WHEN LIGHTNING STRIKES, or Who's Your Daddy
Mar 10, 2014 12:55:24 GMT -5
JanetC, guyana1230, and 1 more like this
Post by Gordon Lee on Mar 10, 2014 12:55:24 GMT -5
WHEN LIGHTNING STRIKES, or Who's Your Daddy
Here are the TRUE FACTS:
.
Stephen Strand, born in 1790 at Becket Corner, Massachusetts, went to sea at the age of 16 on a whaler out of New Bedford. He returned to Becket Corner after four years and married his childhood sweetie-pie, Molly Lawton. During the next five years he worked as a storekeeper and at a livery. At age 25 he took to the sea again aboard a merchantman and sailed to France (Marseille?). Bound for home the ship detoured to Ireland to take on additional cargo. The ship, during a violent storm, wrecked upon the rocks near Cornwall (Lands End). Only one person survived.
.
Jacques Beaumont, a Frenchman, was a passenger aboard the merchantman that broke apart and sank off the coast of England. He was married and had a daughter named Lily. He possessed an elaborate gold match-safe (match box) engraved with his name.
.
Harper Allyn, born and raised in Battle Creek, Michigan, led a simple life. He worked as a wool-carder at a mill owned by Capt. William Wallace. In his spare time, he enjoyed exploring the forests and coves around Goguac Lake. That is where, in 1850, he met the old "Hermit".
.
The mysterious HERMIT OF THE LAKE:
.
The Hermit of Goguac Lake seldom ventured into Battle Creek. The townsfolk knew of him but did not know his name nor where he came. He spent his time alone, except for an old dog and a mangy black cat, in a small cabin on Seven Mile Brook Island. He kept himself alive by fishing and trapping.
.
Harper Allyn didn't intentionally seek the acquaintance of the hermit. It happened quite by accident. During one of his exploring modes, he came across the mangy black cat, cornered betwixt rocky crags by a coiled, ready to strike rattlesnake. After saving the cat from the snake, and knowing there weren't that many cats roaming Goguac Lake, Harper figured the feline belonged to the hermit. Mr. Allyn returned the cat and introduced himself to the strange looking old man at the log cabin.
.
Thankful for rescuing and returning the cat the old man invited Harper into the snug but barren log cabin. A storm was approaching and the old hermit explained that he never, ever, ventured outside during a storm, especially thunderstorms. Harper aware of the vague tales told by the townspeople about the strange old hermit, accepted the invitation to enter the rickety, but neat and tidy cabin with the hopes of finding out (from the horse's own mouth, so to speak) the true story of this lonely old gentleman.
.
The two men exchanged small talk at first, by candle light, while coffee brewed on the wood stove. But while the water in the coffee pot boiled, so did the sky above Goguac Lake. The clouds reeled about and suddenly a crack of lightning flashed nearby. The logs of the cabin shook from the foundation as the thunderclap reverberated across the lake. Harper was shocked by the reaction of the old man. The hermit cowered in a corner of the cabin, shaking with fear. Not just fear, but pure unadulterated fear.
.
Attempting to console the old man, Harper asked if there was anything he could do for him. "Yes," the hermit replied, "you can listen to what I am about to say. You can believe it or not. But this is something I must tell to someone before I die!"
.
"My name is Stephen Strand. I died in a ship wreck. My soul floated like smoke above the awful tossing sea swirling my lifeless body and the lifeless bodies of my shipmates. However, I noticed one body still alive. I pleaded, "Give me his body and I will give you my soul." In that moment lightning ripped the air to pieces. Like an arrow shot from a bow, I saw the man's soul depart and mine enter his body. My name is Stephen Strand but this body you see before you is Jacques Beaumont."
.
[Editorial TIME: Okay, this is kinda far-fetched and freaky, right? Now, put yourself in Harper Allyns' shoes. What do you think? What do you do? Let's find out what he did.]
.
Back at the LAKE:
.
