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... | The “Religio-Philosophical Journal” of May 8th, to hand by last mail, contains the following narrative written by Mrs. E. C. Hyde, of Smithfield, Virginia: | ||
{{Style S-HPB SB. Continues on|10-354}} | As I see an occasional request in your paper for incidents of a spiritual nature, I have decided to send you a somewhat singular one which occurred some years ago at Petersburg, Va. A learned and very worthy gentleman, whom we will call Mr. A., had been educated for the ministry in a certain faith. Some years after entering upon his calling, he formed the acquaintance of a clergyman of another denomination. As their friendship ripened, Mr. A. became convinced that his was a wrong faith, and adopted that of the other. This led to a schism in the family—the wife and children adhering to the original faith, while the husband and father became an object of scorn, though never swerving from his new faith. | ||
Matters were in this disagreeable, unsettled state for several years, when a prominent wealthy lady of the neighbourhood died. Quite a strong friendship had existed between this lady and Mrs. A. Mr. A. and family attended the funeral, which occurred late in the afternoon. After returning home and taking the evening meal he retired, as was his custom, to his study for the purpose of reading. The book which he selected for the evening was Jung Stilling, in which he read until about eleven o’clock, when, lowering the book a moment to reflect upon a passage which he had just read, a loud knock resounded upon the outer door. He proceeded slowly to the door, intending to administer a severe rebuke to the person who had thus rudely disturbed him at so late an hour, but before he reached it a voice screamed, “Open the door this minute, or I’ll tear the house down!” Hastily throwing open the door he found “darkness there and nothing more.” Not a soul was visible, and utter silence reigned without. He closed the door and went back to his book, but had not read long when a cry of pain was heard in the nursery, and his little daughter, a child of seven or eight years, cried out, “Papa, some one is choking me.” He hastened to the bed and found the child nervous and excited as though she had been struggling with some one. Supposing her to have been the subject of nightmare, he placed her feet in a warm water bath, rubbed them dry, then returned her to bed and endeavoured to soothe her to sleep. As she still remained restless, he sent for a physician who pronounced her perfectly well, only nervous from a bad dream; gave her a mild sedative and said she would be all right in the morning. However, medical skill in this case as in so many others of a similar nature, proved of no avail. The child grew speedily worse and died in a day or two with no marked disease save nervousness, as the physician termed it. | |||
Not long after this, Mr. A. was again reading Jung Stilling at the same hour as before, when having reached the identical passage of the previous occasion, the same knock was heard and the same threat repeated. Again he opened the door and found nothing there. He returned to his book when a cry of pain was again heard in the nursery, and a second daughter complained that the little sister who had just died was choking her. The father applied the warm bath more thoroughly than before and sent for the physician, who again {{Style S-HPB SB. Continues on|10-354}} | |||
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Revision as of 11:32, 16 January 2026
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vol. title: vol. period: 1879-1880 pages in vol.: 577 |
< Religious Hostility to Spiritualism (continued from page 10-352) >
great deal of anti-Christian sentiment among Spiritualists is not the result of Spiritualistic teachings, but arises simply from the fact that Spiritualism is chiefly concerned in restoring the belief in soul to people who had lost that belief along with a prior rejection of Christianity. It cannot do more for them, and the emancipated intellect does not always return to the totality of a discarded faith on discovering that its negations have gone too far. Free thought is not the offspring of Spiritualism, though free-thinkers, being more deeply obliged to Spiritualism for its proofs, are likely always to figure more conspicuously in its ranks. Thus their opinions seem to give a tone to the movement which is not its essential significance. If orthodox Christianity is on the decline, as I believe it is, that is due to intellectual causes with which Spiritualism has no connexion. Our battle is against materialism, and materialism only. Other associations in sympathy with Spiritualism on this essential point, have other and further reaching aims, but these are not now in question. If the orthodox choose, as it seems they do, to join their forces with materialists in reviling the only agency that can deal effectually with the latter, that is their affair. But it is desirable that they should not do so under any excusable misapprehension of our pretensions or character.
Temple, 10th May.
An Uncomfortable Story
The “Religio-Philosophical Journal” of May 8th, to hand by last mail, contains the following narrative written by Mrs. E. C. Hyde, of Smithfield, Virginia:
As I see an occasional request in your paper for incidents of a spiritual nature, I have decided to send you a somewhat singular one which occurred some years ago at Petersburg, Va. A learned and very worthy gentleman, whom we will call Mr. A., had been educated for the ministry in a certain faith. Some years after entering upon his calling, he formed the acquaintance of a clergyman of another denomination. As their friendship ripened, Mr. A. became convinced that his was a wrong faith, and adopted that of the other. This led to a schism in the family—the wife and children adhering to the original faith, while the husband and father became an object of scorn, though never swerving from his new faith.
Matters were in this disagreeable, unsettled state for several years, when a prominent wealthy lady of the neighbourhood died. Quite a strong friendship had existed between this lady and Mrs. A. Mr. A. and family attended the funeral, which occurred late in the afternoon. After returning home and taking the evening meal he retired, as was his custom, to his study for the purpose of reading. The book which he selected for the evening was Jung Stilling, in which he read until about eleven o’clock, when, lowering the book a moment to reflect upon a passage which he had just read, a loud knock resounded upon the outer door. He proceeded slowly to the door, intending to administer a severe rebuke to the person who had thus rudely disturbed him at so late an hour, but before he reached it a voice screamed, “Open the door this minute, or I’ll tear the house down!” Hastily throwing open the door he found “darkness there and nothing more.” Not a soul was visible, and utter silence reigned without. He closed the door and went back to his book, but had not read long when a cry of pain was heard in the nursery, and his little daughter, a child of seven or eight years, cried out, “Papa, some one is choking me.” He hastened to the bed and found the child nervous and excited as though she had been struggling with some one. Supposing her to have been the subject of nightmare, he placed her feet in a warm water bath, rubbed them dry, then returned her to bed and endeavoured to soothe her to sleep. As she still remained restless, he sent for a physician who pronounced her perfectly well, only nervous from a bad dream; gave her a mild sedative and said she would be all right in the morning. However, medical skill in this case as in so many others of a similar nature, proved of no avail. The child grew speedily worse and died in a day or two with no marked disease save nervousness, as the physician termed it.
Not long after this, Mr. A. was again reading Jung Stilling at the same hour as before, when having reached the identical passage of the previous occasion, the same knock was heard and the same threat repeated. Again he opened the door and found nothing there. He returned to his book when a cry of pain was again heard in the nursery, and a second daughter complained that the little sister who had just died was choking her. The father applied the warm bath more thoroughly than before and sent for the physician, who again <... continues on page 10-354 >
Editor's notes
- ↑ An Uncomfortable Story by unknown author, London Spiritualist, No. 404, May 21, 1880, pp. 249-50
Sources
-
London Spiritualist, No. 404, May 21, 1880, pp. 249-50