The covers flew off the bed and he was left holding
small pieces of ripped fabric in his hands.
As is the case with anyone who has a temper
problem, Miles’ temper was his worst enemy. The
Spirit took great pleasure in taunting him as he ran
around the room with his arms extended in hopes of
catching it, exclaiming repeatedly, “You ol’ fiend from
hell, just stay still long enough fer me to git my arms
around ya, an I’ll crush the life out of ya!”
15 Dr. Charles Bailey Bell,
The Bell Witch: A Mysterious Spirit
, 1934.
60 P A T
F I T Z H U G H
In response to Miles’ frequent outbursts, the Spirit
would strike him all over his body. When he turned
in one direction, the Spirit would kick him in his
posterior region; then, when he quickly turned
around to “catch” the Spirit, it slapped his face and
began laughing — just before telling him he had
better leave the house before he gets knocked
unconscious. Frank Miles never succeeded in
catching the Spirit; and if anything, only made
matters worse for both Elizabeth and him when he
mouthed off.
After arriving at the Bell home one evening, Miles
called out to Elizabeth, “Come, sit by me, lil’ sis; I’ve
come to give ya’ a good rest; nuthin’ will bother ya’
while I’m here.” The Spirit’s loud and angry voice
was then heard all over the house, “You go home;
you can do no good here!” Instantly, the Spirit
grabbed Elizabeth’s hair and pulled her to the floor,
pinching her cheeks until they bled.
In a fiery rage, Miles jumped up and began pacing
the room as he cursed the Spirit and demanding that
it assume a shape so he could “choke the life” out of
it. The Spirit fired back screaming, “You have no
business here; leave Betsy alone and mind your own
affairs before I put you away for good.” “You’re the
biggest wuss ever; to visit this earth and torture a
child little not much more than just a baby!” Miles
yelled. “She is not a baby, Frank; she is a young
woman,” the Spirit responded. Miles then shouted,
“Why don’t ya mess with me, ya ol’ fiend from hell,”
to which the Spirit promptly replied, “well at least I
still have my teeth, and that’s a whole lot more than I
can say for you, Ol’ Frank Miles. You are already
acquainted with the least I can do to you. And even
you, as you sit there as dumb as a sack of turnips,
should recognize that it’s in your best interest to
leave here now!”
THE BELL WITCH: THE FULL ACCOUNT
61
It
took little time for Miles to realize that the
angrier he became, the worse the Spirit would treat
Elizabeth. Although he continued regularly visiting
the Bells, the Spirit seemed much calmer once Miles
learned to bite his tongue.
Later in life, Elizabeth Bell spoke of the kindness
and concern that Frank Miles’ showed during her
times of need. “Frank was always tender and good to
me and to all the family. He was never forgotten by
any of us; and as long as there are Bells in the world,
I hope they will never forget the man who I know
meant what he said when he offered to fight a fiend
of hell for the Bell family, even though he might die
on the spot.” 16
16 Dr. Charles Bailey Bell,
The Bell Witch: A Mysterious Spirit
, 1934.
62 P A T
F I T Z H U G H
CHAPTER SIX
Visitors from Near and Far
T HE BELLS began receiving a steady stream of
visitors both day and night as word of the
Spirit traveled beyond the Red River
community. There were horses tied to every
fencepost along the lane leading to the
Bell home,
and the Bells rarely had fewer than four overnight
guests at any given time.
Skepticism
It was suggested by some that the Bells were
staging the hauntings in an attempt to make money;
however, the Bells never charged visitors a cent and
always offered them food and lodging if they stayed
long enough. The economic conditions in the Red
River area at the time, coupled with John Bell’s
documented financial condition, make this notion
highly unlikely. f
Another popular opinion among skeptics was that
while in New Orleans during the War of 1812 and on
THE BELL WITCH: THE FULL ACCOUNT
63
later flatboat trips, John Jr. and Drewry learned
ventriloquism and the mystical arts, and then
transferred their knowledge to Elizabeth and a select
few neighbors. A Dr. William Fort traveled all the
way from Missouri to the Bell farm in an attempt to
prove this theory.
Dr. Fort sat in the front room with the family one
evening when the Spirit began its nightly routine of
gabbing, singing hymns, and physically abusing
people. He placed his hands over the mouths of
Elizabeth and several of the other Bell children as
the Spirit spoke. Not once did the Spirit stop
speaking or change its voice in any way. Fort
concluded that the Spirit’s demonstrations were not
the product of ventriloquism and left early the next
morning without further comment.
The Spirit treated visitors differently depending on
their character and intentions. People of good
character were treated with respect, whereas those of
questionable character were quickly exposed and
ridiculed, often leaving quickly. The thing that
seemed to frighten visitors most was the Spirit’s
propensity to divulge their deepest and darkest
secrets, which usually embarrassed them.
On one such occasion, four visitors who had
traveled a great distance arrived late one night at the
Bell home and were greeted by John Bell. As they
began introducing themselves, the Spirit called one
of them by name and proclaimed, “He is the grand
rascal who stole his wife. He pulled her out of her
father’s house through a window, and hurt her arm,
making her cry; then he whispered to her, ‘hush
honey don’t cry, it will soon get well.’’’
As the four dumbfounded men quickly proceeded
to the door, one asked, “Is what we just heard true?”
The man who had been accused replied, “Yes, every
single word of it.”