"Well, Mr. Strand ... errr ... it's been nice talking with you ... errr ... meeting you. Goodbye, sir."
.
"Wait! Wait a minute, Mr. Allyn. Before you leave, please let me give you something in exchange for saving my cat and listening to my story. Here, please take this."
.
The Hermit of Goguac Lake gives Harper Allyn a very heavy and expensive looking gold match-safe. Besides an exquisite design it is engraved "Jacques Beaumont". For some reason, Harper Allyn is impelled to give a daguerreotype (old-time photograph) of himself to Mr. Strand. Harper signs his name on the back of the daguerreotype and gives it to the old man. After the exchange of gifts Harper Allyn beats a retreat from Seven Mile Brook Island back to his home in Battle Creek.
.
Our hero Harper steers a wide berth from the crazy old coot resident of the log cabin on Seven Mile Brook Island in Goguac Lake for the next several weeks. Wouldn't you? But Harper is intrigued by the story told by the old man. Just for kicks, he writes to the editor of a newspaper near Becket Corner asking for information regarding Stephen Strand. Was there ever such a man in Becket Corner? Did he go off to sea? Marry? And, most importantly, was he still living?
.
In a few weeks he received a reply. The editor said that a man named Stephen Strand had lived in that village. But, he continued, Strand was lost at sea. Many years ago, a stranger had arrived in Becket Corner claiming to be Strand, but nobody believed him, including Mrs. Molly Strand (nee Lawton), as he looked nothing like the man he was impersonating. He was driven from town by an angry mob at the urging of Mrs. Strand. Molly Strand and her children had eventually left Becket Corner to live with her wealthy brother in the West and hadn't been heard from since, the editor concluded.
.
"Holy smokes", thought Harper Allyn, "this is a real mystery."
.
The next day after receiving the reply from the editor Harper goes back to the little log cabin on Seven Mile Brook Island in the middle of Goguac Lake. A massive thunderstorm, it just so happened, blew through the night before, so it took longer to traverse the paths and lake because of the storm damaged trees and fallen tree limbs littering the way. When he finally arrived he didn't expect to find as much damage inside the cabin as what the storm did outside. The inside of the cabin was in shambles. Furniture broken, supplies strewn about, and the lifeless body of an old cur dog. Nowhere could be found the mangy black cat nor the Hermit of Goguac Lake.
.
What do you suppose happened? Harper Allyn didn't know either. He went about living his simple life as a wool-carder at the mill owned by Captain William Wallace in Battle Creek, Michigan. That is until late in 1851. Because of circumstances entirely unrelated to this story, Harper Allyn received an inheritance, became filthy rich, and began living the life of Riley (figuratively, hee hee ... no exchanging bodies here). He literally took that proverbial "world cruise".
.
Life is good for Harper Allyn. He's traveling the world over, seeing places he only dreamed about when he work for the Captain Wallace in the mill. He's began having a wonderful time, enjoying the pleasures of luxury. What could possibly happen? You are sooooo right. Something does happen.
.
Harper Allyn is attending a high-society ball, a gathering of artists, literary figures, royalty, financiers and social elitists of Paris. A good friend from Michigan, Charley Bushnell, a student at the Academy of Arts, is with Harper. Across the room Mr. Allyn sees a "drop-dead" gorgeous gal. "Ah," sez Charley, noticing that look of lust on Harpers face, "let me introduce her to you."
.
Charley pulled Harper across the ball room dance floor and attempted to catch the young woman's attention. She looked surprised as she noticed Mr. Allyn. And when Charley Bushnell mentioned "Harper Allyn", the attractive miss fainted, dropping to the dance floor -- out like a light. The attractive young woman's name ... Lily Beaumont.
.
When Mlle. Beaumont came to she explained that she just seen the daguerreotype with Mr. Allyn's picture and his name written on the back. It originally was in the possession of a man claiming to be her father.
.
