Mad Gasser of Mattoon - Mystery madman gas dispersers of Mattoon

More than 50 years ago, the media in Virginia and Illinois shocked by a mysterious figure in the darkness that attack the population.with strange smelling gas. Mysteries that are often called the "Mad Gasser of Mattoon" or "lunatic gas dispersers of Mattoon" is one of the world's great mysteries unsolved.
This event began in 1933.At 10 pm, on December 22, 1933, a small town of Botetourt County, Virginia, already looks deserted. On this night, the first person who called the gas would be crazy spreader in action.Mrs. Cal Huffman was still awake at that time. 

Not long after, he was a strange sweet smell in the house. Their whole life, he had never smelled like this. Mrs. Huffman was a headache, but the smell was soon gone.At 22.30, the smell was coming back. This time the resulting sensation is more powerful that the eight family members and a guest named Huffman Ashby Henderson's stay feel the effect. 

All of the smell began to feel nausea, dizziness, cramps and shortness of breath on your face. Alice, daughter of Mrs. Huffman 20-year-old felt the most severe consequences. He experienced shortness of breath so severe that it should be given artificial respiration. Fortunately, his life was saved.  

However, several weeks after the incident, he still often had cramps in his limbs.No one can explain where the smell was coming from. However, Mr. Huffman sure if he saw a man running away in the darkness of night. When police examined the scene, they found only a trace of high heels in the window. 

Two days later, the mysterious odor that re-emerged in Cloverdale.Mr. Clarence Hall and his wife was at his house. When it's nine o'clock. Later, they capture the sweet smell of smell is very strong weird. Immediately they felt weak and dizzy. 

Once again, no one can be sure the origin of the mysterious odor. Police are investigating the case found that the odor was concentrated on a nail hole in the window. Police believe that this hole has been used to inject gas into the house smelling it. 

This means that there are persons who are responsible for this attack!Now, this odorless gas attacks and the possibility of bad actors who spread it has attracted media attention. 

On January 11, the attacks resumed. Also at 10 pm, Mrs. Moore of Howell's Mill, reported strange noises in the courtyard followed by a shadowy figure flashed by the window that has long been broken. Soon after, Mrs. Moore began a strange smell gas. Mrs. Moore is more alert immediately grabbed the baby and ran out. However, even though he has acted with alacrity, gas was still only make her feel the cramps for a while. 

On the same night, GD Kinzie of Troutville also suffered similar attacks. According to doctors who came to check, Mr.Kinzie may have been given a dangerous chlorine gas.

On 16 January, Mr. FB Duval who arrived at his home at 23:30 o'clock finds that his family had been attacked by the gas dispersers. On his way to the police station, he saw the flash of the human figure was running toward the car that is nearby. Mr. Duval after him, but the figure had disappeared into the darkness. 

Several other residents also reported a similar attack which lasted until January 28, when five people at the residence of Ed Stanley in Colon Siding experiencing dizzy from the smell of gas. One of them, Frank Guy, managed to get some fresh air to get back his consciousness. When he had seen four men running near a small forest. Frank grabbed the weapon and fired. However, it seems not on the men. 

The next day cops began to realize the danger of these attacks have provided a prize of $ 500 to anyone who can provide information about the criminals gas dispersers. This number is quite large for the size of the time. 
The latest attack happened in 1934 happened on February 11, when five reports of attacks into the station. 

On the same day, police found a small bottle of liquid in the snow around the house in Botetourt attack victims. The next day, police found out that the fluid is a mixture of liquids that are not harmful to humans, much like an insect spray in each household. 

After the discovery of evidence that small, for some reason all of a sudden gas attack stops. No more reports coming in and people started to speculate what has happened in recent months may be just a mass hysteria. 

Roanoke Daily Times sure even with lower editorial titled "No gas dispersers in Roanoke."But 10 years later, people are crazy spreader gas back in action.This time the attacks occurred in Mattoon, Illinois, which began in late August 1944. This attack lasted for several weeks. 

On the morning of August 31, Urban Raef awakened by the smell which immediately makes it a headache and vomiting. His wife, who intends to get up to find out soon realize that his own body has been experiencing cramps and could not get out of bed. 

On 2 September 1944, a woman named Aline Kearney was lying in bed while reading a newspaper when he was a sweet smell gas and extremely strong. The smell of it made her and her daughter who was three years old became nauseated. When Aline tried to get up from his bed, he found that he could not move his feet.

When found his sister in such circumstances, Aline's sister who was staying at the house immediately contacted the police. 

When the police come and investigate, they did not find anything suspicious. However, at 12:30 that night, when Aline's husband who works as a taxi driver to go home, he found out someone was lurking on the side of his house. He was chased, but it managed to escape penyelinap. 

