I the second time carried it up, and laid it on the table, and had it in my custody for a long time to show, for the satisfaction of the curious.

CONTINUE to read WITCHCRAFT IN NH