Young S—— called to-day; he is going to help me to get up a dance for the servants. His mother is away at S——.
May 1st.—I shall have to move the priests. They persist that they are not frightened, but they are both looking shockingly ill and worn, and the Rev. MacD—— is not in a state of health to take liberties with. The Rev. MacL—— seems in the same mental state as was Mr. P——. He sees nothing, but is supernormally sensitive, and without any hint from me, declared that he felt the drawing-room, wing, and No. 7 to be "innocent."
Poor little "Spooks" is the chief sufferer. She sleeps on my bed now, but even so, wakes in the night growling and shivering, and she refuses her food, and is in a dreadfully nervous state. Perhaps I ought not to keep her in No. 8, where we have so often heard the patterings of dogs' feet, and where Miss Moore was once pushed as by a dog, in broad daylight.
May 2nd.—Nothing occurred. We perhaps all slept the sounder last night, having been kept up till two o'clock waiting for Madame Boisseaux, who never turned up. She and the M——s and Mrs. "F." arrived to-day.
| Madame Boisseaux arrived, | and was put into | No. 1. |
| Her maid | " | " 2. |
| Father MacD—— | " | " 3. |
| Father MacL—— | " | " 4. |
| Mrs. "F." | " | " 5. |
| Mr. and Mrs. M—— | " | " 6 and 7. |
| Myself | " | " 8. |
May 3rd.—The general tone of things is disquieting, and new in our experience. Hitherto, in our first occupation, the phenomena affected one as melancholy, depressing, and perplexing, but now all, quite independently, say the same thing, that the influence is evil and horrible—even poor little Spooks, who was never terrified before, as she has been since our return here. The worn faces at breakfast were really a dismal sight.
In spite of her long journey, Madame Boisseaux could not sleep. She was so tired, she dropped to sleep at once on going to bed, but was awoke by the sound of a droning voice as if from No. 3, and, at intervals, more distant voices in high argument. She said she dared not go to sleep; she felt as if some evil-disposed persons were in the room, and it would not be safe to lose consciousness. But she saw nothing. She looks so ill that her maid, a very faithful old servant, has been to beg me, "pour l'amour de Dieu," to give Madame another room. So to-night I will put her in No. 5.
Mrs. "F." who was in No. 5, was disturbed by knocks at her door (cf. Mrs. W——'s experience in the same room), and to-night is to sleep in my room, No. 8, which last night was also somewhat noisy, but she will not be alone. The Rev. MacD—— looks so ill from two nights' sleeplessness that the priests are to go into the wing to-night. They were unwilling to move, and made no complaints, and now do not say they have seen anything, merely that the evil influence about them was painful and disturbing.
Mrs. M——, who, it will be remembered, was much disturbed during her last visit, begged that she might be quiet, and we gave her No. 7. She is the only person who has had a really good night, except Mr. M——, who had a fancy to sleep in the smoking-room, in the hope of a visit from the Major, but nothing happened. As he had been mountaineering all day, he probably would have slept well under any conditions.
May 4th.—I am thankful to say the priests slept well in the wing. Madame Boisseaux, in No. 5, was disturbed by knocks at her door, but as she wisely remarked, they had the advantage of being outside. Mr. M—— had moved into No. 1, and slept fairly well, but said he felt as before, "not alone," but as he had felt that before, expectation may count for something.