Unfortunately, the history had been written on the occasion of the town's centennial in 1937, and had never been updated.Some of the more interesting historical characters seemed to belong to the Whateley family. Napoleon wondered if Rita's friend was a relative. According to the history, one Jabez Whateley, together with his wife and son, had migrated to Midford from Salem, Massachusetts just after the turn of the century. He had built a duplicate of the original Whateley mansion; a somewhat bizarre structure, according to the description given. Apparently the elder Whateley's refusal to become neighborly had roused the resentment of local citizens; before long there were rumors, faithfully set down in the history, that the Whateleys were devil-worshippers and worse. Midford residents hurrying past the Whateley house after dark had reported strange sights and sounds. The death or disappearance of any farm animal for miles around was instantly attributed to Jabez Whateley's evil influence.Neighborhood fear had culminated one night when the daughter of Whateley's nearest neighbor failed to show up for supper.
