Once again, strange creeping rustles, similar to human steps, were heard outside the window. John Bell, a wealthy Tennessee landowner, lit a lantern, picked up a heavy oak club, carefully opened the door, and walked out into the courtyard. He hoped that now he would finally catch the insolent man who had been wandering around the house for several nights in a row, frightening his wife and children. However, this time too, no one except the watchman was found. And he swore that not a single living soul appeared in the yard …
At first, the night invisible was engaged only in periodically frightening the Bell family with a variety of sounds. This "game" lasted almost a year. But, apparently, this was not enough for him, and he moved on to more decisive actions.
So, in the middle of the night in the nursery, gnashing sounds began to be heard, which not only woke the children up, but also inspired them with terrible fear. It seemed to them that huge black rats were gnawing the legs of their beds. And after some time, some invisible force began to tear the covers off the beds and throw pillows on the floor.
In the end, the situation began to acquire a threatening character: from some time on, an unknown creature began to cruelly mock the youngest of the Bell daughters, Betsy. It dragged the little girl by her hair, hit her, causing bruises and other signs of physical violence to appear on her face and hands.
The situation was depressing. The invisible entity was getting angrier and more cunning every day. After much deliberation, Bell decided to call for help from his old friend - James Johnson, who was not only a brave and determined man, but also well versed in the occult sciences.
Johnson arrived without delay. And as if specially for his arrival, the ghost (and no one doubted this any longer) suddenly spoke, however, it was mainly smacking his lips and a loud, hacking cough. James decided to take advantage of this situation, and establish contact with the invisible. But when he spoke, he heard only a contemptuous whistle.
But that didn't stop Johnson. He continued to look for approaches to the ghost.
And then one day James fancied that he heard a barely audible whisper. And soon the voice of the invisible person acquired a noticeable volume, and the words became more intelligible. At the same time, the ghost spoke only when Betsy was nearby. At the same time, the girl's head began to spin, and she often lost consciousness. The ghost seemed to be feeding its powers from the child's energy.
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When contact began to be established, Johnson asked the ghost to name the person whose spirit it is. But he did not receive a direct answer to his question. At first, the ghost replied that it was the spirit of an Indian woman, whose body was not buried. Then she called herself the Black Dog, then the name of a woman who was considered a witch. Most likely, the last statement of the ghost served as the basis for calling him the "Bell witch."
Without finding out anything specific, Johnson left, leaving the Bell family alone with a ghost. Meanwhile, the strange spirit continued to do its dirty deeds. True, sometimes he showed directly opposite qualities.
So, once he saved the owner's youngest son from death, who was covered by a sandy landslide. The boy had almost passed out when, unexpectedly, an unfamiliar soothing voice sounded nearby. And then someone's strong hands literally pulled the child out of the sand.
Especially friendly attitude was demonstrated by the spirit towards Bell's wife - Lucy. When one of her friends appeared in her room, the ghost treated the women with fresh fruits that emerged from the air and slowly descended into the palm of the surprised ladies. And when Lucy fell ill, an invisible entity began to deliver nuts to her and even cracked them at the woman's request.
And one day on the day of the birthday of one of the Bell children, the ghost gave the child a whole basket of tropical fruits, delivered, according to him, directly from Africa.
But this happened very rarely. Much more often, the Bell Witch made various troubles. She especially liked to inflict biting slaps on the family members, which, because of their suddenness, caused not only fear, but also pain.
But poor Betsy was in the most trouble. Once a ghost even prevented the girl from completing the engagement. In the presence of guests, it began to make such indecent jokes about the girl and her fiancé that Betsy, unable to bear the insulting hints, ran out of the table in tears and locked herself in her room.
John, to calm his daughter, went after her. Entering the living room, he noticed a ghostly silhouette. Seized with rage, John grabbed his saber and began to strike at the ghost.
Naturally, Bell did not cause any harm to the disembodied creature, but he greatly embittered him. After this incident, the witch began to literally harass John with her evil "jokes".
At first, she made his jaw and tongue feel numb and poor John practically could not move them: he not only stopped eating, but also talk. In addition, Bell's facial muscles were constantly twitching, resulting in terrible grimaces on his face …
At the end of November, John Bell fell seriously ill. And on the morning of December 20, 1820, he died. But even the dead John did not stop mocking the ghost. During the funeral procession, next to the coffin, one could hear wild screams, then cheerful melodies …
It's hard to say what influenced the ghost's behavior. But a few months after the death of John Bell, when one day all members of the family were having dinner, suddenly a loud voice of a witch was heard: "I am leaving you, but I will be back in exactly seven years."
And the ghost didn't forget its promise. Seven years later, strange noises were heard again in the Bell house. But this time the spirit did not last long in the house. Less than two weeks later, he disappeared. It is difficult to say what caused this. Perhaps the complete indifference of the household to the tricks of the ghost, who decided not to pay attention to him.
True, in 1828 it nevertheless appeared in the home of John Bell Jr., promising that he would come to visit him again exactly 107 years later … But this threat of the witch did not disturb anyone, since none of them hoped to live for so many years …
And although this mysterious story happened almost two centuries ago, researchers of anomalous phenomena still have not forgotten it. They cannot come to an unambiguous decision: did this incident actually take place, or is it a well-played hoax?
But the latter is hardly possible. And above all, because this story lasted for several years and in the presence of many witnesses.
Some see this story as a typical example of a poltergeist, others believe that otherworldly evil forces have manifested themselves, and still others are sure that all eyewitnesses have a massive hallucination. Although it is difficult to believe that the hallucination could last for several years.
Bernatsky Anatoly