February 5, 2007

Scott Town Monster

I’m not sure what to make of this article from the Jamaica Gleaner about a mysterious creature that has locals there in fear.

Maas Helton (centre) describes the mysterious creature to his neighbours. – Ian Allen/Staff Photographer

There’s something strange lurking in the bushes in Scott Town, Manchester and it has the whole town abuzz. It’s unlike anything anyone there has ever seen before. The creature has been spotted in Maas Helton’s banana field more than once and now the shaken man is afraid to leave his bed at night.

“Di first time me see di sinting, mi just took off! Mi nah go lay lay and mek it nyam mi raw!” Mass Helton said.

He’s a short fellow with graying hair and he has noticeable trouble pronouncing the letter ‘v’, but his memory of the first time he encountered the mysterious beast is impeccable.

“It was around 3 o’clock inna di morning. Mi decide fi get up early and go inna mi field. Mi and mi dog go round a di back and mi only see when the dog walk off. So mi stand up one side fi see where him a go. Den mi hear one digging noise and mi look and see something a dig up di banana tree. Mi frighten now and bend down behind one bush and a watch. Mi see di dog walk up to di creature and den mi just hear whoo, whoo! When mi hear dat mi gallop weh left all di dog! Dem bwoy out a road say mi too fraid, but mi nuh care!” Maas Helton shouted.

Twice the size of a dog

He said the creature had four long and narrow legs like a goat and a long face with an obvious snout. It was furry and about twice the size of a large dog.

“It front foot hab on four claw and it move very fast. If you quint too fast then you miss it,” he said.

Now news of the strange animal spread across the community like wildfire and soon, plans for a public execution were put in place.

At the crack of dawn the next day, almost everyone from the community turned up at Maas Helton’s home, wielding machetes and carrying torches. “Dem come say dem ready fi kill di brute. Everybody ready fi chop him up. Anyhow dem did ketch him, a murder,” Maas Helton said.

But they didn’t catch the creature and Miss Eva, who walked up to join Maas Helton, knows why.

“Him nuh love noise. Di creature only come out a night time. My cousin see it down by Miss Mama garden. Anyhow him hear noise, him dig off,” she said.

Miss Eva is a strapping woman who had a bunch of clothes pegs attached to the bottom of her blouse. She said she was washing clothes at the back of her house when she heard us talking about the beast.

“People say dem afraid since the beast deh bout. But I not afraid. I not locking up myself inside the house. I must go church and no devil will stop me from go church! Mi nuh fear no foe! Him haffi go nyam mi!” she said adamantly.

Afraid to work in fields

Now most people who live in the community are farmers and are more than a bit agitated that this beast has been running around in their fields and stealing pumpkins and melons. So now the men of Scott Town have devised what they think is an ingenious plan to catch the strange creature. Their plan is to make some giant traps and place them on everyone’s property. If that doesn’t work, then they plan to all spend the night in the bushes and wait for the first sign of the beast. “We going to use some melon and catch him. Him always a trouble people melon and plantain. We going to put out some melon and wait pon him. We haffi ketch him!” Maas Helton said.

By now a crowd had gathered and everyone was talking about how they could possibly catch the beast. I asked Maas Helton what kind of creature he thought it was.

“Well mi see it and mi really nuh know. A man tell mi dat it could be a kangaroo. Another man tell mi dat is a duppy. Right yah now mi nuh really certain. All mi know is that any day mi spot it again, mi a go dig off,” he said.

Miss Jane, an elderly woman wearing a cap, spectacles and a pair of running shoes, walked up to join us. She too had her fair share to say on the matter. “These are the last days! That is why all a dem creature yah leggo pan di earth. God is calling his people! Repent!” she said to nobody in particular.

This silenced the others for a few seconds and then Maas Helton spoke up again.

“Di creature look like him have relation with the dog dem, for when him come round, the dog dem nuh mek nuh noise. Mi have four big dog and none a dem ever make noise when di creature come around. Is like him hypnotise dem wid him eye dem,” he said.

The others seemed to agree. Dwayne, Maas Helton’s son, chimed in. “Yes! Is like him have some kinda magic. More time him look like him can disappear. Mi nuh know what it is, but it must be evil!” he said.

As evening approached in the rural town, everyone scattered, each heading to his own home. It was to be another night of waiting in fear. Waiting for another sign of the Scott Town monster.Robert Lalah

Filed under Bigfoot Report, Cryptozoology, Eyewitness Accounts, Folklore