A strange man just recently showed up at her mother's house, claiming to be her long missing husband, Jacques Beaumont. He says his soul had been fighting to regain his body for the last forty years. Madame Beaumont called the police and had the crazy man committed to an asylum. Lily apologized to Mr. Allyn for the way she reacted upon seeing him.
.
Harper told Mlle. Lily that an apology was not necessary because ... and he told her about what happened at Goguac Lake. To show proof of what he told her he removed from his pocket the match-safe he carried wherever he went. Both Lily and Harper left the ball immediately to go to the asylum to see the man who claimed to be her father.
.
Upon arrival, they were met at the door along with a Catholic priest. The priest just arrived after being called to administer the last rites to a dying Jacques Beaumont.
.
Allyn sat at the old man's bedside, not knowing what to say or even where to begin. But he had to know.
.
After the last rites were spoken, Harper asked the dying man, "Will you now tell the truth? Are you Stephen Strand or Jacques Beaumont"?
.
The priest translated ... the dying man claiming not to know English.
.
"In the presence of the Almighty and by the Sign of the Cross, I swear ... ," the priest began to translate. Then Strand-Beaumont sank back against his pillow, opened his mouth to speak again and collapsed. And that was how he died.
.
The tale that Harper Allyn heard on that island in stormy Goguac Lake would forever remain in dispute. Who was this man? An imposter, claiming one of the most fanciful cases of possession in history? Or had he, for most of his life, been two men, the body of one and the soul of another? The answer went with him to the grave.
.
.
www2.willard.lib.mi.us/bcphotos/houses/r10_0926.htm
.
"Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research" Vol 57, 1963
.
Mrinal K. Ghosh, Life Beyond Death, 1934, Calcutta [Asia Book Corp. 1985]
.
New York "Mercury", September 13, 1851
.
New York "Progressive Thinker", 1911
.
Philadelphia "Morning Inquirer" 193?
.
Scott & Norman, Haunted Heartland, 1985, Stranton & Lee Publishers, New York
.
.
No cats, dogs or rattlesnakes were harmed during the typing of this blog.
.
Respectfully,
Gordon Lee
Great Fritain Royal Memorabilia & Lily Match Box Emporium
I didn't believe in reincarnation the last time, either.
Here are the TRUE FACTS:
.
Stephen Strand, born in 1790 at Becket Corner, Massachusetts, went to sea at the age of 16 on a whaler out of New Bedford. He returned to Becket Corner after four years and married his childhood sweetie-pie, Molly Lawton. During the next five years he worked as a storekeeper and at a livery. At age 25 he took to the sea again aboard a merchantman and sailed to France (Marseille?). Bound for home the ship detoured to Ireland to take on additional cargo. The ship, during a violent storm, wrecked upon the rocks near Cornwall (Lands End). Only one person survived.
.
Jacques Beaumont, a Frenchman, was a passenger aboard the merchantman that broke apart and sank off the coast of England. He was married and had a daughter named Lily. He possessed an elaborate gold match-safe (match box) engraved with his name.
.
Harper Allyn, born and raised in Battle Creek, Michigan, led a simple life. He worked as a wool-carder at a mill owned by Capt. William Wallace. In his spare time, he enjoyed exploring the forests and coves around Goguac Lake. That is where, in 1850, he met the old "Hermit".
.
The mysterious HERMIT OF THE LAKE:
.
The Hermit of Goguac Lake seldom ventured into Battle Creek. The townsfolk knew of him but did not know his name nor where he came. He spent his time alone, except for an old dog and a mangy black cat, in a small cabin on Seven Mile Brook Island. He kept himself alive by fishing and trapping.
.
Harper Allyn didn't intentionally seek the acquaintance of the hermit. It happened quite by accident. During one of his exploring modes, he came across the mangy black cat, cornered betwixt rocky crags by a coiled, ready to strike rattlesnake. After saving the cat from the snake, and knowing there weren't that many cats roaming Goguac Lake, Harper figured the feline belonged to the hermit. Mr. Allyn returned the cat and introduced himself to the strange looking old man at the log cabin.
