The Spell-Lifter
| Author | John Bennett |
| Date | 01 November 1965 |
| Published date | 01 November 1965 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0032258X6503801105 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
Crilllina.1
Investi~dtion
DETECTIVE
INSPECTOR
JOHN
BENNETT
Cornwall County Constabulary
THE
SPELL-LIFTER
At the present time when the average C.LD. officeris, to say the
least, working to capacity, the unusual case becomes all the more
desirable from the investigation point
of
view, in that it gives a
break from the routine. A recent case investigated by Detective
Sergeant Gordon Phillips and myself had all the ingredients of
pure fiction, so much so that once and for all, I now accept that
"Truth is stranger than fiction".
The county of Cornwall is well known for ancient customs,
superstitions and folk lore but I hazard a guess that similar versions
of the story related here, which may sound like something from
the sixteenth century, are happening everywhere though by virtue
of the very nature of the offence, like blackmail, they rarely come
to the notice of the police.
Our complainant was a spinster of some 76 years. When her
first statement was taken, and I saw that her name was Hyacinth
Arabella lone Zillah Trevan Moon, I was convinced that we had
hit the jackpot from the point of the unusual, and this proved to be
the case.
The Crime
Briefly, Miss Moon alleged that shortly before April 14, 1965,
a gipsy woman called at her home selling rugs, one of which she
bought. Whilst at Miss Moon's home, the gipsy got into conversa-
tion with her and learned that Miss Moon was caring for her sister
who had been bedridden for a number of years and was in a very
poor state of health. The gipsy woman, who was later found to be
one Harriet Richards, then set about the task of convincing Miss
Moon that a
"spell"
had been placed upon her sister, whose
health would improve only if the spell was lifted. Here we have
an example of a person so weighed down with personal trouble and
grief, that, like a drowning person, she was prepared to grasp at
any straw, for it is apparent that eventually Miss Moon was con-
vinced a spell was upon her sister and that Richards could "
lift"
it.
Richards then went on to explain how this difficult operation could
be performed and, of course, that it would cost money.
For
the benefit of the uninitiated it appears that a spell of this nature
November 1965 509
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