The Bell Witch: The Full Account (50 page)

knees as his vision became blurred and his breathing

more labored; he knew that whatever hit him had

poisoned him in some way. Now too weak to yell for

help, the overseer tried crawling to the wall of the

outbuilding in hopes of hitting it to get someone’s

attention.

Through a one-inch opening between the wall of

the outbuilding and the ground slithered a

copperhead over six feet in length and as big around

as a man’s arm. It became obvious that the snake

had been coiled up on one of the shelves and bitten

him when he came too close. He knew it would be of

no use to get help at that point. The end was near.

As soon as he had finished saying his final prayer to

God, a young woman who appeared to be Bell’s

daughter appeared.

“It’s over, love,” the farmhand whispered in a weak

and feeble voice; “I went to get some nails and a

snake bit me, right in the stomach. Come be with

me, my dearest; if I have to die, then I want it to be

nowhere but in your arms.” “And I suppose you

want to be in my arms as you burn and rot in Hell,”

the young woman exclaimed in a raspy, low-pitched

voice that nobody had ever heard before. The young

woman that the farmhand thought was his

sweetheart continued, “Oh, you thought you knew

who I was, you old rascal. But, sometimes looks can

be deceiving, can’t they!” “Who are you?” asked the

farmhand as he began slipping into a coma. “I was

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371

once a young woman, just as Miss Bell is now, back

in the days of her grandfather, Ol’ Jack Bell. You are

no better of a man than he was; and as my name,

Cypocryphy, implies, I have the gift of prophecy. I

know you don’t know what I am talking about, but I

know that you are no good, never will be, and will

destroy the life of Miss Bell if I let you.”

A strong rush of energy went through the overseer

as he jumped to his feet, grabbed the woman by the

throat, and said, “Why no, the lovely Miss Bell is

mine and I will have her join me as I burn in Hell, all

the while watching you suffer for the sins you

committed against me and Miss Bell’s grandfather,

John Bell. I will see you in Hell.” The overseer then

fell – dying before he hit the ground. Meanwhile,

back at the Bell home, Bell’s daughter awoke from

what seemed to have been a deep trance and sensing

that something didn’t feel right.

John Thomas Bell remarked that he hadn’t seen

the overseer all afternoon and that he was getting

worried. “Have you seen Gardner around here

anywhere?” Bell asked his daughter. “Why no,

father, but I am very worried that something is

wrong.” “Why do you say something is wrong?

You’ve been asleep all afternoon!” “Father, I don’t

know, but I can just sense it.” Bell then had two of

the slaves light torches and mount their horses to go

and look for the overseer. The slaves returned about

three hours later with the overseer’s body in tow.

One morning in the early fall, several months after

the death of his overseer, Bell was walking around

the farm inspecting the fence when he heard the

voice of the deceased overseer. “Mister Bell, I don’t

have to tell you who I am because you already know.

And you also know why I am here” “I have a good

idea,” replied Bell. “You know that your daughter

and I had very strong feelings for one another,” the

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F I T Z H U G H

voice exclaimed, “and my death means nothing

because I have unfinished business here on earth.”

“And just what unfinished business is that?” Bell

inquired. “Your daughter, Mr. Bell; your daughter.”

“What about her!” Bell inquired angrily. The voice

replied, “We were to have been married. We talked

about it all the time and decided not to tell you until

we felt the time was right. But because of my death,

I must have her right now if we are to spend eternity

together.”

“You are a sick, demented soul!” Bell exclaimed,

“you think you can just come out of your grave and

marry my daughter? No, you can’t. You are a ghost,

and probably burning in Hell if the truth be known!”

“You are right,” said the voice, “I can’t marry her as

she is now, and I want to take her so she can be with

me.” “You will not!” Bell yelled. “Are you telling me

that you won’t let me unite with your daughter, Mr.

Bell?” “That’s right, you good-for-nothing scoundrel.

You leave me, my family, and especially my daughter

alone; otherwise I will chase you straight to Hell and

destroy you!” “Ok, Mr. Bell,” exclaimed the voice.

The voice was not heard again, and Bell quickly

made his way back to the farmhouse where he

remained for several weeks.

Over the next few weeks, Bell’s daughter grew ill.

She lay in agony week after week, growing weaker

and more incoherent with each passing day. She

failed to respond to medication, and the family

doctor, not really knowing what was wrong with her,

was unable to give a prognosis. Her mysterious

illness progressed as time went on, and she soon fell

into a coma. She occasionally regained her

consciousness, but only long enough to speak of the

deceased farm overseer and the love that she never

got to share with him.

One day in the late fall, Bell’s daughter appeared

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373

to have regained both her consciousness and energy.

Although too weak to rise up from the bed, she lay

there smiling and laughing with her sparkling eyes

wide-open. She refused to acknowledge the presence

of her family in the room, and laughed even harder

when they tried to communicate with her. Finally,

late that afternoon, the girl spoke. In the same tone

as “Cypocryphy,” she exclaimed, “I am going, I am

going, to love HIM, HIM, HIM, HIM,” then, with a

smile on her face, she closed her eyes and died.