.
Thankful for rescuing and returning the cat the old man invited Harper into the snug but barren log cabin. A storm was approaching and the old hermit explained that he never, ever, ventured outside during a storm, especially thunderstorms. Harper aware of the vague tales told by the townspeople about the strange old hermit, accepted the invitation to enter the rickety, but neat and tidy cabin with the hopes of finding out (from the horse's own mouth, so to speak) the true story of this lonely old gentleman.
.
The two men exchanged small talk at first, by candle light, while coffee brewed on the wood stove. But while the water in the coffee pot boiled, so did the sky above Goguac Lake. The clouds reeled about and suddenly a crack of lightning flashed nearby. The logs of the cabin shook from the foundation as the thunderclap reverberated across the lake. Harper was shocked by the reaction of the old man. The hermit cowered in a corner of the cabin, shaking with fear. Not just fear, but pure unadulterated fear.
.
Attempting to console the old man, Harper asked if there was anything he could do for him. "Yes," the hermit replied, "you can listen to what I am about to say. You can believe it or not. But this is something I must tell to someone before I die!"
.
"My name is Stephen Strand. I died in a ship wreck. My soul floated like smoke above the awful tossing sea swirling my lifeless body and the lifeless bodies of my shipmates. However, I noticed one body still alive. I pleaded, "Give me his body and I will give you my soul." In that moment lightning ripped the air to pieces. Like an arrow shot from a bow, I saw the man's soul depart and mine enter his body. My name is Stephen Strand but this body you see before you is Jacques Beaumont."
.
[Editorial TIME: Okay, this is kinda far-fetched and freaky, right? Now, put yourself in Harper Allyns' shoes. What do you think? What do you do? Let's find out what he did.]
.
Back at the LAKE:
.
"Well, Mr. Strand ... errr ... it's been nice talking with you ... errr ... meeting you. Goodbye, sir."
.
"Wait! Wait a minute, Mr. Allyn. Before you leave, please let me give you something in exchange for saving my cat and listening to my story. Here, please take this."
.
The Hermit of Goguac Lake gives Harper Allyn a very heavy and expensive looking gold match-safe. Besides an exquisite design it is engraved "Jacques Beaumont". For some reason, Harper Allyn is impelled to give a daguerreotype (old-time photograph) of himself to Mr. Strand. Harper signs his name on the back of the daguerreotype and gives it to the old man. After the exchange of gifts Harper Allyn beats a retreat from Seven Mile Brook Island back to his home in Battle Creek.
.
Our hero Harper steers a wide berth from the crazy old coot resident of the log cabin on Seven Mile Brook Island in Goguac Lake for the next several weeks. Wouldn't you? But Harper is intrigued by the story told by the old man. Just for kicks, he writes to the editor of a newspaper near Becket Corner asking for information regarding Stephen Strand. Was there ever such a man in Becket Corner? Did he go off to sea? Marry? And, most importantly, was he still living?
.
In a few weeks he received a reply. The editor said that a man named Stephen Strand had lived in that village. But, he continued, Strand was lost at sea. Many years ago, a stranger had arrived in Becket Corner claiming to be Strand, but nobody believed him, including Mrs. Molly Strand (nee Lawton), as he looked nothing like the man he was impersonating. He was driven from town by an angry mob at the urging of Mrs. Strand. Molly Strand and her children had eventually left Becket Corner to live with her wealthy brother in the West and hadn't been heard from since, the editor concluded.
.
"Holy smokes", thought Harper Allyn, "this is a real mystery."
.
The next day after receiving the reply from the editor Harper goes back to the little log cabin on Seven Mile Brook Island in the middle of Goguac Lake. A massive thunderstorm, it just so happened, blew through the night before, so it took longer to traverse the paths and lake because of the storm damaged trees and fallen tree limbs littering the way. When he finally arrived he didn't expect to find as much damage inside the cabin as what the storm did outside. The inside of the cabin was in shambles. Furniture broken, supplies strewn about, and the lifeless body of an old cur dog. Nowhere could be found the mangy black cat nor the Hermit of Goguac Lake.
