HPB-SB-8-20

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vol. 8, p. 20

H. P. Blavatsky Scrapbooks

from Adyar archives of the International Theosophical Society

vol. 8 (September 1878 - September 1879)

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Spiritualism in Foreign Countries

By Emily Kislingbury

At the close of last year, M. Alexandre Aksakof, after having borne, single-handed, the cost of bringing out the German journal, Psychische Studien, during four years, in addition to the translation and publication of fourteen works on Spiritualism by the best English and American writers, signified his intention of withdrawing from the work of supplying Germany with a journal on a subject which had found so few supporters. Before the article setting forth M. Aksakof’s views, and giving a retrospect of his labours, with a farewell address to his readers, had appeared in print, the advent of Slade in Berlin, and his subsequent visit to Leipzig, completely changed the current of affairs, and a gentleman in Leipzig offered to share the burden of expense with M. Aksakof, if he would consent to continue the publication of Psychische Studien. To this M. Aksakof agreed, and his article of seventeen pages— “My Farewell Transformed into an Exhortatory Greeting”—is a kind of bugle call to Germany to aid in the work, of the reality and usefulness of which he gives, here and elsewhere, the history and the proof. In particular, he insists upon the necessity of personal experiment by means of private circles, and cites the case of Herr Gustav Wiese, in Wiesbaden, as an encouraging example, this gentleman having now all the same manifestations in his own circle, that he witnessed with Mr. Williams in London.

In the February number of the journal, some extracts are given from Professor Zollner’s new work, Wissenschaftliche Abhandlungen, which contains the account of that gentleman’s sittings with Dr. Slade. Professor Zollner passes in review the various theories of motion propounded from time to time by Sir William Thomson, Professor Tait, Maxwell, and the Edinburgh School, some of which he considers utterly wild and unprovable, and contrasting very unfavourably with the more sober German school of natural philosophers. He shows, nevertheless, that such men as Herschel and Newton, who were less arrogant on the score of their intellectual achievements than the scientific men of these days, did not attempt to solve all the mysteries of Nature’s working by the agency of blind force, and that those who took refuge in “a fortuitous concourse of atoms” theory were looked upon as of unsound mind. Professor Zollner proceeds to argue that impressions of sight are by no means more to be trusted or taken into account than the impressions due to other senses, and that all the senses on which our impressions of space are founded are capable, as some modern inventions—notably the telephone—go to prove, of indefinite and almost inconceivable expansion. The further development of these ideas, and their connection with certain experiments with Dr. Slade, of which Professor Zollner has been the first to show the high scjentific importance, will be given in succeeding numbers of Psychische Studien.

M. Aksakof also publishes the account of his first stance with Slade on his arrival in St. Petersburg. Having taken his own slates and pencil, and the words which he desired to have written, being actually written in his own hearing, and on the under side of the slate, M. Asakoff says: “Therefore the sentence was not written beforehand on Mr. Slade’s knees, nor afterwards on the upper side of the slate with his fingers.” Also, having himself broken off the crumb of pencil, and having observed that the point of the same was resting after the writing was finished on the last letter written, and that it was worn away in so writing: “Therefore the writing was not produced by a pencil applied by Slade, as Hermann and Co. (conjurors) are pleased to say. It is enough for me to say, at present, that I consider the phenomenon of direct writing, as exhibited by Mr. Slade, to be completely demonstrated—at least for me.” Reformirende Blatter is the title of a new monthly publication issued by the Buda-Pest Society, and which has taken the place of Reflexionen aus dev Geisterwelt, formerly published by the same society, and suspended about six months since. The Blatter consists entirely of commentaries on the Gospel of St. John, written through the mediumship of the Baroness Adelma von Yay. The name of this honoured lady and diligent worker in our cause is of itself a sufficient recommendation to readers, but the merits and beauty of this work appear to be above the average of her writings. She says: “Faith is an attracting, unbelief a repelling force; therefore, by faith the grace of God and Spiritual gifts are drawn to us, as by unbelief they remain far from us. This is a natural law, and not the effect of imagination. On this account unbelievers cannot receive Spiritual tests and signs, and therefore by virtue of this power which resides in faith, believers attract to themselves the greater number of Spiritual manifestations. Those full of material learning despise faith, and consider it the first step into intellectual darkness; yet it is the first condition of knowledge; it is the letter A, where knowledge is B; for before we can know positively, we have the impulse to believe. Only those can comprehend the power of faith who do not live wholly the material life, but who perceive the light of God, that is their own spirit, with an unclouded understanding; for how can that which is crooked conceive of that which is upright?”

