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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d3b7bac --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #68388 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/68388) diff --git a/old/68388-0.txt b/old/68388-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 41459b0..0000000 --- a/old/68388-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,4417 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of How to thought-read, by James Coates - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: How to thought-read - A manual of instruction in the strange and mystic in daily life, - psychic phenomena - -Author: James Coates - -Release Date: June 23, 2022 [eBook #68388] - -Language: English - -Produced by: deaurider and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at - https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images - generously made available by The Internet Archive) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HOW TO THOUGHT-READ *** - - - - - - TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE - - - Text in italics is shown in _underscores_. - - Footnotes have been moved to the end of the book. - - A detailed list of changes made to the text can be found at the end. - - - - - HOW TO THOUGHT-READ: - - _A MANUAL OF INSTRUCTION_ - - IN THE - - STRANGE AND MYSTIC IN DAILY LIFE, - PSYCHIC PHENOMENA, - - INCLUDING - - _Hypnotic, Mesmeric, and Psychic States, Mind and Muscle - Reading, Thought Transference, Psychometry, Clairvoyance, - and Phenomenal Spiritualism_. - - BY - - JAMES COATES, Ph.D., F.A.S., - - _Lecturer on Mental Science and Hygiene, Author of “How to Mesmerise,” - “How to Read Heads,” “How to Read Faces,” “The Social - Problem,” “The Antiquity of Man,” etc. etc._ - - PRICE ONE SHILLING. - - LONDON: HAY NISBET & CO., 169, FLEET STREET. - GLASGOW: 25 JAMAICA STREET. - 1893. - - - - - HAY NISBET AND CO., 26 JAMAICA STREET, GLASGOW, - - AND - - 169, FLEET STREET, LONDON. - - - - - CONTENTS. - - - PAGE - - Introduction, 5 - - Chapter I.--Somnambulism and Psychic Phenomena, 9 - - The Hypnotic, Mesmeric, and the Psychic States. Hypnotism - a Curative Agent; the Sixth Sense; Dreams, Premonitions; - Double and Psychic Consciousness. Evidences of the - Soul within us. - - - Chapter II.--Clairvoyance, 23 - - Psychoscopy, or Soul Sight. Spiritual Faculty, exhibited by - religious ecstatics, not a common possession. How Cultivated. - The Opinions and Evidence of Men of Science. - Second Sight. The Utility of Soul-Sight. - - - Chapter III.--Clairvoyance Illustrated, 33 - - Classified. Strange Story of the Chicago Water Supply. - Lost Goods Restored. An Aid to the Physician. Experiments - in Rothesay. Remarkable Clairvoyants. Clairvoyance - in Mesmerism and in Spiritualism. - - - Chapter IV.--Psychometry, 53 - - Soul-Measuring and Soul-Measurers. Dr. Buchanan’s Discoveries. - Professor Denton’s Experiments. Detective’s - Clues; what Psychometry can do. Testimony of Mr. Stead - and the Rev. Minot J. Savage. Disease Detected, and - Character Gauged by this Faculty. - - - Chapter V.--Thought-Transference and Telepathy, 69 - - Explained and Defined. Transference of Taste in Mesmerism. - Thought-Transference, in Dreams, from the Dying to - the Living; the Dead to the Living; in Prayer; in ordinary - Experience. Incidents and Experiences, etc. Mark Twain, - Hudson Tuttle, and Dr. Hilden. - - - Chapter VI.--Thought-Reading Experiments, 88 - - Thought and Muscle-Reading Distinguished. Projecting - Mental Pictures. Normal Experiments, without contact, by - Professor Lodge, Mr. Guthrie, and Professor Barrett. Some - Practical Suggestions. Muscle-Reading Entertainments. - Directions. - - - Chapter VII.--Spiritualism, 102 - - “How to Thought-Read” and Phenomenal Spiritualism. - The Spirit within us. The rejection of the Psychic. The - Fraudulent in Spiritualism. Spiritualism without Spirits. - Thought-Reading by Spirits and Mediums. - - - Chapter VIII.--Spiritualism.--_Continued_, 115 - - Automatic Writing. A Test Medium. Trance Addresses. - A Direct Spirit-Painting. Reflections and Speculations. - Testimony of Cromwell F. Varley, F.R.S., the Electrician. - Theosophy a Revised Version of Hindoo Metempsychosis, - etc. etc. - - - - -INTRODUCTION. - - -The first book of this series, “How to Mesmerise,” gave so much -satisfaction to the reading public, and having passed into several -editions, my publishers have asked me to write another work on similar -lines. This _brochure_ is my response. Clairvoyance, Psychometry, and -Thought Transference--briefly referred to in the former--are more -fully gone into in this. Consequently, I have little doubt “How to -Thought-Read” will meet with acceptance. - -Thought-reading is duly considered and explained. A clear distinction -is drawn between Musculation, or Muscle and Mind-Reading; and although -these pages are not confined to Thought-Reading, as generally -understood by the public, the subject itself, and as an entertainment, -have been pretty fully dealt with. - -During the past decade, psychological subjects have, in a remarkable -way, arrested public attention. “New Mesmerism” and “New Spiritualism” -are popular subjects with editors and magazine writers. Whatever the -real causes--a greater influx of the spiritual from “the state of the -dead,” or from a reaction in the minds of men against the purblind -materialism of our scientific leaders--it is hard to say. Possibly -these and other causes have been at work. One thing is certain, for -good or ill, the majority of thinking men and women of the age are -not only interested in, but are actually searching for evidence of -“embodied spirit.” Hence we find men of science, journalists, and even -professed materialists and secularists, who, a few years ago, could -scarcely speak of these subjects in the ordinary language of courtesy, -confess now not only their belief, but are going to the other extreme -of advocating, what as yet, they have failed to fully grasp. - -A few years ago “The British Parliament of Science” was nothing if -not materialistic. The leading _savants_ of the day declared “all was -matter, no matter what.” Consequently, man was the highest product -of protoplasm, and his _only_ destiny the grave. The change has been -great indeed, when one of its most brilliant members (Professor -Oliver Lodge, D.Sc., F.R.S., British Association at Cardiff, 1891) -in his address said: “It is familiar that a thought may be excited -on the brain of another person, transferred thither from our brain -by pulling a suitable trigger; by liberating energy in the form of -sound, for instance, or by the mechanical act of writing, or in other -ways. A pre-arranged code, called language, and a material medium of -communication, are recognised methods. May there not, also, be an -_immaterial_ (perhaps an ethereal) medium of communication? Is it -possible that an idea can be transferred from one person to another -by a process such as we have not yet grown accustomed to, and know -practically nothing about? _In this case I have evidence. I assert I -have seen it done, and am perfectly convinced of the fact; many others -are satisfied of the truth, too._ It is, perhaps, a natural consequence -of the community of life or family relationship running through all -living beings. The transmission of life may be likened in some ways -to the transmission of magnetism, and all magnets are sympathetically -connected, so that, if suitably suspended, a vibration from one -disturbs others, even though they be distant 92,000,000 miles. It is -sometimes objected that, granting thought-transference or telepathy to -be a fact, it belongs more especially to lower forms of life, and that -as the cerebral hemispheres develop we become independent of it; that -what we notice is the relic of a decaying faculty, not the germ of a -new and fruitful sense, and that progress is not to be made by studying -or alluding to it. As well might the objection be urged against a study -of embryology. _It may, on the other hand, be an indication of a higher -mode of communication, which shall survive our temporary connection -with ordinary matter._ The whole region is unexplored territory, and it -is conceivable that matter may react on mind in a way we can at present -only dimly imagine.” The italics are mine. - -Thought-Transference and Telepathy may, indeed, be an indication of a -higher mode of communication between human beings after we have severed -our temporary connection with matter. Whether or not, the hope should -repay our study. I have sought in the following pages to briefly define -and illustrate what these phases of communication are. - -Double and Psychic Consciousness, Clairvoyance, natural and induced; -Psychometry, its natural and leading features as a spiritual faculty; -Thought-Transference, visions, dreams, and their _portents_, are in -turn briefly dealt with, in order to extract therefrom some evidence of -_soul_. - -Modern Spiritualism is referred to, in so far as Thought-Reading is -likely to throw any light upon its psychological phases, as well as on -its physical phenomena. - -While attempting to cover so much ground my difficulty was not -what to write, but what not to write, the materials at my disposal -being so abundant. Much has been cut down to get the whole within -reasonable compass. Nevertheless, I hope my readers will find “How to -Thought-Read” a readable contribution to the science of soul. - - JAMES COATES. - - Glenbeg, - Ardbeg, Rothesay, N. B. - - - - -[Illustration: EXPERIMENT IN PSYCHOMETRY.--See Page 60. - -MR. and MRS. COATES.] - - - - -HOW TO THOUGHT-READ. - - - - -CHAPTER I. - -Somnambulism and Psychic Phenomena. - - -Before entering upon the subject of “How to Thought Read”--or rather, -range of interesting subjects grouped under this title--it is proposed -to deal briefly with the key to the whole, which is to be found in the -revelations of man’s inner life, soul-life and character, presented by -somnambulism and trance, whether natural or induced. - -The use of a few simple terms having a well-defined meaning will help -the reader and prepare him for the more careful study of the psychic -side of human life. - -The somnambulistic and trance states may be divided, for the -convenience of examination, into the Hypnotic, or state of hypnosis; -the Mesmeric, or somnambulistic; and the Psychic, or lucid -somnambulistic--or briefly, the Hypnotic, Mesmeric, and Psychic states. - -The operator is the controlling agent, hypnotist, or mesmerist; in -spiritualism, the guide or control. - -The sensitive is the subject, the percipient, psychic, patient, or -person who passes into the hypnotic, mesmeric, or trance states, etc. - -Hypnosis is the term used for the hypnotic state artificially induced -by the agent. Hypnosis is the lowest rung of the ladder; the psychic -or soul state the highest. The intermediate phases, as indicated in -conscious or sub-conscious conditions of life, are innumerable and not -readily classified. Still, the states mentioned will give a favourable -insight to the whole. In hypnosis, physical rather than mental -phenomena are evolved; _anæsthesia_, or non-sensitiveness to pain, is -more or less present. The senses of smell and hearing are partially -exalted, and the sensitive may be partially or wholly unconscious. - -The mesmeric state is the term frequently used to denote ordinary -artificial somnambulism. It is actually the higher or more perfect form -of hypnosis. The senses in this state are more fully submerged, and the -mental faculties are more fully exalted, than in hypnosis. - -The psychic state, as the mesmeric, relates to the mental, and hypnosis -to the more physical, so does the psychic state refer to that class of -extraordinary somnambulism in which the mental and the spiritual gifts -transcend in character and power those of the foregoing states. In this -state the higher phenomena of lucid somnambulism, clairvoyance, and -thought-transference are manifested more perfectly than in any other. - -The hypnotic, the mesmeric, and the psychic states indicated are -frequently interlinked in manifestation. The sensitive may pass from -the first to the last without apparent gradation. It is well to -keep these divisions in thought, so that in practice no one will be -content with the _lower_ where it is possible, by wise and judicious -observations and operations, to induce the higher. - -To make the matter still more clear, in hypnosis and in the mesmeric -state all phenomena may be said to be induced through and by the -influence and the direction of the operator. Not that he produces the -effects as they are exhibited by the sensitive, but they are brought -about through the agency of his suggestions or operations. - -In the psychic state this is not always the case. The influence of -the operator may at times be almost _nil_. The operator will find -it best--when the sensitive is in a high lucid state--to become an -observer and a learner, and no longer continue the _rôle_ of director. - -In the psychic state, the soul-powers, so often submerged in ordinary -life, transcend in a remarkable manner. The senses are completely -suspended and the mind exalted to such a degree, a clearly defined -super-sensuous condition is reached. Whether this stage or condition is -induced by fasting, prayer, disease, or by mesmeric agencies, matters -little. In it we find the key to the seership, and the clairvoyance, -and the prophetic utterance, and the mystic powers attributed to -and exercised by prophet, and seer, and sybil in the past. By the -investigation of the phenomena evolved by the psychic state we are -enabled to understand something of man’s soul or spiritual nature, -apart from the phenomena induced by pathological conditions of brain -and body. - -The foregoing view presented of mesmeric conditions may be very -different from that which medical men may glean from hypnotic practice -with hysterical and lobsided patients, and certainly not the views -which the general public are likely to gather from seeing a number of -paid “subjects” knocked about a music hall stage by an ignorant showman. - -From the roughest to the finest, from matter to spirit, from hypnosis -to the psychic state, we find enough to arrest attention and give -a high degree of seriousness and earnestness to our investigation. -We stand on the threshold of soul, and the place where we stand is -holy ground. We find, as is the physical, mental, and spiritual -characteristics of the operator, _plus_ those of the sensitive or -sensitives, so will be the nature of the phenomena evolved. - -It will be observed some subjects never get beyond the first state, or -hypnosis; others that of the second, or mesmeric. All sensitives, in -keeping with their temperamental and mental developments (as revealed -by phrenology and psychometry), are better adapted for one class of -phenomena than that of others. - -It may be further observed that the foregoing states may be -self-induced or, directly and indirectly, the product of -“spirit-control,” drugs, or bodily disease. Hypnosis, we must bear in -mind, although not unlike the mesmeric state, has no more relation to -that condition than sleep produced by an exhaustive walk or a dose of -laudanum is like natural or healthy sleep. Indeed, hypnosis is not -properly a condition of sleep. In the majority of cases the sensitive -is never wholly unconscious. It is rather a state in which there is a -temporary perversion or subordination between brain impressions and -consciousness. The sensitive in hypnosis is often less intelligent than -in the normal or waking state. - -For various reasons the state of hypnosis may be recognised as that -state in which the mind is subjected to certain abnormal conditions -of the body, notably of the brain, spinal cord, and indirectly of the -circulation, induced by certain means determined upon by the operator. -The mental condition in this state is one of almost pure automatism, in -which hallucination or sense illusions are more or less present. - -Great and serious are the responsibilities of those who bring about the -state of hypnosis. Every thought and feeling, of whatever kind, infused -in this state, like seed, will take root and germinate, and finally -bud into action in the daily or waking consciousness, and determine -unconsciously for the sensitive the character of his life. Hypnotism -is neither for indiscriminate use, nor is hypnosis to be induced as a -plaything for the thoughtless--medical or lay. At the same time, in the -hands of the thoughtful, its educative value is most important, for, -if the operator is well poised, and feels that, he can impart higher -thoughts and strengthen the will[A] of the sensitives by the twofold -agencies of impressionability and suggestion. This is something not to -be despised. It is surely no degradation to be saved from evils one -cannot overcome or resist, unless assisted by external aid, even though -that help can only come by submitting to hypnotism. - -In hypnosis the outer brain of convoluted grey matter is most affected, -being more or less denuded of arterial and nervous stimuli. The power -of conscious, intellectual, and abstract thought is reduced to a -minimum. The organs of the central brain are differently influenced, -as in inverse ratio the stimulation is increased. The eye is more -susceptible to light, or the pupils may become dilated and fixed. -The auditory sense is rendered more keen. The olfactory powers are -intensified, and there is more or less insensibility of feeling. The -powers of co-ordination and locomotion are preserved up to a certain -stage, when these functions are disturbed, all power of voluntary -movement ceases, lethargic and cataleptic symptoms supervene. - -It was by observing, more particularly, hypnosis, Professor Heidenhain -was led to aver “inhibition” actually accounted for all phases of -hypnotism. This opinion has evidently been based on a limited number -of cases. “No inhibition,” says Dr. Drayton, “however ingeniously -applied, will explain all the phenomena of magnetism. If the personal -consciousness, the individuality, of the subject has been lost, and -his state is that of automatism, or rather that of an involuntary -actor, certainly his cerebral functions operate in a manner entirely -distinct from that which is characteristic in his ordinary state. -The inhibition relates to his common order of conduct mentally, while -the super-sensitivity and extraordinary play of faculty that he may -exhibit, indicate a higher phase of sensory activity, more free or -harmonious co-ordination of the cerebral functions. The brakes are off, -hence the phenomena that are frequently observed in the somnambulist, -and awaken wonder, because so much out of keeping with what is known of -his common life.” - -Here we find doctors--experts in hypnotism or mesmerism--agree to -differ. They agree in this, albeit not expressly stated, they are alike -positive and decided in their views, and certainly _without being -positive, there is no possible success as an operator_. - -The mistake they make evidently arises in confounding the two -states (hypnosis and the mesmeric), one with the other. There is no -super-sensitivity, or extraordinary play of faculty in hypnosis, -whatever there may be in the mesmeric state. They are similar, in -that they may be both induced by the reduction of the activity of the -cerebral cortex. - -In hypnosis the mind slumbers and dreams. The dream-life appears as -substantial to the sensitive as the waking life. The life creations, -thus dreamed of, are acted upon, whether they arise from suggestion or -other causes. - -In the mesmeric state the senses slumber, and the mind awakens to a -fuller enfranchisement of existence, and to the exhibition of mental -and spiritual powers not hitherto suspected. - -In the lower stages the increased power of the senses is to be found -in the _intense concentration_ of effort, brought about from the fact -that the subject’s attention is, and his whole energies are, directed -in one line of action or thought, to the exclusion of mind or brain -activity in other directions. Hence all efforts are centred in the -direction suggested by the operator, or self-induced, as suggested by -the “dominant idea.” - -The sensitive exhibits powers of mind and ability of thought which -were not noticeable in the ordinary waking condition. Not because he -really possesses greater powers of mind or body, but because of the -lack of concentration in the waking state. By this concentration of -direction, so called abnormal feats of strength are performed, rigidity -of structure brought about, and other characteristics not peculiar -to common life. In a higher sense, we see the sensitive passing -from this condition of concentration of one-idea-ism to a spiritual -state, in which the phenomena exhibited are no longer the product of -self-dethronement and of suggestion. Higher still, we see the soul -reign supreme. The sensitive possesses a clear consciousness of what -is transpiring at home and abroad, according to the direction of his -psychic powers. - -In the psychic state--the more perfect trance state or control--the -whole mind becomes illumined; past, present, and future become -presentable to the mind of the lucid somnambulist as one great whole. -This higher stage may be reached through the simple processes of -manipulation, and passes as suggested in my little work, “How to -Mesmerise.” - -In the mesmeric state the sensitive passes from the mere automatism of -the earlier stages of hypnosis to the distinct individuality indicated -above, although still more or less influenced or directed by his -controller or operator into the line of thought and train of actions -most desired. - -The difference between the hypnotic and mesmeric states should now be -very clear. In the former the sensitive has no identity, in the latter -his identity is preserved in a clearly individualised form throughout -the whole series of abnormal acts. Whenever the sensitive enters this -condition his personal consciousness is most apparent in the middle and -higher stages. - -In fact, in the mesmeric state, it is very stupid for some operators -to ask the sensitive, “Are you asleep?” It may be understood what is -meant, yet the question is absurd from the standpoint of an intelligent -observer. The sensitive is never more awake. The higher the state the -greater the wakefulness and lucidity of the inner or soul life. - - -THE SIXTH SENSE. - -In the mesmeric state we see developed what Lord Kelvin (Professor -Thomson, of Glasgow University), Drs. Baird, Hammond, and -Drayton call the magnetic sense--or “sixth sense.” It is a gift -of super-sensitiveness. To my mind it is something more, the -enfranchisement of the soul, the human ego--in proportion as the -dominance of the senses is arrested. - -In blindness, it has been noticed how keen the sense of touch becomes. -I have also noticed the keen sensitiveness of facial perception enjoyed -by some of the blind, by which they are enabled to perceive objects in -the absence of physical sight. In the mesmeric state we see a somewhat -analogous mental condition. As the peculiar sense of the blind is -developed by extra concentration of the mind in the direction of facial -perception, so is “the sixth sense” developed by concentration of -direction, as well as by the condition of sensitiveness induced by the -mesmeric state. - -This newly recognised sense, “the sixth sense,” not only answers the -purpose of sight and hearing, but transcends all senses in vividness -and power. Materialists, no longer able to ignore the phenomena of -somnambulism and trance, and compelled to admit man’s avenues of -knowledge in this life were not confined to the recognised five senses, -are good enough to give him a “sixth sense,” even while they deny -him a soul. In the same way, no longer able to deny the existence -of mesmerism, they now admit it to consideration--re-baptised as -hypnotism. The phenomena being admitted, we will not quarrel over the -names by which they are called. - - -PSYCHIC-CONSCIOUSNESS. - -As we advance in our investigations we find in the higher conditions -of these states a double or treble consciousness or memory. The higher -including and overlapping the lower. Thus the consciousness of the -hypnotic state includes that of the waking state, while the memory -of the waking state possesses no conscious recollection of what has -taken place in hypnosis, and so on, each stage has its own phases -of consciousness. The memory of the sensitive, under influence, -overlapping and including the memory of ordinary or normal life. - -Strange as it may appear, there are no phenomena which have been -evolved in any of these abnormal conditions of life, which have not -been observed again and again in ordinary or normal life, as well -authenticated instances of dreams, warnings, and telepathy testify. - -Dr. Richardson notwithstanding, “in dreams and visions of the night” -God has manifested himself to man in all ages. In other words, the -soul (in sleep and analogous states to somnambulism and trance) comes -more in touch with the sub-conscious or soul sphere of thought and -existence. At times there is an inrush from that sphere into our -present conscious state, by which we know of things which could not -otherwise be known. Of dreams, our space will not admit more than -occasional reference, we may mention as a case in point the dream of -Mrs. Donan, wife of the livery stableman from whom Dr. Cronin hired -his horse in Chicago. A week before Dr. Cronin was murdered this lady -had a dream-vision, and dreamt he was barbarously murdered, and saw in -a vision the whole terrible scene. This dream was a means, first, of -forewarning the doctor, and second, of leading to the detection of the -miscreants. - -Of premonitions, an incident reported in the _Register_ of Adelaide, -will suffice:--“Constable J. C. H. Williams has reported to -headquarters that he had an unpleasant experience at about midnight -on Monday. He was on duty at the government offices in King William -Street, and while standing at the main entrance he had a presentiment -that he was in danger, and walked away a few steps. Scarcely had he -moved from the spot, when a portion of the cornice work at the top of -the building fell with a crash on the place where he had been standing. -The piece of plaster must have weighed fully a stone, and had it struck -Williams the result would doubtless have been fatal. A passer-by saw -the constable a few minutes after, and his scared looks and agitated -manner clearly showed that his story was true.” Concerning telepathy, -Mrs. Andrew Crosse, the distinguished widow of the famous electrician, -relates in _Temple Bar_ an anecdote about the late Bishop Wilberforce, -to the effect, the Bishop was writing a dry business letter one day, -when a feeling of acute mental agony overcame him and he felt that some -evil had befallen his favourite son, a midshipman in the navy. The -impression was correct. On that very day the lad, who was with his ship -in the Pacific, had been wounded and nearly bled to death. When this -was told Hallam, the historian, he replied that a very similar thing -had happened to himself. A few cases are noted further on. Some persons -would repudiate _all_ such incidents as accidents or coincidences; -while others would fly to the extreme, and declare all such are the -result of “spirit control”--that is, some disembodied but friendly -spirit projected the dream, conveyed the warning, or telepathically -despatched the news. But we must never forget news has to be received -as well as despatched. Consequently, we, as embodied spirits, must -possess psychic consciousness. - -I believe that _much_ of the phenomena, directly and indirectly -attributed to disincarnate spirit control, are traceable to _no other -source_ than the powers of our own embodied spirits, as revealed by -the facts of somnambulism and trance, and this is the opinion of all -intelligent spiritualists. - -“Because,” says Mr. G. H. Stebbins, a prominent investigator of modern -spiritualism in the United States “a person quotes from books he never -saw, or _tells of what he never knew_ in any external way, that is not -final proof that he is under an external spirit control. Psychometry -and clairvoyance may sometimes solve it all.” - -“I hold,” says Mr. Myers, “that telepathy and clairvoyance do, in fact, -exist--telepathy, a communication between incarnate mind and incarnate -mind, and perhaps between incarnate minds and minds unembodied; -clairvoyance, a knowledge of things terrene which over-passes the -limits of ordinary perception, and which, perhaps, achieves an insight -with some other than terrene world.” - -These are the cautious admissions of eminent investigators in psychical -research. - - -DOUBLE OR SUB-CONSCIOUSNESS. - -“There are two sets,” says Dr. Brown-Sequard, “a double state of mental -powers in the human organism, essentially differing from each other. -The one may be designated as ordinary conscious intelligence; the -other, a superior power, which controls our better nature.” - -J. Balfour Brown, in his “Medical Jurisprudence,” says:--“In no case -of pure somnambulism, waking consciousness of the individual knows -anything of the sleeping consciousness. It is as if there were two -distinct memories.” - -This double-consciousness, memory, or sub-state of mental powers, is -another but lower phase of psychic-consciousness, and is sometimes -exhibited by accidents, and also by disease. - -Dr. Abercromby relates the case of a boy, four years old who was -trepanned for a fracture of the skull. He was in a _complete stupor_ -during the operation, and was not conscious of what took place. At -fifteen he became seriously ill of fever. In the delirium occasioned -by the fever, he gave a correct description of the operation, _and of -all the persons present, their dress_, manners, and actions, to the -minutest particulars. The “superior power” must have obtained this -knowledge in some other way than through the ordinary channels of the -outward senses. - -In cases of apparent drowning, where the person has been saved from -death by active, external help, we have been informed that the human -mind has worked with a rapidity of action not thought possible in the -waking state, the intensity of menial action being increased in adverse -ratio to the inaction of the external senses and consciousness. In -this state the career of a lifetime has been reviewed, conversations, -actions, persons seen and places visited, all vividly brought to -mind--in possibly less time than it takes to pen this paragraph. These -phenomena suggest the reflection that the daily waking life--sensuous -and worldly-minded--is possibly, to many, the least real and effective. -How much our external life is influenced by our unconscious (to us in -the waking state) sub-life, is an interesting problem. - -Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes says:--“The more we examine the mechanism -of thought, the more we shall see that the automatic and unconscious -action of the mind enters largely into all its processes. We _all_ have -a _double_ who is wiser and better than we, who puts thoughts into our -heads and words into our mouths.” - -A commercial gentleman of my acquaintance, who was rather sceptical -on the subject of double-consciousness--although, “notwithstanding,” -he said, “Mr. Stead, in the _Review of Reviews_, had turned an -honest penny out of ghosts, double-consciousness, and that sort of -rubbish”--admitted to me, he had a maid, who had an awkward habit of -rising in her sleep, carefully setting the fires, cleaning and dusting -out the rooms, setting the breakfast table, and doing many other things -which appeared important to the servant-mind. Her movements were -watched. She slipped about with eyes closed, avoiding obstacles, and -doing her work systematically and neatly, and without fuss, when done, -she would go to bed. In the morning she had no recollection of what she -had said or done. It was a curious thing, he had to admit. The girl -was honest enough. He was certain this habit had not been simulated. -Threats of discharge, and possible loss of wages, did not cure her of -this habit. There was a certain form of “double consciousness” in this -case. - -“The subliminal consciousness” of Mr. Myers, by which he accounts for -the phenomena of genius, is but another way of expressing the concept -of an “identity underlying all consciousness,” the psyche, the real “I, -me,” “the superior power which directs and controls our better nature,” -the “double who is wiser and better than we,” the reality of which is -so much hidden from our ordinary experience, because our soul-life is -so much buried out of sight by the _débris_ of the “things of this -life,” which, fortunately or otherwise, pre-occupy so much of our -attention. - -It is this “subliminal consciousness” we see manifested in the psychic -state, and natural somnambulism. Clairvoyance, psychometry, thought -transference, etc., are as so many spectrum rays of the one soul light. -Call them “subliminal” if you will. These rays flow out from the soul, -and are many-hued, distinct or blurred, according to the degree of -pureness or super-sensitivity of the external corporeal prism through -which they are projected. - -Persons have lived for years, we are credibly informed, who have -spent half their lives entranced, _in the alternation of two distinct -individualities_ or two distinct states of consciousness, in one of -which they forget all they had learned or did in the other. - -Professor Huxley described (British Association of Science, Belfast, -1874) a case in which two separate lives, a normal, and abnormal one, -seemed to be lived at intervals by the same individual during the -greater portion of her life. - -The conclusion to the whole matter is--the psychic, or soul-powers in -some persons are less entrammelled by the senses than in others; that a -high degree of organic sensitiveness always accompanies those who are -recognised as psychics or sensitives; that this state of sensitiveness -is natural to some, and in others may be developed by accident, -disease, or induced by somnambulism and trance. - -I will endeavour to show these psychic characteristics, or soul -gifts, underlie, and enter into the varied phenomena--clairvoyance, -psychometry, thought transference, thought-reading, and what not, which -are collated under the title of, - - “HOW TO THOUGHT-READ.” - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -Clairvoyance. - - -What is clairvoyance? “The term, clairvoyance,” says Dr. George -Wyld, in a paper read before the Psychical Research Society, London, -“is French, and means _clear-seeing_, but it appears to me to be -an inadequate term, because it might signify clear optical vision, -or clear mental vision. What is signified by the term is the power -which certain individuals possess of seeing external objects under -circumstances which render the sight of these objects impossible to -physical optics. In short, by clairvoyance, we mean the power which -the _mind_ has of seeing or knowing thoughts and psychical conditions, -and objects hidden from or beyond the reach of the physical senses; -and if the existence of this faculty can be established, we arrive -at a demonstration that man has a power within his body as yet -unrecognised by physical science--a power which is called soul, or -mind-seeing, and for the description of such a power the term might -be auto-nocticy (αυτονοητικος), or psychoscopy.” Psychoscopy, or soul -sight, would, perhaps, be the better term. I propose to use the old -term--clairvoyance--as it signifies, in popular usage, the power of -seeing beyond the range of physical vision, as we know it. - -That certain persons are endowed with this faculty of clear seeing--in -some of its various phases--is a matter settled beyond dispute. What -special name to call this faculty, or what are the true causes of -its existence; why it should be possessed by some persons and not by -others; why it should be so frail and fugitive in the presence of -some people, and strong and vivid before others; why some persons -are never clairvoyant until they have been through the mesmeric and -psychic states; why some become possessed of the faculty through -disease; while, with others, the gift of clairvoyance appears to be -a spontaneous possession; and why some operators are successful in -inducing clairvoyance, and others not, etc., are interesting questions -to which the student of psychology may, with advantage, direct his -attention. - -Clairvoyance is soul-sight--the power of the soul to see. It is -the state of refined psychic perception. This state increases in -lucidity--clearness and power of penetration--in proportion as the -activity of the physical senses are reduced below normal action. It -is observed to be most effective in the trance state--natural or -induced--as in the mesmeric and psychic states. I conclude, then, -clairvoyance depends upon the unfolding of the spirit’s perception, and -is increased in power as the ascendency of the spirit arises above the -activities of the spirit’s corporeal envelope--the body. In proportion -to the spirit’s ascendency over the organs and senses of the body, is -this psychic gift perfect or imperfect. - -The large brain or cerebrum is the physical organ of the soul, as the -cerebellum is of the physiological brain functions. Mental functions -are manifested by the former, and physical functions by the latter. - -Clairvoyance, as a spiritual faculty, will doubtless have its -appropriate organ in the brain. I do not profess to locate that organ. -At the same time I have noticed the best clairvoyants are wide and full -between the eyes, showing there is a particular fulness of the frontal -cerebral lobes, at their juncture at the root of the nose. This may -be something more than a mere physiognomic sign. When this sign is -accompanied by refinement of organisation, and a fine type of brain, I -always look for the possible manifestation of clairvoyance in mesmeric -subjects. - -Some writers are of the opinion clairvoyance is actually soul-sight, -more or less retarded in lucidity by the action or activity of -the bodily senses. Others believe it to be a state arising from a -peculiar highly-strained nervous condition, which induces the state -of super-sensitivity or impressionability of the organisation. The -first may be termed the spiritual, and the latter the physiological -hypothesis. But, as a matter of fact, both conditions are noted. The -latter may account for much, and possibly is sufficient to explain much -that is called thought-reading--so often mistaken for clairvoyance. -It does appear to me that certain peculiar physiological conditions, -varying from semi-consciousness to profound trance, are necessary -for the manifestation of clairvoyance, even when it takes place in -apparently normal life of the possessor. - -It is more than likely that the ornate and mystic ceremonies indulged -in by Hindoo mystics, Egyptian, Grecian, and Roman priests, had -the one grand end in view--viz., to induce the requisite state of -super-sensitivity, and thus prepare the consecrated youths, sybils, -and vestal virgins for the influx of spiritual vision, prophecy, and -what not. When this subtle influx came--by whatever name called--the -phenomena manifested were pretty much the same as we know them, only -varied in degree. The gods spoke per oracle, Pythean, or Delphic. The -man of God either coronated a king or foretold the end of a dynasty. -St. Stephen saw Christ, St. John beheld visions, Joan of Arc was -directed, Swedenborg illumined, and religious ecstatics in ancient and -modern times partook more or less of the sacred fire--the inner sight. -This (stripped of the fantastic surroundings, priestly mummeries, -and dominant belief of the times) simply indicated the evolution and -exercise of clairvoyance and other psychic gifts. - -Coming nearer home, we hear of the mysterious visions at the Knock, -and at Lourdes. Miraculous appearances of the Virgin and winged -angels, to cheer the hearts of the faithful, and to cause the heads -of the scornful to rejoice in sceptical derision. Then we have all the -vagaries produced by the high nervous tension of modern revivalism, in -which the visions seen are but a transformation of church and chapel -dogmas into objective realities. These illusionary visions--mistaken -for clairvoyance--possess less reality than the delusive fancies of the -sensitive in the state of hypnosis. - -Clairvoyance will be governed by its own spiritual laws, just as sight -is affected or retarded by physical conditions. What these spiritual -laws are we can only surmise, but this we may safely conjecture--viz., -that soul-sight is not trammelled or limited by the natural laws which -govern physical optics. Clairvoyance and physical vision are absolutely -distinct, and possess little in common. - -To illustrate a new subject, it is permissible to draw upon the -old and the well-known. So I venture to illustrate clairvoyance by -certain facts in connection with ordinary human vision. Although some -children see better than others, the power to see, with the ability -to understand the relative positions and uses of the things seen, is -a matter of development. In psychic vision, we also see growth or -development, with increasing power to use and understand the faculty. -Some children are blind from birth, and others, seeing, lose the power -of sight. Many are _blind_, although they have physical sight, they see -not with _the educated eye_. Many, again, have greater powers of sight -than they are aware of. As so it is with psychic vision. - -What is true of the physical is also true of the psychic. From the -first glimmerings, to the possession of well-defined sight, a period -of growth and time elapses. From the first incoherent cry of infancy -to well defined and intelligent speech of manhood, we notice the same -agencies at work. Not only is clairvoyant vision generally imperfect -at first, but the psychic’s powers of description are also at fault. -St. Paul could not give utterance to what he saw, when caught up to -the third heavens. His knowledge of things and powers of speech failed -him to describe the startling, the new, and the unutterable. He had -a sudden revelation of the state of things in a sphere which had no -counterparts in his previous experience, in this--his known--world. -Hence, although he knew of his change of state, he could give no lawful -or intelligible expression to his thoughts. - -Between the first incongruous utterances, and apparent fantastic -blunderings, and the more mature period in which “things spiritual” can -be suitably described in our language, to our right sense of things, or -comprehension, a period of development and education must elapse. It is -true some clairvoyants develop much more readily than others. - -In the entrancement of the mesmeric and psychic states, there is a -lack of external consciousness. The soul is so far liberated from -the body as to act independently of the ordinary sensuous conditions -of the body, and sees by the perception and light of the inner or -spiritual world, as distinct from the perception and light of this -external or physical world. Elevated, or rather, liberated into this -new condition, the clairvoyant loses connection with the thrums and -threads of the physical organism, and is unable, or forgets for a -time, how to speak of things as they are, or as they would appear -to the physical vision of another. It is not surprising that in the -earlier stages of clairvoyant development, and consequent transfer of -ordinary consciousness and sensuous perception to that of spiritual -consciousness and perception, the language of the clairvoyant should -appear peculiar, incongruous, and “wanting,” according to our ideas of -clearness and precision. - -One important lesson may be learned from this--viz., the operator -should never force results, or strive to develop psychic perception by -short cuts. Time must be allowed to the sensitive, for training and -experience, and the development of self-confidence and expression. - -Clairvoyance is not a common possession. Nevertheless, I believe there -are many persons who possess the faculty unknown to themselves. By -following out patiently, for a time, the requisite directions, the -possession of this invaluable psychic gift might be discovered by many -who now appear totally devoid of any clairvoyant indications. Its -cultivation is possible and, in many ways, desirable. - -“The higher attainment,” says Dr. John Hamlin Davey, “of occult -knowledge and power, the development of intuition, the psychometric -sense, clairvoyant vision, inner hearing, etc., etc., thus reached, -so open the avenues to a higher education, and enlarge the boundaries -of human consciousness and activity, as to fairly dwarf into -insignificance the achievements of external science.” - -Clairvoyance is as old as mankind, but the exhibition of clairvoyance, -induced by mesmeric processes, was first announced by Puysegeur, a -favourite pupil of Mesmer, in 1784. Since that time to the present -not only have remarkable cases of clairvoyance cropped up, but there -have been few mesmerists of any experience who have not had numerous -cases under observation. Clairvoyance converted Dr. John Elliotson, -F.R.S., one of the most scientific of British physicians, from extreme -materialistic views to that of belief in soul and immortality. The -same may be said of the late Dr. Ashburner, who was one of the -Queen’s physicians. Dr. Georget, author of “Physiology of the Nervous -System,”--who was at one time opposed to a belief in the existence of a -transcendental state in man,--found upon examination of the facts and -incidents of artificial somnambulism, that _his materialism must go_. -In his last will and testament, referring to the above-mentioned work, -he says:--“This work had scarcely appeared, when renewed meditations -on a very extraordinary phenomenon, somnambulism, no longer permitted -me to entertain doubts of the existence within us, and external to -us, of an intelligent principle, altogether different from material -existences; in a word, of the soul and God. With respect to this I -have a profound conviction, founded upon facts which I believe to be -incontestable.” Dr. Georget directed this change of opinion should have -full publicity after his death. - -Space would not suffice me to mention the names of all the highly -educated and refined minds, in the medical, literary, philosophic, -and scientific walks of life, who have studied these phenomena, and -who, like Dr. Georget, have no more doubts of their reality than they -have of their own physical existence, status, or reputation. Among -medical men--some of whom I have known and corresponded with--might be -mentioned Sir James Simpson, Drs. Elliotson, Ashburner, Esdaile, Buss, -Garth Wilkinson, Hands, Wyld, Hitchman, Eadon, and Davey. Among others -on the roll of fame, might be noticed Archbishop Whately; Earls Ducie, -Stanhope, Macclesfield, Charleville; the present Duke of Argyle; Lord R. -Cavendish, Lord Lindsay; Burton, the traveller; and the late Sergeant -Cox. Among literary men, Mr. Gladstone, Britain’s foremost statesman -and scholar; Mr. Balfour, his able and talented opponent; Bulwer -Lytton, Marryat, Neal, Robert Chambers, Dickens, and Stevenson, of “Dr. -Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” fame. Mr. George Combe, the distinguished Scottish -metaphysician, philosopher, author, phrenologist, etc., was profoundly -interested in the phenomena. Among well-known men of science might -be mentioned Camille Flammarion, the French astronomer; Fichte, the -German philosopher; Professors Tornebom and Edland, Swedish physicists; -Professor Oliver Lodge, D.Sc., F.R.S.; Alfred Russell Wallace, -D.C.L., LL.D.; William Crookes, F.R.S.; Cromwell F. Varley, F.R.S. -Notwithstanding this somewhat formidable array of investigators of -clairvoyance, many good people will not hesitate to deny the value of -such evidence, and yet will believe anything in its favour which may be -found in the Bible, as to its existence in the _past_. It is a strange -perversion of judgment--not at all surprising--when the majority take -(second-hand) for their religious(?) views whatever is recognised as -“sound” in each particular district and Church. It is not a question of -belief, it is “a question of evidence,” as Mr. Gladstone avers. - -The Rev. Mr. MʽKinnon, late pastor of Chalmers’ Free Church, Glasgow, -told me a short time ago, “Clairvoyance was nothing more than a high -nervous concentrated form of mental vision,” to which I replied, -“Admitting the hypothesis--which, however, explained nothing--it -matters little what clairvoyance is esteemed to be or called, if the -facts connected with it are acknowledged.” Even this friend admitted -he knew a man in Mull, who lived on the half croft, next to his -father’s croft. This man had great repute in that district as “having -the Second Sight.” Whatever this man foretold always came to pass. -One instance will suffice. He (Mr. MʽKinnon) remembered that one day, -while this crofter (who was a tailor by trade) was working, he suddenly -stopped, and looked _out into vacancy_--as he always did when the -“Second Sight was on him”--and described a funeral coming over the -hill, the mourners, who they were, and numbers, the way the procession -took, and the name of the “man whose face was covered,” and finally, -when the procession would appear. Mr. MʽKinnon’s parents noted the -time, and being simple Highland folk, accustomed to the accuracy of -this man’s visions, they believed what he said, and kept his saying -in their hearts till the time of fulfilment came about. Mr. MʽKinnon -assured me “the funeral took place to the day and hour, twelve months -subsequently to the vision, as predicted.” All I can say is, if “a high -nervous concentrated form of mental vision” is capable of pointing out -all this, it is worthy of investigation. It is evident this tailor at -least had a power of vision--prevoyance--not of the ordinary, everyday -kind of vision. Second sight, as exhibited in this case, is what may be -termed spontaneous clairvoyance. - -Epes Sargent, in his work, “The Scientific Basis of Spiritualism,” -referring to clairvoyance, says: “As far as I have admitted it as part -of a scientific basis (demonstrating man’s spiritual nature), it is the -exercise of the supersensual faculty of penetrating opaque and dense -matter as if by the faculty of sight. But it does more. It detects -our unuttered, undeveloped thoughts; it goes back along the past, and -describes what is hidden; nay, the proofs are overwhelming that it may -pierce the future, and predict coming events from the shadows they cast -before. - -“What is it that sees without the physical eyes, and without the -assistance of light? What is normal sight? It is not the vibrating -ether--it is not the external eye--that sees. It is the soul using the -eye as an instrument, and light as a condition. Prove once that sight -can exist without the use of light, sensation, or any physical organ of -vision, and you prove an abnormal, supersensual, spiritual faculty--a -proof which puts an end to the theory of materialism, and which, -through its affinity with analogous or corresponding facts, justifies -its introduction as part of a scientific basis for the spiritual -theory.” - -J. F. Deleuze was profoundly convinced of the existence of this -faculty. He claimed that the power of seeing at a distance, prevision, -and the transference of thought without the aid of external signs, were -in themselves sufficient proofs of the existence of spirituality of -soul. - -Except in a very few instances, little or no pains are taken to -cultivate the spiritual nature of man. Civilised man of to-day is -but rising out of the age of brute force of yesterday, and he is -still circumscribed by love of earthly power and position. He is an -acquisitive rather than a spiritual being. Being dominated by the -senses, he will naturally seek and appreciate that which gratifies -his senses most. He has little time or patience for anything which -does not contribute pleasure to his sensuous nature. He would give -time to the investigation of the soul side of life if it brought gold, -the means of enjoyment, and gratified his acquisitiveness and love of -power. Probably the majority give the subject no attention at all. If -the spiritual side of our natures were as fully cultivated as those -elements which bring us bread and butter and praise of men in the -market-place, there is no doubt, no manner of doubt whatever, but the -most of us would occupy a nobler and more spiritually elevated plane in -life; and were adequate means taken, I doubt not but this faculty of -clairvoyance would become more generally known and cultivated. Even to -the selfish, worldly and non-spiritual man, clairvoyance is not without -its practical side and utility, such, for instance, as supplying -Chicago with water. To the spiritually minded, clairvoyance and all -psychic gifts are appreciated, less for what they will bring, than for -the testimony they present of man’s spiritual origin, transcendental -powers and probable continuity of life beyond this mortal vale. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -Clairvoyance Illustrated. - - -Clairvoyance may be briefly classified as far and near, direct -and indirect, objective and subjective. I propose to give a few -well-authenticated cases to illustrate these phases in this chapter. - - -FAR AND DIRECT CLAIRVOYANCE - -is possibly the highest and purest combination. The sensitive is able -to state facts not within the range of the knowledge of those present. -Thus when Swedenborg described to the Queen and her friends, when at a -distance of several hundred miles from the conflagration, the burning -of her palace at Christiania, no one present could possibly know of the -fire or the incidents connected therewith. Hence no thought-reading, -brain-picking, much less guess-work or coincidence, could account -for the exactness of details given by the seer. Clairvoyance in this -case was not only far and direct, but objective. That is, the matter -recorded was connected with the physical or objective plane. - - -CLAIRVOYANCE AN AID TO SCIENCE. - -“Chicago, as is well-known, is one of the most go-ahead cities in the -world. Like Jonah’s gourd it appeared to spring up in a night. Its -population rapidly increased, and water soon became a _sine qua non_, -both as regards use and luxury. Science was at fault; for geologists -had pronounced that there could be no water beneath such a strata. Top -water was all that could be looked for, and presently a water company -was formed to supply this impure kind of liquid. - -“There happened to live at this time in Chicago a person named Abraham -James, a simple-minded man, of Quaker descent, uneducated, and in fact, -quite an ignorant person. It was discovered by a Mrs. Caroline Jordon -that James was a natural clairvoyant, in fact a medium, and that he -had declared when put into the trance condition that both water and -petroleum, in large quantities, would be found in a certain tract of -land in the neighbourhood of the city. For a long time no attention -was paid to his statements. At length two gentlemen from Maine, called -Whitehead and Scott, coming to Chicago on business, and hearing what -had been said by Abraham James, had him taken to the land where he -said water could be had in immense quantities by boring for. Being -entranced, James at once pointed out the very spot. He told them that -he not only saw the water, but could trace its source from the Rocky -Mountains, 2000 miles away, to the spot on which they stood, and -could sketch out on maps the strata and caverns through which it ran. -Negotiations were at once entered into for the purchase of the land, -and the work of boring was commenced. This was in February, 1864, and -the process went on daily till November, when, having reached a depth -of 711 feet, water was struck, and flowed up at once at the rate of -600,000 gallons every 24 hours. - -“The borings showed the following kinds of strata passed through by the -drill, and this was spiritually seen and described by the clairvoyant -as practical proofs to the senses of other people. First the drill -passed through alluvium soil, 100 feet; limestone, saturated with oil, -35 feet, which would burn as well as any coal; Joliet marble, 100 -feet; conglomerate strata of sand and flint, mixed with iron pyrites -and traces of copper, 125 feet; rock (shale) saturated with petroleum, -the sediment coming up like putty, thick and greasy, 156 feet; galena -limestone was next reached at a depth of 530 feet; a bed of limestone, -containing flint and sulphuret of iron was bored through, the depth -being 639 feet, and being very hard, the work went on slowly. At this -point there appeared a constant commotion arising from the escape -of gas, the water suddenly falling from 30 to 60 feet, and then as -suddenly rising to the surface, carrying with it chippings from the -drill, and other matters. The work still went on; when at the depth of -711 feet the arch of the rock was penetrated, and the water suddenly -burst forth from a bore 4½ in. at the bottom, of a temperature of 58° -F., clear as crystal, pure as diamond, and perfectly free from every -kind of animal and vegetable matter, and which, for drinking purposes -and health, is much better adapted than any water yet known, and will -turn out to be the poor man’s friend for all time to come. - -“Here, then, is a huge fact for the faithless: the fact brought to -light by dynamic or invisible agency, and which no power of negation -can gainsay. Natural science said, No water could be found; but -psychology said--False, for I will point out the spot where it will -flow in splendid streams as long as the earth spins on its axis. Since -1864 the artesian well of Chicago has poured forth water at the rate -of a million and a half gallons daily; and what is economic, to say -nothing of Yankee shrewdness, it is conveyed into ponds or reservoirs -which in winter freeze, producing 40,000 tons of ice for sale, and -which might be quadrupled at any time.”