A ghost was the focal point of a County Cavan courtroom drama in 1910. We take a look at the creepy Irish court case.
At Bailieborough, County Cavan, a rather strange court case captivated local attention in late 1910, involving claims of haunting and unsettled debts.
This case, as reported by various newspapers of the time, revolved around the alleged actions of Mr Charles Connell Cornasirl and the assertions of Miss Annie Brady Curfad.
Miss Curfad, a 70-year-old woman, brought an action against Mr Cornasirl to recover £3 10s, which she claimed was extracted from her under unusual circumstances.
According to her testimony, in June of that year, Mr Cornasirl approached her with a bizarre claim: he was being haunted by the ghost of her brother, Phil. Phil had been dead for 26 years, but his spirit, according to Mr Cornasirl, was restless due to an outstanding debt of £3 10s. he owed him in life.
Out of fear and the desire to lay her brother’s spirit to rest, Miss Brady paid Mr Cornasirl the amount in question.
Adding a touch of drama to the proceedings, it was noted that the money Miss Brady had given wasn’t even hers, but belonged to her sister.
She was compelled to part with it primarily because of her fear of the ghostly claims made by the defendant.
Supporting her claim was a neighbouring farmer named Brady, who testified that Mr Cornasirl had confided in him about the relentless haunting of Phil’s spirit.
According to this farmer, Mr Cornasirl had shared that the ghost of Phil appeared at his bedside night after night.
Mr Cornasirl, when questioned, did not deny that Phil owed him the amount. However, he contested the ghostly means of collection.
He recounted that after Phil’s death, he had taken a long journey of nine miles to attend the wake, hoping to address the debt issue.
But he was never given the opportunity to speak about it. Most crucially, he categorically denied ever mentioning anything about being haunted by Phil’s ghost.
The case concluded with Judge Drummond ruling in favour of Miss Curfad.
The judge was convinced of her narrative and firmly believed Miss Curfad’s recounting of the events. The judge’s decision implied a reprimand for using ghostly tales, whether true or fabricated, to exploit vulnerable individuals.
This curious episode, nestled in the archives of 1910, serves as a reminder of the varied and often peculiar nature of human disputes and the lengths some might go to, in order to settle or exploit a debt.
Whether the ghost of Phil truly haunted Mr Cornasirl or not remains a mystery, but the story itself lingers on as an intriguing blend of folklore, law, and human nature.
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