VOA常速英语2007-Washington DC Home to Ghost Stories

By Ernest Leong
Washington
30 October 2007
 

Washington, DC -- best known as the U.S. capital and a playground for politicians and diplomats¹ -- might also be home of ghosts. Those who claim to have seen or felt their presence say the spirits date back to some of the earliest days of American history. People around Washington and in the news media often tell these stories at Halloween -- the October 31st tradition in which children in the U.S., Canada and British Isles² dress up as fun and scary characters. VOA's Ernest Leong tells the story of two supposedly haunted houses.

On any given day, as people walk or drive past the Octagon House in downtown Washington, DC, they might not know this is considered one of the spookiest spots in the city.

Haunted houses can have scary stories attached to them, and this place is no exception.

But Carolyn Crouch³, who offers ghost tours through her company, Washington Walks, says there is one unusual feature to the Octagon House's stories. "In the case of the Octagon, all the ghosts that are haunting this house, and all those ghost stories that go along with them, are not bas[ed] on anything that actually happened," she said.

One of the better known stories involves the original homeowner, John Tayloe, and two of his daughters.

The tale involves a heated argument and one daughter falling to her death over the railing of the home's three-story spiral staircase.

A few years later, the other daughter supposedly fell on those same stairs and died.

It would be a classic horror story, with romance, tragedy and sudden death. Only Crouch says, neither incident ever happened. "No, no Tayloe girl ever fell over it [the spiral staircase]."

Crouch says while the origin of the ghost stories is a mystery, such legends persist because the house and the Tayloes were well-known. "And that things kind of ending up attaching themselves, the stories, to the family and to the house, even though they're none of them are actually, really historically true."

Another fable⁴ about the Octagon House is that after 12 men stayed overnight here in 1888, they said they heard three bloodcurdling female screams come from an empty second-story room. Crouch says, "And the account ends by one of the men saying, 'I vouch⁵ for this, but I cannot explain it'."

A few blocks away, is the Stephen Decatur House -- another place some say is haunted. Stephen Decatur was an American naval⁶ hero who fought in the War of 1812. Unlike the fictional⁷ anecdotes⁸ of the Octagon House, Stephen Decatur's untimely death in a duel⁹ with Commodore James Barron is well-documented.

After Decatur was shot by Barron, he was rushed to his house, to the front room, where he later died.

Cynthia Malinick, Executive Director of the Stephen Decatur House Museum, spoke¹⁰ to us in that room. "Barron mortally wounded Decatur. Decatur supposedly, purposely missed because he did not want to shoot his mentor¹¹."

Some people claim to have seen Decatur's ghost standing¹² at a second-story window, as well as at the window in the first-story room where he died.

But Decatur's ghost may not be alone behind these walls. There are also stories of inexplicable¹³ shadows and noises, in these former slave quarters now used for special exhibits. Clinking chains have been heard in this courtyard.

Although Malinick does not believe in ghosts, she says she heard filing cabinets opening and closing one night, after she thought everyone had gone home. "I will say that when I heard those filing cabinets opening and closing, I decided¹⁴ it was time to go home." [Laughs]

It is another ghost tale that Washington residents can repeat each year around Halloween -- a centuries-old pagan rite¹⁵ honoring the dead.

1 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 isles   

岛( isle的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• the geology of the British Isles 不列颠群岛的地质
• The boat left for the isles. 小船驶向那些小岛。

3 crouch   

v.蹲伏，蜷缩，低头弯腰；n.蹲伏

参考例句：

• I crouched on the ground.我蹲在地上。
• He crouched down beside him.他在他的旁边蹲下来。

4 fable   

n.寓言；童话；神话

参考例句：

• The fable is given on the next page. 这篇寓言登在下一页上。
• He had some motive in telling this fable. 他讲这寓言故事是有用意的。

5 vouch   

v.担保；断定；n.被担保者

参考例句：

• They asked whether I was prepared to vouch for him.他们问我是否愿意为他作担保。
• I can vouch for the fact that he is a good worker.我保证他是好员工。

6 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

7 fictional   

adj.小说的，虚构的

参考例句：

• The names of the shops are entirely fictional.那些商店的名字完全是虚构的。
• The two authors represent the opposite poles of fictional genius.这两位作者代表了天才小说家两个极端。

8 anecdotes   

n.掌故，趣闻，轶事( anecdote的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• amusing anecdotes about his brief career as an actor 关于他短暂演员生涯的趣闻逸事
• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman. 他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 duel   

n./v.决斗；(双方的)斗争

参考例句：

• The two teams are locked in a duel for first place.两个队为争夺第一名打得难解难分。
• Duroy was forced to challenge his disparager to duel.杜洛瓦不得不向诋毁他的人提出决斗。

10 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

11 mentor   

n.指导者，良师益友；v.指导

参考例句：

• He fed on the great ideas of his mentor.他以他导师的伟大思想为支撑。
• He had mentored scores of younger doctors.他指导过许多更年轻的医生。

12 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

13 inexplicable   

adj.无法解释的，难理解的

参考例句：

• It is now inexplicable how that development was misinterpreted.当时对这一事态发展的错误理解究竟是怎么产生的，现在已经无法说清楚了。
• There are many things which are inexplicable by science.有很多事科学还无法解释。

14 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

15 rite   

n.典礼，惯例，习俗

参考例句：

• This festival descends from a religious rite.这个节日起源于宗教仪式。
• Most traditional societies have transition rites at puberty.大多数传统社会都为青春期的孩子举行成人礼。