[B] This is a case of far and -near, direct and objective clairvoyance. This historical incident -proves the value and reality of psychic vision. - -Indirect clairvoyance is the power of discerning what may be more or -less in the minds of those present, including absent or forgotten -thoughts and incidents. Thus, when a clairvoyant describes a place with -accuracy, recognised by some one present to be correct, and also gives -details partly known and unknown, but afterwards found to be correct, -this mixture of phases may be recognised as indirect. - - -SUBJECTIVE CLAIRVOYANCE - -is that phase which enables the sensitive to perceive things and -ideas on the spiritual or subjective plane. The late Rev. Stainton -Moses, well known in literary circles as “M.A., Oxon,” once asked the -following pertinent questions:--“Is there conceivably a mass of life -all round us of which most of us have no cognisance? One gifted lady -I know sees clairvoyantly the spirit-life of all organised things, -of a tree or plant for example. I have heard her describe what her -interior faculties perceive. Is it a fact that spirit, underlying -everything, can be so perceived by the awakened faculties?” I should -say yes. If this lady’s clairvoyance has been of a high order in other -respects--why not in this? This type of psychic vision is of the -subjective order. - -There are necessarily an infinite variety of phases, pure and mixed, -which the investigator will meet in practice. These phases may be -called _far_, such as seeing objects, etc., at a distance--prevoyance, -predicting events; retrovoyance, reading the past; introvoyance, -seeing internally, or examining bodies, as in disease; external -introvoyance, seeing into lockets, packets, letters, safes, and -discovering hidden, known or forgotten, or lost objects. Lastly, there -is pseudo-clairvoyance. For one case of direct there are hundreds -of well authenticated cases of indirect clairvoyance, and again for -one of the latter there are thousands of pseudo-clairvoyance, which -are the outcome of states similar to hypnosis, and are nothing more -than an incongruous medley of suggested ideas and fancies. Thus a -strong and positive willed person can impinge his ideas through -the thought-atmosphere of the sensitive and distort or deflect the -psychic vision, and render abortive any attempts to get beyond the -circle of the dominating influence. Again, the sensitive may enter -a realm of fancy--a veritable dreamland of coherent and incoherent -ideation, either the product of the sensitive’s own condition, or of -suggestion--accidental, spontaneous, and determined--in the sensitive’s -surroundings. Of course any classification of the numerous phases of -clairvoyance must be purely arbitrary. - - -DIRECT AND OBJECTIVE CLAIRVOYANCE--LOST GOODS RESTORED. - -This instance of far vision is taken from “A Tangled Yarn,” page 173, -“Leaves from Captain James Payn’s Log,” which was published recently -by C. H. Kelly. As I knew Captain Hudson, of Swansea, personally, and -heard from his own lips the following incident, I have much pleasure -in introducing it here as a further illustration of the _Cui bono_ of -clairvoyance:-- - -“The _Theodore_ got into Liverpool the same day as the _Bland_. She was -a larger ship than ours but had a similar cargo. The day that I went -to the owners to report ‘all right,’ I met with Captain Morton in a -terrible stew because he was thirty bales of cotton short, a loss equal -to the whole of his own wages and the mate’s into the bargain. He was -so fretted over it that his wife in desperation recommended him to get -the advice of a Captain Hudson, who had a young female friend clever as -a clairvoyant. We were both sceptical in the matter of clairvoyance. At -first Morton didn’t wish to meddle, he said, with ‘a parcel of modern -witchcraft,’ and that sort of thing; but he at last yielded to his -wife’s urgency and consented to go. There was first of all a half-crown -fee to Captain Hudson, and then the way was clear for an interview with -the young clairvoyant. I was present to ‘see fair.’ When the girl had -been put into the clairvoyant state Morton was instructed to take her -right hand in his right hand and ask her any questions he wished. The -replies were in substance as follows:--She went back mentally to the -port whence the _Theodore_ had sailed, retracing with her hand as she -in words also described the course of the ship from Liverpool across -the Atlantic, through the West Indian group, etc., back to New Orleans. -At length she said, ‘Yes, this is the place where the cotton was lost; -it’s put on board a big black ship with a red mark round it.’ Then she -began to trace with her hand and describe the homeward course of the -vessel, but after re-crossing the Atlantic, instead of coming up the -Irish Channel for Liverpool, she turned along the English Channel as -though bound for the coast of France; and then stretching out her hand -she exclaimed, ‘Oh, here’s the cotton; but what funny people they are; -they don’t talk English.’ Captain Morton said at once, ‘I see; it’s -the _Brunswick_, Captain Thomas,’ an American ship that lay alongside -of him at New Orleans and was taking in her cargo of cotton while the -_Theodore_ was loading, and was bound for Havre de Grace. Captain -Morton, satisfied with his clairvoyant’s information, went home and -wrote immediately to Captain Thomas, inquiring for his lost cargo. -In due course he got an answer that the cotton was certainly there, -that it had been taken off the wharf in mistake, and that it was about -to be sold for whomsoever it might concern; but that if he (Captain -Morton) would remit a certain amount to cover freight and expenses -the bales should be forwarded to him at once. He did so, and in due -time received the cotton, subject only to the expenses of transit from -Havre to Liverpool. Such are the facts; I do not profess to offer any -explanation.” - - -CLAIRVOYANCE AN AID TO THE PHYSICIAN. - -I am indebted to Dr. George Wyld for this case, which also exhibits -the value of clairvoyance. Dr. Wyld had the good fortune to make the -acquaintance of a Mrs. D----, a lady in private life who was endowed -with the gift of natural clairvoyance. Dr. Wyld told this lady of “a -friend who had for years suffered intense agony for hours every night -in his back and chest, and that latterly he had been obliged to sit up -all night in a chair, and his legs began to swell.” - -“This gentleman had regularly for three years been under many of the -leading physicians of London. Some said that there must be some obscure -heart affection, others said it was neuralgia, one said it was gout, -and the last consulted said it was malignant caries of the spine.” - -Dr. Wyld’s friend called upon him by appointment, and met Mrs. D----. -This lady merely looked at him. When he had retired from the room Mrs. -D---- made the following statement of his case to the doctor:--“I have -seen what the disease is; I saw it as distinctly as if the body were -transparent. There is a tumour behind the heart, about the size of a -walnut; it is of a dirty colour; and it jumps and looks as if it would -burst. Nothing can do him any good but entire rest.” - -“I at once saw,” says Dr. Wyld, what she meant, and sat down to write -to my friend’s medical attendant as follows:-- - -“I believe I have discovered the nature of Mr.----’s disease. He has -an aneurism on the descending aorta, about the size of a walnut. It -is this which causes the slight displacement which has been observed -in the heart, and the pressure of the tumour against the intercostal -nerves is the cause of the agony in the back, and the peripheral pains -in the front of the chest. You are going to-morrow to see Sir ---- in -consultation; show him this diagnosis, and let me know what he says.” - -“Next the patient had the consultation, and Mrs. D----’s diagnosis -was confirmed; and the doctors agreed with Mrs. D---- the only thing -to be done was to take entire rest. The treatment was duly followed -up, with successful results.” Dr. Wyld thoughtfully adds--“It is true -that the diagnosis cannot be absolutely confirmed during life, but as -the profession unanimously pronounce the disease to be aneurism, the -diagnosis may be accepted as correct. This diagnosis has probably saved -the gentleman’s life, as before Mrs. D---- saw him he was allowed to -shoot over Scotch moors, and to ride, drive, and play billiards.” - -The use of clairvoyance in the diagnosis of disease is by no means -as rare as the majority of physicians and the general public would -naturally assume. I have had many opportunities of witnessing the -accuracy of diagnosis and the excellence of the methods of treatment -advised by clairvoyants. In my own personal experience I have had much -evidence of correctness of clairvoyance in diagnosis, and subsequent -success in treatment. It is a phase most desirable to cultivate if -possible, and all allied conditions connected therewith. - - -TRAVELLING CLAIRVOYANCE. - -As a public entertainer at one time, giving demonstrations of mesmeric -phenomena, I have had naturally many opportunities of seeing different -types of clairvoyance. During a course of entertainments given by -me in Rothesay, 1881, I was able to introduce clairvoyance to public -notice by the most difficult method, that of public experiments. - -M. C., the clairvoyante, was a native of Newcastle-on-Tyne. All her -clairvoyant experiments were satisfactory. Her husband was also a -clairvoyant, but not so striking for public exhibition. M. C. seemed -to possess all phases. One or two experiments out of many will be -interesting not only as illustrative of clairvoyance, but because what -I relate can be easily ratified. - -M. C. arrived in Rothesay for the first time about four hours -previously to taking her seat upon the platform, in the New Public -Halls. It was neither possible nor probable she could have obtained the -information she possessed by other than psychic means. The clairvoyant -was mesmerised and blindfolded before the audience. After some -experiments in objective clairvoyance were given, such as describing -a watch, telling the time, and the number, by having the watch held -silently over her forehead, she gave several experiments in travelling -clairvoyance. Many visitors in the hall--for Rothesay is a well known -and fashionable seaside resort--sent up requests to the platform, and -desired the clairvoyante should visit their homes in Kent, Cornwall, -Island of Jersey, in the Isle of Man, Glasgow, and other places. Her -visits and descriptions were in all instances extremely satisfactory. -How far thought-transference and objective clairvoyance commingled and -entered into her descriptions it would be difficult to say, but the -results were simply marvellous. - -Test case, by the late Dr. Maddever, M.D., M.R.C.S., and Dr. John -Maddever, his son. These medical gentlemen resided in Rothesay, -and were present in the hall. Dr. Maddever desired me to send the -clairvoyante into a certain room in his house and that she should -describe it. - -All the directions the clairvoyante obtained were, “to go out of the -hall, down the front steps; when out turn to the right and proceed -onward till she came to an iron-railed gate, on which was a small brass -plate, bearing the name of ‘Dr. Maddever,’ she was to open the gate, go -up to the hall-door, enter, pass the first door to the left, and turn -round a passage to the left and enter the first door to which she came, -and describe what she saw.” - -Sitting still upon the platform in silence for a minute or two, she -suddenly exclaimed:--“I am at the gate--at the door--now in the hall--I -have found the room, and I am now inside, and stand with my back to the -door.” She then proceeded to describe the room, the book-cases which -surrounded it, their peculiar structure; the mantel-piece, the form of -the clock, the time, and the appearance of the ornaments. The table in -the centre of the room, its form, the colour and style of the cloth -upon it, books, albums, and papers thereon, the flower vase support in -the window, and a number of other particulars. - -At the conclusion Dr. Maddever arose in the audience and said:--“Ladies -and gentlemen, Professor Coates is a stranger to me, I only know of him -by report. The young lady on the platform I do not know. I have not -seen either till this evening, and they have never been in my house. -The experiment we have had is most remarkable, and should be of deep -and profound interest to all. The young lady has described the room, as -far as I can remember, most correctly--in fact very much better than I -could have done myself.” This statement was received with applause. - -After one or two instances of travelling clairvoyance, a young -gentleman rose in the body of the hall and desired I should send the -sensitive to a house or villa not far from the juncture of Marine Place -and Ardbeg Road. - -The directions given to the clairvoyante were briefly to the effect, -she was to leave the place, on reaching the front street she was to -turn to her left and keep on past the Post Office, Esplanade, past the -Skeoch Woods, etc., till she came to the house. She nodded her head in -compliance, and presently announced she “had found the house.” Then she -shivered and appeared to draw back, and said “I won’t go in.” - -Some persons in the audience laughed, and one (I think it was the -young gentleman who asked that she might be sent) said: “The whole -thing is a swindle.” Now, considering there was not a single flaw in -the experiments that night, surprise after surprise being given, and -the audience had risen in enthusiasm, this opinion was not favourably -received. - -I asked the gentleman “to have patience.” I had no doubt but we would -know soon enough the reasons. “Whatever they were I would try and -ascertain them.” - -With much hesitancy she declared that “the house was not one any -respectable female would enter, and she would not.” When I repeated -this statement to the audience, there was what the newspapers call -“sensation.” The sensation was intensified when one of the Rothesay -Magistrates, Bailie Molloy, the then senior Bailie of the Royal Burgh, -declared “the young woman was right, perfectly right, this was a house -which had been inadvertently let to persons of ill-fame, and he, for -one, had recently had the facts of the case placed before him, and he -was most anxious that these people should be put out, and they would -be, as soon as the proper steps could be taken.” - -The young gentleman retired somewhat discomfited, and the excitement -produced by these and other experiments brought crowded houses during -my professional stay. - -When my “mesmeric exposition” was concluded, the two medical gentlemen -referred to, were good enough to introduce themselves, and invited me -to call next day to see the room. I accepted the invitation during -the following day and saw how truly correct and vivid her description -had been. In the first experiment the sensitive described the state of -the doctor’s library, pointing out what had not been recollected by -either of the medical men, and I believe the other case comes under the -heading of direct and objective clairvoyance. Dr. Maddever’s house was -about a quarter of a mile, and the other house about a mile and a half -from the hall. - -The persistent and reliable clairvoyance evinced by this sensitive -was induced. She was a mesmeric subject, and when such subjects are -properly treated they make the very best clairvoyants. - - -PSYCHIC VISION POSSESSED BY THE PHYSICALLY BLIND. - -Mrs. Croad resided at Redland, Bristol. My attention was called to -her case about fifteen years ago by Dr. J. G. Davey, of Bristol. -Unfortunately circumstances at the time prevented a personal visit and -report. Her psychic gifts and wonderful supersensitivity have been -amply testified to, by most reliable witnesses, such as Dr. Davey, Hy. -G. Atkinson, F.G.S., and others. - -Clairvoyance in Mrs. Croad’s case was and is (for I believe the lady is -still living) a singular admixture of subtle sense transference so well -known to mesmerists of the old school, and spontaneous psychic vision. -Thought-transference and indirect clairvoyance, more or less induced, -by intense voluntary concentration. - -Mrs. Croad is deaf, dumb, and paralysed, and stone blind. She can -see and hear, read with powers “denied to ordinary mortals,” and -discern pictures and writings in the dark. She is aware of her -daughter’s thoughts when the latter touches her, and becomes at once -acquainted with what her daughter wishes to communicate. She possesses -supersensitivity of touch, and discerns colour by their degrees of -heat, roughness or smoothness. She can also identify photographs and -pictures in the same way. From time to time she has exhibited the -highest phases of clairvoyance. Reports have been made in this case -by medical experts in the _Journal of Psychological Medicine_, and -other magazines and journals several years ago. The most recent was -contributed by the Rev. Taliesin Dans, The Cottage, Claptons, to _The -Review of Reviews_ in January, 1891. - - -THE SPIRITUALISTIC AND PRACTICAL CHARACTER OF CLAIRVOYANCE - -might be further illustrated by the well known case of Miss Eliza -Hamilton, who became paralysed in her limbs and right arm, through -severe injury to the spine. She had been in hospital for four months, -on her return home frequently passed into the trance state, and -on awakening described various people and places she had visited, -and objects seen. These descriptions have been invariably verified -subsequently. “She also at times,” says her physician, “speaks of -having been in the company of persons with whom she was acquainted in -this world, but who have passed away; and she tells her friends that -they have become more beautiful, and have cut off their infirmities -with which they were afflicted while here. She often describes events -which _are about to happen_, and these are always fulfilled exactly as -she predicts.” - -“Her father,” says Mr. Hudson Tuttle, “read in her presence a letter -he had received from a friend in Leeds, speaking of the loss of his -daughter, about whose fate he was very unhappy, as she had disappeared -nearly a month before, and left no trace. Eliza went into the trance -state, and cried out, ‘Rejoice! I have found the lost girl! She is -happy in the angel world.’ She said the girl had fallen into the dark -water where dyers washed their cloths; that her friends could not have -found her had they sought her there, _but_ now the body had floated a -few miles, and would be found in the River Aire. The body was found as -described. - -“Now, knowing that her eyes were closed, that she could not hear, that -her bodily senses were in profound lethargy, how are we to account for -the intensity and keenness of sight? Her mental powers were exceedingly -exalted, and scarcely a question could be asked her but she correctly -answered. - -“In this case the independence of the mind of the physical body are -shown in every instance of clairvoyance, is proven beyond cavil or -doubt. If it is demonstrated that the mind sees without the aid of -eyes, hears when the ears are deaf, feels when the nerves of sensation -are at rest, it follows that it is independent of these outward -avenues, and has other channels of communication with the external -world essentially its own.” - - -CLAIRVOYANCE FROM DISEASE. - -Miss Mollie Fancher, of Brooklyn Heights, fell off a tramway car when -eighteen years of age, experienced very severe injuries to head and -spine, her body being dragged a distance, through her dress catching on -the step of the car. She became paralysed, lost all her senses, except -touch. She gradually recovered hearing, taste, and ability to talk -in time. She was also blind for nine years. Drs. Speir and Ormiston -were her physicians, men of skill and marked probity. These, with a -veritable host of medical men--ministers of the Gospel, educationists -and specialists--have borne testimony to her remarkable endowments, -from which we take two extracts. Mr. Charles Ewart, Principal of the -Brooklyn Heights Seminary, where she was under special care, writes:-- - -“For many days together she has been to all appearances dead. The -slightest pulse could not be detected; there was no evidence of -respiration. Her limbs were as cold as ice, and had there not been -some warmth about her heart, she would have been buried. When I first -saw her she had but one sense--that of touch. By running her fingers -over the printed page, she could read with equal facility in light or -darkness. The most delicate work is done by her in the night.... Her -power of clairvoyance, or second sight, is marvellously developed. -_Distance imposes no barriers_, without the slightest error she -dictates the contents of sealed letters which have never been in her -hands. She discriminates in darkness the most delicate shades of -colour. She writes with extraordinary rapidity.” - -Mr. Henry M. Parkhurst, the astronomer (residing at 173 Gates Avenue, -Brooklyn, N.Y.), writes:-- - -“From the waste-basket of a New York gentleman acquaintance he -fished an unimportant business letter, without reading it, tore it -into ribbons, and tore the ribbons into squares. He shook the pieces -well together, put them into an envelope, and sealed it. This he -subsequently handed to Miss Fancher. The blind girl took the envelope -in her hand, and passed her hand over it several times, called for -paper and pencil, and wrote it verbatim. The seal of the letter had -not been broken. Mr. Parkhurst himself opened it, pasted the contents -together, and compared the two. Miss Fancher’s was a literal copy of -the original.” - - -MESMERIC CLAIRVOYANCE AND SPIRITUALISM. - -“A few evenings ago I called upon Mr. and Mrs. Loomis, 2 Vernon -Place, Bloomsbury, and after we had chatted for a short time in the -drawing-room with the door closed and nobody else present, I asked if -they would try a mesmeric experiment for me. They willingly agreed, -and Mr. Loomis, by passes, threw his wife into a mesmeric state, as he -often does, and an intelligence, which claimed to be the spirit of her -mother, spoke through her lips. Until this moment I had said nothing to -any living soul about the nature of my contemplated experiment, but I -then asked the unseen intelligence if it could then and there go to the -house of Mrs. Macdougall Gregory, 21 Green Street, Grosvenor Square, -London, and move a heavy physical object in her presence. The reply -was, I do not know, I will try. About three minutes afterwards, at 8.40 -p.m., the intelligence said that Mrs. Gregory was in her drawing-room -with a friend, and added, ‘I have made Mrs. Gregory feel a prickly -sensation in her arm from the elbow down to the hand, as if some person -had squeezed the arm, and she has spoken about it to her friend.’ - -“I took a note in writing of this statement at the time it was made. A -few minutes later I left Mr. and Mrs. Loomis, and without telling them -my intention to do so, went straight to the house of Mrs. Gregory about -a mile and a half off. I had selected Mrs. Gregory for this experiment -because she is not afraid to publish her name in connection with -psychic truths, and her word carries weight, especially in Scotland, -where she and her family are well-known. She is the widow of Professor -Gregory, of Edinburgh University, and is a lineal descendant of the -Lord of the Isles. I then for the first time told Mrs. Gregory of the -experiment. She replied that between half-past eight and nine o’clock -that evening she was playing the piano, and suddenly turned round to -her friend, Miss Yauewicz, of Upper Norwood, saying, ‘I don’t know what -is the matter with me, I feel quite stupid, and have such a pain in -my right arm that I cannot go on playing.’ Miss Yauewicz, who was no -believer in spiritualism or any of the marvels of psychology, felt a -lively interest when she was informed of the experiment. She told me -that she clearly remembered Mrs. Gregory’s statement that she could not -go on playing because of the pain in her right arm.”[C] - -Mrs. Loomis was a remarkable clairvoyante, whom I accidently became -acquainted with in Liverpool many years ago, shortly after her arrival -from America. I introduced the lady and her husband, Mr. Daniel Loomis, -to Mr. Harrison, then editor of _The Spiritualist_. The Guion steamer, -_Idaho_, in which they came from New York, was wrecked off the Irish -Coast, and all they possessed in this world was lost with the vessel. -Mrs. Loomis predicted the disaster, where it was likely to take place; -that all hands would be saved, but all they had lost. Upon the arrival -of the officers of the vessel in Liverpool, they presented Mrs. Loomis, -at the Bee Hotel, John Street, Liverpool, with a basket of flowers, -purse, and testimonial, in recognition of her gift, and heroic conduct -during and after the disaster. I may add I knew Mr. Harrison as a most -careful investigator and a man of scientific tastes and ability. - -I select the following case of a mesmeric sensitive controlled by -a disembodied spirit, from the writings of Mr. Epes Sargent, author -of “Planchette on the Despair of Science,” etc., as appropriately -illustrative of this form of clairvoyance:-- - -“One of the daughters of my valued correspondent, the late William -Howett, was a mesmeric sensitive. Howett told Professor W. D. Gunning, -whose words (slightly abridged) I here use, that, on one occasion his -daughter, being entranced, wrote a communication signed with the name -of her brother, supposed to be in Australia. The import was, that he -had been drowned a few days before in a lake. Dates and details were -given. The parents could only wait, as there was no trans-oceanic -telegraph. Months passed, and at last a letter came from a nephew in -Melbourne, bearing the tidings that their son had been drowned on such -a day, in such a lake, under such and such circumstances. Date, place, -and all the essential details were the same as those given months -before through the daughter. Mr. Howett believed that the freed spirit -of his son influenced the sister to write; and I know of no explanation -more rational that this.” - - -CLAIRVOYANCE DUE TO SPIRITUAL CONTROL. - -Such cases as the above are the most difficult of all to prove. What I -contend for is, if it is demonstrated we can control a fellow-being, -throw him or her into a trance state--in which the phenomena of the -psychic state are evolved--and seeing such state is induced largely -by the control of spirit over spirit in the body, why may not a -disembodied spirit control, direct, or influence a suitable sensitive -or medium in the body? If not, why not? There is abundant evidence of -such controls. - -Seeing objects concealed in boxes and letters, or reading books and -mottoes, etc., appears to some clairvoyants to be more difficult than -diagnosing disease, or seeing objects at a distance. The why and -wherefore seems at first difficult to explain. - -The deliberate concealment of objects for the purpose of testing -clairvoyance is often the result of a spirit of virulent suspicion, -disbelief, and what is worse, _an earnest desire for failure_, so that -the parties may rejoice on the discomfiture of the clairvoyants. With -such people failure is a source of pleasure. Nevertheless, seeming -impossibilities have been triumphed over. Long lost wills have been -found, and places of the accidental or intentional hiding discovered. -In more than one case deliberate fraud has been exposed, and the guilty -parties brought to acknowledge the truth of the sensitive’s revelations. - - -THE FUGITIVE NATURE OF CLAIRVOYANCE. - -“The chief feature,” said Alexis Didier, “of the somnambulistic -lucidity is its variability. While the conjurer or juggler, at all -moments in the day and before all spectators, will invariably succeed, -the somnambulist, endowed with the marvellous power of clairvoyance, -will not be lucid with all interviewers and at all moments of the -day; for the faculty of lucidity being a crisis painful and abnormal, -there may be atmospheric influences or invincible antipathies at work -opposing its production, and which seem to paralyse all supersensual -manifestation. Intuition, clairvoyance, lucidity, are faculties which -the somnambulist gets from the nature of his temperament, and which -are rarely developed in force.” Further, he adds, “the somnambulistic -lucidity varies in a way to make one despair; success is continually -followed by failure; in a word, error succeeds a truth; but when one -analyses the causes of this no right-minded person will bring up the -charge of Charlatanism, since the faculty is subject to influences -independent of the will and the consciousness of the clairvoyant.” - -Alexis Didier, like his brother Adolphe, was a natural clairvoyant, -and excelled in direct and objective clairvoyance, phases of the most -striking and convincing character. - -Clairvoyance can be cultivated by the aid of mesmerism and by the -introspection process. By the first, the sensitive can be materially -assisted by the experience and help of the operator. By the second, -something like natural clairvoyance can be induced. Either processes -are more or less suitable to subdue the activity of the senses, and -give greater range to the psychic powers. General instructions are -of little use. Personal advice is best. The operator then knows with -whom he has to do, their special temperament and character, what are -the best processes to adopt to cultivate their gift, and how far such -sensitives and students are themselves likely to be suitable for -clairvoyant experiments. I have found the “Mirror Disc” useful in -inducing favourable conditions in the normal state for the development -of clairvoyance, and recommend its use. - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -Psychometry. - - -[Illustration: J. RHODES BUCHANAN, M.D.] - -What is psychometry? Dr. George Wyld esteems psychometry a phase of -clairvoyance--“the knowledge the psychic obtains by a _clue_, such as -a lock of the hair of some absent person, or some portion of a distant -object.” Mr. Stead calls it (_Review of Reviews_, p. 221, September, -1892) “the strange new science of psychometry.” In this he pardonably -errs. Psychometry may be strange, but _it_ is _not_ new. We may not -recognise the name as old, but the class of phenomena it specialises -is as old as clairvoyance and mind-reading. - -“The word psychometry,” says Dr. Buchanan, “coined in 1842, to express -the character of a new science and art, is the most pregnant and -important word that has been added to the English language. Coined -from the Greek (_psyche_, soul; and _metron_, measure), it literally -signifies _soul-measuring_.”... “The psychometer measures the soul.” - -In the case of psychometry, the measuring assumes a new character, as -the object measured and the measuring instrument are the same psychic -element, and its measuring power is not limited to the psychic, as it -was developed in the first experiments, but has appeared by successive -investigations to manifest a wider and wider area of power, until it -became apparent that this psychic capacity was really the measure of -all things in the universe. Hence, psychometry signifies not merely the -measuring of souls and soul capacities, or qualities by our own psychic -capacities, but the measurement and judgment of all things conceivable -by the human mind; and psychometry means practically _measuring by -the soul_, or grasping and estimating all things which are within the -range of human intelligence. Psychometry, therefore, is not merely an -instrumentality for measuring soul powers, but a comprehensive agency -like mathematics for the solution of many departments of science. - -“Prophecy,” says Buchanan, “is the noblest aspect of psychometry, and -there is no reason why it should not become the guiding power to each -individual life, and the guiding power of the destiny of nations.” -For instance, while all Europe feared for Boulanger, Metz was getting -stored with food; Lord Wolseley declared war imminent, and the French -themselves prepared for _revanche_. Psychometers declared for peace -in 1889, and said there was no prospect of war for five years. -Subsequent events have proved Boulanger lacking in both generalship and -statesmanship--a veritable Bombastes Furioso; and peace up to the time -of writing is as yet unbroken. - -Dr. Buchanan claims--“In physiology, pathology, and hygiene, -psychometry is as wise and parental as in matters of character and -ethics. A competent psychometer appreciates the vital forces, the -temperament, the peculiarities, and every departure from the normal -state, realising the diseased condition with an accuracy in which -external diagnosis often fails. In fact, the natural psychometer is -born with a genius for the healing art, and if the practice of medicine -were limited to those who possess this power in an eminent degree, its -progress would be rapid, and its disgraceful failures in diagnosis and -blunders in treatment and prognosis would be less frequently heard -of.” Many happy tests in diagnosis and in the successful treatment -of disease--out of the ordinary routine--are due, in my opinion, -not so much to elaborate medical training as to the fact of the -practitioner--perhaps unconscious to himself--being possessed of more -or less of the psychometric faculty. - -Dr. Buchanan,[D] in his “Original Sketch,” gives us the history and -some details of his discovery, based upon certain investigations of -the nervous system. Already he was well versed in the phenomena of -hypnotism, which is at this late day becoming a fashionable study and -recreation of medical men. He had demonstrated the responsive action -of cerebral organs to mesmeric touch and influence, and he was already -acquainted with the curious psychological phenomena of sense and -thought transference, of double consciousness, and all the nervous and -pathological phases peculiar to natural and artificial somnambulism. -His investigation for years of the nervous system had clearly shown him -that its capacities were far more extensive, varied, and interesting -than physiologists and philosophers either knew or were prepared to -admit. He found in the nervous system a vast aggregate of powers which -constitute the vitality of man, existing in intimate connection with -the vast and wonderful powers of his mind. Was it possible or rational -to suppose that this nerve-matter, so intimately co-related with mind, -and upon which the mind depends for the manifestation of its powers, -could be entirely limited to the narrow materialistic sphere assigned -by physiologists? He thought not. - -In a conversation with Bishop Polk (who afterwards became the -celebrated General Polk of Confederate fame), Dr. Buchanan ascertained -that Bishop Polk’s nervous sensibility was so acute that, if by -accident he touched a piece of brass in the night, when he could not -see what he had touched, he immediately felt the influence through his -system, and recognised an offensive metallic taste. - -The discovery of such sensitiveness in one of the most vigorous men, -in mind and body, of his day, led Dr. Buchanan to believe it might -be found in many others. It is needless to say his conjecture was -correct. Accordingly, in the numerous neurological experiments which he -afterwards commenced, he was accustomed to place metals of different -kinds in the hands of persons of acute sensibility, for the purpose of -ascertaining whether they could feel any peculiar influence, recognise -any peculiar taste, or appreciate the difference of metals, by any -impression upon their own sensitive nerves. It soon appeared that the -power was quite common, and there were a large number of persons who -could determine by touching a piece of metal, or by holding it in their -hands, what the metal was, as they recognised a peculiar influence -proceeding from it, which in a few moments gave them a distinct taste -in the mouth. But this sensitiveness was not confined to metallic -substances. Every substance possessing a decided taste--sugar, salt, -nutmeg, pepper, acid, etc.--appeared to be capable of transferring its -influence. The influence appeared to affect the hand, and then travel -upwards. He afterwards demonstrated when a galvanic or electric current -passed through a medicinal substance, the influence of the substance -was transmitted with the current, detected and described by the person -operated upon. Medicinal substances, enclosed in paper, were readily -recognised and described by their effects. In due time, stranger -still, a geological specimen, an article worn, a letter written upon, -a photograph which had been handled, a coin, etc., transmitted their -influence, and the psychometrist was enabled to read off the history -concerning the particular object. - -Nearly fifty years have elapsed since the discovery of this “strange -new science” and art. “To-day it is widely known, has its respected -and competent practitioners, who are able to describe the mental -and vital peculiarities of those who visit or write them, and who -create astonishment and delight by the fidelity and fulness of the -descriptions which they send to persons unknown, and at vast distances. -They give minute analysis of character and revelations of particulars -_known only to the one described_, pointing out with parental delicacy -and tenderness the defects which need correction, or in the perverse -and depraved they explain what egotism would deny, but what society, -family, and friends recognise to be too true.” - - -PSYCHOMETRIC REFLECTIONS. - -Professor J. W. Draper says:--“A shadow never falls upon a wall -without leaving thereupon a permanent trace--a trace made visible by -resorting to proper processes. Upon the walls of private apartments, -where we think the eye of intrusion is altogether shut out, and our -retirement can never be profaned, there exists the vestiges of our -acts, silhouettes of whatever we have done. It is a crushing thought -to whoever has committed secret crime, that the picture of his deed, -and the very echo of his words, may be seen and heard countless years -after he has gone the way of all flesh, and left a reputation for -‘respectability’ to his children.” - -Detectives have received impressions from a scene of crime, a clue to -the unravelment of the mystery and the detection of the criminal. Yet -they could not trace the impressions to anything they saw or heard -during their preliminary investigations. No detective will throw aside -such impressions. Indeed, those most successful are those who, while -paying attention to all outward and so-called tangible clues, _do not -neglect for one moment_ the impressions received, and the thoughts -_felt_, when gathering information likely to lead to the detection of -the law-breakers. Hugh Miller was right when he said, “I suspect that -there are provinces in the mind that physicians have not entered into.” - -Thoughts are things--living, real and tangible, images, visions, deep -and pungent sensations--which exist after their creation distinct -and apart from ourselves--“Footprints on the sands of time,” in more -senses than one. We all leave our mark in a thousand subtle ways. No -material microscope or telescope can detect, nevertheless our mark -can be discovered by the powers of the human soul. From our cradle -to the grave--does it stop there?--every thought, emotion, movement, -and action have left their subtle traces, so that our whole life can -be traced out by the psychometric expert. We verily give hostages to -fortune all through life. - - -PSYCHOMETRIC SENSITIVES. - -Professor Denton was very fortunate in having in his wife, children, -and in his sister, Mrs. Cridge, gifted psychometers. His sister -possessed this psychic, intuitive faculty in a high degree. Dr. -Buchanan was equally fortunate; not only was his wife a first-class -sensitive, but he discovered the faculty in several university -professors, and in students innumerable. Denton in his travels over -America, Europe, and Australia found several hundred good sensitives, -some of whom have since made a reputation both in Europe and America -for their powers. - -One important fact we learn from these pioneers in psychometric -research is that not one of these persons knew they were endowed with -the psychometric gift prior to taking part in classes or experiments. - -The possession of the faculty is not confined to any age, or to the -gentle sex; and Denton concludes, as an average, that one female in -four and one man in ten are psychometric sensitives. The possibility is -all healthy, sensitive, refined, intuitive, and impressionable persons -possess the soul-measuring faculty, and this faculty, like all other -innate human powers, can be cultivated and brought to a high stage of -perfection. - -The psychometer, unlike the induced clairvoyant or entranced medium, is -in general, or outwardly at least, a mere spectator, as one who beholds -a drama or witnesses a panorama, and tells in his own way to someone -else what he sees and what he thinks about it. The sensitive can dwell -on what is seen, examine it closely, and record individual opinions -of the impressions of the persons, incidents, and scenes of the long -hidden thus brought to light. The sensitive has merely to hold the -object in hand--as Mrs. Coates is represented doing in frontispiece--or -hold it to the forehead (temple), when he or she is enabled to come in -contact with the soul of the person or thing with which the object has -been in relation. There is no loss of external consciousness, no “up -rush” of the subliminal, obliterating and overlapping that of common -life. The sensitive appears to be in a perfectly normal condition -during the whole time of examination, can lay the article down, -noticing what takes place, and entering into conversation with those in -the room, or drawing subjects, seen or not, as they think best. - - -WHAT PSYCHOMETRY CAN DO. - -We can do little more than give a few general illustrations. -Professor Denton, having thoroughly satisfied himself of the reality -of psychometry, wondered if letters had photographed upon them the -impressions of the life and the image of the writer. Why not fossils? -“He gave his sister a specimen from the carboniferous formation; -closing her eyes, she described those swamps and trees, with their -tufted heads and scaly trunks, with the great frog-like animals that -existed in that age. To his inexpressible delight the key to the ages -was in his hands. He concluded that nature had been photographing from -the very first. The black islands that floated upon the fiery sea, the -gelatinous dots, the first life on our planet, up through everything -that flew or swam, had been photographed by Nature, and ten thousand -experiments had confirmed the theory. He got a specimen of the lava -that flowed from Kilava, in Hawaii, in 1848. His sister by its means -described the boiling ocean, the cataract of molten lava that almost -equalled Niagara in size. A small fragment of a meteorite that fell in -Painesville, O., was given to his wife’s mother, a sensitive who did -not then believe in psychometry. This is what she said: ‘I seem to be -travelling away, away, through nothing, right forward. I see what look -like stars and mist. I seem to be taken right up; the other specimens -took me down.’ His wife, independently, gave a similar description, -but saw it revolving, and its tail of sparks. He took steps to prove -that this was not mind reading by wrapping the specimens in paper, -shaking them up in a hat, and allowing the sensitive to pick out one -and describe it, without anyone knowing which it was. Among them were a -fragment of brick from ancient Rome, antimony from Borneo, silver from -Mexico, basalt from Fingal’s Cave. Each place was described correctly -by the sensitive in the most minute detail. A fragment from the Mount -of Olives brought a description of Jerusalem; and one from the Great -Pyramid enabled a young man of Melbourne to name and describe it. There -was a practical side to the question. His wife had, from a chip of -wood, described a suicide; this was subsequently confirmed. A number of -experiments from a fragment of Kent’s Cave, fragments from Pompeii and -other places brought minute descriptions from the sensitive.” - -Mr. Stead bears his testimony to psychometry. He gave a shilling -to two ladies, at different periods, and unknown to each other. In -fact, they were perfect strangers. This shilling, in his mind, had a -special story connected with it. The first lady lived in Wimbledon, -and had the profession of being a clairvoyante. To use Mr. Stead’s -own words, he states:--“I took from my purse a shilling which I most -prized of all the pieces of money in my possession. I said nothing to -her beyond that I had carried it in my pocket for several years. She -held the shilling in her hand for sometime, and said:--‘This carries -me back to a time of confusion and much anxiety, with a feeling that -everything depended upon a successful result. This shilling brings me -a vision of a very low woman, ignorant and drunken, with whom you had -much better have nothing to do. There is a great deal of fever about. I -feel great pains, as if I had rheumatic fever in my ankles and joints, -but especially in my ankles and my throat. I suffer horribly in my -throat; it is an awful pain. And now I feel a coarse, bare hand pass -over my brow as distinctly as if you had laid your hand there. It must -be her hand. I feel the loss of a child. This woman is brought to me -by another. She is about thirty-two years; about five feet high, with -dark brown hair, grey eyes, small, nicely-formed nose, large mouth.’” -“Can you tell me her name?” asked Mr. Stead. “Not certain, but I think -it seems like Annie.” “That is all right,” said Mr. Stead, and he told -her the story of that shilling. About a month afterwards, Mr. Stead -tried a Swedish opera singer, who had clairvoyant powers, with the -shilling. She pressed it to her brow, and then she told Mr. Stead “she -saw a poor woman give him, from her pocket-money, the last shilling she -possessed. She has a great admiration for you, she said. She seems to -think you have saved her, but she is not _une grande dame_. Indeed, she -seems to be a girl of the town.” Mr. Stead said:--“I had not spoken a -word, or given her the least hint of the story of the shilling.” Now, -what are the facts? Mr. Stead says that he “was standing his trial at -the Old Bailey, a poor outcast girl of the streets, who was dying of a -loathsome disease in the hospital, asked that the only shilling that -she possessed in the world, might be given to the fund which was being -raised in his defence. It was handed to him when he came out of jail, -with, ‘From a dying girl in hospital, who gives her last shilling,’ -written on the paper.” He (Mr. Stead) has carried it about him ever -since, never allowing it to be out of his possession for a single day. - -The symptoms which the first clairvoyante, or psychometrix, described, -were very like those which this poor creature was suffering from in her -dying hours. It is too probable that the donor was a low, drunken woman. - -These two readings are actually more psychometric than clairvoyant, -because, from the clue furnished, they went back and described the -conditions and surroundings of the woman who parted with this shilling. -They were not thought-readers, because they did not describe what was -passing in Mr. Stead’s mind. Mr. Stead’s experiences fairly illustrate -the exercise, in the earlier stages of employment, of the psychometric -faculty. - -While engaged writing the “Real Ghost Stories,” Mr. Stead says:--“My -attention was called to a young lady, Miss Catherine Ross, of 41 High -Street, Smethwick, Birmingham, who, being left with an invalid sister -to provide for, and without other available profession or industry, -bethought herself of a curious gift of reading character, with which -she seems to have been born, and had subsequently succeeded in earning -a more or less precarious income by writing out characters at the -modest fee of 5s. You sent her any article you pleased that had been in -contact with the object, and she sent you by return a written analysis -of the subject’s character. I sent her various articles from one person -at different times, not telling her they were from the same person. At -one time a tuft of hair from his beard, at another time a fragment of -a nail, and a third time a scrap of handwriting. Each delineation of -character differed in some points from the other two, but all agreed, -and they were all remarkably correct. When she sent the last she added, -‘I don’t know how it is, but I feel I have described this person -before.’ I have tried her since then with locks of hair from persons of -the most varied disposition, and have found her wonderfully correct.” - -“All these things are very wonderful, but the cumulative value of the -evidence is too great for any one to pooh-pooh it as antecedently -impossible. The chances against it being a mere coincidence are many -millions to one.” - -I believe had this young lady, or others thus endowed, had the -training, such as Buchanan, Denton, or other experienced teachers give -their pupils, she would make a high class psychometer. - -Rev. Minot J. Savage had a paper in a recent number of _The Arena_, on -Psychical Research, etc., in which he said--“On a certain morning I -visited a psychometrist. Several experiments were made. I will relate -only one, as a good specimen of what has occurred in my presence more -than once. The lady was not entranced or, so far as I could see, in -any other than her normal condition. I handed her a letter which I had -recently received. She took it, and held it in her right hand, pressing -it close, so as to come into as vital contact with it as possible. -I had taken it out of its envelope, so that she might touch it more -effectively, but it was not unfolded even so much as to give her an -opportunity to see even the name. It was written by a man whom she had -never seen, and of whom she had never heard. After holding it a moment -she said, ‘This man is either a minister or a lawyer; I cannot tell -which. He is a man of a good deal more than usual intellectual power. -And yet he has never met with any success in life as one would have -expected, considering his natural ability. Something has happened to -thwart him and interfere with his success. At the present time he is -suffering with severe illness and mental depression. He has pain here’ -(putting her hand to the back of her head, at the base of the brain). - -“She said much more, describing the man as well as I could have done -it myself. But I will quote no more, for I wish to let a few salient -points stand in clear outline. These points I will number, for the sake -of clearness:-- - -1. “She tells me he is a man, though she has not even glanced at the -letter.” - -2. “She says he is either a minister or a lawyer; she cannot tell -which. No wonder, for he was both; that is, he had preached for some -years, then he had left the pulpit, studied law, and at this time was -not actively engaged in either profession.” - -3. “She speaks of his great natural ability. This was true in a most -marked degree.” - -4. “But he had not succeeded as one would have expected. This again was -strikingly true. Certain things had happened--which I do not feel at -liberty to publish--which had broken off his career in the middle and -made his short life seem abortive.” - -About eighteen years ago a lady in Swansea sent me a lock of hair, -and asked me to send her my impressions. I did so, which I remember -were not pleasant. I informed her, as near as my recollection now -serves, that the person to whom the hair belonged was seriously ill. -No earthly skill could do anything for him. Diagnosing the character -of the insidious disease which was then undermining a once powerful -and active organisation, I felt constrained to add he _would live six -weeks_. I held the envelope, with its contents, in my left hand, and -wrote the impressions as they came with my right. I remember hesitating -about sending that letter, but eventually sent it. The accuracy of -my diagnosis, description of the patient, and the fulfilment of the -prophecy as to his death were substantiated in a Swansea paper, _The -Bat_. The patient was no other than Captain Hudson, the British master -mariner who sailed the first ship on teetotal principles from a British -port, and who subsequently became one of the most powerful of British -mesmerists. The lady who sent the lock of hair was his wife, and the -lady who contributed the letter to the papers was his widow. Of similar -experiences Mrs. Coates and I have had many. - - -HOW TO CULTIVATE THE PSYCHOMETRIC FACULTY. - -_Class Experiments._--The sensitives are not to be magnetised or -unduly influenced by positive manner and suggestions, but are to sit -in their normal state (and without mental effort or straining to find -out what they have in their hands), and simply give expression to -their impressions--sensations, tastes, etc., if any, and no matter -how strange to them these may be. Let the experimenter or operator -place different metallic substances in their hands, taking care that -these substances are carefully covered with tissue paper or other -light substance, which will help to hide their character, and at the -same time not prevent their influence being imparted, or try them with -medical substances. In those sufficiently sensitive, an emetic will -produce a feeling of nausea. The substance must be put down before it -causes vomiting. Geological specimens can be given--a shell, a tooth, -or tusk. Let the experimenter record the utterances patiently, and seek -confirmation of the description from an examination of the specimen -subsequently. He should not know what special specimen it is previous -to the psychometer’s declared opinion. Good specimens are best. Thus -a fragment of pottery, a piece of scori, or a bit of brick from, say, -Pompeii would present material from which the psychometrist could glean -strong and vivid impressions. - -If a medical man is not satisfied as to the correct pathological -conditions of his patient, he might ask the psychometer to take some -article of the patient in hand, and get, in the sensitive’s own--and -therefore very likely untechnical--language, what he feels and sees -regarding this particular patient’s case. Unsuspected abscesses and -tumours have been correctly pointed out in this way. - -In the same way a correct diagnosis of character can be given in many -instances more correctly, more subtle, and penetrating in detail, than -estimates built upon mere external and physical signs of temperament -and cranial contours. - -Lay a coin on a polished surface of steel. Breathe upon it, and all -the surface will be affected save the portion on which the coin lay. -In a few minutes neither trace of breathing nor of the coin are likely -to be seen on the surface of the polished steel. Breathe again, and -the hitherto unseen image of the coin is brought to light. In like -manner, everything we touch records invisibly to us that action. Hand -your sensitive a letter which has been written in love or joy, grief -or pungent sorrow, and let them give expression to their sensations. -As the breath brought back the image on the steel, so will the nervous -and the psychic impressionability of the sensitive bring to light the -various emotions which actuated the writers who penned the letters. -Mr. G. H. Lewes says “that he has brushed the surface of the polished -plate with a camel’s-hair brush, yet on breathing upon it the image -of the coin previously laid upon it was distinctly visible.” The mere -casual handling of letters by intermediates will not obliterate the -influence of the original writers; they have permeated the paper with -their influence, so that, if a score or more of psychometrists held -the paper, they would coincide, perhaps not in their language, but in -their descriptions of the originals and the state of their minds while -writing. - -The experimenter may help, by asking a few judicious but not leading -questions, to direct and guide the attention of the psychometrist. The -description will be a capital delineation of the individual who wrote -the letter. We have frequently tested the sincerity of correspondents, -real and other friends, by this process. If the results have sometimes -been unpleasant revelations, we have yet to find in any case that we -have been mistaken. How is the sensitive able to glean so much of the -real character of the original? one is inclined to ask. While writing, -sincerity and earnestness leave a deeper impression than indifference, -pretence, or ordinary come-to-tea politeness. Some letters are instinct -with the writer’s identity, individuality, masculinity, earnestness, -and enthusiasm. Others are lacking in these things, because the writers -were devoid of these qualities, while others vary at different times. -The writer writes as _his soul_ moves him, and the writing expresses -his aims and hopes as they appear to his external consciousness. -While writing, _his soul_ draws his image on the paper, and pictures -out thereon his real thoughts; and when the sensitive gets hold of -the letter, outstands the image of the writer and the imagery of his -thoughts. The psychic consciousness of the psychometer grasps the -details and describes them. - -“The strange new science of psychometry” is of profound interest to -all. Psychometers are to be found in every household. The whole subject -is one about which a good deal more could be easily written, but this -must do. - -Those who desire to understand psychometry cannot do better than -read up fully the literature of the subject, and those who desire to -practise psychometry may do much to ascertain whether they possess -the faculty in any degree; but all are warned to have nothing to do -with persons who undertake to _develop_ their powers, a _self-evident -absurdity_. