MYSTERY OF A SKELETON.

Lake Wakatip Mail, Issue 2644, 4 September 1906, Page 7

MYSTERY OF A SKELETON.

GHOSTLY FOOTSTEPS IN AN OLD MANOR HOLSK. j Picturesquely situated on the banks of the wide, flowing River Nifld. in the quaint little town of Knaresborough, in Yorkshire, is one of the most, ancient domestic edifices in England. It is a curious building, composed of many gables, and is half timbered, the oldest parts of the structure dating back to the year 12M6. Rich and beautiful though the oaken panels and carved mantlepieces are in the various rooms, vet another interest attaches to this old-.vorld dwelling at the present time —a wierd uncanny linking of the present to the past. For a mystery surrounds it ! During some necessary repairs and excavations, the skeleton and skull of a woman were laid bare, where they had evidently long lay buried, at the bottom of the stairs. Since the alterations, noises have often been heard during the hours oi night stealthy footsteps have passed along the passage outside the Blue Room, in which the occupier and his wife i formerly slept. A door with a spring arrangement conceals a hiding-place j in the wall of this chamber, where, in troublous days, the priests could secrete themselves. i It is alleged that the door of this room unaccountably o|h»hs during 'he night : and that it is past all etTcrts to keep it closed. It has been locked and a chair placed against it : but. in spite of all precautions, the following morning it has still been found open. Though the owner no longer sleeps in this Blue Room, the steps are. it is said, still audible, and in addition to these, one night , there was a bump at another door sufficiently loud to arouse 1 lie ordin- , ary sleeper. Though none of the household appear to be at all nervous, and do not believe in the visitations ol ghosts from the unseen, it is remarkable that after a long residence in the quaint old dwelling, there seems to be no tangible clue whereby the mystery can be solved.