Newspaper Clipping of the Day

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It’s time for more Mystery Stone-Throwing! The “Stark County Democrat,” October 17, 1878:

Akron, Ohio, October 11.--On Tuesday last, while Mrs. Michael Metzler, living in the vicinity of the southern corporation line of Akron, was husking corn in a field, she was struck by several stones, which came from an unknown source. Later in the day her children were struck in the same way, and fled in terror to the house. On Wednesday evening. while Mrs. M. was again in the field, she was again struck by large lumps of earth and several stones in a similar manner as before. Yesterday morning, as Mrs. M. and her little daughter were standing before their cellar door, a large pebble came up from the cellar, striking the little girl in the face. All this is unaccountable, for the family reside in a rather ancient brick house, and on last evening a party of eight gathered in the main room, which contains two windows and two doors. Father Brown, a Catholic priest of this city, was present, and about 10 o'clock offered prayer. Hardly had he finished, however, before two large-sized stones fell at his feet, followed by a dozen or more pebbles, which came from the ceiling and walls, striking the persons who were in the room. 

All these stories have been circulated through the city, and to get the bottom facts of the affair, the Leader correspondent, together with a companion, paid a visit to the house to day shortly after dinner. The Leader man found the lady of the home and her family busy at work making apple butter, and after introducing himself to Mrs. Metzler, began a conversation regarding the strange freaks of the stones. At the time both windows and doors were closed, and the reporter and his companion were sitting in chairs near the door, where an excellent view of the room could be obtained. 

Mrs. Metzler, with tears in her eyes, declared it was not ghosts or anything of the kind, and said it must be a curse on the family. As she spoke she was standing in the middle of the room, and had pointed out to the reporter from whence the stones came, when suddenly a pebble the size of a hickory nut dropped from the ceiling and fell, striking Mrs. Metzler on the arm. The reporter witnessed all this, and picked up the stone as it fell. Soon after this a neighbor came to the front door, and inquired if anything more had transpired. The reporter walked to the door and was showing the stone which had just fallen to the neighbor when suddenly a larger pebble, four times the size of the first one, struck the reporter on the shoulder and fell to the floor. His companion saw the stone come through the ceiling about a yard from where the other one had come from. 

Mrs. Metzler stated to the reporter that at night the stones fell with a whistling noise, She showed to the reporter about twenty stones that had fallen during the forenoon. The affair is a most mysterious one, and will be more thoroughly worked up by the Leader correspondent tonight.

In December, it was reported that the family was still persecuted by this mysterious bombardment. The story seems to have subsequently disappeared from the newspapers, so it’s anyone’s guess how long it went on.

Newspaper Clipping of the Day

via Newspapers.com

What do you get when you cross the "mysterious showers of stones" that form such a large part of Fortean lore with the modern-day "The Watcher" incidents?

This baby.  The "Maui News," October 4, 1921:

Puunene has a mystery which has roused the interest of not only that community, but of all central Maui as news of it spread about. Stones are being thrown, fairly showered up on and around a house and from unknown senders letters or notes are being delivered. Though the police officials have been working on the case for some time, they have not discovered the source of the annoyance. As many as 300 or 400 persons have gathered about the house of a night to witness the strange happenings. Though the stones appear to fall out of a clear sky and though the notes are delivered by some one unseen, there has been no hint of "ghosts" or of "discarnate spirits" in any of the numerous notes the family has received. There appears to be no occasion to refer the matter to the Society for Psychical Research, since the writer has said he will "stay with" the family he is annoying "until my death."

From police sources it is learned that the family which is suffering the annoyances is Portuguese and consists of a father, mother and daughter. Their troubles started when notes began to arrive shortly after it was announced that the daughter was to marry her cousin. Then and since, following a warning whistle, a note written in lead pencil, large letters on brown wrapping paper, would be found under the door or on the porch or some where about the house. In time the family came to expect and look for the letters after hearing the whistle, and they always found one. The language of the letters is fairly grammatical but it is evident that the writer disguises his handwriting. The writer says the family knows who he is and adds that he will never be caught. He makes fun of the police for failing to detect him and details happenings in the house and about the camp.