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -Thought-Transference and Telepathy. - - -Thought-Transference is evidently a phase of psychic perception. In -some respects it bears a greater relation to feeling than sight. It -is distinguished from pure clairvoyance by the result of experiment. -For instance, suppose I had in the Rothesay case designed M. C., the -clairvoyante, should see “a maid in the room, dressed in a black -dress, with neat white collar and cuffs, wearing a nicely-trimmed -white apron, and a white tulle cap with bows and streamers, or that -a black-and-white spotted cat lay comfortably coiled up upon the -hearth-rug, or some other strongly-projected mental image.” Now, -suppose while M. C. was examining the room, she declared she _saw_ -the maid, and described her, or the cat, or other objects projected -from my mind, and described these, then this would be a case of -thought-transference. - -There is a distinction between thought-transference and -thought-reading. It is no mere fanciful distinction either. -Thought-transference occurs when the ideas, thoughts, and emotions of -one mind are projected by intense action and received by the sensitive -and impressionable mind of another--awake or asleep is immaterial--so -long as it occurs without pre-arrangement and contact. - -Telepathy is a more vivid form of sudden and unexpected -thought-transference, in which the intense thoughts and wishes of one -person, more or less in sympathy, are suddenly transferred to the -consciousness of another. The thoughts transmitted are often so intense -as to be accompanied by the vision of the person, and by the sound of -their voice. - -Telepathy bears about the same relation to thought-transference -as “second sight” does to clairvoyance. Thought-transference and -clairvoyance can be cultivated. Not so telepathy and second sight. -They are phenomena, which belong to the unexpected, portents of the -unusual, or sudden revelations of what is, and what is about to happen. -Doubtless, there are conditions more favourable than others for -inception of these. One needs to be “in spirit on the Lord’s day,” or -any day, before telepathic and second sight messages are secured. Hence -it is noticed telepathic revelations mostly come in the quietude of the -evening, just before sleep, between sleep and waking, and under similar -conditions favourable to passivity and receptivity in the sensitive or -percipient. - -In thought-reading both operator and sensitive are aware that -something is to be done, and indications, intentional or otherwise, -are given to make the thought-reader find out what is required. More -or less sensitiveness is required in both phases. In telepathy and -thought-transference the psychic elements are in the ascendency; in -thought-reading they may be more or less present, but intention, -sensitiveness, and muscular contact are adequate enough, I think, to -account for the phenomena, as witnessed at public entertainments--so -far, at least, as these entertainments are genuine. - -How do we think? what are thoughts? and how are thoughts transferred? -are reasonable questions, and merit more elaborate solution than is -possible in an elementary work like this. - -We think in pictures: words are but vehicles of thought. In -thought-transference we can successfully project actions, or a series -of actions, by forming in our minds a scene or picture of what is done -and what is to be reproduced. When, however, we think of a sentence -consisting of few or many words, there is nothing more difficult to -convey. Words belong to our external life here, and are but arbitrary -expressions and signs for what in the internal or soul-life is flashed -telepathically from mind to mind. - -Thoughts are things for good or ill, veritable and living realities, -apart from our exterior selves, independent of words. The more words, -often the less thought. Try to teach a child by the slow, dry-as-dust -method of words, and the road to knowledge is hard and wearisome. -Convey the same thoughts by illustrations and experiments, and the -child’s mind at once grasps the ideas we desire to convey. - -Thoughts are living entities (how poor are words!) which our own -souls have given birth to, or created in the intensity of our love, -wisdom, or passion. One Eastern adept has taught, “A good thought is -perpetuated as an active, beneficent power, an evil one as a malignant -demon. The Hindoo calls this _karma_. The adept evolves these shapes -consciously; other men throw them off unconsciously.” How true in our -experience! The thoughts of some men blast, while those of others -bless. There is wisdom in thinking deliberately, intelligently, and -therefore conscientiously, not passionately, impulsively, or carelessly. - -In thought-transference the reproduction of exact words and dates seems -to be most difficult. Indeed, the transmission of arbitrary words and -signs is apparently the most difficult. The reason, I conclude, is, -ideas belong to our inner, real, and spiritual life, and names, words, -and dates to our exterior existence. The ideas can be expressed in the -language of the sensitive, according to culture or the want of it. If -the true lineaments of the picture are given, need we be too exacting -as to the special frame surrounding the picture? - -Notwithstanding the difficulty in transference and the reading of the -exact words, this has also been frequently done. A very high state of -receptivity and sensitiveness, however, is necessary in the percipient. - -An incident of exact word-reading is related by Gerald Massey, the -distinguished philosopher and poet. Mr. Massey met Mr. Home at the -London terminus just on his (Mr. Massey’s) arrival from Hertfordshire. -Home and he entered into conversation, during which Home suddenly said -“he hoped Mr. Massey would go on with his poem.” - -“What did he mean?” asked Mr. Massey. - -“The poem,” replied Home, “you composed four lines of just now in the -train.” - -This was surprising to Mr. Massey, who had actually composed, but had -not written, the four lines of a new poem on the journey. Mr. Massey -challenged Mr. Home to repeat the lines, which Home did word for word. - -How are thoughts transferred? No one can positively say. There are -theories enough--the _theory of brain-waves_ and of _a universal -impalpable elastic ether_, of _undulating motions_, or other more or -less materialistic hypothesis.[E] - -We know there are no psychic phenomena without their corresponding -physical correlatives, and, in this life at least, these are in -thoughts evolved without producing corresponding molecular changes in -the brain. - -We notice the human brain is capable of being, and is, acted upon -daily by much less subtle influences than mental impressions. We can -appreciate light impinged upon our cerebral centres at the rate of -millions of undulations, and sound as the result of 20,000 to 30,000 -vibrations per second. So sensitives, when in the mesmeric or psychic -states, are readily acted upon, and respond as in thought-transference -to our thoughts and sensations, and veritably read our minds, -because of the _rapport_ or sympathy thus established. Whether they -become percipients of the nerve-vibrations which escape from our own -sensoriums or not, what does it matter _if they can, as they frequently -do_, read our minds? - -“Professor Wheaton,” says Hudson Tuttle, “devised a means of -illustrating sympathy. If a sounding board is placed so as to resound -to all instruments of the orchestra, and connected by a metallic rod -of considerable length with the sounding board of a harp or piano, the -instrument will accurately repeat the notes transmitted. - -“The nervous system, in its two-fold relation to the physical and -spiritual being, is inconceivably more finely organised than the most -perfect musical instrument, and is possessed of finer sensitiveness. - -“It must not be inferred that all minds are equally receptive. Light -falls on all substances alike, but is very differently affected by -each substance. One class of bodies absorb all but the yellow rays, -another all but the blue, another all but the red, because these -substances are so organised that they respond only to the waves of the -colours reflected.” - -All persons do not hear alike. They receive certain sounds and are deaf -to all others, although the sound-waves strike all tympanums alike. -All persons do not see alike. Some perceive colours, others cannot -distinguish between one colour and another, or can only see the more -striking colours--fineness of shade they do not perceive. So there are -individuals who cannot receive mental impressions, unless, indeed, -they are conveyed in the baldest and most esoteric manner. In a word -to convey and receive impressions they must be sent along the line of -the least resistance, that of _true sympathy_. There must be one mind -adequate to the projection, and another mind sufficiently sensitive to -receive and record the thoughts projected. - - -TRANSFERENCE OF TASTE IN THE MESMERIC STATE. - -The operator will slowly eat or taste half-a-dozen lozenges or sweets -of different flavours, and the subject or sensitive most in sympathy -with him will also in imagination eat of and describe the taste of the -various sweets, concerning which he has no other knowledge than the -thoughts of eating and tasting, which are transmitted to him from the -brain of the operator. The mere eating of the lozenges by the operator, -without his being fully aware of the fact, will deepen the impression -on the operator’s mind, and help to concentrate his energies for the -transmission of his ideas or mental suggestions to his subject. - -A step or two further and we find with greater sensitiveness the -sensitives can read the thoughts of the operator, whether the thoughts -were transmitted intentionally or not. - -“We are compelled (says Dr. Hands) to acknowledge that certain -emanating undulations from the sensorium can generate different series -of thoughts, and that the trembling organisation, or parts of it, can, -by flinging or throwing off distinct or particular pulsatory waves, -inoculate or produce like vibrations in another person’s brain, making -up in it identical thoughts, followed by like feelings, and often -in this way, perhaps, capable of inciting, _through sympathy_, like -enactments of deeds and pursuits.” - - -THOUGHT-TRANSFERENCE IN DREAMS. - -The following interesting letter appeared in _The Phrenological -Magazine_ (p. 260, April, 1890), and as I know of the _bona-fides_ of -the writer, I have much pleasure in reproducing it:-- - -“Dear Sir,--This morning, at a little before four o’clock, I awoke as -the outcome of great mental distress and grief through which I had -just passed in a dream, my body trembling and in a cold perspiration. -I had been walking with my little boy, aged five and a half years, and -some friends. A heavy rain overtaking us, we stood up for shelter; and -venturing forth into a maze of streets, I missed my two friends, who, -threading among the people, had turned into a side street without my -noticing. Looking for them, my boy slipped from me, and was lost in -the crowd. I became bewildered by the strange labyrinth of streets -and turnings, and quickly taking one of them which gave an elevated -position, I looked down on the many windings, but could nowhere see -my boy. It was to me an unknown locality, and, running down among the -people, I was soon sobbing aloud in my distress, and calling out the -name of the child, when I awoke. With wakefulness came a sense of -relief and thankfulness. Gladly realising that the whole was only a -dream, and still scarcely awake, I was startled by a cry of terror -and pain from an adjoining bedroom--such a cry as could not be left -unheeded. It came from the same child, and pierced me with a distinct -sense of pain. I was immediately by his side. My voice calmed him. ‘I -thought I was lost’ was all he could say, and doubtless he was soon -composed and asleep again. To me the coincidence was too remarkable -and without parallel in my own experience. Later on, at breakfast, the -child gave further his dream that he _had been out with me and was -lost_. I am only familiar with such things in my reading. Mr. Coates’s -article in last month’s _Phrenological Magazine_ (page 143) mentions -that, ‘when the Prince Imperial died from assegai thrusts in Zululand, -his mother in England felt the intensity of his thoughts at the time, -felt the savage lance pierce her own side, and knew or felt at the -time that she was childless.’ But I am not of the _spirituelle_ type, -with only a thin parchment separation between this life of realities -and the great beyond, of those who, privileged to live in close touch -with the future, are the subjects of premonitions and warnings. My -spirituality 4 to 5 and reflectives 6 point rather the other way, but -I shall, nevertheless, hold tight to the lad. What is the underlying -cause of the coincidence? Which of the two minds influenced the other, -if either?--Yours truly, - - “G. Cox. - - “16 Bramfield Road, - Wandsworth Common, April 20, 1890.” - -In this case of thought-transference, I am inclined to the opinion -that the father’s mind influenced that of the boy, the son being the -more sensitive of the two. Mr. Cox dreamt an ordinary but pretty vivid -dream, which aroused from its nature vivid and intense anxiety on -his part. A similar train of thought was awakened in the child. If -thought-transference occurs in waking life, why not in sleep, when, -as abundant telepathic instances testify, the phenomenon is of most -frequent occurrence. - - -THOUGHT-TRANSFERENCE AT SEA. - -The percipient was Captain G. A. Johnson, of the schooner “Augusta -H. Johnson.” He had sailed from Quero for home. On the voyage he -encountered a terrible hurricane. On the second day he saw a disabled -brig, and near by a barque. He was anxious to reach home, and, thinking -the barque would assist the brig, continued on. - -But the impression came that he must turn back and board the brig. He -could not shake it off, and at last he, with four men, boarded the brig -in a dory. He found her deserted, and made sail in her. After a time -they saw an object ahead, appearing like a man on a cake of ice. The -dory was again manned, and set to the rescue. It proved to be the mate -of the barque “Leawood” clinging to the bottom of an overturned boat, -which, being white, appeared in the distance as ice. - -The captain’s sensitiveness may have been aroused by the exhaustion of -so much wakefulness and care during the length of the storm, the sight -of the derelict and deserted brig; at the same time the premonitions -were opposed to his own desire and anxiety to get home. - - -THOUGHT-TRANSFERENCE FROM THE DYING TO THE LIVING IN DREAM. - -The following, by E. Ede, M.D., of Guilford (J.S.P.R., July, 1882):-- - -“Lady G. and her sister had been spending the evening with their -mother, who was in her usual health and spirits when they left her. -In the middle of the night the sister awoke in a fright, and said to -her husband, ‘I must go to my mother at once; do order the carriage. -I am sure she is ill.’ The husband, after trying in vain to convince -his wife that it was only a fancy, ordered the carriage. As she was -approaching the house, where two roads met, she saw lady G.’s carriage. -When they met, each asked the other why she was there. The same reply -was made by both--‘I could not sleep, feeling sure my mother was ill, -and so I came to see.’ As they came in sight, they saw their mother’s -confidential maid at the door, who told them when they arrived that -their mother had taken suddenly ill, and was dying, and had expressed -an earnest wish to see her daughters.” - -The percipients having been so lately in company and sympathy with -their mother possibly rendered them more susceptible to her influence. - - -THOUGHT-TRANSFERENCE FROM THE DEAD (?) TO THE LIVING IN DREAM. - -Related by Mr. Myers, page 208, Proceedings S.P.R., July, 1892:-- - -“About March, 1857, Mrs. Mennier, in England, dreamt that she saw her -brother, whose whereabouts she did not know, standing headless at the -foot of the bed with his head lying in a coffin by his side. The dream -was at once mentioned. It afterwards appeared that at about the time -the head of the brother seen, Mr. Wellington, was actually cut off by -the Chinese at Sarawak.” On this case, Mr. Gurney remarks--“This dream, -if it is to be telepathically explained, must apparently have been -due to the last flash of thought in the brother’s consciousness. It -may seem strange that a definite picture of his mode of death should -present itself to a man in the instant of receiving an unexpected and -fatal blow; but, as Hobbes said, ‘Thought is quick.’ The coffin, at -any rate, may be taken as an item of death-imagery supplied by the -dreamer’s mind.” - -“We have now, however,” says Mr. Myers, “seen a letter from Sir James -Brookes (Rajah of Sarawak), and an extract from the _Straits Times_ of -March 21st, 1857, in the (London) _Times_ for April 29th, 1857, which -makes it, I think, quite conceivable that the dream was a reflection -of knowledge acquired after death, and the head on the coffin had a -distinct meaning.” Sir James Brookes says:--“Poor Wellington’s remains -were consumed [by the Chinese]; his head, borne off in triumph, alone -attesting his previous murder.” The _Straits Times_ says:--“The head -was given up on the following day. The head, therefore, and the head -alone, must have been buried by Mr. Wellington’s friends; and its -appearance in the dream _on the coffin_, with a headless body standing -beside it, is a coincidence even more significant than the facts which -Mr. Gurney had before him when he wrote.” - -The transmission of thought from a spirit discarnate to one incarnate, -whose body was asleep, should not be esteemed impossible. Abundant -instances, equally well substantiated, might be recorded did space -permit. - - -THOUGHT TRANSFERENCE IN PRAYER. - -This may be a common experience, but only once in my life have I had -conscious knowledge of anything so remarkable. For some years before -devoting my attention to these subjects, I resided in Liverpool, and -had been a member of the Zion Methodist Church, or Chapel, in Everton, -and in time was duly placed on the local preachers’ plan. In this -capacity I became acquainted with a worthy old man--a chapel-keeper, -who looked after the meeting house situated in ---- street. He had -been an old soldier, and possessed something of the faith of the Roman -centurion. Poor in the things of this world, he was rich in the -sublimity of his love to God and the nobility and purity of his life. I -never think of “Old Daddy Walker” but his character and this incident -comes to my mind, viz.:--One morning I was hurrying down West Derby -Road to business, and, indeed had got halfway down Brunswick Road, when -I commenced to think about old Walker (I had not seen or thought of him -for some months). I attempted to throw aside my impressions, as passing -thoughts. No use. I became worried about him, and was asking myself -questions. “Was he ill?” “Maybe, he is in want?” “I think I will hurry -back and see?” I had not much time to spare. It would consume fully -twenty minutes to walk back. After hesitating, I went up Brunswick Road -and up West Derby Road, and to ---- Street, and tapped at the door of -his house. There was no response. The street door was slightly ajar. I -went in, and found the old pair on their knees in the kitchen. He was -engaged in earnest prayer. After kindly salutations, I apologised for -intruding, and told him, as I went to business, “I had been bothered -about him in my mind, and did not feel satisfied until I had seen him, -and knew the truth.” He told me, as near as I can recollect, “He was at -his last extremity. There was no food or fuel in the house, he had no -money, and he had been putting the whole case before the Lord.” I had -half a sovereign about me, which I had taken out of the house for an -entirely different purpose. This I gave to him. The old man, rubbing a -tear from his eye, looking at his wife, said: “Mary, don’t thee doubt -the Lord anymore. I said He would help, and He has given me what I -asked for.” Old Walker went on to explain, not only his bad fix, but -that he had no money to buy firewood with. He meant that he bought up -old wood and tar-barrels, which he cut up into lengths and made into -bundles, and sold for firewood; and that he had asked the Lord for ten -shillings, as he wanted that sum to buy a certain lot which could be -obtained for that amount. The old man obtained what he asked for. He -believed the Lord had answered his prayer. - - -THOUGHT TRANSMISSION IN PRAYER. - -Since writing the above, the following came under my notice. In the -J.S.P.R., May, 1885, Dr. Joseph Smith, Warrington, England, says:-- - -“I was sitting one evening reading, when a voice came to me, saying: -‘Send a loaf to James Grady’s.’ I continued reading, and the voice -continued with greater emphasis, and this time it was accompanied with -an irresistible impulse to get up. I obeyed, and went into the village -and bought a loaf of bread, and, seeing a lad at the shop door, I -asked him if he knew James Grady. He said he did, so I bade him carry -it and say a gentleman sent it. Mrs. Grady was a member of my class, -and I went next morning to see what came of it, when she told me a -strange thing happened to her last night. She said she wished to put -the children to bed, they began to cry for want of food, and she had -nothing to give them. She then went to prayer, to ask God to give them -something. Soon after which the lad came to the door with the loaf. I -calculated, on inquiry, that the prayer and the voice I heard exactly -coincided in point of time.” - - “More things are wrought by prayer - Than this world dreams of.” - -Those who know anything of Methodism, will know this. The Methodists -have a profound faith in prayer, and also there is a very close -relationship between a class-leader and his members. Dr. Smith was, -therefore, all the more likely to be the percipient of the woman’s -earnest and intense prayer to God to feed her hungry children. The -Infinite must have an infinite variety of ways of fulfilling His own -purposes. Is it unreasonable to suppose that prayer to Him may not be -answered indirectly “through means”? and that thought-transference, as -in this instance, may be one of the means? If not, why not? - -Charitable institutions are maintained; orphans saved, reared, and -educated; missions of mercy organised, and the necessary means found by -the agency of prayer. Beside “the angels,” in That Sphere just beyond -the ken of the physical, may not our waves of thought, projected by -prayer, be impinged upon, and directly affect susceptible minds in -this world, by directing their attention to those works of faith and -goodness? Prayer is the language of love, and the outcome of true -helplessness and need. A praying man is an earnest man. In prayer -thoughts are things--bread upon the waters. - - -THOUGHT TRANSFERENCE IN DISTRESS. - -I withhold the names for family reasons. Mr. ---- had been in business -in Glasgow for nearly thirty years, and, from comparatively small -beginnings, had been very successful. Latterly, he and his family -resided in ----, a suburb of Glasgow. Both in the city and in this -district Mr. ---- was very much respected, being a church member and -holding office in ---- Free Church. For some time Mr. ---- had been -ailing, and his medical attendant advised him to take a sea voyage--a -thorough change, etc. In compliance with this advice, he took a trip -up the Mediterranean. Miss ----, a distant relative of his, had been -visiting Glasgow, and, being on terms of intimacy with the family, -knew of his departure from Glasgow. About two weeks after he left, she -also left Glasgow for Edinburgh. While in the train for Edinburgh, she -was overcome with great anxiety for Mrs. ----, his wife. Unable to -shake the feeling off, instead of going to Edinburgh, she actually got -out of the train halfway, at Falkirk, and took the next train back -to Glasgow, and went to her friend’s house, whom she found in great -distress. Mrs. ---- had, about the time Miss ---- became distressed -in the train, received word that her husband was found dead (having -committed suicide) in his berth on the steamer at Constantinople. The -state of mind of the newly-made widow re-acted on that of Miss ----. -As Miss ---- was not only a dear friend, but was noted for her earnest -piety, the widow at once earnestly desired to see her. When last -these two friends saw each other, everything seemed to contribute to -happiness and comfort. Mrs. ---- was looking forward hopefully for the -return of her husband, restored in health, to herself and children. - - -THOUGHT TRANSFERENCE IN ORDINARY EXPERIENCE. - -Whether thought-transference is a “relic of a decaying faculty,” or the -“germ of a new and fruitful sense,” daily experience in the lives of -most furnish abundant evidence of the existence of such a power. My own -life has supplied me with abundant evidence of the fact. It is a common -occurrence with us for either my wife or I to utter or give expression -to the thoughts which, for the time being, occupied the conscious plane -in the other. It is possible there may have been, as there has been in -some instances, some half phrase uttered or manner shown, which in the -one have aroused the thoughts expressed by the other. - -It has been our habit for several years to stay at Rothesay during the -summer season. As an instance of thought-transference quite common -in our experience;--On Saturday, 1st October, 1892, I went to the -Revision Court at the Town Hall to hear registration disputes settled -between Tory and Gladstonian lawyers. Finding nothing to interest me, -I entered into conversation with Mr. Thompson, jeweller and hardware -merchant, whom I met in the Court, and went with him to his shop in -Montague Street, Rothesay. Standing at his door a short time, I noticed -a solitary pair of shamrock earrings, composed of crystal brilliants -and gold, lying on a tray, with a number of other earrings, in one of -the windows. I inquired the price, as I felt sure Mrs. Coates would be -pleased with them. They were packed up in a neat box, and I took them -home. At dinner, I gave the box to my wife, who said, “What is this, -papa?” - -“Open and see,” I replied. - -Animated with a little curiosity, she did, and, as soon as she saw -the earrings, said, “Thompson’s! Well, papa, that is funny. James (my -little son) and I stood at Thompson’s window last night, and I admired -these earrings. I thought them so neat, and that they would match my -brooch. I thought I would like to have them, and then I thought to -myself, no; I will not spend the money. I pointed them out to James, -and said to him, I am sure if papa saw them, he would buy them--and -here you have brought them home. I cannot tell you how much I prize -them.” - -My little boy said, “Thought-reading again, papa!” and, with a good -laugh, we proceeded to discuss our dinner. Mrs. Coates had not been in -the habit of seeing this particular window, and I am not in the habit -of buying jewellery. - -I record this trifle here, as one of our common experiences, and I am -satisfied similar experiences are common to all. - -Another experience is the anticipation of letters and their contents. -This is most frequent in the morning, just before rising. I frequently -see the letters and the shape of the envelope and style of address -before I actually see the letters on my consulting table. - -The most common experience of all is recognised by the adage, “Think -of the Devil, and he will appear.” I have noted this in particular. -Sitting at the table, there is “popped” into my mind a thought of -someone. I will remark, “I think Mr. or Mrs. ---- will be here to-day,” -and they come. Certainly, all who have come in this way have been -relatives or friends; and although they appear subsequent to the -thought of them, the evidence in favour of thought-transference may not -be esteemed conclusive. I say it is a common experience. I don’t think -we should despise any experience, because it is common. To be common, -indicates there is a basis, amounting to a psychic law, to account for -its existence. - -Another common experience is the crossing of letters. One person -suddenly recollects “So-and-so;” and writes them a letter excusing -delay in writing, retailing news, and in all probability writing on -some subject more particularly than on others. Strange to say, the -person you have written to, has also been engaged writing to you about -the same time and on similar subjects. Both have possibly posted their -letters at such a time that the delivery has been crossed. I do not say -this proves anything; yet I cannot help thinking the experience is too -frequent to be accounted for by the usual explanation of accident or -coincidence. - -Mark Twain’s article on “Mental Telegraphy” is fresh in the minds of -most magazine readers. Whether that article had a basis in the writer’s -actual experience or not, it is a pretty common experience with most -literary men. - -“Distance,” says Mr. Tuttle, “has inappreciable influence on the -transference of thought. It may take place in the same room, or where -the two persons are thousands of miles apart. As a personal experience, -I will relate one of many similar incidents which have awakened my -attention to this wonderful phenomenon. Sitting by my desk one evening, -suddenly as a flash of light, the thought came to write an article for -the _Harbinger of Light_, published at Melbourne, Australia. I had, -by correspondence, become acquainted with the editor, W. H. Terry, but -there had been no letters passed for many a year. I had not thought -of him or his journal for I do not know how long a time, and I was -amused at first with the idea of writing on the subject suggested. -But the impression was so strong that I prepared and forwarded an -article. Nearly two months passed before I received a letter from Mr. -Terry, requesting me to write an article on the subject on which I have -written; and, making due allowance for time, the date of our letters -were the same. In our experience, this crossing of letters answering -each other has twice occurred--the second by Mr. Terry answering a -request of mine.” - -Dr. Charles W. Hidden, of Newburyport, Mass., U.S.A., reports a -somewhat similar experience to that of Mark Twain and the above, which -was reported in a recent number of the _Religio-Philosophical Journal_: -A very peculiar plot impressed itself upon his mind, and he immediately -based a story upon the plot. He read the story to his family, and was -about to send it to a publication to which his wife had recently become -a subscriber. When the next number arrived he opened it to learn how to -forward his manuscript, and great was his surprise to find on the first -page a story bearing the title of his own, and a plot almost identical -with that which he had written. Parts of the published article appeared -word for word. It is needless to add that Dr. Hidden tossed his -manuscript into his desk, and it is there yet. His explanation is, -that he caught the title and the plot from another, just as Mark Twain -caught the plot of the “Big Bonanza” from his friend Simmons. - -It would be nigh impossible to illustrate the various phases of -thought-transference, ranging, as they do, from the association of -ideas which may be aroused by a hint, a half-uttered word, or a -gesture, to the unmistakable facts of pure mental transference, -and, higher still, to the region of pure psychism, where spirit -influences inspire and direct spirit, and thought-bodies are no longer -recognised as mere subjective spirits but living and tangible objective -personalities, albeit discarnate. - -We can say truly with Voltaire, “There is a power that acts within us, -without consulting us.” - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -Thought-Reading Experiments. - - -Having satisfactory evidence of the reality of thought-transference, -it would be interesting to know if this power or faculty can be -cultivated, and if so, how? I propose in this chapter to show how this -can be done, and how to give thought-reading entertainments. - -Experimental mind-reading may be distinguished, for the sake of study, -as the abnormal, the normal, and the spurious. - -The abnormal, that which takes place in trance, dream, vision, or -which may be the product of artificial somnambulism or of some -super-sensitive condition of the nervous system, through disease. We -observe thought-transference in these conditions, rather than attempt -to cultivate it. - -The normal, where the phenomena takes place in the ordinary waking -state, _without muscular contact_. - -The spurious mind-reading, so-called, as the result of musculation or -_contact_, but which is, in fact, only muscle-reading. - -In both the abnormal and normal, direct transference of thought -from mind to mind can only take place when there is the necessary -development of psychic activity in the agent or operator, and the -equally necessary sensitiveness in the sensitive or percipient. - -Classed under muscle-reading are those performances and games in which -the sensitive reads not the mind, but some special desire (of those -with whom he or she may be placed _in contact_), by a “careful study -of the indications unconsciously given by the agent or operator to the -percipient or reader.” - -In both abnormal and normal thought-reading, then, are presented -innumerable instances of the possession of psychic faculties; in the -muscle-reading phase there may be, and it is possible all successful -“readers” have, more or less sensitiveness, to take impressions. - -To cultivate mind-reading in a sensitive, the operator should first -cultivate in himself the habit of projecting mental pictures, and -think of things as seen by the eye, rather than as described by words. -This is best done by calling to mind a landscape or domestic scene, by -conceiving and mentally building up the same, and, by degrees, getting -each feature or detail well stamped in his mind. - -It is well in the beginning of these experiments to make the scene as -simple, and yet as natural and as complete in detail, as possible. For -instance, let the operator think of such a picture as this:--A bright -little landscape, having a well-defined cottage on the left, just on -the margin of a small lake; boat with two figures in the foreground; -rising bank upon the right; and a little higher up a defined windmill, -well thrown out by the perspective of blue-ridged and undulating -mountains, and sky in the background. - -The agent, having satisfied himself of his sensitive’s whole or -partial powers of psychic perception, might ask:--“Do you see anything -now?” and quickly and deliberately go to work, meanwhile formulating -definitely such a picture as the above; even allowing himself to get -into ecstacies over the scene--peopling the cottage and the mill, and -introducing imaginary conversation between the individual dwellers -therein, and so on. The sensitive will describe the whole as the -same is _felt_ or perceived. This experiment may appear to some to -be impossible, but the word impossible belongs to the limitations of -sense, and not to the range of the things possible to the human spirit. - -Some sensitives and mediums take impressions from their -surroundings--their clairvoyant revelations are often nothing more -than so much Mind-reading. _Nothing more_; but this nothing more is a -great deal. Certainly, it may not prove the existence of spirit, apart -from the sensitive’s own powers; but it does prove that man has other -avenues of knowledge than those with which he is usually credited. - -The development of mind-reading in the psychic states may be encouraged -by a little judicious assistance or direction. Invite the sensitive -to pay attention to So-and-so; to visit places, to examine rooms, or -describe people whom the sensitive has never seen. But the places, -the rooms, and the persons must be _distinctly in the minds_ of those -persons, or agents, with whom he or she is placed in _rapport_. - -During these experiments the sensitive will say, “I _see_ this,” or -describe that other, as if he actually saw. Hence the infinitely close -relationship of mind-reading to clairvoyance. Thought-reading in -spiritualism will be referred to in the next chapter. - -Once possessing a good sensitive, the development of the power, as -a matter of fact, lies particularly in the operator’s ability to -concentrate and focus his thoughts--to think clearly, calmly, vividly, -and distinctly himself--and to deliberately and conscientiously project -the same. - - -THE NORMAL EXPERIMENTS WITHOUT CONTACT. - -A pleasant hour or so can be profitably filled up on a long winter’s -evening with experiments in mind reading, without resorting to -mesmerism. It will be found that there are mind-readers in every -family--some boy, girl, or young woman more sensitive than the rest to -impressions. - -Sometimes it has been found, when two or more persons think of the -same object, as in the “willing game,” the impression becomes more -vivid, and the sensitive finds, or describes, the article, or thing, -more easily. It has been left to the versatility of Professor Lodge, -of the University College, Liverpool, to project two distinct images -at the same time to a sensitive. He requested two friends to look at -a paper that he had given to each. On one paper a square was drawn, -and on the other an oblique cross. Neither person knew what the other -was looking at, and after they had looked intently at these diagrams -for a short time, the sensitive, who was in a normal condition, but -blindfold, said:--“I see two figures--first I see one, and then, -below that, another. I do not know which I am to draw. I cannot see -either plainly.” Having been requested to draw what she saw, she drew -a square, with an oblique cross inside of it. On being questioned, -she replied that she did not know why she placed the cross in the -square. The two images projected by distinct minds, intermingled, and -were produced, as narrated by Professor Lodge. We can readily see -that confusion will arise where a number of persons are thinking of -different subjects, or when some positive-minded individual declares -mind-reading to be an impossibility. - -Something after the above experiments of Professor Lodge are those -which were conducted by Mr. Guthrie, a London barrister, and reported -by him to the Society of Psychical Research. - -A number of diagrams, roughly drawn off-hand at the time, were shown to -the agent or precipitant, Mr. G., the subject, or percipient, a lady, -being blind-fold. During the process of transference, the agent looked -steadily and in silence at the drawing, the subject meanwhile sitting -opposite to him, and behind the stand on which the drawing lay, so -that it was entirely out of her range of vision had her eyes not been -blind-folded. - -The agent stopped looking at the drawing when the subject professed -herself ready to make the attempt to reproduce it. The time occupied -thus was from half a minute to two or three minutes. Then the -handkerchief was removed, and she drew with a pencil what had occurred -to her mind. - -[Illustration: RESULTS OF EXPERIMENTS IN THOUGHT-TRANSFERENCE.] - -[Illustration: RESULTS OF EXPERIMENTS IN THOUGHT-TRANSFERENCE.] - -The reproductions were made generally without the agent following or -watching the process. We reproduce several of the attempts here, giving -both the successes and the failures. Even the failures show the effect -Mr. G. produced upon the reader’s mind. - -The experiments conducted so successfully in the family of the Rev. -Mr. Creery, of Boston, and made public by Professor Barrett in _The -Journal of Psychical Research_, show to what extent thought-reading -may be successfully carried on in the quietude and confidence of a -well-regulated family. - -The mode of procedure adopted by Professor Barrett to test the faculty -as possessed by the children was as follows:--“One of the children,” -says Professor Barrett, “was sent into an adjoining room, the door of -which I saw was closed. On returning to the sitting-room, and closing -the door also, I thought upon some object in the house, fixed upon at -random. Writing the name down, I showed it to the family present, the -strictest silence being preserved throughout. We then all silently -thought of the name of the thing selected. In a few seconds the door -of the adjoining room was heard to open, and after a short interval -the child would enter the sitting-room, generally speaking, with the -object selected. No one was allowed to leave the sitting-room after -the object had been fixed upon, and no communication with the child -was conceivable, as her place was often changed. Further, the only -instructions given to the child were to fetch some objects in the house -that I would think upon and, together with the family, silently keep in -mind, to the exclusion as far as possible of all other ideas.” - -Now, if Professor Barrett had told the children to select a word, and -upon coming into the room were to spell or state what the word was, I -question if the experiments would have been so successful. The articles -thought of, whether a hair brush, an orange, wine glass, apple, or a -playing card, were of such a nature that a definite picture or image of -the thing thought of could be formed in the mind. The father, mother, -and even Professor Barrett, seem to have been especially in _rapport_ -with the little sensitives, and thus all the more readily were they -able to transmit the mental picture of the articles selected. Trick or -collusion in this case is absolutely out of the question. It would be -interesting to know if these young sensitives, who were so bright in -1881, still retain, or have increased or lost, their powers. - -There were 312 trials made during Professor Barrett’s stay of six -days, who adds--“One most striking piece of success, when the things -selected were divulged to none of the family, was five cards running -named correctly on the first trial--the odds against this happening -once in our series, being considerably over one million to one. We had -altogether a good many similar batches, the two longest runs being -eight consecutive successes, once with cards and once with names, -when the adverse odds in the former case were over one hundred and -forty-two millions to one, and on the latter, something incalculably -greater. _Walls and closed doors made no difference._” [The italics are -mine.--J.C.] - -Something after the foregoing style are drawing-room entertainments -given. If failure result, no one is blamed, and ridiculous mistakes -only lend pleasure to the company, where all are known one to the other. - -The usual method is to select someone for thought-reader. Lady or -gentleman, matters little. He or she is sent out of the room. Some -one in the room generally takes the lead, who may suggest the article -to be selected and hidden, which the thought-reader is to find. The -article selected is thought of by the entire company. The reader is -to go to the place where it is, lift it, put it down, or give it to -some one else; or to find a certain book and remove it from its place -on table or elsewhere, and put it somewhere else; to come in and sit -on a certain chair or to lead someone else to it, or perform whatever -other test that is decided upon. The reader is admitted into the -room, and, if at all receptive, will do or say something like what is -desired--often going direct to the spot, lifting the article, or doing -the things which the company have decided upon. - -A good plan is to get the assistance of one or two friends, use a bag -of counters, upon which numbers 10 to 100 are placed; also a smaller -bag with numbers 1 to 9. Let the sensitive sit at a table in such a -position, so as, if not blindfolded, he or she could not see what the -agent has in his hand. Use the small bag to begin with. Let one friend -hold the bag, another select a number. When both have carefully looked -at it, let it be handed to the agent, who shall fix his eyes steadily -upon the figure, and picture the said figure on his mind. The sensitive -will in one or two minutes either say or write down what the figure is. -If these experiments become satisfactory, the larger bag can be used. -The experiments with numbers must not be continued too long, and so -weary the faculty. In the same way a number of simple outline designs -can be used--these presented one by one to the agent or operator--a -fish, a boy and barrow, a fireman with escape, a negro and banjo, a -lecturer on platform, an orange, a book, etc., such as are found in -children’s school books; repeating the same processes as above. No one -must speak but the agent and the percipient, nor is the agent to know -what the numbers or designs are before the experiments are commenced. - -Should failure occur, select another medium. In a company of twenty -to thirty persons it will be very strange if a good thought-reading -sensitive is not found. In which case, more serious experiments may be -attempted subsequently, and attain scientific value. - -The thought-reader should be blindfolded, and _resign_ himself to the -_influence_ of the agent or operator. Although he understands that -something is expected of him, he is not to be anxious about what, but -simply _act_ as he _feels_ himself prompted. - -In proportion as the sensitive is able to give up anxiety and desire, -so will he be able to become a good reader. - -The operator, or agent, must concentrate his mind upon what is -required, and _will_ the sensitive to do it. When two or more persons, -or all in the room, _are_ concentrating their minds upon the thing, -object, or word, the sensitive may all the sooner be influenced; but -I prefer that one person should be chosen as the operator, and all -intended experiments be submitted to him. - -The process is analogous to that of mesmerism. We see traces here of -the influence of mind over mind. We see the operator determines and -the subject performs, although it may not be very clear how thought is -actually projected, or in what way it is received, other than already -suggested. - -Practice makes perfect in this as in other things. Success is -proportionate to success. A reader showing a degree of susceptibility -at first attempts will generally improve by subsequent efforts. In a -similar way, operators will make headway with practice. Some operators -and sensitives will be successful at first trial; others again have -failed after repeated attempts. - -Plenty of time should be taken for all first attempts. Let the -operator, for instance, keep his mind thoroughly fixed on the object. -Should the reader be going away from it, let the agent strongly wish -him to go back, _touch_ it, lift it, etc., as previously decided upon -by the company. - -All sensitive persons are likely to make good thought-readers; the less -sensitive, muscle-readers. - - -MUSCLE-READING ENTERTAINMENTS. - -Thought-transference, like clairvoyance, is unequal in power and -manifestation, even with good percipients, and cannot be turned on -like, and with, the evening gas, to enlighten and entertain. Hence -those enterprising entertainers, like Bishop and Cumberland, depended -on “muscle-reading,” and “backed-up their show” with tricks, some of -them so puerile and barefaced that a third-rate conjuror would be -ashamed of them. - -The general public, however, enjoyed these entertainments. They were -something new, and, like “angel’s visits,” were few and far between. -Not only so, but that wonderful combination, the general public, saw -that these entertainments were patronised by men of science, such as -Carpenter, Beard, Hammond, Baron Kelvin, and others deeply in love -with strictly materialistic hypothesis. They were also patronised by -“society.” These entertainers undertook to read thoughts and expose -spiritualism; and as the dear public loves mystery, it went. But the -dear public don’t like to be “taken in,” hence these performances are -generally repeated--in the next town. - -The following, reported from St. John’s, N.B., January 17, 1887, in -the _Herald_, is a good illustration of the psychic and muscular -indications involved in an experiment of this kind:--“In a -‘mind-reading’ performance on Saturday night, after several examples -indoors, the ‘reader,’ a young man who belongs to this city, asked for -an outdoor test. The party separated, one remaining with the reader, -and hid a pin in the side of a little house used by the switchman of -the New Brunswick Railway at Mill Street. In their travels they went -over the new railway trestle, a most difficult journey. The reader -was blindfolded, and one took his wrist, but at the trestle hesitated, -fearing to venture, and was told by the reader to let go his wrist and -place his hand on his head. The subject did so, and the reader went -upon the trestle. Some of the party suggested that the bandage should -be removed, but he told them not to mind, and, the subject again taking -the wrist, he went over the ice and snow-covered sleepers. With a -firm step he crossed to the long wharf, went over as far as the mill -gates, then quickly turned, retraced his steps, and went back to the -corner of Mill Street. Here he rested a minute, then again took the -subject’s hand, and in less than five minutes afterwards found the pin. -At the conclusion of the test, the reader inquired what the matter had -been when they first reached the trestle. It was easily explained. -The storm had covered the sleepers with snow, and it was thought -dangerous, even for a man not blindfolded to cross them. The subject -felt anxious for the reader’s safety, and hesitated about going across. -The tests were most satisfactory.” Thought or mind-reading applied to -these experiments is a misnomer. If this young gentleman could “read -thoughts” by musculation, or _contact_, he would have known what the -matter had been when they first reached the trestle. Muscle-reading is -not thought-reading. Hence it is classified as spurious. - -Any number of illustrations could be given of such entertainments. The -foregoing is sufficiently adequate to give an idea of how these muscle -(not thought) reading entertainments are given. - -For drawing-room entertainments, first blindfold the reader, who is -conducted out of the room while the experiments are decided upon. The -blindfolding helps to mystify friends, who think the work is rendered -more difficult. As a matter of fact, the reader’s work is rendered much -more easy. It helps to isolate him, and leaves his mind much less -entrammelled by sights and impressions which would otherwise prevent -him receiving _the_ impressions which it is desirable he should receive. - -Suppose the reader is to locate the seat of an imaginary pain, the -assistant or operator _pro tem._ will grasp[F] with his left hand -the sensitive’s right wrist and hold it firmly. While the reader is -endeavouring to locate the pain, the operator must give up his will, -and think intently on the situation of the pain. The reader will then -locate it. - -There is less secret in this than appears at first sight. The -sensitive, or reader, is simply guided or led by the operator, and the -reader’s hand either stops partially over or is pressed upon the seat -of the pain. He then declares he has found the seat of the pain, and -points it out accordingly. - -A somewhat similar method is adopted in finding the pin, or the _hole_ -in which a pin _had been_. The racing and flying about of public -thought-readers are only so much “theatrical side,” thrown in to give -dramatic effect to their performances. - -In reading the numbers on bank-notes, or spelling out certain words, a -board with the numerals and the alphabet (see front cover) is placed -in sight of the audience. The reader takes the wrist of the operator, -and, commencing at the left side of the board, proceeds from figure to -figure till he detects the right one. The operator thinks only of _one_ -figure or letter at a time. This is the whole secret of “musculation.” -Even when the operators are sincere, and are careful to give no -conscious indications to the reader, yet it is almost certain, if they -keep their mind fixed on the desired figure or letter, object or place, -they will unconsciously indicate to the reader the right number or -letter. - -To find an article, number, or do a certain act, it is necessary -for the reader to give prompt obedience to the indications given -him. The concentration of attention necessary can only come with -practice. No end of surprises and amusement will follow if the operator -honestly concentrates his mind upon the things to be done, and a good -muscle-reader is found to take up the indications. Apparently, the most -difficult feats are sometimes accomplished. - -During the experiments, the reader will have curious sensations, such -as heaviness of feeling, dread and uncertainty, and then _blankness_ -of mind, followed by an impulse to do something. If the reader can -keep his mind passive enough, he may receive impressions, as in -thought-transference; anyway, it is advisable to wait for the impulse -to move and to do. The highest percentages of success always follow. - -General directions for the cultivation of experimental -thought-transference and mind-reading given in these pages are -sufficiently specific, to be found thoroughly practical by those who -have put them into practice; and certainly no harm, either mental or -physical, can come to those who are willing to give them a fair trial. - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -Spiritualism. - - -Any reference to Spiritualism here must be very brief, and, I am -afraid, very incomplete. I will deal with the subject in the light of -the preceding chapters. - -It has been established on the clearest evidence that -thought-transference and reception between two nearly harmonised or -sympathetic human beings, or embodied human spirits, are possible, and -this without intermediate sense or physical agencies. If, then, between -mind and mind on earth, distance or space being no obstacle, matter no -hindrance, why not between mind disincarnate--if we can conceive of -mind apart from the human brain and organism--and mind incarnate? If -not, why not? - -It seems to me very difficult, if we accept the first, to reject the -latter conclusion. If we accept the latter, we are committed in the -main to belief in Spiritualism, ancient and modern. If we admit that it -is possible for a disembodied spirit to communicate with us in dream, -vision, or, as in the case of Miss Howett, have our hands influenced to -write, or that we see and converse with spirits, as in the case of Mary -Reynolds, we then admit, and accept in the main, the essential features -of what is known as Spiritualism. The subject is not only interesting, -but of vital importance; therefore, I think, the fear of being called -a “Spiritualist,” or any other name, should not prevent us sounding to -the depths, the psychic possibilities of our human nature. - - -THE SPIRIT WITHIN US. - -There is Spiritualism _and_ Spiritualism. That which I am most -interested in is not so much a hankering after spirits, “spirit -controls,” and the phenomena, generally recognised as the right thing -in certain circles, as that other Spiritualism which leads to an honest -endeavour on our parts to ascertain if we are spirits, here and now, -albeit clothed for the time being in an organic envelope, relating us -to our present estate. - -If we are embodied spirits, it will be possible for the spirit-man (the -essential self--_ego_, I am), in each human being to communicate at -times, and under certain fitting conditions, with other fellow-beings, -under such circumstances, and in such a way, as to make it clear:-- - -(_a._) That the communications could not have been transmitted and -received by the ordinary channels, or physical sense organs, which in -ordinary circumstances appear essential to our exchange of thought. - -(_b._) That the exchange of thought, in independence of the ordinary -sense channels, will demonstrate that man must possess other, -extraordinary or psychic, organs for the transmission and the reception -of thought. - -Both positions I have endeavoured to sustain on the foregoing pages; -and, lastly, concerning spiritualism, I have arrived at the profound -conclusion that spirit-communion--that is, thought transmission from -the disembodied to the embodied--is a solemn fact. After carefully -eliminating all the possibilities of self-deception--auto-trance, -discreet degrees of consciousness, of natural and acquired -clairvoyance, of thought-transference and mind-reading, and lastly, -the puerile performances of conjurors and the simulated phenomena of -tricksters--there remains evidence of disembodied or disincarnate -spirit, and of such control influencing and directing the actions of -men, just as one man in this life influences and directs the actions of -another. - -What I esteem, however, as satisfactory evidence might not be evidence -to another; and I for one do not think it necessary to open up the -life chambers of my psychic experiences to the indifferent, the -thoughtless, or the sceptic, to furnish the desired evidence. Others -must travel by the way I have come to understand something of that way. -All men cannot believe alike, hence it will not be surprising that some -will accept as sufficient evidence of spirit what others would deem -insufficient. - -It is not my intention meantime to advocate spiritualism. I only refer -to it, in so far as it is related to “How to Thought-Read.” However, -phenomenal spiritualism is not a matter of belief so much as of -evidence, and many eminent thinkers have been compelled by the force of -the evidence to accept spiritualism now, who, a quarter of a century -ago, would have hesitated, principally through fear of ridicule, to -speak of the subject in language of ordinary civility. - -While I am convinced that such communications between the so-called -dead and the living are possible, I do know and feel satisfied that -much which is accepted as evidence of the existence and influence of -spirits by the majority of the unthinking and excitable crowd who rush -after novelties, and perchance call themselves “spiritualists,” is -traceable to no other or higher source than our own innate, but little -understood, human or psychic powers. I have arrived at this conclusion -also, as the result of carefully investigating spiritualism, and it -is therefore not an _a priori_ hypothesis conveniently elaborated -from my own or borrowed from the brains of others who are opponents -to spiritualism. It is probable, had I not devoted the greater part -of my life to spiritualism, as one of the factors in human character, -I should have known but little of that sympathetic transference of -thought from one mind to another, or of the light which that fact -throws upon our dual or compound existence. - -In this “sympathetic transference of thought” we find a solution to the -problem of spiritualism, whether old or new. I conclude, with Buffon, -“The true springs of our organisation are _not_ these muscles, these -veins, these arteries, which are described with so much exactness and -care. There exist in organised bodies _internal forces_ which do not -follow the gross mechanical laws we imagine, and to which we would -reduce everything.” Or, as Laplace puts it more strongly--“Beyond -the limits of this visible anatomy commences another anatomy, whose -phenomena we cannot perceive; beyond the limits of this external -physiology of forces, of action, and of motion, exists another -_invisible physiology, whose principles, effects, and laws are of the -greatest importance to know_.” - -It may be esteemed reprehensible to “seek communion with the dead;” -but to know ourselves, to fathom this _invisible physiology_, whose -principles, effects, and laws are of such importance to understand, I -hold to be not only legitimate but perfectly laudable. How can we serve -God, whom we have not seen, if we do not understand ourselves, whom we -think we have seen, or the laws which govern our being, as created by -him? To know ourselves as we should, we ought not to neglect the search -for “the spirit within us.” - - -THE REJECTION OF THE PSYCHIC. - -Many persons--scientific, theological, learned, and illiterate--reject -the psychic, and refrain from investigating, either from constitutional -bias or from crass ignorance; and such have played the part of learned -Sadducees or low fellows of the baser sort before anything having the -remotest flavour of spirit. The man of science is rendered purblind by -“my hypothesis,” the theologian by “my belief,” the man of the world -by “my business” or “my position.” The respectable church-goer--who -vaccinates his children, as he has them baptised, because it is -the proper thing to do--has neither head nor heart, apparently, to -understand anything beyond the common ideas of the hour. He would -crucify all new thought, or new spiritualism for that matter, as the -Jews did Jesus, because the new doctrines promulgated and the new -wonders performed tend to subvert the present respectable order of -things. - -The worship of Diana is not confined to ancient Ephesus. The great -Diana of old was the type of that “Respectable Custom” which the -majority of mankind worship and obey to-day, because, as of yore, it -conserves their vested interests, official connections, and brings -them “much gain.” As for the man in the street--the multitude having -no shepherd--he is always more or less hypnotised by the well-clad and -well-fed, smug-faced worshippers of the aforesaid “Respectable Custom;” -hence he is ever ready to shout “Crucify,” or “Hurrah,” or aught else -he is influenced to do, especially if such exercises give him pleasure -and excitement for the time being. He accepts or rejects as he sees -“his betters” think best, and so, unfortunately, is unfitted to a large -degree, for the intelligent investigation of his own nature. These form -the largest group of rejectors of the phenomenal evidences of soul. - -The psychic, however, has suffered less from such rejectors than from -those who claim to be recognised and known as converts and exponents -of the same, who at best have only shown themselves to be “seekers -after a sign.” They may have run into the wilderness and have had -a bit of miraculous bread, and yet not be a pennyworth the better -of it in either soul or body--_i.e._, life or conduct. These, by -their foolishness, have prevented many well-meaning and otherwise -able persons investigating the psychic, for the latter saw nothing -in the lives of professed spiritualists to make them desire to have -anything to do with spiritualism. Moreover, coming in contact with -the iconoclastic in spiritualism, they have become disgusted with the -crude and the coarse therein, as they have with the revelations, -inspirations, and fads, advocated by certain mediums, and hence have -rejected the wheat because of the apparent great quantity of tares. - - -THE FRAUDULENT IN SPIRITUALISM. - -I am afraid the trend of modern civilisation, which leads men from -the beauties and quietude of hill and dale, of valley and river side, -into crowded city life, has tended to make men exoteric. They run -after signs and wonders without, and too little to the spirit within. -The broader view of being, and that self-culture and purity which -arises from the exercise of man’s innate powers, and makes for true -regeneration and spiritual progress, here and hereafter, have been more -or less sacrificed to the external and the phenomenal. - -The love of the phenomenal, in and out of Spiritualism, has created -a crowd of harpies, impostors, or fraudulent mediums--male and -female--who trade on human credulity, some to earn a pittance, and -others to gratify vanity. Men and women have been known to risk -reputation for both. In this way Spiritualism has its quota of -deceivers and deceived. - -There are some people who must have phenomena, just as there are other -people who will have sermons. If they don’t get exactly what they want, -they withdraw “their patronage”--the finances. So, if the patronage is -to be retained, phenomena and sermons have to be supplied--if the first -are fraudulent or the latter stolen. - -Seeing how fugitive real psychological phenomena are--natural or -induced--one must necessarily hesitate to accept “trance addresses,” -“inspirational orations,” “medical controls,” clairvoyant, and -second-sight exhibitions, which are supplied to order, to gratify -patrons, at so much per hour. It is human to err, but the manufacturer -of spurious phenomena, the impostor who trades on the ties, and the -dearest of human affections, is a devil. There is no iniquity too -low--earthly or devilish--to which he will not as readily descend to -gratify his vampirish nature. - -I am not disposed to accept the infallibility of spirits for that of -Popes--large or small--or professional media, in place of professional -priests and ministers, and there is by far too much of this in -Spiritualism. - -In the foregoing connection, I must refer to another source of -error--this time, however, more related to physical rather than psychic -phenomena--viz., the credulity of those who are disposed to believe -that certain conjurors are aided in their performances by spirit -agency. Personally, I would sooner believe that mediums for “Physical -Phenomena” resorted to conjuring to aid “spirits,” than believe that -“spirits” resorted to “hanky-panky” to aid conjurors. No wonder -“frauds” smile. Years ago I had to protest against this absurdity, -when people--who ought to know better--talked this kind of nonsense -about conjurors, as they do about certain fraudulent mediums now--viz., -“they are aided by spirits.” Owing to this lack of discrimination and -want of trained discernment in Spiritualists and the general public, -mediumistic frauds have fooled, to their utmost bent, fresh groups of -dupes at home and abroad. - -I am none the less disposed to accept the genuine, because we recognise -sources of error connected therewith, and are determined to set our -faces against palpable frauds. - - -SPIRITUALISM WITHOUT SPIRITS. - -We may now turn from the wretched arena of imposture, duplicity, -and credulity, to genuine, but little understood, phenomena in -Spiritualism. We have seen that much which has been attributed to -the agency of disembodied spirits is due, in many instances, to the -action of man’s own psychic states, “the double, who is wiser than -we,” and to the fact that, as often as not, trance states, automatic -and planchette writing, are self-induced conditions. Equally so, -clairvoyance, thought-transference, and psychometry do not require -the “agency of spirit” to account for their existence as “gifts,” -qualities or powers. It will be time enough to admit such agency--that -of disembodied spirit--when the evidence in each particular case is -reasonably conclusive. I think this is the only wise and safe course to -pursue. - -Clairvoyance may be native or induced, self-cultivated or cultivated -by aid of a mesmerist. As it has been exercised naturally, and without -any such aid, the exhibition of clairvoyance--in itself--is no evidence -of disembodied spirit-presence or control. Equally, the seeing of, and -the describing of, spirits by a clairvoyant--even if the descriptions -are apparently accurate--may present no evidence of the real presence -of such spirits. I do not deny that clairvoyants can see spirits, -but the mere fact of being able to see and describe spirits, is not -sufficient evidence--the _seer_ is controlled by spirit-power to -see, or that the spirits described are actually _bona-fide_ spirits. -Frequently, so-called spirits have no other existence than the image -of them possessed by some positive-minded individual. A clairvoyant, -_perceiving_ these images, might naturally enough conclude she was -actually seeing the spirits which she described. - -If Mr. Stead, for instance, is convinced that “Sister Dora,” -“Cardinal Manning,” or “Lord Tennyson,” are at his side, in his -rooms, influencing and directing his mind, or at other times actually -controlling his arm and hand to write, a clairvoyant in sympathy with -him may describe this or that other spirit he is _thinking_ about. But -that does not prove the spirit or spirits are actually present. - -A lady (Mrs. Davis), whose name has come prominently before the -public as Mr. Stead’s clairvoyante, being questioned as to Mr. Stead’s -automatic writing and her own gift, said:--“I know probably more about -that than anyone. I was in his office some time in the beginning of -December last regarding the forthcoming publication of a book of mine -concerning spiritualism. The conversation turned upon spiritualistic -automatic handwriting. I did not know the deceased lady who was writing -through him, but I saw her behind his chair as distinctly as if she -had been in the flesh. I described her position as she stood and her -appearance. She at once wrote through Mr. Stead’s hand confirming all I -had stated concerning her in my description. Mr. Stead’s hand continued -to write. I knew afterwards it wrote out a message stating that another -spirit was in the room. Mr. Stead asked me if I could describe that -spirit. I had to wait some little time before I detected it, and -there I recognised as in the flesh a very famous personage recently -dead, whose loss was mourned all the world over in prose and verse. I -carefully described the spirit as he appeared to me, and then Mr. Stead -said I was right. But, I answered, I see another male spirit. Ask the -deceased lady who is writing through you to write the name of the last -spirit. Mr. Stead’s hand automatically moved, and he wrote the name -of a son of the famous personage already alluded to.” Mrs. Davis says -she has been strongly impressed with the fact that Mr. Stead has been -selected by the spirits as their champion from the peculiar and unique -position he occupies in the journalistic world, and he will be the -agent who will break through the solid walls of bigotry and prejudice. -Mr. Stead may or may not have written under spirit influence, and -this lady may or may not have seen spirits as described. We must -not conclude in the latter case that Mr. Stead and his “trustworthy -clairvoyante” are stating anything they do not believe to be true. I -believe she saw, as described or thought of by Mr. Stead, a “deceased -lady;” and that she also saw, as equally thought by him, “a very famous -personage recently dead;” also “another male spirit,” whose name she -did not know until Mr. Stead wrote the name. This narrative, however -interesting as to automatic writing and spirit agency in the opinions -of those concerned, conveys no tangible evidence of either the one or -the other. To us it is interesting in the fact that Mrs. Davis _saw the -spirits thought of by Mr. Stead_. We must think twice before we can -accept this as evidence of spirits and spirit-presence. Although it is -possible those concerned have evidence, we have not. We have, however, -evidence here of thought-transmission and psychic impressionability. - -When we read of persons who have been raised up, as mediums of St. -Peter, St. Paul, or St. John, or a publishing company being run by -Shakespeare through a special medium, and worked by a syndicate of -Spiritualists, I think we are entitled to doubt these claims, even -though a dozen clairvoyants vouched for the existence and presence of -the aforesaid spirits. - -Psychometry furnishes evidence that many so-called spirits are not -spirits “at all, at all”--only visions of the originals; and the fact -that such and such an individual has been accurately described--actions -and manners carefully indicated--and this has been and is accurately -done in health and disease daily--is no evidence, in itself, that -psychometers have seen spirits. Thus, when a psychometer places a -geological specimen to his forehead, and describes an “antediluvian -monster,” roaring and walking about, no one but a very shallow -individual would imagine for a second the psychometer was actually -seeing the original. So many of the spirits and spectres seen do -not proceed from our own brains, but from objects, relics, and old -houses, which had been in times past impinged by the living presence -and magnetism of the originals. Then we must take into consideration -those spectres which proceed from our own brains, such as the -realistic images which are sometimes projected from the background -of consciousness to our eyes and ears. Many so-called spirits are -simply the product of diseased neurological conditions, in short, -hallucinations, which arise from some derangement of the optic and -auditory centres. The spectres seen by Nicolai gradually disappeared as -he lost blood, as the prescribed leeches tranquilised his system. We -have no reason to believe the spectres he saw, visions and what not, -were actually either spirits or produced by spirits. - - -MIND-READING IN SPIRITUALISM - -is the commonest of most common experiences. I have known mediums to -graphically describe scenes, persons, and incidents with such vividness -as to impress one they must be controlled by spirits intimately -acquainted with the whole circumstances which were revealed. Closer -examination indicates that all the information so given by these -mediums was based on the thought-read phase. That is, the information -was culled from the minds of spirits in the flesh, and did not come -from disembodied sources. - -Some years ago I attended a series of seances in Liverpool. Nearly -all the family were mediums of some sort. I was at this time very -enthusiastic in my investigations. Consequently, the following incident -was not lost upon me. One evening the circle met, with the usual -members. Shortly after the circle was formed, the daughter of the -house went into the trance state. There were several controls, one -of whom professed to be a man who, the day before, had been injured -on board one of Lambert & Holt’s steamers, which lay in the Bramley -Moore Dock. The “spirit” described the accident, how he was injured, -and that he was carried to the hospital, and had “passed away.” Owing -to the suddenness of his death, he wished us to communicate with his -family, and desired the circle to pray for him, etc. As near as I can -recollect, when asked for further particulars, name, family, there was -no definite reply. The medium quivered, and a new control had taken -possession of her. I, however, neither doubted the _bona-fides_ of the -spirit nor the medium. I was especially interested in this control. I -thought this time I had obtained a test of spirit identity. But alas -for the imperfection of human hopes, I was doomed to disappointment. -I clung to the idea the spirit would come back again, and when he got -“more power,” we would get the particulars he wanted to give us. He did -not come back--and no wonder. Four months subsequently, I met the real -Simon Pure in the flesh. - -To explain more fully: On the day previous to the seance mentioned, I -was on board the newly-arrived steamer in question. The lumpers were -getting out the cargo. This man had been working on the top of the -cargo in the main hold “hooking on.” I paid no particular attention at -the time to him, but an hour after I heard a great outcry, and saw a -rush of men to the main hold. When I turned back and got there, I found -this man senseless and bleeding. - -The hooks had slipped off a bale while easing out some cargo. One of -them had caught the poor fellow in the mouth, and had torn up his cheek -almost to the right ear. He was to all appearance dying. I temporarily -dressed his face, and the stevedore had him put on a stretcher and sent -to the hospital. _I did not know his name or the hospital to which -he was removed._ That day and the next the whole scene was vividly -impressed on my mind. Hence that night the circumstances at the seance -seem to me to be quite natural. Everything advanced was wonderfully -apposite and convincing. It was not till I saw the man, and conversed -with him, that my so-called test of spirit identity resolved itself -into so much thought or mind reading, so that, even presuming the -medium or sensitive was controlled by “a spirit,” there can be no doubt -the source of the spirit’s information was purely mundane. - - -AUTOMATIC AND PLANCHETTE WRITING, - -upon which so much reliance is placed, as furnishing evidence of -“disembodied spirit control,” presents similar difficulties. The -recording of forgotten incidents, and predicting possibilities in the -future, are not beyond the powers of the innate human spirit--wholly -and utterly unaided by spirit agency. Therefore automatic writing--when -genuine--does not necessarily furnish evidence of spirit control, not -even when the person who writes believes, and honestly believes too, he -is so controlled to write. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -Spiritualism.--_Continued._ - - -Automatic writing is a phase of phenomenal Spiritualism most difficult -to prove. In the majority of cases we are reduced to the awkward -position of accepting or rejecting the assertions of the persons who -declare that the writing done by them is automatic--that is, written -without thought and volition on their part. A close examination of -this claim may lead to the conclusion that automatic writing is not -impossible. Whether the controlling agent is “the spirit within us,” or -a disembodied spirit, or both, is not a matter of much importance, if -it is established, the writing is automatic. When messages are written -without volition, in the handwriting of deceased persons, signed by -their names, such messages must be treated on their merits. I have -seen messages written in this way. I have seen messages written, not -only automatically, but _direct_. Some were written the reverse way, -and could only be read by holding up to the light or to a mirror. The -direct writing was done in an exceedingly short time, two or three -hundred words in less time than an expert phonographer could write -the same by the most expeditious efforts. The evidence in favour of -telepathic writing is not very strong, but of _direct_ writing there -appears to be abundant proof. - -Dr. Nichols, in his fascinating work, “Forty Years of American Life,” -writes:--“I knew a Methodist sailor in New York, a simple, illiterate, -earnest man, who became what is called a test medium. He came to -see me in Cincinnati, and one evening we had also as visitors two -distinguished lawyers: one of them a brother of Major Anderson, “the -hero of Fort Sumter;” the other, a gentleman from Michigan, and one -of the ablest lawyers practising in the Supreme Court of the United -States. I had brought into the drawing-room a heavy walnut table, and -placed it in the centre of the room. The medium sat down on one side -of it, and the sharp Michigan lawyer, who was a stranger to us and the -medium, on the other. The medium placed his fingers lightly upon the -table. It tilted up under them, the two legs nearest him rising several -inches. The lawyer examined the table, and tried to give it a similar -movement, but without success. There was a force and a consequent -movement he could not account for. There was no other person near the -table, there was no perceptible muscular movement, and in no way in -which it could be applied to produce the effect. - -“When there was no doubt on this point, the lawyer, at the -suggestion of the medium, wrote with careful secrecy on five bits -of paper--rolling each up like a pea as he wrote--the names of five -deceased persons whom he had known. Then he rolled them about until -he felt sure that no one could tell one pellet from the other. Then, -pointing to them successively, the tipping table selected one, which -the gentleman, without opening, put in his waistcoat pocket, and threw -the rest into the fire. - -“The next step was to write the ages of these five persons at their -death, on as many bits of paper, which were folded with the same care. -One of these was selected, and again, without being opened, deposited -in the lawyer’s pocket, which now contained a name and a number -indicating age. - -“With the same precautions the lawyer then wrote, in the same way, on -bits of paper, the places where these persons died, the diseases of -which they died, and the dates of their decease, going through the -same process with each. He had then in his pocket five little balls of -paper, each selected by a movement of the table, for which no one could -account. - -“At this moment the hand of the medium seized a pencil, and with -singular rapidity dashed off a few lines, addressed to the lawyer as -from a near relative, and signed with a name which the medium very -certainly had never heard. - -“The lawyer, very much astonished, took from his pocket the five paper -balls, unrolled them, spread them before him on the table, and read the -same name as the one on the written message, with the person’s age, the -place and time of death, and the disease of which he died. They all -corresponded with each other and the message. No person had approached -the table, and neither lawyer nor medium had moved. It was in my own -house, under a full gas light, and, so far as I could see, or can see -now, no deception was possible. - -“The written communication, which purported to come from a deceased -relative of the gentleman only expressed, in affectionate terms, -happiness at being able to give him this evidence of immortality.” - -This incident is introduced here in illustration of one out of many -phases of mediumship known to spiritualists. We see here both psychic -and physical powers-exercised, not generally recognised as possible. -A massive table moved without physical leverage or exertion, and -“thoughts read,” which formed the basis of the message. Trickery and -collusion in this instance are absolutely out of the question. The -only questions which remain to answer are: “Did this medium possess in -himself the powers referred to? or did he possess them in consequence -of being controlled by a disembodied spirit, as claimed by the -message?” Although the message in itself did not contain evidence of -any other source of information than that emanating from the lawyer’s -own mind, we are forced to the conclusion that either the medium or -the spirit controlling the medium had power to read his mind, and of -exerting what Professor Crookes and Sergeant Cox would call Psychic -Force to move the table, and indicate what pellets to select. We have -here evidence of an intelligence capable of exercising an unknown force -and of reading thoughts--that intelligence claimed to be a human spirit. - - -TRANCE ADDRESSES. - -Trance and inspirational addresses, however, do not, in my opinion, -furnish much evidence of the reality of spirit control. We are -interested in the phenomena--taking for granted that these trance and -inspirational states are genuine--although the evidence of external -spirit control presented is often _nil_. The controls may or may -not be veritable realities to their own mediums--professional or -otherwise--but this is of little value, as evidence, to the public. -I have known mediumistic and otherwise sensitive persons to be -controlled--_i.e._, taken possession of by their reading. One gentleman -swallowed large doses of Theodore Parker. In time he thought of -Parker, talked of Parker, and finally believed he was “inspired” by -Theodore Parker. This gentleman had been a Unitarian before being a -Spiritualist, and doubtless his mind had been broadened and brightened -by his course of Theodore Parker; but beyond his own belief and the -evident state of excitability he exhibited when speaking under this -supposed control, there was actually no evidence of “spirit control” -worthy of notice. - -Mrs. Cora L. V. Tappan-Richmond, an inspirational medium, from America, -delivered a series of remarkable addresses in this country about -twenty years ago. These were published by J. Burns, of Southampton -Row, Holborn, W.C. A young gentleman from Brighton heard and read the -lectures, and finally budded forth as “an inspirational speaker.” For -a long time the public got nothing but the Tappan lectures diluted. We -had the same marvellous, even flow, similar processes of reasoning, -fertility of illustration, and unbounded capacity for assertion. No one -dare say this person was not inspired by the spirits. It might have -been a way the spirits had of breaking in their instrument, but I had -a shrewd suspicion the young orator was controlled by his reading. I -don’t know how many others have been influenced in this way. I have -noticed when a noted medium “came to town,” delivered a number of -addresses in public, or gave seances in private, immediately thereafter -a number of imitators professed--correctly or otherwise--principally -otherwise--to have been controlled by the guides, who were supposed -to control the medium aforesaid, and that they would soon be able to -give addresses and manifestations, and what not. On the other hand, the -noted mediums averred “their guides never controlled any other than -themselves,” etc. The conscientious investigator is left to wonder -how much imitation, vanity, and self-deception have to do with such -statements. - -Some of the most perfect oratory, and some of the ablest and most -cogent lectures and addresses I have ever listened to have been given -by trance and inspirational mediums. It was stated, as evidence of -spirit control, by those who professed to know, “that these mediums -could not reason and speak that way in their normal condition.” -All of which is worthy of consideration. At the same time I saw -nothing inherently impossible--judging from a physiological or -cerebral-physiognomic standpoint--to prevent these persons delivering, -unaided by spirit agency, the addresses referred to. That a person -speaks with greater ability, intelligence, or fluency in the trance -state compared with his known powers in the waking state, cannot, -alone, be accepted as proof of spirit control. We have seen hypnotised -subjects do the same. But the reality, or otherwise, of spirit agency, -cannot be estimated by the superiority, or otherwise, of the addresses -and messages given. - -In all public meetings and in seances where a medium is expected to -give trance and inspirational addresses the platform is “supported” -or the chair surrounded by sympathisers, whose presence is esteemed -favourable to “good conditions”--a “nebulous term” better understood -by Spiritualists than the public. When the address is, as is often the -case, a miserable jumble of things inconsequential, old, experienced -Spiritualists say it is owing “to bad conditions,” _i.e._, the -influence of the audience on the speaker being conflicting and bad, -hence the inconclusive rambling of the spirit’s oration. Whether -this is the true explanation or not, whether the medium was really -controlled or not, or the addresses successful or not, the fact remains -that Spiritualists admit that the “message” is not only “seriously -modified,” according to the channel (or medium) through whom it is -given, but that it may be deflected and distorted by the influences -of the audience to whom it is given. Whatever the real cause of the -imperfect oratory, what is this but admitting _the thoughts transferred -from the audience to the sensitive either make or mar the utterance_? -If spirit utterance is thus influenced, it becomes a difficult matter -to decide how much of the original message has reached us as intended, -and how unwise it is for some to have their lives directed by such -uncertain counsel. - -There are many persons so organised, that when they come in contact -with Spiritualism, (not knowing anything about clairvoyance, -psychometry, thought-transference, thought-reading, etc.) are so -convinced by what they hear and see for the first time--so much out of -the ordinary run of their experience--the only way they can account for -the phenomena is, “that they must be the work of spirits, for no human -being could tell what they knew, or what they wanted, save a spirit -who could read their thoughts.” This is just where, I think, the error -creeps in. Those very revelations which they in ignorance so readily -attribute as only possible coming from disembodied spirits, may be and -are in some instances quite possible to man, unaided by any such agency. - -Many years ago I sat with Mr. David Duguid, the Glasgow painting -medium. I had a “direct spirit painting” done. It was a correct--as -far as I can recollect--painting of a small farm-house and stead, in -the North of Ireland, where I as a child had been sent for my health. -Neither Mr. Duguid nor the control claimed to possess any actual -knowledge of me, or of the circumstances of my childhood. When I had an -opportunity of attending the seance in question, I wondered if such a -scene could be painted, and my wonder was greater when it was done. - -Here again, we have evidence of thought-transference. Whether Mr. -Duguid, by some occult power, caused the direct painting to be -done--his own spirit doing it while his body was in the trance -state--or the painting was produced by one of his controls, I am not -prepared to state. I am willing to state my belief that the painting -was not done by Duguid, the medium, or any other person present in the -room. One of the controls of the medium claimed to have painted the -little sketch, and, truth to tell, it is not more difficult to accept -this hypothesis than “the spirit of the medium did it.” In our ordinary -experience of human nature, we do not find it usual for men to give -credit to others--men or spirits--for what they are capable of doing -and saying themselves. - - -REFLECTIONS. - -It is quite possible, seeing that out of this life into the next, -through the portals of death, pass all sorts and conditions of human -beings, that in the next stage of existence--most closely allied -to that in which we now live--mankind are not essentially different -in character from what we find now. It is not, therefore, necessary -to call in the agency of demons, as distinct from human spirits, -to account for the phenomena of Spiritualism. If in artificial -somnambulism and the phenomena of the psychic state the operating agent -is an embodied human spirit, it is possible the same human spirit, -albeit disembodied, may still retain power to control or influence -other human beings. - -There is another and more serious matter for consideration, concerning -which our investigations of Spiritualism have thrown little or no -light--Spirit Identity. Not only do our friends depart and never -return, and many have promised to do so. How far are we certain -when spirits have returned? We may have been deceived by our own -impulsiveness, anxiety, and desire to feel and to know that “they are -not lost but gone before.” Again, admitting the genuineness of physical -phenomena, and conceding that all the communications are really made -by disembodied spirits or intelligent beings like unto ourselves, -what proof do we possess that they are really what they represent -themselves to be, or what they appear to be in spirit circles? “A bad -or mischievous spirit,” says Dr. Nichols, “may, for aught we know, -personate our friends, _penetrate our secrets_, and deceive us with -false representations.” This is certainly worth thinking about. My -object in writing is not to turn my readers against Spiritualism, -but to get them to bring into the investigation judgment, not only -to analyse evidence, but the capacity to “judge not according to -appearance, but judge righteous judgment.” It is no part of my -purpose to deal with the history, ethics, or even the phenomena of -Spiritualism. That has been well done by others. I merely write to show -that Spiritualism “has something in it,” and is of such importance -that it is neither to be lightly rejected on the one hand, nor are -its phenomena at all times to be attributed to agency of disembodied -spirits. - -Spiritualism is a many-sided subject, and too vast in its -proportions to be dealt with here, and while I have no doubt that -its public mediumistic exponents are no more perfect than the rest -of humanity--much is laid at their door which may have a basis on -fact--yet I do think they often suffer unjustly. Firstly, from the -cries of the ignorant--educated or otherwise, matters little--who -charge them with fraud, simply because such people are ignorant of the -psychic possibilities of man; and, secondly, from the admiring and -thoughtless many who are prepared to accept the commonest of psychic -phases instanter as evidence of “disembodied spirit” presence and -power. I have no doubt many phenomena are quite explicable on natural -grounds. Setting aside the possibilities of self-deception in untrained -observers, and of fraud in dishonest mediums, and of genuine phenomena -traceable to the powers of the “spirit which is within each of us,” -there remains, to my mind, abundant evidence of the existence of -“discarnate spirit,” possessing all the attributes of the human spirit, -as we know ourselves from the study of man as a psychological subject. -Unfortunately, the very best evidence in favour of both “embodied” -and “disembodied spirit” is not of that kind which is available for -publicity. Still, I hold, if there is evidence (psychological and -physical) for disembodied spirit in Spiritualism, I am also satisfied -there is abundant evidence for embodied spirit in the psychological -experiences of life, apart from what we know of Spiritualism. - -I may fitly close these reflections by quoting the testimony of that -keen scientific observer anent phenomenal Spiritualism--namely, -Cromwell F. Varley, Esq., F.R.S:--“Twenty-five years ago I was a -hard-headed unbeliever.... Spiritual phenomena, however, suddenly and -quite unexpectedly was soon after developed in my own family.... This -led me to inquire, and to try numerous experiments in such a way as to -preclude, as much as circumstances would permit, the possibility of -trickery and self-deception.”... He then details various phases of the -phenomena which had come within the range of his personal experience, -and continues:--“Other and curious phenomena had occurred, proving -the existence (_a_) of forces unknown to science; (_b_) _the power of -instantly reading my thoughts_; (_c_) the presence of some intelligence -or intelligences controlling those powers.... That the phenomena occur -there is overwhelming evidence, and it is too late to deny their -existence.” - -The Bibliography of Spiritualism is somewhat extensive. What books are -best to recommend to beginners is not an easy matter to decide. “The -Use of Spiritualism,” by the late S. C. Hall, F.S.A.,[G] however, will -repay perusal, and from the intellectual fitness, high moral tone, and -spotless reputation of the author, this book may be safely recommended -to all readers. - - -THEOSOPHY.[H] - -I have been frequently asked, What is Theosophy? A question more easily -asked than answered, and in answering I may do even less justice to it -than to Spiritualism. Theosophy is an intellectual speculation, having -for its main object the supplanting of Christianity, by a Revised -Version of Hindoo Metempsychosis. An attempt to foist upon our western -ideas and exoteric habits of thought, the mysticisms and esoteric -speculations of the mystics of India and Japan. Modern Spiritualism is -not a religion. Theosophy not only claims to be a religion, but to be -“the essential basis of all religions.” Modern Spiritualism may have -its faults, and be as imperfect as human souls are here or hereafter. -But we at least understand its faults and defects. The triple-crowned -spiritual monarch--sitting on the seven hills of Rome--is not more -infallible than the principles which underlie Theosophy--with its -demi-gods, its Mahatmas, its adepts, miracle workers and wonders. To -not understand and be able to accept these principles at once, is to -proclaim oneself an ignoramus. Theosophy is a strangely fascinating -religion for intellectual æsthetics. - -Spiritualism is at least susceptible of being observed and -investigated, and the hypothesis of Spiritualism is naturally a -reasonable deduction from the facts. Not so Theosophy, which is -merely a theory, an _a priori_ assumption pleasing to those with -more reflective and imaginative powers than capacity for practical -observation. Spiritualism has given facts to be examined and tested, -Theosophy nothing save gigantic and baseless assertions. Its _astral -shells_ and _elementals_ are like its _Mahatmas_, flimsy phantasies, -less tangible than the ghost seen and described by Dr. Jessop, or -visions of the _shade of shades_, seen by psychometers. For these -latter we have at least a basis in psychic phenomena. - -_Re-incarnation_ is the back bone of Theosophy, and Karma its necessary -adjunct. The _Kismet_ of Mahomet and the doctrines of election of -Calvinism are not more inexorable than the _Karma_ of Theosophy. -_Karma_ is a combination of earthly experiences and expiations of the -soul of man in time, during its everlasting process of incarnating and -re-incarnating in search of Wisdom, the Eternal Reality, and the final -extinction of all _individuality_ in the Nirvana. _Devachan_ is the -intermediate state of oblivion, in which _personality_ is blotted out, -and into which the spiritual soul, etc., enters between the periods of -incarnation. - -Theosophy--the Wisdom of God religion--attempts to explain all the -inequalities of life, the intellectual and moral differences in men, -of sin and suffering, by its working theory, _Re-incarnation_, which -doubtless has many attractive features. - -The phenomena Theosophists place so much reliance upon are the property -of mankind--somnambulism, psychic consciousness, clairvoyance, -psychometry, thought-transference, etc. The “Theosophic miracles of -communication with persons in other parts of the world” are explicable -by thought-transference, and in time may be no more inherently -impossible than telegraphy without wires and poles. The physical -wonders of Theosophy, akin to those of Spiritualism, are attributed -to _shells_, the _astral_ carcases of once embodied but now rapidly -dissolving _personality_ of man, and _elementals_, fragmentary -spirit imps or sprites, who up to the present have not been as yet -incorporated in some incarnated human soul. - -As to the ethics of Theosophy, brotherly kindness, charity, and -self-sacrifice--most desirable virtues and _divine_ attainments--are -neither new nor the special property of Theosophy. Such _divine_ -qualities and virtues are common to all religions and religious -teaching, and if they ever reached their climax in human form, they did -in the person of Jesus, the Lord’s Christ. He was the embodiment of -these, and a living example for all time, long, long before unthinkable -and “ungetatable” Mahatmas were announced by Madame Blavatsky, or -believed in by Mrs. Besant. - -Theosophists recognise seven distinct parts in man, _i.e._, four -transitory and three eternal. The transitory elements are--the physical -body, the vital principle, the _astral body_, and the _animal soul_. -These four comprise man’s _personality_, and being transitory are -perishable. Hence the _personality_ of man is annihilated at death. The -three eternal elements are--the _spirit_, the _spiritual soul_, and -the _mind_. These being imperishable form man’s _individuality_, and -constitute the immortal part of man. This immortal part _incarnates_ -and _re-incarnates_ throughout innumerable personalities on this -globe, and the rest of the planets, beside having alternate periods -of “rosy slumber” and of activity. Our _individuality_ has no sex, -consequently we may be a little negro wench in one incarnation, -an Egyptian monarch in another, a Nero in another, a John Knox in -another, and so on. Others may not progress, but sink from incarnation -to incarnation, from a mother in Israel, to a Deeming in Australia, -and, finally, to utter annihilation. Those good souls who _live the -life_, and perfect their souls through much suffering, will become as -one with “the Eternal Reality, the Rootless Root of all that was, or -is, or ever shall be.” The higher and ever advancing Theosophist may, -however, stop short before he reaches the Nirvana, and elect to become -a Mahatma, or great soul, and reside on this or some other planet to -exercise power and precipitate wisdom, by letters and otherwise, to -the world, through chosen adepts. The good Theosophist in this world -and the next is surrounded by “thought-forms,” which influence him -in his upward career. The Spiritualist has his departed friends for -guides, and the Christian (Spiritualist) is comforted by “messengers -sent forth to minister to them that are heirs of salvation.” I don’t -know that “thought-forms” administering counsel to a spirit having no -_personality_ is an improvement on the old ideas. - -It is impossible to do justice to this Wisdom-Religion with its -orders, grades, and bewildering phraseology. It is a fancy religion -for the intellectual, without a personal God or a personal soul. Its -circles are masonic lodges for the rich. In no sense is it a religion -to meet the wants of man as man, like that founded on the life and -death of Jesus Christ. I do not pretend to explain Theosophy, for the -task is beyond me. It is a religion intended for those who realise they -are divine sparks of the Rootless Root, and not for the common people, -who are incapable of understanding a system of morals thus veiled in -allegory, and illustrated by signs and symbols. Amid the perplexities -of many words, we learn that Theosophy teaches what St. Paul indicates -as the divine order of morals by the words: “Whatsoever a man soweth, -that shall he also reap.” To work out one’s own salvation is as old as -the race. We may all be Theosophists without knowing it, as we don’t -know who we are, what we were, or who we are going to be, such is -_Karma_. Spiritualism and Theosophy are only referred to here seeing -how largely the phenomena on which they are based, is explained by “How -to Thought-Read.” - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[A] In this way evil habits, such as erotic mania, opium eating, -dipsomania, etc., may be cured. When the strength of the vice and -the deterioration of the brain and body are such as to undermine the -will of the patient, hypnotism, properly employed, may be used and -recognised as a powerful and legitimate curative agent. - -[B] “Phrenological Annual,” 1892. Extract from article by Dr. Samuel -Eadon, M.D., M.A., LL.D. and Ph.D., etc., Aberdeen and Edinburgh -Universities. - -[C] “Spirits Before our Eyes,” page 215. By W. H. Harrison, 1879. - -[D] Dr. Joseph Rhodes Buchanan has been Dean and Professor in several -American universities. As far back as 1830 he was Professor of -Medicine in Transylvania University. In the year 1841 he made several -important discoveries in cerebral psychology, which he communicated -to the American and to the Edinburgh Phrenological Journals. These -discoveries are elaborated in his unique system of Anthropology, and -are published in his works--“Therapeutic Sarcognomy,” “Psychometry,” -“The Dawn of a New Civilisation,” “System of Anthropology,” and “The -New Education--which can be obtained through my publishers, or direct -from myself.” - -[E] Thought (says Professor Houston) is accompanied by molecular -vibrations in the grey matter of the brain, and these brain molecules, -like everything else, are immersed in and interpenetrated by ether; -this being so, their vibrations must set up wave-motions in the ether, -and these must spread out from the brain in all directions. Further, -these brain-waves, or thought waves, being thus sent out into space, -will produce some phenomena, and, reasoning by analogy we may expect -that--as in the case of sound-waves--sympathetic vibrations will be -set up in bodies similar to that which generates the waves, if those -bodies are attuned to respond. Again, reasoning by analogy, we may -expect--as in electric resonance--that such oscillations would be set -up as are found when electric waves are sent out and, meeting a circuit -in consonance with them, set up in that circuit oscillations like their -own. - -In view of these facts, which are well ascertained, he (Professor -Houston) considers that it does not seem improbable that a -brain engaged in intense thought should act as a centre for -thought-radiation, nor that these radiations, proceeding outwards in -all directions, should affect other brains on which they fall, provided -that these other brains are tuned to vibrate in unison with them. - -Light waves are etheric vibrations, and it would seem that these -brain-waves should “partake of the nature of light.” If so, why should -it not be possible to obtain, say, by means of a lens, a photographic -impression of them? - -Such a thought-record suitably employed might be able to awaken at any -subsequent time in the brain of a person submitting himself to its -influence thoughts identical to those recorded.--_English Mechanic._ - -[F] The _contact_ is usually made by the agent taking the wrist, or by -placing his hand on the brow of the reader. - -[G] “The Use of Spiritualism.” By S. C. Hall, F.S.A., late Editor of -the _Art Journal_, author of “The Retrospect of a Long Life,” etc. -Price, 1s., Post Free, 1s. 1d. Hay Nisbet & Co., London and Glasgow. - -[H] “What is Theosophy?” By Walter R. Old, F.T.S. Price, 1s., Post -Free, 1s. 2d., gives an excellent outline of this interesting subject. -Hay Nisbet & Co., London and Glasgow. - - - - - TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE - - - Most of the inconsistent hyphenation has been retained as - in the original, like ‘mind reading’ and ‘mind-reading’, - ‘supersensitivity’ and ‘super-sensitivity’, etc. - - Obvious punctuation errors have been silently corrected. - - Original spelling and grammar have been preserved except for the - following: - - page 5: “the ordinary lauguage” changed to “the ordinary language” - - page 23: “render she sight” changed to “render the sight” - - page 29: “Stanhope, Macclesfield, Charlville” changed to - “Stanhope, Macclesfield, Charleville” - - page 29: “Camillie Flammarion” changed to “Camille Flammarion” - - page 29: “Dr. Jykell and Mr. Hyde” changed to “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. - Hyde” - - page 30: “and discribed a funeral” changed to “and described a - funeral” - - page 31: “s capable of” changed to “is capable of” - - page 42: “enter the first doo” changed to “enter the first door” - - page 45: “She can also indentify” changed to “She can also - identify” - - page 54: “why it hould not” changed to “why it should not” - - page 73: “from our own sensorums” changed to “from our own - sensoriums” - - page 75: “following by like feelings” changed to “followed by - like feelings” - - page 77: “the brig in a dorry” changed to “the brig in a dory” - - page 77: “the dorry was again” changed to “the dory was again” - - page 79: “The coffin, at anyrate” changed to “The coffin, at any - rate” - - page 81: “happened her” changed to “happened to her” - - page 84: “I notice a solitary” changed to “I noticed a solitary” - - page 118: “This gentlemen had” changed to “This gentleman had” - - page 125: “understand it faults” changed to “understand its - faults” - - page 125: “election of Calvanism” changed to “election of - Calvinism” - - page 126: “Devachian is the intermediate” changed to “Devachan is - the intermediate” - - Footnote A: “such as errotic mania” changed to “such as erotic - mania” - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HOW TO THOUGHT-READ *** - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the -United States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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text-align: center; text-indent: 0em; word-spacing: 0.3em;} - -.fs60 {font-size: 60%; font-style: normal;} -.fs120 {font-size: 120%; font-style: normal;} -.fs180 {font-size: 180%; font-style: normal;} - -.wide90 {width:90%} -.wide80 {width:80%} - -.lsp {letter-spacing: .2em;} -.lsp3 {letter-spacing: .1em;} -.noindent {text-indent: 0em;} - -ins {text-decoration: none;} -abbr {text-decoration: none;} - -/* Illustration classes */ -.illowp100 {width: 100%;} -.illowp70 {width: 70%;} -.illowp60 {width: 60%;} - - -</style> -</head> -<body> -<p style='text-align:center; font-size:1.2em; font-weight:bold'>The Project Gutenberg eBook of How to thought-read, by James Coates</p> -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online -at <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you -are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the -country where you are located before using this eBook. -</div> - -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: How to thought-read</p> -<p style='display:block; margin-left:2em; text-indent:0; margin-top:0; margin-bottom:1em;'>A manual of instruction in the strange and mystic in daily life, psychic phenomena</p> -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: James Coates</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: June 23, 2022 [eBook #68388]</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</p> - <p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; text-align:left'>Produced by: deaurider and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)</p> -<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HOW TO THOUGHT-READ ***</div> - -<div class="figcenter illowp70" style="max-width:30em;"> -<img class="w100" src="images/cover.jpg" alt="" /> -</div> - -<h1>HOW TO THOUGHT-READ:</h1> - -<p class="p2 pfs120"><cite>A MANUAL OF INSTRUCTION</cite></p> - -<p class="p2 pfs80">IN THE</p> - -<p class="pfs120 lsp3">STRANGE AND MYSTIC IN DAILY LIFE, -PSYCHIC PHENOMENA,</p> - -<p class="p2 pfs80">INCLUDING</p> - -<p class="p2 pfs100"><i>Hypnotic, Mesmeric, and Psychic States, Mind and Muscle -Reading, Thought Transference, Psychometry, Clairvoyance, -and Phenomenal Spiritualism</i>.</p> - -<p class="p4 pfs100">BY</p> - -<p class="pfs135">JAMES COATES, Ph.D., F.A.S.,</p> - -<p class="p2 pfs90"><i>Lecturer on Mental Science and Hygiene, Author of “How to Mesmerise,” -“How to Read Heads,” “How to Read Faces,” “The Social -Problem,” “The Antiquity of Man,” etc. etc.</i></p> - -<p class="p4 pfs90 lsp">PRICE ONE SHILLING.</p> - -<p class="p4 pfs100">LONDON: HAY NISBET & CO., 169, FLEET STREET.<br /> -GLASGOW: 25 JAMAICA STREET.<br /> -1893.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p class="p2 pfs90"> -HAY NISBET AND CO., 26 JAMAICA STREET, GLASGOW,<br /> -<br /> -AND<br /> -<br /> -169, FLEET STREET, LONDON.<br /> -</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<h2 class="nobreak fs180 lsp" id="CONTENTS">CONTENTS.</h2> -</div> - -<hr class="r7" /> - -<table class="autotable wide80"> -<tr> -<td class="tdl wide90"></td> -<td class="tdr fs60">PAGE</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tdl smcap fs120">Introduction,</td> -<td class="tdr"><a href="#INTRODUCTION">5</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tdl smcap fs120">Chapter I.—Somnambulism and Psychic Phenomena,</td> -<td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_I">9</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td style="padding-left:2em" class="tdj">The Hypnotic, Mesmeric, and the Psychic States. -Hypnotism a Curative Agent; the Sixth Sense; Dreams, Premonitions; -Double and Psychic Consciousness. Evidences of the Soul within us.</td> -<td></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tdl smcap fs120">Chapter II.—Clairvoyance,</td> -<td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_II">23</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td style="padding-left:2em" class="tdj">Psychoscopy, or Soul Sight. Spiritual Faculty, -exhibited by religious ecstatics, not a common possession. -How Cultivated. The Opinions and Evidence of Men of Science. -Second Sight. The Utility of Soul-Sight.</td> -<td></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tdl smcap fs120">Chapter III.—Clairvoyance Illustrated,</td> -<td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_III">33</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td style="padding-left:2em" class="tdj">Classified. Strange Story of the Chicago Water -Supply. Lost Goods Restored. An Aid to the Physician. Experiments -in Rothesay. Remarkable Clairvoyants. Clairvoyance in Mesmerism -and in Spiritualism.</td> -<td></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tdl smcap fs120">Chapter IV.—Psychometry,</td> -<td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_IV">53</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td style="padding-left:2em" class="tdj">Soul-Measuring and Soul-Measurers. Dr. Buchanan’s -Discoveries. Professor Denton’s Experiments. Detective’s Clues; -what Psychometry can do. Testimony of Mr. Stead and the Rev. Minot -J. Savage. Disease Detected, and Character Gauged by this Faculty.</td> -<td></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tdl smcap fs120">Chapter V.—Thought-Transference and Telepathy,</td> -<td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_V">69</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td style="padding-left:2em" class="tdj">Explained and Defined. Transference of Taste in -Mesmerism. Thought-Transference, in Dreams, from the Dying to the -Living; the Dead to the Living; in Prayer; in ordinary Experience. -Incidents and Experiences, etc. Mark Twain, Hudson Tuttle, and Dr. -Hilden.</td> -<td></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tdl smcap fs120">Chapter VI.—Thought-Reading Experiments,</td> -<td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_VI">88</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td style="padding-left:2em" class="tdj">Thought and Muscle-Reading Distinguished. Projecting -Mental Pictures. Normal Experiments, without contact, by Professor -Lodge, Mr. Guthrie, and Professor Barrett. Some Practical Suggestions. -Muscle-Reading Entertainments. Directions.</td> -<td></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tdl smcap fs120">Chapter VII.—Spiritualism,</td> -<td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_VII">102</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td style="padding-left:2em" class="tdj">“How to Thought-Read” and Phenomenal Spiritualism. -The Spirit within us. The rejection of the Psychic. The Fraudulent -in Spiritualism. Spiritualism without Spirits. Thought-Reading by -Spirits and Mediums.</td> -<td></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tdl fs120"><span class="smcap">Chapter VIII.—Spiritualism.</span>—<i>Continued</i>,</td> -<td class="tdr"><a href="#CHAPTER_VIII">115</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td style="padding-left:2em" class="tdj">Automatic Writing. A Test Medium. Trance Addresses. -A Direct Spirit-Painting. Reflections and Speculations. Testimony of -Cromwell F. Varley, F.R.S., the Electrician. Theosophy a Revised -Version of Hindoo Metempsychosis, etc. etc.</td> -<td></td> -</tr> -</table> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_5">[5]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak fs180 lsp" id="INTRODUCTION">INTRODUCTION.</h2> -</div> - -<hr class="r7" /> - -<p class="noindent"><span class="smcap">The</span> first book of this series, “How to Mesmerise,” gave so -much satisfaction to the reading public, and having passed -into several editions, my publishers have asked me to write -another work on similar lines. This <em>brochure</em> is my response. -Clairvoyance, Psychometry, and Thought Transference—briefly -referred to in the former—are more fully gone into in -this. Consequently, I have little doubt “How to Thought-Read” -will meet with acceptance.</p> - -<p>Thought-reading is duly considered and explained. A -clear distinction is drawn between Musculation, or Muscle -and Mind-Reading; and although these pages are not confined -to Thought-Reading, as generally understood by the -public, the subject itself, and as an entertainment, have been -pretty fully dealt with.</p> - -<p>During the past decade, psychological subjects have, in a -remarkable way, arrested public attention. “New Mesmerism” -and “New Spiritualism” are popular subjects -with editors and magazine writers. Whatever the real -causes—a greater influx of the spiritual from “the state of -the dead,” or from a reaction in the minds of men against -the purblind materialism of our scientific leaders—it is hard -to say. Possibly these and other causes have been at work. -One thing is certain, for good or ill, the majority of thinking -men and women of the age are not only interested in, but -are actually searching for evidence of “embodied spirit.” -Hence we find men of science, journalists, and even professed -materialists and secularists, who, a few years ago, -could scarcely speak of these subjects in the ordinary <a id="language"></a><ins title="Original has 'lauguage'">language</ins><span class="pagenum" id="Page_6">[6]</span> -of courtesy, confess now not only their belief, but are going -to the other extreme of advocating, what as yet, they have -failed to fully grasp.</p> - -<p>A few years ago “The British Parliament of Science” -was nothing if not materialistic. The leading <em>savants</em> of the -day declared “all was matter, no matter what.” Consequently, -man was the highest product of protoplasm, and -his <em>only</em> destiny the grave. The change has been great -indeed, when one of its most brilliant members (Professor -Oliver Lodge, D.Sc., F.R.S., British Association at Cardiff, -1891) in his address said: “It is familiar that a thought -may be excited on the brain of another person, transferred -thither from our brain by pulling a suitable trigger; by -liberating energy in the form of sound, for instance, or by -the mechanical act of writing, or in other ways. A pre-arranged -code, called language, and a material medium of -communication, are recognised methods. May there not, -also, be an <em>immaterial</em> (perhaps an ethereal) medium of -communication? Is it possible that an idea can be transferred -from one person to another by a process such as we -have not yet grown accustomed to, and know practically -nothing about? <em>In this case I have evidence. I assert I -have seen it done, and am perfectly convinced of the fact; -many others are satisfied of the truth, too.