.
What do you suppose happened? Harper Allyn didn't know either. He went about living his simple life as a wool-carder at the mill owned by Captain William Wallace in Battle Creek, Michigan. That is until late in 1851. Because of circumstances entirely unrelated to this story, Harper Allyn received an inheritance, became filthy rich, and began living the life of Riley (figuratively, hee hee ... no exchanging bodies here). He literally took that proverbial "world cruise".
.
Life is good for Harper Allyn. He's traveling the world over, seeing places he only dreamed about when he work for the Captain Wallace in the mill. He's began having a wonderful time, enjoying the pleasures of luxury. What could possibly happen? You are sooooo right. Something does happen.
.
Harper Allyn is attending a high-society ball, a gathering of artists, literary figures, royalty, financiers and social elitists of Paris. A good friend from Michigan, Charley Bushnell, a student at the Academy of Arts, is with Harper. Across the room Mr. Allyn sees a "drop-dead" gorgeous gal. "Ah," sez Charley, noticing that look of lust on Harpers face, "let me introduce her to you."
.
Charley pulled Harper across the ball room dance floor and attempted to catch the young woman's attention. She looked surprised as she noticed Mr. Allyn. And when Charley Bushnell mentioned "Harper Allyn", the attractive miss fainted, dropping to the dance floor -- out like a light. The attractive young woman's name ... Lily Beaumont.
.
When Mlle. Beaumont came to she explained that she just seen the daguerreotype with Mr. Allyn's picture and his name written on the back. It originally was in the possession of a man claiming to be her father.
.
A strange man just recently showed up at her mother's house, claiming to be her long missing husband, Jacques Beaumont. He says his soul had been fighting to regain his body for the last forty years. Madame Beaumont called the police and had the crazy man committed to an asylum. Lily apologized to Mr. Allyn for the way she reacted upon seeing him.
.
Harper told Mlle. Lily that an apology was not necessary because ... and he told her about what happened at Goguac Lake. To show proof of what he told her he removed from his pocket the match-safe he carried wherever he went. Both Lily and Harper left the ball immediately to go to the asylum to see the man who claimed to be her father.
.
Upon arrival, they were met at the door along with a Catholic priest. The priest just arrived after being called to administer the last rites to a dying Jacques Beaumont.
.
Allyn sat at the old man's bedside, not knowing what to say or even where to begin. But he had to know.
.
After the last rites were spoken, Harper asked the dying man, "Will you now tell the truth? Are you Stephen Strand or Jacques Beaumont"?
.
The priest translated ... the dying man claiming not to know English.
.
"In the presence of the Almighty and by the Sign of the Cross, I swear ... ," the priest began to translate. Then Strand-Beaumont sank back against his pillow, opened his mouth to speak again and collapsed. And that was how he died.
.
The tale that Harper Allyn heard on that island in stormy Goguac Lake would forever remain in dispute. Who was this man? An imposter, claiming one of the most fanciful cases of possession in history? Or had he, for most of his life, been two men, the body of one and the soul of another? The answer went with him to the grave.
.
.
www2.willard.lib.mi.us/bcphotos/houses/r10_0926.htm
.
"Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research" Vol 57, 1963
.
Mrinal K. Ghosh, Life Beyond Death, 1934, Calcutta [Asia Book Corp. 1985]
.
New York "Mercury", September 13, 1851
.
New York "Progressive Thinker", 1911
.
Philadelphia "Morning Inquirer" 193?
.
Scott & Norman, Haunted Heartland, 1985, Stranton & Lee Publishers, New York
.
.
No cats, dogs or rattlesnakes were harmed during the typing of this blog.
.
Respectfully,
Gordon Lee
Great Fritain Royal Memorabilia & Lily Match Box Emporium
I didn't believe in reincarnation the last time, either.
