Miracles of the Gods: A New Look at the Supernatural (37 page)

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The sun was shining brightly in a cloudless sky when, about nine o'clock in the morning, people saw the figure of a man floating in the air, at a height of 'nine lances'. He cried out thrice in a loud voice:

'People! People! People! mend your ways or your end is nigh!' This happened on a market day and Magopholis says that it took place 'in the presence of more than 10, 000 people'. After these harsh warnings the figure disappeared into a cloud as if it was ascending directly into leaven. An hour later the air had grown so dark that it was impossible to make out heaven or earth from a radius of twenty miles. In Magopholis's words:

Alarm and terror seized all souls; many people died a sudden death. The population held processions and uttered fervent prayers to heaven. At last, when three days had elapsed the air cleared again; but a terrible wind storm arose, much worse than any of the oldest men in the town could remember, and lasted for about an hour and a halt Then came a fearful cloudburst so that water poured down from heaven as if great barrels were being emptied, and simultaneously there was a tremendous earthquake that destroyed the whole city. Over an area fourteen miles long and six miles wide only one castle, a church tower and in the middle of the area three houses had been left standing. You can see them