</em> It is, perhaps, a -natural consequence of the community of life or family -relationship running through all living beings. The transmission -of life may be likened in some ways to the transmission -of magnetism, and all magnets are sympathetically -connected, so that, if suitably suspended, a vibration from -one disturbs others, even though they be distant 92,000,000 -miles. It is sometimes objected that, granting thought-transference -or telepathy to be a fact, it belongs more -especially to lower forms of life, and that as the cerebral -hemispheres develop we become independent of it; that<span class="pagenum" id="Page_7">[7]</span> -what we notice is the relic of a decaying faculty, not the -germ of a new and fruitful sense, and that progress is not to -be made by studying or alluding to it. As well might the -objection be urged against a study of embryology. <em>It may, -on the other hand, be an indication of a higher mode of communication, -which shall survive our temporary connection -with ordinary matter.</em> The whole region is unexplored -territory, and it is conceivable that matter may react on -mind in a way we can at present only dimly imagine.” -The italics are mine.</p> - -<p>Thought-Transference and Telepathy may, indeed, be an -indication of a higher mode of communication between -human beings after we have severed our temporary connection -with matter. Whether or not, the hope should repay our -study. I have sought in the following pages to briefly define -and illustrate what these phases of communication are.</p> - -<p>Double and Psychic Consciousness, Clairvoyance, natural -and induced; Psychometry, its natural and leading features -as a spiritual faculty; Thought-Transference, visions, dreams, -and their <em>portents</em>, are in turn briefly dealt with, in order to -extract therefrom some evidence of <em>soul</em>.</p> - -<p>Modern Spiritualism is referred to, in so far as Thought-Reading -is likely to throw any light upon its psychological -phases, as well as on its physical phenomena.</p> - -<p>While attempting to cover so much ground my difficulty -was not what to write, but what not to write, the materials -at my disposal being so abundant. Much has been cut down -to get the whole within reasonable compass. Nevertheless, -I hope my readers will find “How to Thought-Read” a -readable contribution to the science of soul.</p> - -<p class="right">JAMES COATES.</p> -<p><span class="smcap">Glenbeg,<br /> -Ardbeg, Rothesay, N. B.</span><br /> -</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> -<div class="chapter"></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_8">[8]</span></p> - -<div class="figcenter illowp100" id="frontis" style="max-width: 80em;"> -<p class="pfs100">EXPERIMENT IN PSYCHOMETRY.—See <a href="#Page_60">Page 60</a>.</p> -<img class="w100" src="images/coates.jpg" alt="" /> -<p class="pfs90 lsp3">MR. and MRS. COATES.</p> -</div> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_9">[9]</span></p> -<p class="ph1">HOW TO THOUGHT-READ.</p> -<hr class="r30a" /> -<hr class="r30b" /> -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_I">CHAPTER <abbr title="1">I</abbr>.<br /><br /> -<span class="smcap">Somnambulism and Psychic Phenomena.</span> -</h2> -</div> - - -<p class="noindent"><span class="smcap">Before</span> entering upon the subject of “How to Thought -Read”—or rather, range of interesting subjects grouped -under this title—it is proposed to deal briefly with the -key to the whole, which is to be found in the revelations -of man’s inner life, soul-life and character, presented by -somnambulism and trance, whether natural or induced.</p> - -<p>The use of a few simple terms having a well-defined -meaning will help the reader and prepare him for the more -careful study of the psychic side of human life.</p> - -<p>The somnambulistic and trance states may be divided, for -the convenience of examination, into the Hypnotic, or state -of hypnosis; the Mesmeric, or somnambulistic; and the -Psychic, or lucid somnambulistic—or briefly, the Hypnotic, -Mesmeric, and Psychic states.</p> - -<p>The operator is the controlling agent, hypnotist, or mesmerist; -in spiritualism, the guide or control.</p> - -<p>The sensitive is the subject, the percipient, psychic, patient, -or person who passes into the hypnotic, mesmeric, or trance -states, etc.</p> - -<p>Hypnosis is the term used for the hypnotic state artificially -induced by the agent. Hypnosis is the lowest rung of the -ladder; the psychic or soul state the highest. The intermediate -phases, as indicated in conscious or sub-conscious -conditions of life, are innumerable and not readily classified.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_10">[10]</span> -Still, the states mentioned will give a favourable insight to -the whole. In hypnosis, physical rather than mental phenomena -are evolved; <em>anæsthesia</em>, or non-sensitiveness to pain, -is more or less present. The senses of smell and hearing are -partially exalted, and the sensitive may be partially or wholly -unconscious.</p> - -<p>The mesmeric state is the term frequently used to denote -ordinary artificial somnambulism. It is actually the higher -or more perfect form of hypnosis. The senses in this state -are more fully submerged, and the mental faculties are more -fully exalted, than in hypnosis.</p> - -<p>The psychic state, as the mesmeric, relates to the mental, -and hypnosis to the more physical, so does the psychic -state refer to that class of extraordinary somnambulism in -which the mental and the spiritual gifts transcend in character -and power those of the foregoing states. In this state the -higher phenomena of lucid somnambulism, clairvoyance, and -thought-transference are manifested more perfectly than in -any other.</p> - -<p>The hypnotic, the mesmeric, and the psychic states -indicated are frequently interlinked in manifestation. The -sensitive may pass from the first to the last without apparent -gradation. It is well to keep these divisions in thought, -so that in practice no one will be content with the <em>lower</em> -where it is possible, by wise and judicious observations and -operations, to induce the higher.</p> - -<p>To make the matter still more clear, in hypnosis and in -the mesmeric state all phenomena may be said to be induced -through and by the influence and the direction of the operator. -Not that he produces the effects as they are exhibited by -the sensitive, but they are brought about through the agency -of his suggestions or operations.</p> - -<p>In the psychic state this is not always the case. The -influence of the operator may at times be almost <em>nil</em>. The<span class="pagenum" id="Page_11">[11]</span> -operator will find it best—when the sensitive is in a high -lucid state—to become an observer and a learner, and no -longer continue the <i lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">rôle</i> of director.</p> - -<p>In the psychic state, the soul-powers, so often submerged in -ordinary life, transcend in a remarkable manner. The senses -are completely suspended and the mind exalted to such -a degree, a clearly defined super-sensuous condition is -reached. Whether this stage or condition is induced by -fasting, prayer, disease, or by mesmeric agencies, matters -little. In it we find the key to the seership, and the clairvoyance, -and the prophetic utterance, and the mystic powers -attributed to and exercised by prophet, and seer, and sybil -in the past. By the investigation of the phenomena evolved -by the psychic state we are enabled to understand something -of man’s soul or spiritual nature, apart from the phenomena -induced by pathological conditions of brain and body.</p> - -<p>The foregoing view presented of mesmeric conditions may -be very different from that which medical men may glean -from hypnotic practice with hysterical and lobsided patients, -and certainly not the views which the general public are -likely to gather from seeing a number of paid “subjects” -knocked about a music hall stage by an ignorant showman.</p> - -<p>From the roughest to the finest, from matter to spirit, -from hypnosis to the psychic state, we find enough to arrest -attention and give a high degree of seriousness and earnestness -to our investigation. We stand on the threshold of -soul, and the place where we stand is holy ground. We -find, as is the physical, mental, and spiritual characteristics -of the operator, <em>plus</em> those of the sensitive or sensitives, so -will be the nature of the phenomena evolved.</p> - -<p>It will be observed some subjects never get beyond the -first state, or hypnosis; others that of the second, or mesmeric. -All sensitives, in keeping with their temperamental and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_12">[12]</span> -mental developments (as revealed by phrenology and psychometry), -are better adapted for one class of phenomena -than that of others.</p> - -<p>It may be further observed that the foregoing states may -be self-induced or, directly and indirectly, the product of -“spirit-control,” drugs, or bodily disease. Hypnosis, we -must bear in mind, although not unlike the mesmeric state, -has no more relation to that condition than sleep produced -by an exhaustive walk or a dose of laudanum is like natural -or healthy sleep. Indeed, hypnosis is not properly a condition -of sleep. In the majority of cases the sensitive is -never wholly unconscious. It is rather a state in which there -is a temporary perversion or subordination between brain -impressions and consciousness. The sensitive in hypnosis -is often less intelligent than in the normal or waking -state.</p> - -<p>For various reasons the state of hypnosis may be recognised -as that state in which the mind is subjected to certain -abnormal conditions of the body, notably of the brain, spinal -cord, and indirectly of the circulation, induced by certain -means determined upon by the operator. The mental -condition in this state is one of almost pure automatism, in -which hallucination or sense illusions are more or less -present.</p> - -<p>Great and serious are the responsibilities of those who -bring about the state of hypnosis. Every thought and -feeling, of whatever kind, infused in this state, like seed, -will take root and germinate, and finally bud into action in -the daily or waking consciousness, and determine unconsciously -for the sensitive the character of his life. Hypnotism -is neither for indiscriminate use, nor is hypnosis to be induced -as a plaything for the thoughtless—medical or lay. At the -same time, in the hands of the thoughtful, its educative value -is most important, for, if the operator is well poised, and feels<span class="pagenum" id="Page_13">[13]</span> -that, he can impart higher thoughts and strengthen the will<a id="FNanchor_1" href="#Footnote_1" class="fnanchor">[A]</a> -of the sensitives by the twofold agencies of impressionability -and suggestion. This is something not to be despised. It -is surely no degradation to be saved from evils one cannot -overcome or resist, unless assisted by external aid, even -though that help can only come by submitting to hypnotism.</p> - -<p>In hypnosis the outer brain of convoluted grey matter is -most affected, being more or less denuded of arterial and -nervous stimuli. The power of conscious, intellectual, and -abstract thought is reduced to a minimum. The organs of -the central brain are differently influenced, as in inverse -ratio the stimulation is increased. The eye is more susceptible -to light, or the pupils may become dilated and -fixed. The auditory sense is rendered more keen. The -olfactory powers are intensified, and there is more or less -insensibility of feeling. The powers of co-ordination and -locomotion are preserved up to a certain stage, when these -functions are disturbed, all power of voluntary movement -ceases, lethargic and cataleptic symptoms supervene.</p> - -<p>It was by observing, more particularly, hypnosis, Professor -Heidenhain was led to aver “inhibition” actually accounted -for all phases of hypnotism. This opinion has evidently -been based on a limited number of cases. “No inhibition,” -says Dr. Drayton, “however ingeniously applied, will explain -all the phenomena of magnetism. If the personal consciousness, -the individuality, of the subject has been lost, and his -state is that of automatism, or rather that of an involuntary -actor, certainly his cerebral functions operate in a manner -entirely distinct from that which is characteristic in his<span class="pagenum" id="Page_14">[14]</span> -ordinary state. The inhibition relates to his common order -of conduct mentally, while the super-sensitivity and extraordinary -play of faculty that he may exhibit, indicate a -higher phase of sensory activity, more free or harmonious -co-ordination of the cerebral functions. The brakes are off, -hence the phenomena that are frequently observed in the -somnambulist, and awaken wonder, because so much out of -keeping with what is known of his common life.”</p> - -<p>Here we find doctors—experts in hypnotism or mesmerism—agree -to differ. They agree in this, albeit not expressly -stated, they are alike positive and decided in their views, -and certainly <em>without being positive, there is no possible -success as an operator</em>.</p> - -<p>The mistake they make evidently arises in confounding -the two states (hypnosis and the mesmeric), one with the -other. There is no super-sensitivity, or extraordinary play -of faculty in hypnosis, whatever there may be in the -mesmeric state. They are similar, in that they may be both -induced by the reduction of the activity of the cerebral -cortex.</p> - -<p>In hypnosis the mind slumbers and dreams. The dream-life -appears as substantial to the sensitive as the waking -life. The life creations, thus dreamed of, are acted upon, -whether they arise from suggestion or other causes.</p> - -<p>In the mesmeric state the senses slumber, and the mind -awakens to a fuller enfranchisement of existence, and to -the exhibition of mental and spiritual powers not hitherto -suspected.</p> - -<p>In the lower stages the increased power of the senses is -to be found in the <em>intense concentration</em> of effort, brought -about from the fact that the subject’s attention is, and his -whole energies are, directed in one line of action or thought, -to the exclusion of mind or brain activity in other directions. -Hence all efforts are centred in the direction suggested by<span class="pagenum" id="Page_15">[15]</span> -the operator, or self-induced, as suggested by the “dominant -idea.”</p> - -<p>The sensitive exhibits powers of mind and ability of thought -which were not noticeable in the ordinary waking condition. -Not because he really possesses greater powers of mind or -body, but because of the lack of concentration in the waking -state. By this concentration of direction, so called abnormal -feats of strength are performed, rigidity of structure brought -about, and other characteristics not peculiar to common -life. In a higher sense, we see the sensitive passing from -this condition of concentration of one-idea-ism to a spiritual -state, in which the phenomena exhibited are no longer the -product of self-dethronement and of suggestion. Higher -still, we see the soul reign supreme. The sensitive possesses -a clear consciousness of what is transpiring at home and -abroad, according to the direction of his psychic powers.</p> - -<p>In the psychic state—the more perfect trance state or -control—the whole mind becomes illumined; past, present, -and future become presentable to the mind of the lucid -somnambulist as one great whole. This higher stage may -be reached through the simple processes of manipulation, and -passes as suggested in my little work, “How to Mesmerise.”</p> - -<p>In the mesmeric state the sensitive passes from the mere -automatism of the earlier stages of hypnosis to the distinct -individuality indicated above, although still more or less -influenced or directed by his controller or operator into the -line of thought and train of actions most desired.</p> - -<p>The difference between the hypnotic and mesmeric states -should now be very clear. In the former the sensitive has -no identity, in the latter his identity is preserved in a clearly -individualised form throughout the whole series of abnormal -acts. Whenever the sensitive enters this condition his personal -consciousness is most apparent in the middle and -higher stages.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_16">[16]</span></p> - -<p>In fact, in the mesmeric state, it is very stupid for some -operators to ask the sensitive, “Are you asleep?” It may -be understood what is meant, yet the question is absurd from -the standpoint of an intelligent observer. The sensitive is -never more awake. The higher the state the greater the -wakefulness and lucidity of the inner or soul life.</p> - - -<h3>THE SIXTH SENSE.</h3> - -<p>In the mesmeric state we see developed what Lord Kelvin -(Professor Thomson, of Glasgow University), Drs. Baird, -Hammond, and Drayton call the magnetic sense—or “sixth -sense.” It is a gift of super-sensitiveness. To my mind it -is something more, the enfranchisement of the soul, the -human ego—in proportion as the dominance of the senses is -arrested.</p> - -<p>In blindness, it has been noticed how keen the sense of -touch becomes. I have also noticed the keen sensitiveness -of facial perception enjoyed by some of the blind, by which -they are enabled to perceive objects in the absence of physical -sight. In the mesmeric state we see a somewhat analogous -mental condition. As the peculiar sense of the blind is -developed by extra concentration of the mind in the direction -of facial perception, so is “the sixth sense” developed by -concentration of direction, as well as by the condition of -sensitiveness induced by the mesmeric state.</p> - -<p>This newly recognised sense, “the sixth sense,” not only -answers the purpose of sight and hearing, but transcends all -senses in vividness and power. Materialists, no longer able -to ignore the phenomena of somnambulism and trance, and -compelled to admit man’s avenues of knowledge in this life -were not confined to the recognised five senses, are good -enough to give him a “sixth sense,” even while they deny -him a soul. In the same way, no longer able to deny the -existence of mesmerism, they now admit it to consideration—re-baptised<span class="pagenum" id="Page_17">[17]</span> -as hypnotism. The phenomena being admitted, -we will not quarrel over the names by which they are -called.</p> - - -<h3>PSYCHIC-CONSCIOUSNESS.</h3> - -<p>As we advance in our investigations we find in the higher -conditions of these states a double or treble consciousness or -memory. The higher including and overlapping the lower. -Thus the consciousness of the hypnotic state includes that -of the waking state, while the memory of the waking state -possesses no conscious recollection of what has taken place -in hypnosis, and so on, each stage has its own phases of -consciousness. The memory of the sensitive, under influence, -overlapping and including the memory of ordinary -or normal life.</p> - -<p>Strange as it may appear, there are no phenomena which -have been evolved in any of these abnormal conditions of life, -which have not been observed again and again in ordinary or -normal life, as well authenticated instances of dreams, -warnings, and telepathy testify.</p> - -<p>Dr. Richardson notwithstanding, “in dreams and visions -of the night” God has manifested himself to man in all ages. -In other words, the soul (in sleep and analogous states to -somnambulism and trance) comes more in touch with -the sub-conscious or soul sphere of thought and existence. -At times there is an inrush from that sphere into our present -conscious state, by which we know of things which could -not otherwise be known. Of dreams, our space will not -admit more than occasional reference, we may mention as a -case in point the dream of Mrs. Donan, wife of the livery -stableman from whom Dr. Cronin hired his horse in Chicago. -A week before Dr. Cronin was murdered this lady had a -dream-vision, and dreamt he was barbarously murdered, and -saw in a vision the whole terrible scene. This dream was a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_18">[18]</span> -means, first, of forewarning the doctor, and second, of -leading to the detection of the miscreants.</p> - -<p>Of premonitions, an incident reported in the <cite>Register</cite> of -Adelaide, will suffice:—“Constable J. C. H. Williams has -reported to headquarters that he had an unpleasant experience -at about midnight on Monday. He was on duty at the government -offices in King William Street, and while standing at the -main entrance he had a presentiment that he was in danger, -and walked away a few steps. Scarcely had he moved from -the spot, when a portion of the cornice work at the top of -the building fell with a crash on the place where he had -been standing. The piece of plaster must have weighed -fully a stone, and had it struck Williams the result would -doubtless have been fatal. A passer-by saw the constable a -few minutes after, and his scared looks and agitated manner -clearly showed that his story was true.” Concerning telepathy, -Mrs. Andrew Crosse, the distinguished widow of the -famous electrician, relates in <cite>Temple Bar</cite> an anecdote -about the late Bishop Wilberforce, to the effect, the Bishop -was writing a dry business letter one day, when a feeling of -acute mental agony overcame him and he felt that some evil -had befallen his favourite son, a midshipman in the navy. -The impression was correct. On that very day the lad, who -was with his ship in the Pacific, had been wounded and -nearly bled to death. When this was told Hallam, the -historian, he replied that a very similar thing had happened -to himself. A few cases are noted further on. Some persons -would repudiate <em>all</em> such incidents as accidents or coincidences; -while others would fly to the extreme, and declare all such are -the result of “spirit control”—that is, some disembodied but -friendly spirit projected the dream, conveyed the warning, or -telepathically despatched the news. But we must never forget -news has to be received as well as despatched. Consequently, -we, as embodied spirits, must possess psychic consciousness.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_19">[19]</span></p> - -<p>I believe that <em>much</em> of the phenomena, directly and indirectly -attributed to disincarnate spirit control, are traceable -to <em>no other source</em> than the powers of our own embodied -spirits, as revealed by the facts of somnambulism and -trance, and this is the opinion of all intelligent spiritualists.</p> - -<p>“Because,” says Mr. G. H. Stebbins, a prominent -investigator of modern spiritualism in the United States -“a person quotes from books he never saw, or <em>tells of what -he never knew</em> in any external way, that is not final proof -that he is under an external spirit control. Psychometry and -clairvoyance may sometimes solve it all.”</p> - -<p>“I hold,” says Mr. Myers, “that telepathy and clairvoyance -do, in fact, exist—telepathy, a communication -between incarnate mind and incarnate mind, and perhaps -between incarnate minds and minds unembodied; clairvoyance, -a knowledge of things terrene which over-passes -the limits of ordinary perception, and which, perhaps, -achieves an insight with some other than terrene world.”</p> - -<p>These are the cautious admissions of eminent investigators -in psychical research.</p> - - -<h3>DOUBLE OR SUB-CONSCIOUSNESS.</h3> - -<p>“There are two sets,” says Dr. Brown-Sequard, “a double -state of mental powers in the human organism, essentially -differing from each other. The one may be designated as -ordinary conscious intelligence; the other, a superior power, -which controls our better nature.”</p> - -<p>J. Balfour Brown, in his “Medical Jurisprudence,” says:—“In -no case of pure somnambulism, waking consciousness of -the individual knows anything of the sleeping consciousness. -It is as if there were two distinct memories.”</p> - -<p>This double-consciousness, memory, or sub-state of mental -powers, is another but lower phase of psychic-consciousness, -and is sometimes exhibited by accidents, and also by disease.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_20">[20]</span></p> - -<p>Dr. Abercromby relates the case of a boy, four years old -who was trepanned for a fracture of the skull. He was in a -<em>complete stupor</em> during the operation, and was not conscious -of what took place. At fifteen he became seriously ill of -fever. In the delirium occasioned by the fever, he gave a -correct description of the operation, <em>and of all the persons -present, their dress</em>, manners, and actions, to the minutest -particulars. The “superior power” must have obtained -this knowledge in some other way than through the ordinary -channels of the outward senses.</p> - -<p>In cases of apparent drowning, where the person has been -saved from death by active, external help, we have been -informed that the human mind has worked with a rapidity -of action not thought possible in the waking state, the -intensity of menial action being increased in adverse ratio -to the inaction of the external senses and consciousness. In -this state the career of a lifetime has been reviewed, conversations, -actions, persons seen and places visited, all -vividly brought to mind—in possibly less time than it -takes to pen this paragraph. These phenomena suggest -the reflection that the daily waking life—sensuous and -worldly-minded—is possibly, to many, the least real and -effective. How much our external life is influenced by -our unconscious (to us in the waking state) sub-life, is an -interesting problem.</p> - -<p>Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes says:—“The more we -examine the mechanism of thought, the more we shall -see that the automatic and unconscious action of the mind -enters largely into all its processes. We <em>all</em> have a <em>double</em> -who is wiser and better than we, who puts thoughts into our -heads and words into our mouths.”</p> - -<p>A commercial gentleman of my acquaintance, who was -rather sceptical on the subject of double-consciousness—although, -“notwithstanding,” he said, “Mr. Stead, in the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_21">[21]</span> -<cite>Review of Reviews</cite>, had turned an honest penny out of -ghosts, double-consciousness, and that sort of rubbish”—admitted -to me, he had a maid, who had an awkward -habit of rising in her sleep, carefully setting the fires, cleaning -and dusting out the rooms, setting the breakfast table, -and doing many other things which appeared important to -the servant-mind. Her movements were watched. She -slipped about with eyes closed, avoiding obstacles, and -doing her work systematically and neatly, and without fuss, -when done, she would go to bed. In the morning she had no -recollection of what she had said or done. It was a curious -thing, he had to admit. The girl was honest enough. He was -certain this habit had not been simulated. Threats of discharge, -and possible loss of wages, did not cure her of this -habit. There was a certain form of “double consciousness” -in this case.</p> - -<p>“The subliminal consciousness” of Mr. Myers, by which -he accounts for the phenomena of genius, is but another way -of expressing the concept of an “identity underlying all -consciousness,” the psyche, the real “I, me,” “the superior -power which directs and controls our better nature,” the -“double who is wiser and better than we,” the reality of -which is so much hidden from our ordinary experience, -because our soul-life is so much buried out of sight by the -<i lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">débris</i> of the “things of this life,” which, fortunately or -otherwise, pre-occupy so much of our attention.</p> - -<p>It is this “subliminal consciousness” we see manifested in -the psychic state, and natural somnambulism. Clairvoyance, -psychometry, thought transference, etc., are as so many spectrum -rays of the one soul light. Call them “subliminal” if you -will. These rays flow out from the soul, and are many-hued, -distinct or blurred, according to the degree of pureness or -super-sensitivity of the external corporeal prism through -which they are projected.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_22">[22]</span></p> - -<p>Persons have lived for years, we are credibly informed, -who have spent half their lives entranced, <em>in the alternation -of two distinct individualities</em> or two distinct states of consciousness, -in one of which they forget all they had learned -or did in the other.</p> - -<p>Professor Huxley described (British Association of Science, -Belfast, 1874) a case in which two separate lives, a normal, -and abnormal one, seemed to be lived at intervals by the -same individual during the greater portion of her life.</p> - -<p>The conclusion to the whole matter is—the psychic, or -soul-powers in some persons are less entrammelled by the -senses than in others; that a high degree of organic sensitiveness -always accompanies those who are recognised as -psychics or sensitives; that this state of sensitiveness is natural -to some, and in others may be developed by accident, disease, -or induced by somnambulism and trance.</p> - -<p>I will endeavour to show these psychic characteristics, or -soul gifts, underlie, and enter into the varied phenomena—clairvoyance, -psychometry, thought transference, thought-reading, -and what not, which are collated under the title of,</p> - -<p class="pfs90">“HOW TO THOUGHT-READ.”</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_23">[23]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_II">CHAPTER <abbr title="2">II</abbr>.<br /><br /> -<span class="smcap">Clairvoyance.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class="noindent"><span class="smcap">What</span> is clairvoyance? “The term, clairvoyance,” says -Dr. George Wyld, in a paper read before the Psychical -Research Society, London, “is French, and means <em>clear-seeing</em>, -but it appears to me to be an inadequate term, -because it might signify clear optical vision, or clear mental -vision. What is signified by the term is the power which -certain individuals possess of seeing external objects under -circumstances which render <a id="the"></a><ins title="Original has 'she'">the</ins> sight of these objects impossible -to physical optics. In short, by clairvoyance, we -mean the power which the <em>mind</em> has of seeing or knowing -thoughts and psychical conditions, and objects hidden from -or beyond the reach of the physical senses; and if the -existence of this faculty can be established, we arrive at a -demonstration that man has a power within his body as yet -unrecognised by physical science—a power which is called -soul, or mind-seeing, and for the description of such a power -the term might be auto-nocticy (αυτονοητικος), or psychoscopy.” -Psychoscopy, or soul sight, would, perhaps, be the better -term. I propose to use the old term—clairvoyance—as it -signifies, in popular usage, the power of seeing beyond the -range of physical vision, as we know it.</p> - -<p>That certain persons are endowed with this faculty of clear -seeing—in some of its various phases—is a matter settled -beyond dispute. What special name to call this faculty, or -what are the true causes of its existence; why it should be -possessed by some persons and not by others; why it should -be so frail and fugitive in the presence of some people, and -strong and vivid before others; why some persons are never -clairvoyant until they have been through the mesmeric and -psychic states; why some become possessed of the faculty<span class="pagenum" id="Page_24">[24]</span> -through disease; while, with others, the gift of clairvoyance -appears to be a spontaneous possession; and why some -operators are successful in inducing clairvoyance, and others -not, etc., are interesting questions to which the student of -psychology may, with advantage, direct his attention.</p> - -<p>Clairvoyance is soul-sight—the power of the soul to see. -It is the state of refined psychic perception. This state -increases in lucidity—clearness and power of penetration—in -proportion as the activity of the physical senses are -reduced below normal action. It is observed to be most -effective in the trance state—natural or induced—as in the -mesmeric and psychic states. I conclude, then, clairvoyance -depends upon the unfolding of the spirit’s perception, and -is increased in power as the ascendency of the spirit arises -above the activities of the spirit’s corporeal envelope—the -body. In proportion to the spirit’s ascendency over the -organs and senses of the body, is this psychic gift perfect or -imperfect.</p> - -<p>The large brain or cerebrum is the physical organ of the -soul, as the cerebellum is of the physiological brain functions. -Mental functions are manifested by the former, and physical -functions by the latter.</p> - -<p>Clairvoyance, as a spiritual faculty, will doubtless have its -appropriate organ in the brain. I do not profess to locate -that organ. At the same time I have noticed the best -clairvoyants are wide and full between the eyes, showing -there is a particular fulness of the frontal cerebral lobes, at -their juncture at the root of the nose. This may be something -more than a mere physiognomic sign. When this sign -is accompanied by refinement of organisation, and a fine type -of brain, I always look for the possible manifestation of -clairvoyance in mesmeric subjects.</p> - -<p>Some writers are of the opinion clairvoyance is actually -soul-sight, more or less retarded in lucidity by the action or<span class="pagenum" id="Page_25">[25]</span> -activity of the bodily senses. Others believe it to be a -state arising from a peculiar highly-strained nervous condition, -which induces the state of super-sensitivity or -impressionability of the organisation. The first may be -termed the spiritual, and the latter the physiological -hypothesis. But, as a matter of fact, both conditions are -noted. The latter may account for much, and possibly is -sufficient to explain much that is called thought-reading—so -often mistaken for clairvoyance. It does appear to me -that certain peculiar physiological conditions, varying from -semi-consciousness to profound trance, are necessary for the -manifestation of clairvoyance, even when it takes place in -apparently normal life of the possessor.</p> - -<p>It is more than likely that the ornate and mystic ceremonies -indulged in by Hindoo mystics, Egyptian, Grecian, -and Roman priests, had the one grand end in view—viz., to -induce the requisite state of super-sensitivity, and thus prepare -the consecrated youths, sybils, and vestal virgins for the influx -of spiritual vision, prophecy, and what not. When this subtle -influx came—by whatever name called—the phenomena -manifested were pretty much the same as we know them, -only varied in degree. The gods spoke per oracle, Pythean, -or Delphic. The man of God either coronated a king or -foretold the end of a dynasty. St. Stephen saw Christ, St. -John beheld visions, Joan of Arc was directed, Swedenborg -illumined, and religious ecstatics in ancient and modern -times partook more or less of the sacred fire—the inner sight. -This (stripped of the fantastic surroundings, priestly mummeries, -and dominant belief of the times) simply indicated -the evolution and exercise of clairvoyance and other psychic -gifts.</p> - -<p>Coming nearer home, we hear of the mysterious visions at -the Knock, and at Lourdes. Miraculous appearances of the -Virgin and winged angels, to cheer the hearts of the faithful,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_26">[26]</span> -and to cause the heads of the scornful to rejoice in sceptical -derision. Then we have all the vagaries produced by the -high nervous tension of modern revivalism, in which the -visions seen are but a transformation of church and chapel -dogmas into objective realities. These illusionary visions—mistaken -for clairvoyance—possess less reality than the -delusive fancies of the sensitive in the state of hypnosis.</p> - -<p>Clairvoyance will be governed by its own spiritual laws, just -as sight is affected or retarded by physical conditions. What -these spiritual laws are we can only surmise, but this we may -safely conjecture—viz., that soul-sight is not trammelled or -limited by the natural laws which govern physical optics. -Clairvoyance and physical vision are absolutely distinct, and -possess little in common.</p> - -<p>To illustrate a new subject, it is permissible to draw upon -the old and the well-known. So I venture to illustrate clairvoyance -by certain facts in connection with ordinary human -vision. Although some children see better than others, the -power to see, with the ability to understand the relative -positions and uses of the things seen, is a matter of -development. In psychic vision, we also see growth or -development, with increasing power to use and understand -the faculty. Some children are blind from birth, and -others, seeing, lose the power of sight. Many are <em>blind</em>, -although they have physical sight, they see not with <em>the -educated eye</em>. Many, again, have greater powers of sight -than they are aware of. As so it is with psychic vision.</p> - -<p>What is true of the physical is also true of the psychic. -From the first glimmerings, to the possession of well-defined -sight, a period of growth and time elapses. From the first -incoherent cry of infancy to well defined and intelligent -speech of manhood, we notice the same agencies at work. -Not only is clairvoyant vision generally imperfect at first, but -the psychic’s powers of description are also at fault. St. Paul<span class="pagenum" id="Page_27">[27]</span> -could not give utterance to what he saw, when caught up to -the third heavens. His knowledge of things and powers of -speech failed him to describe the startling, the new, and the -unutterable. He had a sudden revelation of the state of -things in a sphere which had no counterparts in his previous -experience, in this—his known—world. Hence, although he -knew of his change of state, he could give no lawful or -intelligible expression to his thoughts.</p> - -<p>Between the first incongruous utterances, and apparent -fantastic blunderings, and the more mature period in which -“things spiritual” can be suitably described in our language, -to our right sense of things, or comprehension, a period of -development and education must elapse. It is true some -clairvoyants develop much more readily than others.</p> - -<p>In the entrancement of the mesmeric and psychic states, -there is a lack of external consciousness. The soul is so far -liberated from the body as to act independently of the ordinary -sensuous conditions of the body, and sees by the perception -and light of the inner or spiritual world, as distinct from the -perception and light of this external or physical world. -Elevated, or rather, liberated into this new condition, the -clairvoyant loses connection with the thrums and threads of the -physical organism, and is unable, or forgets for a time, how -to speak of things as they are, or as they would appear to -the physical vision of another. It is not surprising that in -the earlier stages of clairvoyant development, and consequent -transfer of ordinary consciousness and sensuous perception to -that of spiritual consciousness and perception, the language -of the clairvoyant should appear peculiar, incongruous, -and “wanting,” according to our ideas of clearness and -precision.</p> - -<p>One important lesson may be learned from this—viz., the -operator should never force results, or strive to develop -psychic perception by short cuts. Time must be allowed to<span class="pagenum" id="Page_28">[28]</span> -the sensitive, for training and experience, and the development -of self-confidence and expression.</p> - -<p>Clairvoyance is not a common possession. Nevertheless, -I believe there are many persons who possess the faculty -unknown to themselves. By following out patiently, for a -time, the requisite directions, the possession of this invaluable -psychic gift might be discovered by many who now appear -totally devoid of any clairvoyant indications. Its cultivation -is possible and, in many ways, desirable.</p> - -<p>“The higher attainment,” says Dr. John Hamlin Davey, -“of occult knowledge and power, the development of intuition, -the psychometric sense, clairvoyant vision, inner -hearing, etc., etc., thus reached, so open the avenues to a -higher education, and enlarge the boundaries of human -consciousness and activity, as to fairly dwarf into insignificance -the achievements of external science.”</p> - -<p>Clairvoyance is as old as mankind, but the exhibition -of clairvoyance, induced by mesmeric processes, was first announced -by Puysegeur, a favourite pupil of Mesmer, in 1784. -Since that time to the present not only have remarkable -cases of clairvoyance cropped up, but there have been few -mesmerists of any experience who have not had numerous -cases under observation. Clairvoyance converted Dr. John -Elliotson, F.R.S., one of the most scientific of British -physicians, from extreme materialistic views to that of belief -in soul and immortality. The same may be said of the late -Dr. Ashburner, who was one of the Queen’s physicians. -Dr. Georget, author of “Physiology of the Nervous System,”—who -was at one time opposed to a belief in the existence -of a transcendental state in man,—found upon -examination of the facts and incidents of artificial somnambulism, -that <em>his materialism must go</em>. In his last will and -testament, referring to the above-mentioned work, he says:—“This -work had scarcely appeared, when renewed<span class="pagenum" id="Page_29">[29]</span> -meditations on a very extraordinary phenomenon, somnambulism, -no longer permitted me to entertain doubts -of the existence within us, and external to us, of an -intelligent principle, altogether different from material -existences; in a word, of the soul and God. With -respect to this I have a profound conviction, founded -upon facts which I believe to be incontestable.” Dr. -Georget directed this change of opinion should have full -publicity after his death.</p> - -<p>Space would not suffice me to mention the names of all -the highly educated and refined minds, in the medical, -literary, philosophic, and scientific walks of life, who have -studied these phenomena, and who, like Dr. Georget, have -no more doubts of their reality than they have of their own -physical existence, status, or reputation. Among medical -men—some of whom I have known and corresponded with—might -be mentioned Sir James Simpson, Drs. Elliotson, -Ashburner, Esdaile, Buss, Garth Wilkinson, Hands, Wyld, -Hitchman, Eadon, and Davey. Among others on the roll -of fame, might be noticed Archbishop Whately; Earls Ducie, -Stanhope, Macclesfield, <a id="Charleville"></a><ins title="Original has 'Charlville'">Charleville</ins>; the present Duke of -Argyle; Lord R. Cavendish, Lord Lindsay; Burton, the -traveller; and the late Sergeant Cox. Among literary men, -Mr. Gladstone, Britain’s foremost statesman and scholar; -Mr. Balfour, his able and talented opponent; Bulwer -Lytton, Marryat, Neal, Robert Chambers, Dickens, and -Stevenson, of “Dr. <a id="Jekyll"></a><ins title="Original has 'Jykell'">Jekyll</ins> and Mr. Hyde” fame. Mr. -George Combe, the distinguished Scottish metaphysician, -philosopher, author, phrenologist, etc., was profoundly -interested in the phenomena. Among well-known men -of science might be mentioned <a id="Camille"></a><ins title="Original has 'Camillie'">Camille</ins> Flammarion, -the French astronomer; Fichte, the German philosopher; -Professors Tornebom and Edland, Swedish physicists; -Professor Oliver Lodge, D.Sc., F.R.S.; Alfred Russell<span class="pagenum" id="Page_30">[30]</span> -Wallace, D.C.L., LL.D.; William Crookes, F.R.S.; -Cromwell F. Varley, F.R.S. Notwithstanding this somewhat -formidable array of investigators of clairvoyance, -many good people will not hesitate to deny the value of -such evidence, and yet will believe anything in its favour -which may be found in the Bible, as to its existence in -the <em>past</em>. It is a strange perversion of judgment—not at all -surprising—when the majority take (second-hand) for their -religious(?) views whatever is recognised as “sound” in each -particular district and Church. It is not a question of belief, -it is “a question of evidence,” as Mr. Gladstone avers.</p> - -<p>The Rev. Mr. MʽKinnon, late pastor of Chalmers’ Free -Church, Glasgow, told me a short time ago, “Clairvoyance -was nothing more than a high nervous concentrated form of -mental vision,” to which I replied, “Admitting the hypothesis—which, -however, explained nothing—it matters little what -clairvoyance is esteemed to be or called, if the facts connected -with it are acknowledged.” Even this friend -admitted he knew a man in Mull, who lived on the half croft, -next to his father’s croft. This man had great repute in -that district as “having the Second Sight.” Whatever -this man foretold always came to pass. One instance -will suffice. He (Mr. MʽKinnon) remembered that one day, -while this crofter (who was a tailor by trade) was working, -he suddenly stopped, and looked <em>out into vacancy</em>—as he -always did when the “Second Sight was on him”—and <a id="described"></a><ins title="Original has 'discribed'">described</ins> -a funeral coming over the hill, the mourners, who -they were, and numbers, the way the procession took, and -the name of the “man whose face was covered,” and finally, -when the procession would appear. Mr. MʽKinnon’s parents -noted the time, and being simple Highland folk, accustomed -to the accuracy of this man’s visions, they believed what -he said, and kept his saying in their hearts till the time of -fulfilment came about. Mr. MʽKinnon assured me “the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_31">[31]</span> -funeral took place to the day and hour, twelve months subsequently -to the vision, as predicted.” All I can say is, -if “a high nervous concentrated form of mental vision” -<a id="is"></a><ins title="Original has 's'">is</ins> capable of pointing out all this, it is worthy of investigation. -It is evident this tailor at least had a power of -vision—prevoyance—not of the ordinary, everyday kind of -vision. Second sight, as exhibited in this case, is what -may be termed spontaneous clairvoyance.</p> - -<p>Epes Sargent, in his work, “The Scientific Basis of Spiritualism,” -referring to clairvoyance, says: “As far as I have -admitted it as part of a scientific basis (demonstrating -man’s spiritual nature), it is the exercise of the supersensual -faculty of penetrating opaque and dense matter as if by the -faculty of sight. But it does more. It detects our unuttered, -undeveloped thoughts; it goes back along the past, and -describes what is hidden; nay, the proofs are overwhelming -that it may pierce the future, and predict coming events from -the shadows they cast before.</p> - -<p>“What is it that sees without the physical eyes, and without -the assistance of light? What is normal sight? It is not -the vibrating ether—it is not the external eye—that sees. -It is the soul using the eye as an instrument, and light as -a condition. Prove once that sight can exist without the use -of light, sensation, or any physical organ of vision, and you -prove an abnormal, supersensual, spiritual faculty—a proof -which puts an end to the theory of materialism, and which, -through its affinity with analogous or corresponding facts, -justifies its introduction as part of a scientific basis for the -spiritual theory.”</p> - -<p>J. F. Deleuze was profoundly convinced of the existence -of this faculty. He claimed that the power of seeing at a -distance, prevision, and the transference of thought without -the aid of external signs, were in themselves sufficient proofs -of the existence of spirituality of soul.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_32">[32]</span></p> - -<p>Except in a very few instances, little or no pains are -taken to cultivate the spiritual nature of man. Civilised -man of to-day is but rising out of the age of brute force of -yesterday, and he is still circumscribed by love of earthly -power and position. He is an acquisitive rather than a -spiritual being. Being dominated by the senses, he will -naturally seek and appreciate that which gratifies his senses -most. He has little time or patience for anything which -does not contribute pleasure to his sensuous nature. He -would give time to the investigation of the soul side of life -if it brought gold, the means of enjoyment, and gratified his -acquisitiveness and love of power. Probably the majority -give the subject no attention at all. If the spiritual side of -our natures were as fully cultivated as those elements which -bring us bread and butter and praise of men in the market-place, -there is no doubt, no manner of doubt whatever, but -the most of us would occupy a nobler and more spiritually -elevated plane in life; and were adequate means taken, I -doubt not but this faculty of clairvoyance would become -more generally known and cultivated. Even to the selfish, -worldly and non-spiritual man, clairvoyance is not without -its practical side and utility, such, for instance, as supplying -Chicago with water. To the spiritually minded, clairvoyance -and all psychic gifts are appreciated, less for what they -will bring, than for the testimony they present of man’s -spiritual origin, transcendental powers and probable continuity -of life beyond this mortal vale.</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_33">[33]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_III">CHAPTER <abbr title="3">III</abbr>.<br /><br /> -<span class="smcap">Clairvoyance Illustrated.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class="noindent"><span class="smcap">Clairvoyance</span> may be briefly classified as far and near, -direct and indirect, objective and subjective. I propose to -give a few well-authenticated cases to illustrate these phases -in this chapter.</p> - - -<h3>FAR AND DIRECT CLAIRVOYANCE</h3> - -<p class="noindent">is possibly the highest and purest combination. The -sensitive is able to state facts not within the range of the -knowledge of those present. Thus when Swedenborg -described to the Queen and her friends, when at a distance -of several hundred miles from the conflagration, the burning -of her palace at Christiania, no one present could possibly -know of the fire or the incidents connected therewith. -Hence no thought-reading, brain-picking, much less guess-work -or coincidence, could account for the exactness of -details given by the seer. Clairvoyance in this case was not -only far and direct, but objective. That is, the matter -recorded was connected with the physical or objective plane.</p> - - -<h3>CLAIRVOYANCE AN AID TO SCIENCE.</h3> - -<p>“Chicago, as is well-known, is one of the most go-ahead -cities in the world. Like Jonah’s gourd it appeared to spring -up in a night. Its population rapidly increased, and water -soon became a <i lang="la" xml:lang="la">sine qua non</i>, both as regards use and luxury. -Science was at fault; for geologists had pronounced that -there could be no water beneath such a strata. Top water -was all that could be looked for, and presently a water -company was formed to supply this impure kind of -liquid.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_34">[34]</span></p> - -<p>“There happened to live at this time in Chicago a person -named Abraham James, a simple-minded man, of Quaker -descent, uneducated, and in fact, quite an ignorant person. -It was discovered by a Mrs. Caroline Jordon that James was -a natural clairvoyant, in fact a medium, and that he had -declared when put into the trance condition that both water -and petroleum, in large quantities, would be found in a -certain tract of land in the neighbourhood of the city. For -a long time no attention was paid to his statements. At -length two gentlemen from Maine, called Whitehead and -Scott, coming to Chicago on business, and hearing what had -been said by Abraham James, had him taken to the land -where he said water could be had in immense quantities by -boring for. Being entranced, James at once pointed out the -very spot. He told them that he not only saw the water, -but could trace its source from the Rocky Mountains, 2000 -miles away, to the spot on which they stood, and could -sketch out on maps the strata and caverns through which it -ran. Negotiations were at once entered into for the purchase -of the land, and the work of boring was commenced. This -was in February, 1864, and the process went on daily till -November, when, having reached a depth of 711 feet, water -was struck, and flowed up at once at the rate of 600,000 -gallons every 24 hours.</p> - -<p>“The borings showed the following kinds of strata passed -through by the drill, and this was spiritually seen and -described by the clairvoyant as practical proofs to the senses -of other people. First the drill passed through alluvium -soil, 100 feet; limestone, saturated with oil, 35 feet, which -would burn as well as any coal; Joliet marble, 100 feet; -conglomerate strata of sand and flint, mixed with iron pyrites -and traces of copper, 125 feet; rock (shale) saturated with -petroleum, the sediment coming up like putty, thick and -greasy, 156 feet; galena limestone was next reached at a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_35">[35]</span> -depth of 530 feet; a bed of limestone, containing flint and -sulphuret of iron was bored through, the depth being 639 -feet, and being very hard, the work went on slowly. At -this point there appeared a constant commotion arising from -the escape of gas, the water suddenly falling from 30 to 60 -feet, and then as suddenly rising to the surface, carrying with -it chippings from the drill, and other matters. The work -still went on; when at the depth of 711 feet the arch of the -rock was penetrated, and the water suddenly burst forth -from a bore 4½ in. at the bottom, of a temperature of 58° F., -clear as crystal, pure as diamond, and perfectly free from -every kind of animal and vegetable matter, and which, for -drinking purposes and health, is much better adapted than -any water yet known, and will turn out to be the poor man’s -friend for all time to come.</p> - -<p>“Here, then, is a huge fact for the faithless: the fact -brought to light by dynamic or invisible agency, and which -no power of negation can gainsay. Natural science said, No -water could be found; but psychology said—False, for I -will point out the spot where it will flow in splendid streams -as long as the earth spins on its axis. Since 1864 the -artesian well of Chicago has poured forth water at the rate -of a million and a half gallons daily; and what is economic, -to say nothing of Yankee shrewdness, it is conveyed into -ponds or reservoirs which in winter freeze, producing 40,000 -tons of ice for sale, and which might be quadrupled at any -time.”<a id="FNanchor_2" href="#Footnote_2" class="fnanchor">[B]</a> This is a case of far and near, direct and objective -clairvoyance. This historical incident proves the value and -reality of psychic vision.</p> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_36">[36]</span></p> -<p>Indirect clairvoyance is the power of discerning what may -be more or less in the minds of those present, including -absent or forgotten thoughts and incidents. Thus, when a -clairvoyant describes a place with accuracy, recognised by -some one present to be correct, and also gives details partly -known and unknown, but afterwards found to be correct, -this mixture of phases may be recognised as indirect.</p> - - -<h3>SUBJECTIVE CLAIRVOYANCE</h3> - -<p class="noindent">is that phase which enables the sensitive to perceive things -and ideas on the spiritual or subjective plane. The late -Rev. Stainton Moses, well known in literary circles as -“M.A., Oxon,” once asked the following pertinent -questions:—“Is there conceivably a mass of life all round -us of which most of us have no cognisance? One gifted -lady I know sees clairvoyantly the spirit-life of all organised -things, of a tree or plant for example. I have heard her -describe what her interior faculties perceive. Is it a fact -that spirit, underlying everything, can be so perceived -by the awakened faculties?” I should say yes. If this -lady’s clairvoyance has been of a high order in other -respects—why not in this? This type of psychic vision -is of the subjective order.</p> - -<p>There are necessarily an infinite variety of phases, pure -and mixed, which the investigator will meet in practice. -These phases may be called <em>far</em>, such as seeing objects, -etc., at a distance—prevoyance, predicting events; retrovoyance, -reading the past; introvoyance, seeing internally, -or examining bodies, as in disease; external introvoyance, -seeing into lockets, packets, letters, safes, and discovering -hidden, known or forgotten, or lost objects. Lastly, there -is pseudo-clairvoyance. For one case of direct there are -hundreds of well authenticated cases of indirect clairvoyance, -and again for one of the latter there are thousands of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_37">[37]</span> -pseudo-clairvoyance, which are the outcome of states -similar to hypnosis, and are nothing more than an incongruous -medley of suggested ideas and fancies. Thus a -strong and positive willed person can impinge his ideas -through the thought-atmosphere of the sensitive and distort -or deflect the psychic vision, and render abortive any -attempts to get beyond the circle of the dominating -influence. Again, the sensitive may enter a realm of -fancy—a veritable dreamland of coherent and incoherent -ideation, either the product of the sensitive’s own condition, -or of suggestion—accidental, spontaneous, and determined—in -the sensitive’s surroundings. Of course any classification -of the numerous phases of clairvoyance must be purely -arbitrary.</p> - - -<h3>DIRECT AND OBJECTIVE CLAIRVOYANCE—LOST -GOODS RESTORED.