What is experienced by Aline Kearney soon became a sensation quickly. The media began to preach that a madman who had terrorized the gas dispersers Virginia 10 years ago has come to Illinois.Then, the media began to dub actors that gas dispersers with different nicknames. Starting from the Mad Gasser of Mattoon, Prowler or Phantom anesthetic anesthetic. Mysterious figure is then held responsible for the attacks that followed in the ensuing weeks. 

After a lot of coverage by the media, some people began to report the occurrence of similar attacks. They claim that the gas attack that has caused them to have experienced dizziness, paralysis, nausea and vomiting. 

On 5 September, Mrs. Carl Cordes reported the discovery of a small wet cloth on her porch. When he picked it up, he smelled a strong odor. 

"It was like paralyzed." He said. "My husband had to help me get into the house. Soon my lips started to swell and the roof of the mouth and throat burning feeling. I began to spit blood and my husband immediately called the doctor. It took about two hours until I feel normal again."The residents of Mattoon began to dread. 

There is another reason why this fear pretty quickly spread. At that time, World War II is underway and the national media in America that commemorates the Nazi forces might use poison gas to attack civilians. Thus, the population began a link between these events and wonder if the Nazis involved in these attacks.

In the following weeks, police received several reports of attacks every night. Many victims reported that they saw a high figure dressed in black who was seen running from their home page shortly after the attack. In addition, there is reported seeing blue smoke and heard a strange humming sound. 

Because the police did not go to solve this mystery, the residents took the initiative to form a group that patrols combed the streets every night. But these efforts did not also bring results.On 13 September, the gas attack victims has reached more than 30 people. 

However, after that date, no further reports of the attacks. It's as if a madman gas dispersers of Mattoon has decided to stop completely. As a result, police have not managed to gather enough clues deadlocked and this mystery be solved today. 

For more than half a century, writers, researchers and historians try to look back on this case and try to explain what really happened in Botetourt County and Mattoon at the time. Although this case does not bring loss of life, the mysterious circumstances of the case has attracted the attention of many researchers so crazy gas dispersers of Mattoon categorized into the mystery attacker stealth level with Jack the heels of the spring. 

Some writers tend to regard this event as an example of mass hysteria. This is evident from the Roanoke Times newspaper headline which assumes that there never really crazy gas dispersers. This theory is further supported by the police to conclude that this event is a mass hysteria which aided its spread by the media. For decades, the story is often used as an example of mass hysteria caused by the war and due to the wives left behind a husband away at war. 

One example of media which are thought to help spread the Mattoon Journal Gazzette that made the news with the headline "Mrs.Kearney and her first victim." 

At the time, is not known whether there will be the next victim. However, the provocative title of the news was considered to have helped lead to a prolonged hysteria. 
The theory of mass hysteria is also cited and supported by a psychologist named Donald M Johnson, who documented the case of Mattoon in 1945 and JP Chaplin in 1959. According to these psychologists, physical effects such as dizziness, nausea and vomiting is actually the effect of common hysteria. 

In addition to the theory of mass hysteria, there is also the theory of pollution.This conclusion is quite reasonable because of the pungent smell of gas was considered to be very similar to the smell of gas emanating from the discharge of pollutants or waste. Many speculate that the smell was coming from carbon tetrachloride or trichlorethylene that has a sweet smell and can cause diseases such as effects on the victim. 

At a press conference on 12 September, the police actually had suggested this possibility. However, this theory was quickly ruled out because it was not found to have a waste disposal factory that sort of thing. 

In addition to the above theories, there are authors who believe that there is a real crazy person who has spread the smell of gas. One of them is a writer named Scott Maruna. In fact he believes that he knows who that person is crazy gas dispersers. 

Maruna itself is a science teacher who wrote a book called "The Mad Gasser of Mattoon: dispelling the Hysteria", published in 2003. He was a native of Mattoon. 

According to Maruna, these events can not be regarded as mass hysteria because of the many reports of gas odor coming from the windows and the human figure that was running in the dark. So there is a person who spread the gas. 

According to him, in those days, in Mattoon, there is a student who is nerdy genius. His name is Farley Llewellyn, a student majoring in chemistry who likes to experiment with various chemicals. His laboratory one day explode until it had time even to its neighbors.Maruna believes that Llewellyn was a real crazy gas dispersers. 
If indeed the culprit Llewellyn, what motive? 

Llewellyn was hurt due to be ostracized by society because of suspicion of being a homosexual. So in addition to having the ability, he also has a motive. Because it looks random victims of the attack because he did grudge to the whole community. Even most of the attacks also took place near his home. 

"Farley, the genius who is good chemistry with the chemical is a real gas dispersers." Maruna said.He believes that the gas is distributed by Llewellyn tetrachlorethane. 

Maruna but fails to explain the events that happened ten years earlier in Botetourt County. Do Llewellyn is also the culprit? It seems almost impossible. 

Or are only mimic Llewellyn attack 10 years earlier?This question remained unanswered until now. And because of questions like this, crazy mystery gas dispersers have never really considered solved.