It is to be hoped that the agitation produced by the German press in Berlin, Leipzig, Vienna, and elsewhere, on the subject of Slade’s manifestations, will not subside without leaving some lasting impression, and will lead to a practical investigation and pursuit of Spiritualism in all parts of Germany.

The Griterio Espiritista of January and February are before us. The January number contains a communication which purports to come from the spirit of the late Senor Palet, suggesting various alterations in the social, moral, and political customs of Europe. The article, by Don R. Caruana Berard, contains a popular account of the recent discoveries in practical telegraphy, such as the telephone and phonograph. The February number has for its first article one by Viscount Torres-Solanot, entitled “Espiritistas y Espiriteros” (Spiritists and Spirit-bringers), in which we think we recognise a new word in the second term. An article on “Spiritualism in Germany and Austria” is translated from Be Rots. The general news of the subject is as usual, collected with the greatest care.

The Revista Espiritista, of Monteviedo, for January, contains an article by a lady, Dona Amelia D. y Soler, on the subject of obsession, but named “Al fin lo conseguimos.” J. de E. contributes an article, entitled “Todo por la verdad” (All for truth). The paper is especially devoted to the ardent Reincarnationist platform, and indirectly alludes, in an article extracted from the Buen Sentiolo, of Lerida, to the Brahmanic conceptions of creation, preservation, and destruction, which the Parsees divide into action, word, and thought, and which the Spiritists term power, intelligence, and love. The Aquinatic conception of action to sin in cogitations, verbo, et opere, is that proved to have existed as a thinkable reality centuries before Christ. The trimurti of thought is thus coincident with the trimurti of mythology.

<Untitled> (Soiree of the National...)

Soiree of the National Association of Spiritualists.— At the soiree of the National Association of Spiritualists, held at 38, Great Russell-street, London, on Wednesday evening, last week, Mr. A. Calder, president of the association, read an address (which we published last Friday), giving a retrospect of Spiritualism during the past year. It was listened to with attention, and at the close elicited much applause. Dr. Peebles then spoke of the marked progress he had observed on his return to England in the matter of Spiritualist meetings, and the numbers who attended them. He felt that the knowledge of Spiritualism was much more wide-spread than when he gave his first lectures in the Cavendish Rooms, London, in the year 1869; he was glad of the establishment of such a body as the National Association. The rest of the evening was passed in music and conversation. Mr. R. Little gave some performances from Bach on the piano, and Mrs. Ellis sang with grace and true artistic skill Horace’s Ode to Chloe, set to music by Mr. R. Little. Miss Maltby played an arrangement of Schumann’s Peasant with great finish; and Miss Kislingbury sang the favourite song, The Flower Girl, by Prince Poniatovsky. The soiree was attended, amongst others, by Mrs. Fitz-Gerald, Mrs. Desmond Fitz-Gerald, and Miss Fitz-Gerald, Mr. and Miss Eno, Mr. and Miss Glendinning Mr. G. T. Bennett, Mrs. and Miss Maltby, Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Ellis, Mr. A. O’Shaughnessy, Mr. R. Little, Miss Houghton, Mr. E. D. Rogers, Dr. Carter Blake, Mr. G. R. Tapp, the Misses Corner, and Mr. Herbst, of Cape Town. Some highly-finished crayon drawings by Miss Maltby were exhibited; her portraits of Dr. Slade and Mr. R. Cogman excited much interest, and were pronounced to be excellent likenesses.

Answers to Correspondents

F. C. P.—Evidence of identity is of no use to the public, unless authenticated by the names and addresses of the testifiers. “Scrutator,” otherwise “M.A. (Cantab),” writes that his use of two signatures was not for any special purpose, and that any of the controversialists may privately have his name and address.

Editor's notes

Sources

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  London Spiritualist, No. 291, March 22, 1878, p. 144