</h3> - -<p>This instance of far vision is taken from “A Tangled -Yarn,” page 173, “Leaves from Captain James Payn’s Log,” -which was published recently by C. H. Kelly. As I knew -Captain Hudson, of Swansea, personally, and heard from -his own lips the following incident, I have much pleasure in -introducing it here as a further illustration of the <i lang="la" xml:lang="la">Cui bono</i> -of clairvoyance:—</p> - -<p>“The <i>Theodore</i> got into Liverpool the same day as the -<i>Bland</i>. She was a larger ship than ours but had a similar -cargo. The day that I went to the owners to report ‘all -right,’ I met with Captain Morton in a terrible stew because -he was thirty bales of cotton short, a loss equal to the -whole of his own wages and the mate’s into the bargain. -He was so fretted over it that his wife in desperation recommended -him to get the advice of a Captain Hudson, who -had a young female friend clever as a clairvoyant. We -were both sceptical in the matter of clairvoyance. At first<span class="pagenum" id="Page_38">[38]</span> -Morton didn’t wish to meddle, he said, with ‘a parcel of -modern witchcraft,’ and that sort of thing; but he at last -yielded to his wife’s urgency and consented to go. There -was first of all a half-crown fee to Captain Hudson, and -then the way was clear for an interview with the young -clairvoyant. I was present to ‘see fair.’ When the girl -had been put into the clairvoyant state Morton was instructed -to take her right hand in his right hand and -ask her any questions he wished. The replies were in -substance as follows:—She went back mentally to the port -whence the <i>Theodore</i> had sailed, retracing with her hand as -she in words also described the course of the ship from -Liverpool across the Atlantic, through the West Indian -group, etc., back to New Orleans. At length she said, -‘Yes, this is the place where the cotton was lost; it’s put -on board a big black ship with a red mark round it.’ Then -she began to trace with her hand and describe the homeward -course of the vessel, but after re-crossing the Atlantic, -instead of coming up the Irish Channel for Liverpool, she -turned along the English Channel as though bound for the -coast of France; and then stretching out her hand she -exclaimed, ‘Oh, here’s the cotton; but what funny people -they are; they don’t talk English.’ Captain Morton said -at once, ‘I see; it’s the <i>Brunswick</i>, Captain Thomas,’ an -American ship that lay alongside of him at New Orleans -and was taking in her cargo of cotton while the <i>Theodore</i> -was loading, and was bound for Havre de Grace. Captain -Morton, satisfied with his clairvoyant’s information, went -home and wrote immediately to Captain Thomas, inquiring -for his lost cargo. In due course he got an answer that the -cotton was certainly there, that it had been taken off the -wharf in mistake, and that it was about to be sold for whomsoever -it might concern; but that if he (Captain Morton) -would remit a certain amount to cover freight and expenses<span class="pagenum" id="Page_39">[39]</span> -the bales should be forwarded to him at once. He did so, -and in due time received the cotton, subject only to the -expenses of transit from Havre to Liverpool. Such are the -facts; I do not profess to offer any explanation.”</p> - - -<h3>CLAIRVOYANCE AN AID TO THE PHYSICIAN.</h3> - -<p>I am indebted to Dr. George Wyld for this case, which -also exhibits the value of clairvoyance. Dr. Wyld had -the good fortune to make the acquaintance of a Mrs. D——, -a lady in private life who was endowed with the gift -of natural clairvoyance. Dr. Wyld told this lady of “a -friend who had for years suffered intense agony for hours -every night in his back and chest, and that latterly he -had been obliged to sit up all night in a chair, and his -legs began to swell.”</p> - -<p>“This gentleman had regularly for three years been under -many of the leading physicians of London. Some said that -there must be some obscure heart affection, others said it -was neuralgia, one said it was gout, and the last consulted -said it was malignant caries of the spine.”</p> - -<p>Dr. Wyld’s friend called upon him by appointment, and -met Mrs. D——. This lady merely looked at him. When -he had retired from the room Mrs. D—— made the -following statement of his case to the doctor:—“I have -seen what the disease is; I saw it as distinctly as if the -body were transparent. There is a tumour behind the -heart, about the size of a walnut; it is of a dirty colour; -and it jumps and looks as if it would burst. Nothing -can do him any good but entire rest.”</p> - -<p>“I at once saw,” says Dr. Wyld, what she meant, and -sat down to write to my friend’s medical attendant as -follows:—</p> - -<p>“I believe I have discovered the nature of Mr.——’s -disease. He has an aneurism on the descending aorta,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_40">[40]</span> -about the size of a walnut. It is this which causes the -slight displacement which has been observed in the heart, -and the pressure of the tumour against the intercostal -nerves is the cause of the agony in the back, and the -peripheral pains in the front of the chest. You are going -to-morrow to see Sir —— in consultation; show him this -diagnosis, and let me know what he says.”</p> - -<p>“Next the patient had the consultation, and Mrs. D——’s -diagnosis was confirmed; and the doctors agreed with -Mrs. D—— the only thing to be done was to take entire -rest. The treatment was duly followed up, with successful -results.” Dr. Wyld thoughtfully adds—“It is true that -the diagnosis cannot be absolutely confirmed during life, -but as the profession unanimously pronounce the disease -to be aneurism, the diagnosis may be accepted as correct. -This diagnosis has probably saved the gentleman’s -life, as before Mrs. D—— saw him he was allowed to -shoot over Scotch moors, and to ride, drive, and play -billiards.”</p> - -<p>The use of clairvoyance in the diagnosis of disease is -by no means as rare as the majority of physicians and the -general public would naturally assume. I have had many -opportunities of witnessing the accuracy of diagnosis and -the excellence of the methods of treatment advised by -clairvoyants. In my own personal experience I have had -much evidence of correctness of clairvoyance in diagnosis, -and subsequent success in treatment. It is a phase most -desirable to cultivate if possible, and all allied conditions -connected therewith.</p> - - -<h3>TRAVELLING CLAIRVOYANCE.</h3> - -<p>As a public entertainer at one time, giving demonstrations -of mesmeric phenomena, I have had naturally many -opportunities of seeing different types of clairvoyance.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_41">[41]</span> -During a course of entertainments given by me in Rothesay, -1881, I was able to introduce clairvoyance to public notice -by the most difficult method, that of public experiments.</p> - -<p>M. C., the clairvoyante, was a native of Newcastle-on-Tyne. -All her clairvoyant experiments were satisfactory. -Her husband was also a clairvoyant, but not so striking -for public exhibition. M. C. seemed to possess all phases. -One or two experiments out of many will be interesting -not only as illustrative of clairvoyance, but because what -I relate can be easily ratified.</p> - -<p>M. C. arrived in Rothesay for the first time about four -hours previously to taking her seat upon the platform, -in the New Public Halls. It was neither possible nor -probable she could have obtained the information she -possessed by other than psychic means. The clairvoyant -was mesmerised and blindfolded before the audience. -After some experiments in objective clairvoyance were -given, such as describing a watch, telling the time, and -the number, by having the watch held silently over her -forehead, she gave several experiments in travelling clairvoyance. -Many visitors in the hall—for Rothesay is a well -known and fashionable seaside resort—sent up requests -to the platform, and desired the clairvoyante should visit -their homes in Kent, Cornwall, Island of Jersey, in the Isle -of Man, Glasgow, and other places. Her visits and descriptions -were in all instances extremely satisfactory. How far -thought-transference and objective clairvoyance commingled -and entered into her descriptions it would be difficult to -say, but the results were simply marvellous.</p> - -<p>Test case, by the late Dr. Maddever, M.D., M.R.C.S., -and Dr. John Maddever, his son. These medical gentlemen -resided in Rothesay, and were present in the hall. Dr. -Maddever desired me to send the clairvoyante into a certain -room in his house and that she should describe it.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_42">[42]</span></p> - -<p>All the directions the clairvoyante obtained were, “to go -out of the hall, down the front steps; when out turn to the -right and proceed onward till she came to an iron-railed -gate, on which was a small brass plate, bearing the name of -‘Dr. Maddever,’ she was to open the gate, go up to the hall-door, -enter, pass the first door to the left, and turn round a -passage to the left and enter the first <a id="door"></a><ins title="Original has 'doo'">door</ins> to which she -came, and describe what she saw.”</p> - -<p>Sitting still upon the platform in silence for a minute or -two, she suddenly exclaimed:—“I am at the gate—at the -door—now in the hall—I have found the room, and I am now -inside, and stand with my back to the door.” She then -proceeded to describe the room, the book-cases which surrounded -it, their peculiar structure; the mantel-piece, the form -of the clock, the time, and the appearance of the ornaments. -The table in the centre of the room, its form, the colour and -style of the cloth upon it, books, albums, and papers thereon, -the flower vase support in the window, and a number of -other particulars.</p> - -<p>At the conclusion Dr. Maddever arose in the audience -and said:—“Ladies and gentlemen, Professor Coates is a -stranger to me, I only know of him by report. The young -lady on the platform I do not know. I have not seen either -till this evening, and they have never been in my house. -The experiment we have had is most remarkable, and should -be of deep and profound interest to all. The young lady -has described the room, as far as I can remember, most -correctly—in fact very much better than I could have done -myself.” This statement was received with applause.</p> - -<p>After one or two instances of travelling clairvoyance, a -young gentleman rose in the body of the hall and desired I -should send the sensitive to a house or villa not far from the -juncture of Marine Place and Ardbeg Road.</p> - -<p>The directions given to the clairvoyante were briefly to the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_43">[43]</span> -effect, she was to leave the place, on reaching the front -street she was to turn to her left and keep on past the Post -Office, Esplanade, past the Skeoch Woods, etc., till she came -to the house. She nodded her head in compliance, and -presently announced she “had found the house.” Then she -shivered and appeared to draw back, and said “I won’t -go in.”</p> - -<p>Some persons in the audience laughed, and one (I think it -was the young gentleman who asked that she might be sent) -said: “The whole thing is a swindle.” Now, considering -there was not a single flaw in the experiments that night, -surprise after surprise being given, and the audience had -risen in enthusiasm, this opinion was not favourably received.</p> - -<p>I asked the gentleman “to have patience.” I had no -doubt but we would know soon enough the reasons. -“Whatever they were I would try and ascertain them.”</p> - -<p>With much hesitancy she declared that “the house was not -one any respectable female would enter, and she would not.” -When I repeated this statement to the audience, there was -what the newspapers call “sensation.” The sensation was -intensified when one of the Rothesay Magistrates, Bailie -Molloy, the then senior Bailie of the Royal Burgh, declared -“the young woman was right, perfectly right, this was a -house which had been inadvertently let to persons of ill-fame, -and he, for one, had recently had the facts of the -case placed before him, and he was most anxious that these -people should be put out, and they would be, as soon as the -proper steps could be taken.”</p> - -<p>The young gentleman retired somewhat discomfited, and -the excitement produced by these and other experiments -brought crowded houses during my professional stay.</p> - -<p>When my “mesmeric exposition” was concluded, the -two medical gentlemen referred to, were good enough to -introduce themselves, and invited me to call next day<span class="pagenum" id="Page_44">[44]</span> -to see the room. I accepted the invitation during the -following day and saw how truly correct and vivid her -description had been. In the first experiment the sensitive -described the state of the doctor’s library, pointing out -what had not been recollected by either of the medical -men, and I believe the other case comes under the heading -of direct and objective clairvoyance. Dr. Maddever’s house -was about a quarter of a mile, and the other house about a -mile and a half from the hall.</p> - -<p>The persistent and reliable clairvoyance evinced by this -sensitive was induced. She was a mesmeric subject, and -when such subjects are properly treated they make the -very best clairvoyants.</p> - - -<h3>PSYCHIC VISION POSSESSED BY THE PHYSICALLY -BLIND.</h3> - -<p>Mrs. Croad resided at Redland, Bristol. My attention -was called to her case about fifteen years ago by Dr. J. G. -Davey, of Bristol. Unfortunately circumstances at the time -prevented a personal visit and report. Her psychic gifts -and wonderful supersensitivity have been amply testified to, -by most reliable witnesses, such as Dr. Davey, Hy. G. -Atkinson, F.G.S., and others.</p> - -<p>Clairvoyance in Mrs. Croad’s case was and is (for I believe -the lady is still living) a singular admixture of subtle sense -transference so well known to mesmerists of the old school, -and spontaneous psychic vision. Thought-transference and -indirect clairvoyance, more or less induced, by intense -voluntary concentration.</p> - -<p>Mrs. Croad is deaf, dumb, and paralysed, and stone blind. -She can see and hear, read with powers “denied to ordinary -mortals,” and discern pictures and writings in the dark. She -is aware of her daughter’s thoughts when the latter touches<span class="pagenum" id="Page_45">[45]</span> -her, and becomes at once acquainted with what her daughter -wishes to communicate. She possesses supersensitivity of -touch, and discerns colour by their degrees of heat, roughness -or smoothness. She can also <a id="identify"></a><ins title="Original has 'indentify'">identify</ins> photographs -and pictures in the same way. From time to time she has -exhibited the highest phases of clairvoyance. Reports have -been made in this case by medical experts in the <cite>Journal -of Psychological Medicine</cite>, and other magazines and journals -several years ago. The most recent was contributed by -the Rev. Taliesin Dans, The Cottage, Claptons, to <cite>The -Review of Reviews</cite> in January, 1891.</p> - - -<h3>THE SPIRITUALISTIC AND PRACTICAL CHARACTER OF -CLAIRVOYANCE</h3> - -<p class="noindent">might be further illustrated by the well known case of -Miss Eliza Hamilton, who became paralysed in her limbs -and right arm, through severe injury to the spine. She had -been in hospital for four months, on her return home -frequently passed into the trance state, and on awakening -described various people and places she had visited, and objects -seen. These descriptions have been invariably verified -subsequently. “She also at times,” says her physician, -“speaks of having been in the company of persons with -whom she was acquainted in this world, but who have -passed away; and she tells her friends that they have -become more beautiful, and have cut off their infirmities -with which they were afflicted while here. She often -describes events which <em>are about to happen</em>, and these are -always fulfilled exactly as she predicts.”</p> - -<p>“Her father,” says Mr. Hudson Tuttle, “read in her -presence a letter he had received from a friend in Leeds, -speaking of the loss of his daughter, about whose fate he -was very unhappy, as she had disappeared nearly a month<span class="pagenum" id="Page_46">[46]</span> -before, and left no trace. Eliza went into the trance state, -and cried out, ‘Rejoice! I have found the lost girl! She -is happy in the angel world.’ She said the girl had fallen -into the dark water where dyers washed their cloths; -that her friends could not have found her had they sought -her there, <em>but</em> now the body had floated a few miles, and -would be found in the River Aire. The body was found as -described.</p> - -<p>“Now, knowing that her eyes were closed, that she -could not hear, that her bodily senses were in profound -lethargy, how are we to account for the intensity and -keenness of sight? Her mental powers were exceedingly -exalted, and scarcely a question could be asked her but she -correctly answered.</p> - -<p>“In this case the independence of the mind of the -physical body are shown in every instance of clairvoyance, -is proven beyond cavil or doubt. If it is demonstrated -that the mind sees without the aid of eyes, hears when the -ears are deaf, feels when the nerves of sensation are at rest, -it follows that it is independent of these outward avenues, -and has other channels of communication with the external -world essentially its own.”</p> - - -<h3>CLAIRVOYANCE FROM DISEASE.</h3> - -<p>Miss Mollie Fancher, of Brooklyn Heights, fell off a -tramway car when eighteen years of age, experienced very -severe injuries to head and spine, her body being dragged -a distance, through her dress catching on the step of the -car. She became paralysed, lost all her senses, except -touch. She gradually recovered hearing, taste, and ability -to talk in time. She was also blind for nine years. Drs. -Speir and Ormiston were her physicians, men of skill and -marked probity. These, with a veritable host of medical<span class="pagenum" id="Page_47">[47]</span> -men—ministers of the Gospel, educationists and specialists—have -borne testimony to her remarkable endowments, from -which we take two extracts. Mr. Charles Ewart, Principal -of the Brooklyn Heights Seminary, where she was under -special care, writes:—</p> - -<p>“For many days together she has been to all appearances -dead. The slightest pulse could not be detected; -there was no evidence of respiration. Her limbs were as -cold as ice, and had there not been some warmth about -her heart, she would have been buried. When I first saw -her she had but one sense—that of touch. By running -her fingers over the printed page, she could read with -equal facility in light or darkness. The most delicate work -is done by her in the night.... Her power of -clairvoyance, or second sight, is marvellously developed. -<em>Distance imposes no barriers</em>, without the slightest error -she dictates the contents of sealed letters which have -never been in her hands. She discriminates in darkness -the most delicate shades of colour. She writes with -extraordinary rapidity.”</p> - -<p>Mr. Henry M. Parkhurst, the astronomer (residing at -173 Gates Avenue, Brooklyn, N.Y.), writes:—</p> - -<p>“From the waste-basket of a New York gentleman -acquaintance he fished an unimportant business letter, -without reading it, tore it into ribbons, and tore the -ribbons into squares. He shook the pieces well together, -put them into an envelope, and sealed it. This he -subsequently handed to Miss Fancher. The blind girl -took the envelope in her hand, and passed her hand over -it several times, called for paper and pencil, and wrote it -verbatim. The seal of the letter had not been broken. -Mr. Parkhurst himself opened it, pasted the contents -together, and compared the two. Miss Fancher’s was -a literal copy of the original.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_48">[48]</span></p> - - -<h3>MESMERIC CLAIRVOYANCE AND SPIRITUALISM.</h3> - -<p>“A few evenings ago I called upon Mr. and Mrs. -Loomis, 2 Vernon Place, Bloomsbury, and after we had -chatted for a short time in the drawing-room with the -door closed and nobody else present, I asked if they would -try a mesmeric experiment for me. They willingly agreed, -and Mr. Loomis, by passes, threw his wife into a mesmeric -state, as he often does, and an intelligence, which claimed -to be the spirit of her mother, spoke through her lips. -Until this moment I had said nothing to any living soul about -the nature of my contemplated experiment, but I then asked -the unseen intelligence if it could then and there go to the -house of Mrs. Macdougall Gregory, 21 Green Street, -Grosvenor Square, London, and move a heavy physical -object in her presence. The reply was, I do not know, I -will try. About three minutes afterwards, at 8.40 p.m., the -intelligence said that Mrs. Gregory was in her drawing-room -with a friend, and added, ‘I have made Mrs. Gregory feel -a prickly sensation in her arm from the elbow down to the -hand, as if some person had squeezed the arm, and she has -spoken about it to her friend.’</p> - -<p>“I took a note in writing of this statement at the time it -was made. A few minutes later I left Mr. and Mrs. Loomis, -and without telling them my intention to do so, went straight -to the house of Mrs. Gregory about a mile and a half off. -I had selected Mrs. Gregory for this experiment because -she is not afraid to publish her name in connection with -psychic truths, and her word carries weight, especially in -Scotland, where she and her family are well-known. She is -the widow of Professor Gregory, of Edinburgh University, -and is a lineal descendant of the Lord of the Isles. I then -for the first time told Mrs. Gregory of the experiment. She -replied that between half-past eight and nine o’clock that<span class="pagenum" id="Page_49">[49]</span> -evening she was playing the piano, and suddenly turned -round to her friend, Miss Yauewicz, of Upper Norwood, -saying, ‘I don’t know what is the matter with me, I feel -quite stupid, and have such a pain in my right arm that I -cannot go on playing.’ Miss Yauewicz, who was no -believer in spiritualism or any of the marvels of psychology, -felt a lively interest when she was informed of the experiment. -She told me that she clearly remembered Mrs. -Gregory’s statement that she could not go on playing -because of the pain in her right arm.”<a id="FNanchor_3" href="#Footnote_3" class="fnanchor">[C]</a></p> - -<p>Mrs. Loomis was a remarkable clairvoyante, whom I -accidently became acquainted with in Liverpool many years -ago, shortly after her arrival from America. I introduced the -lady and her husband, Mr. Daniel Loomis, to Mr. Harrison, -then editor of <cite>The Spiritualist</cite>. The Guion steamer, <i>Idaho</i>, -in which they came from New York, was wrecked off the -Irish Coast, and all they possessed in this world was lost -with the vessel. Mrs. Loomis predicted the disaster, where -it was likely to take place; that all hands would be saved, -but all they had lost. Upon the arrival of the officers of -the vessel in Liverpool, they presented Mrs. Loomis, at the -Bee Hotel, John Street, Liverpool, with a basket of flowers, -purse, and testimonial, in recognition of her gift, and heroic -conduct during and after the disaster. I may add I knew -Mr. Harrison as a most careful investigator and a man of -scientific tastes and ability.</p> - -<p>I select the following case of a mesmeric sensitive controlled -by a disembodied spirit, from the writings of Mr. -Epes Sargent, author of “Planchette on the Despair of -Science,” etc., as appropriately illustrative of this form -of clairvoyance:—</p> - -<p>“One of the daughters of my valued correspondent, the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_50">[50]</span> -late William Howett, was a mesmeric sensitive. Howett -told Professor W. D. Gunning, whose words (slightly -abridged) I here use, that, on one occasion his daughter, -being entranced, wrote a communication signed with the -name of her brother, supposed to be in Australia. The -import was, that he had been drowned a few days before -in a lake. Dates and details were given. The parents -could only wait, as there was no trans-oceanic telegraph. -Months passed, and at last a letter came from a nephew in -Melbourne, bearing the tidings that their son had been -drowned on such a day, in such a lake, under such and -such circumstances. Date, place, and all the essential -details were the same as those given months before through -the daughter. Mr. Howett believed that the freed spirit -of his son influenced the sister to write; and I know of no -explanation more rational that this.”</p> - - -<h3>CLAIRVOYANCE DUE TO SPIRITUAL CONTROL.</h3> - -<p>Such cases as the above are the most difficult of all to prove. -What I contend for is, if it is demonstrated we can control a -fellow-being, throw him or her into a trance state—in which the -phenomena of the psychic state are evolved—and seeing such -state is induced largely by the control of spirit over spirit in -the body, why may not a disembodied spirit control, direct, -or influence a suitable sensitive or medium in the body? If -not, why not? There is abundant evidence of such controls.</p> - -<p>Seeing objects concealed in boxes and letters, or reading -books and mottoes, etc., appears to some clairvoyants to be -more difficult than diagnosing disease, or seeing objects at -a distance. The why and wherefore seems at first difficult -to explain.</p> - -<p>The deliberate concealment of objects for the purpose of -testing clairvoyance is often the result of a spirit of virulent -suspicion, disbelief, and what is worse, <em>an earnest desire<span class="pagenum" id="Page_51">[51]</span> -for failure</em>, so that the parties may rejoice on the discomfiture -of the clairvoyants. With such people failure is a -source of pleasure. Nevertheless, seeming impossibilities -have been triumphed over. Long lost wills have been -found, and places of the accidental or intentional hiding -discovered. In more than one case deliberate fraud has -been exposed, and the guilty parties brought to acknowledge -the truth of the sensitive’s revelations.</p> - - -<h3>THE FUGITIVE NATURE OF CLAIRVOYANCE.</h3> - -<p>“The chief feature,” said Alexis Didier, “of the somnambulistic -lucidity is its variability. While the conjurer or -juggler, at all moments in the day and before all spectators, -will invariably succeed, the somnambulist, endowed with -the marvellous power of clairvoyance, will not be lucid -with all interviewers and at all moments of the day; for -the faculty of lucidity being a crisis painful and abnormal, -there may be atmospheric influences or invincible antipathies -at work opposing its production, and which seem to -paralyse all supersensual manifestation. Intuition, clairvoyance, -lucidity, are faculties which the somnambulist -gets from the nature of his temperament, and which are -rarely developed in force.” Further, he adds, “the -somnambulistic lucidity varies in a way to make one -despair; success is continually followed by failure; in -a word, error succeeds a truth; but when one analyses -the causes of this no right-minded person will bring up -the charge of Charlatanism, since the faculty is subject to -influences independent of the will and the consciousness -of the clairvoyant.”</p> - -<p>Alexis Didier, like his brother Adolphe, was a natural -clairvoyant, and excelled in direct and objective clairvoyance, -phases of the most striking and convincing character.</p> - -<p>Clairvoyance can be cultivated by the aid of mesmerism<span class="pagenum" id="Page_52">[52]</span> -and by the introspection process. By the first, the sensitive -can be materially assisted by the experience and help of -the operator. By the second, something like natural -clairvoyance can be induced. Either processes are more -or less suitable to subdue the activity of the senses, and -give greater range to the psychic powers. General instructions -are of little use. Personal advice is best. The -operator then knows with whom he has to do, their special -temperament and character, what are the best processes to -adopt to cultivate their gift, and how far such sensitives and -students are themselves likely to be suitable for clairvoyant -experiments. I have found the “Mirror Disc” useful in -inducing favourable conditions in the normal state for the -development of clairvoyance, and recommend its use.</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_53">[53]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_IV">CHAPTER <abbr title="4">IV</abbr>.<br /><br /> -<span class="smcap">Psychometry.</span></h2> -</div> - -<div class="figcenter illowp60" id="buchanan" style="max-width: 40em;"> -<img class="w100" src="images/buchanan.jpg" alt="" /> -<p class="pfs90">J. RHODES BUCHANAN, M.D.</p> -</div> - -<p class="noindent"><span class="smcap">What</span> is psychometry? Dr. George Wyld esteems -psychometry a phase of clairvoyance—“the knowledge the -psychic obtains by a <em>clue</em>, such as a lock of the hair of -some absent person, or some portion of a distant object.” -Mr. Stead calls it (<cite>Review of Reviews</cite>, p. 221, September, -1892) “the strange new science of psychometry.” In -this he pardonably errs. Psychometry may be strange, -but <em>it</em> is <em>not</em> new. We may not recognise the name as old,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_54">[54]</span> -but the class of phenomena it specialises is as old as clairvoyance -and mind-reading.</p> - -<p>“The word psychometry,” says Dr. Buchanan, “coined -in 1842, to express the character of a new science and -art, is the most pregnant and important word that has -been added to the English language. Coined from the -Greek (<i>psyche</i>, soul; and <i>metron</i>, measure), it literally -signifies <em>soul-measuring</em>.”... “The psychometer -measures the soul.”</p> - -<p>In the case of psychometry, the measuring assumes a -new character, as the object measured and the measuring -instrument are the same psychic element, and its measuring -power is not limited to the psychic, as it was developed -in the first experiments, but has appeared by successive -investigations to manifest a wider and wider area of power, -until it became apparent that this psychic capacity was -really the measure of all things in the universe. Hence, -psychometry signifies not merely the measuring of souls -and soul capacities, or qualities by our own psychic -capacities, but the measurement and judgment of all things -conceivable by the human mind; and psychometry means -practically <em>measuring by the soul</em>, or grasping and estimating -all things which are within the range of human intelligence. -Psychometry, therefore, is not merely an instrumentality -for measuring soul powers, but a comprehensive agency -like mathematics for the solution of many departments of -science.</p> - -<p>“Prophecy,” says Buchanan, “is the noblest aspect -of psychometry, and there is no reason why it <a id="should"></a><ins title="Original has 'hould'">should</ins> not -become the guiding power to each individual life, and the -guiding power of the destiny of nations.” For instance, -while all Europe feared for Boulanger, Metz was getting -stored with food; Lord Wolseley declared war imminent, -and the French themselves prepared for <i lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">revanche</i>. Psychometers<span class="pagenum" id="Page_55">[55]</span> -declared for peace in 1889, and said there was -no prospect of war for five years. Subsequent events have -proved Boulanger lacking in both generalship and statesmanship—a -veritable Bombastes Furioso; and peace up to -the time of writing is as yet unbroken.</p> - -<p>Dr. Buchanan claims—“In physiology, pathology, and -hygiene, psychometry is as wise and parental as in matters -of character and ethics. A competent psychometer -appreciates the vital forces, the temperament, the -peculiarities, and every departure from the normal state, -realising the diseased condition with an accuracy in which -external diagnosis often fails. In fact, the natural -psychometer is born with a genius for the healing art, -and if the practice of medicine were limited to those who -possess this power in an eminent degree, its progress -would be rapid, and its disgraceful failures in diagnosis -and blunders in treatment and prognosis would be less -frequently heard of.” Many happy tests in diagnosis and -in the successful treatment of disease—out of the ordinary -routine—are due, in my opinion, not so much to elaborate -medical training as to the fact of the practitioner—perhaps -unconscious to himself—being possessed of more or less of -the psychometric faculty.</p> - -<p>Dr. Buchanan,<a id="FNanchor_4" href="#Footnote_4" class="fnanchor">[D]</a> in his “Original Sketch,” gives us the -history and some details of his discovery, based upon<span class="pagenum" id="Page_56">[56]</span> -certain investigations of the nervous system. Already he -was well versed in the phenomena of hypnotism, which is -at this late day becoming a fashionable study and recreation -of medical men. He had demonstrated the responsive action -of cerebral organs to mesmeric touch and influence, and -he was already acquainted with the curious psychological -phenomena of sense and thought transference, of double -consciousness, and all the nervous and pathological phases -peculiar to natural and artificial somnambulism. His -investigation for years of the nervous system had clearly -shown him that its capacities were far more extensive, -varied, and interesting than physiologists and philosophers -either knew or were prepared to admit. He found in the -nervous system a vast aggregate of powers which constitute -the vitality of man, existing in intimate connection with -the vast and wonderful powers of his mind. Was it -possible or rational to suppose that this nerve-matter, so -intimately co-related with mind, and upon which the mind -depends for the manifestation of its powers, could be -entirely limited to the narrow materialistic sphere assigned -by physiologists? He thought not.</p> - -<p>In a conversation with Bishop Polk (who afterwards -became the celebrated General Polk of Confederate fame), -Dr. Buchanan ascertained that Bishop Polk’s nervous sensibility -was so acute that, if by accident he touched a piece -of brass in the night, when he could not see what he -had touched, he immediately felt the influence through -his system, and recognised an offensive metallic taste.</p> - -<p>The discovery of such sensitiveness in one of the most -vigorous men, in mind and body, of his day, led Dr. -Buchanan to believe it might be found in many others. -It is needless to say his conjecture was correct. -Accordingly, in the numerous neurological experiments -which he afterwards commenced, he was accustomed to<span class="pagenum" id="Page_57">[57]</span> -place metals of different kinds in the hands of persons -of acute sensibility, for the purpose of ascertaining whether -they could feel any peculiar influence, recognise any -peculiar taste, or appreciate the difference of metals, by -any impression upon their own sensitive nerves. It -soon appeared that the power was quite common, and -there were a large number of persons who could determine -by touching a piece of metal, or by holding it in their -hands, what the metal was, as they recognised a peculiar -influence proceeding from it, which in a few moments -gave them a distinct taste in the mouth. But this -sensitiveness was not confined to metallic substances. -Every substance possessing a decided taste—sugar, salt, -nutmeg, pepper, acid, etc.—appeared to be capable of -transferring its influence. The influence appeared to -affect the hand, and then travel upwards. He afterwards -demonstrated when a galvanic or electric current passed -through a medicinal substance, the influence of the substance -was transmitted with the current, detected and -described by the person operated upon. Medicinal substances, -enclosed in paper, were readily recognised and -described by their effects. In due time, stranger still, a -geological specimen, an article worn, a letter written upon, -a photograph which had been handled, a coin, etc., transmitted -their influence, and the psychometrist was enabled -to read off the history concerning the particular object.</p> - -<p>Nearly fifty years have elapsed since the discovery of -this “strange new science” and art. “To-day it is widely -known, has its respected and competent practitioners, who -are able to describe the mental and vital peculiarities of -those who visit or write them, and who create astonishment -and delight by the fidelity and fulness of the descriptions -which they send to persons unknown, and at vast distances. -They give minute analysis of character and revelations<span class="pagenum" id="Page_58">[58]</span> -of particulars <em>known only to the one described</em>, pointing -out with parental delicacy and tenderness the defects -which need correction, or in the perverse and depraved -they explain what egotism would deny, but what society, -family, and friends recognise to be too true.”</p> - - -<h3>PSYCHOMETRIC REFLECTIONS.</h3> - -<p>Professor J. W. Draper says:—“A shadow never falls -upon a wall without leaving thereupon a permanent trace—a -trace made visible by resorting to proper processes. -Upon the walls of private apartments, where we think -the eye of intrusion is altogether shut out, and our -retirement can never be profaned, there exists the vestiges -of our acts, silhouettes of whatever we have done. It -is a crushing thought to whoever has committed secret -crime, that the picture of his deed, and the very echo -of his words, may be seen and heard countless years -after he has gone the way of all flesh, and left a -reputation for ‘respectability’ to his children.”</p> - -<p>Detectives have received impressions from a scene of -crime, a clue to the unravelment of the mystery and the -detection of the criminal. Yet they could not trace the -impressions to anything they saw or heard during their -preliminary investigations. No detective will throw aside -such impressions. Indeed, those most successful are those -who, while paying attention to all outward and so-called -tangible clues, <em>do not neglect for one moment</em> the impressions -received, and the thoughts <em>felt</em>, when gathering information -likely to lead to the detection of the law-breakers. Hugh -Miller was right when he said, “I suspect that there are -provinces in the mind that physicians have not entered -into.”</p> - -<p>Thoughts are things—living, real and tangible, images, -visions, deep and pungent sensations—which exist after<span class="pagenum" id="Page_59">[59]</span> -their creation distinct and apart from ourselves—“Footprints -on the sands of time,” in more senses than one. -We all leave our mark in a thousand subtle ways. No -material microscope or telescope can detect, nevertheless -our mark can be discovered by the powers of the human -soul. From our cradle to the grave—does it stop there?—every -thought, emotion, movement, and action have left -their subtle traces, so that our whole life can be traced -out by the psychometric expert. We verily give hostages -to fortune all through life.</p> - - -<h3>PSYCHOMETRIC SENSITIVES.</h3> - -<p>Professor Denton was very fortunate in having in his -wife, children, and in his sister, Mrs. Cridge, gifted -psychometers. His sister possessed this psychic, intuitive -faculty in a high degree. Dr. Buchanan was equally -fortunate; not only was his wife a first-class sensitive, -but he discovered the faculty in several university professors, -and in students innumerable. Denton in his travels over -America, Europe, and Australia found several hundred -good sensitives, some of whom have since made a reputation -both in Europe and America for their powers.</p> - -<p>One important fact we learn from these pioneers in -psychometric research is that not one of these persons -knew they were endowed with the psychometric gift prior -to taking part in classes or experiments.</p> - -<p>The possession of the faculty is not confined to any age, -or to the gentle sex; and Denton concludes, as an average, -that one female in four and one man in ten are psychometric -sensitives. The possibility is all healthy, sensitive, refined, -intuitive, and impressionable persons possess the soul-measuring -faculty, and this faculty, like all other innate -human powers, can be cultivated and brought to a high -stage of perfection.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_60">[60]</span></p> - -<p>The psychometer, unlike the induced clairvoyant or -entranced medium, is in general, or outwardly at least, -a mere spectator, as one who beholds a drama or witnesses -a panorama, and tells in his own way to someone else -what he sees and what he thinks about it. The sensitive -can dwell on what is seen, examine it closely, and record -individual opinions of the impressions of the persons, -incidents, and scenes of the long hidden thus brought to -light. The sensitive has merely to hold the object in -hand—as Mrs. Coates is represented doing in <a href="#frontis">frontispiece</a>—or -hold it to the forehead (temple), when he or she is -enabled to come in contact with the soul of the person -or thing with which the object has been in relation. There -is no loss of external consciousness, no “up rush” of -the subliminal, obliterating and overlapping that of -common life. The sensitive appears to be in a perfectly -normal condition during the whole time of examination, -can lay the article down, noticing what takes place, and -entering into conversation with those in the room, or -drawing subjects, seen or not, as they think best.</p> - - -<h3>WHAT PSYCHOMETRY CAN DO.</h3> - -<p>We can do little more than give a few general illustrations. -Professor Denton, having thoroughly satisfied himself of the -reality of psychometry, wondered if letters had photographed -upon them the impressions of the life and the image of the -writer. Why not fossils? “He gave his sister a specimen -from the carboniferous formation; closing her eyes, she -described those swamps and trees, with their tufted heads -and scaly trunks, with the great frog-like animals that existed -in that age. To his inexpressible delight the key to the ages -was in his hands. He concluded that nature had been -photographing from the very first. The black islands that -floated upon the fiery sea, the gelatinous dots, the first life<span class="pagenum" id="Page_61">[61]</span> -on our planet, up through everything that flew or swam, had -been photographed by Nature, and ten thousand experiments -had confirmed the theory. He got a specimen of the lava -that flowed from Kilava, in Hawaii, in 1848. His sister by -its means described the boiling ocean, the cataract of molten -lava that almost equalled Niagara in size. A small fragment -of a meteorite that fell in Painesville, O., was given to -his wife’s mother, a sensitive who did not then believe in -psychometry. This is what she said: ‘I seem to be travelling -away, away, through nothing, right forward. I see -what look like stars and mist. I seem to be taken right up; -the other specimens took me down.’ His wife, independently, -gave a similar description, but saw it revolving, and -its tail of sparks. He took steps to prove that this was not -mind reading by wrapping the specimens in paper, shaking -them up in a hat, and allowing the sensitive to pick out one -and describe it, without anyone knowing which it was. -Among them were a fragment of brick from ancient Rome, -antimony from Borneo, silver from Mexico, basalt from -Fingal’s Cave. Each place was described correctly by the -sensitive in the most minute detail. A fragment from the -Mount of Olives brought a description of Jerusalem; and -one from the Great Pyramid enabled a young man of -Melbourne to name and describe it. There was a practical -side to the question. His wife had, from a chip of wood, -described a suicide; this was subsequently confirmed. A -number of experiments from a fragment of Kent’s Cave, -fragments from Pompeii and other places brought minute -descriptions from the sensitive.”</p> - -<p>Mr. Stead bears his testimony to psychometry. He gave -a shilling to two ladies, at different periods, and unknown to -each other. In fact, they were perfect strangers. This -shilling, in his mind, had a special story connected with it. -The first lady lived in Wimbledon, and had the profession<span class="pagenum" id="Page_62">[62]</span> -of being a clairvoyante. To use Mr. Stead’s own words, he -states:—“I took from my purse a shilling which I most -prized of all the pieces of money in my possession. I said -nothing to her beyond that I had carried it in my pocket for -several years. She held the shilling in her hand for sometime, -and said:—‘This carries me back to a time of confusion -and much anxiety, with a feeling that everything depended -upon a successful result. This shilling brings me a vision -of a very low woman, ignorant and drunken, with whom you -had much better have nothing to do. There is a great deal -of fever about. I feel great pains, as if I had rheumatic -fever in my ankles and joints, but especially in my ankles -and my throat. I suffer horribly in my throat; it is an -awful pain. And now I feel a coarse, bare hand pass over -my brow as distinctly as if you had laid your hand there. It -must be her hand. I feel the loss of a child. This woman is -brought to me by another. She is about thirty-two years; -about five feet high, with dark brown hair, grey eyes, small, -nicely-formed nose, large mouth.’” “Can you tell me her -name?” asked Mr. Stead. “Not certain, but I think it -seems like Annie.” “That is all right,” said Mr. Stead, -and he told her the story of that shilling. About a month -afterwards, Mr. Stead tried a Swedish opera singer, who had -clairvoyant powers, with the shilling. She pressed it to her -brow, and then she told Mr. Stead “she saw a poor woman -give him, from her pocket-money, the last shilling she -possessed. She has a great admiration for you, she said. -She seems to think you have saved her, but she is not <i lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">une -grande dame</i>. Indeed, she seems to be a girl of the town.” -Mr. Stead said:—“I had not spoken a word, or given her -the least hint of the story of the shilling.” Now, what are -the facts? Mr. Stead says that he “was standing his trial -at the Old Bailey, a poor outcast girl of the streets, who was -dying of a loathsome disease in the hospital, asked that the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_63">[63]</span> -only shilling that she possessed in the world, might be given -to the fund which was being raised in his defence. It was -handed to him when he came out of jail, with, ‘From a dying -girl in hospital, who gives her last shilling,’ written on the -paper.” He (Mr. Stead) has carried it about him ever since, -never allowing it to be out of his possession for a single day.</p> - -<p>The symptoms which the first clairvoyante, or psychometrix, -described, were very like those which this poor -creature was suffering from in her dying hours. It is too -probable that the donor was a low, drunken woman.</p> - -<p>These two readings are actually more psychometric than -clairvoyant, because, from the clue furnished, they went -back and described the conditions and surroundings of the -woman who parted with this shilling. They were not -thought-readers, because they did not describe what was -passing in Mr. Stead’s mind. Mr. Stead’s experiences fairly -illustrate the exercise, in the earlier stages of employment, of -the psychometric faculty.</p> - -<p>While engaged writing the “Real Ghost Stories,” Mr. -Stead says:—“My attention was called to a young lady, -Miss Catherine Ross, of 41 High Street, Smethwick, -Birmingham, who, being left with an invalid sister to -provide for, and without other available profession or -industry, bethought herself of a curious gift of reading -character, with which she seems to have been born, and had -subsequently succeeded in earning a more or less precarious -income by writing out characters at the modest fee of 5s. -You sent her any article you pleased that had been in contact -with the object, and she sent you by return a written -analysis of the subject’s character. I sent her various articles -from one person at different times, not telling her they were -from the same person. At one time a tuft of hair from his -beard, at another time a fragment of a nail, and a third time -a scrap of handwriting. Each delineation of character<span class="pagenum" id="Page_64">[64]</span> -differed in some points from the other two, but all agreed, -and they were all remarkably correct. When she sent the -last she added, ‘I don’t know how it is, but I feel I have -described this person before.’ I have tried her since then -with locks of hair from persons of the most varied disposition, -and have found her wonderfully correct.”</p> - -<p>“All these things are very wonderful, but the cumulative -value of the evidence is too great for any one to -pooh-pooh it as antecedently impossible. The chances -against it being a mere coincidence are many millions to -one.”</p> - -<p>I believe had this young lady, or others thus endowed, had -the training, such as Buchanan, Denton, or other experienced -teachers give their pupils, she would make a high -class psychometer.</p> - -<p>Rev. Minot J. Savage had a paper in a recent number of -<cite>The Arena</cite>, on Psychical Research, etc., in which he said—“On -a certain morning I visited a psychometrist. Several -experiments were made. I will relate only one, as a good -specimen of what has occurred in my presence more than -once. The lady was not entranced or, so far as I could see, -in any other than her normal condition. I handed her a -letter which I had recently received. She took it, and held -it in her right hand, pressing it close, so as to come into as -vital contact with it as possible. I had taken it out of its -envelope, so that she might touch it more effectively, but it -was not unfolded even so much as to give her an opportunity -to see even the name. It was written by a man whom she -had never seen, and of whom she had never heard. After -holding it a moment she said, ‘This man is either a minister -or a lawyer; I cannot tell which. He is a man of a good -deal more than usual intellectual power. And yet he has -never met with any success in life as one would have -expected, considering his natural ability. Something has<span class="pagenum" id="Page_65">[65]</span> -happened to thwart him and interfere with his success. At -the present time he is suffering with severe illness and -mental depression. He has pain here’ (putting her hand to -the back of her head, at the base of the brain).</p> - -<p>“She said much more, describing the man as well as I -could have done it myself. But I will quote no more, for -I wish to let a few salient points stand in clear outline. -These points I will number, for the sake of clearness:—</p> - -<p>1. “She tells me he is a man, though she has not even -glanced at the letter.”</p> - -<p>2. “She says he is either a minister or a lawyer; she -cannot tell which. No wonder, for he was both; that is, -he had preached for some years, then he had left the pulpit, -studied law, and at this time was not actively engaged in -either profession.”</p> - -<p>3. “She speaks of his great natural ability. This was -true in a most marked degree.”</p> - -<p>4. “But he had not succeeded as one would have expected. -This again was strikingly true. Certain things had happened—which -I do not feel at liberty to publish—which -had broken off his career in the middle and made his short -life seem abortive.”</p> - -<p>About eighteen years ago a lady in Swansea sent me a lock -of hair, and asked me to send her my impressions. I did so, -which I remember were not pleasant. I informed her, as near -as my recollection now serves, that the person to whom the -hair belonged was seriously ill. No earthly skill could do -anything for him. Diagnosing the character of the insidious -disease which was then undermining a once powerful and -active organisation, I felt constrained to add he <em>would live -six weeks</em>. I held the envelope, with its contents, in my left -hand, and wrote the impressions as they came with my right. -I remember hesitating about sending that letter, but eventually -sent it. The accuracy of my diagnosis, description of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_66">[66]</span> -the patient, and the fulfilment of the prophecy as to his death -were substantiated in a Swansea paper, <cite>The Bat</cite>. The -patient was no other than Captain Hudson, the British -master mariner who sailed the first ship on teetotal principles -from a British port, and who subsequently became one of the -most powerful of British mesmerists. The lady who sent the -lock of hair was his wife, and the lady who contributed the -letter to the papers was his widow. Of similar experiences -Mrs. Coates and I have had many.</p> - - -<h3>HOW TO CULTIVATE THE PSYCHOMETRIC FACULTY.</h3> - -<p><i>Class Experiments.</i>—The sensitives are not to be magnetised -or unduly influenced by positive manner and suggestions, -but are to sit in their normal state (and without mental effort -or straining to find out what they have in their hands), and -simply give expression to their impressions—sensations, tastes, -etc., if any, and no matter how strange to them these may -be. Let the experimenter or operator place different metallic -substances in their hands, taking care that these substances -are carefully covered with tissue paper or other light substance, -which will help to hide their character, and at the same time -not prevent their influence being imparted, or try them -with medical substances. In those sufficiently sensitive, an -emetic will produce a feeling of nausea. The substance -must be put down before it causes vomiting. Geological -specimens can be given—a shell, a tooth, or tusk. Let -the experimenter record the utterances patiently, and seek -confirmation of the description from an examination of the -specimen subsequently. He should not know what special -specimen it is previous to the psychometer’s declared -opinion. Good specimens are best. Thus a fragment of -pottery, a piece of scori, or a bit of brick from, say, Pompeii -would present material from which the psychometrist -could glean strong and vivid impressions.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_67">[67]</span></p> - -<p>If a medical man is not satisfied as to the correct pathological -conditions of his patient, he might ask the psychometer -to take some article of the patient in hand, and get, in the -sensitive’s own—and therefore very likely untechnical—language, -what he feels and sees regarding this particular -patient’s case. Unsuspected abscesses and tumours have -been correctly pointed out in this way.</p> - -<p>In the same way a correct diagnosis of character can be -given in many instances more correctly, more subtle, and -penetrating in detail, than estimates built upon mere external -and physical signs of temperament and cranial contours.</p> - -<p>Lay a coin on a polished surface of steel. Breathe upon -it, and all the surface will be affected save the portion on -which the coin lay. In a few minutes neither trace of -breathing nor of the coin are likely to be seen on the -surface of the polished steel. Breathe again, and the -hitherto unseen image of the coin is brought to light. In -like manner, everything we touch records invisibly to us -that action. Hand your sensitive a letter which has been -written in love or joy, grief or pungent sorrow, and let them -give expression to their sensations. As the breath brought -back the image on the steel, so will the nervous and the -psychic impressionability of the sensitive bring to light the -various emotions which actuated the writers who penned the -letters. Mr. G. H. Lewes says “that he has brushed the -surface of the polished plate with a camel’s-hair brush, yet -on breathing upon it the image of the coin previously laid -upon it was distinctly visible.” The mere casual handling of -letters by intermediates will not obliterate the influence of -the original writers; they have permeated the paper with -their influence, so that, if a score or more of psychometrists -held the paper, they would coincide, perhaps not in their -language, but in their descriptions of the originals and the -state of their minds while writing.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_68">[68]</span></p> - -<p>The experimenter may help, by asking a few judicious -but not leading questions, to direct and guide the attention -of the psychometrist. The description will be a capital -delineation of the individual who wrote the letter. We -have frequently tested the sincerity of correspondents, real -and other friends, by this process. If the results have sometimes -been unpleasant revelations, we have yet to find in any -case that we have been mistaken. How is the sensitive able -to glean so much of the real character of the original? one is -inclined to ask. While writing, sincerity and earnestness -leave a deeper impression than indifference, pretence, or -ordinary come-to-tea politeness. Some letters are instinct -with the writer’s identity, individuality, masculinity, earnestness, -and enthusiasm. Others are lacking in these things, -because the writers were devoid of these qualities, while -others vary at different times. The writer writes as <em>his soul</em> -moves him, and the writing expresses his aims and hopes as -they appear to his external consciousness. While writing, -<em>his soul</em> draws his image on the paper, and pictures out -thereon his real thoughts; and when the sensitive gets hold -of the letter, outstands the image of the writer and the -imagery of his thoughts. The psychic consciousness of the -psychometer grasps the details and describes them.</p> - -<p>“The strange new science of psychometry” is of profound -interest to all. Psychometers are to be found in every -household. The whole subject is one about which a good -deal more could be easily written, but this must do.</p> - -<p>Those who desire to understand psychometry cannot do -better than read up fully the literature of the subject, and -those who desire to practise psychometry may do much to -ascertain whether they possess the faculty in any degree; but -all are warned to have nothing to do with persons who -undertake to <em>develop</em> their powers, a <em>self-evident absurdity</em>.</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_69">[69]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_V">CHAPTER <abbr title="5">V</abbr>.