As the girl was being carried from her home down

Eureka Road to nearby Long Creek Cemetery, a

large, black bird wearing a bell around its neck flew

just above the wagon. Ringing in a low, sad tone, the

bell continued until the funeral procession arrived at

the cemetery and the girl was being laid to rest. The

large bird then circled the cemetery until the last

person left – all the while laughing in the deceased

overseer’s voice. The bird finally flew away and was

never seen again.

On many occasions after the girl’s death, people

reported having strange and unexplainable

encounters in the area. Cows were found

mysteriously dead, blood flowed from water taps,

fresh milk went sour for no apparent reason, and

people often became afflicted with short,

unexplainable illnesses.

It has been reported that some descendants of

John Thomas Bell know in advance when a visit will

come from the Spirit world, and will gather at a

particular relative’s house to wait. 94 Very few

descendants in the area today will share information

about the “Bell Witch,” whether it is the Tennessee

version of the legend or the Mississippi version.

94 Source does not wish to be disclosed.

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F I T Z H U G H

Appendix J:

Frequently Asked Questions

O VER THE MANY YEARS he has researched

the legend of the “Bell Witch,” the author

has been asked literally thousands of

questions about the subject, from the most valid to

the most absurd. Some questions are asked more

than others, and require a great deal of research to

answer intelligently.

The author has documented and provided answers

to the most popular questions he is asked concerning

the “Bell Witch,” below. Most of these questions are

impossible to answer from a factual standpoint, and

as such are provided only as the author’s opinion

based on his research.

Why was Kate kind to Lucy Bell but hateful

towards John and Elizabeth?

Why Kate was kind to Mrs. Bell but hateful

towards John and Elizabeth is one of the most

puzzling questions associated with the legend and

has been asked many times.

The only reason Kate gave for her seeming

kindness to Mrs. Bell was that “Luce” was a good

woman. The author feels there was more to Kate’s

treatment of John Bell’s immediate family than

someone’s having been a “good” or “bad” person.

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375

There are different kinds of torment, some of which

can be “masked” to create the proverbial, “wolf in

sheep's clothing” effect. The author feels that Kate’s

torment was inflicted equally among John Bell and

his immediate family members, following the “path of

least resistance” to each family member’s soul.

While Elizabeth and John Bell bore the brunt of

Kate’s
physical
torment, Mrs. Bell received an equal

share of torment at the
emotional
level. Regardless of

Kate’s kind gestures towards Mrs. Bell, her being

forced to witness the day in and day out torture of

her husband and daughter undoubtedly took a

strong emotional toll on her.

Some people can endure more
physical
pain than

emotional
pain, and vice versa. When a person’s

threshold in one of these areas is exceeded, the

person “snaps,” and suffers irreparable emotional

damage – even if it was the
physical
threshold that

was exceeded. The lower of these two thresholds in a

person becomes the path of least resistance to their

soul. Elizabeth, John, and Drewry Bell were weaker

on the physical end than the emotional end; and as

such, Kate followed their paths of least resistance by

physically tormenting them. This is not to say that

they were “frail” by any means, only that
physical

pain would take a greater long-term toll on them

than
emotional
pain would.

The author feels that Mrs. Bell had a very high

physical
threshold. Think about it — she had

experienced the pain of giving birth to a number of

children. By contrast, Elizabeth did not experience

childbirth until well after the disturbances ceased,

meaning that at the time of the disturbances, her

physical
threshold was much lower than her

mother's. Mrs. Bell's lowest threshold was
emotional

in nature; and for that reason, Kate tormented her

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F I T Z H U G H

from that angle — pursuing her soul through her

own path of least resistance. Let us now look at

another example of
physical
and
emotional

thresholds.

John Bell, Jr. begged Kate on many occasions to

physically abuse, and even kill him, if it would result

in his family's deliverance from her reign of terror.

Kate always responded by saying that she could

inflict more pain on John Jr. by making him watch

members of his family suffer than by launching a

physical attack on him. John Jr. stood about 6'3

and weighed nearly 200 pounds. In the Tennessee

Militia, he trained hard and fought at Horseshoe

Bend and New Orleans.

It almost goes without saying that John, Jr's

physical
threshold was greater than his
emotional

threshold; hence, Kate's decision to force him to

watch as some members of his family suffered

physical pain. His
emotional
side was clearly the

path of least resistance to his soul.

Kate’s giving Mrs. Bell grapes and hazelnuts,

singing hymns to her, and regularly conversing with

her were, in the author’s opinion, Kate’s way of

invoking a false sense of security to “cover up” the

severe emotional damage that was really being

inflicted upon Mrs. Bell. Moreover, the author feels

that this “smokescreen” was put up as an act of

diversion to gain Mrs. Bell’s trust and respect so that

her
emotional
side would be easier to conquer.

The others who Kate treated kindly were very close

to John Bell and his family – James Johnston, Calvin

Johnston, the Reverends, and of course, William

Porter. Despite her perceived kindness towards

these men, would Kate’s tormenting the Bell family

not have taken some degree of emotional toll on them

as well? The author feels that Kate's perceived

kindness to those outside but close to the Bell family

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377

was an attempt to earn their respect so they might

eventually accept her ramblings and turn against

John Bell. This never happened, however; all of the

men mentioned above displayed their friendship and

allegiance to John Bell and his family up until the

very end.

Do John and Lucy Bell have any descendants

in the Robertson County area today?