For months past, dating back as far as June, the family would be showered with gravel and broken stones when returning from the picture shows, on reaching the stone quarry or perhaps not until almost home, but none of the stones ever struck any of them. Recently the stones have fallen in the crowd around the house, not striking any one though one narrowly missed the sheriff. They appear to come from no particular direction nor do they bounce or roll along the ground from where they strike as a stone ordinarily would when thrown near the ground, but on the contrary, bounce or roll a very short distance, more as if they came from above. Larger stones and a piece of iron weighing six or seven pounds have struck upon the roof of the house.

It is not only at night and in the evening that the annoyances occur. In broad daylight stones and gravel have fallen on or about the house but no thrower of them has ever been seen. So also. in the day time the whistle has been heard and letters have been found at the door or under it.

The sheriff has quite a collection of such letters including one received Friday night in which references to his office are not couched in highly complimentary terms. Parties organized in Wailuku went up several nights last week and members of such parties came home mystified.

So persistent has been the annoyance that the members of the family have become extremely nervous and close by neighbors are becoming almost as much so. The section is very closely settled.

Saturday morning the family found one of the notes lying on the stove. It said the writer was sorry for all the annoyance caused and would cease the stone throwing and the letter writing. Since then there have been no repetitions of the troublesome and mysterious incidents and the police believe their activities have brought the end to the affair though investigations are still in progress.

I wasn't able to find if the mysterious letter-writer was ever found.

Newspaper Clipping of the Day

This week, let's talk Mystery Stones. From the (Dundee, Scotland) "Sunday Post," August 15, 1920:

Woodford, Saturday. Mysterious attacks made on a villa in Grove Road, Woodford, are puzzling the local police. The attacks are also causing considerable indignation and alarm among the people in the neighbourhood.

Wellington Villa, occupied by Mr. Thomas Herbert Gaskin, inventor of the Gaskin lifeboat, has been singled out for a series of extraordinary assaults by some person or persons apparently armed with a long-distance catapult.

The attacks commenced about a week ago, when stones, seemingly propelled from a spot a considerable distance away, rattled against the upper windows without doing any damage. The second attempt was of a more determined nature, and the third, commencing late on Thursday night, was continued into the small hours of yesterday morning, causing much damage.

The whole neighbourhood was roused, and fifty people, assisted by four policemen, searched the district for hours. Having got the range of the house, the attackers sent stone after stone through the bedroom windows, breaking plate glass three-eighths of inch thick. Mr. Gaskin's son was struck on the shoulder by a pebble, and the bedroom floors were soon littered with stones and broken glass.

The police and others who took up the search for the attacking party climbed the roofs of adjacent houses and swarmed neighbouring trees, in order to get good posts of observation, but no one could discover where the stones were coming from. The stones were smooth, and evidently carefully chosen for the purpose.

Mr. Gaskin, who is an American, has lived at Wellington Villa for fourteen years, as far as he knows has not an enemy in the world, and he can offer no solution to the mystery. If a catapult is being used it must be one of unusual power, for all the stones come in a straight line. 

On August 18, the "Sunderland Echo" had more on the puzzling bombardment:

The mystery of Wellington Villa, Grove Road, Woodford, deepens. Detectives inside and outside the house have failed to solve it, nor can the crowds of curious onlookers who hare been attracted to the road offer any intelligible theory.

The problem is to locate the person or persons who, for more than a week, have been terrorising the occupants of the villa nightly by directing a steady fire of stones at the front bedroom windows. The villa—three storey house—is situated in a quiet road. The serio-comic, yet uncanny, happening, repeated each evening as soon the family retire to rest, has created indignation in the neighbourhood, and the local police have sought the assistance of Scotland Yard.

The theory at first favoured by the local police was that the stones came from persons armed with a long-range catapult; but it is now thought that the stones must be directed by something of greater force than a catapult.

The house is occupied by Mr. Gaskin, the inventor of the Gaskin lifeboat, who has resided there for fourteen years.

Crowds of curious spectators flocked to the scene of operations soon after dusk, while policemen and interested residents climbed trees and mounted roofs and housetops in search of the unseen enemy. Oblivious of the massed forces of the "defenders" and "scouts," the attackers opened fire, the windows being subjected to a storm of stones of varying sizes. Several people keeping watch on neighbouring housetops were struck.

I wasn't able to find any more about the story, suggesting that Mr. Gaskin's persecution ceased without the mystery being solved.