<br /><br /> -<span class="smcap">Thought-Transference and Telepathy.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class="noindent"><span class="smcap">Thought-Transference</span> is evidently a phase of psychic -perception. In some respects it bears a greater relation to -feeling than sight. It is distinguished from pure clairvoyance -by the result of experiment. For instance, suppose I -had in the Rothesay case designed M. C., the clairvoyante, -should see “a maid in the room, dressed in a black dress, -with neat white collar and cuffs, wearing a nicely-trimmed -white apron, and a white tulle cap with bows and streamers, -or that a black-and-white spotted cat lay comfortably coiled -up upon the hearth-rug, or some other strongly-projected -mental image.” Now, suppose while M. C. was examining -the room, she declared she <em>saw</em> the maid, and described her, -or the cat, or other objects projected from my mind, and -described these, then this would be a case of thought-transference.</p> - -<p>There is a distinction between thought-transference and -thought-reading. It is no mere fanciful distinction either. -Thought-transference occurs when the ideas, thoughts, and -emotions of one mind are projected by intense action and -received by the sensitive and impressionable mind of -another—awake or asleep is immaterial—so long as it occurs -without pre-arrangement and contact.</p> - -<p>Telepathy is a more vivid form of sudden and unexpected -thought-transference, in which the intense thoughts and -wishes of one person, more or less in sympathy, are suddenly -transferred to the consciousness of another. The thoughts -transmitted are often so intense as to be accompanied by the -vision of the person, and by the sound of their voice.</p> - -<p>Telepathy bears about the same relation to thought-transference -as “second sight” does to clairvoyance. Thought-transference<span class="pagenum" id="Page_70">[70]</span> -and clairvoyance can be cultivated. Not so -telepathy and second sight. They are phenomena, which -belong to the unexpected, portents of the unusual, or sudden -revelations of what is, and what is about to happen. Doubtless, -there are conditions more favourable than others for -inception of these. One needs to be “in spirit on the -Lord’s day,” or any day, before telepathic and second sight -messages are secured. Hence it is noticed telepathic revelations -mostly come in the quietude of the evening, just before -sleep, between sleep and waking, and under similar conditions -favourable to passivity and receptivity in the sensitive -or percipient.</p> - -<p>In thought-reading both operator and sensitive are aware -that something is to be done, and indications, intentional or -otherwise, are given to make the thought-reader find out -what is required. More or less sensitiveness is required in -both phases. In telepathy and thought-transference the -psychic elements are in the ascendency; in thought-reading -they may be more or less present, but intention, sensitiveness, -and muscular contact are adequate enough, I think, to -account for the phenomena, as witnessed at public entertainments—so -far, at least, as these entertainments are -genuine.</p> - -<p>How do we think? what are thoughts? and how are -thoughts transferred? are reasonable questions, and merit -more elaborate solution than is possible in an elementary -work like this.</p> - -<p>We think in pictures: words are but vehicles of thought. -In thought-transference we can successfully project actions, -or a series of actions, by forming in our minds a scene or -picture of what is done and what is to be reproduced. -When, however, we think of a sentence consisting of few or -many words, there is nothing more difficult to convey. -Words belong to our external life here, and are but arbitrary<span class="pagenum" id="Page_71">[71]</span> -expressions and signs for what in the internal or soul-life is -flashed telepathically from mind to mind.</p> - -<p>Thoughts are things for good or ill, veritable and living -realities, apart from our exterior selves, independent of -words. The more words, often the less thought. Try to -teach a child by the slow, dry-as-dust method of words, and -the road to knowledge is hard and wearisome. Convey the -same thoughts by illustrations and experiments, and the -child’s mind at once grasps the ideas we desire to convey.</p> - -<p>Thoughts are living entities (how poor are words!) which -our own souls have given birth to, or created in the intensity -of our love, wisdom, or passion. One Eastern adept has -taught, “A good thought is perpetuated as an active, beneficent -power, an evil one as a malignant demon. The Hindoo -calls this <i>karma</i>. The adept evolves these shapes consciously; -other men throw them off unconsciously.” How true in our -experience! The thoughts of some men blast, while those -of others bless. There is wisdom in thinking deliberately, -intelligently, and therefore conscientiously, not passionately, -impulsively, or carelessly.</p> - -<p>In thought-transference the reproduction of exact words -and dates seems to be most difficult. Indeed, the transmission -of arbitrary words and signs is apparently the most -difficult. The reason, I conclude, is, ideas belong to our -inner, real, and spiritual life, and names, words, and dates -to our exterior existence. The ideas can be expressed in the -language of the sensitive, according to culture or the want of -it. If the true lineaments of the picture are given, need we -be too exacting as to the special frame surrounding the -picture?</p> - -<p>Notwithstanding the difficulty in transference and the -reading of the exact words, this has also been frequently -done. A very high state of receptivity and sensitiveness, -however, is necessary in the percipient.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_72">[72]</span></p> - -<p>An incident of exact word-reading is related by Gerald -Massey, the distinguished philosopher and poet. Mr. -Massey met Mr. Home at the London terminus just on his -(Mr. Massey’s) arrival from Hertfordshire. Home and he -entered into conversation, during which Home suddenly -said “he hoped Mr. Massey would go on with his poem.”</p> - -<p>“What did he mean?” asked Mr. Massey.</p> - -<p>“The poem,” replied Home, “you composed four lines of -just now in the train.”</p> - -<p>This was surprising to Mr. Massey, who had actually -composed, but had not written, the four lines of a new poem -on the journey. Mr. Massey challenged Mr. Home to -repeat the lines, which Home did word for word.</p> - -<p>How are thoughts transferred? No one can positively -say. There are theories enough—the <em>theory of brain-waves</em> -and of <em>a universal impalpable elastic ether</em>, of <em>undulating -motions</em>, or other more or less materialistic hypothesis.<a id="FNanchor_5" href="#Footnote_5" class="fnanchor">[E]</a></p> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_73">[73]</span></p> -<p>We know there are no psychic phenomena without their -corresponding physical correlatives, and, in this life at least, -these are in thoughts evolved without producing corresponding -molecular changes in the brain.</p> - -<p>We notice the human brain is capable of being, and is, -acted upon daily by much less subtle influences than mental -impressions. We can appreciate light impinged upon our -cerebral centres at the rate of millions of undulations, and -sound as the result of 20,000 to 30,000 vibrations per second. -So sensitives, when in the mesmeric or psychic states, are -readily acted upon, and respond as in thought-transference -to our thoughts and sensations, and veritably read our minds, -because of the <em>rapport</em> or sympathy thus established. -Whether they become percipients of the nerve-vibrations -which escape from our own <a id="sensoriums"></a><ins title="Original has 'sensorums'">sensoriums</ins> or not, what does it -matter <em>if they can, as they frequently do</em>, read our minds?</p> - -<p>“Professor Wheaton,” says Hudson Tuttle, “devised a -means of illustrating sympathy. If a sounding board is -placed so as to resound to all instruments of the orchestra, -and connected by a metallic rod of considerable length with -the sounding board of a harp or piano, the instrument will -accurately repeat the notes transmitted.</p> - -<p>“The nervous system, in its two-fold relation to the -physical and spiritual being, is inconceivably more finely -organised than the most perfect musical instrument, and is -possessed of finer sensitiveness.</p> - -<p>“It must not be inferred that all minds are equally -receptive. Light falls on all substances alike, but is very<span class="pagenum" id="Page_74">[74]</span> -differently affected by each substance. One class of bodies -absorb all but the yellow rays, another all but the blue, -another all but the red, because these substances are so -organised that they respond only to the waves of the colours -reflected.”</p> - -<p>All persons do not hear alike. They receive certain sounds -and are deaf to all others, although the sound-waves strike -all tympanums alike. All persons do not see alike. Some -perceive colours, others cannot distinguish between one colour -and another, or can only see the more striking colours—fineness -of shade they do not perceive. So there are individuals -who cannot receive mental impressions, unless, -indeed, they are conveyed in the baldest and most esoteric -manner. In a word to convey and receive impressions they -must be sent along the line of the least resistance, that of -<em>true sympathy</em>. There must be one mind adequate to the -projection, and another mind sufficiently sensitive to receive -and record the thoughts projected.</p> - - -<h3>TRANSFERENCE OF TASTE IN THE MESMERIC STATE.</h3> - -<p>The operator will slowly eat or taste half-a-dozen lozenges -or sweets of different flavours, and the subject or sensitive -most in sympathy with him will also in imagination eat of -and describe the taste of the various sweets, concerning -which he has no other knowledge than the thoughts of -eating and tasting, which are transmitted to him from the -brain of the operator. The mere eating of the lozenges by -the operator, without his being fully aware of the fact, will -deepen the impression on the operator’s mind, and help to -concentrate his energies for the transmission of his ideas or -mental suggestions to his subject.</p> - -<p>A step or two further and we find with greater sensitiveness -the sensitives can read the thoughts of the operator, -whether the thoughts were transmitted intentionally or not.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_75">[75]</span></p> - -<p>“We are compelled (says Dr. Hands) to acknowledge -that certain emanating undulations from the sensorium can -generate different series of thoughts, and that the trembling -organisation, or parts of it, can, by flinging or throwing off -distinct or particular pulsatory waves, inoculate or produce -like vibrations in another person’s brain, making up in it -identical thoughts, <a id="followed"></a><ins title="Original has 'following'">followed</ins> by like feelings, and often in -this way, perhaps, capable of inciting, <em>through sympathy</em>, -like enactments of deeds and pursuits.”</p> - - -<h3>THOUGHT-TRANSFERENCE IN DREAMS.</h3> - -<p>The following interesting letter appeared in <cite>The Phrenological -Magazine</cite> (p. 260, April, 1890), and as I know of the -<i lang="la" xml:lang="la">bona-fides</i> of the writer, I have much pleasure in reproducing -it:—</p> - -<p>“<span class="smcap">Dear Sir</span>,—This morning, at a little before four o’clock, -I awoke as the outcome of great mental distress and grief -through which I had just passed in a dream, my body -trembling and in a cold perspiration. I had been walking -with my little boy, aged five and a half years, and some -friends. A heavy rain overtaking us, we stood up for -shelter; and venturing forth into a maze of streets, I missed -my two friends, who, threading among the people, had -turned into a side street without my noticing. Looking for -them, my boy slipped from me, and was lost in the crowd. -I became bewildered by the strange labyrinth of streets and -turnings, and quickly taking one of them which gave an -elevated position, I looked down on the many windings, -but could nowhere see my boy. It was to me an unknown -locality, and, running down among the people, I was soon -sobbing aloud in my distress, and calling out the name of -the child, when I awoke. With wakefulness came a sense -of relief and thankfulness. Gladly realising that the whole -was only a dream, and still scarcely awake, I was startled<span class="pagenum" id="Page_76">[76]</span> -by a cry of terror and pain from an adjoining bedroom—such -a cry as could not be left unheeded. It came from the same -child, and pierced me with a distinct sense of pain. I was -immediately by his side. My voice calmed him. ‘I thought -I was lost’ was all he could say, and doubtless he was soon -composed and asleep again. To me the coincidence was too -remarkable and without parallel in my own experience. -Later on, at breakfast, the child gave further his dream that -he <em>had been out with me and was lost</em>. I am only familiar -with such things in my reading. Mr. Coates’s article in last -month’s <cite>Phrenological Magazine</cite> (page 143) mentions that, -‘when the Prince Imperial died from assegai thrusts in -Zululand, his mother in England felt the intensity of his -thoughts at the time, felt the savage lance pierce her own -side, and knew or felt at the time that she was childless.’ -But I am not of the <i lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">spirituelle</i> type, with only a thin parchment -separation between this life of realities and the great -beyond, of those who, privileged to live in close touch with -the future, are the subjects of premonitions and warnings. -My spirituality 4 to 5 and reflectives 6 point rather the other -way, but I shall, nevertheless, hold tight to the lad. What -is the underlying cause of the coincidence? Which of the -two minds influenced the other, if either?—Yours truly,</p> - -<p class="smcap right">“G. Cox.</p> -<p>“16 Bramfield Road,<br /> -Wandsworth Common, April 20, 1890.”</p> - -<p>In this case of thought-transference, I am inclined to the -opinion that the father’s mind influenced that of the boy, the -son being the more sensitive of the two. Mr. Cox dreamt -an ordinary but pretty vivid dream, which aroused from its -nature vivid and intense anxiety on his part. A similar -train of thought was awakened in the child. If thought-transference<span class="pagenum" id="Page_77">[77]</span> -occurs in waking life, why not in sleep, when, -as abundant telepathic instances testify, the phenomenon is -of most frequent occurrence.</p> - - -<h3>THOUGHT-TRANSFERENCE AT SEA.</h3> - -<p>The percipient was Captain G. A. Johnson, of the -schooner “Augusta H. Johnson.” He had sailed from -Quero for home. On the voyage he encountered a terrible -hurricane. On the second day he saw a disabled brig, and -near by a barque. He was anxious to reach home, and, -thinking the barque would assist the brig, continued on.</p> - -<p>But the impression came that he must turn back and board -the brig. He could not shake it off, and at last he, with -four men, boarded the brig in a <a id="dory1"></a><ins title="Original has 'dorry'">dory</ins>. He found her deserted, -and made sail in her. After a time they saw an -object ahead, appearing like a man on a cake of ice. The -<a id="dory2"></a><ins title="Original has 'dorry'">dory</ins> was again manned, and set to the rescue. It proved -to be the mate of the barque “Leawood” clinging to the -bottom of an overturned boat, which, being white, appeared -in the distance as ice.</p> - -<p>The captain’s sensitiveness may have been aroused by the -exhaustion of so much wakefulness and care during the -length of the storm, the sight of the derelict and deserted -brig; at the same time the premonitions were opposed to his -own desire and anxiety to get home.</p> - - -<h3>THOUGHT-TRANSFERENCE FROM THE DYING TO THE -LIVING IN DREAM.</h3> - -<p>The following, by E. Ede, M.D., of Guilford (J.S.P.R., -July, 1882):—</p> - -<p>“Lady G. and her sister had been spending the evening -with their mother, who was in her usual health and spirits -when they left her. In the middle of the night the sister<span class="pagenum" id="Page_78">[78]</span> -awoke in a fright, and said to her husband, ‘I must go to -my mother at once; do order the carriage. I am sure she is -ill.’ The husband, after trying in vain to convince his wife -that it was only a fancy, ordered the carriage. As she was -approaching the house, where two roads met, she saw lady -G.’s carriage. When they met, each asked the other why -she was there. The same reply was made by both—‘I -could not sleep, feeling sure my mother was ill, and so I -came to see.’ As they came in sight, they saw their -mother’s confidential maid at the door, who told them when -they arrived that their mother had taken suddenly ill, and -was dying, and had expressed an earnest wish to see her -daughters.”</p> - -<p>The percipients having been so lately in company and -sympathy with their mother possibly rendered them more -susceptible to her influence.</p> - - -<h3>THOUGHT-TRANSFERENCE FROM THE DEAD (?) TO THE -LIVING IN DREAM.</h3> - -<p>Related by Mr. Myers, page 208, Proceedings S.P.R., -July, 1892:—</p> - -<p>“About March, 1857, Mrs. Mennier, in England, dreamt -that she saw her brother, whose whereabouts she did not -know, standing headless at the foot of the bed with his -head lying in a coffin by his side. The dream was at once -mentioned. It afterwards appeared that at about the time -the head of the brother seen, Mr. Wellington, was actually -cut off by the Chinese at Sarawak.” On this case, Mr. -Gurney remarks—“This dream, if it is to be telepathically -explained, must apparently have been due to the last flash -of thought in the brother’s consciousness. It may seem -strange that a definite picture of his mode of death should -present itself to a man in the instant of receiving an unexpected -and fatal blow; but, as Hobbes said, ‘Thought is<span class="pagenum" id="Page_79">[79]</span> -quick.’ The coffin, at <a id="rate"></a><ins title="Original has 'anyrate'">any rate</ins>, may be taken as an item of -death-imagery supplied by the dreamer’s mind.”</p> - -<p>“We have now, however,” says Mr. Myers, “seen a -letter from Sir James Brookes (Rajah of Sarawak), and an -extract from the <cite>Straits Times</cite> of March 21st, 1857, in the -(London) <cite>Times</cite> for April 29th, 1857, which makes it, I -think, quite conceivable that the dream was a reflection of -knowledge acquired after death, and the head on the coffin -had a distinct meaning.” Sir James Brookes says:—“Poor -Wellington’s remains were consumed [by the Chinese]; his -head, borne off in triumph, alone attesting his previous -murder.” The <cite>Straits Times</cite> says:—“The head was given -up on the following day. The head, therefore, and the -head alone, must have been buried by Mr. Wellington’s -friends; and its appearance in the dream <em>on the coffin</em>, with -a headless body standing beside it, is a coincidence even -more significant than the facts which Mr. Gurney had before -him when he wrote.”</p> - -<p>The transmission of thought from a spirit discarnate to one -incarnate, whose body was asleep, should not be esteemed -impossible. Abundant instances, equally well substantiated, -might be recorded did space permit.</p> - - -<h3>THOUGHT TRANSFERENCE IN PRAYER.</h3> - -<p>This may be a common experience, but only once in my -life have I had conscious knowledge of anything so remarkable. -For some years before devoting my attention to these -subjects, I resided in Liverpool, and had been a member of -the Zion Methodist Church, or Chapel, in Everton, and in -time was duly placed on the local preachers’ plan. In this -capacity I became acquainted with a worthy old man—a -chapel-keeper, who looked after the meeting house situated -in —— street. He had been an old soldier, and possessed -something of the faith of the Roman centurion. Poor in the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_80">[80]</span> -things of this world, he was rich in the sublimity of his love -to God and the nobility and purity of his life. I never think -of “Old Daddy Walker” but his character and this incident -comes to my mind, viz.:—One morning I was hurrying down -West Derby Road to business, and, indeed had got halfway -down Brunswick Road, when I commenced to think about -old Walker (I had not seen or thought of him for some -months). I attempted to throw aside my impressions, as -passing thoughts. No use. I became worried about him, -and was asking myself questions. “Was he ill?” “Maybe, -he is in want?” “I think I will hurry back and see?” I -had not much time to spare. It would consume fully twenty -minutes to walk back. After hesitating, I went up Brunswick -Road and up West Derby Road, and to —— Street, -and tapped at the door of his house. There was no response. -The street door was slightly ajar. I went in, and found the -old pair on their knees in the kitchen. He was engaged in -earnest prayer. After kindly salutations, I apologised for -intruding, and told him, as I went to business, “I had been -bothered about him in my mind, and did not feel satisfied -until I had seen him, and knew the truth.” He told me, -as near as I can recollect, “He was at his last extremity. -There was no food or fuel in the house, he had no money, -and he had been putting the whole case before the Lord.” -I had half a sovereign about me, which I had taken out of -the house for an entirely different purpose. This I gave to -him. The old man, rubbing a tear from his eye, looking at -his wife, said: “Mary, don’t thee doubt the Lord anymore. -I said He would help, and He has given me what I asked -for.” Old Walker went on to explain, not only his bad fix, -but that he had no money to buy firewood with. He meant -that he bought up old wood and tar-barrels, which he cut up -into lengths and made into bundles, and sold for firewood; -and that he had asked the Lord for ten shillings, as he<span class="pagenum" id="Page_81">[81]</span> -wanted that sum to buy a certain lot which could be obtained -for that amount. The old man obtained what he asked for. -He believed the Lord had answered his prayer.</p> - - -<h3>THOUGHT TRANSMISSION IN PRAYER.</h3> - -<p>Since writing the above, the following came under my -notice. In the J.S.P.R., May, 1885, Dr. Joseph Smith, -Warrington, England, says:—</p> - -<p>“I was sitting one evening reading, when a voice came to -me, saying: ‘Send a loaf to James Grady’s.’ I continued -reading, and the voice continued with greater emphasis, and -this time it was accompanied with an irresistible impulse to -get up. I obeyed, and went into the village and bought a -loaf of bread, and, seeing a lad at the shop door, I asked -him if he knew James Grady. He said he did, so I bade -him carry it and say a gentleman sent it. Mrs. Grady was -a member of my class, and I went next morning to see what -came of it, when she told me a strange thing <a id="toher"></a><ins title="Original has 'happened her'">happened to her</ins> -last night. She said she wished to put the children to bed, -they began to cry for want of food, and she had nothing to -give them. She then went to prayer, to ask God to give -them something. Soon after which the lad came to the door -with the loaf. I calculated, on inquiry, that the prayer and -the voice I heard exactly coincided in point of time.”</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> - <div class="poetry"> - <div class="verse">“More things are wrought by prayer</div> - <div class="verse">Than this world dreams of.”</div> - </div> -</div> - -<p>Those who know anything of Methodism, will know this. -The Methodists have a profound faith in prayer, and also -there is a very close relationship between a class-leader and -his members. Dr. Smith was, therefore, all the more likely -to be the percipient of the woman’s earnest and intense -prayer to God to feed her hungry children. The Infinite -must have an infinite variety of ways of fulfilling His own<span class="pagenum" id="Page_82">[82]</span> -purposes. Is it unreasonable to suppose that prayer to Him -may not be answered indirectly “through means”? and that -thought-transference, as in this instance, may be one of the -means? If not, why not?</p> - -<p>Charitable institutions are maintained; orphans saved, -reared, and educated; missions of mercy organised, and the -necessary means found by the agency of prayer. Beside -“the angels,” in That Sphere just beyond the ken of the -physical, may not our waves of thought, projected by prayer, -be impinged upon, and directly affect susceptible minds in -this world, by directing their attention to those works of -faith and goodness? Prayer is the language of love, and -the outcome of true helplessness and need. A praying man -is an earnest man. In prayer thoughts are things—bread -upon the waters.</p> - - -<h3>THOUGHT TRANSFERENCE IN DISTRESS.</h3> - -<p>I withhold the names for family reasons. Mr. —— had -been in business in Glasgow for nearly thirty years, and, -from comparatively small beginnings, had been very successful. -Latterly, he and his family resided in ——, -a suburb of Glasgow. Both in the city and in this district -Mr. —— was very much respected, being a church member -and holding office in —— Free Church. For some time -Mr. —— had been ailing, and his medical attendant advised -him to take a sea voyage—a thorough change, etc. In compliance -with this advice, he took a trip up the Mediterranean. -Miss ——, a distant relative of his, had been visiting Glasgow, -and, being on terms of intimacy with the family, knew -of his departure from Glasgow. About two weeks after he -left, she also left Glasgow for Edinburgh. While in the -train for Edinburgh, she was overcome with great anxiety -for Mrs. ——, his wife. Unable to shake the feeling off, -instead of going to Edinburgh, she actually got out of the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_83">[83]</span> -train halfway, at Falkirk, and took the next train back to -Glasgow, and went to her friend’s house, whom she found -in great distress. Mrs. —— had, about the time Miss —— became -distressed in the train, received word that her husband -was found dead (having committed suicide) in his berth -on the steamer at Constantinople. The state of mind of -the newly-made widow re-acted on that of Miss ——. As -Miss —— was not only a dear friend, but was noted for her -earnest piety, the widow at once earnestly desired to see her. -When last these two friends saw each other, everything -seemed to contribute to happiness and comfort. Mrs. —— -was looking forward hopefully for the return of her husband, -restored in health, to herself and children.</p> - - -<h3>THOUGHT TRANSFERENCE IN ORDINARY EXPERIENCE.</h3> - -<p>Whether thought-transference is a “relic of a decaying -faculty,” or the “germ of a new and fruitful sense,” daily -experience in the lives of most furnish abundant evidence of -the existence of such a power. My own life has supplied me -with abundant evidence of the fact. It is a common occurrence -with us for either my wife or I to utter or give expression -to the thoughts which, for the time being, occupied the -conscious plane in the other. It is possible there may have -been, as there has been in some instances, some half phrase -uttered or manner shown, which in the one have aroused the -thoughts expressed by the other.</p> - -<p>It has been our habit for several years to stay at Rothesay -during the summer season. As an instance of thought-transference -quite common in our experience;—On Saturday, -1st October, 1892, I went to the Revision Court at the Town -Hall to hear registration disputes settled between Tory and -Gladstonian lawyers. Finding nothing to interest me, I -entered into conversation with Mr. Thompson, jeweller and -hardware merchant, whom I met in the Court, and went<span class="pagenum" id="Page_84">[84]</span> -with him to his shop in Montague Street, Rothesay. Standing -at his door a short time, I <a id="noticed"></a><ins title="Original has 'notice'">noticed</ins> a solitary pair of -shamrock earrings, composed of crystal brilliants and gold, -lying on a tray, with a number of other earrings, in one of -the windows. I inquired the price, as I felt sure Mrs. -Coates would be pleased with them. They were packed up -in a neat box, and I took them home. At dinner, I gave -the box to my wife, who said, “What is this, papa?”</p> - -<p>“Open and see,” I replied.</p> - -<p>Animated with a little curiosity, she did, and, as soon as -she saw the earrings, said, “Thompson’s! Well, papa, that -is funny. James (my little son) and I stood at Thompson’s -window last night, and I admired these earrings. I thought -them so neat, and that they would match my brooch. I -thought I would like to have them, and then I thought to -myself, no; I will not spend the money. I pointed them -out to James, and said to him, I am sure if papa saw them, -he would buy them—and here you have brought them home. -I cannot tell you how much I prize them.”</p> - -<p>My little boy said, “Thought-reading again, papa!” and, -with a good laugh, we proceeded to discuss our dinner. -Mrs. Coates had not been in the habit of seeing this particular -window, and I am not in the habit of buying -jewellery.</p> - -<p>I record this trifle here, as one of our common experiences, -and I am satisfied similar experiences are common -to all.</p> - -<p>Another experience is the anticipation of letters and their -contents. This is most frequent in the morning, just before -rising. I frequently see the letters and the shape of the -envelope and style of address before I actually see the letters -on my consulting table.</p> - -<p>The most common experience of all is recognised by the -adage, “Think of the Devil, and he will appear.” I have<span class="pagenum" id="Page_85">[85]</span> -noted this in particular. Sitting at the table, there is -“popped” into my mind a thought of someone. I will -remark, “I think Mr. or Mrs. —— will be here to-day,” -and they come. Certainly, all who have come in this way -have been relatives or friends; and although they appear -subsequent to the thought of them, the evidence in favour -of thought-transference may not be esteemed conclusive. I -say it is a common experience. I don’t think we should -despise any experience, because it is common. To be common, -indicates there is a basis, amounting to a psychic law, -to account for its existence.</p> - -<p>Another common experience is the crossing of letters. -One person suddenly recollects “So-and-so;” and writes -them a letter excusing delay in writing, retailing news, and -in all probability writing on some subject more particularly -than on others. Strange to say, the person you have written -to, has also been engaged writing to you about the same time -and on similar subjects. Both have possibly posted their -letters at such a time that the delivery has been crossed. I -do not say this proves anything; yet I cannot help thinking -the experience is too frequent to be accounted for by the -usual explanation of accident or coincidence.</p> - -<p>Mark Twain’s article on “Mental Telegraphy” is fresh in -the minds of most magazine readers. Whether that article -had a basis in the writer’s actual experience or not, it is a -pretty common experience with most literary men.</p> - -<p>“Distance,” says Mr. Tuttle, “has inappreciable influence -on the transference of thought. It may take place in the -same room, or where the two persons are thousands of miles -apart. As a personal experience, I will relate one of many -similar incidents which have awakened my attention to this -wonderful phenomenon. Sitting by my desk one evening, -suddenly as a flash of light, the thought came to write an -article for the <cite>Harbinger of Light</cite>, published at Melbourne,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_86">[86]</span> -Australia. I had, by correspondence, become acquainted -with the editor, W. H. Terry, but there had been no letters -passed for many a year. I had not thought of him or his -journal for I do not know how long a time, and I was -amused at first with the idea of writing on the subject -suggested. But the impression was so strong that I prepared -and forwarded an article. Nearly two months passed -before I received a letter from Mr. Terry, requesting me to -write an article on the subject on which I have written; -and, making due allowance for time, the date of our letters -were the same. In our experience, this crossing of letters -answering each other has twice occurred—the second by -Mr. Terry answering a request of mine.”</p> - -<p>Dr. Charles W. Hidden, of Newburyport, Mass., U.S.A., -reports a somewhat similar experience to that of Mark Twain -and the above, which was reported in a recent number of -the <cite>Religio-Philosophical Journal</cite>: A very peculiar plot -impressed itself upon his mind, and he immediately based a -story upon the plot. He read the story to his family, and -was about to send it to a publication to which his wife had -recently become a subscriber. When the next number arrived -he opened it to learn how to forward his manuscript, and great -was his surprise to find on the first page a story bearing the -title of his own, and a plot almost identical with that which -he had written. Parts of the published article appeared -word for word. It is needless to add that Dr. Hidden -tossed his manuscript into his desk, and it is there yet. His -explanation is, that he caught the title and the plot from -another, just as Mark Twain caught the plot of the “Big -Bonanza” from his friend Simmons.</p> - -<p>It would be nigh impossible to illustrate the various phases -of thought-transference, ranging, as they do, from the association -of ideas which may be aroused by a hint, a half-uttered -word, or a gesture, to the unmistakable facts of pure<span class="pagenum" id="Page_87">[87]</span> -mental transference, and, higher still, to the region of pure -psychism, where spirit influences inspire and direct spirit, -and thought-bodies are no longer recognised as mere subjective -spirits but living and tangible objective personalities, -albeit discarnate.</p> - -<p>We can say truly with Voltaire, “There is a power that -acts within us, without consulting us.”</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_88">[88]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_VI">CHAPTER <abbr title="6">VI</abbr>.<br /><br /> -<span class="smcap">Thought-Reading Experiments.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class="noindent"><span class="smcap">Having</span> satisfactory evidence of the reality of thought-transference, -it would be interesting to know if this power -or faculty can be cultivated, and if so, how? I propose in -this chapter to show how this can be done, and how to give -thought-reading entertainments.</p> - -<p>Experimental mind-reading may be distinguished, for -the sake of study, as the abnormal, the normal, and the -spurious.</p> - -<p>The abnormal, that which takes place in trance, dream, -vision, or which may be the product of artificial somnambulism -or of some super-sensitive condition of the nervous system, -through disease. We observe thought-transference in these -conditions, rather than attempt to cultivate it.</p> - -<p>The normal, where the phenomena takes place in the -ordinary waking state, <em>without muscular contact</em>.</p> - -<p>The spurious mind-reading, so-called, as the result of -musculation or <em>contact</em>, but which is, in fact, only muscle-reading.</p> - -<p>In both the abnormal and normal, direct transference of -thought from mind to mind can only take place when there -is the necessary development of psychic activity in the agent -or operator, and the equally necessary sensitiveness in the -sensitive or percipient.</p> - -<p>Classed under muscle-reading are those performances and -games in which the sensitive reads not the mind, but -some special desire (of those with whom he or she may -be placed <em>in contact</em>), by a “careful study of the indications -unconsciously given by the agent or operator to the -percipient or reader.”</p> - -<p>In both abnormal and normal thought-reading, then, are<span class="pagenum" id="Page_89">[89]</span> -presented innumerable instances of the possession of psychic -faculties; in the muscle-reading phase there may be, and it -is possible all successful “readers” have, more or less -sensitiveness, to take impressions.</p> - -<p>To cultivate mind-reading in a sensitive, the operator -should first cultivate in himself the habit of projecting -mental pictures, and think of things as seen by the eye, -rather than as described by words. This is best done by -calling to mind a landscape or domestic scene, by conceiving -and mentally building up the same, and, by degrees, getting -each feature or detail well stamped in his mind.</p> - -<p>It is well in the beginning of these experiments to make -the scene as simple, and yet as natural and as complete in -detail, as possible. For instance, let the operator think of -such a picture as this:—A bright little landscape, having a -well-defined cottage on the left, just on the margin of a -small lake; boat with two figures in the foreground; rising -bank upon the right; and a little higher up a defined windmill, -well thrown out by the perspective of blue-ridged and -undulating mountains, and sky in the background.</p> - -<p>The agent, having satisfied himself of his sensitive’s whole -or partial powers of psychic perception, might ask:—“Do -you see anything now?” and quickly and deliberately go to -work, meanwhile formulating definitely such a picture as the -above; even allowing himself to get into ecstacies over the -scene—peopling the cottage and the mill, and introducing -imaginary conversation between the individual dwellers -therein, and so on. The sensitive will describe the whole as -the same is <em>felt</em> or perceived. This experiment may appear -to some to be impossible, but the word impossible belongs -to the limitations of sense, and not to the range of the things -possible to the human spirit.</p> - -<p>Some sensitives and mediums take impressions from their -surroundings—their clairvoyant revelations are often nothing<span class="pagenum" id="Page_90">[90]</span> -more than so much Mind-reading. <em>Nothing more</em>; but this -nothing more is a great deal. Certainly, it may not prove -the existence of spirit, apart from the sensitive’s own powers; -but it does prove that man has other avenues of knowledge -than those with which he is usually credited.</p> - -<p>The development of mind-reading in the psychic states -may be encouraged by a little judicious assistance or direction. -Invite the sensitive to pay attention to So-and-so; to -visit places, to examine rooms, or describe people whom the -sensitive has never seen. But the places, the rooms, and -the persons must be <em>distinctly in the minds</em> of those persons, -or agents, with whom he or she is placed in <em>rapport</em>.</p> - -<p>During these experiments the sensitive will say, “I <em>see</em> -this,” or describe that other, as if he actually saw. Hence -the infinitely close relationship of mind-reading to clairvoyance. -Thought-reading in spiritualism will be referred -to in the next chapter.</p> - -<p>Once possessing a good sensitive, the development of the -power, as a matter of fact, lies particularly in the operator’s -ability to concentrate and focus his thoughts—to think clearly, -calmly, vividly, and distinctly himself—and to deliberately -and conscientiously project the same.</p> - - -<h3>THE NORMAL EXPERIMENTS WITHOUT CONTACT.</h3> - -<p>A pleasant hour or so can be profitably filled up on a -long winter’s evening with experiments in mind reading, -without resorting to mesmerism. It will be found that there -are mind-readers in every family—some boy, girl, or young -woman more sensitive than the rest to impressions.</p> - -<p>Sometimes it has been found, when two or more persons -think of the same object, as in the “willing game,” the -impression becomes more vivid, and the sensitive finds, or -describes, the article, or thing, more easily. It has been -left to the versatility of Professor Lodge, of the University<span class="pagenum" id="Page_91">[91]</span> -College, Liverpool, to project two distinct images at the -same time to a sensitive. He requested two friends to look -at a paper that he had given to each. On one paper a -square was drawn, and on the other an oblique cross. -Neither person knew what the other was looking at, and -after they had looked intently at these diagrams for a short -time, the sensitive, who was in a normal condition, but -blindfold, said:—“I see two figures—first I see one, and -then, below that, another. I do not know which I am to -draw. I cannot see either plainly.” Having been requested -to draw what she saw, she drew a square, with an oblique -cross inside of it. On being questioned, she replied that she -did not know why she placed the cross in the square. The -two images projected by distinct minds, intermingled, and -were produced, as narrated by Professor Lodge. We can -readily see that confusion will arise where a number of -persons are thinking of different subjects, or when some -positive-minded individual declares mind-reading to be an -impossibility.</p> - -<p>Something after the above experiments of Professor -Lodge are those which were conducted by Mr. Guthrie, a -London barrister, and reported by him to the Society of -Psychical Research.</p> - -<p>A number of diagrams, roughly drawn off-hand at the -time, were shown to the agent or precipitant, Mr. G., the -subject, or percipient, a lady, being blind-fold. During the -process of transference, the agent looked steadily and in -silence at the drawing, the subject meanwhile sitting -opposite to him, and behind the stand on which the drawing -lay, so that it was entirely out of her range of vision had -her eyes not been blind-folded.</p> - -<p>The agent stopped looking at the drawing when the -subject professed herself ready to make the attempt to -reproduce it. The time occupied thus was from half a -minute to two or three minutes. Then the handkerchief was -removed, and she drew with a pencil what had occurred to -her mind.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" id="exp1" style="max-width: 40em;"><span class="pagenum" id="Page_92">[92]</span> -<p class="pfs90 p2">RESULTS OF EXPERIMENTS IN THOUGHT-TRANSFERENCE.</p> -<img class="w100" src="images/exp1.jpg" alt="" /> -</div> - -<div class="figcenter" id="exp2" style="max-width: 40em;"><span class="pagenum" id="Page_93">[93]</span> -<p class="pfs90 p2">RESULTS OF EXPERIMENTS IN THOUGHT-TRANSFERENCE.</p> -<img class="w100" src="images/exp2.jpg" alt="" /> -</div> - -<p>The reproductions were made generally without the agent<span class="pagenum" id="Page_94">[94]</span> -following or watching the process. We reproduce several of -the attempts here, giving both the successes and the failures. -Even the failures show the effect Mr. G. produced upon the -reader’s mind.</p> - -<p>The experiments conducted so successfully in the family -of the Rev. Mr. Creery, of Boston, and made public by -Professor Barrett in <cite>The Journal of Psychical Research</cite>, show -to what extent thought-reading may be successfully carried -on in the quietude and confidence of a well-regulated family.</p> - -<p>The mode of procedure adopted by Professor Barrett to -test the faculty as possessed by the children was as follows:—“One -of the children,” says Professor Barrett, “was sent -into an adjoining room, the door of which I saw was closed. -On returning to the sitting-room, and closing the door also, -I thought upon some object in the house, fixed upon at -random. Writing the name down, I showed it to the family -present, the strictest silence being preserved throughout. -We then all silently thought of the name of the thing -selected. In a few seconds the door of the adjoining room -was heard to open, and after a short interval the child would -enter the sitting-room, generally speaking, with the object -selected. No one was allowed to leave the sitting-room -after the object had been fixed upon, and no communication -with the child was conceivable, as her place was often -changed. Further, the only instructions given to the child -were to fetch some objects in the house that I would think -upon and, together with the family, silently keep in mind, -to the exclusion as far as possible of all other ideas.”</p> - -<p>Now, if Professor Barrett had told the children to select a -word, and upon coming into the room were to spell or state<span class="pagenum" id="Page_95">[95]</span> -what the word was, I question if the experiments would have -been so successful. The articles thought of, whether a hair -brush, an orange, wine glass, apple, or a playing card, were -of such a nature that a definite picture or image of the thing -thought of could be formed in the mind. The father, mother, -and even Professor Barrett, seem to have been especially in -<em>rapport</em> with the little sensitives, and thus all the more -readily were they able to transmit the mental picture of the -articles selected. Trick or collusion in this case is absolutely -out of the question. It would be interesting to know if these -young sensitives, who were so bright in 1881, still retain, -or have increased or lost, their powers.</p> - -<p>There were 312 trials made during Professor Barrett’s stay -of six days, who adds—“One most striking piece of success, -when the things selected were divulged to none of the family, -was five cards running named correctly on the first trial—the -odds against this happening once in our series, being considerably -over one million to one. We had altogether a -good many similar batches, the two longest runs being eight -consecutive successes, once with cards and once with names, -when the adverse odds in the former case were over one -hundred and forty-two millions to one, and on the latter, -something incalculably greater. <em>Walls and closed doors made -no difference.</em>” [The italics are mine.—J.C.]</p> - -<p>Something after the foregoing style are drawing-room -entertainments given. If failure result, no one is blamed, -and ridiculous mistakes only lend pleasure to the company, -where all are known one to the other.</p> - -<p>The usual method is to select someone for thought-reader. -Lady or gentleman, matters little. He or she is sent out -of the room. Some one in the room generally takes the -lead, who may suggest the article to be selected and hidden, -which the thought-reader is to find. The article selected -is thought of by the entire company. The reader is to go<span class="pagenum" id="Page_96">[96]</span> -to the place where it is, lift it, put it down, or give it to some -one else; or to find a certain book and remove it from its -place on table or elsewhere, and put it somewhere else; to -come in and sit on a certain chair or to lead someone else -to it, or perform whatever other test that is decided upon. -The reader is admitted into the room, and, if at all receptive, -will do or say something like what is desired—often going -direct to the spot, lifting the article, or doing the things -which the company have decided upon.</p> - -<p>A good plan is to get the assistance of one or two friends, -use a bag of counters, upon which numbers 10 to 100 are -placed; also a smaller bag with numbers 1 to 9. Let the -sensitive sit at a table in such a position, so as, if not blindfolded, -he or she could not see what the agent has in his -hand. Use the small bag to begin with. Let one friend -hold the bag, another select a number. When both have -carefully looked at it, let it be handed to the agent, who shall -fix his eyes steadily upon the figure, and picture the said -figure on his mind. The sensitive will in one or two minutes -either say or write down what the figure is. If these experiments -become satisfactory, the larger bag can be used. The -experiments with numbers must not be continued too long, -and so weary the faculty. In the same way a number of -simple outline designs can be used—these presented one -by one to the agent or operator—a fish, a boy and barrow, -a fireman with escape, a negro and banjo, a lecturer on platform, -an orange, a book, etc., such as are found in -children’s school books; repeating the same processes as -above. No one must speak but the agent and the percipient, -nor is the agent to know what the numbers or -designs are before the experiments are commenced.</p> - -<p>Should failure occur, select another medium. In a company -of twenty to thirty persons it will be very strange if a -good thought-reading sensitive is not found. In which case,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_97">[97]</span> -more serious experiments may be attempted subsequently, -and attain scientific value.</p> - -<p>The thought-reader should be blindfolded, and <em>resign</em> -himself to the <em>influence</em> of the agent or operator. Although -he understands that something is expected of him, he is not -to be anxious about what, but simply <em>act</em> as he <em>feels</em> himself -prompted.</p> - -<p>In proportion as the sensitive is able to give up -anxiety and desire, so will he be able to become a good -reader.</p> - -<p>The operator, or agent, must concentrate his mind upon -what is required, and <em>will</em> the sensitive to do it. When two -or more persons, or all in the room, <em>are</em> concentrating their -minds upon the thing, object, or word, the sensitive may all -the sooner be influenced; but I prefer that one person -should be chosen as the operator, and all intended experiments -be submitted to him.</p> - -<p>The process is analogous to that of mesmerism. We see -traces here of the influence of mind over mind. We see the -operator determines and the subject performs, although it -may not be very clear how thought is actually projected, or -in what way it is received, other than already suggested.</p> - -<p>Practice makes perfect in this as in other things. Success -is proportionate to success. A reader showing a degree of -susceptibility at first attempts will generally improve by -subsequent efforts. In a similar way, operators will make -headway with practice. Some operators and sensitives will -be successful at first trial; others again have failed after -repeated attempts.</p> - -<p>Plenty of time should be taken for all first attempts. Let -the operator, for instance, keep his mind thoroughly fixed -on the object. Should the reader be going away from it, let -the agent strongly wish him to go back, <em>touch</em> it, lift it, etc., -as previously decided upon by the company.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_98">[98]</span></p> - -<p>All sensitive persons are likely to make good thought-readers; -the less sensitive, muscle-readers.</p> - - -<h3>MUSCLE-READING ENTERTAINMENTS.</h3> - -<p>Thought-transference, like clairvoyance, is unequal in -power and manifestation, even with good percipients, and -cannot be turned on like, and with, the evening gas, to -enlighten and entertain. Hence those enterprising entertainers, -like Bishop and Cumberland, depended on “muscle-reading,” -and “backed-up their show” with tricks, some of -them so puerile and barefaced that a third-rate conjuror -would be ashamed of them.</p> - -<p>The general public, however, enjoyed these entertainments. -They were something new, and, like “angel’s visits,” were -few and far between. Not only so, but that wonderful -combination, the general public, saw that these entertainments -were patronised by men of science, such as Carpenter, -Beard, Hammond, Baron Kelvin, and others deeply in -love with strictly materialistic hypothesis. They were also -patronised by “society.” These entertainers undertook to -read thoughts and expose spiritualism; and as the dear -public loves mystery, it went. But the dear public don’t -like to be “taken in,” hence these performances are generally -repeated—in the next town.</p> - -<p>The following, reported from St. John’s, N.B., January -17, 1887, in the <cite>Herald</cite>, is a good illustration of the psychic -and muscular indications involved in an experiment of this -kind:—“In a ‘mind-reading’ performance on Saturday night, -after several examples indoors, the ‘reader,’ a young man -who belongs to this city, asked for an outdoor test. The -party separated, one remaining with the reader, and hid a -pin in the side of a little house used by the switchman of the -New Brunswick Railway at Mill Street. In their travels -they went over the new railway trestle, a most difficult<span class="pagenum" id="Page_99">[99]</span> -journey. The reader was blindfolded, and one took his -wrist, but at the trestle hesitated, fearing to venture, and -was told by the reader to let go his wrist and place his hand -on his head. The subject did so, and the reader went upon -the trestle. Some of the party suggested that the bandage -should be removed, but he told them not to mind, and, the -subject again taking the wrist, he went over the ice and -snow-covered sleepers. With a firm step he crossed to the -long wharf, went over as far as the mill gates, then quickly -turned, retraced his steps, and went back to the corner of -Mill Street. Here he rested a minute, then again took the -subject’s hand, and in less than five minutes afterwards found -the pin. At the conclusion of the test, the reader inquired -what the matter had been when they first reached the trestle. -It was easily explained. The storm had covered the sleepers -with snow, and it was thought dangerous, even for a man not -blindfolded to cross them. The subject felt anxious for the -reader’s safety, and hesitated about going across. The tests -were most satisfactory.” Thought or mind-reading applied to -these experiments is a misnomer. If this young gentleman -could “read thoughts” by musculation, or <em>contact</em>, he -would have known what the matter had been when they -first reached the trestle. Muscle-reading is not thought-reading. -Hence it is classified as spurious.</p> - -<p>Any number of illustrations could be given of such entertainments. -The foregoing is sufficiently adequate to give -an idea of how these muscle (not thought) reading entertainments -are given.</p> - -<p>For drawing-room entertainments, first blindfold the -reader, who is conducted out of the room while the -experiments are decided upon. The blindfolding helps to -mystify friends, who think the work is rendered more -difficult. As a matter of fact, the reader’s work is rendered -much more easy. It helps to isolate him, and leaves his<span class="pagenum" id="Page_100">[100]</span> -mind much less entrammelled by sights and impressions -which would otherwise prevent him receiving <em>the</em> impressions -which it is desirable he should receive.</p> - -<p>Suppose the reader is to locate the seat of an imaginary -pain, the assistant or operator <i lang="la" xml:lang="la">pro tem.</i> will grasp<a id="FNanchor_6" href="#Footnote_6" class="fnanchor">[F]</a> with his -left hand the sensitive’s right wrist and hold it firmly. While -the reader is endeavouring to locate the pain, the operator -must give up his will, and think intently on the situation of -the pain. The reader will then locate it.</p> - -<p>There is less secret in this than appears at first sight. The -sensitive, or reader, is simply guided or led by the operator, -and the reader’s hand either stops partially over or is pressed -upon the seat of the pain. He then declares he has found -the seat of the pain, and points it out accordingly.</p> - -<p>A somewhat similar method is adopted in finding the -pin, or the <em>hole</em> in which a pin <em>had been</em>. The racing and -flying about of public thought-readers are only so much -“theatrical side,” thrown in to give dramatic effect to their -performances.</p> - -<p>In reading the numbers on bank-notes, or spelling out -certain words, a board with the numerals and the alphabet -(see front cover) is placed in sight of the audience. The -reader takes the wrist of the operator, and, commencing at -the left side of the board, proceeds from figure to figure -till he detects the right one. The operator thinks only of -<em>one</em> figure or letter at a time. This is the whole secret of -“musculation.” Even when the operators are sincere, and -are careful to give no conscious indications to the reader, yet -it is almost certain, if they keep their mind fixed on the -desired figure or letter, object or place, they will unconsciously -indicate to the reader the right number or letter.</p> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_101">[101]</span></p> -<p>To find an article, number, or do a certain act, it is necessary -for the reader to give prompt obedience to the indications -given him. The concentration of attention necessary -can only come with practice. No end of surprises and -amusement will follow if the operator honestly concentrates -his mind upon the things to be done, and a good muscle-reader -is found to take up the indications. Apparently, -the most difficult feats are sometimes accomplished.</p> - -<p>During the experiments, the reader will have curious -sensations, such as heaviness of feeling, dread and uncertainty, -and then <em>blankness</em> of mind, followed by an impulse -to do something. If the reader can keep his mind passive -enough, he may receive impressions, as in thought-transference; -anyway, it is advisable to wait for the impulse to -move and to do. The highest percentages of success always -follow.</p> - -<p>General directions for the cultivation of experimental -thought-transference and mind-reading given in these pages -are sufficiently specific, to be found thoroughly practical -by those who have put them into practice; and certainly -no harm, either mental or physical, can come to those who -are willing to give them a fair trial.</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_102">[102]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_VII">CHAPTER <abbr title="7">VII</abbr>.<br /><br /> -<span class="smcap">Spiritualism.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class="noindent"><span class="smcap">Any</span> reference to Spiritualism here must be very brief, -and, I am afraid, very incomplete. I will deal with the -subject in the light of the preceding chapters.