64 P A T
F I T Z H U G H
Peddlers and Quacks
The most unwelcome visitors to the Bell farm were
peddlers, skeptics, and those who claimed the ability
to rid the place of the Spirit. Visitors who had the
misfortune of belonging to one of these groups
quickly fell victim to the Spirit’s pranks and ridicule,
and in some cases, even physical abuse.
Peddlers, such as the Shakers, were met by the
dogs and turned away as soon as they were seen
coming down the lane, often having to hold their
wide-brim hats on because their horses ran away so
quickly. Those who claimed to possess supernatural
powers or psychic abilities were referred to as “witch
doctors” by the Bells and others in the community. g
The Spirit took great pleasure in ridiculing, abusing,
and exposing these “frauds” as it liked to call them.
Skeptics were forced to endure ear-piercing noises,
the mimicked screams and voices of their families,
and color visions that caused significant mental
disorientation. The minds of skeptics who visited the
Bell farm succumbed to a temporary form of
psychosis until enough courage could be mustered to
step outside the door and leave.
The Englishman
One afternoon, an Englishman visiting relatives in
nearby Kentucky came to visit the Bells and see what
all the talk of “a Spirit” was about. Sitting in the
family room, he told John Bell, “I have heard of such
Spirits before in my home country and have done
extensive research on their origin and purpose. I
assure you that there is a rational explanation for
what is going on in your home, Mr. Bell. There is
always a rational explanation for such things, and I
intend to seek out and share with you the
explanation for what has been happening here. With
THE BELL WITCH: THE FULL ACCOUNT
65
your permission, Mr. Bell, I wish to stay here for the
next three nights until I have to begin my journey
back to England. That should give me more than
ample time to determine what is really happening
here.”
“You are more than welcome to stay here and look
around the farm all you want to, even if it takes more
than three nights,” Bell replied. “Thank you, Mr.
Bell. That is most generous of you, and I appreciate
your hospitality,” replied the Englishman. “I am
missing my parents dearly and they must be missing
me too; so I think I will be on my way after three
nights.”
Suddenly, the disembodied voices of a male and
female with British accents were heard. “Oh, Phillip,
I am missing Charles more and more each day; I do
hope we hear from him soon.” “So do I, my dear
Anne. It takes a long time for a letter to travel across
the world, but I am sure we will hear from him soon.”
Now very pale and trembling from head to toe, the
Englishman turned to John Bell and exclaimed,
“Those were the voices of my parents! How can that
be! They are on the other side of the world, and
nobody in this household knows their voices. Did
you hear that, Mr. Bell?”
“Indeed I did,” Bell replied with a mischievous grin
on his face; “Well Charles, I shall leave you alone
now. It seems you have your work cut out for you
and I need to check on Lucy and the children. If you
need me, don’t hesitate to let me know.” Charles
wiped the perspiration from his forehead and
continued sitting in the family room, not falling
asleep until almost 5 o’clock in the morning when he
was awakened by his mother’s screaming voice some
three thousand miles away.
“Charles, my God! I don’t know what has
happened to you or if I am losing my mind, but I just
66 P A T
F I T Z H U G H
distinctly heard you say ‘Those were the voices of my
parents! How can that be? They are on the other
side of the world, and nobody in this household
knows their voices. Did you hear that, Mr. Bell?’ I
don’t know where you are now, or if there is a Mister
Bell, but I am very worried about you; your father is
concerned that I am beginning to lose my mind! I do
know what I just heard. For God’s sake, Charles,
come home quickly and tell me I am not losing my
mind!”
Upon hearing this, Charles quickly proceeded to
change into some new clothes, which were now a
necessity, and leave the Bell farm before anyone
knew what happened. The Bells received a letter
from him some two months later, stating that his
mother had indeed heard his voice and that the
conversation he heard repeated at the Bell home did
actually take place. He went on to concede that
there was not, nor would there ever be, a rational
explanation of the goings-on at the Bell farm. He
also went to great lengths to apologize for acting so
arrogantly during his visit.
Mr. Williams
While some visitors left the Bell farm at the first
inkling of trouble, others stayed and tried to either
determine the Spirit’s identity or prove the
disturbances to be a hoax. Detectives traveled great
distances to investigate the disturbances, often with
hopes of furthering their careers by exposing some
type of hoax” and the masterminds behind it.
One such detective was a Mr. Williams, who had
gained great notoriety as a detective in the northern
part of the United States. Upon his arrival at the
Bell home, Williams shook hands with John Bell and
proclaimed, “I am a professional detective and have
THE BELL WITCH: THE FULL ACCOUNT
67
heard much about the mysterious disturbances that
are taking place here. I do not believe in
supernatural things, and I am an expert in detecting
jugglery, ventriloquism, and the like. Having had
extensive experience in solving mysteries, I would
like to stay here and investigate the matter, with
your permission of course.” Bell replied, “Then you
are just the man we have been needing here for some
time. Make my house your home, and make free
with everything here as your own as long as you
think it proper to stay.” Williams unpacked his
belongings and ate a hearty dinner that evening.
As was usually the case after dinner, several
visitors from around the community visited the Bells
to pray, sing hymns, and witness the Spirit’s
demonstrations. Everyone sat in the family room for
hours listening to Mr. Williams describe his various
encounters in the detective business, where at many
points he insisted that he would quickly expose the
disturbances at the Bell farm. The Spirit did not
appear in any form that night or the next night. All