1,001 Facts That Will Scare the S#*t Out of You: The Ultimate Bathroom Reader (115 page)

873

FACT :
In the fall of 1888, serial killer Jack the Ripper terrorized women in the slums of London,
disemboweling and decapitating victims
, most of whom were prostitutes. The murderer, thought to be a doctor because of his surgical precision, was never identified.
Or he might’ve been a Pentecostal minister.

Colin Wilson and Damon Wilson, The Mammoth Encyclopedia of the Unsolved (Carroll & Graf, 2000).

874

FACT :
A creature called Spring-Heeled Jack terrorized London residents in the nineteenth century.
The orange-eyed beast scratched victims mercilessly
about the face and body, then leapt away with inhuman ability.
London police put Scooby-Doo and the gang on the case. They exposed the “monster” as a local prospector trying to scare away residents. And he would’ve gotten away with it, too, if it hadn’t been for those meddling kids.

Matt Lake and Mark Moran, Weird England: Your Travel Guide to England’s Local Legends and Best Kept Secrets (Sterling Publishing Company, 2007), 59.

875

FACT :
From 1935 to 1938, a serial killer dubbed the Mad Butcher terrorized Cleveland residents with a series of murders.
Several victims died by decapitation
, one body was left in pieces on the shore of Lake Erie, and the rest were dismembered. The killer was never identified.
The only thing terrorizing Cleveland today— besides being Cleveland—is its NFL team, the Browns, who are left in pieces on the shore of Lake Erie every time they play at home.

Colin Wilson and Damon Wilson, The Mammoth Encyclopedia of the Unsolved (Carroll &Graf, 2000).

876

FACT :
The legendary Jersey Devil, said to stalk the Pine Barrens of New Jersey, possesses a snakelike body, the head of a horse, bat-like wings, pig feet, and a forked tail. The creature has been blamed for
hundreds of deaths and mutilations of children and animals
since the mid-1700s.
You’d have to be the devil to want to hang out in New Jersey that long.

Beth Scott and Michael Norman, Haunted America (Macmillan, 2007), 176.

877

FACT :
In 1924, a group of miners in Washington’s Mount Saint Helens range were reportedly attacked by
eight-foot tall “Bigfoot” humanoids
, who pounded on the doors, walls, and roof of their cabin from dusk until dawn.
Or maybe they were just attacked by a bad batch of moonshine.

Colin Wilson and Damon Wilson, The Mammoth Encyclopedia of the Unsolved (Carroll &Graf, 2000).

878

FACT :
The Moehau, New Zealand’s version of Bigfoot, is said
to stab victims
with a long, bony finger.
At least they hope that’s a finger.

Jonathan Maberry and David F. Kramer, The Cryptopedia: A Dictionary of the Weird, Strange & Downright Bizarre (Kensington Publishing, 2007), 30.

879

FACT :
In 1996, rural villagers in Puerto Rico reported a rash of strange deaths among goats, whose
bodies were found completely drained of blood
, with puncture wounds on their necks. Locals blamed the Chupacabra, or “goat sucker,” for the still unexplained incidents.
Such fanciful attributions are typical among the uneducated. More astute observers recognized these events for what they were: the work of vampires.

Robert Todd Carroll, The Skeptic’s Dictionary: A Collection of Strange Beliefs, Amusing Deceptions, and Dangerous Delusions (John Wiley & Sons, 2003), 76.

880

FACT :
Zambia is home to Pterodactyl-like flying monsters called kongamato, which are said to have bat-like wings with four- to seven-foot spans and a long, tapered jaw filled with sharp teeth. Zambian villagers believe that
to look upon the kongamato is death
.
Others know a hang-glider when they see it and are not afraid.

David Hatcher Childress, Lost Cities & Ancient Mysteries of Africa & Arabia (Adventures Unlimited Press, 1989).

881

FACT :
South Americans are terrorized by minhocão, a giant worm said to be
seventy feet long with armor-plated skin
, a pig-like snout, and two tentacles on its head. Spotted in Uruguay and southern Brazil, the minhocão lives underground but occasionally surfaces, and many blame it for collapsed bridges, tunnels, and roadways.
Others know a train when they see it and are not afraid.

Jonathan Maberry and David F. Kramer, The Cryptopedia: A Dictionary of the Weird, Strange & Downright Bizarre (Kensington Publishing, 2007), 30.