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Spirit Rappings. the Man-Turtle: Keene

A gentleman who visited the poor-house states the following: "Passing through the lower story of the building I was ushered into a room in which the first object that met my gaze was Samuel Keene, the celebrated human Man-Turtle. Keene, at the command of the overseer, managed, with a side movement of the body, to take off his hat by means of his queerly-shaped claws, and to make a bow. We spoke to him, but the poor being had not enough of intelligence to give a sensible answer. "As this human monstrosity stood before us bareheaded, he presented the most wonderful specimen of an amalgamation between the highest and one of the lowest classes of animals that can be imagined. In stature he is a dwarf, being about four feet in height, thick-set, with short limbs, hands turning outward the same as a turtle's, and instead of fingers the widened palms ending in webbed claws. The feet are fashioned in the same manner, and he walks with a sidelong, ambling gait peculiar to a tortoise. The inside of his claw was of a yellowish color, as, also, were his feet and stomach. The skin on the other portions had the same color and the same ribbed appearance as the under portion of a turtle. His back consists of tough layers of cuticle, which are becoming harder as he grows older. The most startling feature, however, is the head, which seems to be a continuation of the neck; it is pointed something like a snake's, and the face is flat. The back portion of the cranium is perpendicular to the neck and covered with short, bristly black hair. The rest of the body is hairless with the exception of a few long, black bristles around the mouth. The nose is like that of a full-blooded negro. The mouth extends from jowl to jowl and contains a full set of white teeth. The eyes are black and extremely large and rolling, having small pupils, looking directly ahead with a wild, staring, yet fascinating glare, very sharp and peircing, and fairly glisten beneath the broad eyebrows."