</p> - -<p>It has been established on the clearest evidence that -thought-transference and reception between two nearly -harmonised or sympathetic human beings, or embodied -human spirits, are possible, and this without intermediate -sense or physical agencies. If, then, between mind and -mind on earth, distance or space being no obstacle, matter -no hindrance, why not between mind disincarnate—if we -can conceive of mind apart from the human brain and -organism—and mind incarnate? If not, why not?</p> - -<p>It seems to me very difficult, if we accept the first, to -reject the latter conclusion. If we accept the latter, we are -committed in the main to belief in Spiritualism, ancient and -modern. If we admit that it is possible for a disembodied -spirit to communicate with us in dream, vision, or, as in the -case of Miss Howett, have our hands influenced to write, or -that we see and converse with spirits, as in the case of Mary -Reynolds, we then admit, and accept in the main, the -essential features of what is known as Spiritualism. The -subject is not only interesting, but of vital importance; -therefore, I think, the fear of being called a “Spiritualist,” -or any other name, should not prevent us sounding to the -depths, the psychic possibilities of our human nature.</p> - - -<h3>THE SPIRIT WITHIN US.</h3> - -<p>There is Spiritualism <em>and</em> Spiritualism. That which I am -most interested in is not so much a hankering after spirits, -“spirit controls,” and the phenomena, generally recognised<span class="pagenum" id="Page_103">[103]</span> -as the right thing in certain circles, as that other Spiritualism -which leads to an honest endeavour on our parts to ascertain -if we are spirits, here and now, albeit clothed for the time -being in an organic envelope, relating us to our present -estate.</p> - -<p>If we are embodied spirits, it will be possible for the -spirit-man (the essential self—<i lang="la" xml:lang="la">ego</i>, I am), in each human -being to communicate at times, and under certain fitting -conditions, with other fellow-beings, under such circumstances, -and in such a way, as to make it clear:—</p> - -<p>(<i>a.</i>) That the communications could not have been transmitted -and received by the ordinary channels, or physical -sense organs, which in ordinary circumstances appear essential -to our exchange of thought.</p> - -<p>(<i>b.</i>) That the exchange of thought, in independence of the -ordinary sense channels, will demonstrate that man must -possess other, extraordinary or psychic, organs for the transmission -and the reception of thought.</p> - -<p>Both positions I have endeavoured to sustain on the foregoing -pages; and, lastly, concerning spiritualism, I have -arrived at the profound conclusion that spirit-communion—that -is, thought transmission from the disembodied to the -embodied—is a solemn fact. After carefully eliminating all -the possibilities of self-deception—auto-trance, discreet degrees -of consciousness, of natural and acquired clairvoyance, -of thought-transference and mind-reading, and lastly, the -puerile performances of conjurors and the simulated phenomena -of tricksters—there remains evidence of disembodied or -disincarnate spirit, and of such control influencing and -directing the actions of men, just as one man in this life -influences and directs the actions of another.</p> - -<p>What I esteem, however, as satisfactory evidence might -not be evidence to another; and I for one do not think it -necessary to open up the life chambers of my psychic<span class="pagenum" id="Page_104">[104]</span> -experiences to the indifferent, the thoughtless, or the sceptic, -to furnish the desired evidence. Others must travel by the -way I have come to understand something of that way. All -men cannot believe alike, hence it will not be surprising that -some will accept as sufficient evidence of spirit what others -would deem insufficient.</p> - -<p>It is not my intention meantime to advocate spiritualism. -I only refer to it, in so far as it is related to “How to -Thought-Read.” However, phenomenal spiritualism is not -a matter of belief so much as of evidence, and many eminent -thinkers have been compelled by the force of the evidence -to accept spiritualism now, who, a quarter of a century ago, -would have hesitated, principally through fear of ridicule, to -speak of the subject in language of ordinary civility.</p> - -<p>While I am convinced that such communications between -the so-called dead and the living are possible, I do know and -feel satisfied that much which is accepted as evidence of the -existence and influence of spirits by the majority of the unthinking -and excitable crowd who rush after novelties, and -perchance call themselves “spiritualists,” is traceable to -no other or higher source than our own innate, but little -understood, human or psychic powers. I have arrived at -this conclusion also, as the result of carefully investigating -spiritualism, and it is therefore not an <i lang="la" xml:lang="la">a priori</i> hypothesis -conveniently elaborated from my own or borrowed from the -brains of others who are opponents to spiritualism. It is -probable, had I not devoted the greater part of my life to -spiritualism, as one of the factors in human character, I -should have known but little of that sympathetic transference -of thought from one mind to another, or of the light -which that fact throws upon our dual or compound existence.</p> - -<p>In this “sympathetic transference of thought” we find a -solution to the problem of spiritualism, whether old or new. -I conclude, with Buffon, “The true springs of our organisation<span class="pagenum" id="Page_105">[105]</span> -are <em>not</em> these muscles, these veins, these arteries, which -are described with so much exactness and care. There exist -in organised bodies <em>internal forces</em> which do not follow the -gross mechanical laws we imagine, and to which we would -reduce everything.” Or, as Laplace puts it more strongly—“Beyond -the limits of this visible anatomy commences -another anatomy, whose phenomena we cannot perceive; -beyond the limits of this external physiology of forces, of -action, and of motion, exists another <em>invisible physiology, -whose principles, effects, and laws are of the greatest importance -to know</em>.”</p> - -<p>It may be esteemed reprehensible to “seek communion -with the dead;” but to know ourselves, to fathom this -<em>invisible physiology</em>, whose principles, effects, and laws are -of such importance to understand, I hold to be not only -legitimate but perfectly laudable. How can we serve God, -whom we have not seen, if we do not understand ourselves, -whom we think we have seen, or the laws which govern -our being, as created by him? To know ourselves as we -should, we ought not to neglect the search for “the spirit -within us.”</p> - - -<h3>THE REJECTION OF THE PSYCHIC.</h3> - -<p>Many persons—scientific, theological, learned, and illiterate—reject -the psychic, and refrain from investigating, either -from constitutional bias or from crass ignorance; and such -have played the part of learned Sadducees or low fellows of -the baser sort before anything having the remotest flavour of -spirit. The man of science is rendered purblind by “my -hypothesis,” the theologian by “my belief,” the man of the -world by “my business” or “my position.” The respectable -church-goer—who vaccinates his children, as he has them -baptised, because it is the proper thing to do—has neither -head nor heart, apparently, to understand anything beyond<span class="pagenum" id="Page_106">[106]</span> -the common ideas of the hour. He would crucify all new -thought, or new spiritualism for that matter, as the Jews did -Jesus, because the new doctrines promulgated and the new -wonders performed tend to subvert the present respectable -order of things.</p> - -<p>The worship of Diana is not confined to ancient Ephesus. -The great Diana of old was the type of that “Respectable -Custom” which the majority of mankind worship and obey -to-day, because, as of yore, it conserves their vested interests, -official connections, and brings them “much gain.” As for -the man in the street—the multitude having no shepherd—he -is always more or less hypnotised by the well-clad and well-fed, -smug-faced worshippers of the aforesaid “Respectable -Custom;” hence he is ever ready to shout “Crucify,” or -“Hurrah,” or aught else he is influenced to do, especially if -such exercises give him pleasure and excitement for the time -being. He accepts or rejects as he sees “his betters” think -best, and so, unfortunately, is unfitted to a large degree, for -the intelligent investigation of his own nature. These form -the largest group of rejectors of the phenomenal evidences -of soul.</p> - -<p>The psychic, however, has suffered less from such rejectors -than from those who claim to be recognised and known as -converts and exponents of the same, who at best have only -shown themselves to be “seekers after a sign.” They may -have run into the wilderness and have had a bit of miraculous -bread, and yet not be a pennyworth the better of it in either -soul or body—<i lang="la" xml:lang="la">i.e.</i>, life or conduct. These, by their foolishness, -have prevented many well-meaning and otherwise -able persons investigating the psychic, for the latter saw -nothing in the lives of professed spiritualists to make them -desire to have anything to do with spiritualism. Moreover, -coming in contact with the iconoclastic in spiritualism, they -have become disgusted with the crude and the coarse therein,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_107">[107]</span> -as they have with the revelations, inspirations, and fads, -advocated by certain mediums, and hence have rejected the -wheat because of the apparent great quantity of tares.</p> - - -<h3>THE FRAUDULENT IN SPIRITUALISM.</h3> - -<p>I am afraid the trend of modern civilisation, which leads -men from the beauties and quietude of hill and dale, of -valley and river side, into crowded city life, has tended to -make men exoteric. They run after signs and wonders without, -and too little to the spirit within. The broader view of -being, and that self-culture and purity which arises from -the exercise of man’s innate powers, and makes for true -regeneration and spiritual progress, here and hereafter, -have been more or less sacrificed to the external and the -phenomenal.</p> - -<p>The love of the phenomenal, in and out of Spiritualism, -has created a crowd of harpies, impostors, or fraudulent -mediums—male and female—who trade on human credulity, -some to earn a pittance, and others to gratify vanity. Men -and women have been known to risk reputation for both. -In this way Spiritualism has its quota of deceivers and -deceived.</p> - -<p>There are some people who must have phenomena, just -as there are other people who will have sermons. If they -don’t get exactly what they want, they withdraw “their -patronage”—the finances. So, if the patronage is to be -retained, phenomena and sermons have to be supplied—if -the first are fraudulent or the latter stolen.</p> - -<p>Seeing how fugitive real psychological phenomena are—natural -or induced—one must necessarily hesitate to accept -“trance addresses,” “inspirational orations,” “medical -controls,” clairvoyant, and second-sight exhibitions, which -are supplied to order, to gratify patrons, at so much per -hour. It is human to err, but the manufacturer of spurious<span class="pagenum" id="Page_108">[108]</span> -phenomena, the impostor who trades on the ties, and the -dearest of human affections, is a devil. There is no iniquity -too low—earthly or devilish—to which he will not as readily -descend to gratify his vampirish nature.</p> - -<p>I am not disposed to accept the infallibility of spirits for -that of Popes—large or small—or professional media, in -place of professional priests and ministers, and there is by -far too much of this in Spiritualism.</p> - -<p>In the foregoing connection, I must refer to another -source of error—this time, however, more related to physical -rather than psychic phenomena—viz., the credulity of those -who are disposed to believe that certain conjurors are -aided in their performances by spirit agency. Personally, I -would sooner believe that mediums for “Physical Phenomena” -resorted to conjuring to aid “spirits,” than believe -that “spirits” resorted to “hanky-panky” to aid conjurors. -No wonder “frauds” smile. Years ago I had to protest -against this absurdity, when people—who ought to know -better—talked this kind of nonsense about conjurors, as -they do about certain fraudulent mediums now—viz., “they -are aided by spirits.” Owing to this lack of discrimination -and want of trained discernment in Spiritualists and the -general public, mediumistic frauds have fooled, to their -utmost bent, fresh groups of dupes at home and abroad.</p> - -<p>I am none the less disposed to accept the genuine, because -we recognise sources of error connected therewith, and are -determined to set our faces against palpable frauds.</p> - - -<h3>SPIRITUALISM WITHOUT SPIRITS.</h3> - -<p>We may now turn from the wretched arena of imposture, -duplicity, and credulity, to genuine, but little understood, -phenomena in Spiritualism. We have seen that much which -has been attributed to the agency of disembodied spirits is -due, in many instances, to the action of man’s own psychic<span class="pagenum" id="Page_109">[109]</span> -states, “the double, who is wiser than we,” and to the fact -that, as often as not, trance states, automatic and planchette -writing, are self-induced conditions. Equally so, clairvoyance, -thought-transference, and psychometry do not require -the “agency of spirit” to account for their existence as -“gifts,” qualities or powers. It will be time enough to -admit such agency—that of disembodied spirit—when the -evidence in each particular case is reasonably conclusive. -I think this is the only wise and safe course to pursue.</p> - -<p>Clairvoyance may be native or induced, self-cultivated or -cultivated by aid of a mesmerist. As it has been exercised -naturally, and without any such aid, the exhibition of clairvoyance—in -itself—is no evidence of disembodied spirit-presence -or control. Equally, the seeing of, and the describing -of, spirits by a clairvoyant—even if the descriptions -are apparently accurate—may present no evidence of the -real presence of such spirits. I do not deny that clairvoyants -can see spirits, but the mere fact of being able to -see and describe spirits, is not sufficient evidence—the <em>seer</em> -is controlled by spirit-power to see, or that the spirits -described are actually <i lang="la" xml:lang="la">bona-fide</i> spirits. Frequently, so-called -spirits have no other existence than the image of them -possessed by some positive-minded individual. A clairvoyant, -<em>perceiving</em> these images, might naturally enough -conclude she was actually seeing the spirits which she -described.</p> - -<p>If Mr. Stead, for instance, is convinced that “Sister -Dora,” “Cardinal Manning,” or “Lord Tennyson,” are -at his side, in his rooms, influencing and directing his mind, -or at other times actually controlling his arm and hand to -write, a clairvoyant in sympathy with him may describe this -or that other spirit he is <em>thinking</em> about. But that does not -prove the spirit or spirits are actually present.</p> - -<p>A lady (Mrs. Davis), whose name has come prominently<span class="pagenum" id="Page_110">[110]</span> -before the public as Mr. Stead’s clairvoyante, being -questioned as to Mr. Stead’s automatic writing and her -own gift, said:—“I know probably more about that than -anyone. I was in his office some time in the beginning of -December last regarding the forthcoming publication of a -book of mine concerning spiritualism. The conversation -turned upon spiritualistic automatic handwriting. I did not -know the deceased lady who was writing through him, but I -saw her behind his chair as distinctly as if she had been in -the flesh. I described her position as she stood and her -appearance. She at once wrote through Mr. Stead’s hand -confirming all I had stated concerning her in my description. -Mr. Stead’s hand continued to write. I knew afterwards it -wrote out a message stating that another spirit was in the -room. Mr. Stead asked me if I could describe that spirit. -I had to wait some little time before I detected it, and there -I recognised as in the flesh a very famous personage recently -dead, whose loss was mourned all the world over in prose -and verse. I carefully described the spirit as he appeared -to me, and then Mr. Stead said I was right. But, I -answered, I see another male spirit. Ask the deceased -lady who is writing through you to write the name of the -last spirit. Mr. Stead’s hand automatically moved, and he -wrote the name of a son of the famous personage already -alluded to.” Mrs. Davis says she has been strongly impressed -with the fact that Mr. Stead has been selected by -the spirits as their champion from the peculiar and unique -position he occupies in the journalistic world, and he will be -the agent who will break through the solid walls of bigotry -and prejudice. Mr. Stead may or may not have written -under spirit influence, and this lady may or may not have -seen spirits as described. We must not conclude in the -latter case that Mr. Stead and his “trustworthy clairvoyante” -are stating anything they do not believe to be true. I believe<span class="pagenum" id="Page_111">[111]</span> -she saw, as described or thought of by Mr. Stead, a “deceased -lady;” and that she also saw, as equally thought by him, “a -very famous personage recently dead;” also “another male -spirit,” whose name she did not know until Mr. Stead -wrote the name. This narrative, however interesting as to -automatic writing and spirit agency in the opinions of those -concerned, conveys no tangible evidence of either the one or -the other. To us it is interesting in the fact that Mrs. Davis -<em>saw the spirits thought of by Mr. Stead</em>. We must think -twice before we can accept this as evidence of spirits and -spirit-presence. Although it is possible those concerned -have evidence, we have not. We have, however, evidence -here of thought-transmission and psychic impressionability.</p> - -<p>When we read of persons who have been raised up, as -mediums of St. Peter, St. Paul, or St. John, or a publishing -company being run by Shakespeare through a special -medium, and worked by a syndicate of Spiritualists, I think -we are entitled to doubt these claims, even though a dozen -clairvoyants vouched for the existence and presence of the -aforesaid spirits.</p> - -<p>Psychometry furnishes evidence that many so-called spirits -are not spirits “at all, at all”—only visions of the originals; -and the fact that such and such an individual has been accurately -described—actions and manners carefully indicated—and -this has been and is accurately done in health and disease -daily—is no evidence, in itself, that psychometers have -seen spirits. Thus, when a psychometer places a geological -specimen to his forehead, and describes an “antediluvian -monster,” roaring and walking about, no one but a very -shallow individual would imagine for a second the psychometer -was actually seeing the original. So many of the spirits -and spectres seen do not proceed from our own brains, but -from objects, relics, and old houses, which had been in times -past impinged by the living presence and magnetism of the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_112">[112]</span> -originals. Then we must take into consideration those -spectres which proceed from our own brains, such as the -realistic images which are sometimes projected from the -background of consciousness to our eyes and ears. Many -so-called spirits are simply the product of diseased neurological -conditions, in short, hallucinations, which arise from -some derangement of the optic and auditory centres. The -spectres seen by Nicolai gradually disappeared as he lost -blood, as the prescribed leeches tranquilised his system. -We have no reason to believe the spectres he saw, visions -and what not, were actually either spirits or produced by -spirits.</p> - - -<h3>MIND-READING IN SPIRITUALISM</h3> - -<p class="noindent">is the commonest of most common experiences. I have -known mediums to graphically describe scenes, persons, and -incidents with such vividness as to impress one they must be -controlled by spirits intimately acquainted with the whole -circumstances which were revealed. Closer examination -indicates that all the information so given by these mediums -was based on the thought-read phase. That is, the information -was culled from the minds of spirits in the flesh, and -did not come from disembodied sources.</p> - -<p>Some years ago I attended a series of seances in Liverpool. -Nearly all the family were mediums of some sort. I was at -this time very enthusiastic in my investigations. Consequently, -the following incident was not lost upon me. One -evening the circle met, with the usual members. Shortly -after the circle was formed, the daughter of the house went -into the trance state. There were several controls, one of -whom professed to be a man who, the day before, had been -injured on board one of Lambert & Holt’s steamers, which -lay in the Bramley Moore Dock. The “spirit” described -the accident, how he was injured, and that he was carried<span class="pagenum" id="Page_113">[113]</span> -to the hospital, and had “passed away.” Owing to the -suddenness of his death, he wished us to communicate with -his family, and desired the circle to pray for him, etc. As -near as I can recollect, when asked for further particulars, -name, family, there was no definite reply. The medium -quivered, and a new control had taken possession of her. I, -however, neither doubted the <i lang="la" xml:lang="la">bona-fides</i> of the spirit nor the -medium. I was especially interested in this control. I -thought this time I had obtained a test of spirit identity. -But alas for the imperfection of human hopes, I was doomed -to disappointment. I clung to the idea the spirit would -come back again, and when he got “more power,” we -would get the particulars he wanted to give us. He did -not come back—and no wonder. Four months subsequently, -I met the real Simon Pure in the flesh.</p> - -<p>To explain more fully: On the day previous to the seance -mentioned, I was on board the newly-arrived steamer in -question. The lumpers were getting out the cargo. This -man had been working on the top of the cargo in the main -hold “hooking on.” I paid no particular attention at the -time to him, but an hour after I heard a great outcry, -and saw a rush of men to the main hold. When I -turned back and got there, I found this man senseless and -bleeding.</p> - -<p>The hooks had slipped off a bale while easing out some -cargo. One of them had caught the poor fellow in the -mouth, and had torn up his cheek almost to the right ear. -He was to all appearance dying. I temporarily dressed his -face, and the stevedore had him put on a stretcher and sent -to the hospital. <em>I did not know his name or the hospital to -which he was removed.</em> That day and the next the whole -scene was vividly impressed on my mind. Hence that night -the circumstances at the seance seem to me to be quite -natural. Everything advanced was wonderfully apposite<span class="pagenum" id="Page_114">[114]</span> -and convincing. It was not till I saw the man, and conversed -with him, that my so-called test of spirit identity -resolved itself into so much thought or mind reading, so that, -even presuming the medium or sensitive was controlled by -“a spirit,” there can be no doubt the source of the spirit’s -information was purely mundane.</p> - - -<h3>AUTOMATIC AND PLANCHETTE WRITING,</h3> - -<p class="noindent">upon which so much reliance is placed, as furnishing evidence -of “disembodied spirit control,” presents similar difficulties. -The recording of forgotten incidents, and predicting possibilities -in the future, are not beyond the powers of the innate -human spirit—wholly and utterly unaided by spirit agency. -Therefore automatic writing—when genuine—does not -necessarily furnish evidence of spirit control, not even when -the person who writes believes, and honestly believes too, he -is so controlled to write.</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_115">[115]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_VIII">CHAPTER <abbr title="8">VIII</abbr>.<br /><br /> -<span class="smcap">Spiritualism.</span>—<i>Continued.</i></h2> -</div> - -<p class="noindent"><span class="smcap">Automatic</span> writing is a phase of phenomenal Spiritualism -most difficult to prove. In the majority of cases we are -reduced to the awkward position of accepting or rejecting -the assertions of the persons who declare that the writing -done by them is automatic—that is, written without thought -and volition on their part. A close examination of this -claim may lead to the conclusion that automatic writing is -not impossible. Whether the controlling agent is “the spirit -within us,” or a disembodied spirit, or both, is not a matter -of much importance, if it is established, the writing is -automatic. When messages are written without volition, in -the handwriting of deceased persons, signed by their names, -such messages must be treated on their merits. I have seen -messages written in this way. I have seen messages -written, not only automatically, but <em>direct</em>. Some were -written the reverse way, and could only be read by holding -up to the light or to a mirror. The direct writing was done -in an exceedingly short time, two or three hundred words -in less time than an expert phonographer could write the -same by the most expeditious efforts. The evidence in -favour of telepathic writing is not very strong, but of <em>direct</em> -writing there appears to be abundant proof.</p> - -<p>Dr. Nichols, in his fascinating work, “Forty Years of -American Life,” writes:—“I knew a Methodist sailor in -New York, a simple, illiterate, earnest man, who became -what is called a test medium. He came to see me in -Cincinnati, and one evening we had also as visitors two -distinguished lawyers: one of them a brother of Major -Anderson, “the hero of Fort Sumter;” the other, a gentleman -from Michigan, and one of the ablest lawyers practising<span class="pagenum" id="Page_116">[116]</span> -in the Supreme Court of the United States. I had brought -into the drawing-room a heavy walnut table, and placed it -in the centre of the room. The medium sat down on one -side of it, and the sharp Michigan lawyer, who was a -stranger to us and the medium, on the other. The medium -placed his fingers lightly upon the table. It tilted up under -them, the two legs nearest him rising several inches. The -lawyer examined the table, and tried to give it a similar -movement, but without success. There was a force and a -consequent movement he could not account for. There was -no other person near the table, there was no perceptible -muscular movement, and in no way in which it could be -applied to produce the effect.</p> - -<p>“When there was no doubt on this point, the lawyer, at -the suggestion of the medium, wrote with careful secrecy on -five bits of paper—rolling each up like a pea as he wrote—the -names of five deceased persons whom he had known. -Then he rolled them about until he felt sure that no one -could tell one pellet from the other. Then, pointing to -them successively, the tipping table selected one, which the -gentleman, without opening, put in his waistcoat pocket, -and threw the rest into the fire.</p> - -<p>“The next step was to write the ages of these five persons -at their death, on as many bits of paper, which were folded -with the same care. One of these was selected, and again, -without being opened, deposited in the lawyer’s pocket, -which now contained a name and a number indicating age.</p> - -<p>“With the same precautions the lawyer then wrote, in -the same way, on bits of paper, the places where these -persons died, the diseases of which they died, and the dates -of their decease, going through the same process with each. -He had then in his pocket five little balls of paper, each -selected by a movement of the table, for which no one could -account.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_117">[117]</span></p> - -<p>“At this moment the hand of the medium seized a -pencil, and with singular rapidity dashed off a few lines, -addressed to the lawyer as from a near relative, and signed -with a name which the medium very certainly had never -heard.</p> - -<p>“The lawyer, very much astonished, took from his -pocket the five paper balls, unrolled them, spread them -before him on the table, and read the same name as the -one on the written message, with the person’s age, the place -and time of death, and the disease of which he died. They -all corresponded with each other and the message. No -person had approached the table, and neither lawyer nor -medium had moved. It was in my own house, under a -full gas light, and, so far as I could see, or can see -now, no deception was possible.</p> - -<p>“The written communication, which purported to come -from a deceased relative of the gentleman only expressed, in -affectionate terms, happiness at being able to give him this -evidence of immortality.”</p> - -<p>This incident is introduced here in illustration of one out -of many phases of mediumship known to spiritualists. We -see here both psychic and physical powers-exercised, not -generally recognised as possible. A massive table moved -without physical leverage or exertion, and “thoughts read,” -which formed the basis of the message. Trickery and -collusion in this instance are absolutely out of the question. -The only questions which remain to answer are: “Did -this medium possess in himself the powers referred to? or -did he possess them in consequence of being controlled by -a disembodied spirit, as claimed by the message?” Although -the message in itself did not contain evidence of any other -source of information than that emanating from the lawyer’s -own mind, we are forced to the conclusion that either the -medium or the spirit controlling the medium had power<span class="pagenum" id="Page_118">[118]</span> -to read his mind, and of exerting what Professor Crookes -and Sergeant Cox would call Psychic Force to move the -table, and indicate what pellets to select. We have here -evidence of an intelligence capable of exercising an unknown -force and of reading thoughts—that intelligence claimed to -be a human spirit.</p> - - -<h3>TRANCE ADDRESSES.</h3> - -<p>Trance and inspirational addresses, however, do not, in -my opinion, furnish much evidence of the reality of spirit -control. We are interested in the phenomena—taking for -granted that these trance and inspirational states are genuine—although -the evidence of external spirit control presented -is often <em>nil</em>. The controls may or may not be veritable -realities to their own mediums—professional or otherwise—but -this is of little value, as evidence, to the public. I have -known mediumistic and otherwise sensitive persons to be -controlled—<i lang="la" xml:lang="la">i.e.</i>, taken possession of by their reading. One -gentleman swallowed large doses of Theodore Parker. In -time he thought of Parker, talked of Parker, and finally -believed he was “inspired” by Theodore Parker. This -<a id="gentleman"></a><ins title="Original has 'gentlemen'">gentleman</ins> had been a Unitarian before being a Spiritualist, -and doubtless his mind had been broadened and brightened -by his course of Theodore Parker; but beyond his own belief -and the evident state of excitability he exhibited when -speaking under this supposed control, there was actually -no evidence of “spirit control” worthy of notice.</p> - -<p>Mrs. Cora L. V. Tappan-Richmond, an inspirational -medium, from America, delivered a series of remarkable -addresses in this country about twenty years ago. These -were published by J. Burns, of Southampton Row, Holborn, -W.C. A young gentleman from Brighton heard and read -the lectures, and finally budded forth as “an inspirational -speaker.” For a long time the public got nothing but the -Tappan lectures diluted. We had the same marvellous,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_119">[119]</span> -even flow, similar processes of reasoning, fertility of illustration, -and unbounded capacity for assertion. No one dare -say this person was not inspired by the spirits. It might -have been a way the spirits had of breaking in their -instrument, but I had a shrewd suspicion the young orator -was controlled by his reading. I don’t know how many -others have been influenced in this way. I have noticed when -a noted medium “came to town,” delivered a number of -addresses in public, or gave seances in private, immediately -thereafter a number of imitators professed—correctly or -otherwise—principally otherwise—to have been controlled -by the guides, who were supposed to control the medium -aforesaid, and that they would soon be able to give -addresses and manifestations, and what not. On the other -hand, the noted mediums averred “their guides never -controlled any other than themselves,” etc. The conscientious -investigator is left to wonder how much imitation, -vanity, and self-deception have to do with such statements.</p> - -<p>Some of the most perfect oratory, and some of the ablest -and most cogent lectures and addresses I have ever listened to -have been given by trance and inspirational mediums. It -was stated, as evidence of spirit control, by those who -professed to know, “that these mediums could not reason -and speak that way in their normal condition.” All of which -is worthy of consideration. At the same time I saw nothing -inherently impossible—judging from a physiological or -cerebral-physiognomic standpoint—to prevent these persons -delivering, unaided by spirit agency, the addresses referred -to. That a person speaks with greater ability, intelligence, or -fluency in the trance state compared with his known powers -in the waking state, cannot, alone, be accepted as proof of -spirit control. We have seen hypnotised subjects do the -same. But the reality, or otherwise, of spirit agency, cannot<span class="pagenum" id="Page_120">[120]</span> -be estimated by the superiority, or otherwise, of the addresses -and messages given.</p> - -<p>In all public meetings and in seances where a medium is -expected to give trance and inspirational addresses the -platform is “supported” or the chair surrounded by sympathisers, -whose presence is esteemed favourable to “good -conditions”—a “nebulous term” better understood by -Spiritualists than the public. When the address is, as is -often the case, a miserable jumble of things inconsequential, -old, experienced Spiritualists say it is owing “to bad conditions,” -<i lang="la" xml:lang="la">i.e.</i>, the influence of the audience on the speaker -being conflicting and bad, hence the inconclusive rambling -of the spirit’s oration. Whether this is the true explanation -or not, whether the medium was really controlled or not, or -the addresses successful or not, the fact remains that -Spiritualists admit that the “message” is not only “seriously -modified,” according to the channel (or medium) through -whom it is given, but that it may be deflected and distorted -by the influences of the audience to whom it is given. -Whatever the real cause of the imperfect oratory, what is -this but admitting <em>the thoughts transferred from the audience -to the sensitive either make or mar the utterance</em>? If spirit -utterance is thus influenced, it becomes a difficult matter to -decide how much of the original message has reached us as -intended, and how unwise it is for some to have their lives -directed by such uncertain counsel.</p> - -<p>There are many persons so organised, that when they come -in contact with Spiritualism, (not knowing anything about -clairvoyance, psychometry, thought-transference, thought-reading, -etc.) are so convinced by what they hear and see -for the first time—so much out of the ordinary run of their -experience—the only way they can account for the phenomena -is, “that they must be the work of spirits, for no -human being could tell what they knew, or what they wanted,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_121">[121]</span> -save a spirit who could read their thoughts.” This is just -where, I think, the error creeps in. Those very revelations -which they in ignorance so readily attribute as only possible -coming from disembodied spirits, may be and are in some -instances quite possible to man, unaided by any such agency.</p> - -<p>Many years ago I sat with Mr. David Duguid, the -Glasgow painting medium. I had a “direct spirit painting” -done. It was a correct—as far as I can recollect—painting -of a small farm-house and stead, in the North of Ireland, -where I as a child had been sent for my health. Neither Mr. -Duguid nor the control claimed to possess any actual knowledge -of me, or of the circumstances of my childhood. When -I had an opportunity of attending the seance in question, I -wondered if such a scene could be painted, and my wonder -was greater when it was done.</p> - -<p>Here again, we have evidence of thought-transference. -Whether Mr. Duguid, by some occult power, caused the -direct painting to be done—his own spirit doing it while his -body was in the trance state—or the painting was produced -by one of his controls, I am not prepared to state. I am -willing to state my belief that the painting was not done -by Duguid, the medium, or any other person present in -the room. One of the controls of the medium claimed to -have painted the little sketch, and, truth to tell, it is not -more difficult to accept this hypothesis than “the spirit of -the medium did it.” In our ordinary experience of human -nature, we do not find it usual for men to give credit to -others—men or spirits—for what they are capable of doing -and saying themselves.</p> - - -<h3>REFLECTIONS.</h3> - -<p>It is quite possible, seeing that out of this life into the -next, through the portals of death, pass all sorts and conditions -of human beings, that in the next stage of existence—most<span class="pagenum" id="Page_122">[122]</span> -closely allied to that in which we now live—mankind -are not essentially different in character from what we -find now. It is not, therefore, necessary to call in the -agency of demons, as distinct from human spirits, to account -for the phenomena of Spiritualism. If in artificial somnambulism -and the phenomena of the psychic state the operating -agent is an embodied human spirit, it is possible the same -human spirit, albeit disembodied, may still retain power to -control or influence other human beings.</p> - -<p>There is another and more serious matter for consideration, -concerning which our investigations of Spiritualism have -thrown little or no light—Spirit Identity. Not only do our -friends depart and never return, and many have promised to -do so. How far are we certain when spirits have returned? -We may have been deceived by our own impulsiveness, -anxiety, and desire to feel and to know that “they are not -lost but gone before.” Again, admitting the genuineness of -physical phenomena, and conceding that all the communications -are really made by disembodied spirits or intelligent -beings like unto ourselves, what proof do we possess that -they are really what they represent themselves to be, or -what they appear to be in spirit circles? “A bad or -mischievous spirit,” says Dr. Nichols, “may, for aught we -know, personate our friends, <em>penetrate our secrets</em>, and -deceive us with false representations.” This is certainly -worth thinking about. My object in writing is not to turn -my readers against Spiritualism, but to get them to bring -into the investigation judgment, not only to analyse evidence, -but the capacity to “judge not according to appearance, but -judge righteous judgment.” It is no part of my purpose to -deal with the history, ethics, or even the phenomena of -Spiritualism. That has been well done by others. I merely -write to show that Spiritualism “has something in it,” and is -of such importance that it is neither to be lightly rejected<span class="pagenum" id="Page_123">[123]</span> -on the one hand, nor are its phenomena at all times to be -attributed to agency of disembodied spirits.</p> - -<p>Spiritualism is a many-sided subject, and too vast in its -proportions to be dealt with here, and while I have no -doubt that its public mediumistic exponents are no more -perfect than the rest of humanity—much is laid at their door -which may have a basis on fact—yet I do think they often -suffer unjustly. Firstly, from the cries of the ignorant—educated -or otherwise, matters little—who charge them with -fraud, simply because such people are ignorant of the psychic -possibilities of man; and, secondly, from the admiring and -thoughtless many who are prepared to accept the commonest -of psychic phases instanter as evidence of “disembodied -spirit” presence and power. I have no doubt many -phenomena are quite explicable on natural grounds. Setting -aside the possibilities of self-deception in untrained observers, -and of fraud in dishonest mediums, and of genuine -phenomena traceable to the powers of the “spirit which is -within each of us,” there remains, to my mind, abundant -evidence of the existence of “discarnate spirit,” possessing -all the attributes of the human spirit, as we know ourselves -from the study of man as a psychological subject. -Unfortunately, the very best evidence in favour of both -“embodied” and “disembodied spirit” is not of that kind -which is available for publicity. Still, I hold, if there -is evidence (psychological and physical) for disembodied spirit -in Spiritualism, I am also satisfied there is abundant evidence -for embodied spirit in the psychological experiences of life, -apart from what we know of Spiritualism.</p> - -<p>I may fitly close these reflections by quoting the -testimony of that keen scientific observer anent phenomenal -Spiritualism—namely, Cromwell F. Varley, Esq., F.R.S:—“Twenty-five -years ago I was a hard-headed unbeliever.... -Spiritual phenomena, however, suddenly and quite<span class="pagenum" id="Page_124">[124]</span> -unexpectedly was soon after developed in my own family.... -This led me to inquire, and to try numerous experiments -in such a way as to preclude, as much as circumstances -would permit, the possibility of trickery and self-deception.”... -He then details various phases of the phenomena -which had come within the range of his personal experience, -and continues:—“Other and curious phenomena had -occurred, proving the existence (<i>a</i>) of forces unknown to -science; (<i>b</i>) <em>the power of instantly reading my thoughts</em>; (<i>c</i>) -the presence of some intelligence or intelligences controlling -those powers.... That the phenomena occur there -is overwhelming evidence, and it is too late to deny their -existence.”</p> - -<p>The Bibliography of Spiritualism is somewhat extensive. -What books are best to recommend to beginners is not -an easy matter to decide. “The Use of Spiritualism,” by -the late S. C. Hall, F.S.A.,<a id="FNanchor_7" href="#Footnote_7" class="fnanchor">[G]</a> however, will repay perusal, -and from the intellectual fitness, high moral tone, and spotless -reputation of the author, this book may be safely -recommended to all readers.</p> - - -<h3>THEOSOPHY.<a id="FNanchor_8" href="#Footnote_8" class="fnanchor">[H]</a></h3> - -<p>I have been frequently asked, What is Theosophy? A -question more easily asked than answered, and in answering -I may do even less justice to it than to Spiritualism. -Theosophy is an intellectual speculation, having for its main -object the supplanting of Christianity, by a Revised Version of -Hindoo Metempsychosis. An attempt to foist upon our -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_125">[125]</span>western ideas and exoteric habits of thought, the mysticisms -and esoteric speculations of the mystics of India and -Japan. Modern Spiritualism is not a religion. Theosophy -not only claims to be a religion, but to be “the essential -basis of all religions.” Modern Spiritualism may have its -faults, and be as imperfect as human souls are here or hereafter. -But we at least understand <a id="its"></a><ins title="Original has 'it'">its</ins> faults and defects. The -triple-crowned spiritual monarch—sitting on the seven hills -of Rome—is not more infallible than the principles which -underlie Theosophy—with its demi-gods, its Mahatmas, its -adepts, miracle workers and wonders. To not understand -and be able to accept these principles at once, is to proclaim -oneself an ignoramus. Theosophy is a strangely fascinating -religion for intellectual æsthetics.</p> - -<p>Spiritualism is at least susceptible of being observed and -investigated, and the hypothesis of Spiritualism is naturally -a reasonable deduction from the facts. Not so Theosophy, -which is merely a theory, an <i lang="la" xml:lang="la">a priori</i> assumption pleasing -to those with more reflective and imaginative powers than -capacity for practical observation. Spiritualism has given -facts to be examined and tested, Theosophy nothing save -gigantic and baseless assertions. Its <em>astral shells</em> and -<em>elementals</em> are like its <i>Mahatmas</i>, flimsy phantasies, less -tangible than the ghost seen and described by Dr. Jessop, -or visions of the <em>shade of shades</em>, seen by psychometers. -For these latter we have at least a basis in psychic -phenomena.</p> - -<p><em>Re-incarnation</em> is the back bone of Theosophy, and -Karma its necessary adjunct. The <i>Kismet</i> of Mahomet and -the doctrines of election of <a id="Calvinism"></a><ins title="Original has 'Calvanism'">Calvinism</ins> are not more -inexorable than the <i>Karma</i> of Theosophy. <i>Karma</i> is a -combination of earthly experiences and expiations of the -soul of man in time, during its everlasting process of -incarnating and re-incarnating in search of Wisdom, the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_126">[126]</span> -Eternal Reality, and the final extinction of all <em>individuality</em> -in the Nirvana. <i><a id="Devachan"></a><ins title="Original has 'Devachian'">Devachan</ins></i> is the intermediate state of -oblivion, in which <em>personality</em> is blotted out, and into which -the spiritual soul, etc., enters between the periods of -incarnation.</p> - -<p>Theosophy—the Wisdom of God religion—attempts to -explain all the inequalities of life, the intellectual and moral -differences in men, of sin and suffering, by its working -theory, <em>Re-incarnation</em>, which doubtless has many attractive -features.</p> - -<p>The phenomena Theosophists place so much reliance upon -are the property of mankind—somnambulism, psychic consciousness, -clairvoyance, psychometry, thought-transference, -etc. The “Theosophic miracles of communication with -persons in other parts of the world” are explicable by -thought-transference, and in time may be no more inherently -impossible than telegraphy without wires and poles. -The physical wonders of Theosophy, akin to those of -Spiritualism, are attributed to <em>shells</em>, the <em>astral</em> carcases of -once embodied but now rapidly dissolving <em>personality</em> of -man, and <em>elementals</em>, fragmentary spirit imps or sprites, -who up to the present have not been as yet incorporated -in some incarnated human soul.</p> - -<p>As to the ethics of Theosophy, brotherly kindness, charity, -and self-sacrifice—most desirable virtues and <em>divine</em> attainments—are -neither new nor the special property of -Theosophy. Such <em>divine</em> qualities and virtues are common -to all religions and religious teaching, and if they ever -reached their climax in human form, they did in the person -of Jesus, the Lord’s Christ. He was the embodiment of -these, and a living example for all time, long, long before -unthinkable and “ungetatable” Mahatmas were announced -by Madame Blavatsky, or believed in by Mrs. Besant.</p> - -<p>Theosophists recognise seven distinct parts in man, <i lang="la" xml:lang="la">i.e.</i>,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_127">[127]</span> -four transitory and three eternal. The transitory elements -are—the physical body, the vital principle, the <em>astral body</em>, -and the <em>animal soul</em>. These four comprise man’s <em>personality</em>, -and being transitory are perishable. Hence the <em>personality</em> -of man is annihilated at death. The three eternal elements -are—the <em>spirit</em>, the <em>spiritual soul</em>, and the <em>mind</em>. These -being imperishable form man’s <em>individuality</em>, and constitute -the immortal part of man. This immortal part <em>incarnates</em> -and <em>re-incarnates</em> throughout innumerable personalities on this -globe, and the rest of the planets, beside having alternate -periods of “rosy slumber” and of activity. Our <em>individuality</em> -has no sex, consequently we may be a little negro -wench in one incarnation, an Egyptian monarch in another, -a Nero in another, a John Knox in another, and so on. -Others may not progress, but sink from incarnation to incarnation, -from a mother in Israel, to a Deeming in Australia, -and, finally, to utter annihilation. Those good souls who -<em>live the life</em>, and perfect their souls through much suffering, -will become as one with “the Eternal Reality, the Rootless -Root of all that was, or is, or ever shall be.” The -higher and ever advancing Theosophist may, however, -stop short before he reaches the Nirvana, and elect to -become a Mahatma, or great soul, and reside on this or -some other planet to exercise power and precipitate wisdom, -by letters and otherwise, to the world, through chosen -adepts. The good Theosophist in this world and the next -is surrounded by “thought-forms,” which influence him in -his upward career. The Spiritualist has his departed friends -for guides, and the Christian (Spiritualist) is comforted by -“messengers sent forth to minister to them that are heirs of -salvation.” I don’t know that “thought-forms” administering -counsel to a spirit having no <em>personality</em> is an improvement -on the old ideas.</p> - -<p>It is impossible to do justice to this Wisdom-Religion with<span class="pagenum" id="Page_128">[128]</span> -its orders, grades, and bewildering phraseology. It is a -fancy religion for the intellectual, without a personal God or -a personal soul. Its circles are masonic lodges for the rich. -In no sense is it a religion to meet the wants of man as -man, like that founded on the life and death of Jesus Christ. -I do not pretend to explain Theosophy, for the task is -beyond me. It is a religion intended for those who realise -they are divine sparks of the Rootless Root, and not for the -common people, who are incapable of understanding a -system of morals thus veiled in allegory, and illustrated by -signs and symbols. Amid the perplexities of many words, -we learn that Theosophy teaches what St. Paul indicates -as the divine order of morals by the words: “Whatsoever -a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” To work out one’s -own salvation is as old as the race. We may all be Theosophists -without knowing it, as we don’t know who we are, -what we were, or who we are going to be, such is <i>Karma</i>. -Spiritualism and Theosophy are only referred to here seeing -how largely the phenomena on which they are based, is -explained by “How to Thought-Read.”</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="footnotes"><h3>FOOTNOTES:</h3> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_1" href="#FNanchor_1" class="label">[A]</a> In this way evil habits, such as <a id="erotic"></a><ins title="Original has 'errotic'">erotic</ins> mania, opium eating, dipsomania, -etc., may be cured. When the strength of the vice and the -deterioration of the brain and body are such as to undermine the will of -the patient, hypnotism, properly employed, may be used and recognised -as a powerful and legitimate curative agent.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_2" href="#FNanchor_2" class="label">[B]</a> “Phrenological Annual,” 1892. Extract from article by Dr. Samuel -Eadon, M.D., M.A., LL.D. and Ph.D., etc., Aberdeen and Edinburgh -Universities.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_3" href="#FNanchor_3" class="label">[C]</a> “Spirits Before our Eyes,” page 215. By W. H. Harrison, 1879.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_4" href="#FNanchor_4" class="label">[D]</a> Dr. Joseph Rhodes Buchanan has been Dean and Professor in -several American universities. As far back as 1830 he was Professor of -Medicine in Transylvania University. In the year 1841 he made -several important discoveries in cerebral psychology, which he communicated -to the American and to the Edinburgh Phrenological -Journals. These discoveries are elaborated in his unique system of -Anthropology, and are published in his works—“Therapeutic Sarcognomy,” -“Psychometry,” “The Dawn of a New Civilisation,” “System -of Anthropology,” and “The New Education—which can be obtained -through my publishers, or direct from myself.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_5" href="#FNanchor_5" class="label">[E]</a> Thought (says Professor Houston) is accompanied by molecular -vibrations in the grey matter of the brain, and these brain molecules, -like everything else, are immersed in and interpenetrated by ether; this -being so, their vibrations must set up wave-motions in the ether, and -these must spread out from the brain in all directions. Further, these -brain-waves, or thought waves, being thus sent out into space, will -produce some phenomena, and, reasoning by analogy we may expect -that—as in the case of sound-waves—sympathetic vibrations will be set -up in bodies similar to that which generates the waves, if those bodies -are attuned to respond. Again, reasoning by analogy, we may expect—as -in electric resonance—that such oscillations would be set up as are -found when electric waves are sent out and, meeting a circuit in consonance -with them, set up in that circuit oscillations like their own.</p> - -<p>In view of these facts, which are well ascertained, he (Professor -Houston) considers that it does not seem improbable that a brain -engaged in intense thought should act as a centre for thought-radiation, -nor that these radiations, proceeding outwards in all directions, should -affect other brains on which they fall, provided that these other brains -are tuned to vibrate in unison with them.</p> - -<p>Light waves are etheric vibrations, and it would seem that these -brain-waves should “partake of the nature of light.” If so, why should -it not be possible to obtain, say, by means of a lens, a photographic -impression of them?</p> - -<p>Such a thought-record suitably employed might be able to awaken at -any subsequent time in the brain of a person submitting himself to its -influence thoughts identical to those recorded.—<cite>English Mechanic.</cite></p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_6" href="#FNanchor_6" class="label">[F]</a> The <em>contact</em> is usually made by the agent taking the wrist, or by -placing his hand on the brow of the reader.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_7" href="#FNanchor_7" class="label">[G]</a> “The Use of Spiritualism.” By S. C. Hall, F.S.A., late Editor of -the <cite>Art Journal</cite>, author of “The Retrospect of a Long Life,” etc. -Price, 1s., Post Free, 1s. 1d. Hay Nisbet & Co., London and Glasgow.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_8" href="#FNanchor_8" class="label">[H]</a> “What is Theosophy?” By Walter R. Old, F.T.S. Price, 1s., Post -Free, 1s. 2d., gives an excellent outline of this interesting subject. Hay -Nisbet & Co., London and Glasgow.</p> - -</div> -</div> - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="transnote"><h2>TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE</h2> - -<p>Footnotes have been moved to the end of the book.</p> - -<p>Most of the inconsistent hyphenation has been retained as in the -original, like ‘mind reading’ and ‘mind-reading’, ‘supersensitivity’ -and ‘super-sensitivity’, etc.</p> - -<p>Obvious punctuation errors have been silently corrected.</p> - -<p>Original spelling and grammar have been preserved except for the following:</p> - -<p>page 5: “the ordinary lauguage” changed to “the ordinary <a href="#language">language</a>”</p> - -<p>page 23: “render she sight” changed to “render <a href="#the">the</a> sight”</p> - -<p>page 29: “Stanhope, Macclesfield, Charlville” changed to “Stanhope, Macclesfield, <a href="#Charleville">Charleville</a>”</p> - -<p>page 29: “Camillie Flammarion” changed to “<a href="#Camille">Camille</a> Flammarion”</p> - -<p>page 29: “Dr. Jykell and Mr. Hyde” changed to “Dr. <a href="#Jekyll">Jekyll</a> and Mr. Hyde”</p> - -<p>page 30: “and discribed a funeral” changed to “and <a href="#described">described</a> a funeral”</p> - -<p>page 31: “s capable of” changed to “<a href="#is">is</a> capable of”</p> - -<p>page 42: “enter the first doo” changed to “enter the first <a href="#door">door</a>”</p> - -<p>page 45: “She can also indentify” changed to “She can also <a href="#identify">identify</a>”</p> - -<p>page 54: “why it hould not” changed to “why it <a href="#should">should</a> not”</p> - -<p>page 73: “from our own sensorums” changed to “from our own <a href="#sensoriums">sensoriums</a>”</p> - -<p>page 75: “following by like feelings” changed to “<a href="#followed">followed</a> by like feelings”</p> - -<p>page 77: “the brig in a dorry” changed to “the brig in a <a href="#dory1">dory</a>”</p> - -<p>page 77: “the dorry was again” changed to “the <a href="#dory2">dory</a> was again”</p> - -<p>page 79: “The coffin, at anyrate” changed to “The coffin, at <a href="#rate">any rate</a>”</p> - -<p>page 81: “happened her” changed to “happened <a href="#toher">to her</a>”</p> - -<p>page 84: “I notice a solitary” changed to “I <a href="#noticed">noticed</a> a solitary”</p> - -<p>page 118: “This gentlemen had” changed to “This <a href="#gentleman">gentleman</a> had”</p> - -<p>page 125: “understand it faults” changed to “understand <a href="#its">its</a> faults”</p> - -<p>page 125: “election of Calvanism” changed to “election of <a href="#Calvinism">Calvinism</a>”</p> - -<p>page 126: “Devachian is the intermediate” changed to “<a href="#Devachan">Devachan</a> is the intermediate”</p> - -<p>Footnote A: “such as errotic mania” changed to “such as <a href="#erotic">erotic</a> mania”</p></div> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HOW TO THOUGHT-READ ***</div> -<div style='text-align:left'> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will -be renamed. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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